Allow Me To Introduce You To The Mystery That Is My Hair

I get so many questions about my hair. I'm mistaken for Dominican, Guyanese, Haitian and Puerto Rican almost on a daily basis, and I'm pretty sure the hair is what throws people off. I've also been asked if I'm from Jamaica, St. Thomas and Barbados. Nope. I'm American and so are both of my parents. How did my sister, father and I manage to grow this stuff? I have absolutely no idea. I don't consider my hair long, but I have been charged extra in hair salons.

This how my hair looks now when it's freshly washed. It's a few inches shorter than usual, still recovering from the last pruning. I don't know if you can tell, but it's been relaxed. At first I was using Mizani relaxer, but my hair doesn't really respond to it. Now I use Optimum relaxer, and the results are much better. I chose to relax my hair because it was completely unmanageable. An untold number of combs and brushes have lost their lives because my hair snapped them in half. My mom always gave me cornrows when I was younger, but it hurt so much. Plus it gives headaches. I had waist-long braids with weave once, but it was way too heavy and way too expensive. Never again. Before the relaxer, I tried wave nouveau and texturizer; those are all pretty similar. I didn't really like wave nouveau because of the products required to keep it looking good. That stuff smells weird. I liked the texturizer, but every time I had it touched up, my  hair got a little closer to being relaxed. Now I'm all the way there. By the way, I didn't have any chemical treatments until high school. There are relaxers specifically for children, but I won't be doing that to my children if/when I have some. I just don't think it's a good idea.

I have some sort of layers and side bangs going on. When I had the bangs done, I wasn't completely sure what I wanted. Bad idea. Always bring pictures. I'll probably wait until my hair is willing to be straightened (mid-October?) before I get the bangs fixed. I definitely want them shorter, and I want them to cover more of my forehead. Not blunt, though. It's complicated. 

I borrowed my mom's shampoo and conditioner today: Pantene Moisture Renewal 2-in-1 Shampoo & Conditioner and Pantene Fragile-to-Strong Conditioner. I try to stay away from their Relaxed & Natural products, mainly because I'm offended by the brown bottles. I like to try different products. I never buy huge sizes because I hate waiting months for it to run out so I can get something else. For shampoo and conditioner, in addition to Pantene, I've used White Rain, Suave, Organix, Garnier Fructis, Tresemme, Creme of Nature (it's for black people but has different colored bottles), Herbal Essences, Dove and Mane & Tail. I really like them all except White Rain and regular Suave; Suave Professional is much better. Also, Creme of Nature has a weird smell, and I prefer fruity or flowery smells.

For days like today when I don't really care that much about how my hair looks, I'll just use some sort of moisturizer like Motions Hair Lotion (smells great) or Pink Oil Moisturizer (smells weird) to make sure my hair won't be dry and then throw it into some sort of messy bun or clip. Eventually, my scalp will require some special care, either hair grease or oil. There will definitely be more on that later.

I once saw a Youtube video with a woman sitting in her car during her lunch break and having a hardcore rant about black women with long hair. I really wanted to link it here because it was absolutely hilarious. Unfortunately, I can't find it right now, but if I do, I'll definitely post it.