My 1 Year Update As A Natural!! (Many Pics)

abordeaux

New Member
Alright y'all. It's time for my 1 year update!!! :yahoo:

I can't believe I've been natural for 1 year. I have to work on the 23rd, which is my nappiversary, so I decided to do my update today. The photos are from yesterday. When I did my BC I was practically BALD. What was I thinking?? Anyhoo, my hair has grown a lot in the past year and I've posted lots of photos. Since my BC, I've probably trimmed off an inch or two. I trimmed when I took these photos yesterday, I'd say I took off half an inch of split ends.

I'm not sure what my length is. I'd say I'm just about shoulder length, but so many people have different definitions of where that falls. Opinions would be greatly appreciated!

Don't mind the dates on the photos, my camera is weird. So here we go:


Right after my BC 1-23-2008




Yesterday. 1-20-2009



Stretched


Profile view.


Trying to get a straight shot in the mirror. Failing miserably. lol




Pretty good texture shot. I'm definitely 4a with some 3C spots in the front.





This is usually how I wear my hair stretched.




Semi-straigtened.:perplexed


My ends are so frizzy! I couldn't get them smooth. Oh well.


This was after a trim. My hair looks dry and frizzy, but it's quite healthy and soft. If you're natural, you know how hard it is to get our hair smooth with a flat iron.:lachen:




I'm very happy with my progress. I've gone from less than 1 inch of hair to almost shoulder length in one year after trimming almost two inches along the way!

My regimen (if you can call it that) is pretty simple. I co-wash with a cheapie condish a few times a week. To style, I almost always wear my hair out in a curly fro. I have a spray bottle with half water, half pure glycerin. I spritz my hair with the mixture and then rub some Cantu Shea Butter Leave-In throughout my hair. That's it. I DC when I feel like it, but I'm getting better about that. I may need to up my protein treatments too.

I will be going back to rollersets in a few weeks. I haven't done one since I was relaxed, and I used to love how my hair would turn out. I want to wear my hair stretched for the rest of the winter and the rollersets will be a healthier way of achieving that look.

It was a great year, hair-wise. Going natural was very difficult at first and the psychological transition was the hardest. Now I can't imagine wearing my hair any other way!

Any questions or comments would be greatly appreciated. Thanks for all of the help/tips/advice that you all have been so generous with.
 

CHECKMATE!

New Member
Beautiful face/features...Nice progress...I have 3b/c hair that tends to look dry as well,try coconut for shine :)
 
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heyfranz

Well-Known Member
Yes, abordeaux you are stunning! I could barely look at your hair - LOL. Anyway, you've done well, and your curls are beautiful
 

BlackDiamond21

New Member
I came in to see your results but I am so lost...:perplexed

A lot of pics say June 2005 and then the first two at the top you describe as 2008. So is the short hair pics from 2008 the most current and the previous pics are from before your cut???:perplexed
 

BillsBackerz67

Well-Known Member
I came in to see your results but I am so lost...:perplexed

A lot of pics say June 2005 and then the first two at the top you describe as 2008. So is the short hair pics from 2008 the most current and the previous pics are from before your cut???:perplexed
Its a progression from last year to this year in descending order :yep:

Your hair is gorgeous....do you have natural highlights?
 

morehairplease

Well-Known Member
Awesome progress sweetie! You and your hair are both gorgeous! Do you mind me asking what mascara you use? My eyelashes have grown,thanks sacera for the saa thread, and are the same length as yours(not as full but I am working on that). Also, what lipcolor do you have on? It's super cute on you.
 

ChasingBliss

Well-Known Member
Laawd could a person be more photogenic...just beautiful! And congrats on your progress. You naturals are a big inspiration for me to one day go all the way. I'm tired of all this half arse transitioning only to go back to the relaxer. Ima get it one day though *sigh*
 

SouthernBeauty

Well-Known Member
I came in to see your results but I am so lost...:perplexed

A lot of pics say June 2005 and then the first two at the top you describe as 2008. So is the short hair pics from 2008 the most current and the previous pics are from before your cut???:perplexed

She said something is wrong with her camara that is why the dates are wrong.
 

Whimsy

Well-Known Member
Your hair looks BEAUTIFUL!! What wonderful progress! Is there a color in it?

unrelated: your skin is flawless and perfect!!! are u lucky or do do u work at it w/ certain products/lifestyle?
 

abordeaux

New Member
Beautiful face/features...Nice progress...I have 3b/c hair that tends to look dry as well,try coconut for shine :)

I've been hearing a lot about coconut oil and I will be picking some up very soon.

I came in to see your results but I am so lost...:perplexed

A lot of pics say June 2005 and then the first two at the top you describe as 2008. So is the short hair pics from 2008 the most current and the previous pics are from before your cut???:perplexed

I said in the OP to disregard the dates on the photos because my camera was reset to the old date from when it was bought. The first two photos are from last year. The rest are from yesterday.

Its a progression from last year to this year in descending order :yep:

Your hair is gorgeous....do you have natural highlights?

The lighter brown is from the last time I colored my hair right after my BC. I haven't colored it since so it looks like I have highlights.

Awesome progress sweetie! You and your hair are both gorgeous! Do you mind me asking what mascara you use? My eyelashes have grown,thanks sacera for the saa thread, and are the same length as yours(not as full but I am working on that). Also, what lipcolor do you have on? It's super cute on you.

The mascara that I'm wearing is Carbon Black Voluminous by L'Oreal. I'm just wearing chapstick in the photos. My lips are naturally that color.:spinning:
 
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