hormones and hair
So having 2 kids has relaxed my hair. At first, I thought it was neglect, because….. you know… 2 kids. But now that I’ve had several months to make sure my hair was properly conditioned and cared for, and trying in vain to get my curls back, I’ve decided for sure that the texture really has changed. And I’ve decided to just try to embrace it.
I know at least 2 other women who have experienced this. Out of curiosity, I’ve been researching, trying to find what causes it to happen. Apparently, nobody really knows. We all know that hormones play a part in hair texture. I mean, raise your hand if your hair got curly when you hit puberty. 
And it is known that the increase in progesterone during pregnancy causes the hair growth phase to last longer, resulting in longer thicker hair. It is also known that the shape of the hair follicle determines the texture of hair. Round follicles produce straight hair, oval produces curly hair. The flatter the follicle is, the curlier the hair is. Several sources I found speculate that some hormone increase or decrease causes the hair follicles to actually change shape. But it has never been determined which hormone does it or why.
Regardless, here I am now, starting almost from scratch, searching and experimenting to find what works for my “new” hair. Wish me luck!
30 days of hairstyles
Follow me on Instagram for Torrin Paige’s 30 days of hairstyles challenge! The whole month of April – 30 days, 30 styles!
long hair problems…
You know you have lots of hair when you’re going for this…. 
and you end up looking more like Princess Leia. 
hair growth
This is what it looked like last time I trimmed my hair. It has never, I repeat… NEVER, looked like this before.
My hair has always been somewhat thick, but always naturally tapered drastically. I end up with more hair on the floor when I trim my bangs than I do when I trim my hemline. That’s the way it’s always been. As long as I can remember.
And did I mention the 8 inches I trimmed off last year to maintain length?
Pregnancy has been kind to my hair. 🙂
no-poo success
So I’ve been doing the baking soda and vinegar routine for about a month and a half now. I can’t tell you how impressed I’ve been! I didn’t have any transition phase. I haven’t used “normal” shampoo on a regular basis for years, so my scalp really had nothing new to adjust to. My hair feels soooooo much better!! It also looks considerably better, as you can see from the photos. The curls are coming back, it’s shiny, it feels soft and healthy.
I finally bit the bullet and ordered some good shampoo and conditioner. I’m not sure yet how I want to continue….. stick to no-poo for a while?….. switch back to shampoo and conditioner?….. use a combination of both? I’m undecided.
product troubles
If you’ve read much of my past blog, you probably know that my biggest complaint is finding a shampoo or conditioner I love……. and then they change it. And the hunt for the right product starts all over again. The past few years, things have been up in the air with products for me, never quite settling on one I love. And in the process, using my husband’s Pantene in between. 😝
I finally settled (as in, I bought it more than once) on one my hair mostly likes, but it’s about $8 a bottle, and I can only get it online. (No stores around here carry it.) But money got tight, and I stopped ordering it. I used Pantene for a few months, just because we already had it, but my hair felt gross and got really tangled on the under side (a result of cones). So, I stripped my hair and tried another product. It’s organic, no cones, cheaper than the one I order, and I can get it in local stores. However, after using it for a couple of weeks, my hair feels like it’s coated in wax!
So……. with all that, my hair is not in good shape. It’s limp and heavy, it waves instead of curls, it frizzes as it dries, etc. The only time I wear it down is when I flat iron it. 🙁 I seriously need a change.
Last week, I decided to get real basic and try the baking soda & vinegar routine. I’m giving up shampoo and conditioner entirely for the time being. I can already tell a difference after only one wash!! I won’t be doing this long-term because I’ve heard it can be damaging. I’m just hoping to get rid of all the build-up and get my hair back into decent shape.
On the up side though… my hair is thicker and growing faster than it ever has before! (I’m sure it’s due to pregnancy hormones, since I just had my second child.) I trimmed off a total of about 8 inches last year to maintain my length. 8 inches in 1 year!!! How exciting is that?! 😊
Here is a video showing the baking soda & vinegar wash routine.
length update
Here’s the latest pic of my hair.
After taking this photo, I realized that there’s not enough contrast to see the ends very well. So I took another one wearing a white robe.
You know, it really is a good idea to take pics every so often. So many times I start thinking that I’m not making any progress, and then I look back and realize I really am! 
All this time I’ve been thinking about how much my hair has suffered the past year during this total lack of attention.
Then I compare it to this pic, —> taken about a year and a half before. My hair looked pretty sad back then. Much better now, in spite of everything.
The roots have flattened out quite a bit and I’m not getting as much volume. Part of that is lack of trying, but a lot is due to the length weighing it down. Even when I put out a lot of effort to get volume at the top like I used to have, it just doesn’t happen.
post-pregnancy update
As far as my hair is concerned, I have good news and bad news.
The bad news is that I’ve allowed myself to settle into the terrible damaging habit of wearing the same hair style every day (and even at night). I recently began noticing the results of that – lots of broken hairs around my hairline. I’m trying to break that habit before I do some serious damage. Also, because I’m wearing my hair up 95% of the time these days, my curls aren’t looking so great. Which makes me just put it up again because it looks bad. Ah, the vicious circle………
The good news is my shedding is drastically reduced! During my pregnancy (especially the first trimester) I was shedding by the handfuls. With each wash, I would end up with a wad of hair that looked like large mouse. Now, I can literally count the hairs! Like an average of 5 or 6 hairs come out with each wash. That’s crazy! I’ve never had so little fall-out! I hope my body is building back all the thickness I lost during pregnancy.
From the bit of research I did online, I found that I’m in the minority concerning the hair loss. Most women will experience thicker healthier hair due to increased estrogen, then will experience a massive fall-out after delivery when the hormones go back to their non-pregnant levels. Some sources suggested hair loss during pregnancy may be a result of morning sickness not allowing you to get sufficient vitamins and nutrition. Other sources said it could be a thyroid issue. I experienced both of these. (my doctor believes I may have pregnancy-induced hypothyroidism) So I guess that could explain it?
baby loves my hair
I had my hair in 2 braids. He grabbed them while I was leaning over him talking to him. He was trying to eat the braids and the curly ends were tickling his face. 🙂
quick update
Just looked at my blog and thought, “Wow! Has it really been that long?” I’ll be 40 weeks pregnant tomorrow, so yeah…. it’s been that long. I had several ideas of things to post about and every intention of doing so, but this pregnancy has really drained my energy! I haven’t forgotten about this blog or decided to stop posting, I’ve just needed to focus my efforts on other areas and conserve my energy for more important things. I hope to get my health back in order after I have the baby and be able to return to a more normal lifestyle.
As I said in my last post, my hair has suffered simply because I don’t feel like messing with it. The last half of the pregnancy has been better, but still not my usual routine. It’s been so long that I almost feel like I’ve unintentionally created a new routine. I think it will be difficult for me to get back to where I was before. But that’s my goal.
Don’t give up on me! I have things I want to post about and questions from you girls that I haven’t had a chance to address. I will do my best to get to it soon. In the mean time, thanks for stopping by and continuing to send new people my way!
new photo
Took a preggie pic today. Thought I’d share it since it shows my hair pretty well too. Hennaed and flat ironed 4 days ago.
I admit, I’ve been extremely lax in my hair care since I got pregnant. I went through a phase of about 2 months (at least) where I really didn’t care what I looked like. I felt that bad. Putting on makeup, fixing my hair, painting my toenails, lotioning after a shower…. all things that I normally am very particular about, a thing of the past. There was even a period where I didn’t even put gel on my hair after I showered! If I wasn’t going anywhere, what was the point? Too much trouble. lol
My hair was badly in need of a DT but I couldn’t seem to gather the energy. I was also badly in need of touching up the henna, it had grown out at least 6 inches. I’ve been feeling much better the past couple of weeks and finally got around to doing both. My hair felt so dry that I was afraid to henna without first doing the DT. I was afraid it would be too harsh on the ends. I decided to try coconut oil this time. I’m really pleased with the results! I hennaed a couple days after, also with good results. It feels good to be getting back into the swing of things.
my current favorite style
My new favorite way to wear my hair lately has been a high messy bun with a big flower toward the front. I normally wear a flower toward the back or near my ear, so this is different for me. This way feels more fun and playful. I love it as a summer look!
time to find a new conditioner, yet again
I cannot even begin to express my frustration! Why? WHY?!?! do companies insist on changing their formulas if everybody loves it the way it is? I know I’ve ranted about this on here before. This happens to me on a regular basis. I find a conditioner that I love. My hair responds perfectly, it looks and feels amazing. I use it exclusively for a couple of years. Then I walk into the store and see a new label on it, or a newly designed bottle, and my heart sinks. I know that a new container means a new and “improved” formula. Just let me say, it is never an improvement. The new label is a signal for me to look for a new conditioner.
You may remember my post about Yes to Cucumbers conditioner. I started using it just about 2 years ago. I’ve loved every minute of it. There has been nothing about it I did not like. When I saw the new bottle, I immediately read the ingredients to be sure that they had not added cones (that’s the most common change). Nothing stood out to me. I was hoping for the best. But……. About half way through the new bottle, I noticed my hair starting to feel waxy. I took note of it, but my hair was still behaving pretty well so I let it go.
Then, last week, I had the most horrible experience! I went to put my hair up, finger-combing to pull it back. I was startled as my fingers caught on the biggest tangled mess I think I’ve ever had in my hair! I’m not exaggerating. There was a matted knot at the base of my head that was 2-3 inches across. My hair does not tangle. As curly and long as it is, I’ve never had issues with tangles! Being on the back of my head, I couldn’t see what I was doing and it took me quite some time to detangle it. I was beginning to wonder if I would have to cut some of it out. Gladly, I didn’t. Only a couple of days later, after washing my hair as usual, I noticed that my hair felt sticky as it was air drying. I tried to put gel on and it just literally stuck to my hands. I could hardly get gel through it because of it. The drier it got, the worse it felt. It felt stiff and would not curl at all! It was turning into a huge frizzy sticky mess! And I was due to leave in an hour for my friend’s birthday celebration! I became so frustrated that I cried! I finally gave up and decided to wash my hair again, even though I knew it would still be dripping wet when I left. I washed it twice with a mixture of shampoo and baking soda to strip it, then applied conditioner. It felt and looked much better after that.
I really do not want to continue using this conditioner. I had bought two bottles because there was a sale, but be assured I will be taking the second bottle back for a refund. I don’t have an old bottle to compare the ingredients and see what they changed. They still have the old one for sale on their website, along with the new one. They have the same ingredient list for both. Maybe it updated for all the products, rather than just the new ones. I don’t know. But I know they did change something, because the conditioner itself looks different. I also sent a complaint to the company and left a negative review on their website. Apparently, I’m not the only one dissatisfied with it.
length update
I measured my hair for the first time in a couple of years. It’s now at 41.5 inches! The tips just reach the bottom of my bum. A new record for me! 😀 I need to trim, though, to thicken up the ends. I’ll probably be doing that soon which will put me back up to about tailbone length again.
Here’s what my length looks like now. The ends look too thin, I’m not happy with that. I’ve been trying to do better on my hair care, getting back into routine DT’s and microtrims and all that. I had also sort of cut a few layers to try to lighten the weight of the top layer so it’s curlier. It hasn’t helped very much so I’m going to let them grow back out to give more fullness at the ends. My hair is getting long enough that it’s going to weigh down the top no matter what I do. I think I’m ok with that. Looking back at pics, it looked its best about 6 years ago and I would really like to get back to that. I don’t know if I can without cutting it back to that length though. Crossing my fingers…….
new toy
Look what I found in the Halloween clearance aisle!
I can’t wait to try it!!! Everyone I know will completely freak out!
Now to figure out how to get all my real hair under that tiny thing……
dealing with static
Winter is quickly approaching. With winter comes static electricity. Static in your hair is a big deal. The longer your hair is, the bigger deal it is. It can get a little creepy when your hair starts reaching out to people standing two or three feet away, or when you pull back from a hug and your hair is still clinging to the other person. 
Imagine this with 3 feet of hair!
So I’m going to share with you some ways I’ve learned to help reduce static in hair.
1. Wear clothing that isn’t prone to static. We all know that sweaters are like the best conductors of electricity, right? But does that stop us? No! 🙂 Here’s a tip….. natural fiber clothing (cotton, bamboo, wool, silk, leather, etc.) is less prone to static than synthetic fibers. Cotton is actually neutral when it comes to electricity. Cotton sweaters don’t get static! (But you have to get fabrics that are 100% cotton, not mixed with a synthetic.) So keep this in mind when you go shopping for your winter clothes, hats, coats, gloves, and scarves.
2. If you wear something that is prone to static, wear your hair up. This is the simplest solution.
3. Use combs made of bone or horn. I used to use a plastic wide-tooth comb. Every time I combed my hair, it would get static. Since buying a horn comb, I no longer have that problem. (I do use a plastic comb in the shower because water can damage natural ones. Besides, in the shower you don’t have to worry about static.)
4. Using fabric softener or dryer sheets on your hair is a very common remedy that I hear a lot. And I admit, in a pinch, I’ve prayed Static Guard on my hair. I don’t recommend this. It works, but the chemicals are not good for your hair. Please only do this if you’re desperate!
5. Condition, Condition, Condition. I can’t stress this enough! This is the most important thing to do! Dryness is what brings about so much static. I read that even dry skin will cause static in your clothing. So keep your hair (and skin) moisturized! Do regular deep conditioning treatments about once a month, and use plenty of conditioner when you wash your hair. Make sure you don’t have build-up that is preventing the moisture from soaking in. I like to scrunch raw shea butter into the ends immediately after my shower to seal in the moisture. (I also use it as body lotion.) For those with straight hair, smoothing a few drops of oil into your ends daily is highly recommended.
I wish you all a happy, static-free winter!!
water temp
I had a “duh” moment. One of my biggest problem areas is a dry flaky scalp. Over the last few seasons, I noticed a pattern. During the summer, my scalp was fairly free of flakes. As winter came on, I started seeing an increase. Then summer again and it decreased. I was thinking it didn’t really make sense because it had been a particularly hot and dry summer (three months of no rain and temps over 100). The dryness in the air and the heat should have made my skin/scalp drier, right?
Then it hit me! I’m very cold-natured and have to take steaming hot showers in the winter. I was taking much cooler showers in the summer (especially after being outdoors) because it was so hot and dry. The water temperature was affecting the dryness of my scalp! Now, I’ve known for a long time that washing your hair with very hot water can be a contributing factor for dry hair/scalp. I’ve even advised people about it. Why did it never occur to me that it was my problem? I have no idea…..
So now (after slapping myself on the forehead for being so ignorant) I try to wash my hair with cooler water, even if I have to wash it while leaning forward so the water doesn’t touch the rest of my body. Then I adjust the water to be warmer for the rest of my shower. I would like to be able to just wash my hair separately by kneeling next to the bathtub and putting my head under the faucet like I used to, but the position of the bathtub in the house I’m living in now makes that impossible. I still have issues with flakes, I think I always will because I just have naturally dry skin, but it is better when I use cooler water.
micro braids
Well, I left my braids in for a full 10 days. I “washed” my hair 3 times with my braids in. The first time, as I mentioned before, was just a thorough rinsing with water. The other times I literally squished conditioner into my scalp and into the braids. I didn’t rub or massage it at all because I didn’t want to disturb the braids, just patted it on and pressed it in. I let the conditioner sit for a few minutes and then rinsed it out thoroughly. It felt really good, actually!
It was so nice having the braids in because I really didn’t have to worry too much about fixing my hair. No combing, no styling products, no frizz…. My hair was always presentable for me to go out in public. It’s perfect for this hot summer because the air could actually reach my scalp and keep me cooler. I would’ve left them in longer, but I was starting to get a lot of flakes along my front hairline.
I think adding in the yarn was really helpful. It kept the braids from getting as fuzzy. It also protected the tips from the hair bands, the yarn absorbed most of the tension so it kept the ends from being damaged. But, on the other hand, it made the braids much more difficult to undo. My husband and I had to pick them out with hairpins which took about 3-4 hours.
I wish I would’ve seen this tutorial before I took my braids out. I would love to have tried it! part 1 part 2
64 micro braids!
About half way through this, I began to wonder what possessed me to start it. I actually lost track of how many HOURS it took! I’m estimating about 10 total.
When I did it before, I always had my sister to help me. She would do the top half of each braid and then pass it to me to finish while she started the next one. It usually took us about 3 hours.
But this time there were several factors adding time.
1. I braided yarn into each one to make it easier to braid all the way to the ends, so the braids were longer.
2. In addition to that, my hair is about 8 inches longer than it was the last time we did this.
3. I realized too late that I was using smaller sections than we did before.
4. It took longer to section the hair because I can’t see what I’m doing, my sister always did that part.
5. My arms were getting really tired. The more tired they got, the slower I worked.
I’m going to see how long I can leave them in. I rinsed my hair/scalp in the shower on day 2 because I had spent all day outside in 100+ degrees and lots of sweat. These photos were taken today, day 5. There’s a little fuzz, but it still looks presentable. I’m going to rinse again today because my scalp is getting a bit itchy. I may try using a little conditioner as well.
“Brave”
I love this girl’s hair!!!
I’m really looking forward to watching this movie! It looks like it’ll be a good one, but I’d watch it just for the hair. 🙂
“Exquisitely Done”
Just wanted to share this site with you… Exquisitely Done – braids by Raychel
It wasn’t originally in the plan for the wedding series, but it fits in well. She does hair for weddings and other special occasions. From what I see from her photos, she does AMAZING and very unique work!!! I’m so jealous! If you live in Oregon, check her out. If you don’t live in Oregon, maybe you can at least get some style ideas. She has tons of photos on her website. Here are a few samples to get you drooling. 🙂
it’s wedding season!
Spring and summer is the most popular time of year for weddings, and recently I have been getting a lot of hits from people who are searching for bridesmaid and flower girl hair styles.
So….. I decided to put together a collection of style photos that would be suitable for a wedding! As many as possible will have tutorials, or at least a brief explanation of how I think it could be created.
These photos will be presented in a series of posts throughout the month. Be looking for the first part of the collection later this week!
braided bangs
This is what I had in mind, but didn’t have the photo handy to reference it. I may try again later to copy it more exactly.
sarah's place for long hair 