The Truth Behind The Kinks-My Natural Hair Journey

My freshman year of college I decided to cut off all of my hair into a Teenie Weenie Afro (TWA) and bleach my hair in order to achieve a bright cherry red. After a failed attempt and rocking a bubble gum pink mini fro for a while, I was over the notion of being natural, and dyeing my hair for that matter.  YouTube was not around and thankfully neither were camera phones! Yikes!  Fast forward to 2008, I decided to give it another try.  I was lost in the newness of being natural, something that I had not experienced since the age of 10; I wasn't hip to the YouTube natural hair community that was slowly building, so I did what I do best... I dyed, fried and laid that hair to the side.... I thought I was cute... Until my hair began to break off.

- Nov. 2008










At this point I got frustrated I decided to venture back into the realm of the "Creamy Crack". I cut and relaxed my hair. This worked for a while but I experienced the chemical burn that changed my life.... I swore off relaxers and began to buddy up with the local weave man!  After a few years I was not happy with my growth or the health of my hair under the weaves, so I cut it off and began anew... Here's a visual of my journey!

- My Last "Creamy Crack" Indulgence 2009

- Weave 2009...

- Weave 2010-ish...

- And... More Weave. This was my last weave in 2011

- I was not happy with the length retention or the condition of my hair after transitioning, so, I cut it all off! My Big Chop was March 10, 2011 at Textures by Nefertiti Salon in Detroit, Mi

- There were plenty of people that were less than impressed by my decision to cut it all off. Many (family included) thought I'd experienced a "mental vacation". No matter what others thought, I felt good... (After the initial shock wore off of course)

- July 2011. Four months post big chop and I was feeling myself... 

- I must thank all of the YouTube guru's that helped me during this time because everyday is not a good hair day

BlackOnyx77

MissToniDaley

Naptural85

Toliahli

and there are plenty more... 

- Aug 2011. My 1st length check

- October 2011.  I was so excited I began styling my 1st mini-hawk for my 2nd Natural Hair meet up with Naturally FLYY Detroit

- By December 2011 I was able to achieve my 1st puff!

 -

- March 10, 2012 

- My 1 year length check!

At this point I was okay with my growth and overall health of my hair. 

- Alomst one year later and my puff is much bigger...

-Feb. 2013. Almost 2 years Natural

- March 11, 2013

- Decided to Straighten my hair for my 2 year Natural-anniverssary!

- And then California borrowed some humidity from somewhere and this is what I was left with after 3 days. 

Lets Recap:

Pic 1: Big Chop 2011

Pic 2: 1st Length Check @ 5months

Pic 3: 2nd Length Check  @ 1yr

Pic 4: 3rd Length Check @ 2yr

2013 was a good hair STYLE year for the most part...

- I developed a favorite "in a hurry" protective style...

-My hair was longer so I was able to try new styles and loved them...

- Even tried some new "trendy" styles like the Side Cut. 

Though 2013 was definitely my STYLE year, my growth however, came to a hault. By the end of 2013 I had only retained/grown 1 inch of hair and most of that had to be trimmed due to breakage. That brings me to 2014... I decided to embark on a challenge, a 1 year DIY Protective Style Challenge. The goal is to see how much length I can retain by maintaining a low manipulation protective regimen. This challenge began January 2014 and I am now in month 6... Update will be posted soon!