Happy new month people! What's been on???
Speaking of something new, I'd like to share with you guys my new routine. It's not a totally new routine per se, just a time saving addition.
These days, I'm having less time what with my dissertations coming up and with work and everything in between.
To make matters worse, I just learnt that the road construction going on near my house (which I thought was simply for maintenance) was to actually build a new flyover.....and Lord knows how many years that's going to take!
There's red dust everywhere! The rains help the dust settle faster but in a typical Nigerian fashion, one second it is raining and the next second the scorching sun is blazing and the dust is released to attack my face, my body and my hair!
Initially, I shampoo a very convenient once a month but with this development, I have to shampoo twice and cowash every 3 days. This means that I now shower head to toe! I think I might as well start the Maximum Hydration Method I've been putting off till holidays sef!
Washing my hair every 3 days means that I have to deal with wet hair more often than not and I really dislike dripping dripping hair....I get cold easily.
It also means that I either leave my hair as is in a wash and go style or I have to stretch it in one way or the other.
Consistent wash and gos make my hair knot up badly. I have accepted that on any given day, I will have at most two knots on a strand of hair. I fought the battle to get zero knots and I lost. If I persist, I'll be left with a twa. So I just let them be. I don't like them...they don't like me either so it's a "live and let live" situation.
With this 3 day cowash regimen and my laziness to properly twist my hair to stretch it, this symbiotic relationship is bordering on a parasitic relationship with some knots having a knot on its back....its baby.....so my knots are breeding!!
When I washed once a month, I only had to twist once and then cowashed the twists maybe once a week. Now I have to cowash the twists twice a week which means at some point, I have to redo my twists due to fuzziness...and I really don't have the strength for that. It's too stressful.
So what's a girl to do when the game changed without her knowledge???
Banding!!!
I have never felt so grateful to the makers of Noble or First Lady Kinky Hair for including colorful bands. Most times I have to throw them away because they are too puny to hold my hair...and now my neighbour has a pretty daughter, her hair never lacks!
I guess her supply may dwindle a bit because I've discovered a use for them.
Banding!!!
So did they help?
My previous routine was shampoo roots in twists, deep condition and use a conditioner to rinse off the deep conditioner. Then I use a T shirt to blot off excess water before retwisting to make my hair stretch neatly. Then on Monday morning ( I shampoo on weekends) I'll untwist for a twistout or if it hasn't dried completely I do my regular bun.
My current routine means that I co wash midweek and on weekends too....sometimes even more.
It means I have to retwist more often which I don't have time for...and remember at midback length, I have a lot of hair to deal with! This is one reason I trim my hair often.
To shorten my time, I cowash my hair in two or four sections , fingerdetangle each section with a slippery conditioner ( Had to restock on Tresemme conditioner....my fave Aussie is MIA), rinse , blot excess water, apply a leave in and oil then gather all the hair in a ponytail and start banding.
The first banding session I use just 4-5 bands and increase as I have time for. Then I wrap my hair in a T shirt to trap all the water. Before bedtime which is usually 12pm-1 am these days, I'll put on my bonnet and make like a log....
In the morning, three things may happen...
- I might wake up late and ready to rush out the door so my hair will stay banded. For this reason, I try not to use childish colors and favor red bands (wish they included black). I might even pin up the ends of the bands to make a chic low bun.
- I might wake up early but not interested in touching my hair (probably because it is still damp) and I still leave the house like the former.
- I might wake up early, my hair all dried and stretched and I will cut away all bands except the root band and sport a ponytail.
I cut off the bands instead of pulling them out to minimise tangles and breakage.
So you see, the bands really do make my hair life much easier and faster. It's a win-win situation for me and my hair.
Have you tried banding?
Do you have any time saving tips you'd like to share?
Speaking of something new, I'd like to share with you guys my new routine. It's not a totally new routine per se, just a time saving addition.
These days, I'm having less time what with my dissertations coming up and with work and everything in between.
To make matters worse, I just learnt that the road construction going on near my house (which I thought was simply for maintenance) was to actually build a new flyover.....and Lord knows how many years that's going to take!
There's red dust everywhere! The rains help the dust settle faster but in a typical Nigerian fashion, one second it is raining and the next second the scorching sun is blazing and the dust is released to attack my face, my body and my hair!
Initially, I shampoo a very convenient once a month but with this development, I have to shampoo twice and cowash every 3 days. This means that I now shower head to toe! I think I might as well start the Maximum Hydration Method I've been putting off till holidays sef!
Washing my hair every 3 days means that I have to deal with wet hair more often than not and I really dislike dripping dripping hair....I get cold easily.
It also means that I either leave my hair as is in a wash and go style or I have to stretch it in one way or the other.
Consistent wash and gos make my hair knot up badly. I have accepted that on any given day, I will have at most two knots on a strand of hair. I fought the battle to get zero knots and I lost. If I persist, I'll be left with a twa. So I just let them be. I don't like them...they don't like me either so it's a "live and let live" situation.
With this 3 day cowash regimen and my laziness to properly twist my hair to stretch it, this symbiotic relationship is bordering on a parasitic relationship with some knots having a knot on its back....its baby.....so my knots are breeding!!
When I washed once a month, I only had to twist once and then cowashed the twists maybe once a week. Now I have to cowash the twists twice a week which means at some point, I have to redo my twists due to fuzziness...and I really don't have the strength for that. It's too stressful.
So what's a girl to do when the game changed without her knowledge???
Banding!!!
I have never felt so grateful to the makers of Noble or First Lady Kinky Hair for including colorful bands. Most times I have to throw them away because they are too puny to hold my hair...and now my neighbour has a pretty daughter, her hair never lacks!
I guess her supply may dwindle a bit because I've discovered a use for them.
Banding!!!
So did they help?
My previous routine was shampoo roots in twists, deep condition and use a conditioner to rinse off the deep conditioner. Then I use a T shirt to blot off excess water before retwisting to make my hair stretch neatly. Then on Monday morning ( I shampoo on weekends) I'll untwist for a twistout or if it hasn't dried completely I do my regular bun.
My current routine means that I co wash midweek and on weekends too....sometimes even more.
It means I have to retwist more often which I don't have time for...and remember at midback length, I have a lot of hair to deal with! This is one reason I trim my hair often.
To shorten my time, I cowash my hair in two or four sections , fingerdetangle each section with a slippery conditioner ( Had to restock on Tresemme conditioner....my fave Aussie is MIA), rinse , blot excess water, apply a leave in and oil then gather all the hair in a ponytail and start banding.
The first banding session I use just 4-5 bands and increase as I have time for. Then I wrap my hair in a T shirt to trap all the water. Before bedtime which is usually 12pm-1 am these days, I'll put on my bonnet and make like a log....
In the morning, three things may happen...
- I might wake up late and ready to rush out the door so my hair will stay banded. For this reason, I try not to use childish colors and favor red bands (wish they included black). I might even pin up the ends of the bands to make a chic low bun.
- I might wake up early but not interested in touching my hair (probably because it is still damp) and I still leave the house like the former.
- I might wake up early, my hair all dried and stretched and I will cut away all bands except the root band and sport a ponytail.
I cut off the bands instead of pulling them out to minimise tangles and breakage.
So you see, the bands really do make my hair life much easier and faster. It's a win-win situation for me and my hair.
Have you tried banding?
Do you have any time saving tips you'd like to share?
8 comments
Oh gosh I wish I could just band like you and go! The perks of having long hair!! :)
ReplyDeleteThreading with gaps (which is some form of banding when you think about it) and chunky twists still work for me.
But I hate that at this length, I can't just do 4 or 2 big ones or even one and go.
Lol! I understand how making more banded sections may make one prefer to wash and go sef... but every length has its fun part. Threading with gaps is a good idea and a bit quicker to do.
DeleteBanding is awesome! Except I find that even with banding, I still get tangles and shrinkage at the root of my hair. I have BSL hair and I'm also Nigerian. Any tips on how to prevent this?
ReplyDeleteTry detangling each section before banding to reduce tangles and blot out as much water as you can from your hair beforehand so that it will dry faster before you take out the bands. That way it'll shrink less.....or better still switch to threading.
DeleteAh! The agonies of having long hair. Nothing is ever perfect eh? lol. I'm longing for MBL hair and posts like this give me a balanced view of what I should be expecting.
ReplyDeleteLol! The longer the hair, the more prone to damage and dryness it is...then add that to the curly nature....it's really a handful sometimes.
DeleteHi,,pls am new on d hair journey as my back hair grows longer and the front shorter,so I decided to cut it off and start all over again and go all natural..can u direct me on d products to use,how it works and hw to use them..I"d really really appreciate a reply from an expert like you..it wuld mean a whole lot to me
ReplyDeleteHi Ekene, thanks for the compliment but I'm not an expert o...I think trichologists are. I only share what works from experience. Do send me an email on nappilynigeriangirl@gmail.com and I'll see how I can help. :)
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