braids Archives - Curly in Colorado

Keeping My Hair Moisturized While Protective Styling

Posted on by Michelle

curlyincolorado.com keeping hair moisturized protective styling

It’s a wig!
protective styling with
this full cap wig by Freetress

Last week I started a personal protective style challenge. A protective style is one that protects the ends of your hair by tucking them away. My personal challenge is to style my hair this way for a few months. This will be challenging because I prefer to wear my hair down more often than not. Hopefully this will lead to the length retention I need in order to gain a few more inches this year. I plan to do this by wearing my hair in up dos and
under wigs.

Right now, I only have two wigs and plan to purchase a couple more. I’ll also be styling my hair in buns, braids and flat twists when I’m not wearing a wig. I’m doing all of this to keep myself from manipulating my hair. I suspect that the constant styling
I’m used to has led to my hair length plateau. For me, more styling
tends to lead to more trimming.

The moisturizer that saved the day!

Before braiding my hair up last week, I cleansed my hair and scalp with a sulfate free shampoo. I towel dried my hair and applied leave-in conditioner and grapeseed oil to seal in the moisture. I assumed that this would be enough to keep my hair moisturized for at least a couple of days. I also used Eco Styler hair gel to smooth my edges down. Lastly, I braided my hair into two dutch braids like the ones in my braiding video. Then I wore my wig during the day and wrapped my hair up at night for about two days.

I thought that the products and the fact that my hair was braided meant that my hair would stay moisturized under my wig. Boy was I wrong! A couple of days later I took my hair down and my hair was so dry. I quickly applied some moisturizer and then sealed with the grapeseed oil again. I braided it back up and hoped for the best. The next day, I could tell that my hair was feeling softer but I still wanted to give it more moisture. I ended up cleansing my hair again and conditioning. I decided to do a wash and go style using a heavy conditioner as my leave-in, moisturizer, oil and then gel. My hair had so much life! The moisturizer I think was the key. My leave-in conditioner was not enough on its own.

My current combination of products
to keep my hair moisturized while protective styling

After wearing my hair curly for a few days, I decided to try again. This time, after my cleansing routine, I applied a heavy conditioner as my leave-in, moisturizer and grapeseed oil. Then I brushed my hair back into a simple bun.

I can tell a huge difference in how my hair feels. If this combination of products works for me, I will continue to do this throughout my protective style challenge.

Getting Too Cold for My Wash n’ Go

Posted on by Michelle

It is nearly the middle of September and I’m already shopping for knit beanies to wear over my hair in the snow. Welcome to Colorado! Home of the mild summers and early winters. This would be fine by me if I wasn’t having so much fun with my wash n’ go style. Yes, recently I’ve been rocking my curls and enjoying my curly afro. However, last night it was forecast to drop down to good ole thirty two degrees or freezing as I like to call it.

To prepare for the cold, my family and I quickly harvested our large, unripe tomatoes from our community garden plot. We hated to do it but we just didn’t want to risk losing them. While standing in the drizzling rain and feeling my fingers go numb, I decided it was time to start wearing braid outs. The style works for me during the colder weather because I don’t have to revive the look by rewetting my hair in the morning. Also, my hair will usually lay flat enough for me to wear a warm knit beanie hat over it. Braid outs for the win!

My High Puff
I might be making a warm headband
for when I wear this style during the winter

I like to knit and crochet so I may possibly construct a new hat for myself. I might even look into making a warm head band for those days when I want to wear a puff or high bun. Another option would be to head over to Natural Born Hats and order a couple of their satin lined beanies. Either way, I’m not about that dripping wet hair life when it comes to the colder temps. Sure, we still may have a couple of sunny days coming up but as for me and my curls, it’s braid out season.

BE SURE TO FOLLOW ME ON INSTAGRAM FOR A LOOK AT MY DAILY HAIR ROUTINE

In Review: Satin Lined Military Cap from Natural Born Hats LLC

Posted on by Michelle

Recently I was contacted by a company called Natural Born Hats LLC. When I saw that they

curlyincolorado.com satin lined hat review

Finally a satin lined cap that’s stylish
and fits over my natural hair

offered satin lined hats at affordable prices, I jumped at the chance to do a review. Why is a satin lining so important you ask? Well, for starters, it can help minimize frizz and matting that can occur when wearing a hat without the added lining. The smooth satin is what comes in contact with your hair which means less friction which in turn minimizes breakage. That’s music to my ears because I’m always concerned about how my hair will fare when wearing a typical hat. With this I have no worries.

About Natural Born Hats LLC

If you head over to the website, you’ll find the story detailing the relationship between the two friends who started the company. They were both on a hair journey and using satin bonnets and scarves, as we all do, to protect their hair at night. They, like me, wanted another option that was stylish for wearing out but still had the protective satin inside.

Satin lining inside

Military Cap Style

What I like about their hats is the sound construction and the variety of styles that are available. I was sent a Military inspired cap but they also carry sun hats, fedoras and lots of fun knit beanies. The Military caps are produced using a cotton blend. This is a plus because I’m planning to wear mine when I go on my walks this summer. The other hats are constructed using materials such as straw plaiting, flax and polyester. Each comes with a polyester satin lining. The knit beanies are polyester throughout which makes them machine washable but no dryer. I like that because I’m planning on getting one for my very active 12 year old son.

I know my new hat will get a lot of use this summer. I’m favoring braid outs lately which means my braids are sometimes not completely dry in the morning. Now I can just throw on my satin lined cap and head out the door knowing my braids are still protected. I’ve tried this before with other hats but was having trouble getting all of the braids to fit. It even has room enough when my natural hair is in full swang.

A hat that fits over my braids YAY!

If you’re interested in a comfy satin lined hat for yourself, be sure to head over to Natural Born Hats LLC and use Coupon Code: CURLYCO25 for an extra 25% off

NOTE: The code will be active for the next 2 weeks and must be entered using all caps.

Thinking About Crochet Braids for a Summer Protective Style

Posted on by Michelle

For a while now I’ve been watching videos on Youtube that illustrate how to install crochet braids. At first, I was just curious how the style was done. The crochet braids that I remember were stringy, pre-braided strands that were attached to the hair with a latch hook tool.

It looks like the technique has come a long way since then. Now, people are using all different types of hair textures to create various looks. This means the style can be worn curly or straight; short or long. I’m interested in doing this type of style over the summer because it looks like an easy way to protect my growing hair while having the look of a style that is always ready to wear. It may take me up to two to three hours to complete but can last four to six weeks.

I watched several videos on how to install crochet braids and this one, by MamiTresses, was the best at explaining how it’s done. Enjoy!

Learning How to French Braid Natural Hair

Posted on by Michelle

French Braids on my Natural Hair

Recently I posted a Youtube video on how I french braid my natural hair. I have been wearing my hair braided up more often recently as part of my No Heat Challenge. It has made things a little easier for me because the weather is cooler these days. My hair can get really big and full so the french braids make it possible for me to get a hat on my head whenever I want. I also use the braids to protect my hair while I’m sleeping at night so I won’t have to wake up to tangles in the morning.

I posted the video because I wanted to offer a visual to other naturals of how to do french braids. I see a lot of comments online from people who have never learned how to braid their hair in this way. I learned the technique from my mother who braided my hair every week when I was younger. Sometimes she would do a fancy braided style on my hair but later on she just did one or two french braids with a little bang in front. When I was about ten years old she taught me how to do it on my own hair. She also taught me how to do the inverted method which was basically the opposite of french braiding. I was frustrated with it at first because my braids just didn’t look as nice and tight as when she did them. I eventually got the hang of it though.

CHECK OUT MY VIDEO ON HOW I FRENCH BRAID MY NATURAL HAIR

Having this styling technique in my arsenal made it that much easier when I went natural. When my hair grew past the TWA stage I knew that I could braid my hair up for a braid out or protective style. I can see now that I’m also saving money because I’ve never gone to someone else to have them braid it for me. Hopefully more people will learn the technique so that they’ll have more options when styling natural hair.