Prepooing with Oils is a must for me!

My favorite oil to prepoo with is EVOO. I am an olive oil girl. Although, I would like to try Avocado oil and Macadamia nut. On my journey I also use cold pressed castor oil and EVCO (extra virgin cocconut oil). I also like Sweet almond oil for various uses like the hair, skin and nails. Bottom line...oils are a must!!!

My co-washing friend: TRESemme Vitamin E Moisture Rich Conditioner

I started using this as a pre-poo/dc at the beginning of my hhj. I used to workout with the conditioner in my hair.

A year and a half later, I realize this is an excellent co-wash when mixed with sweet almond oil.

I got the oil for $6.99 at Whole Foods and the TRESemme at Sally's for only $3.89 for a 40-ounce bottle! I added 1 tablespoon of oil for every 10 ounces to get wonderful results.

I used this as a co-wash last night, at almost 18 weeks post, to reduce manipulation, increase moisture (as a co-wash and leave-in), and to style hair while in the shower.

METHOD:

• I rinsed my hair thoroughly for about 5 minutes under the warm shower
• I gently squeezed the excess water from my hair and brushed my teeth (this gave my hair about 5 minutes to get rid of some of the water)
• I added the conditioner in 3 sections from root to tip (and lathered, so this let the conditioner sit for 5-10 minutes).
• Rinsed with luke-warm/cool water
• Squeezed out excess water and added a dime-sized amount to ends and edges and put in a wet bun with my silk wrap scarf.
• Once my hair was 30% dry, I removed the scarf, moisturized and sealed and tied my hair down with a dry silk scarf and baggied my ends.

RESULTS: The next morning, I lightly moisturized with TRESemme and sealed with castor oil and bunned my soft hair.

My HHJ Mainstays

There are a few quick things I need in my hair journey.

1. I love tweaking my regimen every 30 days. See my format here: http://keepitsimplesista.ning.com/profiles/blogs/may-2010-reggie-note-to-self. I'm only a year and a half into my hhj and my major set back was not listening to my hair. Trying to put it on a schedule was, for lack of a better term, stupid.
2. I must, must, must take my vitamins. Besides being for my overall health, they are great for energy (I feel slightly sluggish without them), and excellent for rapid hair growth.
3. I MUST work out everyday. I may rest on some Sundays, but usually I am doing something daily. Even if my family and I dance for only 30 minutes, I have to move. My favorite routines are on bodyrock.tv. These intense workouts are reminiscent of P90X or Insanity. MOST IMPORTANTLY: tracking my weekly exercise takes my mind off of watching my hair.
   
4. Flat irons, hot curlers, and pressing combs are a NO-NO in my regimen. As much as I am tempted, I do not use these tools because I have abused them in the past. So now I am forced to learn what to do with my hair without them because I don't own any.
5. Oils for: prepooing, mixing with co-washes and dc's are a must! Coconut oil, olive oil, sweet almond oil and cold-pressed castor oil have helped me tremendously on my hair journey.
6. Blogging is best for tracking what I do in a chronological manner without the fuss. I've tried the hand-written thing, taking pics, forums, Microsoft word, Microsoft one-note, notepad and other methods, but blogging seems to be the neatest, easiest, and most fun.
   
7. Last, but certainly not least: A GENTLE HAND WILL RULE THE LAND. My main issue with breakage is that I am a heavy-handed chick and that needs to stop (not to mention I rarely get manicures).
   

A regimen to stretch with...

So, I am 17 weeks post and so far this stretch has been the most successful yet. I am learning to change my reggie every 30-60 days to keep up with my hair's ever-changing needs. Right now I have sl relaxed strands sitting on top of a 1 and 1/2 inch afro. The different textures are driving me crazy!!! So it's time to braid it up. Prayerfully the braids will last me all summer semester (I'm almost a senior in college!! Glory be to God!).

Tonight I plan to:

• Pre-poo with evoo (it would be castor oil but I ran out, I am a big fan of castor oil)
• Wash with hair one olive oil
• D/C with steam from my bath with my mix of Lustrasilk's Shea Butter Cholesterol plus, HE HH, and a tablespoon of each of the following oils: Vitamin e, tea tree, and grapeseed oil.
• M/S with V05 and water mix in my s-curl bottle and doo grow oil
• Air-dry in bantu-knots
  

This by far my favorite regimen for hair that has 1 inch or more of new growth. It softens both textures so that I am able to style more easily.

Tonight's reggie

So, I am 17 weeks post and so far this stretch has been the most successful yet. I am learning to change my reggie every 30-60 days to keep up with my hair's ever-changing needs. Right now I have sl relaxed strands sitting on top of a 1 and 1/2 inch afro. The different textures are driving me crazy!!! So it's time to braid it up. Prayerfully the braids will last me all summer semester (I'm almost a senior in college!! Glory be to God!).

Tonight I plan to:

• Pre-poo with evoo (it would be castor oil but I ran out, I am a big fan of castor oil)
• Wash with hair one olive oil
• D/C with my mix of Lustrasilk's Shea Butter Cholesterol plus, HE HH, and a tablespoon of each of the following oils: Vitamin e, tea tree, grapeseed, and sweet almond.
  

My first post...and it's about hair.

I went to Sally's today to buy the supplies to prepare for my braids. The sales representative suggested I try Ion Repair Solutions "effective care treatment" it says it is a light vegetable protein fortifier and moisturizer. So I will use as directed.
What I did:
*Pre-pooed overnight (and while I went on a quick run, w/TRESemme vitamin e conditioner
*Shampooed w/CON clarifying shampoo, rinsed and blotted dry
*Applied Ion on hair, with cap but without heat for 5-10 minutes and rinse thoroughly.

RESULTS: I did not like Ion at first. I am not sure if it is the amount of time I left it on (20 minutes) or the clarifying before it, or what. But when I felt my hair with the product it felt weird. Then when I rinsed, my relaxed hair was somewhat okay, but my n/g was dry. However, the next day, I only saw one broken strand in the sink (after plenty of manipulation). So, I think that it may replace my Aphogee system. Overall, my favorite protein conditioner is Nexxus Keraphix.