9 inches of natural hair

I have not straightened my hair yet since my 2nd big chop in August 2009. I may try it in another 6 months to a year or so. I have such fine hair that is prone to split ends so I don’t want to do anything that will jeopardize my progress. My actual hair strand is fine but I have medium density. There are 3 textures: fine, medium and coarse. Density is the number of follicle per square inch of hair on your scalp and that ranges from low, medium, and high. I have an average number of follicles but the hair that grows from it is of fine to medium texture. Most people see natural hair and assume it is all coarse. Coarse hair simply means that the diameter of the individual strand is larger. Use this guide to determine your density and texture! I will do a separate blog post on how to determine what your texture and density is.

 

My regimen since I took out my protective style was to do at least 2 avocado deep conditioning treatments a month. I do them every other week. My avocado treatments are usually the only time I shampoo. In between, I do co-washes with Giovanni Smooth as Silk conditioner. When I don’t have time to do my deep conditions, I do a quick pre-shampoo treatment. I usually do my pre-poo with a blend of palm oil, coconut oil, and yogurt. At least once a month, I do an apple cider vinegar rinse. This helps a great deal with balancing the pH of my hair, detangling, and clarifying.

 

I keep my hair soft and manageable with shealoe, shea butter blended with aloe vera. After shampooing or co-washing, I seal my ends with the shealoe and set it for the night to air dry. I usually either do plaits, cornrows, or banding. These sets reduces knots and tangling when styling throughout the week. To maintain moisture, I use a blend of coconut oil and palm oil with lavender, tea tree, sage, and orange essential oils daily after showering. When my hair feels extra dry, I handle it simply by adding a little water, follow with a dab of oil and some shealoe. My hair usually requires braiding or banding in large sections to keep tangles and knots at bay. I haven’t been keeping up with my scalp massages like I should but will pick them back up.

 

I am still taking my supplements which include MSM, kelp, and prenatal vitamins. I take my prenatal and kelp more often than the MSM.

 

I will be checking back in with another growth update in another few months. It is summer time and hair grows faster during these months so I am looking forward to my potential growth. Stay tuned and feel free to contact me with any questions either here or by e-mail at hairgarden@live.com. I am also thinking of adding IM to my contact options so my readers can contact me directly with any questions! Let me know what you think! Thank you for reading!