Hair truth or myth?

I thought it would be interesting to explore some of the challenges that women with Sisterlocks who live in the South have. I do not know whether this is a permanent change to my blog or just a topic I will focus on until the next new topic comes along...

Q. Is it true that Texas has hard water?

I've heard Texas has hard water, especially when I went to college in West Texas. At the time I and my friends wore relaxers. Showering and putting on box perms in our dorm rooms were both horrible experiences we thought were related to the water. It wasn't so much the roughness of the water or the realization that we used massive amounts of soap or shampoo just to lather. It was more that we all started looking at each other's hair, noticing that we all had the same texture: very, very rough, and coming to the conclusion that it must be something in the water. (In fact, I lost significant inches of my hair within a few semesters of living in that specific area. I moved to that area with hair that was growing and regularly maintained by my hairstylist.)

A. Yes. Most parts of Texas do have moderate hard to hard water. (In fact, according to my research, hardest waters were measured in streams in Texas, New Mexico, Kansas, Arizona, and southern California.) I looked at water quality reports specifically for Austin, Dallas, Houston, San Angelo, and San Antonio. (You can too. Every city is required to make public their water quality reports annually.) So...what the heck am I talking about, and why should you, a natural hair wearer or Sisterlock wearer, care?

What am I talking about?

As I explain this, please note that hardness of water does not mean the water contains harmful chemicals that should not be consumed by humans or that the water itself is unsafe to drink. Water is hardened by naturally occuring elements, which experts say are harmless as far as consumption is concerned.

Hard water is water with a high dissolved mineral content, while soft water has a relatively low concentrated of dissolved minerals. Hard water contains high levels of calcium, magnesium and iron. I have found that the general guidelines for classification of waters range from soft, slightly hard, moderately hard, hard, and very hard.

Who cares?

You, my natural hair wearer, should.

Greater amounts of soap and shampoo are needed to clean, and hard water doesn't rinse as well as soft water. Calcium, magnesium and iron coat your hair (and the follicles). This buildup makes your hair dull, unmanageable and very dry. Soap residues also remain, leaving hair less shiny. This is in addition to the natural hair type you have being less shiny on its own and tending to be dry. This is in addition to Sisterlocks wanting to hold on to everything....like lint and shampoo....on its own and already needing to rinse Sisterlocks many more times in areas with soft water. This is in addition to shampoo drying out your hair. How much more difficult do these issues become when you live in an area with hard water?

According to my research, moderately hard, hard, and very hard water contain minerals in sufficient amounts to make water softening a viable option.

What can you do to combat the fact that you live in an area with hard water?

To get rid of hard water, either you alter your water or perform extra treatments to your hair to counteract the state of your water. If your water is too hard, you can purchase a water softener. Otherwise, you can use an extra clarifying shampoo and nourishing and moisturizing conditioner to restore health to your scalp and life to your hair. (Remedy information from Livestrong.com). If you are a newbie with Sisterlocks, you know that for now a nourishing creamy conditioner is not the answer until you are farther along in the locked process. At the natural hair event earlier this month, Miss Jessie's briefly spoke about hard water, suggesting that women who live in the Texas area get a water softener or, at the very least, use distilled water to wash and spray their hair.

In conclusion, let me give you an example of how the water hardness numbers read. Very hard water has a general classification starting at 180 parts per million. Right now in San Angelo, Texas, the water is 477 parts per million. 477 parts per million. I guess my college friends and I weren't far off the mark years ago when we said that it must be something in the water!

Natural Ladies Everywhere!

Today NaturallyCurly held their Miss Jessie's Natural Hair Celebration event in Austin, Texas.

I went with two Natural Hair friends.

First, let me say how surprised I was that this event was sold out and the line out the door when we got there....and how surprised I (my friends too) was to see so many ladies with Natural Hair in Austin, Texas.

After a little chatter, we found out not all the ladies lived in Austin....they were just there for the event...but it was still good to see not one relaxer in sight for miles. There were so many different styles....afros, fades, twist outs, braids, french braids, I-don't-knows (that's how some ladies described what their hair did this morning).

Titi and Niko of Miss Jessie's (in picture too) did a wonderful job explaining the joys and woes of Natural Hair and answered so many questions! I took notes in my phone, and was able to get some great information to pass on to all my Natural Hair friends and sisters.

They did not address locks or Sisterlocks, which  I expected because it was "Natural Hair Celebration" and not "Sisterlock Celebration" but they did mention that locks (in general) take a commitment some women may not want to make. I laughed to myself when I heard this, of course, because....well....you can read my post Free Your Hair for my take on why I was laughing....but as a side note, doesn't it take a commitment to wear a relaxer? (You commit to getting them regularly, right? And to free yourself of a relaxer, you, too, have to grow your hair out and eventually cut out the relaxed hair, right? You can't just change relaxer hair to natural hair. Is that not a commitment???)

I was the only one I saw with Sisterlocks, and no one asked about them.

I am still happy to go to the event, though, because it was just down right inspiring to see so many women making the choice to wear natural hair and embrace their natural beauty. Again,  I am not pointing a judgmental finger at anyone without natural hair....I just like natural hair, is all.

I will have to post another writing for all the wonderful things I learned, but I will say this for now:

So many women are looking for a product or "routine" to "fix" their hair to make it look "acceptable" or "good" or "like hers..." Just a thought: products can't fix everything. You see....no matter how much Miss Jessie's products you put on your hair (or anyone else's products for that matter), it will only do so much repairing, maintenance, moisturizing, etc. YOU, my Lady, control the rest. Yep, YOU, and Yep, I said it. What you put into your body affects what grows out of it. Hmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm......Yea, reread that if necessary. You can't feed yourself junk, never exercise, have a deep aversion to water, and then throw on a bunch of natural hair products and expect your hair to look it's best. So...let's get it together. Let's all not neglect the choices we make for our lifestyles.

Phew...alright, I'm done rambling for now. I'm still excited from the event earlier today so I am no doubt rambling.

I will post an update this week that will be more succinct and informative and less opinion-y and rambling.

Phew!

A Day Late

I just thought I would post a picture of how my hair came out after my last attempt to wash, condition, Lotta body, and Soft Spike.

 

As you can see, my hair has a little volume. The curls are not as defined as they were the first time I used the Soft Spike curlers for two reasons: my hair wasn't completely dry when I had to take them out and the picture was taken a day late.

The next time I set my hair, I am going to sit under the dryer, so I make sure my hair is completely dry.


I should also mention here that this time I washed my hair with Suave Daily Clarifying and Sisterlocks starter shampoo each (both diluted) and then the ACV rinse. I then diluted the Sisterlocks moisturizer and applied it to my hair before I separated my locks and rolled and set my hair. You all know how I feel about the Sisterlocks shampoo, but using it wasn't so bad when used before/after the Suave and ACV rinse. I do like the Sisterlock moisturizer. It really hydrated my Sisterlocks, and I was pleased with how my scalp and Sisterlocks looked before I rolled them.

Cool, I think

I thought I'd post a cool pic of my Sisterlocks.


The original picture was a professional picture I took the other week with my family. I have cropped everyone out to show my hair.

There is nothing fancy about the picture, I just like the way my Sisterlocks look from the side like that.

Natural Hair event

OH, is anyone in Austin, Texas going to the Natural hair event on April 23 out North near Burnet? I RSVP'ed, and I would love to meet some other women in the area with Sisterlocks.

Shampoo shampoo Rinse Rinse Soft Spike Curl...repeat

Uh, yeah, nailing down a good hair regime is just down right frustrating. I don't know about anyone else, but it seems that every product many women with Sisterlocks "swear works wonders on Sisterlocks" does the EXACT opposite on my hair.

SO...I do like the Suave Daily Clarifying Shampoo. I diluted it (don't we all dilute everything, including water??? ha!) with 2 parts water because it was still a little too much shampoo-ey for me with half and half. The ACV rinse (apple cider vinegar) worked great, as far as I can tell. My scalp looked clean and felt great. There was no itching after I finished. Now....the Gregg Juice. It works WONDERS on my son's hair...mine, not so much. It really didn't seem to moisturize my Sisterlocks, and it itched. I've tried it more than once on different days....on wet Sisterlocks, dry Sisterlocks....still not a lot of moisturizing and more itching. Am I doing something wrong here?....Lottabody. In fairness, I've used it once. And I probably used it wrong. So I will have to start over and give it a try and see. My first experience with it wasn't all that great though. I think my hair wasn't completely dry when I took out the Soft Spike curlers, but the curls didn't hold. I had them in overnight. My hair looked crinkly...not curled. I had a better curl without using any holding agent...but the problem with that is that the curls lasted like 2 hours. I am going to dilute (here we go again with that word) it next time, put it in a spray bottle, and sit under the dryer and see if I get a better set. I have seen pictures of women who used both Soft Spike curlers and Lottabody....and their Sisterlocks look great, so it must be me.

I did break down and buy the Sisterlock shampoo...again...because after 15 months my hair is not even close to locking in the front. I don't care for the Sisterlock shampoo, but maybe it will speed up the locking process. I also bought the Sisterlock moisturizer. I need moisture ladies!!! So I will keep experimenting until I find something that works for me.

I know this is a lot of hair product talk....but I bring myself back to Earth by reminding myself that one reason I got Sisterlocks was to let my hair do what it wanted to do. ((Products won't make my hair "look like" the woman's Sisterlocks I saw before I got mine.)) I didn't get Sisterlocks to only dump a bunch of products on my hair and "tame it" or make it look like your set of Sisterlocks....So I aim to let my natural hair come through and to use products that maintain the health of my hair.

Healthy hair: that's the goal.

FREE YOUR HAIR

Few people understand real freedom exists in commitment.

Today I heard a woman say, as I have heard many other women say from time to time, that she could "never go natural." Most ladies then add, "You are so brave for going natural. I couldn't do it." (And if I hear one more lady say that they can't go natural because they work in a professional environment where "afros" are not appropriate?! Really?)

Ladies, ladies.

Before we discuss natural hair, let's think of real freedom in commitment in its broadest sense. When people truly love for the sake of what love is (and not lust and not selfishness...what are you going to give me), they are free; that is, they are not bound by expectations, or depending on someone else to make them happy, or adverse circumstances. They aren't controlled or forced. They are free to CHOOSE to love. When one gives his life over to his Savior, a true giving, he feels free; that is, free to obey and serve and be what he feels he was meant to be (and is happy about it).

Committing to maintain natural hair is a similar experience to these. When you decide to not alter your hair with chemicals, or wear your hair in a way that society will accept, or...even further....to wear your hair in locks (Sisterlocks! Yah!), you are FREE....not bound. You are free of society's expectations, free of whatever burdens were placed on you in terms of hair, free of conforming. Your hair is FREE to be what it wants: kinky, tightly coiled, and having a riot on top of your head or soft, wavy, and going every which way. You are FREE to be who you want, and forget what everyone else thinks.

(And the reason for this freedom is because when you do what you were made to do, this makes you most happy. When you allow your hair to remain the way it was made, unaltered, your HAIR is most happy...and healthy and growing.)

....And if all else fails, if you have locks, and you don't like them, you can shave your head, and watch a new full head of hair quickly grow back. Or you can grow your locks out I suppose and start out with new growth. It isn't the end of the world if you change your mind about locks.

Let me speak for me....I FEEL FREE. FREER than any day I wore a relaxer.

So for anyone debating whether to "go natural," consider your freedom. Come join all of us ladies who know what that freedom feels like and are enjoying it!! (And YES an afro can be appropriate in a professional environment, it just depends on how you wear it! I am an editor, worked in the heart of Washington, DC, and I had no problem being taken seriously with an afro on my head!)

FOR WOMEN WHO WEAR RELAXERS: This is not an attempt to bash you for wearing a relaxer. If you choose to wear a relaxer, I just hope this is a conscious choice and NOT a choice someone else chose for you or a choice you feel is your only choice!

I digress.