Today marks nine months since I started my natural hair journey! I am so happy that I made the decision almost a year ago to ditch my hot styling tools and embrace my curls. If this is your first time tuning into my journey, you can read about my first three months here and my first six months here.
I don’t have as much to speak about as last time as not too much has changed! I got my second curly cut with Mona in January. (In my prior hair journey posts, I discuss curly cuts with both Deva Curl and Mona.) Since then, I have just been trying to keep my hair as moisturized as possible by deep conditioning as least twice a week. I should be getting another curly cut this month but it’s not in my budget at the moment. I’m also trying to grow my hair out as much as I can! One of the reasons I decided to cut my hair into a fro is because I feel like I could go a couple of months without a cut and not have to worry about my hair losing its shape. Ideally, I would like to hold off on getting my next cut until August but we’ll see what the summer heat does to my hair before then!
Since my last curly cut, I have noticed that my curls are getting tighter and tighter by the weeks!! I still have a long way to go in reaching my end goal but I am on the right path and I am so happy with the progress I have made so far. I am also still trimming the dead curls. They will never curl again and they will weigh your hair down! Also, its so frustrating when you finish styling your hair and it looks SO good but then you have one or two curls that just can’t get back in formation. Don’t let those sad curls ruin your good hair day. Just trim them and don’t look back!
My hair is pretty close back to the length it was before I cut it. I am now able to put my hair in a ponytail which has been such a relief! When I got my curly cut with Mona, ponytails were not possible and it made me so sad. You know your hair is super short when you can’t even get it all into a decent ponytail! My bangs have also grown past my chin but you wouldn’t even know thanks to shrinkage!
I am still taking hair vitamins daily. The Nature’s Bounty Hair Skin & Nails Gummies are my go-to. However, I did try the Hairfinity Candilocks Chewable Hair Gummies for two months and did see growth! I was always a bit skeptical about Hairfinity but I can report back that they do aid with hair growth. They also did not make my skin break out. What I didn’t like is how hard the gummies would get even though they were kept in the closed bottle. They became pretty tough to chew and I only finished about half of my second bottle before I tossed it just because I was over it. Hairfinity also makes regular Hair Vitamin Capsules, so those may be a better option as opposed to the gummies. Anyway, I am back to taking the Nature’s Bounty gummies daily. If you haven’t tried them yet, they are so affordable, so yummy and really help with hair and nail growth!
I honestly look forward to my wash days as finger detangling my hair is still such a breeze at this length. I am slowly introducing shampoo back in at least twice a month to make sure I am really cleansing my scalp and preventing build up. I am using creamier shampoos that will not dry out my hair. My favorite shampoo at the moment is the Curls Cashmere & Caviar Hair Bath Shampoo. This shampoo leaves my hair feeling so clean and moisturized. However, co-washing is still my priority to maintain my hair’s moisture. I am also allowing more time to massage my scalp to not only cleanse but help with hair growth!
I have started diffusing after each wash day using the Eva NYC Healthy Heat Pro-Lite Galaxy Hair Dryer that was gifted to me. Winter decided to stick around a lot longer this year and sitting in front of a fan waiting for my hair to dry just wasn’t cutting it anymore. I would let my air dry for a bit and then would start diffusing just so I could leave my apt in a timely fashion! This diffuser is honestly the best I’ve ever used. This diffuser dries my hair efficiently and does not cause any frizz. It’s also very lightweight, which I love!
I have absolutely no desire to straighten my hair. Even though I’ve always used heat protectant products and hair masks often, I really don’t want to do anything to risk disrupting my curl pattern at the moment. Nor do I want to stand in front of a mirror with a blow dryer for an hour and a half. It will definitely be a while before I decide if and when I want to straighten my hair again. I’m actually looking into buying a wig or two just to switch it up! If you have any suggestions of good, affordable wings like that look natural, please leave them in my comments below!
When it comes to styling products, I haven’t really bought anything as my monthly curlBOXES have been so on point lately! If you are not familiar with curlBOX, it is a monthly subscription box that comes with five full size hair products from one brand for $25 a month. It’s an affordable way to discover new brands while finding out what works or doesn’t work on your hair.
At least a couple of times a day, I am asked by other girls what I am using in my hair. Curly Chic‘s line has definitely been my main go-to. The first week I used the Leave-In, Curling Creme and Gel, my hair lasted six days before needing to be washed! I was in shock! I’ve never had amazing results like that with any other product. Plus, those three products keep my curls SO defined and hydrated. My other favorites, that can be found at Target, would be Curls Caviar & Cashmere and Honey Baby Naturals. Those are the three hair care lines that I am currently rotating between and have been seeing great results with!
With summer soon approaching, I am starting to look into products that will help battle humidity. Summer humidity in NYC is honestly insane. I think it is just as bad as Texas. I’ve heard great things about Ouidad’s Advanced Climate Control line, which was designed to help curls combat frizz in humid climates. I need to get my hands on that line ASAP.
Additional products I would like to try are Garnier Fructis’ new 1 minute hair masks and Pantene’s Gold Series. So many curly girls have been raving about these products so I am eager to try them. I used to use both Garnier and Pantene products religiously but stopped for certain reasons. I had to stop using Pantene in the beginning of high school because the shampoo and conditioner would dry out my hair. It would look and feel like I didn’t even condition at all. I think because I used them so often, they just stopped working on my hair. I stopped using Garnier products when I was blonde simply because of the ingredients. I’m glad brands are becoming more conscious and are utilizing better ingredients in their products as well as curating more products for curly women.
Three months from now will be a year into my natural hair journey and I can’t wait to reflect back on it! 🙂
If you’re just tuning in or have missed a prior post, read my journey from the beginning and documented through my first year:
Natural Hair Journey: Three Months