JBCO Challenge Day 7 & Day 8

Day 7~ I was feeling good and cute today :-} Now, i'm in Texas and the Summer dresses are still out, so I put one of my new ones on. Diva! LOC'd it up, hair clipped two flat pony tails to the top of my head and handled business for my day! Boo Yaaah! Still sick, but i'm makin' it! For bed, I took my clips out and put on my bonnet. Day over.

Day 8, Week 2 KCCM Check In!~ 

I had just barely woken up and got moving when my neighbor's daughter came over extending an invitation for a shopping day,,, "leave in 20 minutes." Somehow the word "shopping" works better than a cup of coffee, because we 'moved'!

Washed, dressed, spritzed my hair and clipped in my pigtails. I don't think I remembered to do my castor oil application, but with what little I do feel in my hair and all the moisture retained, I didn't find it a problem. 

I want to avoid an every other day topical application and get back to the scalp and roots, just to get the cleansing process out of the way and done with.

Now for the Week 2 Check-In, here's how I answered:

1. Where do you live?

Manor, TEXAS!

2. Are other members of your family naturals too? Who? Were they natural before you or vice versa? Do you all support each other?

Yes, my mother. She went natural after I did only because I had gone from relaxing to hotcombing my hair and she had like the results of my hair. I dont know about supporting each other, but do know that we just do what we can for the times.

3. How did you use Castor Oil in your hair last week (week 1)

day 1~ I applied straight to my scalp and twisted hair. 

day2~ I applied to sectioned parts (scalp), edges and eyebrows

day3~ no castor oil application, massaged itchy spots *wish i got warning about cleansing 1st*

day4~ pre-poo w/ my oil mix (itch relief!), ACV rinse & DC/Protein treatment; LOC method with castor oil for my oil

day 5~ no application, but surprised of hair moisture

day 6/7~ repeat of LOC method

4. (optional) Share a pic of the bottle of castor oil you are using. *I did supply my pic*

I am still excited and enjoying this challenge. The first week was hard as far as a regimen and maintenance. But as I mentioned, the education I have learned recently and understanding how I have already been partial in the LOC method practice, has made implementing the challenge a little bit easier. This coming week I hope to focus more on my scalp, getting this castor oil cleansing in progress and on track.

Tonight, i'm just going to put my bonnet on and call it a night. Ponder whether to twist my hair up sometime tomorrow while deciding where to put my Christmas tree.

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These little thoughts of mine help to understand why I have to do things the way I do them. It may be a bit OCD, but educating, teaching, and learning the how to the why of it makes easier to implement.. Since we gals like to 'share', I like to know what i'm talking about and not steer wrong. ;-p

Thank you for viewing and Take Back Your Mane Control! ~ 

Miss EM

JBCO Challenge Day 5 & Day 6

Day 5~ I didn't do anything for day 5. Home sick all day.

Day 6~ I pretty much did a LOC method before running out to do errands.

I spritzed my hair with Aloe Vera Juice (AVJ) and water, rubbed about nickel size amount of JBCO in my hands and rubbed into my hair in a kind of section/layered process and massaged in. I finished with my Cantu Shea leave-in conditioner, wrapped with a satin scarf then went about my day.

Normally, when getting ready to head out, I just wet or spritz my hair with water; pick, brush, or comb through my hair to style; then slap on a headband and be done. I would end up having major shrinkage or lots of frizz. Not to mention, a great deal of breakage and shedding. 

The past few months that I have been researching how to better care for our (my daughter and mine) natural hair, the more I discovered I was doing so much wrong and harm to my hair and learned many styles I could practice with her hair, keeping our regular routines simple, practical, and practice-able. 

Being introduced to and learning the LOC method, I found my regular get up and go method could still be maintained with only a couple additional steps. Knowing now how important moisture is, I no longer dread starting the comb out of my hair. 
The moisture helps the hair to absorb and utilize the natural oils, in my opinion, helping the hair to better repair itself instead of how other oils that aren't so good, plug holes and cracks in follicles,  adding no real benefit except maybe shininess. Adding a cream/butter (thick) base on top of that helps to prevent moisture from evaporating too quickly allowing your hair to transition accordingly to our daily ever changing environment.

These little thoughts of mine help to understand why I have to do things the way I do them. It may be a bit OCD, but educating, teaching, and learning the how to the why of it makes easier to implement. Since we gals like to 'share', I like to understand what i'm talking about and not steer wrong. ;-p

Thank you for viewing and Take Back Your Mane Control! ~
Miss EM

JBCO Challenge Day 1 & Day 2

last nights twist up

JBCO

Day 1~ Began my challenge last night. Yay! Im using Sunny Isle Jamaican Black Castor Oil (JBCO). I poured about and ounce into a container. Its got a pretty rich caramel color. Smell is a nice sweet fruity nut smell. It actually kinda wakens the senses :-) Making me hungry, too, lol!

I parted, combed, and detangled my hair into five sections, misting each section before applying the JBCO. A little goes a LONG way! Now because my hair is uneven and still quite short in the back and sides, I finished off with some semi-thick small twists and covered with a satin bonnet. It feels so weird having somewhat large gaps between twists. And the satin bonnet has been the only wrap/protective style that stays while I sleep! Hurray!

I didn't take my twists down, left them as is and just covered with a knit cap as style for church. Even I have to say I was very pleased with the very clean, toned down, Bohemian look.

twists & scalp still moisturized

Day 2~ Since it is Sunday, I've chosen not to do too much with my hair tonight. My hair is still twisted up. I have chosen to only use the JBCO on the parts of my twisted sections, front, side, and back edges, remembering to massage my scalp as I applied. It kinda feels like it helps to exfoliate as well as encourage blood circulation. I even applied some to my eyebrows  to also gauge the promotion of growth and actually 'have' some eyebrows, lol!

I must admit, I hadn't co-washed or pre-poo'd for a couple of days, and after last nights prep, my twists and hair are holding up and very moisturized. I'm quite curious how long the moisture retains itself? 

Im not gonna push it. For my regimen, I will do a basic ACV rinse & cowash (CW) just to prevent any potential build up, followed by a DC and hot oil treatment (HOT), all this week.

Thank you for viewing and Take Back Your Mane Control! ~ Miss EM

July Fry, Here In Texas!

I hope you all are enjoying your Summer festivities! I surely have. I can't believe I skipped a whole month in this mane adventure. What I can say is June, didn't miss much. The whole month of June was a steady process of ensuring my hair and scalp were properly oiled and succeeded with CO hair washes with maybe 2 actual poos for build up cleansing. My hair has been very curly and moisturized, especially with the practice of protective styling with different types of scarves. 

My favorite is my solid blue linen scarf (or imagine fabric like a cheese cloth). It is very long, I would say about 3-4 feet. It scrunches very easily and holds the scrunch, making it sometimes difficult to make even when I fold it in half longways. 

I have a purple printed silk scarf that I absolutely love putting on my head when my hair is wet and oiled.

I also have a brown satin and a black silk-like mesh scarves. The brown satin is kinda thick and tends to soak up a lot of water from my head. With this Texas summer heat, it works, leaving my head very cool and protected when I am outside. Both scarves I try to reserve for night sleeping because they stay on the best.

At the end of the day, my hair is matted down tight with curly waves, but I can pull a silky curly rooted strand from underneath and it just tickles me that I know my hair is loving the moisture!

Yesterday, I got a chance to condition my scalp with Coconut Oil, with the help of my mom :D I let it soak in and heat under a plastic cap while re-twisting some of her twists with Carols Daughter (CD) Loc Butter for 30 minutes. For my moms hair, it being very corse, the CD Loc Butter softens it like a baby and helps to get some of her unruly gray hairs and put them in check. 

The only drawback I didn't like about conditioning with the Coconut Oil is how, topically, it left my hair feeling a little dry before and after rinsing. My scalp and roots didn't feel dry, thank goodness, but I kinda wonder if the addition of a plastic cap may have emphasized where my hair was most damaged by lack of moisture on the extension of the hair? I will kinda play with when and where on my head I apply the Coconut Oil to see how it works best. So far, root and scalp are happy campers.

I just recently purchased CD's 3-piece Chocolat Starter kit. It comes with the Chocolat Shampoo, Conditioner, and Blow Dry Cream. The shampoo did enhance the dry feeling felt earlier with the Coconut Oil. Eerrh. The conditioner wasn't too bad. It helped resolve some of the dry feeling and after massaging in and combing through, it seemed like my hair kinda had a stretching moment. Kinda startled me, in a good way. I was pressed for time when I applied the blow dry cream and did not get a chance to actually use the blow dryer on my hair, but the result for the evening were very very tight kinky curls. I have to give the CD Chocolat regime another chance, done right, in order to give accurate results how it works for me. Maybe without the Coconut Oil conditioning, too.

What I have noticed up to this point, is the hair on the back of my head has grown beautifully! Ive got about a good two inches of growth. The way it feels, it is almost just enough to get started on twists for my hair. 

Why I don't do it now? My hair is still at uneven lengths: top long, sides reasonably long and back very short. I do not wish to embark on an uneven style that I do not feel comfortable sporting, knowing this little oddity is like someone disliking how their nose is shaped. Its an imperfection you can grow to love, manage or deal with. My case, i'm managing!

Thank you for viewing and Take Back Your Mane Control!