9 Months

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Well it’s time for another update already, 9 months to be exact today. Movin’ on up!!

Not a whole lot of change from month 8 though the back is still puffy & frizzy on the ends, it has calmed down a wee bit and slimmed down some. It’s also taking quite a bit longer to dry after washing or a really good spritzing. Not a problem though…just gotta wash it earlier in the day than I used to earlier in the journey. I’m more in love with my hair than I was before not that I did not love it before, it’s just I’m so amazed by it. Oh, yesterday an older gentleman coming out of the thrift store was walking toward me as I was approaching the store. He called out to me to get my attention and said “I just wanted to tell you that you are very attractive”. Now you know that made a sista feel real good and coming from an older person (as he looked to be around the same age or older than DH who is 17 yrs older than I) who are generally are not too keen on locs. They was blowing & swanging (y’all know there is a difference between swinging & swanging) in the wind as I walked about. lol

Oh I forgot to add that I’ve reduced the amount of baking soda that I use in my shampoo mix from 1 tbs to 1 tsp. Since I don’t use any product in my hair other than a few drops of peppermint, lavender and cedarwood essential oils in my water spritz I don’t have the need to clarify, just clean my hair. I’m also substituting the water part of the mix with aloe vera juice. I mentioned this in the last post.

DH & I attended his 2nd cousin’s wedding & reception today so here are some pics of how I’m wore my locs. I double two strand twisted the front, french rolled the lower portion in the back and then adorned that portion with some decorative pins. I did that ’cause I want my puff to sit up high but those lower locs have condensed the most and are too short to go into the puff. Y’all I had to put in a million and one pins (well that’s a bit of an exaggeration…it was more like 9 pins but still) just for that little portion. The puff portion is held up by another hair tie I made, and was rolled with large rollers to give some lift to the puff since my hair seems to want to lie kinda flat in that back middle area. It was humid today and ended up raining so the puff dropped a bit so I think if I do it again in the future, I’ll use smaller rollers and smaller sections of hair. Plus the smaller ones should be easier to sleep on I hope. The two strand twisted portion held up well probably because I did 4 locs per section ,2 strand twisting 2 locs and then 2 strand twisting those together.

The top that I was wearing, y’all a thrift store find at $5.00 and the black skirt $.50! Who says you can’t look fly on the cheap!!

Celebrating my creativity on my deceased Father’s Birthday today. How I made a hair tie

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Today would have been my father’s 69th birthday today if he were still alive. Of course that makes him a Taurus. The planet Venus in astrology rules the signs of Taurus and Libra. One of the things that Venus governs or represents is creativity or artistic expression. I guess he is where I get a lot of my love of music, dance and creative/artistic aesthetic from. I posted this on You Tube Saturday as I was feeling a bit creative that evening. I was going to post it here Sunday when I saw that I had been tagged by Kumina (thanks again sis) you too Nat. As I’m about to condition my scalp with my coconut oil concoction, I though this is the perfect day to post this video on how I made a hair tie.

http://www.youtube.com/get_player

The Kreativ Blogger Award x 2

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Wow, I’m humbled to be thought of by not just one but two wonderful bloggers, Kumina & Naturigurl for this award. Both of these ladies have taught me a lot and are beautiful sistas on the ‘net so when you’re done here go check out their blogs especially if you’re here for the hair. lol The requirements are to list 7 things you love and pass the award on to 7 bloggers who in turn do the same.

1. I love and am grateful to be debt free. There are really no words to describe the gratitude for being given the means ( and I’m not just talking money as that was not the entire vehicle in which I was able to accomplish this in my 40th year on this planet) but for each and every person, resource and pieces of information that came my way. Some of those came in the form of hard learned lessons but without those too, I don’t think I could have done it.

2. I love food. (OK Nat, I bet you were peeking at my notes lol) but like she says, who doesn’t? Out of all the things I’ve tried I can count on one hand, well maybe two but not all ten fingers, all the things I don’t like. So I guess that tells you this sista loves to eat. Y’all I used to wish I was short and petite. Not anymore…glad to have some height to stretch this weight out. Which leads into number 3.

3. I love to dance. Since I love to eat, it is a form of exercises for me. I’m not very fond of structured aerobics etc so dancing is one of my forms of exercise and a outlet for negative energies. Dancing allows me to just flow.

4. I love music. (as I’m typing this that O’Jays song just popped in my head) Now, I wish I could play an instrument of some kind. Hmmm…maybe that should go on the things I’d like to do before I die list. Anyway….

5. I love being creative and seeing other’s creativity. Now, I’m far from my ideal in terms of creativity but I like to try my hand at it. I love though I can’t always afford handmade whateva it is.

6. I love small homes. My home is small by today’s standards at 836 sq ft and you probably think I’m biased but I’ve always loved smaller homes. Mainly because they challenge you to be creative in how you live in them with many items/rooms having to serve more than one function. Also you can be more creative in how you decorate them. See #5.

7. Last but certainly not the least I LOVE, LOVE LOVE my locs!! They have allowed me to be me. In my younger days I suffered from self esteem issues, like not feeling beautiful ’cause I got big feet(I wear a size 10) and was usually a bit taller than most girls, really shy, nerdy, wear glasses and a whole host of other things. Since I’ve gone natural and now locked and over 40, the confidence level has shot thru the roof. If you would have told me 10 years ago I would be posting videos, pictures and writing on the internet for the world to see, I would have told you that you’re crazy. Wow, times have changed.

I pass this award to the following: Chloe, Empress D’Cali, Vernessie, Itty , Pixie, Phe Phi, Maxizone

Aloe Vera Gel/Juice, Peppermint and Cedarwood Essential Oils

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Ok I had this bottle of Aloe Vera Gel that I bought 2 years ago when I first went natural that was about to expire in July in this year. I was using this in the shealoe mixture consisting of shea butter, coconut oil and of course the aloe vera gel. Well now that I’m locking I did not want to risk using that mix in my locs though I still use it as a face and body moisturizer. Anyway, there was oh probably 1/4 left in the bottle that I did not want to go to waste and for those of you that have seen my You Tube videos know I don’t like to waste anything, especially hard earned dollars. So I thought I’d pour the rest of the aloe vera gel in my shampoo mixture since it was almost empty. I then added a bit more Dr. Bronner’s, peppermint & cedarwood essential oils. Wow, you talk about even softer locs after they’ve dried than before for me! Now part of that may also be because it has been raining here at least once a day for the past 3 weeks therefore the humidity in the air has been minimum 70%. But the sheen has been kicked up a notch, even the locs in the back that are doing their thing. I’ve also oiled my scalp only with coconut oil and a couple drops of cedarwood and peppermint EOs each.

Motowngirl has info on a few essential oils so that’s where I got the idea to try the cedarwood and peppermint oils. On another website (click here) mentioned that peppermint oil was for dry hair & helps promote growth. As far as the peppermint I can understand growth but I would not have thought is was for dry hair. However it really does make sense in that the mint family of plants thrive in drier growing conditions. Dry conditions… dry hair, maybe there is a connection. The other reason for trying this combination of essential oils is that I’ve had issues with high blood pressure in the past, so I thought it might be a good idea to look for an alternative. So to clarify (no pun intended), I am no longer using rosemary or sage essential oils in my shampoo mix or spritz.

Aloe Vera, I’ve found in my research is strengthening for the hair, soothing for the scalp, aids in hair growth and has amino acids. One lady on the LongHairForum says uses it as a strengthener since it has protein in it, using it like Aphogee I would assume. I’m gonna try it that way, since that will be a whole lot easier to deal with than henna.

If you use the aromatherapy kind of essential oils that are for external use only, which is probably what you’re getting at the health food store and use them a lot check out this site the http://www.thecatalog.com. I ordered the EOs that I’m using at quite a bit of savings than if I purchased the same ones at the health food store. I was very pleased with how the order arrived.

I got the big bottle of lavender, peppermint & eucalyptus oils and quite a few other oils since I like to make air fresheners out of these in addition to using them for my hair and future concoctions. Here’s an example of the savings. The lavender EO was $47.19 for a 16oz bottle with sales tax (which they did charge for my state by the way at 10 %) is $51.91 and with shipping (if you ordered less than $75.00), grand total $56.91. That means that each ounce, which is the size of the bottles that you purchase at the health food store or GNC is $ 3.56. I don’t know about y’all but where I live even at GNC, I paid $8.79 for that 1 oz bottle. Buy 16 of those and you’ve paid (sit down b4 you read any further ’cause you may have already done this) $140.64 sales tax included. Which is better $56.91 or $140.64 especially if you are purchasing/using the same product/thing whatever on a regular basis?! This is an illustration/reason to have liquid savings aside from your emergency savings to take advantage of things like this and how we unconsciously dribble away our money. But that’s a whole ‘nother post.

Disclaimer: All of the products mentioned in this post have been purchased by me. I have no affiliation with the manufacturer or distributor of the product nor am I being paid to review the product. The opinions set forth in this post are solely my personal opinion.

Results of one of those BlogThings Test

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Your energy: balancing

Your season: changing of seasons.

Dedicated and responsible, you are a rock to your friends. You are skilled at working out even the most difficult problems. Low key and calm, you are happiest when you are around loved ones. Ambitious and goal oriented, you have long term plans to be successful.


Your Power Element is Earth


Your power color: yellow

New Style..sort of

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As I mentioned in an earlier post, I don’t do much styling but I stumbled on this by chance. I’m re tightening right now and was using my homemade hair-tie to hold my hair out of the way while I do my thang. This might be backwards for some but I start at the back of my head and work my way to the front. Well, when I got to the point you see in the pic I got to thinking…shoot this looks kinda cute. SmileyCentral.com Thought I’d better get a pic so when I want to recreate this I’ll have a reference. So here it is with an additional pic of a really sad attempt at basketweaving the part that’s hanging down.

By the way, today is offically my 2 year Nappy-versary!!! SmileyCentral.com

For the ladies and guys with a sense of humor

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My sister-in-law sent this to me today and since I love to laugh, I thought I’d share the laughter. Laughter is the best medicine! Enjoy!! Now no offense to pickup truck drivers ( I got one myself) or country music listeners ( I also happen to like some country music) and a husband…yeah I got one of those too.ROTFL

NEW DRUGS FOR WOMEN
DAMNITOL
Take 2 and the rest of the world can go to hell for up to 8 full hours.
EMPTYNESTROGEN
Suppository that eliminates melancholy and loneliness by reminding you of how awful they were as teenagers and how you couldn’t wait till they moved out!
ST. MOMMA’S WORT
Plant extract that treats mom’s depression by rendering preschoolers unconscious for up to two days.
PEPTOBIMBO
Liquid silicone drink for single women. Two full cups swallowed before an evening out increases breast size, decreases intelligence, and prevents conception.
DUMBEROL
When taken with Peptobimbo, can cause dangerously low IQ, resulting in enjoyment of country music and pickup trucks.
FLIPITOR
Increases life expectancy of commuters by controlling road rage and the urge to flip off other drivers. ?
MENICILLIN
Potent anti-boy-otic for older women. Increases resistance to such lethal lines as, “You make me want to be a better person. “
BUYAGRA
Injectable stimulant taken prior to shopping. Increases potency, duration, and credit limit of spending spree.
JACKASSPIRIN
Relieves headache caused by a man who can’t remember your birthday, anniversary, phone number, or to lift the toilet seat
ANTI-TALKSIDENT
A spray carried in a purse or wallet to be used on anyone too eager to share their life stories with total strangers in elevators.?
NAGAMENT
When administered to a boyfriend or husband, provides the same irritation level as nagging him, without opening your mouth.

8 months today!

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My locks are 8 months old y’all! The only real changes are they are a bit more frizzier in the areas that moved into the locking process in month 6. The areas that started in month 5 have calmed it’s frizzes down a bit. The front I think will be the last to lock.

I just remembered that I was going to address M*Shawnte’s question on the feel of the lock after re tightening. The 3 & 4 point rotations feel firm whereas the 2 point rotation feels a bit more squishy so I think I’ll (change…yes again) back to the 3 & 4 point. I also experience a bit of bunching like Naturigurl mentioned. It was like the loc was trying to go back through the last rotation done. So I made sure to pull and straighten those out after my weekly wash. Since I’m returning to re tightening my entire head on the 4-4 1/2 week schedule, I should not have to go more than 1 rotation. Unless of course I have a serious growth spurt and I sure won’t complain about that.

Oh and how could I forget the hairballs at the end of 2 of my locs! One is in the front that’s getting a bit annoying because it swings in my face. The other one is in the back that looks like lint on the end. It’s a hairball with a gray hair coil within the hairball. I lovingly refer to it and the other grays in the top as my built in loc jewelry, because my greys are not just grey but they are “metallic silver”. lol

Difference in the 2 point rotation vs 3 or 4 point rotation?

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I was asked by Anthio-Ofo (when you are done here check out her wonderful blog but not b4 you’re done reading here lol) if the 2 point rotation was fuller than the 3 point which she is using. Since I’ve only done this once on about 3/4 in new growth it’s kinda hard to tell visually. I just took a pick of the top of my head and compared it with the last pic I took of the top back in January using the 4 point. I’m pretty sure the January pic was after retightening and 1 wash whereas the left pic is after retightening & 2 washes. In both pics I have spritzed daily. Y’all see any difference?