TheNaturalConundrum

Fresher Than a Certs Off in This Mug.......

noreply@blogger.com (Ashes) — Fri, 25 May 2012 18:13:00 +0000

Flower, Earrings, Necklace, Shades, Fro- BAM!

If there is one thing I love, it's accessories. I don't like to leave my house without them. I can run out without makeup, but if I do, I must have on either my largest earrings or most colorful scarf. As a matter of fact, the only reason I got an additional hole pierced into my ear was so I could keep the little studs in all the time, so even on the (very) rare occasions when I forget earrings, I always have those in.

Soooo... I would like to show you a few of my accessories. Notice how in the photos of me, the Big Azz earrings are almost always on.

My Favorite Scarf. Leopard, Meow!

My Trusty Prescription Specs. In Burgundy, of course.

Sparkly Headband, Big earrings

The sparkly head band was originally a gaudy necktie

My Drawers full of ribbons and scarves and material

Sunblock Swag. The hat's gone, but I'm going to get a new one!

Two of my favorite faux flowers

A silk Scarf that I got in Turkey. Yes, Turkey!

You Could Probably say that I am an accessory junkie. But that's okay. A lot of my accessories are recycled materials- meaning that I made them from something else. I have a basket in my Hobby room that is overflowing with fabric. You can bet your fur that most of that will be made into scarves, headwraps, bows, etc- OMGosh, the thought of it makes me swoon! Of course, there is only one, one, ONE accessory that I love to step out with: My Husband, Alex.

On our wedding day

Best. Six. Years. Ever.

What's YOUR must have accessory?

There's Always Next Time.......(Flat twist update)

noreply@blogger.com (Ashes) — Mon, 07 May 2012 00:03:00 +0000

Whomp whomp. That is the result of my flat twist experiment. I think I know where I went wrong.The twists were pretty large, so while my hair was stretched, it was not defined. Ah well. here is how it looked:

Hmmm...

It's Bigger..

I wasn't pleased with the outcome, per se, but I was trying to find a way to deal with it. You know, make the best out of it. Except.....

My Hair was sooooo DRY!!!! I guess I was used to wearing my scarf and hat, and completely forgot to moisturize properly. That is a mistake I will not be making again.. Sooooo.....

When in doubt, Puff it Out! Yeah, I was disappointed, But my puff was extra fluffy! After some intense sprayin and sealin, of course.

So, Beauties, Hopefully next time I'll have something better for you. *sigh*.

Bye!

Try New Things!

noreply@blogger.com (Ashes) — Mon, 30 Apr 2012 20:17:00 +0000

Hello, Beautiful Ones!

I am super excited right now. Last night, I had some free time on my hands, so I decided to *attempt* to flat twist my hair. I think I got the hang of it, and with practice, I think I'll nail it. However, the ones I did last night do indeed look terrible. But I'm Keeping them in til Tuesday so I can see what the resulting twist out will be. Here's what they look like so far:

I left the ends loose.

I really like side parts and bangs, so I hope this helps!

I'll keep you guys posted, and tomorrow I'll post pics of how it looks when I take it down, for better or worse.

I must say, even if it doesn't turn out well, I'm proud of myself for trying something different!

Tell me, Beauties: What new hair technique are you dying to try? And if you haven't tried it, What's stopping you?

My Regimen. Wait...Do I really have one?

noreply@blogger.com (Ashes) — Fri, 20 Apr 2012 19:57:00 +0000

Hello, Beautiful Ones!

Today I wanted to talk about My (*ahem, Cough, Cough* ) Regimen. You know, the one for my hair. We all hear about hair regimens and how they are supposed to help with hair growth, detangling, hair health, and yadda yadda yadda. Recently I was thinking about this, as I was caught off guard a while back by a friend of mine who is also natural. First she complimented me on how healthy and strong my hair looked. She was telling me about her regimen, her sisters regimen, and her favorite beauty bloggers regimen. Then she asked about mine. Cue blank stare.

Honestly, I never considered that I myself had a hair regimen. I mean, I read blogs and go to websites and read about other peoples regimens and habits and must-haves and what not, but me? I just wash her, moisturize, and go. But that's not a regimen, is it? Welp, considering that I do the same thing religiously and my hair is now thriving, I reckon it is. It is amazingly, simple, but it works. Here goes:

Smells SOOOO Good!

About once a week, in the shower, I co-wash my hair with conditioner. The conditioner always changes, but I do read the ingredients to make sure that it is sulfate free. Don't get me wrong, I'm not a Sulfate Nazi; it;s just my personal preference. Sulfate free conditioners have eliminated my dandruff problem. I really like White Rain Sensations Hydrating Conditioners, and I stock up since they're only a buck. I also like Most of the Suave Naturals conditioners, as most of them do not contain sulfates. But I do read labels before I buy anything- even products that I have used before. That's because you never know when a company will change the way they make something, and they don't tell consumers when they do.

My only comb.

So, once I have my hair loaded with conditioner, I use my fingers to detangle. Then i go through her with a wide toothed comb, only once with the comb. Then I let her steam and get poofy while I finish my Shower. By this time, my hot water is beginning to run out, perfect for rinsing my hair. Then I wrap her in a black T-shirt and let the shirt soak up most of the moisture while I Moisturize my body.

When hair is not soaking wet, I slather on a olive oil/jojoba oil mix. Then I let her dry about 70%, and I'll either throw her in twists or a high puff. That's what she likes. So that's what I do.

My fave Aloe Vera Juice- now I use their Organic kind!

Throughout the week, to keep it soft and moisturized by spritzing it with a water/aloe vera juice mix. It took a while for me to figure out how to portion out the mixture, but I found that my hair likes a bit more water than aloe vera juice.

My oil mix and Plastic cap

I also Baggy my hair frequently. Baggying is when I spray my hair with my water juice mix, then put on a plastic cap. The heat from my head helps my strands to drink it all in. Sometimes I shower with the cap on or I sleep in it, or I wear it while I do things around the house. In any case, once I take the cap off, I seal the moisture in with my oils.

Ever so often, I'll give myself a deep conditioner made of eggs, mayo, and honey.

DC for the Cheap!

All in all, my regimen is simple. Wash, water, aloe juice, and oil. A deep conditioner ever so often. I don't really use any heavy creams or gels, so I don't ever need any harsh shampoos. Although I would like to try an Apple Cider Vinegar rinse.
Did anyone notice that I have not mentioned a hair type? Kudos if you did. That's because I personally do not believe in the hair typing system. I know of too many women with similar hair types that will not--no--can not use the same products or regimens. There are also people who debate over what hair goes into what category. And then there are those who use the hair typing system for ill will. So what is the purpose of the hair typing system? There is nothing wrong with seeing someone whose hair looks similar to yours, and inquiring about their products and methods. But it would be a detriment to believe that just because she's a 4a and your a 4a, the results will be the same. They may not. And that will suck. I am all for knowing your own hair and what works for it. That will take trial and error on your part. Lord knows it did on mine, lol.

Also, did any of you notice that I refer to my hair as "she", and "her"? Excellent . Her name is Claudette.

Half puff, Kinda headwrap, poofy bangs Style.

noreply@blogger.com (Ashes) — Tue, 17 Apr 2012 03:38:00 +0000

So I woke up this morning feelin kinda frisky. I had errands to run, and I wanted to look FAB. So i did a little experimenting with my hair, and I kinda liked the end result. I'll give you a step by step, which will end with the final result.

First, I put on my trusty Batman shirt, and sprayed my hair with Aloe Vera juice and water. I used Olive and Jojoba oil to seal the moisture in.
Then, I took three pieces of hair and twisted them out of the way. The rest of the Hair went into a Poofy Puff.
At this point I looked like this:

Okay, now for the wrap. I used an old, never used sarong as a head wrap:

Then I proceeded to do a Double Knot off to one side.

Tuck it! Tuck it!

And.............Voila!

I must say, I was quite pleased with myself. What about you, Beautiful Ones?

What is YOUR go-to frisky fab style?

Then and Now......

noreply@blogger.com (Ashes) — Mon, 16 Apr 2012 03:23:00 +0000

Here is my hair in 2006. I was at this point 5 Years Natural, and I used a blow drier about twice a month:

I was also an incredible product junkie. My hair never got any longer than this. And then 2 years ago, I went and got it pressed, and a huge chunk fell outta my hair in the middle, and i decided to big chop, which looked like this:

Don't try to tell me that those earrings aren't Bangin'! Anyhoo, i was still using a lot of heat. so about six months ago, i decided to stop with the blow dryer. Only because my last comb attachment broke, and I was too lazy to run to Sally's and get one. So I went on Amazon.com and got one of those cute hair dryers that looked like a thick wide toothed comb with a cord. Except that it was not cooperating with my hair. Meaning that it refused to go through my strands. So I said to hell with it. let's try heat free for a bit and see what happens. I also now only use a handful of products. The results are:

Soooo......I think the no heat thing is going pretty well. I may use heat again, although I'll admit that I'm a bit leery of the pressing comb and flat iron, but that was my own error. Who knows? I will say that this is the first time that I have ever seen my real texture.
But I will also tell you that i don't think that heat determines whether or not one is natural. Chemical processes that irreversibly change the texture of ones hair (relaxers, texturizers, perms) do. Tell me in the comments section:

Have you experienced heat damage? If so, what did you do?

Allow me to Introduce myself.....

noreply@blogger.com (Ashes) — Mon, 16 Apr 2012 02:46:00 +0000

Hello, World! My name is Ashes, and I am new to the Blogosphere. There isn't much to tell about myself: I'm in my late twenties, I'm a wife, daughter, friend, Mother of 2 cats. I started this blog pretty much to record my own somewhat humorous hair journey and to get and give feedback to other women (or men) with hair questions . I would also like this blog to be a place where people are free to vent (respectfully, of course; I'm all about the ol' R-E-S-P-E-C-T) about their hair experiences. Or maybe you want to vent about some of the info you've found on the web? Or maybe you just want to submit your own pics and articles somewhere? Do you have a funny story about hair? By all means share it. Has the "Natural Hair Movement gotten a little too serious for you? Ok. Lets do this thing. I've started this blog to document my hair journey, lets travel together. Toodles, y'all!