Progress Photos

Iwantcurlyhair · 04-19-2007, 03:32 AM

Hello all,
Sorry, I haven't been around much lately...I've just been extremely busy. Well, tonight I couldn't sleep so I was looking through old pictures and I came across this first picture(which was taken in September 2005, right before I joined)...The second picture is of a recent hair picture(Which I didn't do much to, just left in some Too Shea)

Do you see a difference? To me It feels/looks like I have a completely different head of hair from when I joined. I've learned so much and I've also met so many sweet people on here. I just feel like I at least owe a great big "THANK YOU!" I love this website!

P.S. Sorry for the mushiness it's 4:30AM and I've been up all night.

jennyfurrens · 04-19-2007, 05:00 AM

Wow! It definately looks like a brand new set of curls for you

Had you brushed your hair out in the first one? It looks just wavy to me, whilst the second photo looks like you've got lots of 3b ringlets going on at the bottom! I love the dark colour as well.

Your curls do look absolutely stunning, and those photos are inspiration for anyone considering a makeover for their hair care, and discovering their inner curl

Thanks for sharing!! I just wish my hair had gone under such an amazing transformation... I still seem to be stuck with experimenting.

I'm happy your happy with your curls

hockeymomof3 · 04-19-2007, 07:08 AM

Wow, it looks beautiful! It's grown out so much since I last looked at your pics!! What products are you currently using?

medusahair · 04-19-2007, 08:46 AM

I hope you finally got some sleep!

Wasn't your hair relaxed in the first pic? It sure does look like a whole new head of hair, your hair is just beautiful! Now remind me why it isn't on MY head?

Iwantcurlyhair · 04-19-2007, 10:44 AM

Jennyfurrens-sadly I hadn't brushed my curls out for that picture. I'm not quite sure what I had done to my hair since it was such a long time ago but I know that it was after I found the Curly Girl book by a few months. I would saturate my hair with conditioner in the shower and it would dry frizzy just like the photo and I would saturate it some more and I swear my hair was so dry it would keep drinking the stuff up. I used to carry a spray bottle with water/conditioner with me and constantly touch up my hair with it. Now you see why it was really hard not to reach for the flat iron those first few months, it wasn't a pretty site! I was on CG for several months before I found any curls at all in my hair. I was disappointed with my progress so I looked up help with the Curly Girl book and that's how I ended up here.

Thanks for the compliment on the color. It's my natural hair color now. I am hoping the pictures inspire someone or at the very least it makes somebody laugh(I laughed when I saw that old picture. I forgot what my hair used to look like

) By the way I still think of your curls often. There are times I'll finger curl my curls while their damp and try to imitate your Jennyfurrens curls. I just love your curls!

hockeymomof3-Thank you! It's so hard for me to see growth since I look at my hair everyday so it's so nice to hear when someone can tell that it's grown. You have hair that I've always drooled/envied so I don't know why you're asking me since I should be asking you but since you asked:
I pretty much have done the exact same thing to my hair for the last 6 months. The products can change slightly depending on what I'm trying to use up but it follows this general routine.
Once a week I'll oil my hair/scalp. I'm currently using and loving this oil that I got at an indian store called "Brahmi Hair Treatment."
Then I'll saturate my hair with V05 Sun Kissed Raspberry(the old formula) in the shower and I add a little honey in with it to help detangle my hair.
Then I shampoo only my scalp with whatever gentle cleanser I have in the shower: )..currently that's Curls Curlicious Cleansing Cream, Trader Joe's Nourish Shampoo or African Black Soap. I rinse that out.
I then do an herbal rinse (again if I have time) made with herbs like rosemary, thyme, and parsley(that I make in my coffee maker).
I follow that up with Jessicurl Weekly Deep Conditioning Treatment mixed with some aloe and honey(with heat if I'm able to). I leave that on for 30 mins. to an hour.
Then I flip my hair upside down and use Too Shea on my hair from the ears down. I've got the amount of conditioner that I leave in on my hair down to a science now. I flip my hair upside down and apply it until all my hair clumps together in one perfectly smooth clump and then I do a quick 2 second water rinse to help spread the conditioner to every strand of my hair.
I wait for the drips to stop while I'm in the shower and then I'll scrunch out the extra moisture with some paper towels and air dry. I never blow dry my hair anymore.
If I'm going someplace special and want to use gel I usually make my own flax seed gel. I still love the way my hair looks the best with my own homemade formula more than any gel I've ever bought so I've stuck with it...I just don't always have the time to make it every week.
To revive/detangle my curls in the morning I spritz my hair with Oyin Greg Juice.
I know it sounds like a lot but for the most part I only mess with my hair once a week. If I'm having a bad hair day I've been doing some "curly updos" which have been fun to experiment with especially as my hair gets longer.
I really couldn't tell you what has made the biggest difference in my hair. I think it's a mixture of all the little things. I don't flat iron or color my hair anymore and I try not to use heat except for the DT. I sleep on a satin pillowcase. I do not use hair rubber bands that pull out my hair anymore(I used to get breakage from that I'm sure) instead I make my own hair tie cut out of cheap black nylon pantyhouse

or I'll use a pretty hair accessory that doesn't damage my hair. I am pretty much just much more gentle and I spoil my hair rotten now.

Medusahair- I did get a few hours of sleep now. :P It had been 2 years since I had last used those chemicals on my hair and I had tried to have the damage cut out of my hair but I guess it's possible that it might not have been completely grown out yet.
Believe it or not it looked worse when it was relaxed. I lost so much hair when I straightened my hair though and all those crazy baby hairs that I complained about when I first joined have now grown in and my hair is so much thicker now. I'll remind you why my hair isn't on your head..because you have such boingy, shiny curls that are your very own to play with!(I'd be happy to take them off your hands if you don't want them though.

)

Since this is my thread and I've always had to guano my own threads here's another striking comparison. The first photo was taken in June 2005 and the second was exactly a year later June 2006 when I got the exact same haircut.

It's funny all of my teenage years I thought my hair was straight, just poofy so that's why I had to straighten it. I was in such denial.

But yes I do love my hair now and I really do mean it when I say there's no way I could've embraced my curls and learned to love them if it wasn't for you guys!
Whew sorry this is so long.

Gemini13 · 04-19-2007, 11:07 AM

Wow, what a difference! Your hair is beautiful!

wild~hair · 04-19-2007, 07:53 PM

I think they should use your photos to promote the site. Worth a thousand words.

It looks beautiful now!

modegrrl · 04-19-2007, 08:18 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Iwantcurlyhair

It's funny all of my teenage years I thought my hair was straight, just poofy so that's why I had to straighten it. I was in such denial.

But yes I do love my hair now and I really do mean it when I say there's no way I could've embraced my curls and learned to love them if it wasn't for you guys!

Yes, exactly the same sentiment for me. And your hair is so gorgeous!

unique1193 · 04-19-2007, 09:09 PM

You have my dream hair.
*drool*

hockeymomof3 · 04-20-2007, 07:32 AM

Thank you so much for posting your routine! I doubt my hair would look as good as yours, but I am getting some of the products you mentioned to give it a try!!!

jennyfurrens · 04-20-2007, 07:42 AM

IWCH your routine is fascinating! And does sound very complex to me. I'm wondering - do you only wash your hair once a week? And then touch it up the other days?

So you'll do almost that whole routine up there ^^^ from the oil to the herb rinse all in the same wash, and that's it for the week?

I'm wondering how you manage to avoid getting frizz if you don't wash your hair for a week. Quite often my curls look good but as each day goes by and I sleep on my curls each night, I get more and more frizz. I can't seem to avoid it. Even if my hair is frizz free when I first wash it, it'll get frizz over the following days - usually as my hair gets curlier and c urlier!

And also, how do you do a herb rinse exactly? How do you make it up? and what benefits does it have?

jennyfurrens · 04-20-2007, 07:47 AM

Oh and do share your flax seed gel recipie

I'd love to try it.

Would you say your hair is moisture hungry? I'd love to try your routine but with all the WDT, oil, TS and conditioner and honey I can imagine my hair would turn out in the biggest fluff ball as it'd be SO overconditioned. I get over conditioned from using aloeba alone

Sorry for all the questions but your photos are just SOOO impressive, i want YOUR curly hair!

JulieQ · 04-20-2007, 11:08 AM

Thank you so much for posting that. There really is hope for my hair! I just started on the whole 'be nice to your hair' kick and I'm trying to be a good CG but finding the learning curve to be quite difficult. It is great to see what could actually happen by treating my hair nice. i guess i will stop hoping for over night success but look forward to what my hair might be like the long run. Thanks again!!

tschock · 04-20-2007, 11:27 AM

Wow...those before and afters are really amazing! Your hair is absolutely gorgeous!!

Iwantcurlyhair · 04-20-2007, 12:37 PM

Thanks for the comments. I just got in the door from having a root canal so the kind words are making this day much more fun than it would have been lol.
Thanks Gemini13, tschock, wild~hair, modegrrl, and unique1193.

hockeymomof3, if you have any questions when you try the routine feel free to PM me. I'm telling you though, your hair is already my dream hair. What's your secret to perfect spirals and uniform curls?
jennyfurrens, yeah it is kinda complex. I've experimented constantly with my routine for over a year so I've grown to know my own hair's likes/dislikes pretty well so far. My hair is dry naturally and it seems like my hair can't get enough moisture. However if I use conditioner too often on my hair it does easily get overconditioned which is why I only condition it once a week. More than me following that precise routine I listen to my hair's needs. For example, if my hair or scalp are feeling dry(since my scalp can get dry and flakey) I will allow myself to water rinse my hair and apply conditioner to only the parts that are extremely dry like the ends of my hair or on certain parts of my scalp. I don't typically need to though. I'm kinda lucky that my hair doesn't frizz very much..but then again I have loose curls, and I'd happily accept more frizz if it meant more curl. I remember that your hair gets overconditioned easily...so definitely be careful with the conditioner. On my own hair I will never use conditioner on my hair unless it is feeling very dry. If my hair still feels soft and conditioned after a few days when I go to touch up my hair I will Greg Juice or something else that is light for moisture but no conditioner. The wisest piece of advice I have to offer is to find a routine that keeps your hair in a balanced state of moisture so that you avoid the whole over drying/over conditioned cycle and once you find it stick with that routine. It's very possible that my routine might be too much moisture for your hair.
Yes, I'll do all that all on a day when I have some time in the morning. I will wake up put the herbs in my coffee maker (like i would with coffee only with herbs). While that's brewing I oil my hair and scalp and let that seep into my hair. (By the way I only use a few drops of oil, I don't do a heavy oiling). I do something else until the herbal tea is cool to the touch. If my hair has sucked up the oil I'll reapply some more. I also massage my scalp with the oil. I put the herbal tea in a large cup and bring it with me into the shower. Really the whole thing takes a no more than a few hours at the most, the rest of the time is just waiting for my hair to dry. It is annoying to me to have wet hair and not use a blow dryer so that's why I only like to get my hair wet once a week!
I LOVE herbs. The biggest benefit I've found with using herbs is for shine. I mean fresh herbs make my hair shine more than any chemicals ever could! The herbs feel sooooo refreshing on my scalp on my wash day, and I like to massage my scalp after I've poured the rinse on. It's kinda like inexpensive aromatherapy to me.

Also, since I'm staying away from coloring my hair I like to experiment with herbs that will keep my hair looking a nice deep color. Different herbs can also enhance highlights in your hair if that's the look you're going for. Here's a good article on herbs for coloring if you're interested in that http://forums.longhaircommunity.com/...ighlight=herbs and I also have my own spreadsheet of experiments that I've done with herbs and the results I've gotten from them so if you want more information feel free to PM me.
I do get some frizz especially after day 2 and 3. My hair is the opposite as yours and actually gets less defined and less curly as each day passes. Like I said earlier I put my hair in curly updos alot where I will just mist/detangle my hair with Greg Juice(or a homemade spray) and let my curls show through and the rest of the hair gets hidden and protected. If I really want to wear my hair down I will add more water to my hair and use some sort of styler. I use flax seed spray gel for that. I still find it fun to experiment with homemade recipes so during my wash day, while I have the DT or oil on my hair I will very often take the time to experiment with the flax gel. So the recipe that I can give you is still not perfected yet. My plan has been that I would post the recipe on here or possibly even send samples to people on here when I'm content with it. I am somewhat of a perfectionist when it comes to what I expect from a gel so it might be some time still until I'm content with it and when I've been using the same recipe for a while. When I have more time I'll try to respond to the flax seed gel thread with whatever tips I can think up. Whew, I hope all that makes sense. Those are some great questions Jenny.

JulieQ, That's great that you're taking better care of your hair! It does take some time to see that dramatic of results but on the bright side, within the first six months of taking care of my hair I did notice a lot of improvement! I remember thinking my hair was shinier and my curls were slowly becoming more and more defined and curly. The beginning really is the most exciting time as well. I know it can also be extremely frustrating but like you said it will be worth it in the long run. You know you always have the wondnerful curlies on this website who will give great advice if you have any questions. You can always PM me as well and I'll do my best to help. Good luck on your curly journey and make sure to take lots of pictures!

tinicurlyd · 04-20-2007, 12:59 PM

Wow Iwantcurlyhair i so loooove your hair! if u ever decided to make samples of the flax seed gel im in to try some!

pitgirl · 04-20-2007, 01:28 PM

Wow what an amazing routine. The best thing is the results.
I have hair like yours that sucks up moisture. I have now become to realise that the thing my hair loves the most is conditioner, the heavier the better, and I cant really get good results unless I leave all of it in. Resulting in fantastic clumps and shine.
I have deviated from my best routine in search of better styling aids but now realise (as you have) that sticking to what works is best, no matter how much promise a newly released product professes to have.
I use curl creme for hold, but I am trying to use less and less and hoping to be product free as my hair gets better.
I have also decided to try and only wash and condition once a week and after 4th day start doing curly updo's.

Your herbal rinses sound fabulous. Well done you for getting a realtively simple routine to work, and your hair looks absolutely amazing you should be very proud. Your an inspiration

Iwantcurlyhair · 04-20-2007, 02:07 PM

Tinicurlyd, I'll make a note of it and thanks!

That reminds me..if there is a chemist or someone who has experience making homemade products I have a few chemistry types of questions I would love to have answered! A lot of the reason it's taking me so long is because I'm trying to find an all natural formula that stays fresh for a good amount of time. If anyone thinks they can help I would greatly appreciate it!! It's sort of a dream of mine to come up with a formula that works on curly hair and if I make any money off of it I want to donate it to charity. That way my hobby can benefit both curlies and others. I just wish I had more time to spend on it. Only working on it once a week doesn't get me too far.

Pitgirl, yes that definitely sounds like my hair..it just sucks up all moisture. Last week just to see the difference I didn't leave in any conditioner and although I had curls my hair was sooooo huge and poofy. It's a nice look for a lion, but I don't like it so much on myself.

I have to be honest and say the reason I'm not a product junkie anymore is simply because after trying as many products as I could in a year, my hair has repeatedly reminded me that it dislikes protein, silicones, most sulfates, magnesium sulfate, and is even picky about a lot of oils. That elimates just about 99% of the products out there. :P But I really haven't cured the PJ in me. With the money I don't spend on hair products I now buy hair toys to put my hair up with.

Good for you for having the self-discipline to silence the PJ monster!

Wow, you guys give the best compliments! I've somehow been able to ignore the throbbing of my swollen gums today because of your kind words.

ETA: Wow, Pitgirl! I just looked at your photos and your hair reminds me so much of mine. I've always loved hair that color red too, it's beautiful!(Is it natural? It looks like it is.) It looks like your underneath layer isn't as curly as your canopy just like mine. And the curls around my face are curlier too the way yours look to be(more like 3a/3b curls). I would love to hear how your hair responds as you make those changes to your routine.

st. louis blue · 04-20-2007, 02:33 PM

Your hair looks fantastic, and I think they DEFINITELY should use your photos to promote the site. Gretchen! Michelle!

Koukla72 · 04-20-2007, 03:12 PM

Edited due to a cyberstalker. Sorry, guys.