Protective Styles R Us
I have had it up to here with my hair.
Angry panda is ANGRY!!!!!
It doesn’t want to act right. It has been feeing bad and acting worse. I. HAVE. HAD. IT!!!!!
Don’t worry though, and don’t freak out. I am not getting a relaxer. Even though it is acting bat shit cray cray, I can deal with it and figure it out better than I did when I had a relaxer. With a relaxer, I would just walk around looking like ‘whodunnit and why’
No, no relaxer for me. Instead, I am scheduling an appointment soon to get my hair braided.
I was leary about getting my hair braided. I didn’t want to go to the African hairshop, and have them try to give me a permanent facelift with their tight braiding. I have also heard that they say nasty things to girls with natural hair.
I consulted with Cherilyn, my beautician (I don’t go to her often, but I consider her my beautician, because if I do go, she is the one I would go to) and she has a co-worker that braids and has natural hair. I figure she is the best (and safest) bet for me and my hair.
I still have yet to make an appointment, because between work and school I value what little free time I have. But you best believe it is going to be soon. SOON I SAY!!!! *SHAKES FIST OF ANGER*
Protective styling in this heat.
This has been a crazy week. I take a medication that, if not taken early enough, will keep me up all night. I took it within the normal range on Tuesday, but I was still up until 7:30am Wednesday. I slept for three hours, and went about the rest of my day. Around 7pm Wednesday night, I started getting incredibly drowsy. Unfortunately, that was not a great time to get drowsy because we had to go to the grocery store. When I say HAD TO. I mean had to. We didn’t even have milk. The past two weeks we had gone out to eat. It feels good to have groceries in the house again.
While at the store, I saw something a little… inappropriate, and I feel the need to say something about it. I understand that a lot of skinny girls (not skinny just skinny as in Paris Hilton, but skinny as in average) are wearing rompers this summer.
I don’t really like them. They look cute on people, but they just aren’t my cup of tea. Not to mention that I am shaped like a barrel (or a duck) and it just wouldn’t look right.
Anyway, Jeff and I are shopping and I see a couple ahead of us with their little girl in the cart. The mom is wearing a romper similar to what I posted, but it is made of a different material. What I notice the most is that her left butt cheek is hanging out. Not a hint of it, THE WHOLE THING. Then to make matters worst, she drops something and lets it all hang out! Really lady? Really? Way to set an example for your baby girl. Meh.
Anyway, she was probably eyeballing me like I was crazy as well. It was 98 degrees out yesterday. The heat index made it feel like it was 108 degrees. I was clad in jeans, a black shirt, AND A KNITTED BLACK BEANIE/BERET.
I know, it sounds insane. It is hot as hell outside, what am I doing in a knit cap? Currently my hair is protective styled in two strand twists. As I have stated in the past, my hair is never lovingly parted into two strand twists, I co-wash, detangle, and moisturize my hair. I then two strand twist it all haphazardly, then seal in the moisture.
Not the prettiest picture of myself, but you get the gist.
Unless I have somewhere I have to be (mainly job interviews), those twists do not come out of my hair until it is time to co-wash again. I don’t want them to get ‘loc’d’ up, so I take them down again to co-wash. As a result, when I go out some place that doesn’t really matter, I have a hat on. I won this beret in the winter from Revealing Beaute and it has been a godsend. However, I think I need more options.
I need to learn how to do up-dos. I attempted one before an interview, and it failed horribly. One major thing I have to take into account is that they are time intensive. I have to make sure I have the time to sit there and part and flat twist and everything.
Another option, is more hats. Did you know I know how to crochet? Yep, that and I can do basic knitting. Well, I can do the knit stitch when it comes to knitting. Because the purl stitch is just a backwards knit stitch, it messes with me. My thoughts are to purchase some lightweight yarn and make a couple of caps of my own. I know there are a few hat patterns in the stitch and bitch book I own. I am also a member of Ravelry, you can get a ton of patterns from there for free. I also have a binder of printed out patterns. I just need to get back into it. I also need to purchase lightweight yarn. I have a ton of yarn, but it is all blanket, afghan, baby blanket stuff.
What about you? How do you protective style? What kind of hats do you wear in this oppressive heat?
Hair on a trip.
Most people when they travel take one of two modes of transportation; car or plane. While gas prices are steadily going down (at least in my part of the world), they are still pretty high, making an extended car trip possibly as expensive as a plane ticket.
Our solution? The train. You win some and you lose some with the train. The last time we were on, I had a massive headache due to the fact that there were really stinky hippies. Our train last time also was like 5 hours late due to the fact that there was a mudslide in the Pacific Northwest. AKA: Nowhere near where we were, and nowhere near where we were going. Every little thing just went wrong that trip.
We are currently on a train. It is actually going rather well this time, and this leaves me optimistic. We’ve had no issues, except for a rather annoying squeaky voiced child that “loves everyone!”
The last time I was on a train, it was winter time, and my hair was in two strand twists stuffed under a scarf, stuffed under a knitted cap. The knitted cap is no longer an option in the mid west summer (the idea of it in this heat makes me gag a bit). Also, in the interest of not looking like the crazy ass ghetto black lady, I do not have a scarf on my hair. The result? I still look like the crazy ass ghetto black lady.. My hair is just out and looking a wee bit wild. I wanted to learn how to French braid my hair before this excursion, and that just didn’t happen. On long trips how do you protect your hair without looking crazy as hell? There are enough crazies on this trip (Mullet anyone?) I don’t need to add to the atmosphere.
Goals, it is good to have them.
This was an uneventful weekend for me. There was a reason for that. My second class started today, and I wanted as much relaxing time as I could possibly have. My twistout lasted a decent amount of time. Saturday the hubs and I went out for steak. I put it in a pouf and stuck a flower on it.
Me Time!
Ever since the birthday that wasn't I have been taking time out to do things for me. I usually make excuses though. I am at the end of the semester, and with five classes on my plate (one at a different school), I have to keep up. I hadn't done much to my hair in a while though, and so.. it was time. A couple of nights ago I pre-pooed my hair with coconut oil and walked around with that god awful processing cap on my head. You guys have no idea how much I hate that thing.
I worse it until it was time for bed. I then went to shower and co-washed my hair and detangled with the wide toothed shower comb. I got out the shower and combed through it again using a double toothed comb and moisturized my hair using Belle Butters matcha green tea butter. I threw my hair into 5 thick twists, put my bonnet on and hit the hay. The next morning, I did some homework, and watched "The Secret Life of the American Teenager. A little off subject, but do you watch this? Maybe I am getting old, but none of the guys are handsome. Ricky has a pompadour, and Ben is gawky. Jack is okay but he is a manwhore, and the one that Grace is seeing is wonky eyed. I am however in love with Adrian's eyebrows. They are shapely and well defined, and I am jealous.
Winterizing your Routine
So, how about the weather eh? I. Hate. Snow. Being from Indiana, this is a slight problem, as it snows quite a bit. For example, this was the view outside our garage Sunday afternoon:
- Wear a satin or silk scarf under your winter hat.
Protective Styles
Wearing your hair in protective styles is how you will be able to keep from manipulating your hair so much. It protects against the elements and protects your new growth.
I've done a braid-out once. Which means I had braids in my hair over night. That is considered a protective style, no matter how brief it was. I know quite a few naturals keep their hair in protective styles probably 90% of the time. What is your favorite protective style?