Blessings and a T-Shirt

About a week or so ago, I received my 'UnTouchable' T-shirt that I designed. I was so impatient when I ordered it, I almost went for a walk, just to show people. But I told myself to chill out.

This Friday I had my chance to show out. I was so excited! I couldn't wait to go out and stick my chest out so people could look. I went with my mom to get some groceries and to treat ourselves to some cupcakes. While we were sitting on a bench outside, eating our cupcakes, this lady walks past us, and my mom says "Hey I like your hair!" the lady looks at us and smiles and was like "Hiii I wanted to say something to you guys but I didn't want to bother you!" She tells us that she has a natural hair salon a few doors down, and that she makes natural products.

 My mom and I of course get really excited and she asks if we're going to be there for a minute so she can run upstairs to get a couple cards to give to us. When she comes back, my mom is like, "Lauren, stand up and show her your shirt!" She tells me she likes it, and I tell her that I'm a natural hair blogger and I focus on natural hair care, styles, tips, and I also do hair. That sparks another wave of excitement with us and the next 10 minutes are filled with us exchanging info about ourselves and our businesses (also about cupcakes) and I find out that she needs natural stylists in her shop!

YESSSS! Hopefully I'll be in a shop soon then, and will move on to the next level in this journey. Y'all don't understand how excited I've been this weekend just off of those 10 minutes

Make sure you visit her website and support her! because just LOOKING at her products are enough to make you want to throw your money at her:

Store: http://silkpaperflower.storenvy.com/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/silkpaperflower

LIFE BEFORE NATURAL

                As a little girl, my hair was always a "problem".  I don't remember a time when I didn't have something in my hair; a relaxer, Jheri curl, sew-ins, braids.  I was always trying to cover up the naps and create the illusion that I had long luxurious hair.  In reality, my hair was damaged, thin, and unhealthy.  My hair was so thin and unhealthy that when I got sew-ins, my hair was too thin to cover up the tracks.  My mother took me to numerous hair dressers trying to get my hair to grow or figure out a way to tame my super coarse hair.  Never was it suggested that I should be my natural self.  My natural hair was something I was ashamed of and as much confidence as I tried to exude, deep down I didn't feel pretty.  In college I went through the phase of getting my hair cut short, which I liked at first, but still required all day appointments at the hair dresser to get a relaxer and maintain the cut.  In addition to that, the daily maintenance of a short cut that needed to be curled added the extra stress of heat.  As I have gotten older I realize that while I love to look good, it has to be with the least amount of effort possible.  Therefore, the short cut eventually lost its appeal and I was back to looking for something else to cover up my hair.  

                My last hair style was what finally made me decide to go natural.  The style was super cute and I stuck with it for a little over a year (which is really long for me).  It was the short hair cut style that Rihanna was famous for (shaved on one side, longer on the other side with a longer bang).  Even though the style was cute, it drove my self esteem even lower because in order to pull off the style, I STILL needed a little bit of weave in the front.  Who needs weave for a hair CUT?  I had had enough.  I decided that as soon as my hair grew out enough for braids, that I was going natural.  I didn't know what I was going to do with my natural hair, but I decided that I would figure that out later.  I began getting braids in February 2009 and wore them without fail until September 2011.  Each time I got my hair re-braided, I cut the relaxer out of my hair little by little.  I was so amazed at how my hair was growing.  There were a few times that I tried to wear my afro out but being new to natural hair, I was unaware of shrinkage.  I tried to blow my afro out to make it bigger but the heat began to damage my hair again so I went back to the braids.  Finally, I decided, you know what? I'm not going to worry about how short my hair looks or what people will say, I'm not wearing braids, weaves, or anything.  I'm going to get locs.  Getting locs was THE BEST decision of my life.   I love my hair.  I love the low maintenance and the carefree feeling my locs give me.  I have been loc'd for almost 2 years and this is the longest and healthiest my hair has ever been.   My only regret is that I didn't do it sooner and avoid a lot of the turmoil I went through trying to understand and accept my authentic self.   

-Shaun Scott

               

Big Chop

I big chopped 9/8/2012 and it has been such an amazing experience. I've learned to care for my hair and watch it grow. My goal is BSL by the end of summer. I've had so much success with hair growth and retention and I could list the products that I use but your health plays a huge part as well. Hair vitamins, natural products, and heat free styling only go so far. I wanted to do a series on health tips that not only help with hair growth but also with overall health. I think we forget our body is a machine working to keep us going. We can't just focus on hair we must focus on the body as a whole.

Hydration is key. You must drink water every single day. It is so important not just for healthy hair but for clear skin, better metabolism, and helps energize muscles. If you want healthy hair drinking water is a must. The amount of water you should drink daily varies from person to person. I personally try to drink at least 2 liters a day. If you take your weight and divide it by 2 that's the numbers of ounces of water you should be drinking daily.

I know a lot of you don't like the taste of water but don't let that stop you from drinking it and staying healthy. It should be health over taste but if you're not quite there yet try making your own vitamin waters. Adding fresh fruit, fresh herbs, and even some veggies to water is a great way to add flavor to water and also add vitamins.

 Vitamin water recipe.<http://www.theyummylife.com/Flavored_Water> 

Sassy Water Recipe.<http://www.asweetsimplelife.com/home/2012/1/16/sassy-water.html/>

-Demetra