I’ve always had a love/hate relationship with sweat pants. I’ve believed no one ever looks good in sweat pants. Seeing people wear them outside of the house used to make me cringe. I thought a man can pull off sweat pants in public and make it look decent very rarely and for women it was an ultimate NO NO NO! Ask any one of my sorority sisters; I would not let them be seen with me unless they were wearing jeans. I hated those crop sweat pants with PINK on the butt. To me sweatpants were an excuse to eliminate all style. It starts with the sweatpants. Then because you’re cozy, you don’t brush your hair. Then you think, “well no need to brush my teeth either.” And then “oh hell, who needs a bra anyway.” And finally, “Shoes? These slippers are just fine.” And folks walk out of the house, like that! But now track pants are a thing and I’m eating my words about sweat pants. The tapered bottoms, interesting prints and patterns and different colors have transformed the traditional cozies and made them wearable in public and even fashionable. Styled the right way, track pants can be the ultimate no effort piece to make any fashionista look like she styles in her sleep, literally. I’m wearing classic gray aka black heather Lucy Leggins by Fila today. This look is extremely comfortable and perfect for causal Friday. And thanks to my awesome employee discount I just received two more pairs today, one in the same color I’m already wearing.
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For the past few weeks I have been trying to figure out the porosity of my hair to better maintain my natural hair regimen. I did the water test and the feel test as well but was still very confused about what type of hair I have. My hair is extremely dense with a very tight but defined curl pattern. The hair is so dense and prone to frizz that my tiny little ringlets barely get to show themselves in all their spiral glory.
I'm a cowasher and am obsessed with Tresemme conditioners. Tresemme conditioners have a lot of slick and move through my hair nice. There is so much slick I have slipped in the shower on multiple occasions while washing my hair. I'm constantly dropping the soap. ;-) I must confess though that I am lazy when it comes to my hair regimen. I wash my hair often to avoid styling it. I'm an avid wash and go performer because I forget to tie and moisturize my hair at night. I wake up often looking like Samuel L's character in Django. So this morning while I was washing I started taken notice of how my hair was absorbing. My hair LOVES conditioner. It soaks it right up, dividing itself into individual curls. With conditioner in my hair its easy to detangle with fingers or a wide tooth comb. As soon as the water hits my hair, however, it washes away the conditioner and immediately frizzes. The conditioner hasn't absorbed into my cuticle. My hair doesn't even stay wet under the water stream of the shower. First sign I have low porosity hair. After drenching my hair, squeezing the water in trying to completely soak it I spray it with Aloe Vera juice and try to seal in the juice with a DIY hair and body oil mixture. When I step out of the shower my hair is an afro with beads of water falling all over the bathroom like rain drops. I use a styling conditioner and then follow that up with mousse to try and keep any bit of curl definition in place before blasting it with the diffuser. Second sign of low porosity, my hair NEVER dries completely. Which is another reason I'm not a fan of twist outs because the hair twisted never dries fully so that when the twist is released there is no twist pattern just stretched out frizziness that will eventually air dry right back to afro shape. The last sign of low porosity hair occurs while I'm at work and begin feeling the oil, and styling conditioner rolling down my ears and on the sides and back of my neck. There is oil EVERYWHERE. I'm literally sopping it up with napkins, rubbing it into my legs, hands and elbows for extra moisturizer and feeling like the biggest grease ball in the world. My hair is not absorbing ANY product that has be placed on it. Low porosity hair does not absorb products because the cuticle of the hair is too tight. This is a good and bad thing. Bad because when the cuticle is tight water can't get in but good because once you get the water in, it stays in and hair will shine brighter than a star. Heat is good to help open the cuticle and allow hair to absorb moisture. Since I do not have a dryer or steamer at my desk I am currently working with a Wegman's bag tied strategically around my afro to try and stimulate some heat from my head to open up cuticles and absorb some moisture. The. Struggle. Is. Real. I'm embarassed but I'd rather do this until lunch time than have to sit with a roll of paper towels around my neck sopping up hair oil. Discovering your hair type and best ways to care for your hair is a struggle. I have been natural for a little over 9 years and I still haven't gotten it figured out. I even cut all my hair off 5 years ago because I was so fed up with the process. But I decided to grow it back to better understand it and work with it. A woman's hair is her crown and very important to how she sees herself. My hair is a big part of how I feel about myself everyday. True it is just hair, but it's my hair and that's what makes it special. |