Healthy Hair Feature Update: Caroline

August 2012.  Fully natural.  About 2 years and 8 months since her last relaxer.

Caroline was previously featured in 2010 for her relaxed tresses in this post. Since then, she has transitioned and big chopped; she is officially natural now.  Read more about her decision to go natural and her current hair care journey below ...

1. What made you go natural?
I had really long hair. Every time I got a relaxer, then blow dried, and flat ironed, I looked like "slickhead", if that's a word.  I did not like the idea of texlaxing as an alternative - slightly textured hair.  I figured, why not just go all the way.  I went natural because I wanted volume and sheen. I didn't want my greasy, thin processed hair anymore.

October 2010. Texture shot after the big chop.

2. How long did you transition? How long have you been natural?
I transitioned for 10 months and big chopped in October 2010.  During my transition, I trimmed over time.

3. Describe your transition?
My transition was difficult because the two textures were competing against each other.  I had really processed, relaxed ends battling my thicker, kinky natural hair.
While transitioning, I initially did the Brazilian Keratin Treatment (BKT) and blowouts at home.  That was about three times.  Then I switched to primarily blowouts.  NOTE: I knew I wanted to be a "press n' curl" natural.  

October 2010. Bob cut and press after the big chop.

4. What is your Healthy Hair routine now that you are natural?
I wash and condition every 2-3 weeks, primarily at a local natural salon.  At the salon, they use Elucence ; if I am washing at home, I use Oyin Honey Wash and Oyin Honey Hemp Conditioner.  For my moisturizer, I use Oyin Whipped Butter and as needed.  At the salon, the styling process is as follows: They wash, condition, and then do a gentle detangling with a wide tooth comb before rinsing.  After rinsing, they apply Moroccan oil, then blowdry with a comb attachment, and then using the tension method.   After this step, they apply heat protectant, and then flat iron with one pass only using the FHI. If I am styling at home, I use the GHD flat iron instead.  I do not do touch-ups (with the flat iron); the style will last me 2-3 weeks.  In addition to my regimen, I take One-A-Day multivitamin.  I also dust every 3 months.

March 2012. Twistout on natural hair.

5. What is your Healthy Body routine? 
I workout 2x a week for at least 30 minutes each time.  My workout routine is a combination of circuit and strength training and cardio.  For my diet, I eat a lot of lean meats, whole grains, fruits and veggies, healthy fats (omega-3's), berries (anti-oxidants) like blackberries and raspberries, and dark leafy greens like kale and spring mixed greens.

6. What advice do have for those seeking healthy tresses?  What tips do you have for "press-n-curl" naturals?
My general advice is to continue to eat healthy and lead a healthy life. Keep active. Length will come. For "press n' curl" naturals: I do switch to all-natural styles if I need a break from the heat. Pay attention to your hair. It's a delicate balance. Assess the health of your hair regularly. Keep it moisturized. I think heat can be your friend if used in the right way.

February 2012.  Pressed and natural.

Oldies, But Goodies

1. No Poo: Baking Soda with Conditioner
2. Reader's Question: How to Gain Weight
3. Review: Karma Organic Nail Polish Remover
4. Basic Regimen for Healthy Relaxed Hair
5. Mixology || It's Avocado Time!

Healthy Hair on Youtube: Kasheera

I stumbled upon youtuber Kasheera while searching for new naturals to which to subscribe.  Her journey exemplifies length retention at its finest.  In just three years since she started growing out her relaxer, she has retained a maximum of 14 inches of growth!  I'm eager to see where she will be next year and the years to come.

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Free Range Chicken vs. Natural Chicken: Is the Difference Worth It?

Chicken is big part of my diet.  To put it simply, about 60 percent of the meat that I eat is poultry while the remaining 40 percent is split between salmon (about 30) and other meat (the other 10 percent).  That being said, I want to buy the freshest, purest chicken possible ... which is next to impossible ... or is it?

Normally, when I go to purchase chicken at the grocery store, I look for labels that say "natural", "no antibiotics", "no added hormones", and other indicators of minimally-altered poultry.  In particular, I usually pick up the following brand and label at my local market:

Natural chicken. No antibiotics, no added hormones, 100% vegetarian diet, raised cage free.

Now, last week, the store apparently introduced a new labeling for "free range, USDA Organic" chicken.  I immediately substituted that poultry in place of the one I usually purchase because the "free range" and "USDA Organic" labeling are the ultimate indicators of the least-tampered-with chicken ... or are they?

Organic, free range chicken.  No antibiotics, no added hormones, organic vegetarian feed, no preservatives.

I will admit that I want to do more research on just what exactly I am putting into my body when I'm buying my usual "natural" chicken versus this "organic" and "free range" chicken versus just "free range" chicken.  In the mean time, I will leave you all with this snippet from Wiki (not exactly the best place to do research, but it will suffice as an intro to the topic of "free range").

"Free range is a term which outside of the United States denotes a method of farming husbandry where the animals are allowed to roam freely instead of being contained in any manner.  In the United States, USDA regulations apply only to poultry and indicate that the animal has been allowed access to the outside. The USDA regulations do not specify the quality or size of the outside range nor the duration of time an animal must have access to the outside." - Wiki

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Onei Beauty Discount Code for HHB Readers

Use the product code "HHB40" to receive 40% off of your order from www.oneibeauty.com.  The company offers many products including the MK-I Halo Ceramic straightener (seen below).  This flat iron straightens just as well as my GHD, has a temperature dial (which the GHD doesn't), and is less expensive.  A full review will be coming soon, but don't wait to use the discount code above.  Feel free to spread the word and the code!

Hair Diary || Twistout and More Twists

This will be a monthly series in which I discuss my hair journey from now through my 5-year nappiversary in February 2013.

See what had happened was ... the twistout, which was only supposed to be worn for one weekend, ended up living for two.  Sometimes I get too busy OR lazy to face wash-and-detangle day ...

Twistout after one week.

When I finally braved the task at hand, fortunately my hair was still fairly "detangled" from being in a defined week-old twistout.  I put my hair in 8 big braids, pre-pooed, washed, conditioned, and then comb-detangled.  Then I rinsed out the conditioner, and airdried my hair until somewhere between damp and dry.  After that, I went into my usual twists.  I'll keep this set for two, if not three weeks.

New twists to be worn for 2-3 weeks.

Until next time!

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"Soul" Food Mondays || Enduring the Wilderness

What is the "wilderness"?  It is generally a period in life when one is stripped of one or more relationships and forced into isolation to reflect and/or renew before restoration or advancement.  The husband leaves you for another woman.  The friend abandons you.  You unwillingly but, out of necessity, dump your boyfriend.  Or a new career takes you thousands of miles away from your family and friends into the middle of nowhere.  At the end of it all, you find yourself alone - in the wilderness.

What one accomplishes (or does not accomplish) in this period is vital to whether one exits or stays ... or enters another wilderness a short time later.  Does the individual learn during that period?  Does the individual mature?  Did the individual shed his/her bad habits?  Did he or she gain valuable life lessons?  These are just a few of the questions that may be worked out in the wilderness.

Do you want to see fruitful land again?  Then endure the wilderness.  Allow it to shape you and teach you.

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