Want to be a Natural Girl too? Well, you have definitely reached the right spot. I will give you tips on being natural, from transitioning, rocking the curly look, and wearing a straight look without a chemical relaxer. Ready? Set? Let's get natural!
Are you a natural girl in an almost natural world? Well, I definitely am. I have been natural for almost four years now. It will be four years this July. My desire to be natural started in my undergraduate work at Otterbein University. I was a little nervous because I did not know what to expect, how I would do my hair, or whether or not I would like it. Needless to say, I went natural for about two months and then reverted back to getting a relaxer. My undergraduate years provided great insight for me to test out whether or not I wanted to be natural.
My journey to be natural started again in 2009. I told myself that I wanted to get to know my hair a little better and try new styles. I knew there was more to my hair than the negative things I had heard about naturally curly and kinky hair. Well, I was right. I found out that my hair has a natural curl pattern that is amplified with certain products and techniques. I identified that straightening my hair or wearing my hair curly requires me to use different techniques and different hair products. I also found out that my hair may be different than other natural hair gurus. The photos above showcase my natural hair techniques used within the last couple of years.
Hope you have been doing great. Today I was on Pinterest.com and found a great blog on natural hair. I am all about linking you to other natural hair bloggers and practitioners. Check out Naturally Obsessed.
I have been wearing the naturally curly look, also known as a wash and go look. The look is very easy to complete. I am very hands on with my hair, which you will notice in the steps below.
Steps:
1. Water Down. Place your head under your shower head for about 5 to 10 minutes. Make sure you run your fingers through your hair to make sure every inch of your hair is wet. Your hair should become very curly when it is time to move on to the next step.
2. Condition. Use a conditioner (Garnier Fructis: Sleek & Shine) to condition your hair. You will not need to use shampoo every time you wash your hair, especially if you wash your hair daily. Shampoo is great to use when you are straightening out your hair. When you want to wear a curly look, a conditioner will suffice.
3. Scalp Massage. Make sure you are very active in conditioning your hair. This means that you will have to use your fingers a lot. The best way I can describe this method is by giving yourself a scalp massage.
4. Let Stand. Let the conditioner stay in your hair for about 5 to 10 minutes after you have deeply massaged your scalp.
5. Profound Curls. Before completely washing out your hair, run some water over your fingers and give yourself another scalp massage. You will move your hands back and forth from the water to your head at least five times. This techniques brings out your curls even more and gives you profound curls.
6. Dip Dry. Use a towel to catch the water that drips from your hair, but do not dry with the towel. This allows your hair to be wet enough for the next product you will put in your hair.
7. Styling Gel. Use an alcohol free styling gel (Eco Styler Styling Gel). Finger part your hair into four sections. Apply a medium sized amount of gel to your hands and rub together. Make sure gel is also applied to the insides of your fingers. Now apply the gel to each section. Right now, you are just doing a quick application because you want to make sure each section of some gel on it. You will now start in the first section by finger-parting smaller portions of the section and applying some more gel to the section. Continue this process until you have moved through all four sections of your hair.
8. Gel It Down. This is great for those you want the front portion of their hair to lay down. You can definitely use a brush or comb for this portion; however I have chosen not to because I am more hands on with my hair. Take a hair scarf and tie the scarf around the front and back part of your head. The middle portion of your hair will be exposed and can air dry.
These helpful tips can definitely be modified to your own preferences. Try this hair style out and let me know what you think about it.
So it has been approximately three years
and 3 months since I went natural. My transition left me feeling so exhilarated
and enlightened. I was ready to conquer the world; natural world that is. If
only during that transition I had read the book, "The Knotty Truth." I know I would have been
better equipped with what worked and what did not work. I am aware that we all do
not have the same hair texture and that we all have to try different products;
however, “The Knotty Truth,” provided great products for natural hair with
important information regarding what that particular product did for the hair. The examples below
provide hair information that I found important and very helpful:
CSDSRCD- This stands for conditioning, sectioning, detangling, shampooing,
rinsing, condition, and detangle. This is the hair washing process that the
book suggest that natural individuals use for “Happy hair.”
Lemongrass- Clean fresh smell, slows down
oil production
Rosemary Oil- aids in hair growth (not for
pregnant women)
Tea Tree Oil- Treats oily hair, dry scalp;
natural antiseptic
Ylang Ylang- antiseptic, stimulates growth;
controls sebum production
Lemon- Cleanser, hair lightener
Lavender- Soothes senses, treats dandruff
Sage- Natural cleansing and reviving
properties of dead hair follicles
Check
back soon and I will review info on moisturizers and conditioners suggested by the book.
If you are planning on going natural or
have already done so, I highly recommend obtaining your very own copy of, “The
Knotty Truth.” This DIY book allows you to learn ways to manage your own
naturalness, while keep your looks stylish and fresh.
The beauty of natural hair is evolving rapidly. People are embracing their natural beauty and taking the phrase "Getting to know my hair" to a whole new level. You can witness the evergrowing numbers of natural beauties from Viola Davis, Elle Varner, and even Kim Wayans. Below, you will find information about going naturals, such as an article from the NY Times and products suggested by natural beauties.
Natural Girl in an Almost Natural World refers to life in society where: Some people have natural hair and some people don't. Some people use natural products and some people won't. That's just the way life is and there is nothing you can do about it. Or is there?
The first way to change or bring light to a situation is by education. It is a fact that we do not possess the same knowledge as each other. If we did, a lot of people would have natural hair like Solange Knowles, Janelle Monae, and Keisha Knight Pulliam. Did you know that Keisha is natural? Well, she is and she dishes on her favorite styles to wear on NaturallyCurly.com.
In being natural, do like Janelle does and "Don't give up without a fight. Reach for the stars."
Not giving up without a fight is exactly what you will have to do. I have seen many people start the journey to having natural hair and go as far as doing the big chop, but in the end they relaxed their hair because they could not manage their natural hair. The current misconception about natural hair is that it is easier to do. This could not be a more negative statement. Natural hair takes a lot of work to maintain. If you are in the process of transitioning to natural hair, you should think about the following things before transitioning: How will I wear my hair? Who is going to do my hair? What products will I use? And am I prepared for the mixed emotions from people about my hair? These are all things you should be mindful of before going natural. Naturally, the decision is always yours. Make the decision that is right for you.
If you have decided to go natural, then welcome to the natural club. You have embarked on a tough, yet exciting journey!
Have you ever thought about rocking the natural look? Do you even know where to start? I was in this same perdicament about three years ago. I did not know where to start and where my journey would lead. I started my journey, the same way my mother had taught me to find information I wanted to know; I looked it up.
I started my first lesson by looking up the word: Natural hair. The search led me to many helpful websites such as Curly Nikki, Mahagony Curls, and other natural hair care websites. I learned about the BC, Two Strand Twists, and Twist Outs. You could say that I was in natural girl heaven because I was excited about all the new things I was learning about my hair and wanted to try out every example.
Next, I started asking people that were already natural about their transition. These individuals were friends, friends of friends, and those who I met at a particular coffee shop I often visited. At the coffee shop, pretty much everyone was natural or transitioning to be natural. I thought to myself, this must be my sign; My journey to being natural had to start soon. And it did.
My transition started out kind of slow. I told myself that I would stop getting a relaxer and let the perm grow out. Now what do I do? That technique only worked for so long because managing two different hair textures was difficult: I had my natural hair that curled up and would not work well with my old hair products. Then I had my previously relaxed hair that wanted to stay straight. So my next plan was to clip my ends once a month. This method helped me transition into my next phase: The Big Chop.
The Big Chop came about five months after I decided to stop getting a perm. I felt freedom from having relaxed hair, but at the some time nervous. I was free because I was no longer constrainted to the conditions of getting a relaxer every six weeks; I was nervous because my journey to having natural hair was only just beginning.
I found myself watching a lot of Youtube videos. Remember how I said earlier that I researched various things about natural hair? Well in my research, I paid special attention to YouTube videos by Curly Nikki and Mahagony Curls. Their videos helped me in the beginning stages of my Big Chop. Another important fact to my success in managing my natural hair was that I had always been a great hair stylist when it came to doing others hair, as well as my own. I had never attended beauty school and had learned how to braid and twist hair as a child. The videos that I watched were easy to understand and imitate.
So how am I rocking my hair nowadays? I am very glad you asked that question! Well, it has been over three years since I went natural. You may see my hair go back and forth from the straight look to the wet and go look. As my hair continues to grow, I have to find other ways to do my hair because what worked for me in the beginning, does not always work for me now.
~I encourage everyone to get to know their true hair by knowing what and what does not work for their hair type. You never know, you may like what you see
