Hello my beautiful Curlfriends, I would like to warmly welcome you to this new journey I am about to begin!
If you've been here before or have read any of my other blog posts, you may know about my most recent life journey and transition to San Diego, as well as this whole adulting thing. Well, in the midst of it all, I have been trying to figure out what my purpose is or what it is that's unique about me, something I can share with the world. I am so easily and extremely inspired by everyone and everything around me and I have always believed that there is a reason I have this platform and was born in this "social media obsessed generation". With everything I ever share I always hope that I can inspire even just one person, because I know there's got to be at least one other little human "bean" going through something similar.
Whenever I am feeling down on myself I try to turn it around and find a reason to smile at myself instead. There has to be something I can indulge in and put my all into- learn it and live it, and then begin to share it.
MY HAIR!
I have been through a lot with my hair, and I mean a LOT. When I was just a ween little one in kindergarten, my mom let me dye it firetruck red with some temporary foam hair dye- and that is when all of the madness began. I remember always watching my mom straighten her beautiful curly locks because in that era straight hair was "beautiful" and curly hair was just "raggedy or unmanageable". You never saw movie stars or models in magazines with curly hair. There was no "Deva Curl" or "YouTube" to guide anyone.
Growing up I had pin-straight blonde tresses until about 4th grade when my hair sporadically began to wave and then curl. All of my friends in school had straight hair and I didn't understand why my hair suddenly decided to switch up on me. Of course I wanted what everyone else had, so I went out and bought the cheapest flat iron from Walgreens. It probably didn't even get hotter than 200 degrees because I could never actually get my hair silky straight- just flat enough to get a nice frizzy, fluffy half-straight mess- or I just didn't know how to section my hair out properly... But as long as there were no curls, I was a happy camper.
Top: Kindergarden.
Bottom Left: 3rd grade,My last year with naturally straight hair.
Bottom Right: 4th grade, The wavy/curly madness began and I obviously didn't know what to do with it
Family picture day rolled around and I begged my mom to straighten my hair like she did to hers with the fancy, expensive flat iron.
This was the moment my life changed.
I finally had smooth, silky, shiny, frizz-free hair that I could glide my fingers right through. It was like a dream come true. So, I began to straighten my hair EVERY. SINGLE. DAY. I honestly don't think that I went to school for the next 2-3 years without straight hair. I was ashamed of my natural hair. Everyone always told me how pretty I looked after I'd spend hours on my hair every morning getting it as smooth and as flat as possible. I thought I could never show my curls again. I made myself believe that they were ugly, and that I was ugly, unless I tamed them.
Years went by and I just continued to damage my hair with hot tools, hair dyes, bleach and even professional smoothing treatments. I would dye my hair blonde, then black, and then back to blonde in just months. (Black and blonde are the two most damaging btw). I was frying my hair more and more every single day for years. Once I realized that my hair completely stopped growing after it would reach only an inch or two past my shoulders, I told myself that I would stop. But how the hell was I supposed to know how to manage, let alone style my curls if I've never even let them be before? I gave it a shot and realized that I hardly even had any curls left. So I would mouse up my hair like crazy and scrunch my life away, but most days I still resorted to the flat iron, at least for my bangs. Yup, I tried to pull of the curly/wavy hair with straight side bangs for years after that...
I can't believe I'm sharing these pictures lol LOOK at those bangs...
Fast forward to where I am now- I finally realized that if I keep it up, what everyone always told me about my hair falling out, will actually be true!
In the last 6 months I have finally begun the journey to healthy curls. I will get my hair back and I will never touch hot tools again!! SAY IT WITH ME!
In the last 4 months I have only straightened my hair TWO times!! Absolutely and easily one of the most impressive things I have ever done, considering what I've put my precious strands through almost my entire life. I can't lie and give myself too many props though because I definitely have picked up the curling iron a handful of times, to give any lousy curls a little "boost". But a few weeks ago I made the decision to give it all up completely, after learning that using ANY heat (including blowdrying, aka blowfrying) can reverse all of the good that I am trying to do to my hair, in just one use.
So I come to you right now live from my bed with a head full of peppermint and lavender oils, many other growth inducing oils, and two hair masks, all slathered in a nice little bun at the top of my head.
I encourage all of you interested in rejuvenating your precious locks to join my email list here to be notified every time I upload a new blog post! I have many exciting things coming, including the new hair steamer that I just ordered, my hair repair regimen, my lavender reboost mist, the new curly girl method that I've been learning all about, and so many more!!
So sit back, relax, and join me on this new journey that I am so excited to share!
XOXO,
Cydnee Jasmine
My current state of hair for reference
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Thank you!