A couple of weeks ago, my SIL (sister-in law) wanted to have pictures taken of our kids (a cousin photo). Well, for me that meant (3) heads to do in one day (my daughters and my niece). I decided to do a twist style for my niece and twist-out styles for my daughters'. Oh and the color scheme was purple instead of going with the typical holiday colors (no offense to anyone). Unfortunately, I could not find any individual shots of my youngest BG "S" twist-out :( (The busy life of a 2 year old!)
This style was done on BG "M" about a month ago (I know, I know...don't judge me). The summer break was coming to an end and her hair was doing some serious shedding (this could have been from all the swimming). So I wanted to give her a quick and simple style along with a good protein deep conditioning treatment. I used the Organic Root Stimulator Olive Oil Replenishing Pak (Deep Penetrating Conditioner) and must say I was definitely pleased. I left this deep conditioner in her hair about 45 minutes and it took very well to her hair. The hair was soft, moisturized, manageable and in better condition overall. The shedding was also reduced drastically.
As most of you know from the post titled, Loc'ing Your Child's Hair...Yay or Nay? ,we decided to loc BG "S" hair. Yay!! I am so excited and looking forward to this new hair journey. Before twisting her hair, I simply followed BG "S" Hair Care Regimen. BG "S" loc start date was TuesdayAugust 8th, 2012. The pictures below show the process of completing her two-strand twists along with a couple of styles her first week. I used Qhemet Biologics Aethiopika Hydrate & Twist Butter to twist the hair (love, love, love this stuff...review to come). I also did a lot of splitting, re-parting and combining the first week and a half to ensure the locs will be uniformed as much as possible...stay tuned!!!
It took a total of 7 hours over 3 days to complete, she has some really THICK hair! The botton right picture shows me splitting the bottom row into smaller twists (btw, look at that definition!)
This style was done about 2 weeks ago on BG "M". I was inspired by Une Autre Naturelle (Pinwheel Bantu Knots) yet again, lol. I still have to work on my parting skills but I think I did a pretty good job for the most part =) So I didn't quite get the pinwheel effect o_O. I did this style on damp hair and it was pretty easy and quick. I two-strand twisted the hair before putting in the bantu-knots.
Products Used
Shampoo - Kinky Curly Come Clean
Conditioner - TRESemme Naturals
Leave-In - Cara B Leave In Conditioner/ Daily Moisturizer
Styling Aid - Darcy's Botanicals Madagascar Vanilla Styling Creme
I love natural hair but I absolutely LOVE locs. I have been natural for 8 years and loc'd for 7 years. I have no regrets and have never looked back. In our home we have always discussed the idea of loc'ing our daughters' hair. My husband also have locs and have been loc'd for 13 years, so he loves the idea for many reasons.
My oldest is at a very impressionable age and has expressed interest in wanting locs and ask for them often but I am not sure if her mom will be on board. My youngest doesn't really pay much
attention to her hair but always says, "Mommy, I like you hair", while touching it, lol. Random people often ask me if I am going to loc BG "S" hair because its almost always in two-strand twists and of course because they see me loc'd and my answer have always been YES. So here goes....I began two strand twisting BG "S" hair last night and will finish tonight, so I am going to see where this takes us. I may start her locs with this set of twists or maybe another set depending on how the spacing and size looks when I am done. Why do I want to loc my daughter's hair you ask, its simple: Locs in itself are beautiful and it is a style that I like & love and I believe it is something she will love as well--just as you like cornrows, puffs, twists, twist-outs, braids, ponytails, etc. and style your child's hair as such. This is not based on convenience, as I currently take excellent care of their hair. If it turns out to be something she doesn't like, I am okay with that and we will take them out!
It is interesting to me that parents always say they want it to be their kids decision about loc'ing but decide on everything else for their kids. Parents make the decision to press, flat iron, perm, curl, add "fake" hair and so much more without the kids decision but when it comes to locs its different. Why is this?
Some quick facts about locs: Contrary to what people believe, locs are very versatile. Locs are not at all painful to get done if you take care of them and keep them maintained regularly. It is not painful for a child to get locs. Although locs are low maintenance, they still need to be cared for, after all it is still hair. Locs can be taken out, it does however require time and diligence. There are tons of videos on YouTube showing how to remove locs. If that method is overwhelming, you can let the hair grow out a bit and then cut them, you can even get braids or twists with added hair until the hair grows to desired length. Proper methods and products are important for the care of locs and yes locs do need to be washed! With proper care, your child will have beautiful and healthy locs.
If you are still uncertain whether or not locs are for your child, simply do your research until you're comfortable. Locs aren't a good fit for everyone and should never be used as a way to "manage" a child's hair, that makes it no different than relaxing at that point. I believe you should have an appreciation and positive attitude towards locs so that same attitude will exude through your child. Its just hair folks! =)
We are partcicipating in our very first Hair Carnival via Untrained Hair Mom! I missed the last Hair Carnival and was so disappointed but here we are...yippee! Anywho, this month I was assigned to copy a style from blogger Precious Curlsso I decided to try the "Two-Strand Twists, Flat Twists and Rosettes". It is a very cute but yet simple style. You guys know I love some two-strand and flat twists but was super excited to try rosettes for the first time.
I grasped the concept of doing Rosettes by watching this video:
I started with BG "S" regular hair regimen, banded the hair overnight and styled the next day. I parted/sectioned the hair in preparation for the style during the detangling session to make the styling session faster. I started with the flat-twists on the side and then began twisting medium sized two-strand twists from the back of the hair on up. Lastly, I attempted the rosettes in the front. Voila! I twisted the hair using Shea Moisture Curling Souffle.
Flat Twist (Side-View: instead of doing them at an angle, I decide to do them going back)
After enjoying a few days of big hair during BBH's Frotective Challenge, we are back to our protective styles. But before twisting it up, I decided to do a little trimming of BG "S" ends. I did things a little different this time. In this post (BG "S" First Trim-Healthier Hair, Here We Come...) I discussed trimming the hair while in mini twists but I decided to trim her hair the way Precious Curls discussed in this post. I was much more comfortable this go' round!
I deep conditioned, co-washed and banded on Saturday night. On Sunday morning, I trimmed the hair as I removed the banded sections. However, before trimming I applied Qhemet Biologics Cocoa Tree Detangling Ghee, detangled, then trimmed and re-banded.
This is after the trim...not too much right?!
On to the Protective Style...
I went to my favorite style of course...two-strand twists. Although the hair was stretched from banding, I lightly spritz the hair with my aloe vera mix, applied a mixture a QB Amla & Olive Heavy Cream and QB Olive & Honey Hydrating Balm (review to come) and the twisted. OMG...her hair has never felt so soft and moisturized, I couldn't keep my hands out of her hair! She wore her two-strand twists out today but then I decided to do something different and try bantu knots on her tonight. I simply gathered a section of her twists, twisted to the left and began to roll and tuck. I think I did pretty good for my first time, I didn't use anything to secure the bantu knots, so I have no idea how long the hair will stay put, lol...
I deep conditioned, co-washed, moisturized and banded BG "S" hair the previous night and styled it the next morning. I began by lightly spritzing the hair by section applied the SM Curling Souffle and began twisting. The hair was shiny and nicely curled at the ends. I used Qhemet Biologics products for the first time and I must say I am a "happy camper"! Look out for the review...
I washed, conditioned, moisturized and banded BGS hair in the morning and styled it in the afternoon. I decided to try a "new" product (Kinky Curly Curling Custard-KCCC) to do both the flat twists and the two strand twists. The hair was already nicely moisturized, so I began by spritzing the hair with a mixture of KCKT and distilled water, applied the KCCC and began twisting (the picture in the top left-hand corner is the hair with the product). The hair was nice and shiny after twisting on wet hair. The next morning after the hair had dried, BGS hair looked nice but it wasn't really moisturized which is a big "no-no" for BGS's hair. I didn't experience any crunchiness like others have complained about. The KCCC review will be coming soon, it did okay but I can't say that I was completely blown away, I get better moisture from SM Curling Souffle.
Other Products Used: Pre-Poo (Coconut Oil) | Washed (SM Moisture Retention Shampoo) | Conditioned (Curls Coconut Sublime Conditioner) | Leave-In (Kimmaytube w/ Giovanni Direct) | Moisturize (Cara B Moisturizing Mist-Daily) | Seal (Carol's Daughter Mimosa Hair Honey)
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