The majority of my natural hair journey, has been bundled with experimenting with multiple hair colors. I’ve had every hair color from red, to magenta, to blue and indigo, to copper and eggplant. I’ve played with different types of blondes and oranges, tapered cuts and growing it out. But recently, I’ve decided to stop dying my hair and growing it out. A lot has gotten me to this point,  and I wanted to offer a detailed explanation as to why, I’ve decided to let bleach and hair dye be a thing of the past and return to natural dye free hair. Here is why I decided to say “no” to hair coloring and my journey to growing my hair out.

Why I Decided to say “no” to Hair Coloring and My Journey To Growing My Hair out..

My hair was last bleached in 2017, I was lifting and processing and some more, to achieve that perfect hair color. I went to Cali with blonde hair, put a semi-permanent copper in my hair to bring in my birthday. Every month, I rocked a new-new color. I would easily get bored and once the month was over, the color would bleed out, and I was on to something new. Fast forward to about March of 2018; even with constant trims, my ends were wretched. The only time I had bleached or “oops”ed my hair was in 2017. Even with all of the deep conditioners and protein treatments, my hair was now showing major signs of damage, and It was time for a deep trim.

I accidentally “mini” chopped – but wasn’t mad at it

In April, I was soooo over having failed and frizzy hairstyles, I finally decided to just bite the bullet and do a major trim. The only issue was that I was already annoyed, and didn’t plan out exactly how I was going to section and cut my hair. I took a pair of hair shears, and trimmed what looked like about 2 inches of upstretched hair.. Let that sink in – 2 inches of upstretched hair. I didn’t notice the difference in length until my son’s 7th birthday, when it was washed, styled and short. I wasn’t upset, but I could see the difference in the health of my hair, and was ready to venture back onto the road to hair recovery.

Has it been rough?

Abso-freakin-lutely!! I’m so used to looking at myself with colored hair, that my dark hair is boring to me. I’m currently in what feels like a self-crisis and I want to do something major with my hair. But I know that dying my hair, has been the biggest stunt of my growth, constantly having to chop inches off my hair because of the color damage. In the next few weeks, I’ll probably cut off the remainder of the color left on my ends. It’s about an inch or two left throughout all of my hair. It has grown back a lot since the mini chop, I’m pretty much back to that previous length. Aiming to install a protective style or mini twist for the next two weeks. My hair is so much healthier, stronger and shiny. My ends are still semi-trash, but they will be trimmed soon. I’m just trying to find ways to change my look – using different hairstyles instead of using hair colors to make the difference.

My current hair goals for the year.

My current hair goal is to have healthier hair. I am aiming to have dye free hair by the end of the year. Also, I am implementing a more consistent hair regimen that includes a mix of store brand products as well homemade items. The biggest focus for the remainder of the year would be to put my hair in more low manipulation styles. Mini twist, French Braids, box braids, etc. I may throw in a wig or two (I’ve had my eye on a few bundles from Slayed Tresses). My overall hair goal is to be at midback length by 2020 or as close I as I can get to that.

Current Hair Regimen

• I wash my hair whenever I can *sadly* once a week or every other week. I’m currently using Eden’s Body works Peppermint shampoo and conditioner.
• I use Barba de Caracol  protein and deep conditioner from the Dominican Republic
• I do need to find a bomb leave-in conditioner (Open to any suggestions); but I currently use a mix of water, apple cider vinegar and peppermint oil – which works super great for my hair.
• I seal in water with the Stimulating Hair Growth Oil from Crowning Soul.
• For my curl definer used for my flat twist outs and things, I use Eden’s Body Works – Natural Curl Defining Crème mixed with a hair butter – I currently use Lemongrass Hair & Body Butter from Crowning Soul.
• I oil my scalp as needed with the Stimulating Hair Growth Oil.