The Moptop Maven.com | The Premier Source For All Things Creative, Fly & Fashionable: DIY: The Ruffled Tee

I Have GOT TO DO THIS THIS WEEKEND!!!!!!!
The Moptop Maven.com The Premier Source For All Things Creative, Fly & Fashionable: DIY: The Ruffled Tee: "Every time I see these overpriced shirts in stores I think; 'I could do that', so I finally decided to break out some old fabric and get to..."

6 months and 2 wks!

ATTENTION! ATTENTION!!: THE 6 MONTHS MARKS HAS BEEN HIT AND PASSED!!!!!!!

It has been TOO long I know since I have posted and there is so much to update and say. Today I am 6months and 3wks NATURAL! And the journey has been great thus far. my hair has grown and there are new issues that I have to face.
1. Im past the awkward stage! (FINALLY) Im use to my hair now. I feel closer to myself and begining to understand more the importance of acceptence of myself. People compliement me daily on how much it has grown and how healthy it looks. I take pride in my "Twistd Fro" and I found that when I had a sew-in (which only lasted maybe 2 weeks) last month that I missed seeing my own hair and tho it looked and felt great to have long hair again it just want me. I kinda felt uncomfortable.

2. The new Dilema: comparing myself to others. I often go online and look at other natural ladies' journies just to see where they were in correlation to my journey. I know that everyone is different but knowing isnt doing anything to preventing me from doing so.  :(

3. Dilema #2: "Typing"- lately I have been trying to identfiy my type and Im not sure why I actually care. smh I know this is me basically going back to the whole "GOOD HAIR/ BAD HAIR" thing.

I love my hair! My goal is to Deep Condition every week and to reach shoulder lenth (once stretched out) by my 1 year mark!!
Stay tuned for Pictures! Many will be random ie: Trey Songz concert! Hanging out and shopping for my BLACK PARTY!!

1st Protective Style

So yesterday a friend of mine installed some "kinky twist" and it was truly an experiment for the both of us. I will have pics up soon. It is two-toned. A copper color in the back and 1b everywhere else.
OK so the purpose of this post is to bring attention to this hot new style that I have come across started in Atlanta. The style is called "City Twist" or "Urban twist" and there are truly the BOMB!!!!!! I would love to learn how to do it and get them installed but they are quite pricey! they achieve the style by laying and and using a imported Koren brand natural twisting hair. The Damn Salon (pardon my language, its the name of the salon) is a Private, Atlanta based salon that is innovating and exciting, pampering clients from makeup to to trendy locs. On my visit to Atlanta I hope to visit the shop with an invitation of course (it is invitation only) and hopefully I have the $250 for the City Twist installation. ;) Check out the pics!!

Braid-Out Results From Yesterday

I never like the first day of my braid-out because it is far too tight and I prefer my hair to be a tad on the WIKD side lol. So tomorrow it should be great.

NEW TOY!!!!!

Soo today I purchased an imitation Denman Brush at my local hair store and im actually surprised it took me this long to do so after watching countless videos on its use. I immediatly tried it out and I must say  I LOVE IT!! I can only imagine how the real one must be. I found out that Sally's has it on sale for $7.49 and I plan on ordering asap.
I washed my hair with Organix Cucumber Shampoo (sulfate free) 
Co-Washed with Garnier Fructis Daily Care and Wonder Waves  Conditioner
Excited about trying the brush I applied leave in and started detangling section by section.

I then braided my hair using Carol's Daughter Loc Butter

And the hype is real, it does work. The Fake Denman brush or Curling brush as it is labled, seperates and defines curl actually with or without product. I was all too excited in comparing the side of my hair that had been detangled and the other that was untouched. The thing that hinders me from wearing WASH-N-GOs is my varying hair textures. With the brush the textures seemed to UNITE! lol I love it! Check out the pics !

After Denman (pic above is before Denman)

Natural Songstress: Esperanza Spalding

I had never heard or seen her before this year's BET awards, when she paid tribute to Prince. She stood out immediately to me of course because her beautiful Afro. I remember saying to my father that night, "I can't wait for my hair to be just like that," pointing at the screen.

The 25 year old jazz performer from Portland, Oregon left high school at the age of 16, received her GED and attended Berklee College of Music. She had plenty experience as a teenager performing at live clubs and after her first semester at Berklee she was invited by  Patti Austin to perform on the Ella Fitzgerald  tribute tour, "For Ella" . Since then Spalding has recorded two albums Junjo (2006) and Esperanza (2008). In 2008 She performed at the Nobel Peace Prize ceremony for Barack Obama.

I think I want her as a fac of CMECURLY! 

What do you think??  

SOOO I was on the Long Hair Care Forum the other day and noticed that a member had posted a Weightloss Challenge and decided that I would try it out. Its started (for me at least) Monday July 5, 2010 and ends December 29th. Im really hoping that I can stick to it. te hardest part I think is the amount of water I have to drink  :x. I am drinking alot more then I usually do but not quite what is recommended as per Challenge "RULES". The goal is to loose 2.5lb a wk equalling 10lbs a month and so on and so forth. Here are the "Rules"
THE RULES:

'these are very basic GUIDLELIINES

.....please modify as you see fit

MAKE THEM WORK FOR YOUR LIFESTYLE

#1 DRINK A MINIMUM OF 48-64 OUNCES WATER PER DAY (no one may omit this golden rule)

#2 LATE NITE SNACKING: must be raw fruits & veggies, water, and ZERO calorie drinks ONLY (no modification possible except for medical reasons)

#3 ABSOLUTELY NO SWEETS except on weekends (weekends= you may have 1-2 treats of your choice) **AIM FOR 1

#4 NO "MEALS" PAST 3-4 hours before bed (not to be confused with LATE NITE SNACK RULE)

#5 YOU MUST EAT YOUR "LARGEST" MEAL BY 5PM (attempt to burn off calories b4 bed)

#6 TRY to MINIMIZE WHITE BREAD, WHITE SUGAR, WHITE RICE & FATS (as much as possible)

#7 LOW or NO CALORIE containing BEVERAGES!!!!!! (never drink your calories until your goal range is met)

#8 ANY HIGH IMPACT CARDIO ACTIVITY for 20 min. MINIMUM per day<<<(4-5 DAYS per week) jump rope is great! JUST get up and move more!!!! '

Current Weight: (embarrassingly) 185 (Fooled you didnt I? lol )
Goal Weight: 145-150
So thats the plan. Today I went to the pool and lounged. I went with the goal of NOT (key word) not getting my hair wet, it was looking good. That didnt work out to well :/. Food wise I slipped up and ate a burger (homeade!!!) on white bread (100 calories) only because I am not home and it was the only option but next time I will forgo the bread and eat the rest. Im not snacking as much even though sometime i find myself extremely hungry. water is helping me to get over that but why does it have to be so so... watery and tastless but in a gross way??? I'll get over it. The major obsticle now is making sure I have a form of excerise eeryday for 20 min. I am thinking about investing a treadmell and work out videos. I likes me some of those!!!!!!xoxo

Blackberry Craze!

Just gotta Blackberry and Im loving it!!! Its amazing how much you can do on a phone. I have owned many phones including an iphone and the Blackberry is one of the best. Hopefully I can upload post from it so thatI can stay on top of posting lol.

3 Months Natural!!!!!

Im a few days late I know but so much has been happening with Graduations and Partied that its slipped my mind. I am 3 months natural! The other day I was looking at my hair and I noticed how big my afro really is. I had a 4 or 5 day old braid-out and the nite before I forgot to braid it before I went to sleep lol. Im very happy with my growth but I want to start doing length chck from this day forth. 
So I am going to Co-wash my hair and do the length check while wet by stretching the hair on both the right and left side both in the  front and back, as well as the front and middle. I have to add that I did my BIG CHOP and it wasnt done evenly so I expect some differences lol but its all gravy!!!! So I will be back in an hour....Stay tunned

2 Months Natural!!!!

I am officially 2 months natural and I totally didnt know untill talking with a friend. She was complimenting how great my hair looks and I just happened to remember that today is the 25th. Wow time flies. I know to some it might seem like no time but its a major ackomplishment to me because I was the girl that had to have relaxers or would feel depressed. It proved the needed boost in my confidence, but i am no longer that girl. I need to find a ruler or measuring tape so that I can document the growth.
So whats new?
I have started (past 3 day) twisting my hair every night in big twist. Major!!! why? because I never (1) had the patience and (2) had the length where I thought it would make a difference. My hair is ubber soft and moisturized! Want to know why?! because of the products and ingredients I use. There is no excuse for me to have a dry TWA and I am so glad I have found the antidote for what many natural ladies suffer from.
Goals
Keep Growing!! not only in length but in the relationship with my hair.
Loose 20lbs! I know this is random but I am soo serious. Have you ever looked in the mirror and thought man I look good and then a relative or someone comes along and says some along the lines of "You getting a lil heavy there". Then you look in the mirror again and see all the parts of you that are bigger then they were last month or the month before!? I dont eat bad and I was excersing so what is the problem? I just have to try and find out why I am gaining and not loosing weight when i try really hard. So from here forward I am going to daily journal my activties and food intake. I hear journaling is really helpful when trying to loose weight. I plan to put that theory to the test!
Next goal is to start putting more into my product line again. I had start reciepe formulations and all but so much has ben going on in my life where I couldnt afford the ingredients and didnt have the time to create but its SUMMER and I am going to start making the time and saving.
TTYS Smmoches!

Curly Nikki.com is looking for TWAs!! here is my interview......

TWA Interview:


• When you first chopped, what were your thoughts and feelings? How do you feel now?

When I first chopped I felt extremely liberated and excited. I had done it in front of a mirror after cutting out my tracks. I can say that today I am even more excited about what is to come. I am getting even more comfortable with my TA and amazed with the growth after only a month and a half.

• How did you cope with the responses from your family and friends?

Well surprising all of the comment made by my peers were very positive! Not that I need validation but if felt great getting compliments especially from those who hadn’t before. I had convinced my mother to go natural and she did her BIG CHOP before I had. I am now working on my sister.

• What are your plans for your hair (do you plan to grow it out, keep it short)?

I definitely plan to grow it out. The reason I went natural was because my hair never seemed to grow past a certain length so I usually just kept cool short hair cuts. I am ready to see my hair’s full potential and I know that is achievable with my new regimen.

• Do you find it necessary to 'doll up' your look to feel more feminine?

I defiantly feel that I need to dress the hair up so to speak because a woman never wants her “feminineness” to be called into question. I honestly feel naked with out earrings now. Lol I wear larger pieces of jewelry and make sure I stand out.

• If so, what are your favorite accessories, or go to ways to glam up your look?

EARRINGS EARRING EARRINGS!! Lol I love big pieces and things that stand out. I am still building my collection. Also I love hair accessories as well. I am in the process of learning to make my own due to the fact that they can be expensive.

• How do you keep it moisturized?

In my opinion there is no reason to have a dry TWA because there are so many tricks to having soft and moist hair. I have found that the key is to co-wash with Cholesterol Condition. The more you use it the more the hair becomes softer, more manageable and moist. In addition, using natural oils and butters help keep it that way.

• What products and techniques do you use to style? How often do you style?

I style my hair at least once a week and if it doesn’t last I wash and go for the remainder of the week. I mix up my own products as well as sometimes using Carol’s Daughter Loc butter, Cholesterol Conditioner, Organix products, O’pro leave in conditioner and natural oils. Some times I do two-stand twist and now I can do individual braids leave them in for 3 days and for the rest of the week and then rock a braid out. This has become my new favorite style.

• How do you get your waves or curls popping?

My curls pop the most after deep conditioning and co-washing with cholesterol. Also I have found that using pure Shea butter (unrefined) does the trick just as well if not better then using store bought items.

• How do you preserve your curls at night?

I try (key word “try”) to wear my satin bonnet at night and I have gotten a lot better but it always either comes off at night or I forget to put it on, so I invested in satin pillow cases.

Picrure

Queen

Products

Other Prodyuct I love: O'pro Leave in Conditioner Curl Vitalizer

Care Free Curl

Hawiian Silky

Update

Being natural is the bomb! I cant wait to share other's stories the I will be adding them periodically. New videos to come soon!
Smooches

1 Month and 3 days Nappy!

Ok so i know Im uber late with this but i cant believe its been a month. i have seen growth and im slowly but surely setting up a regi just for me. But i must admit that the past week has been ROUGH! Lately my hair doesnt last over night even with the bonnet on. I like wearing the two strand twist, but even they are withstanding. I put some in today with my Carol's Daughter and im hopeing for the best. I really like the way my hair looks when its streched.
Otherwise its awesome seeing my hair finally natural because I waited so long and its soo much easier this way even with the frustration and all. My life is really hectic and cluttered and being natural does de-stress and certain part of my life. I have always been truely about my hair. I find that i still am trying to get used to my face, its on the round side so i am a bit self concious when it comes to pictures and stuff BUT I am constantly taking them lol.

Close to 1 Month Anniversary

So Next week will be my one month Nappaversary and I am so happy with my hair. I did my first twist out on Wed and today its a bit frizzy but I like it better then my regular fro.
No matter what you do to your hair the key is to: STAY CONFIDENT NO MATTER WHAT!
Here ate some recent pics of my hair. Surprisingly I have a lot of grow. I was shocked that I was able to two-strand twist my entire head! CHECK ME OUT!

March 25th I was ReBorn! lol

Well not literally of course but my hair was! After having transitioned for for 4 months, which was supposed to have been a year lol I decieded after taking out my sew in that it was time. I wasnt at all frustrated with the two different textures. I just wanted to hurry up and get it over with

1. I wanted to see what my hair looked like. The Anticipation was killing me!
2. I see someone everyday rocking their fro or Locs and I wanted to do so too!!
3. and starting a Natural hair Care line I wanted to beable to use the products on a complete head of natural hair.

So That thursday night I stood in the mirror and started cutting. I was really excited while doing it because the results after just a few snips were great! I did not worry about it being even or looking right at all. i just want all signs of relaxed hair GONE!


Responses of Others: Surprisingly I havent gotten any negative comments, at least not to my face. Many knew I was transistioning so it came as no surprise to them. I got alot of, "You FINALLY did it!" "YOU CUT YOUR HAIR!" lol Its so funny too the responses of white kids I have class with. They too love it. I think it has alot to do with the atmosphere here at VCU (my university). People are very Artsy and AFROs are the bomb to them lol.


Regi: So far I dont have an official regi, which is crazy because even while I wore sew-ins while transitioning I had a regi. I have been using Hawaiian Silk "Do it how you want", Peppermint Oil, Coconut Oil, and lots and lot of WATER! Its the best!! lol


MY HAIR: So i do believe i have 3 different textures. In the top front its very curly and springs (3c), on the sides there isnt much curl at all (VERY WERID) its bushy and I already can tell that I am going to have to experiement alot with these areas. The rest is maybe a 4a  curly yet thick. I want to sit down and have someone tell me what I have more accuratly. Regardless I love my little Jungle! (thats what it is truely lol)


Talk to you soon Smooches XOX