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March-May I've been very lazy with the updates lately, just rarely on Fotki these days. But, I did get a new install (3/21), and DON'T really like this one as much as my first install. Seriously, everything about it is not too much to my liking- cut/style/hair placement. I was thinking of taking it down, but after all the money spent on it & the hair, I'm just trying to hold on. The positives about the weave: No pain whatsoever, no itchies, and feel very comfortable, at least I'm confident I won't have any breakage. Hair update: It's grown/thicker, but not as long as it was before the last final cuts where it was to my back, but it's getting there. Customers in the salon kept asking me why I was even wearing a weave, and why I didn't just perm or press it-that they would love to see the final results if it was permed, etc. *shrugs*. Note: I have a love/hate with my hair again and don't know what I'll do to it most times. Honestly, sometimes I think of perming it, yet I still can't see myself parting with my natural hair. However, time will determine what I do with it. So, for now, I'm sticking with the weaves, just don't know if I'll be able to muster the strength stick this one until May. Note: I remembered I had my camera and snuck to the bathroom to get some pics. Too bad all the back shots came out really dark--had a hard time trying to position the camera and getting the full length....next time:) Album was created 3 years 2 months ago and modified 3 years 2 months ago 20 comments 1 views 1 visitors 7 files view album | view roll | add to cart

Growing hair back to BSL and beyond. Oct-Dec08 Due to the trim I had at the salon on 9/25, I had lost 3-3.5 inches of hair. However, because my hair was still VERY uneven afterwards and was oh so obvious, I had to trim some more hair off on 9/4, (1 to 1.5 inches in some sections-maybe more depending on where it showed the hair wasn't showing an overall thickness). Hey, I figured the length was already lost, why not cut some more, so the hair could to grow out healthier, I just hate that I paid $45 for the trim and still ended doing my hair again in the end. I think I did a decent job evening things out some, but I may have to get my hair flat-ironed at some point to get a precision trim as I do want my hair to be nice, healthy and more even as it grows out-not sure if this is asking for more trouble, so I'm still contemplating on that. However now, I refuse to let anyone with scissors come next to my hair who claim to be able to trim my hair in its natural state-two not so great experiences by two different stylist shows this is a very difficult task to achieve. Sorry, but most stylist in my humble opinion do not understand the shrinkage factor of 4B hair in its natural state to trim/cut it- what might look like 1/2 an inch to them could be inches of hair being cut off. So, I think for now I'll rather have my hair flat-ironed on low heat or blow-dried to avoid further cutting disasters/noticeable varying hair legths. When I was a natural in college, my hair used to grow/still be in good condition (no heat damage) when I used to get a blow-dry/trim every 3-4 months, so I'm opting to start going that route again.I think I should be fine If I deep condition my hair beforehand/use heat protectants before seeing a stylist for a flat-iron, still don't know if this is a smart thing to do considering it was a blow I used to get and not flat-ironing which would be using more heat??? I have to say I miss my previous length a tad bit, and while I'm the first to admit some length needed to go because I don't like the look of thin ends (not so sure if so much needed to go initially). But, I have to say I'm happy that now I could comb my hair and not see hundreds of broken/dead ends all over the sink--so who knows (shrugs), maybe I did need the cut afterall. Nowadays, when touching my hair there's no feel of crunchy/knotty/unsightly ends whatsover. My hair feel the best it's felt in a long while (ends wise), so I'm a least happy in knowing that in time my hair will grow out healthier/longer *sighs*...I just have to figure out how to keep it moisturized which is always an issue. Routine-wise, I'll just continue doing what I'm doing and will get trims as necessary. I'm not one to mess with my hair/style it much my hair just frustrates me at times, not to mention I'm really lazy about doing my hair. In the meantime, I'll continue to remain mainly in very simple/ protective styles, and very few "out styles"...just too time-consuming when trying to manipulate my hair. I want to get my hair braided, but my edges are still too weak for individuals, I'm too scared to take the risk considering they are FINALLY starting to grow. Maybe getting small cornrows with very little hair added to mimic the more natural look might be a better alternative. Aya-yai, looks like I'm running out of space on Fotki-had to delete some pics. I'll have to create a second album soon I guess, "bostonsis1". ***Any tips/advice ladies is much appreciated esp. in helping me to keep my hair moisturized. 12/25-I took my kinky twist extensions out (only took about 4.5 hours w/ a friends help because they weren't small) and it grew a lot, and my edges were in tact. I'm really glad in knowing my hair is growing nicely again, thank goodness this time around, I was very vocal initially when I told the braider not to braid tight, and do not braid my edges--paid off:) Album was created 3 years 8 months ago and modified 3 years 5 months ago 52 comments 9 views 7 visitors 20 files view album | view roll | add to cart

January-March or April 2009 (Full Sew-in) Full sew-in weave. This is my second week with my full sew-in weave as of 1/17. On day three after getting my hair done, I made an appointment to see the stylist again. I had called her on day 2 to ask when I could expect the hair to start loosening because some areas were very uncomfortable/sore. I was told the tightness would be relieved anywhere from 3-5 days. However, unwilling to wait that long because of potential damages to my hair esp. along my hairline, I was sitting in the stylist chair that third day. When I went in for my head/sew-in to be inspected, turns out there were a couple of problematic threads that were causing the tightness and let me tell you, my scalp felt almost 100% better as soon as the irritating threads were cut. I knew all along the sew-in/threads were most likely the issue, I did tell the person who braided my hair not to do the braids tight which she did. I’m just glad as of the third day, I haven’t had any issues with my hair, scalp or the weave apart from the itchies…I have been enjoying my weave and sleeping well since. Note: I did tell the braider not to braid tightly from the beginning, but it was the sew-in part that started to cause the pain. I'm just glad I spoke up and got the problem corrected, I can now wear my weave w/o worrying much about it. Hopefully, all will be well when I take it down. Album was created 3 years 5 months ago and modified 3 years 5 months ago 4 comments 0 views 0 visitors 2 files view album | view roll | add to cart

July-September (unhappy about 3-3.5 inches trim on 9/25) For the month of July, I struggled immensely with my hair to keep it moisturized..I just can't seem to get it right. I think I may have had too much build-up/protein overload which I believe contributed to the severe dryness. Because of the very course feel of my hair, I find myself deep conditioning more-unfortunately, all the products while they did not have heavy-duty protein, the cumaltive effect may have been too much over time. What I've learned this month: - Sometimes it's better to just clarify from start and then properly moisturizing afterwards esp. when your hair is not responding to products the way it should. -My mixture of african pride and infusium works wonderfully when my hair's in braids- not so much, in my hair's natural twist. Maybe I'm doing something wrong, but I think my hair just gets too tangly when sprayed on in twists period. Then again, maybe it just didn't like the protein. -To avoid severe matting, I HAVE to properly detangle fron tips to ends because the roots get very, very tangly at times esp. in the sections in the back/lower mid-back where my coil pattern is tightest...the roots are seriously no joke. -When applying products, I have to break apart/part my hair in smaller sections so products could be distributed accordingly. -Paul Mitchell detangler is my best friend for major detangling, suave coconut couldn't even come close. This is the BEST detangler I've used so far-a little really goes a long way, all I had to do was wet my hair on the small section I was working on, apply the product and detangle. I'm so glad I bought this as I knew I would need some heavy-duty stuff before even attempting to touch my hair which was sooo brittle, dry, and hard. very few products work on my texture, so I'm always glad when I could recommend one :) 8/3 What did help because my hair was feeling very plasticy (too much build-up) and I knew I needed to have a good detangling session : shampooing my hair with a sulfate shampoo (Tresemme) to remove build-up after detangling first w/ Paul Mitchell . This shampoo left my hair incredibly hard-works just like a clarifier to me. I just might have to stick with my Global Balance sulfate-free shampoo which doesn't leave my nowhere near as stripped. Then, I made my own conditioner mix when I think went well considering how HARD my hair was after shampooing. The mix: About 1 TBS ea of castor oil, 11/2 TBS of shea butter-maybe more, glycerine, molasses, 1 Hass Avocado, coconut cream (will not be using that particular brand again, left some tiny white grains on my hair. But overall, I was please with the softness of my hair after my conditioner. I'm going to try using less products because I seriously need to increase the moisture level to limit severe hair dryness, breakage, knotty ends, matted hair, ect. I think my hair is somewhat healthy, but after paying careful attention to my hair, I did notice some breakage in some areas (don't know how):( I just really need to find a good balance between protein/moisture, but I think moisture for me is key and I've always suffered with keeping it in that condition. So, the saga continues with keeping my hair moisturized. However, because I have an idea what has worked/working, I anticipate my next deep conditioning session w/ moisture products only will be much better *sighs*. 9/25 I knew for some time I wanted to get a good trim and was even considering getting my hair flat-ironed for that purpose simply because I felt as though some ends needed to go and was thinking maybe a trim of 2 inches would suffice, but not 3.5 inches in most areas as I have now. Also, I was always apprehensive of a stylist who needed to use heat for a trim and/or didn't have a proper technique to trim or cut my hair esp. when dealing with my hair texture. This is exactly why I've avoided "professional" salons for a good 1.5 yrs of so- I really should have stayed with my gut feeling. But, after getting a referral from another natural haired lady from a group I'm part of, I figured I found the perfect stylist who supposedly could trim w/o heat, had worked mainly on natural heads and was a natural herself, so I thought all would be good right, WRONG. To my surprise, I thought I knew more about general natural haircare than she did esp.in handling/conditioning/combing my texture hair. I'm really not trying to sound like a hair expert, but even with all the "experience this stylist had" she was doing my hair all wrong... I even had to ask her a couple of times how to comb my hair properly as she would start combing from top to bottom instead of Bottom-up, can we say major breakage on my then shrunken hair, WTF. I knew I should have run before she got to the scissors-improperly combing my hair should have been a sign. I could go on an on as to what went wrong with this service esp. with the mishandling/improper conditioning of my hair, but I will spare you the tale. So, I conclude the only thing this stylist was good at was cutting too much hair which wasn't even close to being somewhat even-I was finding sections where there was an inch cut difference, such as in the back, arrghh. Now I'm glad a lot of the nasty ends are gone, I just know too much was chopped off. Also, I had spoke with this stylist a couple of times before we met and went over what I was looking for before our meeting and prior to her working on my hair so I thought we were on the same page-again WRONG. The stylist had also mentioned my ends were not as bad as I thought and would need about 1/2 an inch off or so off, then please explain why 3-5.5 inches of hair has been cut off??? So, now I'm no where a little past BSL-just slightly pass APL, but I think I'm measuring wrong cause it looks alot shorter, more around SL if you ask me. Oh well, lesson learned, just because one is natural/have "experience with natural hair" doesn't mean they know more than me/ or YOU when dealing with MY or YOUR hair. Length-wise, I'l just wait for the hair to grow back. Maybe I should be more upset, but I'm like whatever (another bump in my hair journey/ setback). I'm at least glad the split/damaged ends are gone for the most part, so I guess I'm starting afresh and back to square one. Album was created 3 years 11 months ago and modified 3 years 8 months ago 57 comments 2 views 2 visitors 57 files view album | view roll | add to cart

April-June braids (08)-UPDATES I got my hair braided by this lady who used to braid my hair a couple of years ago.This braider and I had established a friendship and she braided my hair CHEAP (although her prices were already reasonable) and I know the work she put in is should be a lot more $$. However, she refused my paying the normal price after several attempts to give her the full price. She just mentioned you help me a lot, and because I'm mainly caring for an ill family member at this point in time, she just said to keep some of the money, but I really didn't want to do that and guess I'll just have to repay her another way (she loves food), but the gesture was nice:) But, I had walked into two salons to ask how much they would charge me for this style prior to braiding ( I had printed a copy out) and the prices were at least $160 and one lady had the nerve to say $240 w/o hair included, I don't think so. Thank goodness here in Boston, I know a few people who braids for very decent prices. Honestly, while her prices are much more affordable w/ the quality of work she does, I was hesitant in going to her due to the additions of her twins (now 7 months), along w/ a 3-year old who's also also a handful and was contemplating going to another person, but she convinced me to go to her so we could catch up. I had my hair braided by her a couple of times before when her first born was a baby and whooo it was a long process. So, with two extra little ones who loves theire mother's attention, you could just imagine what I went through to get my hair braided, I don't even want to let you know how many hours it took to complete. But, because I like the braider I guess it was okay as I already knew what to expect. I just don't think I'll have the patience to sit that long again to get small braids (been a while since I done that). I guess, I really have to start looking in possibly getting a wig/weave or make twist-extensions my staple styles because getting my hair in singles just takes a long time and the braider braids fairly quickly. But for now, I'm going through this phase where I'm just tired of my hair right and just need a break from it. Unfortunately, I couldn't even take pics (pics are forthcoming) as I once again never have my charger w/ me when I'm doing something major or different to my hair to show the process. What I did notice after washing and stretching different my hair after washing/moisturizing/stretching, my hair is a but longer than I thought even in the pics I took the week prior. I. ***My intent was to get regular medium-sized braids, but it turned out to be much smaller as she really likes to braid small even if you tell her big or bigger for the most part, and it took FOREVER do to many in-between breaks/feedings with the twins , but helping her out w/ the kids sped things slightly. About my braids: A bit Less than 4.5 package of #2, 100% synthetic kanekalon hair were used. Initially, I thought the braids were small, but they're more on the medium size. The hair sticking out were not "cleaned" which doesn't give my braids that "neat" look, but it's absolutely fine with me. Also, once braided, the ends of the synthetic hair were dipped into hot water to seal the ends. I like these braids, they're a bit long ( 2-3 inches past bra strap in the back) and I really don't like long hair on me too much. However, there's not much I could do about that as the back esp. is on the longer side and I wanted my braids to look more even. But, I'm glad that my braids were not braided tightly and they're more on the lighter side. Because my hairline is still rather weak, I'm trying to massage them as often as possible and hope to gain some growth there too by the time I take them out. I'm hoping this time around, my hair will be/feel more moisturized upon removal and hopefully, my edges will fill out more too. For the weaker edges, I never braid them, I simply cover it up with the braids and always either keep my hair down or style in a very low/loose ponytail and loosen any areas that feel tight. Thankfully, if I were to wear my natural hair out you would never see the weak edges because once my hair's fizzes up, the other parts of my hair covers the weaker areas. But, I'm determined to grow these areas out too. I'm not just aiming for hair length, I really want a head-full of healthy/thick hair throughout (ends included). Braid Regimen: I haven't washed these braids and haven’t washed for almost 1.5 months. But, my scalp looks/feels very clean and smells quite nice too if I must say. I accredit this to adding 7-10 drops each of tea tree, peppermint, lavender and rosemary essential oils to my jojoba oil and/ or mixing these w/ ORS fertilizing balm or Queen Helene stimulating oil to massage my scalp esp. my weak temples. I’ve been trying to massage my scalp w/ the oils daily and/or nightly. Also, I alternate w/ spraying the length w/ African Royale or Infusium 23 (not as much) at least every 3 or 4 days. I know I should try moisturizing daily but I still haven’t gotten to the point to do it faithfully just yet. Also, I know my hair probably could use a wash, but it’s really not necessary to me at this point because there are no itchies, very little to no build-up and simply looks VERY clean to the eye, you would not see any dandruff if you looked in between my parts, so I will continue this regime until I feel like a wash is needed. Update (6/9): After the 1.5 weeks of the braids, I had stepped my game up with the moisturizing and sprayed my hair daily or anywhere from 1-3 days ( mainly daily). I started spraying my hair with a mix of African Royal and Infusium leave-in, 50/50 in a bottle, other times with Mane 'N Tail Leave-in (not as much as I believe this breaks my skin out). Then, sometimes I ran some jojoba oil or ORS lotion to the entire length length of the braids (where my hair stops). After the two months doing this regimen or slightly improving it, I'm not oiling my scalp as much, mainly every 3-4 days (which explains why I'm getting some tiny flakes more so than before- I think the oils really help keep the dandruff at bay due to their antiseptic properties). But, I spray my edges/ add moisturizer esp. in the front edges every day or every other day. I find that my hair/edges responds very well when kept moisturized, I had very little broken hairs when I removed the braids during the retouch and I was very happy about that. 6/9 So far, I've worn braids for 9 weeks and rebraided the six rows in the front, along w/ the back and side edges after two months on 5/31 and 6/1. I really should have retouched at least every three weeks to a month at the very least because build-up are likely to occur for me in these areas more so than the other sections of my hair, I just neglected to do this due to nothing other than pure laziness. Thankfully, my edges did not break from the overdue touchup, but from the buildup around these areas, I can very well see how it could have been an issue and could have matted in some areas, but my hair was so soft from the proper moisturizing I had given it that all I needed was to massage the buildup and run my fingers through it and out the lint came. However, please don't be like me as this really could have left me with broken eges . I am relieved my eges have grown a bit, it's just that the growth is much finer/not as dark. In fact, I am very pleased w/ the way my hair felt overall, and because I now moisturize anywhere from 1-3 days, my hair was very, very, well moisturized/dewy like when I removed the braids. I will try my hardest to always keep my hair moisturized esp. when wearing braids because just touching it alone speaks volumes. I think I'll be taking all the braids out either on 6/13-6/15 or 6/20-6/22. I have an upcoming wedding on the 29th, so I'm not sure what I'll be doing with my hair yet. I was thinking of braids again, but braids are starting to bore me and I'm starting to miss my hair again. Also, I'm really not looking forward to keeping my hair braided for another three months as that's how long I would be keeping it in for most likely, which would mean the entire summer. I am still leaning heavily on trying a full sew-in weave, I just have to find someone/a salon who can do it reasonably and right. Note: I forgot to mention when I retouched my hair, I took some of the synthetic hair out, the hair on my head while not heavy could have been lighter. Come to think of it, I probably could have gotten away using much less synthetic hair and perhaps a pack less (really pushing it ). 6/30 I took my braids out on the week over a two-day span, 6/23-6/24. I undid the middle portion on my head first for cover when I went back to work. It was a very long process taking out the braids, but I was very, very, happy with the condition of my hair overall-very well moisturized (dewy/wet-like), with minimal breakage-Don't get me wrong, my hair's not perfect but it was the first time in a long time I remember my hair feeling that way. Also, detangling was a breeze, all I had to was dampen my hair for detangling, detangled with my fingers first, thencombed from the tips to the roots. I think the misting of the braid sprays and applying Suave natural coconut conditioner (when I had worn a puff on wednesday, 6/25) helped reactived things so just a little water was all I needed for detangling. On wash day (6/26) I had washed with regular shampoo ( clarifying is too harsh on my hair), followed-up with cream of nature-this shampoo works really well on my hair but I don't use it too often as it can leave this sticky film on your hair if used too much. I then used ORS conditioner mixed with Mizani moisturefuse under the hooded dryer. After rinsing that out, I deep conditioned again for moisturzing again, but after the first deep conditioner my hair was still satisfactory softness-wise. The icing on the cake was a mixture I made with Aubrey Organics Island Natural Conditioner mixed with, shea butter, castor and olive oil to get the consistency that I like. I used a decent amount of the of the conditioner which was pretty heavy on my hair when I applied it (better on my strands) and left my hair pasty white. But, after sitting under the dryer for about 30 minutes I think, the results was mind-blowing...my hair was soft. The next morning, I was shocked and very pleased with the condition of my hair which was very, very soft and moisturized-wow, maybe I've finally figured out something that works for me:) My hair felt so good and behaved so nicely I didn't have to apply and products to it when styling. Note: I went to a wedding on 6/29, I thought I would have gotten a sew-in weave, but decided against it-for now. I was going to get braids, but I'm still concerned about my edges which have grown, but still too week. What did I do? I twisted my hair and styled in an up-do which I was very pleased with. Album was created 4 years 2 months ago and modified 3 years 11 months ago 109 comments 0 views 0 visitors 69 files view album | view roll | add to cart

Braids/Twist in 2008 (Jan-March) (Jan 1, 2008) I had medium or small-medium twist braids installed for $80 by one of those in-home African braiders on 1/6/08 . In my opinion, she did a decent job, she was professional, took only bathroom breaks, didn't braid too tight and she LISTENED to my hair request which was much appreciated . I told her I didn't want too tight braids from the beginning and kept restating this esp. when she started doing the front -many braiders just don't seem to understand the concept of not braiding too tight. But, because I'm trying to baby/grow out my edges and because the edges are now SLOWLY starting to fill in from past braiding experiences, I am not trying to cause further damage to my hairline/temples. Also, the braider didn't add a lot of hair ( less than 1.5 package of Marley braid) which kept things looking very natural and light . Also, I told her I didn't want any hair trimmed/burned once the braiding was complete, so after she curled the ends by tying it with a rope, then dipping it into a cup filled with boiled water, I was done 7.5 hrs, yippeeee (it used to take a full day, sometimes a few extra hours the following day to finish my hair when I used to wear very small braids/ micros). I never used to like bigger sized braids, but now I'm loving them. The less time I have to spend on my hair, the better! Maintenance: I rebraid the perimeter every 2 or 3 weeks, while leaving a lot of the edges out. I know the hair doesn't look as neat due to not "catching all the hair", but I know this is much healthier for my edges in the long run. I spray every day or every 3 days at the very miminum with mainly African Royal if I remember. I wash every 3 weeks or so, more or less depending. The Marley hair blends very nicely with my 1Bish colored hair and natural hair in general,however, I'll def. add some color next time around. Also, the older the hair gets, the more I like it as it resembles my natural hair a lot. I plan on keeping the braids for up to 12 weeks and will probably rebraid or experiment with a full wig due to time constraints and just simply wanting to take a break from my hair. Note: I have pics of my braided hair, but don't currently have the charger with me to post. March 2nd will make it 2 months since I've had my hair braided. Braids Removal: -Took last braids out on 3/28. But, I had started taken them out little by little a week prior to help faciliate the process starting w/ the back. I didn't like the feel of my hair once the twists were taken out, despite spraying w/ the braids spray at least every 3 days and misting my hair every morning in the shower. My hair seems to always be dry, dry, dry and the detangling took HOURS (nothing new), and while I didn't see a lot of long shedded strands, I saw A LOT of those darn little ends all over the place. Also, I'm looking forward to trimming my hair at least 1-2 inches. I will most likely do that in June or July at which I may go to the salon to get my hair flat-ironed and then trim (maybe) or simply stretch my hair and have a stylist do so. From hair observations, I saw decent growth upon removing my braids esp. in the front, middle sections, but I still need a good trim. -Washed/deep conditioned hair. I used Global Watch's sulfate-free shampoo followed up w/ creme of nature moisturizing shampoo (green bottle). My scalp was left clean and hair didn't feel stripped. I then lightly conditioned w/ wholefoods conditioner as a light rinse. Later, I deep conditioned w/ cholesterol creme followed up w/ Keracare moisturizing conditioner mixed w/ olive and castor oil and twsited hair while wet. -I will be wearing my natural twist for a week before rebraiding. ***Note: I'm in search for a very, very, good moisturiizing conditioner w/ very little or no protein. Ladies, if your hair texture is similiar to mine, please let me know what conditioner or other products you use to keep your hair very soft, I seemed to have tried all the natural/commercial products and nothing seems to work and if it does, it's only temporary. I have major moisture issues-my hair could feel soft for a little bit and sometimes it is, but once exposed to air, forget about it. Album was created 4 years 4 months ago and modified 4 years 2 months ago 59 comments 0 views 0 visitors 21 files view album | view roll | add to cart

Misc Pics (2006-2007) Album was created 4 years 3 months ago and modified 4 years 3 months ago 29 comments 0 views 0 visitors 4 files view album | view roll | add to cart