My Oyin Products Have Been Shipped!

I'm very excited. My sample pack was shipped on Tuesday, so I hope to receive it by Friday.

Failed Experiment

It wasn't a total failure. I just think it needs to be longer to pull this off. My wash and go is best for now. I did stop using the aloe vera gel. I wasn't too fond of the hardness after a while. I'm not dying for curl definition or anything, so it's whatever. I like the soft, fuzzy feeling better.

Twist Experiment

I was talking to a fellow napptural about her chunky fro and she explained that she twists it in large twists at night to achieve the look. I honestly didn't think my hair was long enough to twist, but low and behold--despite their appearance--I twisted my hair last night while I talked on the phone (had it on speaker). They look like crap, as you can see, but I reallllly want to avoid no-pooing every day as it gets cooler. I don't know if I should untwist it before or after my shower.

As an alternative, I also made a watered down conditioner spritz...another suggestion from the board. Worst cast scenario, I'll have to no-poo this morning and keep experimenting.

Are They Really Concerned with Hair Health?

I used to think my stylist was concerned with the health of my hair more than styling and the profit she made from applying caustic chemicals to my hair and scalp. However, that is clearly a contradiction. We recently had a discussion on NP about Beauticians Not Knowing How to Do Natural Hair. The OP witnessed a young girl getting her hair blowdryed in a salon as "big clusters of hair was FLYING all over the floor. "

A few poignant notes:

• Think about it. Why aren't there any nappy-headed mannequins? (AuNappturale)
• When I went to Cosmetology school, natural hair wasn't something that was taught. There was a section in our book called Thermal Styling which showed how to press natural hair, but nowhere in the textbook did it have a section on natural hair care. It was a shame cause we had 4 black instructors and none of them could tell you about natural hair. When I told one of them I wanted to go into natural styling, she looked at me like and told me more money was in relaxers and weaves. Its a shame we have had to use relaxers so long we have lost touch with who we are. (Trickie Tam)
• Stylists TODAY don't know about hair health or how to do natural hair. I don't ever remember this type of hair drama when I was little. My mother (who is 69 and a beautician) knew how to do natural hair. She is the one who told me how to grow my hair out and what products to use when I experienced breakage, etc. Old school stuff that she used back in the day to get hair to grow and be healthy...not motions or affirm or any of that. (WildlyBeautiful)
  
  

Oyin Handmade

I just ordered a sample pack from Oyin. I hope I like the Whipped Pudding. I would like to be able to use just one product. I like the Mango Butter, but I go through it so quickly.

I'm still suffering from impatience with my hair growth. Tryce has had wonderful growth in a year. It's so inspiring, but it just adds to my impatience problem.

2 Things

1 - I want a new digital camera...which may be what I request for Christmas. 2 - I REALLY want my hair to grow. I'm so bored with it. I love playing in it, but I'm ready for some options. I'm sure I'm looking at May/June before I can really do anything fun with it. The only protective style that's available are coils and I'm really hesitant to pay what he's going to charge. I'd be willing to spend $40...maybe. I'm still not positive that I'd like them. I like them on other people, but I'm just not sure about me. I feel the need to do more protectives styles, but I'd like to be able to do it myself. I know I'll be able to handle twists, but my hair seemed like it wanted to do its own thing when I attempted the coils. I'll have to practice on a weekend.

Everyone Has Their Issues

I was at a restaurant with some friends and later that evening, my friend said to me, "I was the biggest person at the table." Mind you she is not obese or anything, just concerned about weight as may women are. I later thought to myself, "I was the only person at the table with acne."

I spend many days looking at people's skin in envy. My mother had BEAUTIFUL skin...just like a baby's bottom. On many days, I truly believe that I got slightly jipped in the creation process. So while other people worry about their weight, I worry about my skin and work diligently to heal it. I think I'm making progress, but it's just sad that this is something I have to deal with at age 30. I'm really hopeful that in 3 months, I will see a tremendous improvement. Other than the Glycare Cleansing Gel, I'm working with all natural products that have centuries of victories behind them. I'm remaining faithful and as consistent as I can. After all, I am only human...

Homecoming Update

Homecoming went well. My new do was well received. My skin was another issue. Earlier that week, I was in a killer 3 hour meeting. Sitting in one spot for that long makes me a little antsy if I'm not fully engaged. At any rate, I recall leaning my face onto my shirt or something. I know it wasn't my hand, because I truly no better than to touch my extremely acne prone face. I don't know why I thought the shirt might have less dirt on it than my hands...so I ended up with about 3-4 pimples on the right side of my jaw. But...I was determined not to let it get me down even though I was really conscious of it. So homecoming came and went. My face wasn't as clear as I wanted it to be but at least my cheeks were pimple-free.

These products are my staple at the moment. I know I keep hopping around, but I think I've settled on these. I'm going to stick with the Glycare Cleansing Gel because it was my saving grace years ago. It cleared my skin without any other products. So, I doubt it's harming me now. I know it does a good job of exfoliating and dead skin cells are famous for clogging pores that result in acne. The aloe vera gel has worked a miracle. If I wasn't so self conscious, I'd post a before and after of my left cheek. I'm sticking with it. I'm using the Vitamin E oil as a moisturizer in the AM and the shea butter in the PM. I'm still looking for a daytime moisturizer that doesn't look so greasy and that is natural. I think it does an okay job of absorbing into my skin, but I don't like that greasy feeling.