Have a Little Summer Fun

OMG guys! I just did my monthly hair picture - it's a couple of days late but that's ok.  My hair is growing like a weed.  Protective styling and extra virgin olive oil are good friends of mine.  I'm so impressed with this turn out.  I would say the back has grown about 2 inches in these 3 months and the front at least an inch and a half!

Anyway, I started making YouTube videos... I actually just uploaded some Lady Gaga concert footage... :)  If you wanna check it out ---> Click here :)

She is absolutely amazing in concert - I've seen her 3 times and have tickets to two more shows... I feel very fortunate that my boyfriend and family love me that much, because I myself would have no money for tickets like that!  Honestly, I have cried at the first three concerts I went to of hers.  She just speaks from the heart and has a great mission... If you make a donation to the charity she is affiliated with - for homeless LBGT teens - she will match it.  I just love her - she is all about the peace, love and harmony...

Fat Camp

Along with the CG hair life change, I'm also looking at a lifestyle altering bariatric procedure. My boyfriend has one... then I wanted one... but my mom was influenced by our talks about it and got one first. I'm kinda jealous. She's lost 17 lbs so far. I am extremely jealous - you know, seeing as I had to gain 10 for the doctor to guarantee me a "YES." So now I'm fat and in the waiting process. It's really a pain - everywhere. I can't do that same things I used to because I've gained this extra 10 lbs... not to mention the fact that it's extremely unhealthy. But yeah, I'm waiting for the surgery date for my lap band. My boyfriend lost a total of 85 lbs and gained about 30 back because he was not eating properly; therefore, it was like he was anorexic. He totally isn't but when you don't eat what you can just to lose weight... whatever.

So I have to go to these meetings where we have group sessions about being fat and how the band or gastric bypass has affected our lives so we can learn from others. That's tonight.

Anyhow, Saturday night I did the Curly Girl Big Cut. It's basically where you cut off most of your hair - the dead part that will never have another chance of revival and then "start over" with fresh, relatively healthy hair. I found that my second day hair isn't so fabulous if I don't gel it and wear a cap or something. It's still not to it's full curl potential but it is seriously way better than it was. Less frizz, less stringy bits and the hairdresser basically just evened me out with a few layers. Not poof balls layers - just regular people, my hair will lay nicely layers. And this is a girl from the Haircuttery. She is very talented. She listened to what I wanted and explained what would happen if she did certain things. I think I only have one picture of me since then but it was seriously totally worth it and I will take another picture either this afternoon or tonight. So this that one picture. It was with my phone so it's kinda blurry but I love the way the cut came out. And as you can see I have lost of curl at the bottom when I previously has frizzy strangles.

Back to this thing. I'm attempting a life Change.

Hey there bloggers. So I originally had to set this thing up for a class I had. Now I actually want to use it.

So anywho, I'm trying this thing called "no-poo" AKA "Curly Girl". I think it's working out pretty well so far. I start about a week and a half ago.

If you don't know anything about CG (Curly Girl) the basics of it are no sulfates and no silicones. But that there my friend is just the bare basics. First of all, I basically cut out shampoo because shampooing too often with a shampoo that contains sulfates strips the hair of natural NECESSARY oils. So, you may think that is slightly gross. It isn't. You CO-WASH your hair. Short for Conditioner-wash.

To co-wash you basically have two different conditioners (condish). The first is the "washing" conditioner - alot of people use VO5 or suave Naturals. Right now I use Suave Juicy Green Apple. It smells delish. And the point of this first wash is that you scrub into your scalp, like you would a shampoo but with more effort. I rub my scalp and don't let too much get onto the length of my hair. Scrub, scrub, scrub with the pads of my fingers - section by section of hair. Rinse. And rinse well. By doing this you are cleaning impurities from your hair but not the much needed moisturizing natural oils.

That was only step 1. Step 2 requires a thicker, richer, more protein filled condish. I am using LUSH's Retread which is creamy and thick like yogurt. It smells slightly of jasmine and I highly recommend it. YES, it does have a small amount of sulfate in it - but there are rules you can bend but not break in CG. I think it is relatively okay to use this condish because it isn't as strong as it would be in shampoo form where it is one of the first 5 ingredients if not the first or second.

So, with my LUSH Retread I slather on a handful (yes, it is expensive but I am a product junkie). This second condish you just slather onto your hair and I let mine sit for 3-5 minutes. Then you RINSE your hair now when I say rinse I say that very lightly. You still want to have this second condish left of the ends of your hair when you get out of the shower, especially if you have really dry, brittle, frizzy, fluffy, undefined hair that should be pleasant and curly. Therefore, I find that 2-4 seconds, SERIOUSLY, is a good rinse time for each side of my head.

Good, so we rinsed. NOW, you need to have a leave in product. I myself use Grapeseed oil - straight out of Whole Foods oil aisle. Alot of people use EVOO aka Extra Virgin Olive Oil. I find that this is slightly greasier than I want my hair to be but it does work when it comes to moisturizing - just be sure not to put your hair near any flames or fabric that you don't want ruined. You don't have to soak your head in the product a small amount will be just fine, just enough to coat all of your hairs. I also scrunch it into my curls to make sure I get the best results. Some people choose to use creams or pomades or balms. Anything that says petrolatum or mineral oil - RUN AWAY. Do not put these things in your hair or you will need a good sulfate shampoo to get this out. It coats your hair to keep moisture out then what moisture is inside dries up after a while leaving your hair droopy, straggly, or just plain gross looking.

After applying product you can choose to let it air dry or "plop". You can either YouTube "plopping" Latina4u55 has a great video on how to plop your hair, located here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-iEUvUzO0q0

I do need to make this minor disclaimer that if you try this do not expect to see instant results. There is a transition period for your hair to become acclimated to this new routine. For some people it takes a few days to start seeing results, others it could take a couple of weeks. Just stick to it - it's a good way to keep your curly hair happy, healthy and beautiful. Be happy you have curly hair - flat irons kill hair.

So I hope you are ready to go on my journey of CG-ness with me.

Before CG: Talk about CRAZYYYYY

After 1 week CG: Definitely a difference!

After 2 weeks CG: This is today. How exciting. Way more definition.