The Benefits Of A Sew-In Removable

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When you hear sew-in the mind immediately goes to the traditional sew-in that includes braiding all of the hair down then sewing the weave on top of the hair.  Some people like myself prefer to have their hair shampooed weekly so a regular sew-in would not work for me.  I like to actually get to my scalp to scratch and ensure my hair is squeaky clean weekly.  If not my scalp will itch very badly!  That is why I love my removable sew-ins!  They are u-part wigs made to be sewn on instead of clipped on.  Only a very small portion of my real hair is left out to cover the tracks.  I have a client that also agrees and recently purchased one from me and since then she has told me that she absolutely loves it. So, let me explain exactly what takes place and the many benefits of having a removable sew in.  One major benefit of the removable sew-in is the time factor.  I do the major work at home when I make it (with hair from L. Jones Hair Collection of course).  By the time the client comes the hard part is already done.  To install it takes all of about twenty minutes! Can you imagine getting a sew in done in twenty minutes?!?  Ok, so I make it at home then let the client come in and install it for her.  This includes shampooing and deep conditioning the hair first, braiding it down, then sewing on the unit.

Let's begin with step one

How To Stretch Your Relaxer Past 6 Weeks (Week 17)

Week 17!  For those of you that have never made it this far, welcome!  For those of you that have been here before, welcome back!  If you have never made it seventeen weeks, I bet it was not as bad as you think.  This week I decided to be lazy with my hair but still be cute so I went to my weave.  I did not feel like doing much to my hair, and I felt the urge to have longer hair so that is exactly what I did.  I am typically not a fan of curls but decided to change it up and do curls with the curling wand.  For maintenance all I had to do was put my satin bonnet on at night. Towards the end of the week I brushed the curls and they turned into

Stay Positive Sunday: My Mentorship Opportunity

I had the pleasure of being asked to be part of a mentorship program in my city with high school kids that were juniors and seniors.  The program helps teens make a decision on what they would like to do after they graduate high school.  I think that this is an excellent program and wish it would have been around when I was in high school.  Many kids, including myself have no idea of what they want to be when they grow up.  I had no idea what I was passionate about in high school.  All I was thinking about was which career paid the most money.  Little did I know it was about more than just money.  I actually wanted to like/love what I did.  I changed my major so many times in college for the simple reason that I was following the money instead of my passion.  Once I got in the field and started some of the classes, I knew that some of the choices were not going to work for me.  At that point though, time

How To Stretch Your Relaxer Past 6 Weeks (week 16)

This is week 16 of the series and it is an important week for many of you who are at this point.  Some of you will be getting your relaxer this week and believe me, I know how excited you are.  But you must admit, it was not that bad right?  We are so conditioned to getting them every 6-8 weeks that when you introduce sixteen weeks into the mix that sounds down right crazy.  I understand but stretching your relaxer is the only way to have healthy, relaxed, and growing relaxed hair.

Check out the video for this week.  I was in a time crunch so decided on straight again this week..

Join me next week when I go back to weave for week 17.  I have the itch to wear some longer hair!

Sew-In That You Can Pull Up In A Ponytail (Versatile)

Sew-ins have come a long way since I first started doing them .  When I was first taught how to do a sew in, pulling it up in a ponytail was not an option unless the ponytail was really low.  Nowadays, you can pull it up in a high bun, high ponytail, and even put it in two ponytail all while being undetected.  That is one thing about the hair industry, you are constantly learning and evolving.  It is never advisable to get comfortable because things are always changing.  This client wanted to get a sew in for the first time.  She used hair from my collection, www.ljoneshaircollection.com, and she absolutely loved her results.

How To Repair Your Hair From Relaxer Damage

This is a client that recently started coming to me.  She was getting a relaxer (by a professional stylist, but not me!) every four weeks like clock work and eventually her hair could not take it any more.  She told me that it was like one day she woke up and all of her hair was gone.  Nothing gradual about it, no shedding, it just left all at one time.  So now I am on a mission to help her get her healthy hair back.  The picture below (on the left) is the first day she came to me.  As you can see, the hair is just about bald with a few strands her and there.  At her first appointment I did a reconstructive treatment.  This is to help any remaining weak hairs gain more strength.

For the next appointment which was the following week, I did a protein treatment.  The protein is very similar to the reconstructor.  The protein helps the hair become stronger and helps it stop breaking.  I also did a moisturizing treatment immediately following the protein treatment to add the moisture back in the hair.  For the next appointment (another week later) I did a moisturizing treatment only.  I had already done a reconstructor and a protein treatment but had done only one moisture treatment so I did the second moisture treatment to even it out.  Healthy hair has an equal balance of moisture and protein so I did not want the hair to have more protein than moisture.

The next week (week 4) I did a regular shampoo set.  At this point the damage has already been done and will more than likely not get any worse so now I can just give it the tlc that it needs to be nurtured back to health.  If you look at the picture with the red cape on, it is the week four picture.  You can see that the hair is already starting to grow back.  There is less scalp showing and more fuzz.  Fuzz is a good thing because it will eventually gain some length and become long luscious locks.  Remember that the average rate of hair growth is one half inch per month so although her journey will be a slow one, the progress that she has had so far is good.

This is the other side of the head and it appears to be growing faster than the other side.  She should be close to having one inch of growth by week eight so I will continue to monitor her hair at this point.  I will be shampooing and conditioning with Silk Hydration products but at home maintenance will also play a critical role in her hair's health.  Absolutely no heat can be applied while she is at home and she must wrap it daily to control her split ends.  Without doing these things all of the treatments in the world will not make the damage stop.

Stay tuned for the next update on this client.  Just to recap here are some things to remember when repairing your hair from relaxer damage:

• Get to a professional to get a protein and moisture treatment- This will help stop the damage and reverse it
• Shampoo the hair weekly to circulate blood flow in the scalp which helps with hair growth.
• Only use heat once weekly on very low heat.
• Do not get any more relaxers for a minimum of sixteen weeks or until you get two inches of new growth, whichever comes faster.  
• Wrap hair nightly.

How To Get Your Hair To Grow Long

Shortly after starting this blog I did a post on my hair journey.  It has been a while since I did an update on my hair journey but my hair is still doing what I want it to do, and that is growing!  It has been slow, but steady.  The average rate of hair growth is approximately half an inch per month so that means it takes the average person one year to get six inches of new growth.  After you get all of your trims for the year, it is safe to say that you should retain at least four to five of those inches.  Trims are very important because although without them the hair will appear longer, it will look very jagged and unhealthy, and sometimes extremely frizzy.  Also, without trims, the ends will continue to split up the hair shaft so the longer you wait to get one, the more you will have to get cut in the end.  Let's take a look at my hair in July of 2012:

In the picture above I had my hair cut in an inverted bob, being very short in the back and coming longer in the front with lots of layers.  I very much enjoyed that cut but decided to grow it out to show other women how to grow their hair if that is what they want to do.  So, here we are with the journey to longer hair.

How To Stretch Your Relaxer Past 6 Weeks (week 15)

For many of you, this is the final week of your stretch!  Congratulations to everyone that made it to week 15!!! Next week will be time for you to get your relaxer.  To some of you that is wonderful news, but to others like myself, I will continue to stretch approximately eight more weeks.  That is only because I feel like I can still manage my new growth pretty well at this point.  By the time I relax again, six months will have passed me by and I can say hello to four inches of new growth and healthy relaxed hair!  This week I chose to do my hair straight again and even have gotten a lot of compliments even though the style is very basic.  People can not believe that I have not had a relaxer since December.  That is what happens when you have a relaxer correctly applied to your hair.  You end up with very healthy hair that grows and has lots of body and movement.  Check out this week's video.  I could relax my hair now if I wanted to because I am right at about two inches.  If you can still manage your hair at this stage then feel free to add on a few more weeks.  Either way, you should be fine as long as your hairstylist knows what she is doing and does not process the relaxer beyond your new growth.

I used all Silk Hydration by L. Jones products this week as well. If you are interested in ordering please go to www.silkhydrationbyljones.com.

Sponsor Love- Theorie

Today I would like to take the time out to show my newest sponsor a thank you and dedicate this post to them.  I would also like to share with all of you wonderful readers just how great their products are.  They sent over the flat iron, 4-in-1 curling wand, and the blow dryer.  If you have been watching the "How To Stretch Your Relaxer" series, the flat iron I use is the one they gave me.  It gives me the results that I want each and every time leaving my thick, 15-week post relaxed hair, looking like it has been freshly relaxed.  Even some of my clients do not believe me when I tell them I have not had a relaxer since December.  This is all because of my flat iron.  One thing that I always look for in a flat iron is the ability to be able to control the heat of it and this one does just that.  It does not get any of my hair tangled in it, does not snag my hair or any of that.  It just glides right through!

The 4-in-1 curling iron is one amazing creation if I do say so myself.  I can actually pick what size curls I want to do on one tool instead of having to buy four separate ones.  Can you say genius?!?  I simply love it.  And to add more icing on top of this cake, it also has a digital temperature gauge and goes all the way up to 450!  With most curling wands I do no necessarily have to use the glove that comes with it, but with this one it is a must or you will definitely get burned.  With other curling wands that I have tried, I have to leave the hair wrapped around it for like 10-15 seconds each.  But with this one, that time is cut down to 4-5 seconds each and gives a great curl.  As a matter of fact I will be using it tonight on one of my removable sew ins that I want curled for a possible alternate look for some family photos.

The carrying case for the Saga 4-in-1 curling iron is one of the cutest things also.  You can store each and every item separately but together at the same time.  When I curl my removable sew in unit I think I will be using the smallest one (pics to come later).

curls courtesy of the Saga 4-in-1

Theorie also sent me the Saga 3100 Hair Dryer.  This hair dryer is similar to others, but I do like that I can set it to warm or hot, low or high.  I always blow dry my hair on warm instead of hot.  Also, this blow dryer allows you to hold the nozzle if you need to instead of holding the handle.  My other blow dryer did not do that!

I am giving the green light to purchase and use any of these products.  This is not a paid blog post, but simply giving credit where it is due.  I appreciate them for sponsoring my blog and all of their products are top notch.  I would use them even if they were not my sponsor.  If you are interested in purchasing any of their products go to the website: https://www.yourtheorie.com.

How To Stretch Your Relaxer Past 6 Weeks (Week 14)

We are getting closer and closer to the green light in the relaxer stretch series!  If you are on week 14 you should be able to see the light at the end of the tunnel!  In two more short weeks you will be ready for your next relaxer touch up!  You should notice your hair beginning to thicken up, even after you receive your relaxer.  You should also notice less breakage and shedding since your hair is no longer being over-processed.  Remember, I recommend that only a trusted, experienced professional hairstylist do your relaxers.  I would hate for you to do all of this hard work only to mess up your progress by trying to save a few dollars and do your own relaxer.  If you continue to go sixteen weeks in between your relaxer you will only be getting three relaxers per year so you are already saving a ton of money by cutting your relaxer services in half.  I have tried to do my own relaxer before when I did not have my cosmetology license and it definitely resulted in damage.  Now that I know better, I understand just how much damage is being done to the hair when self relaxing which is why I strongly suggest against it. In this week's video, you can see how much more new growth I have.  I did my hair bone straight this time (my favorite) since we did curly last week.   If you are this far in your stretch you are doing fantastic!  Keep up the good work and know that your hair is getting healthier and healthier each week!  You are well on your way to having healthy AND relaxed hair.

Tips to remember:

• Never try to clip your own ends! I only do it because I know what I am doing..
• Only flat iron each piece of hair once!
• Take thin sections.  As your hair gets thicker you will need thinner sections to make it straight.
• Take your time! Rushing will let you get through faster but you will not be happy with the results.
• You're doing great!

Top 5 Reasons To Relaxer Stretch For Healthy Hair

Many of my clients, especially clients who come to me for the first time often look at me like I have two heads when I suggest to them that they should stretch their relaxers beyond six weeks.  I then have to tell them the method to my madness.  It is not torture, but what you have on your hands is a hairstylist who truly cares about the health of other women's hair.  I am tired of hearing women, especially black women tell me about how their hair won't grow and how it has been damaged due to relaxers and as a result, they think the only option is to go natural.  No!!! We have options!  As a matter of fact, we have several of them.  I want every woman to be very educated and knowledgable about relaxers so that you can make an informed decision on whether to get one or not.  The reason why 99% of women choose to no longer get a relaxer anymore is because they have received some type of damage from them which I fully believe could be prevented.  We must remember that relaxers are chemicals and should not be handled carelessly.  Only experienced hairstylists should be applying them to hair.  Relaxers are only meant to be applied to the new growth, and must be processed within a certain amount of time.  This is extremely hard to do on your own hair.  Once damage has been done to your hair from relaxers, the visible results may not happen immediately but over time, it will happen.  If you want any chance at having healthy hair and have a relaxer, relaxer stretching is the only answer.  Below, I have put together a list of reasons why you will have healthier hair as a result of stretching your relaxer.

Straightening Natural Hair Without Chemicals (silk press)

Many relaxer-free women get their hair straightened for different reasons.  I typically see a lot of women straighten their un-relaxed hair because they want it to be trimmed and/or they want to see how long it has gotten.  Then I have others that just have no interest in wearing their hair in its natural state, they just do not want any chemicals in their hair.  The latter reason usually comes when the person has had some type of damage done to their hair from relaxers.  As a result, they just do not get any more altogether.  Whether your hair is wavy or extra kinky in its natural state, I have made it my business to learn how to straighten any texture of hair AND to do so without damaging it.  This client came in for the first time wanting her hair silk pressed.  She was unsure if I would be able to get it silky straight because her hair has a tight coil and is very thick and coarse.  Take a look at her before picture: