Chocolate Hair / Vanilla Care : Natural hair care for kids, adoption, and family life.

September 30, 2011

Family Friday: CH/VC Is in "The Loop"

I love to read, and I love to learn. I also believe that the more informed I am, the more informed my parenting choices will be for my daughter, especially when it comes to issues that are important to African Americans. Once source of such information is The Loop 21, "An online community and resource created to reflect the depth and breadth of the American experience in the 21st Century by reflecting the African-American perspective."

The Hairs a thought Naturalista Deployment Drive

I know many of you have already heard of this, but for those who haven't I apologize for my tardiness in sharing it. I was waiting for approval from the organizers to repost their information. Our wonderful friends over at "Hairs a thought" have organized this donation event to help give back to our United States troops who have been so diligently serving us. Please see below for all the details, and be sure to check out Hairs a thought's Facebook Page. The deadline is October 1st, so if you want to participate get those products out today! They are also in need of money to help cover the cost of shipping items. See below for details, or contact hairsathought@gmail.com, for further information.

Do You Have a Personal Hair Fantasy?

(photo by Fabian Bromann)

Do you have a personal hair fantasy? I do. And I've pretty much done it all with my own hair. I have had red, blond, orange, brown, black, and even blue hair. I've had it buzzed off, and down past my booty. It's been spiral and piggy-back permed, and totally straightened. You'd think that by now I would have exhausted most of the possibilities. And yet there is one thing that I've always wanted to try, but have been too chicken to do so.

How We Decide When to Restyle

This post is not only an update of Boo's "All Around Flat Rope Twists" from last week, but also a testimony that she, too, get's fuzzies in her hair. They happen. They are a fact of life in our house and the question comes down to, how many fuzzies am I willing to live with before I decide to restyle?

Family Friday: When Girl Meets Kitten

For those who know Boo, this meeting will not come as any surprise. For those who do not, I believe this sweet, simple encounter will speak volumes. However understated it was, Boo's reaction to meeting Elphaba, her new kitten, was both expected and delightful.

Flat Rope Twist How-To Video

Thank you everyone for encouraging me with the videos. I'm very new to YouTube and I'm definitely not used to having to speak about what I'm doing while doing hair! One of these days I'll get the hang of it. This video will show you how to do a flat rope twist (not to be confused with a flat twist).

The All-Around Flat Rope Twist

If you're looking for an awesome protective style that you can get a couple week's wear out of, look no further! I am a huge fan of flat rope twists for several reasons (see, "Flat Rope Twists" for instructions on how to do them). First, they don't pull too tightly on the head. Second, they are just as versatile as cornrows. Lastly, they do not get nearly as fuzzy as regular flat twists or cornrows because of the extra step of twisting the two sections individually before twisting them over each other. And with a three-year-old, we need all the help we can get in that department!

Family Friday: Remembering Those Whom Nobody Knew

Since entering September, I've been struggling with writing this post. I knew that I was going to do it. I knew what day it was going to post. I just wasn't sure how I wanted to approach it. However, when I boiled it down to the very basics, the one thing that I really wanted to do was wish a happy birthday to our son who, had he been born alive, would be five years old today.

Twisted Up-Do Remix: Front Twist-Out

Can I just say that I absolutely love this style? Is that wrong? I hope not. This is five days after I set the original Twisted Up-Do for Boo's first week back to preschool. She wore the style in it's original form on Monday, and is wearing this remix to school for today.

Product Review: Happy Nappy Styles

This week we did some two-strand twists and I knew I needed a good product that was going to hold those twists while keeping them moisturized. I have tried a few products that meet my needs, but the one that works best right now on Boo's hair is Happy Nappy Styles by Blended Beauty.

Back-to-School Twisted Up-Do

I was very much inspired for this style by Roshini over at Glamazini. I liked the versatility of it and, although Boo's hair isn't nearly as thick as hers, I figured I could work with it. What I liked most about it was how she wore it differently throughout the week, which I am hoping to do with Boo for her first week back at preschool. In terms of styling, it was incredibly easy to do.

Family Friday: Reflecting On a New Year of Preschool

When Boo started preschool last year, it was a mere week after I started this blog. I really didn't think it was appropriate to cover controversial topics so early in the game. However, having had a year to reflect on that first day I am revisiting it, perhaps to find closure as this new year begins.

Celebrating One Year: My Favourite Posts

Whoo hoo! I made it! Given the fact that 60-80% of blogs fail within their first month (i.e., people stop doing them for one reason or another) I am pleased to be celebrating my one-year anniversary of Chocolate Hair / Vanilla Care today. Many thanks to each and every one of you for being so supportive over this past year. I couldn't have made it without all of your encouragement.

I'd like to take this time to highlight a few of my favourite posts form this past year. For those who have been with me since the beginning, may you enjoy this stroll down memory lane. For those who came a few months back, maybe you'll find a few you missed along the way. And for those who are relatively new, buckle up!

(photo by Timothy K Hamilton)

Thank you to everyone who entered the giveaway! Adding together the comments below with those comments entered via mobile devices on the old comment form, we had a total of 110 people enter.

The winning number was:

Inspirational Message Monday: Abby & Ebony

(photo by Ffîon)

This post concludes the series where we've asked women with natural hair to take a trip back in time and share with us a positive and encouraging message regarding natural hair from when they were children. We so very often hear the horror stories so I thought it would be great if we could share some of the loving ones. May this series serve as an inspiration to new mothers, or anyone for that matter, who may be feeling a bit overwhelmed about caring for natural hair.

Single Puff with Protective Flat Rope Twist

After banding Boo's hair for the last couple of days, I finally took it out and let her bounce around the house with her "long" hair. Although I rarely pull Boo's hair back into a single puff or ponytail, due to the banding her hair was flat enough to gather together without much pulling. And as usual, I always try to protect the hairline by either cornrowing or flat-twisting the front of the hair.

Family Friday: My Blog Family (and Giveaway)

(photo by Timothy K Hamilton)

THIS GIVEAWAY HAS ENDED
I can't believe next Wednesday, September 7, 2011, will mark my one-year bloggiversary. Honestly, it feels like I've been doing this forever, mostly meaning that I cannot really remember not writing this blog. That's probably, in part, because I have been personally blogging since 2006. However, it was almost one year ago that I decided to separate out a lot of the hair and adoption stuff, making that part public, and turning it in to what is now Chocolate Hair / Vanilla Care. Then came all of you. And I couldn't be more grateful.

Banding: Stretching and Lengthening Curls Without Heat

Banding is a well-known, yet very simple, technique to lengthen curls in the hair without using a blow dryer or flat-iron. Boo's hair is very tightly coiled, so banding works wonders when I want to stretch her hair out. No, it doesn't take all the curl out of the hair. But it does make afros a little bigger and fuller. It can also stretch the curl pattern, making it easier to work with when styling.