You ever write off a style to try it again and ace it immediately? Styling your natural hair can be frustrating and I’ve had my fair share of natural hair frustration… trust! If you’re documenting your journey like I have been (started this blog back in 2011) then you can see your growth and you know you are getting better… the proof is in the pictures.
Nov 2012 was the first and last (until just last week) time that I installed finger coils all over my hair. My coiling technique was pretty neat – you see how even they all were (top left)? The roots were all puffy and I had larger parts, though. I had no intentions of wearing the coils themselves (clearly) and the next day unraveled them. I didn’t really know how to do it so my results were not what I liked (top middle and top right). Some parts were puffy, other parts were defined but just read “blah” to me. My hair had no shape and though shaved on the sides, this particular style just didn’t read “cute” or “funky” to me. I hated it.
It wasn’t until recently (2.5 years later) that I installed them again – by now my hair has been cut and I have a whole different color game. My technique also changed (you can check out my new technique here or take a look below):
As neat as they looked before, I took a more textured route (bottom left) this time and rocked this style for days! JUST LIKE THAT! I loved how it looked finger coiled!! When I was ready to unravel the coils, I was amazed. I took my time. I learned from my mistakes (day 2 of coil out – bottom right). My finger coil out was perfect just take a look and see for yourself.
What seemed like it should have been a perfect coil out based on how neat my coils were (2012) turned out to be a “no” in my book and the imperfect coils (2015) had “yes” written all over them from the jump… ‘Tis life!
Whether it be a regimen, a product, a technique, a style… Sometimes we have to take a second look at it – yanno, give it another try.
Change your attitude toward it. Does it really look THAT bad? Probably not, but our minds amplify things at times that really aren’t that serious. How can you make it better? What can you change to make it the way you want it?
Don’t write off that style just yet especially if you’ve changed your hair. My hair shape changed – that changed the style A LOT. Also, I changed my hair color. Hair color adds a different dimension to your hair and can make things look better (or worse) but you won’t know unless you test it out.
Revisit it. Just try it again. If you hate it, wash it out.
Learn what shapes look good on you. This goes back to finding what styles, cuts, and colors look best on you. Maybe my hair back in 2012 would have looked better pinned up to expose my shaved sides… I never tried it, though. I didn’t exhaust all my possibilities. These days, I’ll pick, tease, pin for however long to make my hair look how I want it. I won’t lose sleep or anything but you get my drift… don’t stop ’til you make it work!
Perfect your technique. Practice makes perfect. Say it with me: PRACTICE MAKES PERFECT. Try it again.
Learn how to make your hair do what it do! And by saying that, I mean sometimes less is more and you won’t have to do too much to make it look like a million bucks. 2015 has been about simplicity for me and when I stopped worrying about my hair, my hair didn’t worry me.
Know that we all struggle. We all have to learn and start from somewhere. It’s a process: enjoy it!
What styles have you revisited since growing out or cutting your hair?
