I’m really sorry about the lack of updates, but I have been incredibly busy (finishing my sophomore year at USC, finals, finding an internship, moving out of my apartment, etc.). Now that things have settled down, I’m really excited to tell everyone about my progress.

Where do I begin? I’m still new to this and just figuring out what works for my hair. Almost nothing is the same as it was two months ago. I bought “The Curly Girl Method” and read it all in one sitting. Not much of it was completely new information that I couldn’t find online, but it was still totally worth it. I plan on buying Chicoro’s “Grow It” and “The Science of Black Hair” soon. Needless to say, “The Curly Girl Method” made me examine and change some of my hair practices.

I’m still prepooing with coconut oil once a week and then deep conditioning before washing. I’m no longer using the Shea Moisture (it was good, but not great) and switching off between Aubrey Organics GPB and Bee Mine Bee-U-Tiful. I love them both and I can already tell that my hair is healthier and more moisturized. I’m no longer using shampoo and I switched conditioners. I now use Tigi Bed Head Moisture Maniac to co-wash and condition. I leave the conditioner in my hair. Once a month, I clarify with a mixture of bentonite clay, apple cider vinegar (ACV) and aloe vera juice (AVJ).

I still mostly wash and go (WnG). Now, I seal with aloe vera juice and then add Kinky Curly Curling Custard (KCCC), section by section. I use the Aubrey Organics brand AVJ. It’s proven to be the best sealing option for me – any type of oil just sits on my hair and I was using a non-organic brand of aloe vera gel that was drying out my hair. Perhaps I’ll try an organic brand of aloe vera gel that can double as a sealant and styler. The KCCC works much better than the Eco Styler, which also dried me out and was super crunchy. The KCCC gives a strong, soft hold, but it starts to flake by the third day, which is when my WnG is nice and stretched. I bought the Curls Goddess Curl Gel from Target a few days ago, so I’m going to try that out and see how it works.

I’ve also started doing more protective styles. I mostly like to bun after stretching my hair (mostly old WnGs). I bought a set of Curlformers, so I’ve been using those to stretch too. I want to try flexi rods too.

I have noticed length retention (I’m BSL now!), but I think I’m going to have to schedule a trim. I had some split ends and SSKs before the challenge that I thought I could handle, but now they’re starting to catch on each other and really bother me. My hair will probably thank me in the long run if I take care of this now. So I’m going to start looking around for a stylist in the area.

♦

See Madison’s initial GOC entry here.