Last week, my aloe vera juice (AVJ) to seal experiment didn’t go so well. I suspected that this was due to my concurrent plopping experiment (see here if you missed it). So, this past Saturday, I decided to try it again. Here is how wash days (yes days, that’s not a typo) went.

• On Thursday night, I pre-pooed and finger detangled with Vatika oil, placing my hair in 6 twists. I donned a baggie and hit the sack.
• Friday morning, I placed the twists in a low bun and slicked the edges with some Sofn’Free Mold & Hold Wax for work.
• Friday night, I untwisted each section, applied Aubrey Organics Honeysuckle Rose conditioner directly over the Vatika oil and retwisted. Again, I donned a baggie and hit the sack.
• Saturday morning, I hit the shower and washed with the last of the Terressentials Mud Wash (TMW) Left Coast Lemon. I untwisted each section, one by one, to wash and then re-twisted.
• I got out of the shower and finger combed, then used a wide tooth comb, to detangle each section.
• Finally, after I combed each section, I raked Kinky Curly Knot Today (KCKT) through it, then AVJ.

My hair took about 4-5 hours to fully dry, but it was huge once done!

Now, a few observations and additional notes.

1. I am really digging this dry hair deep conditioning before washing as it means I don’t have to get back in the shower or use the sink to wash the DC!!
2. My hair was very tacky when I used the TMW this time. It was tacky during the wash and the post wash detangling session, which is why I resorted to the wide tooth comb after finger detangling. Last week I used the DevaCare No Poo and my hair detangled like a breeze. Not sure if it was the products I used this past week, but I did NOT like the feel of my hair. I will say that I didn’t use any conditioner after washing and I also didn’t do a cool water rinse. So, the omission of those steps may have impacted my results. Next week, I’ll try this again with the TMW Lavender Garden and a cool final rinse to see if I have the same problem. I’m trying to eliminate the rinse-out conditioner step to see if I can use the TMW alone.
3. I should have re-wet each section of my hair prior to applying the leave-in and AVJ as my hair was only barely damp by the time I got to the right side. Fran indicated her hair has to be very wet to get the best results.
4. Once my hair was fully dry, I used a little JBCO to smooth and seal as I felt my hair looked too dry without a little oil.
5. Before bed, I oiled my scalp with Wild Growth Hair Oil (white bottle) and applied a tiny amount of the Wild Growth Light (yellow bottle) to the length. Then, I placed my hair in 8 twists and put on my satin bonnet for bed.
6. On Sunday, I used some Eco Styler Olive Oil gel, a satin scrunchie and a few bobby pins to place my hair into a big, low bun. I’ll probably wear it in a bun the rest of the week, unless I have time to put it in twists.

In other news, last week was a complete fail in regard to my exercise and diet regimen. It was a very sad week due to an unexpected and deeply impactful loss. I had time to work-out, but I just didn’t do it out of stress and emotional exhaustion. I really need to stop allowing those things to take me off the course though, as exercise often helps one cope with stress and it’s just another excuse. Well, today is another day to get it right.

Finally, I saw Avengers this weekend … TWICE!!! OMGosh, no spoilers, but it did NOT disappoint! If you are a comics/cartoon/superhero fan, I think that you’ll probably enjoy it. I can be the harshest of critics with these type of movies, but I was very pleased. Guess that’s no surprise since I already said that I saw it twice … and on the same day. I think it falls somewhere between X1 (about which I was mostly ambivalent) and X2 (which I LOVED). That’s all I’ll say as I don’t want to give anything away for those who haven’t seen it yet. But, if you haven’t seen it yet … what are you waiting for??? Oh, wait, I do have one more thing to say … stay until the end of the credits. That is all.

Dang, I forgot to show my Avengers ID! I might have gotten in for free!!

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