Little steps







June 2009
It has been a year since I started my journey and I cant say I am wholly disappointed with my hair. It is in good condition and feels amazing. The picture shown was taken right after it was relaxed and pre dusting. The left side is still a little shorter than the right. 

You can still see my neck so not even close to shoulder length yet.It has got to that point that it never grows past again and I am hoping to see a bit more length by September.



I am giving up on the Joico split end mender and serum and wont be buying any more of these as it hasn’t made too much difference. Also I have returned to Phyto’s Vital Force Moisturising Mask as this seems to work wonders with the Joico KPak Reconstructor which is a must - No breakage. I now shampoo once a week rather than once a month so that I can try and keep my hair clean.

My current leave in is the mixed chicks leave in and will probably stick with this and after trying S curl no drip as a moisturiser I an going to try Wave Nouveau Moisturising Finishing Lotion and see how that goes. I have also spent another £13 on some Phytonectar as I haven’t bought any for a while and found that this had worked really well before.
I am also now experimenting with Mink and Castor oil from African Pride and am sticking with coconut oil for sealing after moisturising. This smells great and is wonderful. Also trying Curls clarifying shampoo once a month. I will let you know how that goes.
All bought from amazon and ebay and a great site called AfroTherapy(a UK site with next day delivery)
Dont think I will reach my goal of Shoulder Length hair by August but by the end of the year I want to have moisturised silky hair of a reasonable length (shoulder length)






Embrace Your Inner AfroDeity!

Leilu

Progress and Products


Leilu: March 2009


I took a pic of my hair after relaxing March 2009. (I am using ORS Olive Oil relaxer)

Whats;s the plan, what have I been doing differently:
  • I discovered Phyto Specific and their Intense Moisture Range. I found no breakage after using their deep conditioning Vital Force Mask. I also use their Phyto Nectar as a pre shampoo conditioner.
  •  I no longer use heat on my hair.
  • Searched high and low on the Interweb and have finally found some Coconut Oil by Palmers on Amazon believe it or not. When you live out in the middle of nowhere like I do .... you look in unusual places.
  • I have tried a few other conditioners and so far the best I have seen are 
    • The PhytoSpecific Vital Force Mask - this is amazing no breakage after using this.
    • Joico K-Pak Reconstructor and Egg( just mix it in with the reconstructor and steam under a plastic cap for 1 hour. Joico is now my friend and I am going to try their split end mender as this smells great
  • I have been co-washing with Tesco Coconut conditioner.
  • I now have a personalised Pre-Shampoo Mix which I make up from the Tesco coconut conditioner, Coconut oil, BioOil and PhytoSpecific Intense Moisture Conditioner.
  • I only use shampoo once a month now after discovering washing with a conditioner and although don’t have all the facts yet, don’t really see the point of Shampoo!
  • The Phyto Specific relaxer I tried wasnt any better than ones I have used before.

So far the best products for my hair have been the Phyto Specific Range, but I am now trying Joico, and I found an Organix shampoo and a conditioner in Boots. I live in the country and a trip to Birmingham or London just isn’t possible.



Embrace Your Inner AfroDeity!
Leilu

A Little Bit of Vanity

Leilu: At the start of my hair journey in 2008

If I had known that all would take was a little bit of vanity, I would have been a vain black women a long time ago. Being a self certified nerd and academic, I never really paid much attention to my hair or the way I look. That is of course until my hair fell out so badly I was not sure if it was beyond repair. 

But how did this happen?

Yes, you guessed it I was self relaxing. I usually got someone to do it for me but I was desperate and decided to try to do it myself. This picture was taken June 2008.

Anyway lets not get ahead of ourselves. A little history:

I had my natural hair until the age of 11 when I begged my mother to get a curly perm.

So for the next 10 years I sported a curly perm, it was wet but really hardly required any maintenance and I didn't need to go to the salon that often usually twice a year in my case.

By the noughties I grew the curls out and straightened it. Went to a salon once every two weeks, the length didn't really change and all that really changed was my bank balance as my hair never grew. So I just stopped going to the hair dresser and got braids and later a weave. The hope was that my hair would eventually grow underneath . Of course this never happened. The above is the results of no vanity and no care. Please note that I have never cared for my hair, never really worn satin scarfs at night and there are times when I have gone from one relaxer to the next washing my hair only once.

So I plan to chart my journey here, for all the UK girls who live miles from any black salons and travel two or three hours to London or Birmingham and have to buy all their hair products on the internet and pay ridiculous amounts of postage from the States.


Embrace Your Inner AfroDeity!
Leilu