Category: natural hair

Knitting Season

Posted on by Michelle
Almost finished knitting up my scarf

During the warmer months I don’t tend to think very much about knitting.  For me, I always reach for my yarn when the first sign of fall hits.  As always, I have a long list of projects on my brain especially this close to Christmas.  Let’s face it though, my dream of knitting everyone in the family a hat and scarf set is probably not gonna happen at this point.

My Crocheted Beret
Completed last year

For right now, I’m finishing up a replacement scarf for myself with a neat little yarn I picked up at an estate sale a couple of years ago.  Once that’s done, I’m moving onto knitting Harry Potter themed scarves* for my kids.  The twins are in first grade so I can get away with knitting something a little shorter in length but I’m sure my oldest would like his full scale.  His will be in the colors of Slytherin house.  I guess my Griffindor scarf will have to wait until after the holidays because I’ll be really busy until then.

This leaves me with very little time to knit or crochet up a nice beanie for when my hair is still in braids on cold mornings.  Whenever I do a braid out my hair is sometimes not completely dry until the afternoon.  For this reason I just keep it braided up while I take the kids to school.  For now, I’m using the beret I crocheted last year but I want to change it up a bit.  Also, it would be nice if I could just wear french braids as a protective style under a cute beanie a few days each week until I reach my goal length.  I’m really pushing for APL (still!) by New Year’s but I’ve got to start wearing my hair up more.

Up Close

Luckily, I just found out about a good deal on crocheted beanies at Forever21.com from NaturallyObsessed.net (natural hair blog by Kinky Curly Queen of YouTube fame).  She mentioned that some hats on the site were priced as low as $5.50 so I’m gonna jump on it before they’re gone.  As far as crafting goes, it looks like it’ll be a cup of tea, a movie and some knitting needles every night until the holidays if I want to get those scarves in.  Happy Crafting!

* CLICK HERE If you want to find out more on How to Knit a Harry Potter Scarf

Biking with Natural Hair

Posted on by Michelle
My Bike Helmet
with Flat Twists Underneath

My family and I love going on outdoor adventures.  This summer we have been doing a lot more bike riding together.  I always make sure that the kids wear their helmets but I haven’t really been into wearing mine.

That was until I noticed nearly every other adult on the bike path wearing theirs.  At the very least they had on a cap for sun protection.  So I decided it was time to get out the old bike helmet.  Never mind the fact that it makes me look like Kazoo from the Flintstones.  Safety first, right?  The only thing I had to figure out though was what to do with my thick, curly hair underneath.

When I go for a bike ride in the morning, the solution is pretty simple.  My hair is usually in twists or braids from the night before so I just wait until after the bike ride to take my hair down.  This means shuttling the kids to school while wearing a satin scarf on my head but hey, I know I’ll be cute later on in the day, so that’s alright.  I don’t even bother removing the scarf because it protects my hair while under the helmet.  Another option is after a braid out when my hair is more flexible, I can get my hair to “lay down” under the helmet without too much of a fight using bobby pins.

Flat Twists under Helmet
Back View

Other times though when my hair is up in a bun or puff, the helmet doesn’t really work.  Still, in Colorado you really can’t get away without some type of sun protection.  The high elevation here can make for some serious sun exposure so I still like to wear a visor and leave my hair up on top of my head like in the pic below.

So there you go Natural Hair Queens and Curly Goddesses…now there is no reason not to rock your head gear while on your bike ride.  Be safe and happy riding.

Rockin’ the Bun with
My Visor

Review-The Hair Stopper

Posted on by Michelle
The Hair Stopper
at Walmart for about $4.50
I recently bought an item that I thought would help with the shedded hairs that collect in our bathtub. This may not be very pleasant to discuss but I still thought I would share my experience with a product called, the Hair Stopper.  My husband has long straight hair and washes it almost daily.  I like to co-wash a couple times each week and also detangle my hair while under the running water of the shower.  I won’t go into detail but we were in need of something to help with the hair that kept building up in the tub.  I found the Hair Stopper at Walmart for about $4.50 USD and was really hoping that it would work for us. 

How it works is you’re supposed to remove the little grate that already covers the drain in the tub.  Then insert the Hair Stopper, which says it should fit most household drains, into the drainage hole.  It ended up fitting so I figured all things were a go.  Did it work you ask?  Well, let’s just say that it did stop. . . the WATER from going down the drain!  I felt like I started out taking a shower and ended up wading in bath water.  I mean what gives?!  I tried to tweak it a little but it still acted like a plug and not a catch-all.  I planned on returning it later that week, but of course, my crazy dog, Grover, thought it would make a great chew toy.  Needless to say, it’s back to the drawing board on this one.

The Cherry Creek Arts Festival 2011

Posted on by Michelle

I remember attending the very first Cherry Creek Arts Festival when I was in High School.  I was a budding artist and the concept was so cool to me.  Basically, it’s a large scale art event situated right in the middle of the Cherry Creek North shopping district.  There is usually a lot of live music, wine & beer gardens, food and even craft stations for the little ones.  Not only is there lots of cool activities, music and artist booths, but visiting the surrounding shops can be fun too.  Now that I’m older, I enjoy heading to the festival but with the family in tow.  My kids all love to draw so I like to think that maybe the art and artists are an inspiration for them now like the festival was for me when I was younger.  It sounded like a great way to spend my birthday this week which is only 3 days after the 4th of July. 

 Here are a few pictures I took at this years’ event.

My Curly Braid out
Lots of good food

Just couldn’t resist the Smoked Turky Leg
Festive 4th of July bikes

My Protective Hair Styles for Summer

Posted on by Michelle
Side Bun

I’m really trying to be patient for APL which has been my hair length goal for a while now.  I’m still an inch away from it which is really frustrating.  I’m guessing it will take another two months before I reach it.  I’ve decided that in order get to where I want to be, I need to really baby my hair and keep it protected. 

It actually feels good to keep my hair off of my neck on hot days.  I try to wear my hair up in a bun or french braids whenever I can.  Sometimes I also like to throw it up into the occasional puff.  I’ve even been thinking about wearing some type of half wig or lace front to keep my hair completely under wraps.  That’s a new concept for me though so it may be a minute before I jump on that bandwagon.  I wore it down for the 4th of July weekend but now it’s back up again.

Side Bun Back view
French Braids