Natural Hair Aficionado and Blogger!
Name: Nicole
Location: Baltimore, MD
Natural Birthday: November 9, 2011
Transitioner?:
Not really- 2/3 months?, I big chopped!
Protective Styler?:
Yup! More than half the time! I loveee my curls, but can’t resist the fun of weaves, wigs, and hair!
Fav Product:
My famous AMAZING, game changing, super awesome, love it forever, never failed me, DIY Crisco Creme (recipe & details here)
Fav Store Product:
Jessicurl Cleansing Cream
Fav Protective Hairstyle: Weaves and UPart Wigs!
Why the blog?: Initially it was just a private blog for me to compile hair progress pics, keep notes on fails/successes, and chart length. After receiving so much in-person interest about my Fro, I realized I should go public, and share what I’ve learned. I wanted a place to share honest, price conscious, accurate hair care info, and be available to help others contemplating, starting, or well into their own natural hair journey. Thus, NapturalNicole was born!
Fav store for Natural Products: Amazon.com
Natural Goals: Maintaining my healthy hair and lifestyle forEVER!
Best Hair Tip:
Listen and Respond to YOUR hair. No two fros are alike- just ask my girl, Zola the Fro’la! 😉
Biggest Natural Hair Mistake: Not using ANY protein for first 3 months! I thought I was ‘protein sensitive’- so WRONG! (Breakage City!)
Thanks for joining me on this Journey- and feel free to submit a pic to napturalnicole@gmail.com- with your answers to the above questions- and be a Featured Naturalista on NapturalNicole.com!
NapturalNicole 
How can a single father convince his little girl to stay natural? I’m always pointing out and complementing natural styles around her and I’ve even given her the whole, “white cultural brainwashing” lecture but I can still tell that she longs for straightened hair.
She’s only 8, but she’s a handful already. She’d go get a perm just to piss me off! haha
Help.
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As if the life of a single parent isn’t difficult enough- tackling the phase where a child matriculates from carefree to hyperaware of social constructs only complicates things further. I applaud your efforts and congratulate you on being a superdad.
Now for the quandary you’re in- regardless of the motivations behind why your little girl should remain natural (and there are MANY beyond political)- you are up against a media superstorm that will be telling her otherwise. The best advice I can offer is to compromise. Show her how to work with her natural hair- inform her that straightening her hair is damaging- much like too much sun for skin (though we are over simplifying here)- and it is in her interest to limit straightening to twice a year (maybe on a holiday and her birthday) and only to be done by a professional as part of a ‘beauty day’ treat.
Give her a ‘mini regimen’ and accessories to doll up her hair- and show her some styles that emphasize that natural hair, doesn’t exactly mean a short afro (I find that most young ladies are concerned with the flowing lengths of ‘Beyonce and Nicki Minaj’ rather than the straightness- and when show that this can be achieved through an ‘elongated twistout or braidout’ natural style- they are more than satisfied.
I highly recommend this website: http://beadsbraidsbeyond.blogspot.com/ for inspirational photos that showcase the beauty of a young girl proudly (and stylishly) wearing her natural hair. Maybe your daughter can pick a look for a special ‘style treat’ from her awesome dad? Only if she finishes all her chores, of course. 🙂
Thank you again for checking out the blog, and bringing up a wonderful topic. Good luck, and I hope I could help!
-N.
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Wow. haha Thanks for the quick reply! That ‘damage’ angle and the compromise sure sound like a winners to me.
Single parenting is def a rough paper route but whatchagonnado? Just have to make it work. The compliments are much appreciated. I’ll be sure to think of them the next time she “takes me there.”
I never thought to use wordpress as anything other than a place to rant and vent until I discovered its blogger community and the wealth of knowledge within. You natural hair gals go hard!
Keep up the good work, and thanks again! I’ll check in with ya again sometime.
–hp
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You’re an excellent writer- glad you’re in the wp community.
**off to ‘go hard’ on some hair bloggin**
😉
-N.
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I absolutely LOVE YOUR HAIR!!!!!! I have learned even more just by reading your journey on CurlyNikki site. I also love your site. I am definetly going to try your mixture. I must admit I made the same mistake about protein. I transitioned for 9 months cutting away a little at a time. I have combination hair (4a, b and c) and low porosity.
It wasn’t until August 2012 that I cut the remaining perm from my hair and starting wearing a twist out. My hair did well til about mid February and it changed…..lol. I couldn’t figure out what my hair was doing. I thought it was shedding…NOT.
It was breaking. I finally tried Palmers Coconut Protein Pack and it did ok. I have spent the last three weeks with my hair up into a ponytail as to not stress my hair. I think I may do this for the summer as with the weather in St. Louis is unpredictable and very humid.
I do have one question. When you seal your hair, do your let your hair air dry and not use heat to set your twist out?
I ususally sit under the dryer to set my hair with the twist out.
I look forward to hearing from you.
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Thanks so much for checking out the blog after reading my RIDICULOUSLY long interview on CurlyNikki! Haha! I just like to give all the details, cause I remember being a newbie natural and wanting to know EVERYTHING!
That said- Yay for joining the curly club! Woo HOO, teamnatural! Haha! Now let’s get to the fro-
First, good job identifying the issue with protein- while palmers is a good product- if you feel your hair is still a bit weak, you may have needed something stronger (especially after 9 months of nothing- been there too!). I recommend Aphogee 2 step Keratin Treatment (not the 2 minute reconstructor- that’s too mild if you’re already experiencing breakage). You can find it in single use packages at the BSS for around $4.99- be sure to follow the instructions EXACTLY- and it will feel immediately stronger.
Second part- So I hear you about St.Louis! I was just there for a few days, 2 weeks ago (did some DAMAGE at Sweetie Pies! Lol)- and the humidity was no joke! My twistout went to full fro in no time. I bunned and braided the majority of the trip. In your case, I would absolutely check to see if the leave in or sealant you are using has any glycerin in it- glycerin in warm weird weather can strip the moisture out if your hair- you may want to skip it. Also, I ALWAYS let my hair airdry. I want it to absorb the moisture, and for my hair cuticles to lay completely flat (can’t have hot air for that!)- if you’re in a rush and need dry twists ASAP- turn on a ceiling fan, or blow dry gently on cold temperature. When you’re just starting out learning your curls- it helps to be no heat, no weaves, no chemicals. Then after you know more about your hair, you can gradually add more hair and fav products back into your regimen! Hope that helps, keep me posted!
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LOL! I think I’ve been stalking your blog all morning! And this maybe my 3 question. My bad!!! I just need some help with my hair and I’m at my wits end! Thoughts of the creamy crack has crept into my mind but I DIGRESS!!!!!! I’ve worked so hard to get 100% natural. I need some help/advise/pointers etc… I have two issues: 1. The ends of my hair feels rough and brittle. I’m not sure why or how to fix this problem. 2. I’m experiencing a lot of breakage I’m not sure if it’s from the aftermath of my pregnancy or what. I did experience some breakage after my 1st child was born but things got back to normal fairly quickly but this time around not so. My hair has started to fall out in my stress spots (I’m not stressed about anything at least I don’t think I am) but doesn’t seem to be filling back in as quickly as it did before. Any advise or pointers you can share would be greatly appreciated! Sorry for all the questions and stalking your blog. Thanks in advance for your help.
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Hahahahaha! I am soooo happy you’re here, and always available to coach any curlie AWAY from the creamy crack! So let’s get those questions answered!:
1. The brittle ends may be damage, and you probably just need a teeny trim. Here’s how I do it:
http://napturalnicole.com/2012/10/03/natural-hair-maintainence-trimming-your-ends/
After your hair has been trimmed you have to be sure you are moisturizing correctly- that means the LOC (liquid, oil, cream method!)- after you use your leave in conditioner, you MUST lock in that moisture with a sealant- I HIGHLY recommend my Crisco Creme mix- it’ll change your hair game:
http://napturalnicole.com/2013/05/03/product-diy-crisco-hair-sealant/
These tips should help your brittle ends a ton!
2. Breakage during pregnancy and afterwards is VERY VERY common and normal. Hormonal changers make natural hair crazy- so that’s why you may be facing patchy breakage. For the thinning spots I recommend Castor Oil applications- and give it some time- with a strong moisturization method above and time, you’ll be fine!
Hope that helps! 😉
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Thanks so much for your response! I do plan to try your Crisco Hair Sealant. Great tip on the dusting method. I never thought about doing that.
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You’re SO welcome- consider me your “Creamy Crack Rehab Counselor!” if you find yourself craving- just come by, and we’ll work it out! 😉 you’ll love the Crisco (the new creamy crack!) 😉
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Thank God for this post. I was very nearly in tears at the state my hair is currently in and was contemplating a big chop again (actually was about to do it but hubby vetoed the chop!). I am going to do this trim (but more like 1.5 to 2 inches) and then do your crisco mix (really hope I can get Crisco in the UK. This natural hair journey is not easy at all, I will stick with it though I just want to get to a stage where I love it. My hair is in protective styles more than out and I have been natural for almost 5 years. I have thin 4b/c hair (so loose curls that do a great short afros but horrible braid/twist outs. It’s getting too long to stay up now so even my go to short afro is not achievable anymore, I just don’t know what styles to do. I comb through blogs, youtube etc try out different styles but without the thickness the styles just do not look that great.
Any help/advise would be greatly appreciated.
Thank you
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Hey love,
I just found your blog today through thenhbd and I just wanted to let you know I’m loving what I see so far! I’ve added you to my RSS Feed and can’t wait to read more of your posts 🙂
Victoria Sallie
http://www.talktresses.com
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YAYYYYY! SOOO glad you’re here- and welcome to team NapNic! Haha! Your blog is pretty fab too- so please be a vocal visitor and share your tips and tricks for Curlies to enjoy! Thanks for coming by! 😉
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