DIY Crochet Braids #3: Pre-braided Deep Wave
An update to both my cornrow pattern and how to make pre-braided crochet braids last longer than 4 weeks.
All posts tagged: braids
DIY Crochet Braids #2: Freetress Bohemian Bulk
Hi Naturels! Here’s an updated style since my very first DIY crochet braids. I’ve decided to venture away from my signature look (the water wave) and try other bulk hair/crochet styles. I’m thinking of making this into a DIY Crochet Braids series. It would be great to see just how many styles I can experiment with using crochet braids, since it’s such an awesome protective style when you don’t want to do much to your hair for a couple of weeks. That being said, it will be a while before my next crochet braids post. Some of you have asked me to post some styles for transitioning hair that don’t require completely covering it up with wigs or weave. So I’m currently working on that series, which hopefully will be out soon! In this post, I’m featuring four weeks of crochet braids using Freetress Bohemian bulk hair. This time around, I cornrowed my hair without extensions and it turned out objectively better than my first attempt. :-D. Besides, my natural hair is pretty strong …
You Put Body Lotion in Your Hair?
My apologies! I really hate it when people post a topic about a particular hairstyle and forget to mention how they maintained it for the next couple days or weeks. I mean, what’s the point if I can’t maintain it and it looks like a hot mess after day 1, right? So for that I apologize and, without further adieu, here are the following products I used to maintain my crochet braids: 1. Vaseline Total Moisture Body Lotion What?!? Body lotion???? I know what you’re thinking and calm down. Yes, body lotion! Not just any body lotion, but the good stuff that penetrates really dry skin. Why? I’ll tell you why. Because synthetic hair, much like afro-textured hair (but more so), is one thirsty fiber! As outlined in the crochet tutorial, when installing the bulk hair, you’ll need to split it into either 2 or 3 strands. But splitting the original strand will fray it. Coating the original strand with some deep moisturizing lotion will limit the amount of fraying that happens once split. Even better, it acts as …
1 Year Anniversary Post-Relaxer
HOLY CANNOLI! I totally did not realize that it has now technically been more than 1 year since my last relaxer (May 4, 2013). Man, I’m a little sad that I forgot…oh well! Over it! I’m just excited that I lasted this long, because let me tell you, I didn’t think I would *pats self on back*. Goal number one: Make it a year without a relaxer. Check! Okay, okay enough with the silliness! But seriously, that is the only goal I had. I know–that’s bad. But I honestly didn’t know what to expect and I really just wanted to see how my hair would do. I’m not going to do a length check or anything just yet because I don’t exactly have a base. When I started this journey, I had a lot of hair (still do). I didn’t have the same problem as a lot of naturals did with relaxers, such as thinning and/or no hair growth. My hair was pretty thick and it reached my shoulder blades. My problem, as I’ve mentioned …
How I Take Down Crochet Braids
Hello Naturels! It’s been 3 weeks since I installed my very first DIY crochet braids on April 20. Let me tell ya–it wasn’t perfect. I’m actually pretty surprised it lasted more than 2 weeks as my attempt to cornrow my hair was certainly…amateur lol. Since the quality of the cornrows definitely determines how long the style will last, I wasn’t expecting great results. However, since I normally only wear crochet braids for about a month, this attempt was a solid showing! From the image below, I probably could’ve squeezed another week out of the style if I so desired, since the great thing about curly bulk hair is its ability to cover up new growth: But this is what was really going on underneath lol. I would love to think that all of that was new growth, but in truth, it’s probably a combination of new growth and slippage. Anywho, on to the take down process (because this has got to go)! Step 1: Follow each cornrow back and cut the bulk hair close to your head, …
DIY: Crochet Braids
Hello Naturels! This is my first attempt at doing crochet braids on my own head! All in all–not a bad turn out (installed on April 20): I decided that I was going to start taking care of and styling my own hair (reasons articulated in a previous post). I already know all about the process of installing crochet braids–it’s a rather simple concept: 1. cornrow hair; 2. crochet bulk hair/braided hair through cornrows. Simple right? Not if you don’t know so much as how to cornrow your own hair–which I didn’t. So, my first step was surfing youtube to find a video that could adequately teach me how to cornrow my hair. The best video I came across was created by Breanna Rutter of HowToBlack Hair (below): Actually, I found the video teaching how to cornrow with extensions first and followed that method for this round (below), but I sure wish I found the video above first, as it would’ve saved me a whole lot of trouble. Though, if you are seasoned at cornrowing your …
5 Things I Learned About Hair Salons After Going Natural
If you’re transitioning to natural hair, you may have noticed that trips to the salon don’t seem quite as fun as they used to. In fact, you might think you’re going crazy and that your stylist no longer likes you. Well let me be the first to let you know that you are in fact NOT going crazy. If you don’t live in a particularly urban and happenin’ city, hair salons that specialize in natural hair care are few and far between. And the stylists employed there have a natural aversion to natural hair (pun intended). My latest encounters at hair salons have taught me a couple of things and have given me ample reason to learn how to do my hair myself: 1. You and your natural hair are an affront to their institution When I moved to the current city in which I live, the first thing on my to-do list was to find a decent salon that could do my hair (okay–maybe not the first thing, but it was pretty high up on the …
Feeling the Shrinkage
By the time December 2013 rolled around ( 7 months post relaxer), I was really feeling the shrinkage. When I began this journey, my hair was just past shoulder length, to about the top quarter of my shoulder blades. I didn’t measure with a tape measure so I can’t give you the exact length in inches, though you can get idea from the picture below (yes, I realize that I’m leaning forward, so add about 1/2 an inch to the back). After my blowout was essentially null and void, my hair seemed to be bobbing just below my chin. I knew it was coming. I’d read it, heard it, been warned, and yet…I just couldn’t get over how short it looked! Stretched out, it still went past my shoulders but it was not cute in it’s current state (sorry, I forgot to take a picture…probably too bewildered to remember). Anywho, wearing it down doesn’t seem to be much of an option, so I tried coming up with a style that not only hid the fact that …