Tag Archives: curly hairstyles

Jan1

My Curly ‘Fro

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PIC HEAVY POST AHEAD!curlyfro1

As you know, this weekend, I decided to try the “Curly ‘Fro” set that I previously shared here. As you also know, I thought that I had finally figured out how to flat-twist properly and screamed it to the heavens here. Yeah … not so much. LOL! But, despite the difficulties that I experienced with the take down of this style, I really do like the results and plan to do the style again, just with regular twists until I can improve my flat-twisting technique.

For those of you who can flat twist well though, like the look of this style and are interested in trying it, here is what I did!

creamcocoshampoobar

Wash Day Process (Sunday)

  • Pre-pooed with Vatika Oil (with a little Wild Growth Hair Oil applied to my scalp) for an hour with thermal heat turban (I usually mix Aubrey GPB and/or Honeysuckle Rose conditioner with the Vatika Oil for pre-pooing. But, I forgot!)
  • Shampooed with Cream & Coco Pumpkin Pie Shampoo Bar.
  • Detangled with Herbal Essences Hello Hydration conditioner in four sections under shower stream.
  • Deep conditioned with Darcy’s Botanicals Pumpkin Seed Conditioner for an hour with thermal heat turban.
  • Cooled and sealed DC with diluted Aubrey Green Tea Cream Rinse.

flattwist3

Curly ‘Fro Set Process

  • Applied leave-in conditioner (2 tbsp Kinky Curly Knot Today + 2 tbsp Aloe Vera Juice + 1 tsp jojoba oil)
  • Applied coconut oil whip to seal. YES! My body oil whip is serving dual purposes ;).
  • Working from the front, “pie-parted” the front middle section of my hair (as seen above) and flat-twisted the roots. Then, two-strand twisted the length and set it on a small grey perm rod covered with end paper. Don’t underestimate the importance of end paper. (Hair can snag around these types of perm rods if you don’t use it. I know I don’t use it properly. I think you’re supposed to fold it over your ends, then roll your end over the rod. But, I just wrap the paper around the perm rod, then wrap my hair around the roller. Seems to work just fine for me!).
  • Repeated process until my entire head was set, sometimes applying a little more coconut oil whip to hair as I twisted the ends. I used a total of 23 rods.
  • Due to the length of my hair, I had to really overlap the twists a lot in order to roll the rod to the roots. So, I knew that it wasn’t going to dry overnight. Therefore, I tied on a hair net sat under my hard bonnet salon dryer for 1 1/2 hours.

curlyfrodryerJust ignore him ;).

naturalmoment_wetset

The Morning After: The Take Down

Now this is where it starts to gets sketchy. LOL.

  • Removed all of the rods (and my hair was dry! YEA!! Well, the twist at the right temple felt a little damp … I think it might have happened in the shower.).

curlyfroset6

  • Emulsified coconut oil whip in my hands and carefully released twists … until I got to the flat-twisted sections. Then … all hell broke loose!! Because I didn’t flat-twist cleanly (meaning, as I pulled sections into the twist), it created a lot of “pieciness” and frizz as the hair tangled on itself as I released the flat-twist. Therefore, There was a lot of twirling, coaxing and coconut oil going on to restore the coils and tame the frizz.
  • Used a wide tooth comb to “lift” the roots to give more volume (works for a little while, but then my hair “settles.”).
  • A few curls were not properly coiling or hanging too long, so I employed a little trick that I’ve used over the years. I coiled each offending curl around my finger and pinned with a bobby pin. If placed properly, since my hair was so big and curly, the pins are completely masked in the curls! And there’s a bonus. After a couple of hours, the coils set and I can remove the pins!

curlyfrosave2curlyfrosave1

At the end of the day, though I wish the takedown wasn’t so rough and I had a little less frizz, the Curly ‘Fro turned out pretty well!! I got a lot of compliments and I love having a different look!!

Morning

Evening

♦

And that’s it! I pineappled my hair last night and I’ll have to give you guys an update on how that worked out another day! Oh, and if you’re interested in seeing even more pics of the set and release, I created this Curly ‘Fro Facebook album :)!! Enjoy!

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So, what do you think? Would/do you rock the Curly ‘Fro?

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Dec27

A Bantu Knot Out

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So, you know, I’m kinda addicted to IG nowadays. And when I saw this HAWT hair pic posted by @PrincessLinz HAWT pic (who I got to meet at the CurlyNikki Meet-up this past summer), I had to ask her for a tutorial! Hope that you like it!!

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BANTU KNOT OUT RESULTS ON WET HAIRby PrincessLinzz

Bantu Knot Out Process on Wet Hair

  • I co-wash my hair and use my usual leave-in: Curl Junkie Curl Rehab mixed with water and put into a spray bottle.
  • Section my hair in 4 sections and begin with the right side (just out of habit).
  • Make smaller sections within those 4 sections and spray my hair with my leave-in concoction from root to tip.
  • Take a dime size of Carol’s Daughter Hair Milk Pudding and run it through each small section from root to tip.
  • Create corkscrew/buns throughout my entire head.

bantus

  • Let hair air dry over night.
  • If my roots are still wet, I use a blow dryer on warm/cool and dry my roots.
  • Then, I remove each corkscrew/bantu knot and separate each one so that the curls look fuller and creates more body.
  • Shake head from side to side, pick my roots with my fingers and voilà  … you get this:

bantuknotsmallDay 1

bantu second dayDay 2

When I bantu knot on straightened hair I do not use any product just hair pins.

bantu knot out on straightened hair
bantu waves on straightened hair

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Okay, okay. I know what you’re thinking. “OMGosh!! Her hair is gorgeous!! How long has she been natural?!? What’s her regimen?!? Where’s her hairstory?!?!” Don’t worry! I got you!! You know I’ve already asked for it. And now that I finally posted this, I’m sure that I’ll get it soon ;)!

How do you do a Bantu Knot-out? Do you prefer styling on wet or dry hair?

Sep14

My Cinnabun

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Yeah, my WnG was getting poofier and frizzier, which leads to bad tangles and SSKs. I don’t like bad tangles and SSKs. So, on Thursday morning, I banana clip bunned it for work. And the bun was big. And it was good. *lol*

But, after I got home, I decided to switch it up a little and attempt a “go to” style from my relaxed days … the pin-curled bun, which I’ve come to learn is referred to as a cinnabun. I shared a tutorial that someone else did on twists and a similar style that I did on my Afro puffy twists here.


For more pics of the cinnabun on twists, click here. 

I love this style because it adds some interest to a traditional bun, but is still so easy to do. It does take a lot of bobby pins, so thank goodness for Metagrip ;). Anywho, here are more pics of the look from different angles. You can click on any of them to enlarge.

I’m sure I’ll have a headache by the end of the day because of all the bobby pins and the banana clip. So, doubt that the style will make it through the evening intact. But, it’s so easy to do, if I want to wear it again Saturday, I’ll just reset it.

HAPPY FRIDAY!!!

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What other styles from your relaxed days do you find that you can still wear on your natural hair?

Sep7

Janelle Monae Test Drive

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Remember this Janelle Monae Updo Style Inspiration post from last week? Well, I decided to take it out for a test drive today.

I think I captured the style pretty well, though I had more length to tuck and finer strands. But, not sure how I feel about it on me. Maybe with some filled in eyebrows, fierce make-up and an edgy outfit though??

Whaddaya think? Should I drop a down payment on it or leave it at the dealership ;)?

And for those of you who prefer the speed (and anonymity ;)) of a poll rather than commenting:

Sep5

Bantu Knot Out … to the Side

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by Valerie of Curls2Envy

1st attempt at this..

This Bantu Knot out was done on freshly washed hair. The products used where:

  • Leave-in: CJ smoothing lotion
  • Sealer : Oyin sugar berries pomade
  • Styler: a tiny bit of koils by nature gel.
  • Shea butter to seal ends

Medium bantu knots … About 4-5 in each quadrant. So, in total, about 20-25 knots … Let them dry all the way. Take them down with some Jane Carter Nourish & Shine to prevent frizz … Fluff … And bam. Lol

take down

look at the definition

fluffed a lil bit

front view

side view

right side view

I am pleased. Rocked it like this to church.

What do you guys think?

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Super cute and oh so shiny and bouncy! But, I’ve never done a Bantu knot out! Given my struggles with hair that fails to dry in a TnC overnight or even 24 hours, I haven’t even wanted to chance how long it would take to air dry a Bantu knots!!

How about you? Do you wear Bantu knot-outs? What’s your technique and what products do you use?

Jun15

Special Occasion Updo

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You know, inspiration can come from many places.  Shortly before I joined the GOC challenge, I was searching for protective updos for “long, natural, fine hair.” I tried all kinds of search words and combinations on Youtube without much success. Then, I eliminated the word “natural” and came across Lilith Moon. Lilith moon is neither naturally curly nor of color. Yet, this youtuber offered me styles and options that I wasn’t finding elsewhere. Some of Lilith’s styles require a little modification and a smidgen of creativity to adapt to naturally curly hair. However, her channel and videos opened up a whole new world of styling possibilities for me. This discovery reminded me that we should always keep our minds and eyes open and receptive to all sources of inspiration. It can come from the most unexpected of places.

So, without further ado, this is the Lilith Moon youtube video that inspired the above updo.

Just a few notes on how I accomplished this on naturally curly hair.

  1. I did a TnC to stretch my hair and get a nice curl (see my TnC tutorial here; the tutorial was the actual set for this style!).
  2. To prep for the style, the night before, I smoothed my hair back with a little Eco Styler Olive Oil Gel mixed with Wonder Curl Butter Than Love.
  3. I put on a thin elastic headband and tied my hairline down with a scarf. Then, I put my hair up into a pineapple with a satin scrunchie. I folded the curls forward close to the base of the ponytail and put another scrunchie to hold the curls forward.  Then, I put on my huge, old lady, white bonnet and hit the sack (on a satin pillowcase of course;)!
  4. In the morning, I removed the scarf, reset the black elastic headband, wrapped the trim around my hair twice and tied the ends at my nape.
  5. I did NOT follow her curl “scrunching” technique! Given the expression of horror that came across your face as you watched the video, I know that you know that that would end badly. So, I just kind of rolled the ends of each inch section of curl around my finger once or twice, pushed the curl in lightly and then secured with bobby pins (those hair pins just don’t work for me!  I try and try to secure them in my hair, but they just pop right back out!).
One final note, I got the trim I used in the picture from Michael’s. They didn’t have many options there though, so I went to Jo-Ann Fabrics and got some others, all of which are pictured in the last photograph.

Hope you enjoyed this and, if you try it for a special occasion … or just for work (that’s where I was going!) …, send pics and a story please!!  And thank you for visiting!

(p.s. If you really like this post, please “like” it,  “share” it, “tweet” it or just leave a comment so that I know whether these are the types of things you like to see and read;)!!)

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Later today:

My HairStory
DIY Flower Hair Clip Tutorial