My decision to start beauty school was largely in part due to the independent research I did to grow my hair in the healthiest shape imaginable. I learned to trim (search and destroy) my hair on my own so I wouldn't dread going to a stylist to take off 6-12 months worth of growth. My brushing routines for every morning and night were set and a great way to start and end my days. I learned about henna and indigo as alternative hair coloring methods. Once my hair started getting healthier, I noticed those wonderful waves, which lead me to "Curly Girl: The Handbook" by Lorraine Massey. There were hair communities (The Long Hair Community, Naturally Curly, and Wavy Hair Community) I joined and learned from all the wonderful people from their respective groups. The knowledge I gained was PHENOMENAL!
It wasn't enough, though. I grew impatient trying to find a like-minded stylist. It became increasingly difficult to find someone who shared my passion for all things hair. So I decided to turn my hobby into my career to help other hair-savvy people out there. I could have just went with a hairstyling license, but it made the most sense to become a full cosmetologist. It has been an adventure!
I went into the program with this luxurious mane:
Everyone told me I was going to chop it all off. I disagreed, but it proved to be true. There were so many different shapes and colors to play with!
My first "chop" went from the above to this:
Later, I went even farther up and played with minimal ombre highlighting (with lightener/bleach):
That short length STILL didn't stop me from experimenting. I hated the way the bleached parts felt in my hair, so I decided to do a super short right-sided undercut:
I grew tired of the asymmetry and cut it into a pixie. Then I had the bright idea I absolutely HAD TO have silver hair. So I lightened a ginormous panel and colored it silver:
After trying to keep up with the silver for 2 months, I began to color it my natural shade. I was determined to let it grow out and just trim the back until I could grow it out one-length. It would have worked had I not lightened it.
But I did. So it started to break off at the four month mark (two inches of healthy, virgin hair.) This was after hitting it with protein treatments, deep conditioning treatments, nightly oil and brushing with a boar bristle brush and never using another heat tool on it. It wasn't enough to save it. So I had to chop it off so I wouldn't have a mullet. We're talking only two inches of healthy hair to play with. It didn't leave me with many options:
That was September 9th, 2014, five days after my initial haircut. What's sad is that there are still some lightened hair I didn't have the heart to cut. As you can see, I am dealing with the dreaded "poofball" look and some MAJOR growth pattern issues. Currently, I am taking Hair, Skin and Nails by It Works!, performing daily boar bristle brushing, shampooing every 3-4 days, no use of hot tools (not even a blow dryer) and have dabbled in the Monistat Challenge (I'll have to leave that explanation in a future post.)
This is where I am at now: (Two-and-a-half weeks after the "poofball" chop)
It's not my most flattering haircut ever, but it's a FRESH START! I am impressed with my two-weeks of growth and I hope it will continue to grow faster as I research new methods of growth habits. This was a good lesson for me. I now know what hair is psychically capable of doing when stretched to the limits. I know how to ask the right questions when performing a client consultation. Basically: I know how to learn from my mistakes!!
Also, I learned that I had no idea what fine, medium and coarse hair meant. I used to think I had fine hair. After being able to play with hair from people from all different walks of life, how my hair responded to a SUPER short cut, my hair classification has been changed to 1c/C/ii. My hair behaves more like Caucasian hair with weight and ideal conditioning. My hair now is behaving like it's 100% Asian. No fineness here!
Happy Hair Day to each and every one of you readers!!
Next post: How to grow your hair!
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