KCC Day 2

So I woke up this morning with helmet hair - not cute!  I used a combination of the KC Spiral Spritz and plain water in my spray bottle to refresh the look.  It doesn't look as good as it did yesterday, but it looks okay.  Don't know if this look will survive another night.  Ugh.  I might need to give myself an extra hour in the morning to do my hair all over again before work tomorrow... is it really worth it?  What a pain!


Has anyone successfully made this style last longer than 2 days?

Kinky-Curly Custard... I can't leave this stuff alone!

So my first attempt with KCC (Kinky-Curly Custard) was a disaster, my second much better, and now my third... even better.  I am sick of twisting my hair and I am dying for a wash-and-go look that is feasible for a 4a/b curly girl!  So I got great results without the stickiness and/or white residue that most people complain about.  Here are my step by step instructions:

1. Shampoo once with your regular shampoo.  Rinse.
2. Shampoo once with KC (Kinky-Curly) Come Clean shampoo.  Rinse.
3. Soak your hair with KC Knot Today (still in the shower) and detangled with a wide tooth comb.  Do not rinse and leave the conditioner in.
4. While your hair is pretty wet, but not dripping,  start in the back, taking small sections, coating each with KCC.  Comb through each section and leave it alone!  Repeat all over your head.  Note: Keep a spray bottle of water handy and rewet any sections that begin to dry.  Your hair must be wet in order for this to work.
5. Use a diffuser to dry your hair if you don't have time to let it air dry.

Don't give up on the style until you hair is completely dry.  Then you can shake your hair and fluff it a little bit.  I have to admit, I was getting pretty disappointed, but I am much happier now that my hair is dry.  My goal is to wash my hair and go through this process twice a week.  The days that I don't totally do my hair, I am going to use the KC Spiral Spritz and water to revive my curls.

Fade to black (well maybe dark brown)...

So I am thinking about going back to my natural hair color in preparation for business school a.k.a. me having no income.  I'm not 100% yet because I LOVE my reddish gold color, but it may be best.  If I do, I think I will just use color rinses in dark brown until my hair grows out, which will take FOREVER! I will keep you all posted with my decision!

NYC Blow Out + Trim

So I went to NYC this past weekend and I couldn't resist the allure of the $30 blow out.  Even though the stylists were rude my hair came out great.  I haven't had to put any heat on my hair since I got it done on Saturday.  I just roll it up at night with flexi rods (after my nightly scalp massage - I am trying to do this b/c I noticed my hair in the front is looking thin), wrap it in the morning as I get ready, and unwrap before I leave the house and it looks great.


But then it snowed.  Boo!  So this morning I kept my hair wrapped and finally got to break out my hat that I blogged about a few months back!  When I got to work, I went straight to the bathroom and unwrapped it.


Before all of this, I noticed that my ends were in need of a trim.  So I decided to take matters in my own hands.  When my hair was twisted, I simply snipped off the ratty looking ends.  It was super easy and drastically improved the look of my hair!  Now that my hair is blown out, my ends look pretty good. 


I am going to keep my hair straight for 2 weeks and then go back to my wet twist outs until I go get my hair colored.

Still no blow dryer!

I must say - I am quite happy with myself.  I have yet to pick up a blow dryer!  I think my hair is finally at a stage that when I style it wet, I don't lose too much length, IF I do some type of twisting style.  


Also, I'm sorry that I have been MIA, but as you all know, I have been applying to business school and have so far gotten accepted into two programs!  I have also been working on a new site design, so stay tuned.

I am almost out of the Pureology Hydrate shampoo and conditioner and I have been toying with the idea of purchasing the Pureology Nanoworks shampoo and conditioner which are considerably more expensive.  My stylists said that they are amazing.  I will keep my eye on eBay, because I refuse to pay the full retail amount.  Has anyone tried the Nanoworks line?


Also don't forget to check out my video blogs on the NaturallyCurly website.

Still No Heat + Congrats to the Clairol Jazzing Winners!

Happy New Year!

I am glad to report that I still haven't used heat on my hair.  I am really digging the look I get from flexi-rodding wet twists.  I have been using Baby Buttercreme, but I might try that in conjunction with Curly Meringue, for a little hold.  I have worn my hair in a "mohawk", half pinned up and back, and pulled back in a curly poof.  My hair feels sooooo soft and is very manageable.  Here are 2 pictures of the pulled back look (sorry for the bad quality):

 

I am also glad to report that the 3 winners of the Clairol Jazzing Giveaway have been notified!  Thanks for participating and stay tuned for more giveaways.

Only a few days left!

Don't forget about the Clairol Jazzing giveaway!  All you have to do is fill out a super quick survey to be eligible to win!  You have until December 31, 2009 to enter!

Trying to give up the blow dryer...

So with almost 2 feet of snow on the ground, I have been doing a lot of thinking and experimenting with my hair.  I think that I am going to try and ditch the blow dryer (for as long as possible).  After the Hair Rules experiment and after a four hour nap, at 12 a.m. I decided to play with my hair yet again.  After watching some really great YouTube videos, I decided to "remix" my two strand twist out.  This time I tried two strand twisting my hair wet with Baby Buttercreme.  Then I set my twists on flexi rods and went to sleep (please ignore the blue flexi rod still in the back of my head in the picture). I think that I may be on to something...

I am still trying to figure out what to do with the left side of my head, hence the flexi rods.  Maybe I'll pin that side up too and have a curly mohawk of some sort.  If I can get this technique to work, I may have found yet another super easy style.


I like how my color looks when I let it air dry and it is nice not having to pull out the blow dryer.  I am just scared of dealing with shrinkage.


PS - Don't forget about the Clairol Jazzing giveaway!  All you have to do is fill out a super quick survey to be eligible to win!  You have until December 31, 2009 to enter!

Ok and the verdict is in...

Okay so I was pleasantly surprised.  Let me first start out by saying I didn't have high expectations for the Hair Rules products.  There are a slew of products that claim to elongate and combat shrinkage for kinky, 4A/B hair types.  So far, the best product for me has been Kinky-Curly Custard (KCC), but the sticky factor sucks.  And now there is the Hair Rules.  I used the aloe grapefruit purifying shampoo, daily cleansing cream, quench deep conditioner, and the kinky curling cream.  I am actually impressed with the results.  The products are all creamy and the cleansing cream is AMAZING.  The minute it touched my hair, my curls instantly softened.  After applying the kinky curly cream, I sat under the dryer for about 10 minutes.


The one issue I have is that you need to use a lot of the kinky curly cream.  The front and top came out very cute but I don't think that I used enough in the back.  Right now they are running a special on kinky curly cream (BOGO), so I am definitely going to order some.  But I am going to stick with my current shampoos and conditioners; I don't want to go overboard and spend a ton of money.


Now, the ingredients are not ideal.  The second ingredient in the kinky curly cream is mineral oil.  My hair is still drying, but since the front and top are dry, I used some Baby Buttercreme to soften it up.  I think if I do this again, and use more product, I will get the result that I want.  I am also tempted to use both KCC and kinky curly cream to see what kind of results I get.


Bottom line: KCC gave me much more curl definition (see picture below) but kinky curly cream doesn't leave my hair feeling sticky.  I am going to try a mix and see what I get!

Picture Time + A Trial Run with Hair Rules, Maybe?

I thought that I would post some pictures!  Not only am I amazed at how fast my hair is growing, but I feel like it is "filling in" if that makes any sense.  It seems like it is thickening up some; that's always a plus.  With that said, I think that I am going to be brave and try the Hair Rules products this weekend.  I have the "kinky" travel set that I got from the wonderful folks at NaturallyCurly.com.  So far, the only product that has gives me some type of hang has been Kinky-Curly custard.  I have heard both good and bad about Hair Rules, but like everything, you have to try it out for yourself.  I just try not to get my hopes up!  Whenever I get the courage up to rock a super curly look, I am usually disappointed because I feel like a poodle.  As much as I love my curly texture, I sometimes hate dealing with the the shrinkage.  Oh well, I will take shrinkage over the fire cream any day!

PS - Don't forget about the Clairol Jazzing giveaway!  All you have to do is full out a super quick survey to be eligible to win!  You have until December 31, 2009 to enter!

PPS - Also don't forget to check out my vlogs at NaturallyCurly.com! I hope that you enjoy!