Retro Twist-Braid Style

**Update - I ended up creating a tutorial for this style, you can find it here on youTube.

It is rare that I find a hair blog exciting these days. However, I stumbled across A Curl's Best Friend and found the content to be fresh and eye-catching. The style I'm "modeling" is a copycat from this post. I love to see new ideas and contributions to the natural hair online community. Shout out to Shanti and Antoinette for doing their thing!

This style is so creative, and retro. It's something I could totally see Autumn rock. I would have never thought to mix flat twisting with braiding in this way. I loved the look as soon as I saw it! I personally think it looks better on Shanti because the "hang-time" adds to the retro feel this style portrays, however my lack of length did not stop me from going for it. *I did this style on stretched hair, and it took me about 15 minutes.

New Hairstyle

I can't remember the last time I did a post about hair. This is due to many reasons. One of which can be easily attributed to my indecision when it comes to me and my hair.  Another is my recent lack of inspiration with my hair, in general. I seriously consider chopping it all off once a week. WELL, I recently was *inspired* by one of the style icons of at BGLH. Lurie is a beautiful woman with GORGEOUS hair! I wanted to style my hair to look exactly like one of the styles she displayed in her interview. Well, my style did not turn out to look like Lurie's, but it's a nice version of a that style, so it's "new."

I don't know when/if I'll have time to do a tutorial (considering I barely want to do my hair). However, I'll try to explain how I did this style. I created a side part. Did flat twists on the side with the least amount of hair. I did medium-sized two-strand twists on the side with more hair. Then, I folded and pinned the two-strand twists to my liking, and used bobby pins to secure them. The entire style took me about one hour. I'm not sure that the tutorial makes sense. I tried to take enough pictures so that you could see the style from every angle.

I think this style is a really elegant natural style, and is great for a special occasion, or a professional, office setting. If you try this style, let me know!!!

Urkel/Color Blocking Twist Updo Tutorial

I follow a handful on channels on youTube. I specifically enjoy following channels of loc'd folks, because they are very creative with style options. Since I wear twists all the time, I find that I can adapt a lot of the loc hairstyles for my twists. Marktastic0 is a contributor to chescalocs channel, and he has shorter locs. I like his tutorials a lot. I followed his tutorial to a tee for the hair style shown in my Color Blocking and Grandma Urkel posts. Enjoy!

Click here for a link to the original video post.

Click here for a link to Marktastic0's channel.

Click here for a link to chescalocs channel.

Hair Update

Hi Everyone,

If you've wondered why I haven't posted any recent hair pics/styles, it's because I have been all over the place with my hair styling. This normally happens when I'm tired of styling my hair, it leads me to be quite restless. For example, last week I went from a rolled updo, to mini-twists -for a sec, I took them down when I realized I had no time to do them- to two-strand twists, to a flat-twist updo, to these Grecian-style braids pictured below. This has been my solace in my hair style frenzy.

WARNING: You will see a poor, sad illegal ponytail in outfit 3 of 30 in my 30 for 30 challenge today.

In other news, I did a bentonite clay treatment for my hair because I ran out of my AOHSR and Whole Foods was out too. I mixed 1/4 cup bentonite clay with 1/2 cup water. I think this may have cleared up whatever scalp issues I was having. I know my typical shampoo is not a deep clean, thus, the clay solution must have removed the product buildup that was irritating my scalp. I'm going to include bentonite treatments to my hair on a monthly/sixthly basis. I know sixthly isn't a word, but don't you always wish there was any easier way to say that you do something every other month? I do.

I used bentonite clay solutions in mid-2009, when I was on my "mixtress" tip. I added a ton of other things to the solution then (honey, yogurt, ACV). I'm going to stick to 1 part clay to 2 parts water moving forward.

How is your hair going? Are you tired of it? I'm at the point where I don't want to spend more than 1 hour on my hair EVERY WEEK, LOL. It's a phase, I know, this too shall pass...

Another updo

Unfortunately, this one has no funky title :(. I got inspiration from CurlyChronicles for this style. I made a quick video for it yesterday and posted it on youTube. I think this style will also work well on straight hair. Enjoy!

Click here to go to Curly Chronicles' original video post for the style.

Video Tutorial: The Fonz Hairstyle

Ok ladies & gents, I made another video how-to.  This one is for 'The Fonz' hairstyle.  This is the style I did in my first outfit of the day post.  It includes a backwards french braid and a hooked front, somewhat similar to the Oompa Loompa style.  It's an easy, protective and sassy updo! Forgive me for all of the editing...I talk fast and say ridiculous things that should be cut out, lol. I hope you enjoy!

Twist Love

With all of these posts about what I wear and eat, I was BOUND to write SOMETHING ABOUT MY HAIR!!!  I've been rocking some combo of my Oompa Loompa/Shingai/Janelle Monae updos for the past 2-3 weeks.  Yesterday, it was time to refresh my updo, and as I started to take my hair down I twisted one piece, then another and another...I looked at it and I liked it.  I continued to twist my hair until I was finished and I thought, "This is exactly why I don't twist my hair anymore" LOL.

I styled my hair into this lovely twist & roll, inspired by a loc'd style from Essence. Twists carry a wonderful elegance because they capture our texture in a unique way. My twists remind me of yarn, and I love it.   I think I forgot how much I like twists in my quest to be lazy find quick hairstyles. I especially liked these twists because my hair was well-stretched and they came out nice and thick. Additionally, with my new length, I think I will enjoy styles like this more often.  It's times like this that I'm glad that I combed out my locs to experience my hair and still achieve a similar look!

Have you found yourself straying away from twisted/braided styles? If so, why?

Bangs and a bun

I cannot recall how I wore my hair this past week, however I know that I did a lot - remixed some old hair styles and I rocked an afro again yesterday.  Thus, I didn't take any solo-hair pics.  Today, I went back to some old pics from a month ago.  I never got to posting pics of this style, so I thought it's now or never!

This style was inspired by my interest in curly-hairs texture with bangs.  I basically wanted bangs and since I don't wear my hair out much, a low bun was perfect for the rest of my hair.  I feel like a low bun has some sort of je ne sais quoi that a high bun lacks.

This style was done on stretched hair.  I pinned my hair back into a "bun" - honestly there wasn't a whole lot of hair in the bun, but I didn't care.  When I braided my hair the night before I sectioned the braids so that my hair was lying towards the front.  This made the bangs flow naturally.  Pictured are two options for this style: one with it off my face - I swear my acne prone forehead is a result of hair on my face - and another with it on my face.

Oompa Loompa Updo Style

Happy Labor Day - I love paid holidays!

I did this style on Friday before the holiday weekend, I was rocking a TIRED bun and wanted something with more class and elegance.  This style took all of 5 minutes and lasted 4 days.  When I looked in the mirror I thought: "I love a pompadour...actually, this one reminds me of an Oompa Loompa, LOL!"  I walked around the entire weekend calling this an Oompa Loompa style.

Source

I did a video how-to for this one because I thought it would be easier to show you how I did this style. I did this style on stretched hair, the video was done in real-time.  Originally, I planned on talking during the video.  I later decided to cut that stuff out.  Let me know what you think!

Sort of a french braid

I love to tap into unsual places for inspiration. Today, I'm just looking at awesome larger braided styles that a lot of the "stars" are wearing.

Source

Source

Is it just me, or does everyone have a "random" braid pinned back in their hair these days!  I love braids, I would wear cornrows if my braiding was better and it didn't take so long.  I've been looking at larger braided styles because they're quick, protective and typically fit under a hard hat! Additionally, these  styles are low-stress for my edges, which is AWESOME! This is what I came up with pulling from these styles...it's a type of french braid.

I don't know why I made that face in the last one...caught myself trying to "change things up" - AND FAIL! LOL!

Tutorial:  This style was done on stretched hair.  Make a part that stretches ear to ear for the front coiff/pouf.  Section this hair off.  French braid the back, pin the remaining braid up (or in a bun if you have enough length). Pin the front down with hair pins and bobby pins.

Overall, this is a great protective style for me because it's quick, cute and is low stress on my edges.

Bun + Turban = Cuteness

Have any of you noticed that turbans are in?  Well, I have!!! One of the style blogs that I follow along with a fave youTube channel of mine has discussed this new trend.  I gave the trend a whirl last weekend to update my bun with something a little more refreshing.

The scarf that I used is actually thrifted, I felt that I really completed the look with my thrifted earrings & scarf.  I normally don't wear scarves because I have a lot going with my outfits - so I feel like the scarf is just too much.  I wore this scarf with a purpleish t-shirt dress.  It definitely worked!

My hair this week

This week, I rocked a bun, no puff/poof/coiff - just a bun.  It's really nice to know I have a "go-to" hairstyle that is easy and protective now that I'm at this length...hopefully I'll see more length-retention since I'm keeping my ends tucked away. 

I used a banana clip to hold my hair.  I used an ouchless band and some hair pins to shape the bun.  This east-coast unbearable heat leaves me wanting hair that is up and away, lol - it's too hot for anything else!

For cool things in the future...I'm in a wedding on Saturday, I plan on doing a roller set - hopefully I'll get some last minute inspiration and do something really stylin' with it!  Unforch, I only have one pic from my bday "going out" hair - I will upload that later today or this week.  Also - I *think* I will have the ability to put some videos together in the near future.  I'm super excited about it and look forward to sharing some style how-to's, my hair story and other randoms.

Sometimes I'm just practical - Bun with a poof

I have generated some go-to styles that aren't necessarily glamorous. However, they successfully complete the job of having my hair be presentable and out of the way. I wear this style quite a bit because of its ease to put together and it still has a bit of flare.

It's simple and anyone at a bunnable length can pull this one off.

Tutorial: Section off hair in the front - twist or braid to keep it out of the way.  Smooth back hair into a bun. *I use a banana clip for my buns*  Take the section in the front and roll it to the side of your choice and pin it back with a bobby pin.

Swoop bangs with my staple style

Like I said, last week, I had hair ADD, lol, my hair was stretched so I had the ability to try a lot of different variations to my traditional styles.  I added swoop bangs to my staple kimmaytube tuck.  Check out the pics.

This worked well!  Normally my bangs hang correctly (down) in the beginning of the day, but by afternoon they're sticking straight out - literally - perpindicular to the ground.  Tucking them behind my ears with a bobby pin proved this style well.  Additionally, you can pin back the bangs to do a general "all-around tuck" style if you don't want hair on your face.

Neat professional bun

Hi Everyone,

I hope you all enjoyed Memorial Day, I know I did!  It's been a while but I have a lot of new styles that I tried last week (serious hair ADD) so I should be able to post them throughout the week.  Also, I didn't forget about my book series, I'll keep those posts coming too!

Now for the topic at hand...Last week I had to prepare for an uber-conservative event.  So conservative that I was told to remove my nose ring :-0...this was a whole 'nother issue which I won't discuss here...Anyway, point is, I figured if I need to remove my nose ring for this event, I definitely need to make sure my hair matches this conservative event.  I put my hair into a neat bun using no brushes(surprisingly)! I believe brushes ruin hair edges, and mine have always been thin. Here are the pics...

My hair is pushing shoulder length stretched.  This is a great, quick professional style.

Tutorial: Wet hair so that it is damp to pull it back neatly.  Use your hands to smooth the hair to the place where you desire.  Once hair is pulled back use a banana clip to hold hair.  Use hair pins to fold hair back into a bun.

Tips:

1. If your hair is kinky, Stretch your hair prior to doing this style to get the most length *I wore my hair in braids the night before*  Click here to see a kimmaytube video on how to stretch kinky hair - I learned from her :-)

2. If your hair is kinky, don't wet it too much or it will draw up too much and you may not be able to pull it back.

3. If you don't have enough hair for a full bun, fake it!  Check out Curly Nikki, here, for tips on faking a natural bun with a little extra help ;-).

Optional: Use Aloe vera gel to "smooth" edges, tie down with a scarf.  *I don't expect every hair to lay flat, but I did smooth it and tie it down with a scarf so it was fresh in the beginning of the day.*

Day 2 roller set & mini-twists return

Hola amigos!

Things have been crazy (doesn't it seem like I always write that...you're probably thinking..."So when are things NOT crazy?")!  Anyway, I only kept my roller set in for 2 days.  I'll tell you why after the picture.

Day 2 Roller Set

So, by day 2 of the roller set, I felt my hair was too wild for both my co-workers AND the hard hats I have to wear, out in free-form ;-).  Thus, the curly pony was functional and worked well.  Unforch, my hair does not like being out - it's a super absorber, takes in everything and dries out quickly, so I knew by day 2, there would be no day 3 for my roller set.  I put my hair in mini-twists again.  Here's a cute style I did with my twists.  It's sort of...Janelle Monae with twists...but more of a side-pomp w/ less to the front...RIIIIIGHT!

Sorry for the evil face :-/  I pulled the back of my hair into a french twist roll and used tons of bobby pins to hold them.  I used a single bobby pin and a couple extra hair pins to hold the pomp.   These mini-twists may be my favorite style.  I did the twists on Monday and still love them 1 ENTIRE week later.  This is quite abnormal for me...I'll see how long this lasts!  I am thinking that mini-twists will be the perfect style for me when I go on my vakay this summer!!!

Fat Twist Updo Style

Hello Everyone!

Remember when I was saying that I've been so busy lately that I haven't had time to 'do' my hair?  Sidenote: I've just been wearing a bun - I JUST reached a bunable length, but the style is iffy to me...it's not really cute YET, plus I have a big head and it shows when I bun, lol.  Anyway, I used some inspiration from youTuber chisellecouture to try a version of a style she did.  It's a Fat Twist Updo style.  Here are my pics...

Forgive me looking evil as everything in the last pic, lol!  I should have taken a 'top of the head' pic to get the best view of the style - sorry.  I had 12 twists all together - this style took me less than 30 minutes.  It's a good mid-week change up style.  This is one of those styles that ALMOST makes it for me.  The reason why I say "almost" is because the back is just...blah...it's OK.  I'm sure the back will work for me when my hair is longer because I'll be able to wrap the twists like I want to.  I like the front, I had to tuck the twists into each other to get the look I wanted.  If your hair is longer you don't have to worry about this.  Alas, I thought I'd still post pics since it may work well for some and it's protective!

Check out a vid with a tutorial from Cali below.

Click here to go to chisellecouture's youTube page.

Click here to access the original video post.

Keep 'Em Coming...Protective with a Twist

Hello Everyone!

I had to post some pictures from this half-protective style I rocked this past weekend at a networking event and at my sorority meeting.  I got compliments from friends and sorors on the hairstyle.  NOTE: I always take a hairstyle as being "really cute" when my sorors compliment me on it since the majority of them are relaxed.  Thus, I figure "I must have really done it!" LOL

The style is an oldie-but-goodie remix.  The style was done on twist-out hair.  The back has my usual kimmaytube inspired twist & roll back.  This time, instead of including the front of my hair in the roll back or bumping it, I just left it out for bangs.  Here are the pics...

I got the headband in the style from my favorite store (Anthropologie).  The addition of the headband really jazzed up the style.  The plus to the style is that it works on a variety of lengths also and it's protective!  Try it and I know you'll love it! Click here for a link to the original video post from kimmaytube's youTube channel.

It's Been a While, But I'm Back!

Hello Everyone!

I've been missing blogging.  I've been away for a sorority conference, and last weekend it was my brother's birthday, so I relaxed with my family.  I've also been enjoying the lovely warm weather the East Coast has been getting.  Needless to say, I've been chilling and loving every bit of it!

Every year, for sorority conference, we  have a fancy gala where we dress up.  I wore a dress I got from Anthropologie along with a gorgeous broach that I also got from Anthro.  The style was a typical back french roll pin with a front side hump.

 Broach

Sorry the pics are a little blurry, I always take pics with my camera phone and these were taken at the hotel - venue change/lighting change yields different picture outcomes.  I LOVE putting broaches, flowers, etc. in my hair.  This look reminds me of Billie Holiday because she always wore something in her hair.  SIMPLY CLASSIC! 

For a preview of what's to come...warm weather...me letting my hair do what it wants and moisture challenges...Peace.