Month 1 Check-in

Around about the first of the month I'll straighten and measure - dang it I should have used my length check tee. I'll be sure to do that going forward. May even re-do these.

Like most people, my hair grows to a point in back. The center back outgrows the sides quite a bit. Now, I'm going to pick on black stylists for a moment...

They're obsessed with blunt ends.

Now that I'm back following 'hair journeys' (back in the day it was LHCF, Fotki and blogs -HA!) on IG, I am seeing photos where stylists "complain" (maybe not the right word), about ends.  See-through ends we all know and cringe when we see them. Girl, let that mess go!  But otherwise, what they're calling ends needing trimming is often just uneven growth. Which is OKAY!

I've tried to explain, when actively growing my hair out, that I normally wear it up (or in a bun/ponytail/braid) and don't need it even. Trim any split ends, sure. Clean up scraggly see-through ends, but I don't need you to even things out. It's okay! But they seem unable.

My middle back was longer and she showed me in the mirror where it needed trimming. Yep, there were a few scragglers. Go ahead. And then I have to admit I wondered why, after drying my hair flat she chose to style it in what was pretty tight curls.

The last two times I washed I did roller sets. Yesterday I went under the dryer and flat ironed and saw this:

Good grief woman. No it isn't horrible but I don't know how the heck she managed that but I'm sure it originated from an attempt to even it out. Good thing she didn't chop the sides after noticing the error.

Sigh. So yeah....over salon visits for now.

Looking at old photos again, I found this one from mid-November 2015, just days before getting a relaxer

 

Uneven growth but not horrible ends!!!! There are some scragglers for sure, but it was in pretty good shape. But I obviously ended up with a haircut at that visit because mid-December 2015:

Sigh. Again. LOL!

The Beginning

Everyone woman has a hair story, no?

My story? Hair is hair. Always.

As a girl I always had "a head full of hair". I don't have many photos from childhood because of a fire my parents experienced, but I have one memory of being in 2nd-3rd grade and my older cousin cornrowing my hair to the side/back and adding beads. And some kid accusing me of having fake hair in the coat closet. I kicked his ass, because that's what I would do as a kid. If someone gave me drama, they got their ass kicked. I'm much more mellow now in my life as a suburban mom!

Over the years I have grown and cut countless heads of at least shoulder length hair. I have been thinking about this and was thinking when I graduated from HS I was sporting a super short tapered cut. I got pregnant with my daughter freshman year of college and when she was born, I was at SL (about 18 months). I've grown to jussssst about APL and then chopped. Back to full SL. Rinse and repeat.

The last time I was at APL and wanting to hit BSL was when I met my husband. I "killed" that head of hair by abandoning all my good regimens and wearing my hair down all the time and going for the "quick route" of blow-dry / flat-iron every time.

I'm starting over and have decided on MBL and that it should take somewhere around 2 years to go from SL to MBL. That is about 10" for me (SL to MBL). I'm not concerned with BSL because that's so much more arbitrary than others.

I'm redeveloping my regimen (obviously it was working well the last time - I went from CL to APL in about 15 months) and will post photos on 11/1 to kick this journey off.

My hair (most hair!) prefers very little heat which I'm good about only using direct heat on wash day. However, I am aiming for heat only 1x a month if possible. I will plan that as close to the 1st as I can to have consistent comparisons.

Let's Go!