Coily Girl of the Week: Naturallysweet09!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

This is one of my Fotki friends who recently BC'ed!


Why did you decide to go natural?

To be honest, I felt like I was never going to "find myself" spiritually. I have always cared about what others thought of me whether their opinions mattered or not. I had been trying new things (such as wardrobe changes, etc.) and while finishing up my last semester of college, I wasn't even paying attention to my hair. I had gotten a traumatizing relaxer complete with chemical burns and shed/damaged hair. So I decided to chill on washing it every week, flat ironing it every other day and condition alot. It seemed to work and before I knew it, I had gone 2 1/2 months without a perm. I started to search the web for new styles and I had done them all before. Short, bob, long.....and the list went on with the same STRAIGHT styles. So after stalking nappturality.com and fotki.com for another month, I decided that going natural would help me "find myself" and to accept whatever was staring right back at me in the mirror each morning!

What are the best and worst things about having natural hair?

The best thing is that I get to wet my hair if only just to rinse it in the shower! Something that I once dreaded getting close to my head is now welcomed....my friend WATER!!!! : ) The only thing I can say is the worst thing about my natural hair is that it doesn't look the same way everyday. One day I'll wake up and cowash and then I'll have beautiful shine and softness. The next day I can wake up and cowash and then have low shine, and hair that feels like I didn't love on it that morning with oils, lol. I'm still learning and I will find out what makes my hair almost, if not the same way, every day.

Do you straighten your hair? What precautionary measures do you take?

Well, at this point, I can straighten it! lol I'm still in the TWA stage. But while I was transitioning, I used the generic version of chi infusion heat protectant (I'm frugal yall! lol) from sally's and it worked wonders for me! You can see where I straightened it in my fotki (4th month transitioning album). http://public.fotki.com/NaturallySweet09/

Your current products/ routine:

I ALWAYS use cold water....its crazy at first but its worth it for killing unruly frizz. I mix VO5 Passion fruit Moisture Milks and Giovanni Hydrating Calming 50/50 conditioner together for my co wash either every morning or every other morning. I use Giovanni Direct Leave In (love this), then olive oil mixed with coconut oil!IF I want a little definition, I will use a little of my Aubrey Organics Aloe Vera gel mixed with my ecostyler gel. But I rarely use it....good, but I rarely need it. For shampoo I use Dr. Bronner's Rose Hemp Castille Soap. I do this maybe once every two weeks. For my weekly deep conditioner I use warm honey, olive oil,Olive Oil Replenishing Pack, a squirt or two of my trusty VO5 Moisture Milks, melted shea butter, and melted coconut oil! I throw on a shower cap for 30 minutes and let the heat from my head work it's magic!

Do you have any color in your hair? If so, what kind?

I am absolutely terrified of color so if I do, I will be using henna. Heat altered my texture while I transitioned for 6 months and I had to cut off most if not all of my progress. So that's why I am extremely afraid.

Your hair type:

I have never really "typed" my hair since I have quite a few in my head. But my guess is majority 4A and 4B at my temples.

Has reaction from family/friends/opposite sex been positive or negative?

My mom absolutely hated it. My grandma is afraid that it won't grow back but likes it. My brother keeps calling me India.Arie so I take that as a compliment since I love her hair. lol And my boyfriend is the one that "fixed" my BC so he loves it! I've gotten mostly positive comments or the famous, "It's cute on you." or "Only you could pull that off."

Favorite hair accessories:

None yet. I have enough hair to pick out and throw a head band on but I'm trying to keep my edges in tip top shape for now because they are thin by nature.

Your hair length goal:

Shoulder length unstretched. That's all I ask! If it grows past that then so be it! : ) I just want it to be healthy!

Your hair idols:

I'm gonna have to go with NowIAmNappy from fotki.com. I saw alot of her posts on nappturality and she always had the most detailed and informative answers. Then I found her on fotki and I have been stalking.....excuse me, keeping up with all of her picture updates! lol She has helped me EVERY TIME I needed help and I'm thankful! : ) Copa-Canary from fotki, Zahra from fotki, Ebony Princess from fotki, and of course I love luvbenet3's hair from fotki! ; ) Other than that it is sooo hard to just name others because every head of hair is different! Advice to transitioners: Be sooo very careful with heat. I mentioned above that I had to cut off 6 months worth of progress because of the heat placed onto my new growth with a cheap heat protectant. Don't compare your new growth to others and realize that there is beauty in ALL natural hair. Not just your favorite texture that you've seen on youtube, fotki, etc.


Picture five: What her shrunken TWA looks like now!
Picture four: 1 month right after a wash.
Picture three: Right after her boyfriend "fixed" it/
Picture two:Flat twist and curl
Picture one: relaxed hair







To see more of naturallysweet09, check out her Fotki page: www.fotki.com/naturallysweet09