The Waiting Game...

So things with me are pretty good.  I go home for Thanksgiving Break next week and I have been doing well with my coursework.  But my hair woes still continue.  Last week I finally got to see the dermatologist.  I had to wait months to get an appointment; literally months - I called to make an appointment when I got to school in August, and they couldn't see me until November.  I'm not sure if it's because I have crappy student health insurance, or if there is just one dermatologist in Ithaca, or a combination of the two.

Well the doctor was definitely worth the wait.  She was fantastic and I immediately felt more comfortable under her care than I have previously with my doctor back in DC.  To my surprise, she wanted to do a scalp biopsy.  Mind you... I just put this weave in and it cost a pretty penny.  To my surprise, she was hip on her weave knowledge and she promised me that she wouldn't completely destroy my masterpiece :).  She cut about a 1/2 inch square of the net, so my scalp was exposed and the rest...I wasn't prepared for.

Next she whips out a needle and then asks me, "Are you good with needles?"  I mean I am but I wasn't prepared for all of this!  I thought she was just going to look at my scalp and go from there.  So she numbs the area of my scalp and literally takes a piece of my scalp and prepares it for the lab.  A hair specialist is as we speak analyzing my scalp and trying to figure out if indeed have Central Scarring Alopecia.  The doctor thinks that I do and she asked me how aggressively I want to try and treat this, if this is in fact the case.  I told her I am willing to try anything within reason.  There are some oral medications that we may be able to try, but I am waiting to hear back from her, before I think about that.

I miss my natural poof.

I'm sorry that I don't have more to say on "natural hair" at the moment, but I hope sharing my story helps others.  More to come soon.

Weave-a-licious

So the doctors are still trying to figure out if I truly have Alopecia or if something else is going on.  In the mean time, it was getting harder and harder for me to conceal the bald/thin spots so I opted for a full weave.  I used to rock weaves when I had a relaxer, but hadn't really considered getting one once I was natural, until now.

I found a salon in the DC area that specializes in weaves for women with scalp and hair issues.  Marcella Ellis hair salon is located in Greenbelt, MD and was worth the money and the drive!  I will definitely be going back.  Her staff was gentle with my hair and put me at ease.

When I used to get weaves, I ordered my hair from Adorable Hair-Do, but I didn't have enough advance notice this time (they are located in NYC and they actually overnight the hair to you).  I'm actually glad that I didn't, because the salon had virgin Indian Remy hair that I absolutely love!  It is very good quality and I will be able to use it multiple times, just like the hair from Adorable.

Happy Engagement to Me!

A few days ago, I was pleasantly surprised to find a package at my door.  Turns out it was an engagement gift from NaturallyCurly.com!  The box of hair goodies included (in addition to the list, I got some trial sizes of some other great stuff):

• Mizani True Textures Curl Replenish
• Mizani True Textures Moisture Stretch
• Mizani True Textures Perfect Curl
• Cutler Specialist Molding Putty
• Max Green Alchemy Scalp Rescue Pomade (this stuffs smells AMAZING)

So first things first, I must try something!  I just took a midterm today (I started writing this yesterday, so yes, I had a midterm on a SUNDAY!) so this is my treat to myself - some good old hair time.

I washed my hair with my medicated shampoo and KC Come Clean.  Instead of my normal deep conditioner (Redken Butter Treat), I used the Curl Replenish moisturizing masque.  My initial thought was, "Hmmm, why did I have to use half of the container for one treatment?"  So after detangling with KC Knot Today, I used a mixture of Moisture Stretch and Perfect Curl to two-strand twist.  Now before you ask me... yes, the ingredient list kind of sucks (for starters there is Mineral Oil in the Moisture Stretch).  After I sat under the dryer for a total of an hour, my hair felt super soft.

So fast forward to this morning.  I untwisted my hair and thought it felt very soft.  But as I was sitting in class and touching my hair... it felt kinda greasy.  Yuck.  So as of right now: 1 point for Curl Replenish and 0 for Moisture Stretch.  I won't pass judgement on Perfect Curl quite yet.

Regardless, my hair looks cute.

Afro Glitz Web Awards 2010 Finalist

Lovelies - I am now a finalist in the "Best Hair Blog" category for the 2010 Afro Glitz Web Awards!!!  I am so excited and want to thank you all for nominating me.  I am working on a post about some new products I tried last night.  I will post ASAP.  Hugs!

Still going strong... I think

So Ithaca is treating me well, I am just busy beyond belief.  And for that reason, I haven't really experimented with any new styles or products.  I have been sticking to my "go to" look - the wet twist out using KCC. The summer weather has been beautiful up here - nice dry air.  But summer will soon be gone and the horrid winter weather will be moving in.

I have done two henna treatments since I have been here and I hope that I can keep doing them once every few weeks.  The problem is finding the time to devote to doing the treatments.

I can't tell if I am still losing my hair due to the Alopecia.  Some days I am super paranoid and think that I am, and other days I feel like it looks the same.  So I am trying to keep up with my vitamins and using my ointments.  Getting an appointment with a dermatologist is ridiculously hard up here (I think there is only one lol).

School has started + Big news!

So my blog posts will be sporadic for the next few months!  The first semester of school will be no joke, but I hope to find time to update you all on my hair joys and woes.

But in huge news... I'm engaged!  So now I am ever more focused on growing long, healthy hair, so I can blow it out for the wedding (and add a few tracks lol).

More to come, but I just wanted to post a quick update.  Miss y'all!

I did it again...

So remember that left over henna in my freezer?  Well it was calling me!  I had some already mixed and some that was still in the powder form.  I let my frozen mix thaw (probably for about an hour or two) and then I added the rest of the henna powder I had.  I brewed two green tea bags in about a cup of water and added the warm tea to my mix (probably about 1/2 cup).  I had no problems mixing up the frozen with the dry.

I let the mix sit for about 30 minutes while I washed my hair.  I added in about a tablespoon of honey, mixed, and applied it.  After about 4 hours I rinsed it out and oh my goodness...I can see how people get hooked on henna!!!  The color is fabulous, my hair is soft and my curls look so springy!

After my deep condition, I twisted my hair with KCC and Knot Today as I normally doand I am now sitting under the dryer (I usually let my hair air dry, but it takes 12+ hours and I need to catch a plane tomorrow afternoon).

I ordered some Punjabi Prime after I consulted with the folks at Mehandi.com again.  I want a little more kick after day one.  I will definitely post pictures of those results.  Not sure if I will see any difference.

I wish that I would have discovered henna a LONG time ago!

Henna Color - Day 3

So my color has changed and it isn't as "bright" as it was when I first did it.  I knew that as the henna oxidized, that it would change, but I miss the initial color.  I may need to experiement with another variety of henna and just deal with the super bright color on day one.  Or maybe I need to sleep in the henna and let it deposit much longer.  I do like how the henna looks on my natural hair color though.  It looks like I have beautiful, natural looking red highlights.

My hair still feels nice and soft and I can't wait to order some more henna, but now I just need to figure out what to order.  Decisions, decisions...

Thoughts?

Best of the Best Video Blog!!!

Lovelies!  I have great news to share.  My video blog for NaturallyCurly.com is one of the "Best of the Best" for 2010!  Check out the other products, blogs and video blogs included on this list as well!  Thank you so much for continuing to support me.  Love you all!

My First Henna Experience

So I did it!  My first henna experience went well.  I have to admit that I was nervous.  When I opened up the package of henna powder, smelled it and saw how green it was, I really had second thoughts.  But after all the research I did, I calmed myself down and took a leap of faith!  I used the Henna for African-American Hair from mehandi.com and followed the instructions provided by Curly Nikki in her instructional video.  The only difference was that I mixed my henna and let it sit overnight before applying it.  When I woke up the next day, my henna mixture was a rich, chocolate brown color, instead of green.

I was actually surprised that I didn't make a mess applying it and all in all the process was pretty easy, just time consuming.  So make sure you plan out the process so you have plenty of time to mix the henna, apply it and let it sit in your hair, deep condition and then style.  I left the henna in for about 4 hours.  Next time I want to try sleeping in it to see if I get better results.  Since this variety of henna is sifted very fine, rinsing the henna from my hair was also very easy.  I got the majority of it out with just water and I washed 2 times with a cheap conditioner and it was all out.

My hair felt instantly thicker, softer, and the curl pattern in the back seemed more relaxed.  The only complaint I have is the stinky smell.  I will have to do something about that.  I think that I read somewhere that I can add in a drop or two of an essential oil like lavender to the henna mix, but I could be making that up, so I need to verify that before I do it.

The red color is beautiful!  It isn't too bright and the shade on my tips is wonderful.  It is noticeable, but not because it is bright, but because it is really very pretty.  I can't really see the red hue on my non-colored hair, but I wasn't outside too much today, so I will take a peek this week.

I will definitely be doing this again very soon.  I am not sure if I want to use the same henna or try a different variety.  Curly Nikki uses the Jamilla variety and the dye releases in 30 minutes instead of 12+ hours, so that would be great and I couldn't potentially do my hair all in the same day.  Since I will be swamped with school, that would definitely be easier.

I also tried to create a video of my experience.  I am not sure if I like how it turned out, so I may tape the second henna attempt and post that instead.  I will let you know what I decide.