curls, curls, curls, curls

every curly haired girls wants to know what i do's with my hair. well in the past 10 years i had the same hair care regimen: shampoo with whatever, condition with Herbal Essence, Tresemme, or whatever but usually those two, my must use leave in was Olive Oil Moisturizer, and my must use curl defining styler Eco Styler Gel and the occasional deep treatment with i can't remember but several products oh and of course dry with a diffuser or air dry...boom! that's all i did and it worked and my hair was healthy and long. THEN I moved to NY and something happened. my hair became brittle and dry, split ends everywhere, even holes in the middle of the hair shaft. WTF!!! i have no idea what started it...the water? the few dominican hair blow outs? the one time i did that silly vinegar/baking soda clarifying wash which was a huge no no, stress? maybe a combination of all of the above? in any event i need to change up my game cause what I did in the past isn't holding up these days. i've already chopped off about 3 inches which solved the split ends but my hair is still feeling dry and brittle. i tried a protein treatment called Aphogee which you can see and feel the results immediately but it didn't last much longer than a few days to a week. oh! i did find a really amazing deep treatment called Parnevu Organic Hair Mayonnaise which REALLY conditions my hair but it seems my biggest problem is when my hair is finished being washed and when i wear it out curly. the curls actually look great to everyone but me cause it feels horrible! i tried moisturizing with 100% shea butter and Vatika oil, which is an Indian product charged with coconut oil and a bunch of healthy stuff, it's kinda working but i was still missing something. i turned my attention to google and youtube and made some amazing discoveries. most recently i tried a homemade leave-in which i read about on naturallycurly.com. then saw a video on youtube on how to make it here. this so far seems to do the trick. my hair actually feels soft...FINALLY! it's only day 2 so i'll touch base in a few weeks but me likey :) all the info on how to make it are on those links. after i wash my hair i spritz that on in sections, do some twists, put on that funny cap, which my hubby finds so attractive, and go to bed. in the morning i'll do step 2 and use my Olive Oil Moisturizer (unless you know of a better product) and my Eco Styler Gel. I haven't had the need to do the last 2 steps but i think i'll need to to keep my curls looking juicy. but yes! if your hair is feeling dry and brittle i suggest this. hopefully it works for you. cost:$7.99 vegetable glycerine, $3.99 apricot oil (you can forego this if you have olive or coconut oil), $1.99 spray bottle, $2.99 night cap, all under $20 bucks and so worth it!

i love all this stuff right here. my hair doesn't seem to like Tresemme anymore but i'm gonna try adding oil to it. i read on naturallycurly.com that that helps. otherwise i'll have to experiment

a collage of my hair throughout the ages...

i'm headed out to meet with fellow curly hair Andrea Lewis from TGAW and introduce her to the wonderful world of hair care products here on 125th