Tips on taking off braids

I hate taking out braids myself; however I would rather do it myself than endure the pulling of hair at the salon.

This time I intentionally asked for big braids so taking them out wouldn’t be too much of a challenge for and I wouldn’t lose too many hours in the process.

After the braiding was done three weeks ago, the lady used moose to prevent the hair from looking untidy prematurely. Natural hair tends to stick of the Kankalon fiber after a few days, so moose helps keep my natural hair stiff in the braid. 

When undoing braids in the past I’ve lost hair in the process due to dry/stiff hair.  So this time I had to think of ways to reduce the amount of hair I could potentially lose.

I got the idea of oiling my hair from a youtube video but I thought it would be a better idea to wet or dampen the braids this would help loosen the moose. Then I added oil to give it some slip. The oil I put at the base of my scalp and sprayed on the braids too. 

The oil on the scalp helped a lot as the slip helped undo the knots that form at the base of the braid.

I would recommend this technique for taking off braids, the slip and dampness helps save time by allowing the fiber hair come off easily and undoing the knots too. The entire process took me an hour thirty minutes.

The tools I used include, rat tail comb, a wide tooth comb to comb my hair, scissors to cut the ends of the braids, spray bottle with oil and water, applicator bottle with palm kernel oil (the smelly one)  and a plastic bag to put the old hair in. 

Another advantage of this method is that in the process of taking off the braids I pre-pooed my hair with the palm kernel oil.

Next time you are taking off braids yourself, try this method.  

Protective styling with wigs

Yeah.... you read right, WIGS. I don't know if it's just me but wigs have an old mama stereotype. 

Not anymore; wigs are a great way to protect your natural hair…. ask me, I would know. I have been rocking wigs since the beginning of the year and they are literally a life saver. Also more young women I've discovered also wear wigs, so they are not uncommon. Quite a few celebrities wear wigs and have wig lines/brands too.

Now one can get virgin hair or synthetic wigs in different styles, lengths and colors. 

I am not one of those natural sistas that believes that wearing any other hair than yours isn't being a true natural. Just like life, our natural hair journeys differ. I braid my hair, wear wigs and weaves; I pretty much do anything I want to do with my hair that won’t cause damage. And for right now, it wigs. 

The few benefits I've found are;

1. I can wash and deep condition my hair every weekend
2. I don't have to worry about smelly hair from sweat from the gym
3. They save time and effort; just put on the wig and go
4. My natural hair is in cornrows so reduced manipulation = more length retention
5. The cornrows are done up nice and loose so not pulling on my hairline
6. It is easy for me to base or moisturize my scale and hair if I feel the need to
7. I can switch up my look as I feel
8. Most importantly, fresh air can touch my scalp lol..... you know how hot it gets in Nigeria
9. Caring for the wigs aren't difficult; just wash, condition and air dry as directed.  

 Wearing wigs is a great protective style and can be quite economical too. It's a good way for both relaxed and natural haired women to save their hair, hairlines and some money. 

Protective style - Threading

Hair thread

African threading hairstyle

Threading hair style

 Honest to God, I had been thinking of threading my hair as protective style; I wasn't too sure about it. Then a few days ago, I saw the below picture.

Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie

 In-case you do not know who the lady above is; she is Chimamanda Ngozi Adechie. Natural hair sista, Nigerian and award winning novelist. She wrote "Half of a yellow sun" (now a movie) and "Americana" (which I totally loved; still think of the characters and their lives) also she wrote the "Thing around my neck" (I am yet to read). So in one word she is totally awesome!

Anyways, back to the topic of threading as a protective style. So threading hair is the simple process of wrapping sections of hair with thread, the sections can then be bent to different patterns and styles. I think that this style originated in West Africa. These days only high school and "local" girls thread their hair.
Threading  is a great protective style can also be used for stretching natural hair.  

So I was thinking about threading my hair, wondering if I am confident enough to pull off the look and how manageable the hair style would be. Then I saw the Picture of Chimamanda; and I totally love how kick ass she is. The style is also similar to that of a crown.
However, as lovely as her natural hair looks in the thread hair style, me and she no be the same (she and I are not the same). The amount of pain is not equal to the duration of which I can keep/maintain the hair style. Besides how professional will it look? As you most probably can tell, I am still thinking about it but kudos to Chimamanda for being  confident and rocking her threaded natural hair style.

What cha been doing down in Lagos ??

So I moved to Lagos in October to take up new employment. I was initially nervous and excited to be moving to Lag; Lagos being the center of commercial  and social activity in Nigeria but also having very bad traffic jams/go slow and high crime rates.

So far Lagos has been good to me, I avoid certain areas during the week and peak traffic times, I stay away from certain places and people. My new job has been very interesting, being the end of the year there are a few social outings that I've been opportune to attend (thought work) and there are a few more in the works. There is a very bubbly night life in Lagos but I have not been interested in that recently. Below are a few pictures of things I've done and places been.

Golf outing ( I didn't play, was just there for the free food and drinks)

At a Private beach, was a guest of company's client

Handing out sweets to the local kids from the near by community

Halloween party, went as a Nubian queen (or sort of)

My nephews who insist on dressing alike to Church

Lagos is being good to me sort of. I have had my hair in weaves because there just isn't enough time to get it done daily and weekly. All I want to do on Saturday mornings is sleep, but as I get more settled in, my hair is going to my out more.


I just got information on a natural hair meet up in Lagos so excited to be attending my first one ever. 

Protective style

I've had my nappy hair in weave for over two months and I must say I have seen some improvement. Not only does my hair feel stronger I can see more volume as well. 

The Henna and Jessie treatments could be helping too but I think having my hair in plaits under a weave is protecting it from the elements and helping grow.

I make sure no heat is put in my hair when in the salon for a sew in, make sure I wash and treat at least every three weeks , also my hair has to be well moisturized before the weave is put in.

I am wearing weaves a lot because I moved to Lagos and my work hours are crazy; I have to be up at 5 am to get to the office at 7:30 am. Very different from my 8 am wake up in Abuja. Having to deal with my natural hair would have been an issue for me in the past few weeks. But it seems to be helping.