want it, need it, gotta have it: fall/winter edition

now that i'm putting away the flip flops and shorts in lieu of pea coats and leather boots, it's time for me to revamp some of my current products/habits until winter weather returns. here is a list of things i really need (ok, some are wants) to get me through the colder days.

PRODUCTS

• ditching the coconut oil for avocado oil
• castor oil to seal and weigh down my ends
  
• jane carter nourish and shine for straight hair weeks
  
• qhemet biologics burdock root butter cream...something to COAT those strands
• cantu shea butter leave-in for daily moisturizing
• lustrasilk cholesterol (an old favorite) for defined curls/waves and DCing
  
• hairone cleanser to clean the gunk off my hair without the tangling effect of sulfates
• more hair accessories...clips, headbands, silk scarves, bra strap headbands, ouchless bands
  
• gel: ecostyler clear, aloe vera, fantasia IC are among my choices
  

TOOLS

• FHI Runway (definitely a WANT, since my solia works fine)
• a new denman...mine is ready to cross over to the promised land
• more large magnetic rollers, perhaps of the ceramic variety
• caruso steam rollers
• bigger flexirods (i currently only have the grey ones)
• salons r us dryer to dry my hair faster
• bone combs...snagging those strands is not attractive
• shower filter
• hot air brush to cut down on styling time
  

METHODS

• more deep conditioning...more than likely i will continue using aussie moist or GVP CB
• less cowashing, more styles that last 3+ days: buns, twistouts, frohawks, chunky twists
  
• MORE STRETCHED HAIR! my ends do not get along with one another...
• stretching hair with the denman and a blow dryer
• a solid weave regimen for when the time comes
• self-installed cornrows and flat twists i won't be ashamed to wear in public!
  

SUPPLEMENTS

• fish oil
• GNC vitapaks? these look really interesting...
  

back to curly...

after wearing my hair straight for the last 4 weeks, i went back to curly yesterday. i will stick it out for a week or 2 (knowing me, probably more) before getting weaved up for the rest of the year. i actually found a really great thread by Nichi on LHCF documenting the weave she has had installed since late august and hopes to have until the first of the year. i found a lot of similarities between what she is doing and what i hope to do: she's natural 4a, is using sensationnel goddess remi (which is actually on sale right now at hairsisters for $35.99, BOGO FREE as well) and started out with it in longer layers, then had it cut to a very stylish bob after a few months. this is something like what i plan on doing...wearing it, going to a curly install (more than likely BoBraz) for a few months, then switching back to the bob. don't get me wrong, i LOVE LOVE LOVE wearing my natural hair out, but i am stuck in an APL rut now and it would be lovely to make it past that hump in time for the summer of 2010.

here is my current wash day regimen, which i will probably follow every 2 weeks or so until my install.

• prepoo with EVOO, VO5 tea tree therapy conditioner - 4 hours to overnight
  
• shampoo: motions lavish conditioning
• porosity: roux pc
• protein: joico k-pak deep penetrating reconstructor - 15 mins (1x/month)
  
• moisture: joico k-pak intense hydrator - 45 mins
  
• leave-in: PM the conditioner

i did buy the joico products, a 16 oz jar of matrix biolage conditioning balm, and a 16 oz bottle of PM the conditioner at the JCPenney sale, but i returned them in lieu of the GVP versions. since there is no GVP intense hydrator, i will substitute it with the GVP CB.

styles i plan on utilizing:

• WNG (current, but gotta get away from this)
• braidouts
• twistouts
• frohawk with the middle worn as a twistout
• blown out fro
• flexirod sets
  

moment of inspiration

i ran across this picture on the sephora website a couple of weeks ago, and fell in love (and not just because it's jordan richardson):

i had to try it out, of course, so here is what i came up with. i probably should have extended the color heavenward a little more, but it looked fabulous IMO:

(like my flexirods?)

all i used were some wet n wild shadows i had, and of course my HiP cream liner and diorshow iconic mascara. i am really torn about buying this mascara again since i am really happy with it but have also heard that lash blast is a great (and cheaper) alternative to it. to be honest, part of it probably stems from the fact that i am a label whore in training, but what can ya do...

here is one more picture of me fooling around, and trying my hardest to get another week out of this blowout. if i had stayed in the house this weekend, my roots would be just fine...