7 months

It is now 7 months (well tomorrow is) since my installation and I had my retightening yesterday.

Out of all the retightenings I have had this was the worse one I couldn't wait for it to be done my head was killing me.  Now you may ask why would it be after 7 months that this was so painful?  Apparently my hair is still soft and is not at the stage it should be at 7 months.  The exact words were "you're hair is in a terrible condition" urhhhh I think to myself what do you mean.  Now to me terrible condition means breakage, dry, brittle.  Surely my lovely hair that only two days ago I was boasting about how lovely it was couldn't be breaking, dry and brittle...but of course I was comparing that statement to the days of relaxers when someone said you hair was in a bad condition they meant just that.  This is not what my consultant meant I soon figured out. What she meant by this statement was that my hair was very soft and every other one she had to be pushing it up from the roots (hence the painful experience) to make it a bit firmer otherwise the locks would be very weak.

Now I was very confused as to why after 7 months it was only now that I was told that my hair was very soft and in a bad condition surely this couldn't have occurred in just 4 weeks?  What had I been doing to it I was asked urhhh nothing different from what I usually do.  Then I mentioned sauna to my friend Naomi who had just finished getting her hair retightened oops who told me to mention sauna... Is that what you have been doing why you hair is like this?  Well ah yeah but only once a month not every week I say guiltily.  No no saunas until your hair is locked nothing no oils no washing nothing.  Oh I say but but I have only washed it once in 7 months I proclaim and I don't go saunas often (I this moment had images of me in the sauna relaxing then in the steam room and coming out all nice and refreshed and thinking what I can't do this until my hair is locked longggggggg).

I don't think my consultant believed me she knew I must have been doing something else...So nearly four hours later and a reprimand that this time OK but next time I will be charged more..I say, could it be the twisting I do.  WHO WHAT twisting WHY my consultant exclaims in horror.   Double oops urrr me I two strand twist it ...WHY...Umm just to give it a different effect....NO if you had told me that before I would have charged you the full amount...But but I have always done this...Well that is probably why it is like that.

Actually the point I was trying to make it that after about three months I started to twist it no often and my hair has never taken so long to retighten.  So why now...I try to think.  My consultant said it is because I washed it.  I think surely not one wash no.  Then I admit that perhaps I have been playing around with it a a bit more this month but this is not because I was disobeying any strict instructions it is because I thought it was OK now at 7 months to be handling it a bit more I promise I wasn't deliberating trying to cause any more work to anyone I say to myself.  I must say I felt like a little dog who had been reprimanded and walked out with my tail between my legs!!! TUT TUT TUT

So this is a lesson to be learnt leave your hair alone let it do its think first (I know it is very difficult not to play with it) but you know if it is going cost me more money and hours of pain then perhaps I can hold off on the bantu knots etc just for a while LOL....

Pssst the above pictures are of my hair after my bantu knots.



And a day after retightening...

To wash or not to wash that is the question

Well sorry to keep you all hanging I nearly forgot....anyway this is how the story goes..

Umm the ends are soft...
It smells
It doesn't smell
Well no not at the moment but sometimes it does...
But there is no dandruff or anything
I know but I need to wash my hair
I'll see if Liz will let you braid and band...

Liz: it is still soft the ends might unravel
It smells
When does it smell after the gym
Yes then and sometimes in between
My husband says it smells
He is only saying that because he knows you haven't washed it...

Liz: ok if you want to wash it this is what you need to do

Yeah, yeah, yeah I got permission to wash my hair I got permission to wash my hair...Don't you think I put up a good argument!!!!! LOL  My husband says but ah nuh your head!!!

Hey I couldn't get to the shop fast enough to buy the T Gel Neutrogena shampoo and elastic bands...I would have washed it as soon as I got home but I had to go out that evening and you know what I actually liked the way it looked and really didn't want to spoil the style...

But Sunday 27 November three days away from 6 months I got out my coloured bands sat down and begun...

Kiss my damn teeth what a palaver...dem stupid little bands kept busting the room look liked a rainbow with multi coloured bands all over it where they kept flying away...30 minutes later with much larger plaits than I was advised I was finally braided and band and water hadn't even touched my head.  Cha....

Anyways in the shower I go and I was like you know what if it unravels it does but I don't think it will...So....ahhhhhhh water on my head how refreshing lovely...ahhh hold on not too long now you don't want to get them to soaking wet...oh my this aint a proper wash...I get out my T Gel shampoo put a little in my head and massage gently as instructed.

Ahhhhhh water on my head again...not too much now...remember ends could unravel damn man I can't enjoy this experience as much as I wanted.  Ohhh just one more wash just one more OK a little massage gently...Here we go again... Lovely.

Out you come now.  Now to take them silly bands off and undo the plaits...Umm actually quite easy to undo.

Blot with a towel and hey shake those locks urrr well I think hey are still locks they look a it like a fuzzy afro....Anyway shake those locks...My son says OK mum yes your hair has grown.

Lets air dry now KEEP YOUR HANDS OUT OF YOUR HAIR!!!

Slowly they dry and I feel each stage umm curly, fizzy, oh dear what will the outcome be...

umm a bit fizzy...but it aint dry yet...

And you know what they came out fine.  No unravelling at all.  It dried fine and kept the same style...Although Liz said no oil I did rub a bit in the middle of my hand and massage the scalp.  The I put a little bit of lavender essential oil in my spray bottle and sprayed my hair in the morning.  Result lovely soft light hair.  I was only advised to wash it the once though and the amount effort it took it may just take another six months before water touches this head again....