Wash Day

This weekend I had a quick and easy wash day. Because I sweated my hair swollen quickly after straightening it, I decided to go ahead and straighten it again. Shocker, I know. But I wanted to enjoy it some more. Here's how the day went: 

{1} Divided my hair into 4 sections. Finger detangled, which was easy since my hair was straight anyway.

{2} Pre-poo with PM Tea Tree Moisturizing conditioner and hot oil mix of coconut, grapeseed, and safflower oils. Put on a plastic cap & scarf for a couple hours.

{3} Shampooed with CON Argan Oil Moisturizing shampoo, 2 lathers.  

{4} Towel wrapped my hair to soak up the excess water for about 20 minutes. 

{5} Applied my deep conditioner - L'Oreal Damage Erasing Balm and Tresemme Naturals. Put on a plastic cap and scarf for about 2 hours.

{6} Rinsed with cool water followed by ACV (which I did not rinse out). 

I am officially out of aloe vera juice! Sadface. So, it was just the normal water diluted apple cider vinegar this week. I definitely need to pick up some more before my next wash day because that mix was way too amazing for me to give it up.

{7} Towel wrapped for about 30 minutes then allowed my hair to air dry about 75%

{8} Applied leave-ins: Elasta QP H2, It's a 10 Miracle Leave-In and Straight From Eden Repairing Oil and detangled with a wide tooth comb. 

Air-drying hair vs. Blown out hair. Barely a noticeable difference to me lol

{9} Blew my hair out on low heat then flat ironed (1 pass). Added a little Organix Macademia Nut Oil after blow drying because I didn't want my ends to get dried out. 

I know that it might sound dangerous to some ladies to flat iron my hair again so soon, but I wasn't the least bit concerned about suddenly getting heat damage from this. Here's why: I rarely flat iron my hair, I don't even try to get it bone straight so I only pass the flat iron through my hair one time, I deep conditioned well, and I used heat protectant(s). I am probably going to go months without picking up my flat iron again after this so enjoying it some more was good for me. I also wanted to check out my length/ends and do a trim. It's been awhile since I've trimmed so I knew I was due for a good one. 

I wore my hair out for the weekend and then used, you guessed it, a banana clip to pull it up into a high bun with a bang. I like banana clips for buns because they pull allll my hair up securely without any tension. I added a headscarf yesterday to jazz it up some. I loved this bright summer scarf already, but even more after realizing how much fun it can be in my hair. Perfect fit for the fun summer bun theme of this week's wash day experience!

How was your wash day this week? Be sure to check out other Wash Day Experiences over at SavingOurStrands and JustGrowAlready!

23 comments 2 weeks post, wash day

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Revisting the Ponytail Rollerset

concentration!

I have attempted a couple of roller-sets so far this summer, neither of which lasted more than a day due to the humidity, but they were still good practice. The first was a ponytail rollerset, which I haven't done since sometime last year. I am not very good at rollersetting my hair, but it is a skill I would like to gain since it's a healthier option when I want my hair straightened.

So, after washing/deep conditioning my hair, I did let it air dry some in order to add my leave-ins (Elasta QP H2 & Aphogee Keratin and Greet Tea Restructurizer) and detangle. I don't like to do those things when my hair is still wet. I could definitely tell the difference between the amount of hair I have now vs the amount I had the last time I did a ponytail rollerset. I had to put more ponytails in this time to make sure my hair would dry and the rollers weren't overloaded. I re-wet my hair with a spray bottle and applied a heat protectant serum before rolling my hair on each roller. The heat protectant is by a company named Good2Gro, which I'm pretty sure is only sold locally in Chicago. I've never seen it anywhere else. 

I put 11 ponytails in: 4 in the back and 5 on the top. Except a few in the back, I put two rollers on each ponytail. I also used end papers since I was using mesh rollers. 

I sat with my bonnet dryer on for about an hour and fifteen minutes. It wasn't quite long enough, but I was under time constraints so I had to go ahead and finish up. I'm sure this also contributed to my curls not lasting into the next day. I used a blow dryer on medium for a few minutes to try to help my hair dry faster. After that I took down the rollers and popped the rubber bands with a nail clip. *Important note: if you have never done a ponytail rollerset before, and plan on using black rubber bands and cutting them out the way I do, BE VERY CAREFUL! Make sure you lift the rubber band up high enough to be sure there's no hair caught in it before snipping. Sounds simple enough, but the first time I ever did this, I definitely cut sum pretty long strands and almost cried. Twice. 

Next I flat ironed my roots to remove the lines from the ponytails. I was pleased with the results! I just wished they lasted longer. I also didn't lose very much hair through the whole process, from wash to finish. That's always a plus. I probably won't do this again until the weather changes in hopes that it will last longer. 

left to right: rollers out, flat ironed, styled.

Has anyone else tried a rollerset lately?

 

6 comments 2 weeks post, ponytail rollerset

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Christmas Wash Day!

It's Christmas (well the day after) and I love Christmas! Yet, I decided washing my hair on Christmas (lol) was a good idea. I forced myself into it late last night because it needed to be done and I have to work the rest of the week. So I put a mix of HE Hello Hydration conditioner, Vatika Frosting coconut oil, and grapeseed oil in my hair and covered it with a plastic cap and scarf before bed. 

After having a morning filled with family and Christmas traditions, I rinsed my hair and shampooed with S.M. African Black Soap Shampoo and C.O.N. Argan Oil shampoo. I tried another new deep conditioner today! Silk Dreams Soothing Conditioner. It has peppermint oil in it. Since the winter left me with dry scalp and strands, I thought it was the perfect time to give this a try. And I loved it! As soon as I put my plastic cap and scarf on, I could feel the tingling on my scalp. I tied another scarf on top to match my outfit for the day and went out to visit more family. All in all I probably deep conditioned for about five hours. 

Once I was back home, I rinsed and detangled my hair in the shower and did a final ACV rinse. Once again, I have to give the Silk Dreams conditioner a round of applause. I applied my usual leave ins, Aphogee Green Tea & Keratin Restructurizer and Elasta QP H-2, and let my hair air dry overnight. I flat ironed my hair because I haven't in awhile and I wanted to do a length check really see what my hair was looking like. So here it is:

 
I felt like my ends were in a much better state before I saw these pics! Ha! And I might kinda still be in denial about it like umm... did I not comb my hair correctly before I took these shots??? lol! I'm unsure. Well they're not as thick as I would like them to be. Overall, I'm pleased. I think my hair is doing a good job of collectively moving down my back :) I don't have that terrible deep v-shape where only the middle of my hair growing or anything so I'm thankful for that.  

Hope everyone had a Merry Christmas!

Leave a Comment 2 weeks post, length check, scarf styles, wash day

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