Told you that it was coming soon ;)! LOL! Before Hurricane Sandy interfered with my best-laid plans :P, I wanted to debut a bunning challenge on Hairscapades for the month of November! As many of you know, I wore my hair out a LOT this summer after a layered haircut in June. And though I still saw some great length retention at my front, sides and crown, the longest section in the back remained pretty stagnant.

Right: 6/15/12 ; Left: 10/20/12

So, I decided that I wanted to go into protective styling mode and a bun challenge might be a great way to get started and stay motivated. But, Frankenstorm interfered with my announcement posts plans. However, at the same time, it jump-started my personal challenge as I couldn’t wash my hair on my normal weekly schedule because I haven’t had power or hot water for 11 days. So, I got to bunning last Saturday … without you guys *sheepish grin*.

But, earlier today, I shared my Best Bun Practices as a lead-in for the challenge announcement! You can follow my regimen there or create your own. The key is to make certain that you build a regimen that is gentle, doesn’t put unnecessary stress or excess tension on your edges and strands, tucks your ends, and reduces environmental and mechanical damage.

Bunning Challenge Guidelines

• This challenge will run for two full months from Sunday, November 11, 2012 to Saturday, January 12, 2013.
• The only rule is that you must wear your hair in a bun style for a minimum of 5 days a week for the course of the challenge.
• I will host “virtual” check-ins at the beginning of each week with short posts that I’ll gear towards answering questions I receive from you guys about techniques, products, challenges, setbacks, concerns, etc.
• I have created a “Hairscapades Bunning Challenge 2012″ FB album, so that everyone can share pics of their buns! To submit a pic, e-mail me at hairscapades@gmail.com. I’ll update the album as I receive pics or weekly. You can also share your pics on Instagram! Just use hashtag #hairscapadesbunchallenge and tag me at @hairscapades please!

So, want in?

To participate: List your name, starting length and your 2 month goal in the comments below. In addition, please indicate how many days a week you plan to bun and the core steps of your regimen (listing products is optional). And, if you just want to go hog monkey wild, send me a starting pic for the Bunning Challenge FB album too ;)!

And now, I’ll “officially” kick this thing off!!

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Name: Shelli aka Hairscapades aka Skills

Starting length: Armpit to waist length

Goal: Grow and retain an additional inch of hair all around.

Weekly Regimen: Pre-poo, wash, condition, deep condition (alternate moisturizing and protein, as needed) and stretch hair with a braid-out, twist out or some other method. Bun 5-6 days a week and wear my hair down 1-2 days a week.

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Ready? Let’s go!! 😉