Twist/Braid/Bun for Growth Challenge (7/1/2012 - 9/30/2012)

[-PYT]

Hey ladies! Let's do this!

What is your primary style (twists, braids, bunning)? Twists and now, buns!

What is your style maintenance regimen? Hmm...I wear a style moisturizing and sealing as needed. I don't have anything concrete, but I try to make sure my hair always feels soft not sure how to answer this I plan to trim every 8 wks though.

Are you natural, relaxed, transitioning? Natural

What do you hope to achieve from the challenge? I hope to reach APL and limit the manipulation of my hair.

After wearing your hair out will you restyle after [Pick One] 2 days or 3 days? 2 days most likely after a braidout then bun for 5. Wash, and restyle.

Include Starting Pic. (You are not a challenger without a pic). Will post later when I twist my hair tomorrow



This pic is all I have...i'm not really the type to take pics of my back pulling a tuft of hair lol so I have no clue how much I've retained from the previous challenge. I don't feel like I've LOST hair so here's hoping By August 3rd, I will most likely be putting in a new set of mini twists

[Je Ne Sais Quoi]

Thanks for the tag. i so wish i could bun my hair but it's still way to short unless i straighten and I aint' straightening for another 6 months. I will try the twists again but i'll be a lurking challenger. I enjoy my twist outs and wash n go's way to much

[-PYT]

So I took my braid out and put my hair into a bun right...that was a lil struggle...i'm not used to bunning, and want my edges slick, but don't want my hair dried out by gel so I just may stick to twists, but hell, idk lol. Just ranting. tomorrow is the start so i'll see how I feel about bunning throughout this wk

[Rocky91]

^^try a pomade or butter instead of gel.
or you could cut your gel with moisturizer or serum or oil. a lil castor oil underneath my ecostyler leaves my hair quite soft.

I'm in!
Cant believe i'm doing this, i usually hate protective styling, but I am sooo tired of not being APL. so may as well try it.

What is your primary style (twists, braids, bunning)? Buns and braids. My twists look terrible because my hair is so fine, so i guess one of my goals is to get them looking decent enough that i feel comfortable wearing them out.

What is your style maintenance regimen? bunning-i usually cowash every day to every other day. twists no regimen yet, so idk. what remains concrete is that i try to DC at least once a week and don't let my hair feel dry.

Are you natural, relaxed, transitioning? Natural

What do you hope to achieve from the challenge? I need friggin APL. oh and to get rid of the notion that I have to wear my hair out all the time to look cute.

After wearing your hair out will you restyle after [Pick One] 2 days or 3 days? errr um it might vary depending on what i'm doing, weekend plans, etc.. so both 2 and 3.

Include Starting Pic. (You are not a challenger without a pic).

[MsDee14]

You already know I'm in!



What is your primary style (twists, braids, bunning)?
Twists

What is your style maintenance regimen?
Daily- Spray twists with AVJ mix and seal with either Shea Butter mixed with Coconut oil or plain coconut oil
Weekly-Rinse scalp with water or cowash as needed


Are you natural, relaxed, transitioning?
Transitioning

What do you hope to achieve from the challenge?
Retain all my relaxed ends and maintain healthy hair

After wearing your hair out will you restyle after [Pick One] 2 days or 3 days?
2 days

Include Starting Pic. (You are not a challenger without a pic)
will update with pic later. Just finished twisting my hair and I'm exhausted. (woke up at 7AM to do it)
Thanks @NappyNelle ! You are on the ball!

[MsDee14]

Originally Posted by sj10460

Q: Do all the ladies that did this challenge previously, what changes have you notice in your hair & have you retained more length?

I have retained almost all my length. I have less breakage and my hair is fuller because of that.

Btw- I keep my twists in 2-3 weeks at a time

[shortdub78]

What is your primary style (twists, braids, bunning)? bunning
What is your style maintenance regimen? wash/dc 2x weekly moisturize and seal daily
Are you natural, relaxed, transitioning? relaxed
What do you hope to achieve from the challenge? retention
After wearing your hair out will you restyle after [Pick One] 2 days or 3 days? i wear my hair out on wash day so every 3-4 days
Include Starting Pic. (You are not a challenger without a pic). my starter pic is in my siggy!

[Nubenap22]

I'm trying to talk a friend into braiding my hair now

[NappyNelle]

YAAAAAAAAAAAAAY!! We have an awesome turnout already! Welcome (and welcome baaack) challengers! I'm loving all of these photos!

@youwillrise I fell off from twisting for the whole month of June! I basically bunned, french rolled, and did braid outs this whole time. I'm expecting to be back in my twists by the middle of July though. Loose hair can be too much work on my lazy (and humidity-filled) days.

Originally Posted by sj10460

Q: Do all the ladies that did this challenge previously, what changes have you notice in your hair & have you retained more length?

[QUOTE=MeowMix;16300933]@sj10460 I am a slow grower. But, the thing I've noticed with this challenge is that my hair is MUCH thicker. Probably because I'm not manipulating it as much. Hopefully one of our length stars will chime in

@sj10460 I've also noticed that my hair seems to be thicker since wearing twists and finger combing. I like to wear twists because I can keep the same set in for 3+ weeks if I want to, and I'm more likely to retain length. Twists and buns also make me more conscious of babying my edges and sealing my ends. In January, I was BSL, and now I'm full BSL/grazing MBL. I take lots of medication, that can cause shedding and hair loss, so I try to do everything I can to keep what I have!

Originally Posted by Je Ne Sais Quoi

Thanks for the tag. i so wish i could bun my hair but it's still way to short unless i straighten and I aint' straightening for another 6 months. I will try the twists again but i'll be a lurking challenger. I enjoy my twist outs and wash n go's way to much

@Je Ne Sais Quoi Feel free to pop in with questions or suggestions, and we'd love to cheer you on as you grow your hair back!

Originally Posted by -PYT

So I took my braid out and put my hair into a bun right...that was a lil struggle...i'm not used to bunning, and want my edges slick, but don't want my hair dried out by gel so I just may stick to twists, but hell, idk lol. Just ranting. tomorrow is the start so i'll see how I feel about bunning throughout this wk

Originally Posted by Rocky91

^^try a pomade or butter instead of gel.
or you could cut your gel with moisturizer or serum or oil. a lil castor oil underneath my ecostyler leaves my hair quite soft.

@-PYT I agree with @Rocky91. Mixing the gel with oil or pomade will help to get you "slicked" without drying your hair out. I should have done that yesterday. My edges were just... I'll just admit that you all would me.

@AtlantaJJ Come back!

@NaturalTaurus Welcome to the forum!

[NappyNelle]

Stolen Inspiration Pictures:

Originally Posted by Rocky91

i did this on friday.
i'm in the twist/braid/bun challenge, so i am trying. lawd help me-i really prefer my hair out.
but this was cute enough so i'll do it again.
Did a protein treatment, cowashed, added shea moisture curl smoothie, and too much coconut oil. a lil ors edge control on the edges.


haha you get a glimpse of my boo's arm and his "wtf you doin" face.

Originally Posted by bajandoc86

Did a twist out of the flexirod set on my bang.

Aren't these women fabulous?!

[AtlantaJJ]

I like this challenge but I have to hide my hair during the work week because I'm participating in a workout challenge. I workout in the mornings, and I sweat like a horse now that it's summer so I slap on my lace wig and go to work. I wear my twist outs, etc on the weekends.

I want to hang out here with you ladies and learn how I can wear my hair out more and remain active. That's my biggest challenge.

[AHeadOfCoils]

What is your primary style (twists, braids, bunning)?
Twists

What is your style maintenance regimen?
Shampoo, DC, tension blowdry and twist every 10-14 days. Longer if in mini-twist

Are you natural, relaxed, transitioning?
Natural

What do you hope to achieve from the challenge?
I hope to retain all of my growth and stay out of my hair.

After wearing your hair out will you restyle after [Pick One] 2 days or 3 days?
2 days.

Include Starting Pic. (You are not a challenger without a pic).
I will update after I blow dry my hair in a few minutes.

[TopShelf]

Washed this morning with Trader Joe's tea tree shampoo, then used the Giovanni smooth as silk xtreme protein treatment, washed that out and deep conditioned with the Beautiful textures rapid repair deep conditioner...washed that out and rinsed with tea tree oil, acv and cool water. Oiled my scalp with nature's blessing grease and added some castor oil. used the qhemet amla and oilve heavy cream to moisturize and sealed with oilve and honey hydrating balm

I didnt' use steam but I may wash again on wed and deep condition with steam

[NappyNelle]

Pictures from April through June:

Originally Posted by NappyNelle

1. Two strand twists are my primary style. I like to wear them pinned up, or wavy via bantu-knots. I also like to bun now with banana clips.

2. I moisturize and seal as needed. I like to use Oyin's Frank Juice or Juices & Berries to spritz, then seal with hemp seed oil. I also like to use castor oil on my ends for further protection. I massage my scalp with sulfur oil or pomade 3-4x a week.

3. I'm a nappy-kinky-coily-curly natural!

4. I hope to maintain styling ease and growth retention during this challenge. I need to baby my edges and my ends in order to reach my hair goals.

5. Usually, I wear my twists for 3-4 weeks at a time, so I will take a week long break between twisting sessions. During that week, I wear braid outs, pin ups, and buns. If I take a time out from twists, I will wear buns and french rolls.

July 1 Stats:



(After humidity, sweating, and sprinkles at a BBQ)



(Banana Clip Bun + Hair Jewelry. I did not smooth my edges with oil, pomade, or gel like I should have. No one will see this except for y'all.)

Currently: Full BSL/Grazing MBL

[-PYT]

Took my bun out when I got home from work. I love the look of top knots but chile, my hair is so thick it just wants to expand so I'd have to be flat ironed to achieve it lol I felt like my scalp was set free when I took out the elastic

[MsDee14]

Great starting pics ladies!

@Tibbar Love the thickness and the curled ends of your twists. I can't wait until I'm 20 months post like you :-)
@TopShelf You're making me want to do some minibraids now
@MeowMix I think your cornrows look nice..not meh or ick..lol I bet clipped up and a cute hair accessory will spice them up to your liking!
@SliMJim How long have you been natural/relaxer free? You have some nice growth and your hair looks healthy
@bajandoc86 I am soo looking forward to your styles. I need some inspiration!!
@Victoria44 your mini twists are to die for. I am in hair heaven right now. lol
@MaraWithLove loving the color in your hair
@PYT the thickness of your hair is amazing. Love your twists!
@Rocky91 Your starting pic is beautiful. Loving your thick ends
@NappyNelle Can I borrow some of your hair? Each and every one of your styles are beautiful. I LOVVVVVVVVVVVVEEEE that hair jewelry...so pretty and I also love the banana clip updos.

Good luck on this challenge ladies! :-)

[MsDee14]

These are some of my twists styles from the last challenge.
For this challenge, I am planning on doing flat twists up-do's since I have never done those before.

Sorry for the attachments, I'm too lazy to re-size and post directly to the post,

[Rocky91]

^^your twists are very pretty!!
perhaps you and other twisting veterans can help me. i want to start this challenge off with twists. right now, i'm working with big, stretched and moisturized hair from a bantu knot failure.
i have fine hair. is it better to twist on the hair as it is or should i cowash and do it on damp hair? which gives a fuller look?
i will prolly just go ahead and do it out of laziness. but i'd like to know for future reference.

[MsDee14]

Originally Posted by Rocky91

^^your twists are very pretty!!
perhaps you and other twisting veterans can help me. i want to start this challenge off with twists. right now, i'm working with big, stretched and moisturized hair from a bantu knot failure.
i have fine hair. is it better to twist on the hair as it is or should i cowash and do it on damp hair? which gives a fuller look?
i will prolly just go ahead and do it out of laziness. but i'd like to know for future reference.

Thank you!

Because I'm still 80% relaxed, I prefer to twist on more textured hair such as a braid or twist out. So if I twist on wash day, I air dry in braids or large twists..then twist my hair. Since your hair is already big and stretched..I would go ahead and twist it. I believe you will still get a full look.

I'm hoping other ladies will chime in.

eta: just followed your blog!

[chocolat79]

I'm in, but won't be able to post a pic until tomorrow which is when I get my hair twisted. I'll return with a pic and answer the questions then.