Wash n go/puff on different lengths of hair

puff with 2 years of hair

wash n go with 2 yrs of hair

puff in beginning of natural journey

wash n go in the beginning of natural journey

I love my growth, it's been 2 1/2 years since b.chop. I do miss my wash n go style on the shorter hair. Here are pictures of when it was shorter and then when I tried it on my longer hair, it was a lot of work and I ended up putting in a "puff." Which is a whole other subject because due to the length, even my puff was not as puffy but instead droopy. It is a blessing, I am thankful for the growth it's just some styles don't look the same as they did 2 years ago. Oh well, back to my fav. style...'twist out!!!'

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Going Natural. Staying Natural. Loving Your Natural Hair.
LovingHairNaturally.com

When not to do the "big chop"

double click to see larger image

You have waited for months and it feels like years with no relaxer...

You can't get a comb through because of the two different textures of hair on your head=frustration=let's just go ahead and cut it(but wait it's only been 7 months)...

You have flat ironed you hair with no heat protective, at least once a week or more...

When you flat iron, you use a lot of oil/grease hence cooking your hair so it will SHINE(Bad, Bad, Bad, you don't want to go transition for a year only to find some sections of hair won't curl due to heat damage...

In the first photo you will see hair that is not ready for the "big chop." The hair has conditioner in it to help see what hair will curl up vs the straight ends that are relaxed or have heat damage. It has been 7 months since last relaxer, client is ready for "big chop" but hair is not.

In the second photo, client has not had a relaxer in over a year. She wore kinky twist, braids, some press out/flat iron(but done with ceramic flat iron and used heat protective serum). The hair has conditioner in it and you see the roots curl. She is ready for her 'big chop' and so is her hair.

Things to do prior to your "big chop"

Be patient, it does take a full 12 months

Find protective styles that work for you, utilize youtube for ideas during transitioning...

Wear braids(not done to tight as to damage hairline) kinky twists, half-wigs, sew-ins...

Shampoo and condition, every head is different but atleast every two weeks. Weekly/daily you should mist your hair with water. I prefer to mix water with a few drops of olive oil and spray the hair. You can do this at night, don't want to go out with wet hair and get sick.

Trim ends every two months this will help to get those relaxed ends off...

Deep condition monthly, do this even after you do the "big chop"

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Going Natural. Staying Natural. Loving Your Natural Hair.
LovingHairNaturally.com

Big Chop

Scary, exciting, freeing experience....This is a picture of a friend who is now in the world of "natural hair" She transitioned for a year and is now on her way to enjoying a "chemical free" life


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Going Natural. Staying Natural. Loving Your Natural Hair.
LovingHairNaturally.com

Common comments from others on natural hair

"It looks good on you but I could never do that..."

"Is everything ok, you look so different?"

"How do you get your hair to do that?" (This can be viewed as positive or negative)

"You have good hair so that is why you can go "natural" my hair is to coarse..."(All hair is good hair, we just need to find the products that work with and not against our hair)

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Going Natural. Staying Natural. Loving Your Natural Hair.
LovingHairNaturally.com

Negative comments and natural hair

This was the most difficult phase of my journey. People are people which translates to being very opinionated and sometimes "down right" cruel. The truth is that years ago, I can remember thinking(maybe not saying it) when I saw someone natural "why would someone want to do that?" So I can understand the negative comments to an extent. Natural hair is a world of it's own. If you are not a part of it via "transitioning to natural hair or fully naturally" it is really hard to "get it."

For me it took "going natural" to really appreciate and value natural hair. So the journey in it self helps one to respect others especially when they chose to do something differently from you. This relates to clothes, hair.... Okay back to my original point, once a person has decided to go natural their decision should be respected and hopefully supported. Especially by family, these are the ones that can say and do things that are hurtful. I hear people say, "it doesn't matter what others think, I am doing this for me." That is an awesome attitude to have but I have found that type of thinking takes time to really say that and mean it.

Going natural is such a personal decision and early in my journey I would get comments like "I could never do that" and my reply would be " I did not ask you to." This is something I am doing it is not a "team sport." I think most naturals will agree that you should prepare yourself for the comments and try not to be discouraged. Ladies, this is simply to encourage and support the "naturals." As I have said before, it is one of the best decisions I have made.

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Going Natural. Staying Natural. Loving Your Natural Hair.
LovingHairNaturally.com

My story-why I went natural

I have had a relaxer since the age of 10. So well over 20 years, my hair had chemicals in it. Over this time my hair gradually became thinner and had no “life” to it. My natural journey began in March 2008, at which time I cut off the remaining relaxed ends. This left my hair 2 inches in length. I am a licensed cosmetologist; however my education did not equip me with the skills to deal with natural hair. This I learned from "youtube" and trial and error. At first, it was different seeing my face with textured hair. I was one of those who relaxed religiously, every 8 weeks. I did not want to see any new growth. So to go from that to “afro textured” hair was a leap of faith. It was hard because I was also pregnant, and being natural with 2 inches of hair on your head and 70 pounds heavier (yes I put on that much weight) was not easy. Thank God, I did get the weight off, will talk more about that… Plus, I really did not know how to style my hair. So, I learned from “youtube” and hair books how to manage and grow my natural hair. It by far is one of the best decisions I have made. I love my hair texture and look of my natural hair. It truly is a gift from God.


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Going Natural. Staying Natural. Loving Your Natural Hair.
LovingHairNaturally.com

Trimming natural hair

To trim or not to trim. It is such a personal decision. I have found that my hair loves to be trimmed every 3 months. I used to trim more often(2 months) but found it was not necessary to do it every 8 weeks. Now at 12 weeks my hair needs it because my ends start to knot. I trim with my twist in, and just snip the ends. In the past I have straightened my hair to trim it but now don’t feel the need. Do what is right for your hair.


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Going Natural. Staying Natural. Loving Your Natural Hair.
LovingHairNaturally.com

You won't be a "product junkie" forever

It appears that most naturals have a ton of products and wonder "will I have to keep spending this money on products?" I too, tried different products until I found the ones that work for me and they are now my "staple" products. This seems to be part of the journey. However, I do know some naturals that never went down this road. They found something that worked for them early on and did not need to try more...


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Going Natural. Staying Natural. Loving Your Natural Hair.
LovingHairNaturally.com

Products/style/length

I use different products depending on what style I am wearing. When it was shorter I would wash, and condition, apply little fav. oil, then use fantasia ic gel and go through my entire head and define my curls applying the gel. It would last about 3-4 days (some have stretched it to 7). Now that it is growing, I do "twist out" so I wash, cond. add little hair oil, then I apply cantu shea butter to each section and twist and leave them in over night, take out and wear a "curly fro" . I re-twist them at night, this last me about 7 days. See my post titled regimen for details on my “twist out.”

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Going Natural. Staying Natural. Loving Your Natural Hair.
LovingHairNaturally.com

Transitioning tips...

Initial steps, would be to set a goal of how long you want your hair to be before you do the "big chop." For me 2 inches was comfortable, since hair typically grows 1/2 inch a month it took 4-6 months( or longer for some it depends on individual hair growth) to get it that long. So in those 6months you are concentrating on looking halfway decent while battling two textures on one head. This is where the, half wigs, braid-in, sew-ins, kinky twist, corn rolls, micros, roller sets... come into play. I used to tell people to do "press n curl" but now I don't recommend it because your natural hair can get heat damage from straightening to much and will lose it's curl pattern. Now once you are fully natural and you want to wear you hair straight occasionally is fine but the less heat the better. De-tangling your hair will get harder as your natural hair grows so get a good "leave-in" and make sure your hair is loaded with it when your are de-tangling after you cleanse/wash your hair. The main thing to remember is this is a journey there are no short cuts. So if you have patience with your hair and the process, you will reap the benefits.


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Going Natural. Staying Natural. Loving Your Natural Hair.
LovingHairNaturally.com

My regimen

After I have completed my, deep conditioning treatment (see post for details). I cleanse my hair with my favorite shampoo and rinse out. I apply a little of coconut oil when my hair is dripping wet, to seal in the moisture. The key is to apply a little, about a dime size to each of the back/middle and front sections. Then I apply Cantu Shea butter and do my twist. I will then sit under the dryer for 10 minutes (no plastic cap). I will then let it air dry for the rest of the day. Normally, I sleep in a satin cap but this night I will not so my hair will dry faster since it is not covered. Note- If you need to wear your hair in a “twist out” the next day, then take your twist down and style in the morning. If not, leave them in for one more day and just wear a cute knitted cap or dress it up with a scarf and earrings. Then I take my twist out. Usually the first day of my "twist out" my hair is not as stretched out as I like so the hair appears a little shorter. That night I will re-twist but in bigger twists because the curls are already defined I just want to protect them. Day 2, my twists are more stretched out... I will re-twist my hair at night with the (bigger twists) for the next 5 days. If (by day 3 or 4) you notice your hair getting a little “dry and not as fresh” you can spray with water and add the Cantu Shea butter when you are re-twisting. Some days, I leave the twist in and pull them back in a pony tail and add a flower. So I make it stretch for 7 days. Then I am back to my deep condition day and start the process all over... I recommend deep conditioning once a week if you can, if not at least every 2 weeks.

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Going Natural. Staying Natural. Loving Your Natural Hair.
LovingHairNaturally.com

Simple, homemade, deep conditioner treatment that works...

1 1/2 cup of of favorite creamy conditioner (I love Sauve- Tropical Coconut) you may use less depending on the length

2 teaspoons of olive oil, (My favorite) or jojoba/any essential oil)

1 tablespoon of honey

2 teaspoons of coconut oil,

1 table spoon of mayo

1-2 drops of peppermint oil (help revitalize scalp)

Your hair should be dry so it will absorb the products... I melt my coconut oil in microwave, then add other items. I then put the bowl (with all ingredients) back in microwave for about 15-20 seconds to get it warm (if you do it to long it will be too runny). Be sure to stir well. Then just apply to the hair (section and apply from root to ends) and cover with plastic cap. Next, you either sit under the dryer any where from 10 -15 min. or you can use no dryer and let it sit on the hair with the cap (should be for at least one hour). You can leave on longer, if you like. Whatever you decide, then cleanse with your fav. shampoo.

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Going Natural. Staying Natural. Loving Your Natural Hair.
LovingHairNaturally.com

Moisture and Natural hair

This is a common question amongst the naturals... Well instead of thinking about a hair oil for the solution(this is part of it, by the way) look to your leave in conditioners. After your hair is cleansed with your favorite shampoo and dripping wet, add a little of your favorite hair oil. This helps seal in the moisture. Next, use your favorite "leave in" conditioner. It should have a thick and creamy consistency. Some other options are: 1. to mix water with glycerin 2. mix water and your favorite leave in conditioner in a spray bottle 3. use curl activators(the non-greasy ones) and spray when their hair feels dry.
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Going Natural. Staying Natural. Loving Your Natural Hair.
LovingHairNaturally.com

Natural "organic" Food

Yes, this is blog is primarily about natural hair, however the main point is "natural" living. Or should I say, "living" naturally. It's 11:00 pm and I decided to have a snack. Wanted it to be healthy, so I opted for grapes. Non-organic grapes. Which led to googling, cleaning non-organic fruit. I was furious after reading the amount of pesticides we put into our bodies, under the guise of "healthy" food choices. Why care about pesticides? I'm glad you asked. Well, pesticides effect the liver negatively. The way in which the liver processes other toxins, the cells's power to produce energy and the nerves job to send messages can be thwarted by pesticide exposure. Not to mention the link of pesticides to cancer, infertility, hormonal disruption, nerve damage and DNa mutations. So, my grapes are soaking in 3 part water to 1 part distilled vinegar for 20 minutes. Let's learn together. I'm just saying...

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Going Natural. Staying Natural. Loving Your Natural Hair.
LovingHairNaturally.com

Welcome to LovingHairNaturally.com

Welcome to a place were natural hair is celebrated and cherished. The purpose of this blog is to share and learn information that promotes healthy hair.


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Going Natural. Staying Natural. Loving Your Natural Hair.
LovingHairNaturally.com