Three Month Length Check

Two Inches of Growth! Go me!

For the next three months I plan on continuing my wash n gos. I also will be doing twist outs and buns. Oh...and I will only be straightening my hair for Thanksgiving and Christmas.

I would like to incorporate other methods to help with my hair growth. I plan on experimenting with black tea rinses (which are known to be superb for minimizing hair shedding). I would also like to to try Aloe Vera Juice to help with detangling (a nightmare at times!) 

Length Check

I recently got a trim at the Hair Cuttery. Lost about two inches off of my hair. But I will take healthy hair any day over split ends.

Currently at the 8" mark

And for the comparison, this is where I was before the trim (at the 10" mark)

Hopefully some good tlc, weekly deep conditioners, moisture, protein, and the whole nine yards will get me back to where I was and beyond!

DIY Length Check Shirt

I made a length check t-shirt! I was inspired by one of my favorite Instagramer's: CurlyCurves.

Length Check shirts are a great way to keep track of your progress. To make sure that the regimen that you are using is helping your hair to grow healthy and long. One of the problems with my hair, (i believe that I have mentioned this before) is that the bottom of my hair breaks off like crazy! I have been trying to take care of this part so that it will catch up to remaining parts of my hair. The extra TLC is finally paying off I must say!

These shirts can be bought or you can make them yourself. I have been turning into a DIY Queen lately. So of course this project intrigued me. I am glad to share it with you all.

See the video below to find out how I made this shirt:

And here are my results...*drumroll*

Unstretched

Stretched

Year End Results...

These pictures mark my progress from January 2011 to December 2011. This is the first year that I have truly embraced being natural. I'm excited, I really didn't think I made much progress this year. I guess I can attribute my results to:

1) Moisturizing and sealing
2) Using Henna
3) Not overusing/abusing heat
4) Deep conditioning weekly
5) Using Low Manipulation and Protective Styling

Soooooooo....Can I officially claim BSL?

Length Check Pictures

I'm itching to claim BSL, but I'm going to wait until I'm actually at the bottom of the bra strap to get excited. My length check comparisons are from the end of May to the middle of August. My SO asked for me to straighten my hair this weekend for his birthday, so I bit the bullet and straightened it. It only lasted for two days though with the humidity and the rain. I'm going to try to stretch my next heat treat to October or November. I'm happy to see that I am slowly but surely making progress in my hair journey! The nice part about these pictures is that both were taken within a day or two of a trim.

(BTW, the reason I am stretching my hair in the picture on the right is because I did not straighten the roots and also because the humidity caused my hair to shrink a bit. The picture on the left is from when I got my hair straightened at the Dominican Salon...it was bone straight, no need for stretching.)

 My curls...before they disappeared :*(