Self-Relaxed at 20 weeks Post

So I finally gathered the courage to do my own relaxer! The process was very smooth, although I didn't leave the relaxer on long enough to get my desired telaxed texture, but for my first try I was very pleased with the results.

For those who are wondering I used the affirm fiberguard relaxer in normal, I used the entire line for the whole relaxing process.


I am soooooooo pleased with my results, Im quite proud, my hair feels and looks so healthy, this is the first time in my hair journey I've managed to achieve 'flowly' hair (after blow drying and straightening) :o!
I used to have a full fringe/bang, but that's grown out now, and I was quite pleased to see I could manipulate my over grown fringe to go into a side bang which looks quite nice.

Last week I randomly decided to give my hair a bit of a trim, no idea how much I took off because I'm not good with measurements, but now I'm really considering getting a blunt cut.

Results!!

Just under a years comparison
First Picture - 29th June 2011
Second Picture - 7th January 2012
Third Picture - 30th May 2012

It's amazing looking back on the previous pictures, feel like I've come so far and I still have so much progress to make.

Buyapowa - Hair Buys Anyone?

Buyapowa is a fantastic site that has higher end brands at discounted prices, the more people that shop the bigger the discount!

Thought I would share some of the great co-buys that are currently going on

UK'ers only :(

Here

Here

Self Relaxing Prep

Next week I will be taking a big jump in my healthy hair journey and I will be self-relaxing my hair!

I'm currently 19 weeks post for anyone is interested 

(out of laziness I forgot to post this last week)

Plan of Attack

It is very important to prepare the hair to receive the relaxer a week before, relaxing is harsh on the hair, and if proper maintenance isn't taking then you are at risk of causing damage.

Hot oil treatment - Coconut Oil
I love coconut oil, and it's strand penetrating abilities

Clarify - VO5 Clarifying Shampoo
I try to clarify my hair once a month (or when I can remember)

Protein treatment - Aphogee 2 step treatment

We all know relaxing breaks down the protein bonds in the hair,
 more protein = stronger hair = less damage
This treatment is very strong!
The brand recommends every 6/8 weeks,
but to me, this product is great to use a week before getting a relaxer

Moisturising Shampoo - Elasta QP Conditioning Creme Shampoo

Adding back the moisture to my hair!
This shampoo is very gentle on my hair

Deep Conditioner - Matrix Ultra Conditioning Balm

This deep conditioner is great, no doubt I will be deep conditioning over night to save time
(I will be adding Grapeseed oil, Sweet Almond Oil + Roux Porosity Control)

Leave Ins - Giovanni Direct Leave In & Elasta QP H20

All moisture based proteins, to balance out the strong protein from the aphogee

OMG Did they just say that?? Cringeee

So I'm supposed to be studying right now, but got a little bored started searching the web and I came across this webpage from the BBC 'Relaxed Hair - The safe way to relax your hair'. For those who don't know who the BBC are, they are a massive broadcasting company in the UK.
Imagine my disgust when I read this...

 I don't recommend relaxing hair until you can afford to have it re-done at least every three weeks. If you don't re-do it regularly you risk your hair breaking off and falling out. The cuticle of the hair can be very rough and porous, so it's best to have a treatment first to smooth it down. This can sometimes do the job of a relaxer anyway. (note the sentence in bold was written like that on the site)

I'm actually in disbelief right now, 'at least every three weeks'?? Meaning one could get a relaxer sooner if they have the money? Whattt?!?!

'if you don't re-do it regularly you risk your hair breaking and falling out', falling out?!?! 

Imagine my shock horror when I read these tips were written by Michelle Sultan 'A stylist to the stars'. Surely a 'celebrity' hair stylist would know that is ludicrous!

The terminology used as well just... *shakes head* - Speechless

Your thoughts?

Inspiration

Wash Day Ft. Ponytail Rollerset

Today I got up really early because I knew this wash day was going to be a long one.

To prep myself last night I detangled my hair in 8 sections and kept my hair in these sections to help reduce tangles throughout the washing process.

Pre-Poo: To start off I did a pre-poo with coconut oil and Nexxus Keraphix under the dryer for 30 mins (I applied this like I would with my deep conditioner, paying special attention to roots especially line of democration, ends, and then distributing the rest of product to the remaining length of my hair). After letting my hair cool down, I rinsed the product out and applied Roux porosity control for 30 seconds then rinsed. I t-shirt dried my hair for about a minute and I was surprised my hair felt soft and strong, it felt like it didn't need a dc but I proceeded to anyway just to be cautious.

DC + Cowash: For todays dc I used Matrix Aqua-Immersion Creme Masque (review coming soon) mixed with sweet almond oil and grapeseed oil, and went under the dryer for 45 minutes.

After letting my hair cool down I rinsed out the dc and did a cowash with Jasons Jojoba conditioner.

Leave ins: Elasta QP h20, giovanni direct leave in, chi silk infusion.


Throughout the wash day process I kept my hair in the 8 sections which will be to my advantage when rollersetting my hair.
The ponytail rollerset is prefect for you if you have a lot of new growth, feeling lazy or if your not good at the traditional method of rollersetting (today I ticked all these boxes LOL).

When attempting the traditional rollersets in the past, I noticed the front of my hair would dry in a reasonable amount of time, but the back was always left a bit damp. To combat this problem I kept the 4 back sections in the reasonably small (one roller per section) and the front sections where bigger (2 rollers per section). So each section was placed into a ponytail holder, I carefully detangled action and then rolled the hair onto the hair and clip in place using curl clips. 


Im not to sure how long I was under the dryer, I'm sure it was over an hour though, once I took down the rollers and ponytail holders I slightly straightened (100°C) my new growth, applied organix anti-breakage serum and ran my fingers/shaked my head around, trying to get rid of the tight curls haha.

Think it's safe to say I will be sticking with ponytail rollersets, my patience normally runs thin with the traditional method of rollerset and this time I felt calm and at ease lol.