What's Gibbie Been Up to? Part Deux

So.. what do you say to the person that last had a blog post titled "What's Gibbie Been Up To" months later doing another "What's Gibbie Been Up To"? Don't say much about that. I beg of you. I'm super sorry that I haven't been around in a bit. I thought about doing a post last month ..but after a trim (I often call it a chop) of about 1"-1.5" off due to breakage, I wasn't feeling it. I was so upset with myself for having to hack off that much hair. I'm still not over it to be honest, because I was gaining some length and now it's like I have a twa feeling all over again :(. 

I saw Rosemary Godwin on YouTube discussing her Water Only method update and I decided to "man up" and do this hair update.

Anyway, here are some updates on my hair:

1 year post BC

I big chopped (BC) my hair on June 2014 and my "hair anniversary" was in June 2015. I did a little collage on Instagram of where I started from to where I was on that day. Here's a picture of a length check of it:

..and the trim thereafter..

After a bad taking to the Water Only Washing method and just not listening to my hair, my hair suffered some breakage all over and I had to do a 1"-1.5"trim/chop/hack. The ends were rough, brittle and dry. They just could not stay. I don't have a set way to trim my hair and I basically cut to the point where my hair felt "normal" and where it felt rough. This was a little to my detriment because I'm certain I cut off more than I wanted. Also, my hair shrinkage level has increased..which freaked me out more that I cut off too much of my hair. It's when I did a length check after the trim that I realised that it wasn't as bad as I thought. Here's a picture grid of my length check after my trim:

Water Only Washing Update

As I eluded to above, I was doing the Water Only Washing method. It was a easy peasy method for using water to wash your hair. The idea is to initially clarify your hair, do a little massage, then do a daily wash of your hair by scratching/scritching your scalp and moving sebum (our hair's natural oil) down the hair shaft. I did this method for about 6 weeks and it was going great. My hair was the best it's been for a while, I had sebum coming down my hair shaft, I had BOMB ass twistouts etc. etc. etc...

..and then the niceness stopped. I figured my hair needed clarifying - I did an aloe juice wash. I figured my ends needed to be sealed because the sebum didn't reach down the ends as yet - then I started using shea butter after every wash. Then coconut oil, then I used olive oil - nothing worked. And I went on for about another 3 weeks trying to fix it. Then I said NO. 

And I started cowashing like crazy. 

But by then, it was too late.

I eventually had to cut off what seemed to me like quite a bit off my growth - up to 1.5" and immediately felt like a failure. 

What I've been doing presently is just leaving my hair alone. It's been in crochet braids for the past 2 weeks ..with two failed DIY marley hair installations (I just take the marley hair out and crochet in new hair), and it will continue to be in for at least another 2 weeks with some new synthetic hair.

I'm avoiding combing/touching my hair like the plague. I moisturise then leave it alone.And I'm sticking to that.

Hopefully time will pass by quickly and my hair would've grown back or longer. I'm protective styling and moisturising like crazy.

Otherwise I'm keeping cool. I'll do some updates on protective hairstyles if they turn out well lol.

Be well
Gibbie

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Ramblings: Hair Products, Prices and Me

I wouldn't say I'm necessarily frugal or cheap..wait, maybe I am..but this crazy spending on numerous hair products isn't going to work. As it stands, I only like spending money on necessities like food and alcohol..and since I live in Jamaica, that's all I have money to spend on. 

Now it's almost normal to become a Product Junkie when you start a hair journey because you're either looking for that holy grail product all the Youtubers and bloggers you see raving about. What will end up happening is, eventually, you're going to regret all that spending.

Just sidestep the "eventually" part of that neatly and don't spend all that money to begin with.

I say this to say, I was about to start the Product Junkie-ism and dive right in since I just started my natural hair journey.

Until I saw how much it was for a Shea Moisture Deep Treatment Masque. 

$2,100.

WAH?!

I did an exorcist head-turn same time because it wasn't going to happen. Plus, the product came in a container the same size as a Chiffon butter container here.

Nerp. Couldn't cross it.

I suppose I was grateful that I had already started the more natural route for using products in my hair (getting Castor oil, Coconut (cooking) oil) etc., which made it a little easier to make a U-Turn out that hair store because I wasn't buying it. Additionally, apart from the fact that my boyfriend thinks I'm doing some form of seance when he isn't at home with all the oils and mixtures he sees around the house, he's okay with the shea butter and castor oil smells my hair has from time to time and that's okay with me. I don't have the money for the Mizanis and the Keracares and the Miss Jessies. I suppose I'll eventually go out on a limb and get one of  these products and stick to it if it's good but, at this time, it isn't happening. Plus I don't, mind being called cheap frugal.

Be well,

Gibbie

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When To Chill Out (After You've Done All Your Hair Research)

You've watched countless of YouTube videos, you've asked YouTubers a gazillion questions, you've read blogs and excerpts of the Science of Black Hair and everything you could get your typed fingers on as it relates to black hair.

Now what?

Now, you CHILL OUT..or Go Easy as we Jamaicans would say.

If you've done all of the above in terms of research and then some and have been getting the same answers for black hair topics, just CALM. DOWN.

That's what I've had to tell myself of late with regards to the abovementioned..because if you don't, you're going to have information (and possibly brain overload) and you're going to second-guess everything about your hair.

You know the basics:

• Wash your hair 7 - 10 days
• A deep conditioner is just Conditioner with oils
• A Protein Treatment is just eggs/mayo/yogurt/honey and you follow up with conditioner or oil to balance your hair out
• Moisture and Seal with the L.O.C. or L.C.O. method
• Protective Style and Low Manipulation Styles for length retention

 DASSIT.

Stop stressing yourself about products (what I've been doing of late) and just CHILL. OUT. All you have to do is follow the basics and tweak it as it relates to your hair needs.

Deeven bodda bout hair typing (sorry I stressed about this so much in the past) and go after your hair texture. What I've found that does help is to find Bloggers, YouTubers with the same texture and if you want, see if the techniques they use for their work for you; and even then it might not work. It really is trial and error work to get something that works exactly for you.

For my hair, in just the week I left it out, I have noticed the following things:

1. It is super coarse
2. It's manageable and feels moisturized once I give it some L.O.C.O. care
3. It clumps
4. It has no curl definition
5. It retains moisture when it is left in a low manipulated/protective style (braids, flat twists)
6. It loves to be left alone and untouched (hand in hair is a big no-no)

And so I'll leave it at that. Deeven touch it. It seems to have a personality of its own and it is feisty. So I'm giving it space lol.

I say this to say, that I was about to go down the path of doing a bunch of things to see if it would do what I want when really and truly, it isn't about that life. All it'll do is be over-manipulated and break..after which I'll be the same one wondering why it didn't grow like I expected it to.

So I have decided to chill out. I'm doing the foundation work and simple basics and then I'll leave it be. If you're newly natural like me, I'd advise you to do the same.

Be well,

Gibbie

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