3 Ways To Style Faux Locs

August 30, 2016 Uloaku Enyingwa 4 Comments

Hey, beauts!
I finally get to take down my faux locs tomorrow. It’ll be a day shy of 8 weeks.
Whew! 8 weeks! I can’t remember having a protective style for this long. This time I did set the challenge of rocking it for 6-7 weeks, but life happened and gave me an additional week. I’ve been busy lately and although I miss my natural hair, to be honest, I was a bit reluctant to take these down because I’m not looking forward to a real wash day. For the past 8 weeks wash days has been so easy peasy that I’ve almost forgotten what a real wash day feels like. Well, I’ll be back to wash day reality soonest!
Having a boring hair is one thing I didn’t want while I had my locs, so I tried switching to different styles. Some peeps have been asking how I style my faux locs and here’s my last chance to show them how before the takedown.
Enjoy!
1 | SIDE SWEPT
I’ve tried this style on box braids before but it’s awesome with faux locs.
STEPS
1. Do a rectangular part i.e one side of the part should have more locs.
2– 4. Hold it in a ponytail using an elastic band.
5. Take out a piece from the ponytail and wrap around the elastic band to hide it, if you want a cooler look.
6-7. Choose the side you want the sweep to fall. If you want it on your right take the ponytail to the left and vice-versa. You get?
Now sweep the ponytail to where you want.
8–13. Take few pieces (usually 2 pieces works well with my faux loc) from the left and right sides, the ones closest to the rectangular part and tie at the back to secure the sweep.
2 | CHINESE BUNSomehow the pieces of faux locs left out of the bun reminds me of chopsticks. This style was inspired by my sister and it’s really easy to do. Do I even need to explain? Maybe just step 2 and 3.
2-3 After putting the locs in a ponytail, keep the two chopsticks pieces apart from the rest, so they don’t get lost while you do the bun.
3 | BRAIDED BAND
Or as a friend calls it: “the ninja look”.
STEPS
1-3. Take 3 pieces of locs and braid it down.
4. Take it across your forehead
5-7. Take a few pieces from the left and right sides to tie at the back, so as to secure the band.
And there you have it! Wishing you a fabulous week ahead!
Which style will you be trying soon?


4 responses:

Frospiration! | Afoma Umesi

August 25, 2016 Uloaku Enyingwa 4 Comments


Let’s get to know you.

Hi! My name is Afoma. I currently live in St Vincent & the Grenadines in the Caribbean and I’m a medical student, occasional writer, and constant photographer. I also run a lifestyle blog where I talk about books, fashion and med-school stuff (ihundasmusings.com).

How long have you been a natural?

Two and half years. Since November of 2013.


Big chop or transition?

I transitioned for about 7 months and then big chopped in November of 2013.

What’s the story behind you going back to your natural roots?

I had been seeing a lot of nappy haired sisters, especially Ekene of thekinkandi figuring out the whole natural hair thing and I really was curious as to why black women didn’t try harder to understand their own curls and work with them instead of trying so hard, even to the point of enduring chemical burns just for straight hair. I loved the feel of my curls whenever I left my hair unrelaxed for extended periods and I wondered what it would feel like to have a head of just curls. All the times I’d had natural hair, they’d been threaded constantly just to get them to a length for relaxing, so I’d never really worked with my natural hair.

Do you have an idea what your hair type and porosity is?

Porosity, no. But I’ve been told I’ve got a mix of 4B and 4C. My hair is definitely more loosely curled in front whereas the back of my head has tightly coiled strands.

What’s your regimen like?

I honestly don’t have much of a regimen. I try to wash at least once every two weeks. I hardly ever co-wash because my hair seems to like being shampooed. I try to minimize manipulation though and heat treatments. Probably used a blow dryer once since I’ve been natural. I love leave in conditioners too.

Any hair products you can’t do without?

LOVE the shea moisture hair souffle. Makes my curls pop and keeps my hair super soft. Can't-do without my oils too: coconut oil especially.

What’s your go-to hairstyle? Any fave hairstyle?

Lately, I’ve been loving the two puffs instead of one huge afro puff. Mini twists are also a great way to reduce manipulation.

Challenges you face as a natural.

Sigh. Those days when you really just want to get out of bed and go without fussing over your hair for twenty minutes and still not having it ever look ‘right’. Or having to fix up your hair before bed; putting it in twists of wrapping it nicely or putting it in a puff so it doesn’t get all tangled. I rarely get away with going to bed with messy hair unless I have a late start the next day and I can just take my time. Oh, and WASH DAY is like 500x harder than with relaxed hair.

Do you have any hair/styling secret? *wink*

I really advocate for keeping your hair moisturized all of the time. Dry hair just makes your life so much more difficult. Drinking lots of water is great for your hair and skin. Do it.

Has going natural changed anything about you?

I’ve learned to redefine my previous standards of beauty. To see me, regardless of what hairstyle I had on: TWA, twist outs, fro, braids, weave, relaxed hair. Being natural has made me more flexible with hairstyling and more accepting of ‘messy’. Natural hair definitely has its own aesthetic and while it can be prim and proper- buns, puffs etc- it mostly sticks out of the ‘proper’ box. I’m embracing that and letting my hair do its thing, especially outside of work ;)

Do you think you’ll ever return back to the creamy crack?

I think not. But you never know. If I ever did, I’d be getting a cropped cut. I feel like if I really wanted the straight look, I could always flat iron or silk press, you know? It’s the best of both worlds.

Any advice for your natural sisters out there?

Focus on having good, healthy hair. I think that’s really what counts and you don’t need too many hair products for that.

How do we keep in touch with you?

I’ve already mentioned my blog ihundasmusings.com . I’m @miszjeanie on Instagram & Twitter!

4 responses:

Natural Hair Tip #13

August 23, 2016 Uloaku Enyingwa 0 Comments

WASH DAY

Replace towels with old cotton t-shirt to dry your hair. Using t-shirts prevents frizz and help maintain your natural curl pattern.

0 responses:

Natural Hair Tip #12

August 17, 2016 Uloaku Enyingwa 0 Comments

HAIR PRODUCTS


So you finally drew conclusions that a product isn’t working for your hair?
Don’t let it go to waste! Try swapping with curl/natural hair friends if theirs didn’t work either.
It saves you money and storage space too!

Warning: Only applicable if you have curl friends. ; )

xx
The FroRocker.

0 responses:

Transitioning To Natural Hair | 5 Mistakes To Avoid

August 15, 2016 Uloaku Enyingwa 3 Comments


You might know what to do while transitioning but do you know what you should avoid doing? These are common mistakes made while transitioning.

 1 | LISTENING TO NEGATIVE COMMENTS
Don’t expect everyone to cheer you on this journey. There’ll always be some peeps around that’ll say negative things about your hair and will even try to talk you into going back to relaxers, just because they think your hair will look better or more presentable. While you don’t have control over what others may think or say, you do have the power to ignore it. Knowing what you want and setting goals to achieve it makes this easier. The truth is, sometimes people tend towards being negative when they don’t have an understanding of things. Try educating them if necessary, you maybe surprise at the outcome in some cases. Besides, when you become 100% natural and they see you rocking your natural curls, they’ll come to appreciate it more. I had a lot of naysayers when I started transitioning but after my big chop they started liking my hair more and respected me for sticking to my decision. Some even went natural at the end of it all.

2 | EXPECTING A CERTAIN CURL PATTERN
Are you expecting the old curl pattern you had before you started relaxing to do a come back? Then you maybe in for a big disappointment. Don’t expect your new growth to look like that. Years and years of having your hair chemically processed alters your curl pattern. Guilty of this one. I kept thinking my hair will go back to being very soft and curly, as it was before I started relaxing. How very disappointing!

3 | HIDING YOUR TRANSITIONING HAIR
You always hide your hair in protective styles just because you think it’ll require less maintenance or because of negative comments. While protective styles like wigs, braids, extensions etc are great for retaining length, don’t overdo it. Let your hair breathe sometimes, play with your hair, try out other styles such as two strand twist, bantu knots, flat twist, roller sets etc. Too much of protective styling might result in further breakage. And of course never think that protective styling is a ticket out of taking care of your natural hair. Your hair still needs all the TLC it can get while in protective styles!

4 | TRYING TO GUESS YOUR HAIR TYPE
Okay, I was quite obsessed with this. When I realized I could never get back my old curl pattern, I started trying to guess my hair type with the new growth. The curl pattern you have right now isn’t your true curl pattern. And yes, I guessed my hair type wrongly! Take a chill pill! Avoid guessing what your hair type is, until you’re completely natural.

5 | TRYING OUT EVERY PRODUCT (PRODUCT JUNKIE)
Oh, you heard a good review about this product or saw your favorite hair blogger/vlogger use that product and it came out bomb on her hair. Maybe you just can’t resist buying most products you come across. Most times new transitioners or naturals spend tons of money trying out new products. As much as you want to try out products and discover what works for your hair, you don’t have to break the bank or become a product junkie doing so. Like I always emphasize, before you buy any product ALWAYS read through the ingredient list, make sure the ingredients you want to avoid aren’t contained in the product.

To figure out if a product works on your hair do a “controlled” experiment by using the product for a while, say at least a trial period of a month before drawing conclusions. You can also try it with other products and see how the combination comes out. If it doesn’t work out for your hair after these, it’s ok to move on to a “next” product.

Hope this post helps you avoid some mistakes I made during my transitioning.

Please do let me know if there are other mistakes transitioners make.


3 responses:

Product Review | Beautiful Textures Leave-In Conditioner

August 11, 2016 Uloaku Enyingwa 3 Comments

Product Name: Beautiful Textures Tangle Taming Leave-in Conditioner

 I stumbled upon this product while I was out shopping with a friend. I was out of my staple  leave-in conditioner then, but wasn’t really in a hurry to get it soon. Then I saw the beautiful textures leave-in. It was just sitting there looking all flashy and exotic, and I was like “oh, well just because it’s looking all so flashy doesn’t mean it has a lot to offer”. As usual I went straight to the ingredient list before I even read what the product claims to offer.

Ingredients List: aqua, olea europaea fruit oil/olive oil, argania spinosa nut oil/argan oil, glycine soja oil/soybean oil, cocos nucifera oil/coconut oil, butyrospermum parkii fruit/shea butter, mangifera inica seed butter/mango butter, rosmarinus officinalis leaf extract/rosemary extract, aloe barbadensis leaf extract/ aloe vera, dimethicone, panax ginseng root extract/ginseng extract, polyquaternium 37, propylene glycol dicaprylate/dicaprate, polysorbate 20, prolylene glycol, imidazolidinyl urea, phenylhydrogenated vegetable oil, glycerin, DMDM hydantoin, Cetearyl alcohol, ceteareth 20, polysorbate 20, popylene glycol, imidazolidinyl urea, phenyl trimethicone, Cl15985/yellow 6, parfum/fragrance, benzyl benzoate, benzyl salicylate, coumarin, d-dimonene, hezyl cinnamal, lyral, methyl lonone gamma.

 And surprisingly I’m down for almost all the ingredients. The first on the list is water, and next 6 ingredients comprises of natural oils and butters. Good enough. I love the addition of good old aloe vera.

Here’s What The Product Claims: Achieve amazing manageability and styling versatility for curly, wavy, kinky-coily or frizzy hair. Get soft defined curls, bodacious bouncy spirals and smooth silky tresses with the intensive moisture-rich formula for mixed textured hair. Get Ultimate shine and curl control. Tangle taming leave-in conditioner helps to

  • Unlock tangles
  • Deeply moisturize
  • Tame frizzies
  • Nourish curls with the right blend of natural oils. 

There's no denying that dry, brittle hair stunts your natural hair growth. To help ensure your tresses grow healthy looking, nourish and moisturize them from the inside out with this lightweight formula. Use daily to detangle, tame frizz and stretch your natural curl pattern as desired.

Yeah, I know right? Very lengthy and full of high-end promises.

Well, I've been using it for a while now and it moisturizes my hair, makes it softer and unlocks my tangles to make it easier for combing. I love the fragrance, it has a sweet smell and I’m guessing it’s from the mango butter. It's also good for my hair texture. It wasn't weighed down after application. However, for finer textures, you might want to add a little bit of water during application as was suggested on the bottle.

DRAWBACKS

  • It does contain some silicones you might want to avoid.
  • I’m also skeptical about the curl definition part. While I might have noticed my curl definition/pattern immediately after application, it was gone once my hair dried.

In my opinion, this is a go-to conditioner if you're looking for a leave-in that detangles, makes your hair softer and moisturizes. The rest of the product claim didn't work for me. I think I'll give it a 4 out of 5.

Have you tried this product before? What’s your take on it?

3 responses:

Natural Hair Tip #11

August 09, 2016 Uloaku Enyingwa 0 Comments

PRODUCT

When trying out products to see which works for your hair, try to be less of a “product junkie” by introducing new products one at a time and use it for a while. Doing this will help you figure out which product is or isn’t meeting your hair needs.
And you get to save up cash too!

0 responses:

Natural Hair Tip #10

August 02, 2016 Uloaku Enyingwa 0 Comments

HAIR LINE

Do you want to regrow your hairline?
Try massaging your scalp with natural oils to get maximum blood flow to the hair follicles. This stimulates hair growth!

0 responses:

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