Updated Regimen

March 1st-July 1st

•Protective styles throughout the week
•Only wear hair OUT 1 day of the week
•Implement some type of purifying clay (if you can)
•Deep condition once a week
•Protein treatments every 6 weeks
•Continue to take vitamins/Biotin
•Reintroduction glycerin into the regimen starting May once it gets warmer
•NO heat!!!!!! (Felicia....this means you! Lol)
•Cleanse hair every other week (I figure that since deep conditioning will happen once a week, it will rid the hair and scalp of loose debris as well as introducing moisture so shampooing every week won't really be necessary)
•Continue to massage scalp daily
Once the challenge is over, to reward ourselves, we should be a celebration style for the 4th of July. This can be ANY style we want. Flat iron that shit out of your hair if you want to!!!!! You deserve it.

Once again:

1. Detangle
2. Wash
3. Condition
4. Moisturize
5. Protect & Seal
6. GROW!!!!!!

Detangle- After taking down twist (protective style), section hair into 4 sections. Clip each section. Continue to finger comb through hair. Take each section and smooth down hair strand. Helps cuticle to be stimulated and helps get hair in one direction.

Wash- Rinse one section of the hair (usually start from the back right). Use conditioner or Olive Oil to saturate hair. Will aid in removing shed hair and detangling. Smooth hands down hair to remove shed hair. DON’T THROW THE HAIR AWAY! Remember: Need to track shedding and broken hairs. After shed hairs are removed, begin to detangle from the ends to the roots. Should be easy if Moist/Seal happened throughout the week. Wring out hair to remove excess conditioner. Add shampoo/cleansing cream to the scalp. Spray water (water/Glycerin mixture also works) if scalp/hair needs to be dampened. Concentrate your shampoo on your scalp. Scalp health is VERY important to healthy hair growth. Massage scalp. Once your massage your entire scalp, run the shampoo/cleansing cream down the hair shaft. Remember: Do not scratch scalp. Slightly rinse section with warm water. Twist section and replace clip. Continue with the other 3 sections.

Condition- Start with back right section again and add conditioner. Spray water/glycerin mixture if hair needs to be dampened. Rub conditioner through hair section. Finger combing throughout section. Twist section. Repeat on remaining sections. Put shower cap over head and wait 10-15 minutes. Rinse each section individually, re-twist section, and replace clip.

YAY……..CLEAN HAIR!!!!!!

Leave-in conditioner:

1 oz. of Leave-In conditioner
2 teaspoons of Castor Oil
2 teaspoons of Jojoba Oil
2 tablespoons of Aloe Vera Juice

Distribute through each section and re-twist.

Deep Conditioner:

Any type of conditioner can be used
Add any oil you would like (I prefer Olive Oil because it’s cheaper and adds shine)
Distribute throughout hair
Cover hair with shower cap or plastic bag

1 Avocado
½ to 1 can of Coconut Milk
Olive Oil
Mix until creamy. Adjust amount of coconut milk until creamy consistency is achieved.
The remainder can be stored in the fridge.

1 Avocado
1/4 cup Shea Butter (or more)
Olive Oil
1-2 tablespoon of Apple Cider Vinegar

1 Avocado
3 tablespoons of Mayo
Olive Oil
Honey

*ALL of these mixtures need to be mixed well. If not, there is a chance you will be picking ingredients, especially the Avocado) out of your hair. Deep conditioners work the best with heat. Covering hair with shower cap or plastic bag and sitting under the dryer for 30 minutes (covering hair for an hour with a towel is just as good). I like using Olive Oil in my mixtures. It’s the cheapest and easiest to find. I don’t really measure how much I put into the mixture. It’s good for my hair so ‘too much’ is impossible.

If you would prefer something store bought, please check this link. http://www.afrobella.com/2010/11/02/autumn-5-deep-conditioners-for-natural-kinks-and-curl/

Moisturize- After twisting hair with any type of Twist Cream or Shea Butter mixture, let dry for about 30 minutes before adding any additional moisture. Apply Butter Crème or Thick Moisturizer. Stretch hair with ponytail holder and add scarf. During the week, add moisture with water/oil or moisturizer. Listen to what your hair needs. Moisturize hair one day before pre-poo to avoid excess oil build up on scalp. Alternate with sealing.

Sealing-While your hair is in a protective styling, dampen hair with water. You can add a moisturizer to your twists/braids/hair. Make sure you smooth it down the entire length of your hair, especially focusing on your edges. Seal the moisture in your hair with an oil mixture or Shea Butter. You can also apply the oil mixture or Shea Butter directly after you mist your hair with water. It is totally up to you. Again, listen to your hair. If it’s thirsty, give it more moisture.

Here are some sealing process/products that I have tried before. Still working with my hair to figure out which one it likes the best. Personally, I prefer misting with water and sealing with Shea Butter/Oil mixture.

· Water/Glycerin/Aloe Vera Juice
· Hawaiian Silky 14-n-1 Miracle worker
· Oil Blend (Jojoba Oil/Castor Oil/Avocado Oil/Safflower Oil/Grapeseed Oil/Olive Oil)

OR

· Water
· Butter Crème/Thick Moisturizer
· Oil Blend

OR

· Water/Aloe Vera Juice
· Hair Milk or light moisturizer
· Jojoba Oil

Wrap hair with plastic to retain moisture. Atleast an hour.

Protect- Protective styles need to be worn throughout the week. Because your hair is already in twisted sections during your washing routine.....it will be easy to style your hair from here. Remember to work in sections!!! Protective style pictures and videos will be posted VERY soon.

**Hair regimen needs to be adjusted during the colder months when hair is more susceptible to dryness and breakage because of extreme bold and fabrics (especially wool from hats and scarves). Removing glycerin from the routine is essential. Glycerin attracts water and moisture. Using glycerin in colder months only attracts extremely cold air and moisture. This cold moisture in the air is too frigid for the hair. It makes the hair weak and more prone to breakage.

GROW- Well………hopefully!!!!!

10-4
Nia

Ingredients 101

I know there is always a lot of talk in the natural hair community about ingredients: which ones are good for our hair....and which ones are the devil.

Finally found a listing of sulfates and silicones (among others) that can help and/or hurt our hair.

Checketh! It's long as chill out and take your time.

Please note that professional salon products especially formulated for curly hair will always give the best results; however, drugstore products containing no sulfates or non-water soluble silicones are always preferable to any product brand containing those ingredients.

I am not in the least bit concerned about what "brand" you use. I care more that you commit to following the no-sulfate, no non-water soluble silicones guidelines than I do about what brand you buy, so always feel free to experiment and use the products that are best for you and your particular curls. I still experiment with different products myself, as I suspect almost every girl with curls will do for the rest of her life!

Sulfates

A surfactant—sometimes referred to as a detergent—is a substance that, when dissolved in water, gives a product the ability to remove dirt from surfaces such as the human skin, textiles, and other solids. There are several different types of surfactants, ranging from harsh to mild, with sulfates belonging to the class that is the most harsh.

Common sulfates as found on hair product ingredient bottles include:

• Alkylbenzene Sulfonate
• Ammonium Laureth or Lauryl Sulfate
• Ammonium or Sodium Xylenesulfonate
• Dioctyl Sodium Sulfosuccinate
• Ethyl PEG-15 Cocamine Sulfate
• Sodium C14-16 Olefin Sulfonate
• Sodium Cocoyl Sarcosinate
• Sodium Laureth, Myreth, or Lauryl Sulfate
• Sodium Lauryl Sulfoacetate
• TEA-Dodecylbenzenesulfonate

Some milder surfactants—less drying and recommended in lieu of sulfates—include:

• Cocamidopropyl Betaine
• Coco Betaine
• Cocoamphoacetate
• Cocoamphodipropionate
• Disodium Cocoamphodiacetate or Cocoamphodipropionate
• Lauroamphoacetate
• Sodium Cocoyl Isethionate

Silicones

Silicones generally end in -cone, -conol, -col, or -xane and are found in many hair products. If any silicone name has the abbreviation "PEG" or "PPG" in front of it, however, it is water-soluble and will not build up.

Silicones that are not soluble in water, will consistently build up on the hair and will require a surfactant-based shampoo to remove include:

• Cetearyl Methicone
• Cetyl Dimethicone
• Dimethicone
• Dimethiconol
• Stearyl Dimethicone

Silicones that are not soluble in water, but whose chemical properties allow it to repel further deposit, helping to prevent buildup (although they will still lock moisture out of the hair and require a surfactant to remove):

• Amodimethicone
• Cyclomethicone/Cyclopentasiloxane
• Trimethylsilylamodimethicone

A note about amodimethicone: if you do an Internet search on amodimethicone, you will find quite a few sites that list amodimethicone as a silicone that is "slightly" soluble in water as long as two additional ingredients are included in the formulation:

Amodimethicone (and) Trideceth-12 (and) Cetrimonium Chloride (as a mixture in the bottle)

The assumption has always been that the inclusion of Trideceth-12 (a nonionic surfactant) and cetrimonium chloride (a cationic surfactant) render the amodimethicone, non-water soluble on its own, slightly soluble in water and it could be considered okay to use. Turns out that has been a completely incorrect assumption. What the Trideceth-12 and cetrimonium chloride do is render the amodimethicone dispersible in water. Once the amodimethicone is deposited onto the hair shaft and dries to a film, however, it is not water-soluble, will prevent moisture from getting into the hair shaft and will require a surfactant to remove.

Silicones that are slightly soluble in water, but can possibly build up on some types of curly hair over time, include:

• Behenoxy Dimethicone
• Stearoxy Dimethicone

Silicones that are soluble in water and can generally be considered safe to use (in addition to those listed with "PEG" or "PPG" in front of them) include:

• Dimethicone Copolyol
• Hydrolyzed Wheat Protein Hydroxypropyl Polysiloxane
• Lauryl Methicone Copolyol

Proteins

An additional note about proteins: some curly hair types, especially those with a coarse hair texture, are also sensitive to proteins, which can cause some curly hair to become dry and brittle. They are best avoided if any adverse effects are noted.

Common protein ingredients include:

• Collagen
• Hydrolyzed Collagen Protein
• Hydrolyzed Silk Protein
• Hydrolyzed Soy Protein
• Hydrolyzed Wheat Protein
• Keratin
• Keratin Amino Acids
• Silk Amino Acids
• Silk Protein
• Soy Protein
• Wheat Amino Acids
• Wheat Protein

Reasons You Aren't Gaining Length

By Dr. Phoenyx Austin
Posted on CurlyNikki.com

Growing longer hair should be pretty simple for every woman- right? I mean, the hair just grows out of our heads. It’s not like we have to look at our scalps on a daily basis and say “Yo follicle! Handle your business!” So why is it that some of us can never seem to grow our hair to the length that we desire? Many women are surprised to discover that the answer to that question isn’t found in taking hair pills or hunting for a new hair product. Growing longer hair is simply about allowing our hair to grow more than we are damaging it. It’s actually that simple. So if you’re having trouble gaining length, you may want to look a little closer at your hair care regimen. Maybe there are specific things that you are doing to cause damage and counteract your hair’s growth. Here are 5 reasons you may not be gaining length:

1. You’re over-manipulating and under protective styling
I constantly get questions about whether women can get away with not protective styling and still achieve length. The fact is that curlier hair is more delicate (and finer) than straight hair. Because of this, you need to protect it from frequent manipulation. Sure, you can try your luck with infrequent protective styling- but more manipulation equals more hair damage, which equals more breakage. And more breakage will always counteract attempts to gain length.

2. You’re not moisturizing and sealing
Curly, kinky and coily hair CRAVES moisture. Moisture is what our hair needs to preserve elasticity. And when hair is deprived of moisture, the result is that not so pleasant “B” word again—Breakage! To gain length (and prevent breakage), you must help your hair maintain its elasticity by making moisturizing and sealing part of your daily hair routine. Hair that does not gain length is simply hair that is breaking faster than it is growing. In the case of curly hair (especially curly, porous hair), you always want to counteract dryness and breakage by moisturizing and sealing.

**SIDENOTE: When I had mini-twists, I literally moisturized and sealed my hair everyday (or every other day if I was busy). I spray water on my hair atleast three (3) times a day. The mini-twists just made it so easy to take care of my hair and give it the proper moisture.

3. You’re using heat (FELICIA...This is for you)
With the exception of using mild, wet heat to deep condition, dry heat (i.e. from flat irons or blow dryers) should be avoided. Dry heat literally boils moisture out of hair- leading to dryness and ultimately breakage. I know there are women that like to flat-iron or blow dry their hair for the occasional sleek look, but those are two of the fastest ways to damaging your already-prone-to-dryness curly hair. I know it may be hard for some to accept, but to gain length you’re going to have to step away from the heat.

4. You’re not trimming damaged or spit ends
Hair doesn’t need to be put on a frequent trimming schedule. But if you are damaging your hair so much that splits ends and breakage become a common occurrence, then you need to trim your hair regularly to counteract this damage. If you don’t take care of these damaged ends on the spot, or ignore them, you’ll just have damage that will literally start to extend from the tip of your hair and up the hair shaft. In those cases you’ll end up having to do a bigger chop than when there was less damage. And this bigger chop will, once again, make it harder for you to achieve the length you want.

5. Keep Things Low Maintenance
Keep things simple with low maintenance and protective styling. All hair goes through normal wear and tear. But the less stress you put on hair by manipulating it with things like combing and heat styling, the less likely it will incur damage that will cause things like split ends and breakage.

Great tips ladies!!!! Make sure you keep these things in mind as we go forward with our challenge.

Question: Do I need to make more calendars for us? I think they semi-worked for us last time. However, with natural hair....it's so unpredictable. My mood and attitude about my hair is unpredictable. And most importantly, my laziness is strong like BULL!

Let me know.

Nia.

Ladies......

Hello there. How's everybody doing?

I'll be posting some info about the revisions to the challenge, hopefully tonight.

Hope everyone (and your hair) is doing well.

I'm almost at bra strap length. Woot! Now all that has to happen..... My bangs have to grow! Seems simple, right? :-/

Nia*