Length Check

2:33p

Starting point -- September 2009

April 2010

 June 2010

I had a huge growth spurt from March until now with at least 2 inches of new growth. I texlaxed on March 30 (accidentally relaxing the front of my hair a lot straighter than I wanted) and I can see significant growth.

Ponytail Length

2:28p

Ponytail in September 2009

Ponytail in June 2010

Looking at my ends I need a major trim on those ends (it has been 10 months) but I am happy at the growth I have gotten in the last 10 months. Thanks to my texlax, my hair is a lot thicker and a lot healthier.

Flat Ironing - MOISTURE MOISTURE MOISTURE

8:21a

Yesterday I came across a post on LHCF about flat ironing and how to achieve that fresh from the salon look at home yourself.

Since becoming texlaxed, straightening my hair has been harder than ever but a technique I learned last night revolutionalized the way I will flat iron my hair from now on.

It's all about moisture. But the thing that was stressed was to NOT add any products to freshly washed hair.

Why?

Because that weighs it down and causes buildup on the hair causing a limp (and for me a hot greasy mess) less than stellar flat iron.

So how does moisture work if I'm not adding any moisturizing products BEFORE I flat iron?

The trick is in the deep conditioning step. I followed this youtube video about deep conditioning to a T. I even added the mayo. Then I watched this video on flat ironing, which didn't help me with my technique but it really provided excellent step by step instructions.

I saturated my strands with coconut oil and let that sit for about 20 minutes. I made a concoction of Aussie Moist, Hollywood Beauty Olive Cholesterol, 100% Aloe Vera Juice, Olive Oil, mayo, honey and a squeeze Aussie Deeeeep and left that on for close to an hour.

In the shower I washed the deep conditioner out with a moisturizing shampoo (Hello Hydration Shampoo) and then added Trader Joe's Tea Tree Tingle Conditioner and covered with a shower cap for about 15 minutes.

When I washed out the conditioner, my hair was soft and extremely silky. I dried using the t-shirt method. After my hair was semi dry I added my blow drying heat protectant and blow dried in small sections. After my hair was dry, I added my Tressemee heat protectant and let it soak in before I flat ironed.

The trick with getting a really good flat iron is to take really small sections. I only required 1 to 2 passes for each section and my hair was silky, shiny and straight.

I slept with my hair wrapped in a silk scarf and a bonnett. This morning I put an extremely small amount of shine serum on my hair. My hair is bouncy, silky, soft and so smooth. I will be using this method from now on when I flat iron.

Shot of the back. More accurate picture of length. Silky, smooth and bouncy

My hair feels fabulous!

Length check

9:43a

reminder of my starting length - though it was a tad shorter than this after my recut. At the shortest, my hair didnt even touch my shoulders. It reached the lower part of my neck.

I should have combed my hair straight before taking the picture but this pretty much shows my current length

CUT!!!

11:23a

So I finally got my "re-cut" last week and I must say that it is a VAST improvement from that original butchering that I got. I'm no longer missing my long hair because I love the cut. She cut layers that ebb and flow as I walk and it falls so nicely. It's not long enough to put into a pony tail yet, but so far that isn't an issue with me. I've been bad and haven't moisturized yet, whatever she put in my hair was excellent and is just now starting to need moisturizing. For me, Less = More.

My stylist was fabulous and she was really knowledgeable. Let's just say I've found my new hair home!

Hair Cut!

9:57a

So I did it. I actually did it. There were those out there who thought I wouldn't actually do it {and you know who u are!} And I wasn't the least bit nervous when I saw the glint of the scissors as she grabbed them from her station. Nor when I heard the first cut. I was cool, calm and collected throughout the whole entire cut!

I was too excited to have my hair cut to worry about hanging on to those tired old dead ends! I had pride in those long, scraggly things until one day I looked in the mirror and was TIRED of working my buns off for this hair, this hair that had absolutely no value! It was fried and dried and just a hot mess.

Enough talking. Here are the pictures

Here's a reminder of where I started:

Overall, I loved the cut. I did have to take matters into my own hands when I got home. The right side was a teeny bit longer than the left and it was driving me crazy! So I trimmed it a bit and now I love it! I've never had bangs this short and I'm still getting used it it, but I love how healthy my ends are and how my hair moves! I'm completely satisfied.

 I'll be doing a review of the salon I went to tomorrow.

Wash and Length Check

2:44p

I washed my hair last night. I couldn't resist.

My husband looked at me like I was crazy when I walked out of the bathroom with dripping hair.

"You washed your hair again?"

"Yes," I told him. "What's wrong with that?"

It was funny. I'm addicted to washing. I'm actually more addicted to freshly washed hair itself. If I have the energy then what's the problem?

Last night I actually discovered the secret to drying my hair with my rollers in. I did my normal after shower products and detangling. But then I let it air dry without applying my rollers while it was dripping. When it was 75% dry, I rolled it. This morning when I took out my rollers, my hair was DRY! That has never happened before.

Seem obvious? Yes, extremely. I'm a slow learner.

Below are some pictures of my length. I'm going to take a picture of my hair in this shirt the first of every month so I can have a frame of reference for if my hair is growing or not. The ends are horrible, but a trim can fix that.