CurlyinColorado.com is Moving to Wordpress!

Hey there!  The blog CurlyinColorado is currently transitioning over to Wordpress!  This is something that I've been considering for quite a while.  It looks like the site may look a little different for the next few days so please bear with me.  The blog will get a little facelift and some optimization which I'm sure will be worth the wait.

A Brief Natural Hair Journey Story

My TWA after doing the Big Chop
in Spring 2009

I was on Instagram going through my timeline the other day when I realized how many naturalistas I have met since joining in late 2013.  It occurred to me that I haven't really talked about the beginnings of my natural hair journey which is now going on eight years.  I honestly can't get over the fact that I have been natural since the spring of 2009.  Prior to that, I had relaxed hair and didn't even know there was such a thing as, "going natural."  So I thought that I would share a brief "natural history" with all of my new readers
and followers.

My hair journey started all because I couldn't figure out why my hair was stuck at one length.  At the time, my hair was dyed, relaxed and I used heat constantly.  The reason for my stunted growth was pretty obvious but I was completely oblivious.  My store bought, auburn hair color put my hair porosity levels on the high end which meant it was constantly dry.  This was in addition to having a relaxer.  The two chemical processes left my hair with twice the damage.  Then there was the heat.  I loved using heat on my hair everyday.  Sure, I wrapped my hair at night, but I still did touch-ups with a curling iron or flat iron each morning before work.  I basically didn't know how to care for my hair.  I just knew how to style it and there's a big difference between the two.

When I did my research I finally began to see how the combination of damaging practices wreaked havoc on my hair.  I started to consider relaxer stretching.  That's where you apply your relaxers less often.  Then I learned about people who stopped relaxing altogether!  Say what?!  I never even heard of such a thing.  The idea of going without a relaxer was actually pretty scary at the time.  I mean, what was I supposed to do with my hair in it's natural state?  It makes me laugh now but that was actually my mindset at the time.

My relaxed hair before I went natural

After looking into it further, I realized how versatile natural hair was.  I went from being scared to death of the idea to being really excited.  My transition from relaxed to natural hair lasted nine months before I did my own big chop.  I deep conditioned my hair every week without fail.  Sure, I made mistakes like giving myself heat damage and using henna that was full of twigs and dried leaves (don't ask).  It was all good though; I was totally up for it.  My hair grew so fast, I barely had a chance to enjoy my TWA.  I still straightened my hair though so I experienced setbacks here and there due to heat damage (see my previous post).

I've learned a lot about my hair and I'm still learning everyday.  At least now I feel like I have my staple products down.  I like to try new things so I'm looking forward to doing some reviews in the future.  Well, that was my very brief natural hair journey story.  If you go way back to my earlier posts you can read more including how I did my own big chop.  See ya next time!

Caring for Natural Hair During the Winter Months

I have a love/hate relationship with the long winters that are common here in Colorado.  On the one
hand, you have fun times in the snow and beautiful scenery.  On the other, unpleasant bouts of dry skin and hair.  I realize that other states get plenty of snow like we do here in Colorado.  Thing is, we also have a dry climate which can seem even drier during the wintertime.  This seasonal change can lead to skin that soaks up lotion like a sponge.  It can also be a burden to my already thirsty natural hair. 

Each year I have to change my hair regimen in order to adapt.  It's either that or come spring I'm mourning the loss of valuable inches.  I usually keep grapeseed oil on hand which helps to seal in the moisture from one of my favorite hair milks.  That works just fine during the warmer months.  For
winter though, I have to act like I live north of Winterfell and get medieval on these curls with something heavy like shea butter or castor oil. 

In the fall, I started out using a mixture of castor and grapeseed oils to act as my sealant.  This was okay up until December when the dryness began to set in.  I tried doing deep conditioning treatments but I really just needed a good moisturizer.  I knew that I could find a moisturizing product for natural hair at the store but I wondered what would happen if I just used olive oil instead?  It technically has a molecular structure that allows it to penetrate the hair shaft so it could work right?

My hair is softer and more manageable
Thanks to using Olive Oil as a moisturizer

Let me tell you my hair bounced back almost instantly!  It felt so good it had me wondering why I never thought of this before?  I mean, of course I've used olive oil in my shea butter mixes or back when I started experimenting with Eco Gel.  This time though, I used it just like it were my moisturizer.  I hopped out of the shower and applied the oil directly to my hair while it was still slightly wet.  Then I used my Shea Butter Extra Moisturizing Transitioning Milk by Shea Moisture.  I have used this product alone but never had this much softness and manageability.  I finished by using Eco Gel with Argan Oil for a wash and go.  My hair felt great up until wash day which for me is about every 3 to 4 days (thanks to my psoriasis scalp).

If you're in Colorado (or having dry hair issues in general) then I highly suggest giving olive oil a try.  Look for Extra Virgin olive oil because it is going to give you the best results.  I do not suggest this oil if you plan on using heat on your hair.  Also, it may be too heavy if you have fine hair so you can apply it and leave-in for a few minutes before cleansing your hair.

I'm so glad my hot hair tip is finally out of the bag!  I get asked about how to manage dry hair all of the time and I truly hope that this helps someone.  Please leave a comment below if this has
helped you!

How Heat Damage Led to My Mini Big Chop

My teeny afro after my Mini Big Chop
Feb. 2016

Stubborn.  I guess that's the word for it because I have no other way to describe it.  I keep trying to straighten my hair until it is laid to the gods and it keeps coming back with heat damage.  Yes, I have now, to date, given myself heat damage more times than I can remember.  There isn't a stylist to blame or even a lack of knowledge on my part.  I knew better and still wound up damaging my hair while straightening it.

I blame Youtube.  We've all seen the videos where people are cranking their flat irons up past 400 degrees.  Well, I thought maybe I could too.  I mean why not?  My hair was getting longer and healthier.  I was doing protein treatments and using multiple heat protectants.  I even thought I could just wear my hair straight whenever I felt like it.  I found out the hard way that those things would certainly not work for my hair.

In the past, when I noticed a little heat damage, it was near the ends of my hair resulting in loose curls.  Last year, however, I noticed that the hair from midway down the strands to the ends was thinner than the new growth coming in.  A lot thinner.  That eventually led to some breakage which sent me into emergency repair mode.  Of course I tried protein treatments; usually the 2 Minute Reconstructor by Aphogee.  This time though, I knew that the damaged hair would have to go.

Finally, I decided to do a mini big chop to get rid of the damaged hair.  This left me with a very teeny afro.  That was in February of 2016.  My hair feels completely different almost a year later.  It's even back to my old length from before the heat damage.

Of course, I'm stubborn, so I still like to use heat on my hair.  As far as avoiding heat damage, here is what I have learned, again.

My hair now
Jan. 2017
(curls are back after straightening)

1. Always clarify hair prior to straightening (A must!)
2. Always use a heat protectant (Duh!)
3. MY hair cannot withstand heat over 400 degrees (anything higher = heat damage)
4. Touch-ups are the Devil!  Pincurls, wraps and rollers only for styling after straightening.
5. Use heat less frequently (no more than 1x per month; less is even better)

I would like to think that this time I have finally learned my lesson.  What's good for some may not work for others.  I know that I sound like a broken record but it's true.

Have you ever tried something you saw on Youtube and it went horribly wrong?  Leave a 

comment below.

CHECK OUT MY LAST POST HERE 

Getting Back to it After a Long Blog Hiatus

Feeling better and ready to
get back to blogging

It certainly has been a really long time since I last posted here on CurlyinColorado.com.  There were plenty of times during my hiatus that I thought about updating everyone on my hair journey.  Thing is, the end of 2015 and all of 2016 proved to be very challenging for me personally.  It turns out that I was experiencing chronic pain from a large tumor like growth in my lower abdomen.  The pain increased and eventually led to an abdominal surgery in October of 2016.  After the surgery it was later concluded that the growth was the result of endometriosis. 


I sit here writing this post realizing that others may have experienced something similar.  All I can say is, if something doesn't seem right, definitely seek medical attention early before it gets out of  hand.  The pain left me feeling down and unmotivated.  I also wasn't sleeping very well which made me tired and not up to my best during the day.  However, since the surgery, I have fully recovered and am feeling so much better.  I'm even back to exercising and sleeping normally.



Scenes from my new office space

My new found energy has got me wanting to get back to things that I missed out on while I was down with the pain.  Blogging is one of those things so you'll be seeing more posts here on CurlyinColorado.com.  Another positive is that our family purchased a new home in 2016!  This month marks one full year of living in our new house and we are lovin' it.  We have more space and are even enjoying a designated office just off of the master bedroom.  I'm adding to the space all of the time and can't wait to start filming for my YouTube Channel and creating content for the blog. 

So there it is!  My blog hiatus is officially over.  Let me know if there are any topics that you would like to see in a post.  See you soon!