Jalissa ~A diva in Transition

Meet Jalissa,she considers her journey to be like a fairy tale.





What made you decide to go natural ? What's your story?

My name is Jalissa but, all of the natural hair lovers can call me NaturalBella. I chose that name because my natural hair story is similar to a fairy tale.
I decided to go natural because I wanted to embrace my natural beauty. I grew up with beautiful natural hair until my mother smacked a perm in my hair.During my childhood I never really knew the true beauty of my hair until I became a teen & was able to style my own hair.I was never good with the curling iron or flat iron ,so I decided to do something unique to my hair for high school ,not only because I couldn't use curlers but also because I love to stand out. At school almost every girl was rocking straight hair so I decided to rock big hair. I washed my hair & picked it out. I added some s curl to it & oil sheen. Went to school & I got great complements from everyone I seen. that's when I fell in love with my natural hair.


Have you told anybody? (friends,spouse,family members) What do they think? Is there any negative feed back?

I told everyone that I was going natural. I was so excited about transitioning. I asked my Facebook family what they think about me going natural & I got alot of good feedback & a few negative. I made a YouTube video called, "My hair Relationships" It expressed my struggles during the transition & my cry for hair tips. My mother blames herself for putting a perm in my hair. She say it was a bad idea and she supports me on my natural hair journey. My boyfriend is super loving & supportive. He says i will look good with a afro & even a bald head. Lol. I have full support from both family & friends.


What styles are you currently using to transition?

The styles that I am currently using is a simple bun. I tried quick weave & micros but, they never last. The micros only lasted for three weeks & the quick weave lasted only three days!!! So I still need some tips ladies.


What products are you using to moisturize your hair while in transition?

The products I use to moisturize my hair is some natural hair lotion I think is called GOLD & some curl activator gel because I hate black gel.



There are a lot of challenges that come with transitioning ,what are some of yours?

The challenges that I have been having during my natural hair transition is finding the right hair protection that will last. My next option is to buy a few wigs.


Do you plan to BC? (Big Chop) if so ,When?

I don't wanna do the BC because I don't have the patience to wait for my hair to grow back out full again. I LOVE MY BIG BEAUTIFUL NATURAL HAIR I will just trim my ends every 2 weeks.



What are your long term goals for your hair?

I want to be natural forever & I thank God for sending me to these wonderful & helpful sites. Much love to you Angie for this great blog. Much love to every lady who posted hair videos & much love to the Natural Sunshine site.
May God continue to bless you all! <3 NaturalBella

Cristine ~ A diva in Transition

Meet Cristine,her decision to go natural is not only for healthier hair, it will also help her with her confidence level.



What made you decide to go natural ? What's your story?

I got my first relaxer at age 11 for my sixth grade graduation. I was never on a schedule with my relaxers (every 8 weeks or anything like that) so I learned how to stretch a relaxer from an early age. My mother has always been good about teaching me how to take care of my hair, but of course as I started to do my hair on my own, what I wanted took precedence and I allowed heat and relaxers to damage my beautiful mane. I live in Maryland (outside of Washington, DC) and go to school in Rhode Island. Having to stretch my relaxers 3 and 4 months at a time (when I didn't get my friend to relax my hair) opened my eyes to how beautiful my natural hair really is. I miss my hair! but I would always revert to a relaxer because I didn't have the time to really focus on styling my hair (doobies worked wonders for the busy college life style; wash-blow dry-flat iron-wrap : that would keep me at minimum for a week). Now I am studying abroad in London until June and I made the decision to not get any relaxers (I'm on a budget and I cannot do them myself! Never learned, never wanted to either). One of my Sorors recently went fully natural and I spend too much time adoring her hair pictures on Facebook LOL. I started thinking, praying, researching and decided that it was time for me to do the ultimate relaxer stretch and go natural. I love my hair, I want it to be healthy, and I'm so tired of society telling me what my hair should look like. The African-American community at my predominately white school is small and very conservative in terms of hair. It may not be obvious, but in conversations and observations I've had, I feel that many of the African American women have very limited views of the beauty of their hair. I decided that my hair is 'good hair' relaxed or not.

Have you told anybody? (friends,spouse,family members) What do they think? Is there any negative feed back?

I've told my friends and most of their reactions have been supportive. They've asked a lot of questions, mainly why. I've had one negative reaction from someone who is very attached to her relaxers. It hurt me and it made me angry, but most importantly it made me really look inside myself as to why I wanted to do this. And I realized that it was a personal decision for me, by me, and as long as I was fine with it, the decision stood.
I keep a blog while I'm in London and I recently wrote about my decision; my family reads it so I'm interested in hearing what they have to say next time we talk... I was/am very nervous to have the conversation with them because we take pride in our appearance (and there is nothing wrong with that!) But I'm known to be strong-willed and once I put my mind to something, I'll do it, so they have no choice but to support my decision

What styles are you currently using to transition?

I've been wearing buns and bantu knot outs. I've always liked to wear buns (when my hair is long enough) and the bantu knot out is my favorite transitioning style that I've tried. I love the results and I get lots of compliments when I wear the curls :-) (my picture is of my most recent bantu knot out)

What products are you using to moisturize your hair while in transition?

I'm still experimenting with products, especially since I'm in a foreign land! I've been doing hot oil treatments and deep conditioning - deep conditioners do wonders for my hair. I recently discovered that my hair does not like a lot of olive oil, so I will be looking for an alternative.

There are alot of challenges that come with transitioning ,what are some of yours?

My biggest challenge right now is confidence. Even when I wore relaxed hair I had this issue because I stuck to a few styles, so when I would try a new style, I would be very self-conscious and not really know if I liked it, if it looked good on me, etc. My transition to natural is about a lot more than my hair, but an overall transition to a healthier me - physically, mentally, and emotionally. Lots of people view me as this very self-confident, unwavering spirit because I hold a lot of leadership positions on campus and I'm always in the spotlight... but the insecurities are there. It's a daily battle.

Do you plan to BC? (Big Chop) if so ,When?

Oh no! I don't think I have the head or face shape to BC, LOL. I'm planning on a complete transition to natural. I'm focusing my transition on hair growth because I would like to be fully natural by my 21st birthday (August 27, 2010), but we'll see. I've had short (chin length, relaxed) hair twice in my life, so I know my hair can grow... I just needed to get away from the dangerous, chemical induced breakage. So the only chopping I will be doing is chopping off relaxed ends one or two inches at a time.

What are your long term goals for your hair?

I would love to be able to wear my hair in a big curly afro one day! I have a picture of my grandmother with a big curly afro and I absolutely love it. I'd love to rock a BAA for a while. But other than that, I just want my hair to be happy and healthy. It's been a while since she's been both.

Claudia ~ Before and After

Meet Claudia, Not even the negative comments from her family would stop her from doing what she always wanted to do.




How long were you thinking of going natural? Whats the story ?

I thought about going natural since I was about 15 years old (I am now 20). I would always imagine what my natural hair would look like whenever I looked at pictures of myself before my mother started relaxing my hair. At one point in high school I actually went 8 months without a perm (the longest ever without a perm), but the only problem was that I didn't know one thing about caring for relaxed hair, so what could I possibly know about caring for natural hair. I ended up perming my hair after the 8 months and didn't think about going natural until my sister went natural May 2009. She was my motivation and inspiration to actually follow through. So my last perm was August 2009 and I did my BC February 4, 2010.

Was your transition a long or short one?

I would say that my transition was average. I transitioned for about 6 months when I finally got tired of the two textures, the straight hair on the top and the natural hair on the bottom.

We all know how important it is to moisturize our hair while in transition,what products did you use to keep your hair moisturized?

As of right now I am still trying to figure out what keeps my hair moisturized the best. So far I am using a water and oil mix that I made (water mixed with olive oil and almond oil), coconut oil, and shea butter to seal it in. I am still trying different things since I'm a newbie.

What was your staple hairstyle while in transition?

My transition hairstyle of choice was a twist out and getting my hair braided with weave.

When you decided to Big Chop,how did you feel about your cut? And how did people react to it?

I honestly couldn't wait to do my BC. I had put braids in my hair and told myself that I would leave it in for about 2 months, but I have always been the type who doesn't like to keep weave in my hair for too long so I ended up taking them out after a month and a half. Then I told myself I would cut my hair the Friday before Spring Break (which would have been March 5) so that I would have time to play around with my hair before anyone else saw it. Well that was too long because I ended up doing my BC the Thursday after taking my braids out and I am honestly so glad that I did my BC. It is starting to grow on me because I have never, ever had short hair a day in my life. People's reaction were half and half. My mother hated it upon sight, my brother couldn't believe I cut my hair so short, my sister loved it (being that she is natural), some of my cousins had nothing positive to say, and some said nothing at all (which is what I prefer compared to saying negative things), my boyfriend had a neutral response (he didn't hate it but he doesn't really like me with short hair)... but 2 of my aunts thought it was decent and loved that fact that my hair was so curly and even asked me what I put in it to get it that way. I have a huge family so the majority hasn't actually seen my hair yet. Overall I would say that people's reaction were average.

Did you have any regrets?

I have no regrets. Why regret what I have done when all I am simply doing is bringing out the very thing that God has blessed me with.

What are your long term goals for your hair journey?

My goals are to care for my hair and give it love... along with the products it needs to help it stay healthy. I believe that with healthy hair you will have good hair that wants to grow.

Carol ~Before and After

How long were you thinking of going natural? What's the story ?

I started thinking about going natural when I became fed up with the breakage, shedding and split ends as a result of perms. I started transitioning in January 2009, but never really intended to do the big chop. My hair kept growing steadily and I kept cutting it to keep the hair style. I had plan to wear straight styles only. The motivation to big chop came after 7 months of transitioning: Last summer, I bought Herbal Essences Totally Twisted Conditioner (for the first time) for my daughter. I used it once and noticed how my new growth curled up and I felt like those curls were just dying to come out. lol
More importantly, I went through a spiritual transformation at this time. My idea of physical beauty was always attached to having long, straight toss able hair. The Lord impressed upon me that He is more interested in cultivating inner beauty and that any type of hair texture He created is "good". This insight gave me the confidence and freedom to let go and not worry about it. I have self-worth because of Jesus Christ-not because of the way my hair looks!

Was your transition a long or short one?

medium-7 months

We all know how important it is to moisturize our hair
while in transition,what products did you use to keep
your hair moisturized?

I used a spray--I used Proclaim Olive Oil Spray and Cantu Shea Butter cream. I no longer use these for my natural hair.

What was your staple hairstyle while in transition?

I had a straight bob-very easy to just wrap at night and comb down in the morning.

When you decided to Big Chop,how did you feel about your cut? And how did people react to it?

I loved it-the freedom-and the individuality of my curls and coils. It was very short--but very cute. I think I played with it compulsively. I got so many compliments, but most people were shocked. Nobody really knew that I was transitioning anyway because my hair was straight all the time.

Did you have any regrets?
None

What are your long term goals for your hair journey?
I plan to let it grow and let it flow.

LYNNE ~Before and After

Meet Lynne ,after she did her big chop ,she threw a "bc" party



How long were you thinking of going natural? What's the story ?

I had been thinking about it for the past year, about 6 months ago my husband said, "Have you ever tried going natural?" and that really gave me the push to go ahead and learn as much as I could before taking the plunge.

Was your transition a long or short one?

After reading many different women's transition stories, I realize that mine was virtually nonexistent. I transitioned for a little under 2 months straight. I had a relaxer in Nov. 09 and then BC on Jan. 17, 2010. I wasn't satisfied with my transitioning styles and I was blow drying a lot, which led to more breakage and one epic bad hair day,all equalled to me moving my BC up by a week and handling it that weekend! :o)

We all know how important it is to moisturize our hair
while in transition,what products did you use to keep
your hair moisturized?

I used a lot of coconut oil. I put that all over my hair every chance I got. I have very dry edges and so that helped my hair to not dry out as the new growth was coming in. Which my hair actually grows pretty quickly - who knew?

What was your staple hairstyle while in transition?

Just a blow out flip. Real quick and easy.

When you decided to Big Chop,how did you feel about your cut? And how did people react to it?

I had a trusted friend do my BC and she almost cried for me because she thought I would regret it in the morning and blame her! I was so ready to do it though, I was at "that place" mentally so there was electricity in the air almost. I threw a BC party. Invited over a few close girlfriends, made a hair play list (India.Arie, Lauryn Hill, Jill Scott, Fiona Apple, Erykah Badu), made a penne and sausage dinner, chatted it up a bit, then after dinner we all gathered in the den and went to town! It was glorious and really memorable. I had told my mom way in advance that I was cutting it off and she always laughed it off and said "Ah ha! Lynn you're funny!" I gave her plenty of heads up so she wouldn't have a heart attack. Her reaction was priceless, but she immediately said "Awww it suits you..." with a big smile after saying "Lynn what did you do?"

Did you have any regrets?

Absolutely not. I really was in the zone mentally to do the BC and stick with the BC. No wigs or weaves right afterward. I just threw a clip in it the next morning and took my little man to preschool. I absolutely love it. I just wish I did this when I was younger. I'd be at my desired length by now!

What are your long term goals for your hair journey?

I just want to grow my hair out in its original form with no additives. I want to learn how to care for it, keep it happy, and see how much better I feel after switching more things in my life over to a more natural state.

Carmen~Natural Inspiration

Meet Carmen,over the years she has learned to enjoy her journey ,work with and understand her natural hair texture.




How long have you been natural?

I've been natural for ten years as of January 2010.



Have you ever had a relaxer? If so ,What's your story? What made you want to decide to go natural?

I did have a relaxer for about 10 years. I had the infamous 80's "curl" and then I transitioned to a relaxer my sophomore year in high school. I was in high school during the early-mid 90's, a time when Afrocentricity was really being celebrated in hip hop & youth culture. After seeing some of the hip hop stars of the 90's with locs and natural hair, i.e. Lauryn Hill, Arrested Development, Das EFX, etc. I really wanted locs. I had actually fantasized about locs/natural hair for several years, but I just didn't know how or where to begin. In the summer of 1999, I reconnected with a friend who happened to be natural (at the time when we met up she had been wearing locs for about 7 years.) She was very encouraging and supportive and suggested the big chop as the best way to begin my journey to locs. Coincidentally, due to a bit of a financial strain, I had stopped getting relaxers (the cost was just a bit more than I could handle on a new teacher's salary, lol). So, in January of 2000, I did the big chop. I've been natural ever since.




How would you describe your hair type?

My hair type is super dense, coily and very tight, with a high percentage of shrinkage. My hair is just like the little coily wire you find in an ink pen.


What is your regimen? What products do you use to maintain the health of your hair?

My latest regimen is simply to do a conditioner wash once a week. If my hair feels like it has a ton of product build-up I'll use Burt's Grapefruit & Soy shampoo or Cream of Nature Shampoo to get it really clean. To keep my hair moisturized I use Cantu Shea Conditioning Treatment or S-Curl Moisturizing Spray. For daily styling I either band the hair or put my hair in several twists to kind of stretch my little coils. My daily styles range from either a chunky fro, a shrunken fro, a puff, or just free hair with a head band. About once a month I trim my ends by using the twist and clip method.


Do you have any long term goals for your hair?

I just want my hair to be healthy.




What tips would you give,to the newly natural ladies?

There's lots to discover about your own natural hair. Enjoy the journey. One thing that I've come to realize about my little coils, is that my hair growth is shown by volume, not length. My hair grows up and out, not down; I can see my hair growth by how big it is. I had to adjust my thinking and expectations on what hair growth looked like for my natural hair texture. So, just know that tightly coiled dense hair, can and does grow.

Brettney~Natural Inspiration

Meet Brettney,she was lucky enough to have not been exposed to the relaxer,but was still in need of some knowledge on how to care for her natural hair properly.




How long have you been natural?

I've been natural since birth so that would be 21 years.



Have you ever had a relaxer? If so ,What's your story? What made you become natural?

Nope never had one.
I don't even know what a relaxer smells like.
My mom kept me natural. By doing this she made me appreciate my natural hair. I grew up with it so I know what I can do to it and what I can't.
By the time I started college, I started creating different natural hairstyles. It never occurred to me to get a relaxer even though I was practically an adult .
I saw my natural hair as a way to express my creativity and my unique personality. In addition, I got lots of compliments about my natural hair so that helped a lot too.


How would you describe your hair type?


My hair is thick and I stress on the thick ! Its suppose to be 4B . However, because I grew up with it, I know that in the middle,
there is a slightly different texture than the rest of my head. In that section it's softer and when wet, turns curly.
Also, my hair has a very high shrinkage level. I can have a big afro one minute, then if it rains, my hairs gets so short you would wonder if it
went into hiding on me lol.

What is your regimen? What products do you use to maintain the health of your hair?


The products I currently use is a result of me choosing to do a program in the north of France for a year.
Here's why:

Originally, I'm from Trinidad and Tobago but I was accepted to do a program in France for a year.

So when I left home for France in September 2009, I did not bring any products with me. I thought that its "France"
there should be an abundance of black hair care products too right...

If I could go back in time I would hit myself for thinking that

There were products , but hardly any that I knew and those that I knew like ORS Mayo were twice the price and very limited.

So I started researching hair products online cause that was my only method of acquiring information about my hair.

I could not go to french salons. Boucle' is the word that they would use to describe me hair. I'm like my hair is not curly!

I can't blame them though, since the majority of black women in France wear weaves and braids, so seeing my natural hair was shocking for these frenchies lol.

Fortunately I did pack an ORS Replenishing Conditioner Pack, after I tried it, I fell in love with it!

Then I started looking at homemade concoctions since hair products up here are not all that.

In December 2009 , I went to England. I was so happy cause I finally saw hair products catered for my hair.

So after 3 months of trial and error, I came up with this regimen:

I have two wash days per week. ( There isn't a fixed date, If I wash my hair on a Monday then the next day would be on Thursday.)

On the first wash day, I prepoo with ORS Mayo mixed with oils ( coconut, olive, grape-seed) and coconut milk.
I shampoo with Aphogee Deep Moisturizing Shampoo or ORS Creamy Olive Oil Shampoo,
Then I do a deep treatment with ORS Replenishing Conditioner, Herbal Essences Hello Hydration Conditioner, some honey and oils added.

I like mixing honey, coconut milk and oils into my hair products cause they are a lot cheaper and more readily available in France.

Plus having done a lot of research online, they are very good for my hair.

On the second wash day, I incorporate a hot oil treatment. I started the Coconut Oil Challenge from Hairlista which I love!!!
Then follow up with my homemade concoction of ripe avocados, coconut milk, oils and honey blended in a blender and apply to my hair.
Rinse and that's it!

As a Leave in Conditioner, I use my oils, Aloe Vera Gel and Glycerin.

So without realizing it, I made my very own hair products.


Do you have any long term goals for you hair?

Tons! I must mention that just because I was natural all my life does not mean that I use to take care of it properly.
I used greases and I hardly ever did deep conditioning treatments.

So my hair would always look like it was stuck at one length,nonetheless, it was thick!

My short term goal would be simply to keep it healthy and well conditioned against these cold winter months in France.

My long term goals would be to retain length and see if I can grow my hair to a huge APL fro lol.


What tips would you give to all the newly natural ladies?

First of all, Congratulations for deciding to go natural. :-)


Tip# 1: Accept your natural hair!


When you do this, you exude inner confidence and pride about your hair in its natural state. This leads to your hair enhancing your features and people will get fascinated by you. This would then result in hearing some of the most creative compliments given to you.


PS: If there are haters, who cares! Let them hate! Soon they will realize that they secretly appreciate.

Tip # 2: Find something that works with your hair and stick with it!

For me, a hair product is like a makeup foundation. You'll do a bit of searching but once you find the perfect match... Heaven!
With hair products that are suited for your hair, you wont feel the need to keep trying new things, you'll know when something works! Thus you save tons of money.

Tip #3 : You are what you eat!

Eating healthy helps a lot but,some of the things that you eat can be used on your hair!
Honey,Water, Coconut Milk,Bananas, Avocados, Natural Oils, Garlic, Eggs, Mayo.
Sometimes I wonder If I'm cooking for myself or my hair lol.

Is there anywhere we can find you on the web?
Sure! Hairlista.com
Natural Sunshine.com