Back in the day, I rocked the Gerry curl. That was my Mom's doing. She knew how, had daughters to practice on, so there you go. I hated it. The Gerry curl 'juice' everywhere was no fun at all- no fun at all. The absolute worse was my neck being greasy. OMG. And having to sleep with that plastic cap on was always a crackly nightmare. So, no sweet dreams there.
As we became teenagers, we progressed to perms (relaxers). I remember being asked why my sister and I didn't do each other's hair. Great idea. Lightbulb moment. We tried that ONCE. My process on her hair went well. Mine on the other hand did not. My sister told me with my head full of creamy white chemicals, "You're supposed to comb it all into a ponytail". Huh? After her process on my hair, I ended up with terrible breakage in my crown area. Lightbulb smashed. Needless to say, she NEVER did my hair again. As I began to maintain my own 'creamy crack track' it became frustrating, keeping up with 4-6 week retouches, hair breakage, stunted growth, and product failures. I tried beauticians but that became costly. They preferred the 4 week touch-ups and weekly maintenance. Forget bi-weekly. They wanted to take being a regular to a whole new level.
get braids every now and then, but that's about it. I have a head full of thick kinky hair that seemed to be screaming to me to let it be. I never did the 'big chop' everyone claims you must do. It makes sense, but I was NOT doing that. As my hair grew and after I removed the 8 month sew-in I did 1/2 to 1 inch trims until all the permed hair was out. I've gone through many trials of hair products out there that didn't' work or only worked for half a day. Then I came up with my own products www.bandbenterprisetx.com To date, I'm a happy camper and am rocking my natural hair.
So, those on the natural hair journey, I commend you for your efforts and push you to continue the journey. It may seem hard and tedious in the beginning but the outcome is well worth it. Since I don't glop the relaxer chemicals in my hair anymore or suppress my scalp with long-wear wigs and weaves, my memory is better and my scalp and hair is healthier. Keep going! You can do it! Need help? Ask me.
Disclaimer: I'm not a licensed cosmetologist nor do I play one on TV. Seek and maintain professional advice if you choose.
As we became teenagers, we progressed to perms (relaxers). I remember being asked why my sister and I didn't do each other's hair. Great idea. Lightbulb moment. We tried that ONCE. My process on her hair went well. Mine on the other hand did not. My sister told me with my head full of creamy white chemicals, "You're supposed to comb it all into a ponytail". Huh? After her process on my hair, I ended up with terrible breakage in my crown area. Lightbulb smashed. Needless to say, she NEVER did my hair again. As I began to maintain my own 'creamy crack track' it became frustrating, keeping up with 4-6 week retouches, hair breakage, stunted growth, and product failures. I tried beauticians but that became costly. They preferred the 4 week touch-ups and weekly maintenance. Forget bi-weekly. They wanted to take being a regular to a whole new level.
Then, I discovered wigs and weave. Sigh. Although my perm track was a long one, my weave stint was just as long. I didn't last too long in wigs because the secure combs began to thin my edges. And who wears a wig without security of it staying in place with those combs? With weaves, my daughter was able to do sew-ins and braids until her life became too busy to deal with it. I had a sew-in done by a beautician that once lasted eight months. Yes, eight months. There was no obvious looseness or raggedness about it either. I maintained the cleanliness of it and kept it well-conditioned with my Bamma Oil. www.bandbenterprisetx.com I always say I would probably be still wearing sew-ins had the beautician done my next sew-in the same. I figured with me telling her how it lasted 8 months, she never did my hair that well again. Bye Felicia. I began sewing them in myself after that, doing a good job, if I must say so.
I got tired of the fake hair process. It wasn't cool to me anymore. I 
get braids every now and then, but that's about it. I have a head full of thick kinky hair that seemed to be screaming to me to let it be. I never did the 'big chop' everyone claims you must do. It makes sense, but I was NOT doing that. As my hair grew and after I removed the 8 month sew-in I did 1/2 to 1 inch trims until all the permed hair was out. I've gone through many trials of hair products out there that didn't' work or only worked for half a day. Then I came up with my own products www.bandbenterprisetx.com To date, I'm a happy camper and am rocking my natural hair. So, those on the natural hair journey, I commend you for your efforts and push you to continue the journey. It may seem hard and tedious in the beginning but the outcome is well worth it. Since I don't glop the relaxer chemicals in my hair anymore or suppress my scalp with long-wear wigs and weaves, my memory is better and my scalp and hair is healthier. Keep going! You can do it! Need help? Ask me.
Disclaimer: I'm not a licensed cosmetologist nor do I play one on TV. Seek and maintain professional advice if you choose.
Love the timeline pics and can completely relate to the natural hair saga!
ReplyDeleteThanks, CGPlenty! It's a process for sure.
Delete