Soooo sorry!

Sorry, curly girls! I haven't been posting, been busy with my other 7 blogs. But I'm back!
And I have to say, the Curly Girl routine was a failure. An absolue failure.
My hair is greasy, limp, etc. Washing it with conditioner only once a week is not a good idea. So, be warned, it doesn't work. Right now I'm thinking of trying the Lush Hybrid Shampoo & Conditioner Bar. It's not specifically for curly hair, but the main ingredient is cocoa butter, which is super mosturizing. Now that it's getting colder, I'm going to have to start putting in some winter protection. Here's what I'm going to try:

1. I'm going to bring leave in hand cream everywhere, so if my hair feels a bit dry, I can put some in.
2. I'm going to get some gel. By putting gel or serum in you're sealing off your hair so it can't frizz up in the rain.
3. Wear a hat! This isn't anything to do with curly hair, but did you know you lose the most heat through your head?
4. Lots and lots of mosture. But what's new?

A sorry tale

Olive oil is supposed to be great for your hair. So I put some in my hair. After 5 hours, I decided to wash it out. So, first I rinsed it. That didn't work. So then I washed it. Didn't work. So tehn I rinsed it with vinegar. Didn't work. So, I left it. The next day, I looked like the bride of frankenstein. I went around with a hat on all day. So, that evening, I rinsed it once more with vinegar, rinsed it twice, and then washed it, and hoped it would come out. It did. My hair was lovely and silky and smooth. But I don't care! It was awful. If you're planning on dressing up as Frankenstein's wife, or being a hermit for two days, by all means do put olive oil in your hair. Otherwise? N-O.

Wow!!!!!

So, today, I started in the Curly Girl routine, by only washing my hair with conditioner. When I was finished, I realised I had LOADS of product buildup in my hair---sunscreen (well, I had to protect my hair somehow!), hand cream, and the shampoo from when I didn't rinse properly. SO I mixed a teaspoon of malt vinegar with a teaspoon of water and rinsed my hair with it. Then I put in some hand cream. My hairs dry now and W-O-O-O-W! My hair is bouncy, less frizzy, and altogether lovely! Yay!!!

Atoosa Rubenstein, you are BAD!!!!!!!!

http://naturallycurly.com/curlcolumns/articles.php?id=255&PHPSESSID=3eb5bad1643da00c40c6b8dd6539a33b

I never read Seventeen, but any curly girl who does, boycott it! Or should that be curlcott?
That's it! I'll post people we should curlcott!!!! Seventeen is the first thing to be curlcotted. I think it's absolutely terrible. I mean, for godsake, don't we curly girls have enough problems without magazine editors saying curly hair is unprofessional?! So, I say curlcott Seventeen magazine and strike a blow for curly girls!!!!

My curly rules:

Well, after trawling through millions of websites to find help, I've got quite a bit of know-how! Here are the tips that I use daily, so try them and notice the difference!

1. Always use a mosturizing shampoo and conditioner. Contrary to popular belief, more moisture does NOT make your hair less curly. But it does make your hair less frizzy.
2. Never ever ever EVER use clasped hairbands. Everytime I use them, and huge clump of hair gets pulled out. Good thing I never tie my hair back.
3. Don't even try to get your hair under control. You will never get it back in a nice neat ponytail---so stop dreaming. Buy lots of hairbands to keep your hair off your face instead.
4. Do NOT under any circumstances dye your hair. Curly hair is dry enough without adding to it with chemicals! If you really want a change, try henna.
5. Experiment with different products. If you can't find testers, you can usually get small bottles. Get lots of different products, and see how they work. Use the best ones---and say you found 2 conditioners that worked perfectly, you could get them both! Just alternate them.
6. Leave in conditioner and hand cream are a curly girls best friend.
7. I find it's best to wash my hair in the evenings, rather then the mornings. After I've slept on it it's usually more tame. Plus, my hair is super thick and takes ages to dry---the case with a lot of curly haired girls.
8. Stop envying girls with straight hair. I'm pretty sure they must have problems with their hair, too. Right?
9. When you book an appointment with a hairdresser, ask for a stylist who knows about curly hair. The only time I ever got a good haircut was when a curly girl styled me.
10. DON'T listen to the hairdresser! That same stylist I just mentioned told me I'd have to blowdry my hair to get it to look right. I told her no. She said that you have to put a bit of elbow grease in for a nice haircut. I said NO. Well, what would she know? She straightened her hair!
11. Curly girls can still have fringes/bangs. They look surprisingly nice curly, as long as they're side ones. I'm speaking from experience here!
12. If you DO want your fringe/bangs straight, them wet them and put in hand cream or gel before you go to bed. Tie a scarf REALLY tight around your head. Works for me!
13. Hair-dryers and straighteners are your worst enemy. They dry out your hair, extreme style. If you must dry, use a diffuser on a cold setting.
14. Just learn to love it!

BAD quote...

Curly vs. Straight:

"Well, this brought out a flurry of opinions! Females as a rule preferred straight hair because they could always make it curly if they wanted to.

Most found that curly hair was a "nightmare" to care for, although they admitted that you always want the opposite of what you have."

I don't know WHO they were talking to, but "a nightmare"? Yes, curly hair needs a little more attention, but it doesn't have to be a nightmare!

You can read the whole article at http://www.hairboutique.com/tips/tip459.htm

Check out this site...

In my quest to get as much help as possible with my curly hair, I went to Google and found these sites:
http://www.bbc.co.uk/slink/fashion/index.shtml?page=hair&sub=curly
Nothing new here, but it's nice to have all the tips in one place.
http://www.curlyhair.net/
Tons of curly hairstyles---must see before you get your hair cut!
http://www.howtodothings.com/fashion-and-personal-care/a2628-how-to-find-curly-hair-care-products.html
Quite good article, but I don't agree that you have to buy a whole line from a brand. It's best to mix and match---that's the best way to find great gel, shampoo, cobditioner, etc.
http://www.curls.biz/curlyq-apr05.htm
7 curly girl rules. Again, nothing new, but nice to have them in one place.

Some of these sites might help you in a quest for nice frizz-free curly hair...and they might not. Oh, well!

Gr8 Quote...

"Learn to appreciate your curly hair by looking at a great role model with curly hair."
~Bobbi Brown~
So, who's your curly haired role model?
To get you started, here are a few cool curly girls:
Meg Cabot, famous authoress.
Michele Jaffe, totally great advice giver. (michelejaffe.blogspot.com)
Teen Fashionista, AKA Casey of teenfashionista.com
Lorraine Massey, author of Curly Girl.
Julia Rizzo, writer of Curly Teen Scene @ naturallycurly.com

Arrggh!!

So, according to my favvvvvvvvvvvourite website of all time, Naturally Curly, you shouldn't go to a hairdresser that specialises in straight hair, but one that specalises in curly. Also, curly hair shouldn't be cut wet.

So THAT'S where it all went wrong.
But HOOOOW will I find a curly hairdresser? There's none where I live!
Well, I think I'll just get one of those mags that have loads of pics of hairstyles, and pick the curly ones I like.




Maybe THEN it'll work.

Reader Question...

OK, Hannah asked me what products I reccomend, and does hand cream really work? The answer is YES. I use JASON Rosewater & Glycerine Hand & Body Lotion on my hair, and it's sooo calmed down the frizzies! Now for my product reccomendations...Hmm. First of all, olive oil (!) is great for hot oil treatments. Put some in a glass, put it in a bowl of water, and when it's warm slather on your hair, leave for 20 mins, then wash off. Definitely get the lotion I just mentioned...the change in my hair is astounding! I'm not sure if you can buy it any more, but Herbal Essences Leave in Conditioners work great. Personally, the Aveda ranges of hair gels are the only thing that work on my mop. Naturallycurly.com has some great reccomendations, so you might want to check them out. Bye!

Lorraine Massey

Here's another cool curly girl for ya: Lorraine Massey, author of Curly Girl. Coming across her at the "Ask the Expert" column @ Naturally Curly this month, she sounded sooo cool I decided to check her out. So, after a Google search, I found this article: http://www.ylcf.org/gotcurl/curlycare.htm. It explains the basic principles of Lorraine Massey's book, and I, for one, am going to give them a try.

EDIT: I just went and looked at the "curly stories" on that website, and they suck! They're all saying "I decided to grow my hair long because men like that better". WHAT?! I'm not going to change my hair for ANY guy! I love my hair, and I'll do what I like with it!! I'm SOOOO disgusted...Just read the article I linked, and then leave!

What curl do YOU have?

There are three types of curl:

• Botticelli curl: If you go to Google Images, type in Botticelli, pictures will come up of his paintings, which feature curly girls. I have this particular type of curl.
• Corkscrew: This is the most common type of curl. You'll be able to tell if you have it.
• Wavy: You have gorgeous thick waves, and you'll know about them.

Hey, it helps to be informed!

OK, this rocks!

read this: http://www.naturallycurly.com/curlcolumns/articles.php?id=2833&PHPSESSID=ce739c27a774f8d69690503c028dda70 now.

Back?
Doesn't she ROCK?! I'm telling you, we curly girls need more people like her!!!!

Phew

I don't have to tie my hair back for school. Good. I'll just shove it behind a hairband.
But, you're only allowed natural make-up. This does not make sense. Make-up is not natural.

Is lipgloss natural?

And then the jewellery. IF YOU INSIST IN PUTTING ME IN A UNIFORM, AT LEAST LET ME ACCESSORISE IT. 2 rings, 1 pair earrings, 1 small chain. Um, I don't own rings, my ears aren't pierced, and who wears a small chain?! This sucks. And I have to wear a skirt. Nothing wrong with that, but what about the Winter? HeLLo????? I am so going on the student coucil and making them change this. I have rights!
(To wear lipgloss and badges...)

I'm not going to straighten it, OK?

I am sick, sick, sick, sick, sick, sick, sick, sick, sick, of articles about how to straighten your hair. I'm not going to, OK? Things like:

• Straight hair looks glamourous
• Don't worry, you can straighten out your curly hair

All sicken me. I love my curly hair, OK? And no one is going to change that. Curly hair may not be neat, tidy, or glamourous (apparently) but it's ME. Got that?

Hand Cream

can be a curly girls best friend. I'm serious. Hand cream has been the only thing that has ever made my curly hair softer. So, next time you wash your hair, stick in some hand cream.