Having recently discovered that LONG HEALTHY BLACK HAIR is NOT impossible, I was over the moon. Then I realized just how much effort it takes to actually achieve long healthy black hair. I spent countless hours on hair boards, blog sites and NING desperately trying to make sense of it all. There is so much information to filter it can be overwhelming, but the hardest part is knowing where to start. So because of how a mess I was when I started taking care of my hair I decided to a 3 part series how where to start with your journey. It won’t cover all the information, jus everything you need to know in order to begin. Then once you have a solid foundation it will make it so much easier to build from.
The first thing you need to do is take a picture! Pictures help you to notice the subtle changes that occur in the beginning of your journey. My advice is to take a picture of the back, front and sides of your hair. I like to take update pictures with each new relaxer, or if your natural, every 2-3 months. Taking an update picture every month is kind of like waiting for water to boil Rome wasn’t build in a day and neither was LONG HEALTHY BLACK HAIR. A lot of women make fotki’s(http://www.fotki.com/) to keep track of their pictures, but I just keep them in a dollar store photo album and I write the dates on the back. I know it sounds generic, but I prefer it that way because I feel like I notice more with a hard copy of the photo. I know it’s crazy, but that’s me lol.
Now that you have your picture the next thing I would suggest doing is making a regiment. Your regiment is a set of guidelines, things that to do to your hair daily, weekly and monthly. Beginners should start off with a simple regiment to insure that it is something you can stick to, because if you are not consistent than what’s the point? A simple regiment would be:
Moisturize and seal nightly
wrap hair with satin scarf every time you lay down
Wash once a week
Deep condition once a week
Clarify once a month
Use protein when needed
Now that you have a basic regiment you need to pick your products. What I would suggest in order to avoid becoming a PJ (product junkie) is to go through the things you already have and determining what products are good and which ones are bad. First throw out or give away anything with Mineral Oil or Petroleum in the first 5 ingredients. There are other things to look for too, but in the beginning just worry about the Mineral Oil and Petroleum and you will be fine. Once you have determined what you already have and what you need, then go shopping. You can read product reviews and ask other people on hair boards and blog sites(like this one, or this one, oh and don't forget this one) for direction, but as long as you are avoiding the bad stuff, everything else is really just trial and error to see how your hair will respond. So here’s what you will need:
Moisturizing Shampoo/Conditioner
Protein Conditioner
Moisturizing and protein DC(deep conditioner)
Leave in conditioner
Hair oil to seal in moisture
Moisturizer
Clarifying shampoo
Heat protectant
The first thing you need to do is take a picture! Pictures help you to notice the subtle changes that occur in the beginning of your journey. My advice is to take a picture of the back, front and sides of your hair. I like to take update pictures with each new relaxer, or if your natural, every 2-3 months. Taking an update picture every month is kind of like waiting for water to boil Rome wasn’t build in a day and neither was LONG HEALTHY BLACK HAIR. A lot of women make fotki’s(http://www.fotki.com/) to keep track of their pictures, but I just keep them in a dollar store photo album and I write the dates on the back. I know it sounds generic, but I prefer it that way because I feel like I notice more with a hard copy of the photo. I know it’s crazy, but that’s me lol.
Now that you have your picture the next thing I would suggest doing is making a regiment. Your regiment is a set of guidelines, things that to do to your hair daily, weekly and monthly. Beginners should start off with a simple regiment to insure that it is something you can stick to, because if you are not consistent than what’s the point? A simple regiment would be:
Moisturize and seal nightly
wrap hair with satin scarf every time you lay down
Wash once a week
Deep condition once a week
Clarify once a month
Use protein when needed
Now that you have a basic regiment you need to pick your products. What I would suggest in order to avoid becoming a PJ (product junkie) is to go through the things you already have and determining what products are good and which ones are bad. First throw out or give away anything with Mineral Oil or Petroleum in the first 5 ingredients. There are other things to look for too, but in the beginning just worry about the Mineral Oil and Petroleum and you will be fine. Once you have determined what you already have and what you need, then go shopping. You can read product reviews and ask other people on hair boards and blog sites(like this one, or this one, oh and don't forget this one) for direction, but as long as you are avoiding the bad stuff, everything else is really just trial and error to see how your hair will respond. So here’s what you will need:
Moisturizing Shampoo/Conditioner
Protein Conditioner
Moisturizing and protein DC(deep conditioner)
Leave in conditioner
Hair oil to seal in moisture
Moisturizer
Clarifying shampoo
Heat protectant
satin pillowcase/scarf/bonnet
I just want to stress on thing. DO NOT RUN OUT AND BY EVERYTHING THAT EVERYONE SAYS WORKS WONDERS! Everyone’s hair is different, and what may work for me may not work for you. Listen to your hair it knows what it likes and what it doesn’t. It will tell you, trust me. So my advice would be to try one thing at a time. If your current moisturizing shampoo is striping your hair, add some oils or some honey, use it up, and never buy it again. If it’s too stripping, give it away or throw it away, but don’t run out and by 3 different shampoos because you’ll be BROKE, and you will never really know which one is working.
Before I finish up, I want to suggest doing one last thing for your hair and that would be to keep a hair journal. This is for you to keep track of what works and what doesn’t. It’s good for storing information that you’ve found online about hair care, and just keeping up with your progress in general. Write it down, and look back on it when you need to!
Peace
So much Love
Erika
I just want to stress on thing. DO NOT RUN OUT AND BY EVERYTHING THAT EVERYONE SAYS WORKS WONDERS! Everyone’s hair is different, and what may work for me may not work for you. Listen to your hair it knows what it likes and what it doesn’t. It will tell you, trust me. So my advice would be to try one thing at a time. If your current moisturizing shampoo is striping your hair, add some oils or some honey, use it up, and never buy it again. If it’s too stripping, give it away or throw it away, but don’t run out and by 3 different shampoos because you’ll be BROKE, and you will never really know which one is working.
Before I finish up, I want to suggest doing one last thing for your hair and that would be to keep a hair journal. This is for you to keep track of what works and what doesn’t. It’s good for storing information that you’ve found online about hair care, and just keeping up with your progress in general. Write it down, and look back on it when you need to!
Peace
So much Love
Erika
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