I just couldn't wait. Nope, I just couldn't wait.
See I had this great idea for a awesome fall look that would not only keep my head primarily warm, but would also compliment my half shaven head and soften up my look. The solution? Senegalese Twist. I've been wanting them for a while, especially after doing a kinky twist style on my daughter that came out quite nice. All I had to do was keep on doing my little bantu knots or two strand twist for another month or so, then I could bask in the glory of fall with my warm twist and a nice outfit. But no, I'm impatient and just could not wait.
So I hit up the neighborhood grocery store/weave spot for a couple bags of chips, soda and 7 bags of their prime Kanekalon braiding hair. They only had 4 bags of 1b left. The Arabian owner recommended that I try his cousins hair store a bout 2 miles away, but through the thick of his accent and vague directions, I was left to find another spot on my own. Now every good hair story begins with an wild goose chase all over the city for the perfect price, or color or bag of hair, so this one is no different. I drove a mile and found another store in a old ran down plaza downtown.
I walked in and was greeted by an Asian clerk whom was more than happy to direct me to the braiding hair section with a quick point of his finger & a smile. Brown cardboard boxes lined the back wall of the store, filled with rainbows of colors of hair, yellow, pink, blue raspberry, neon green; yes the hood was definitely nearby. So of all the Nicky McNasty colors this store had to offer, their 1b Kanekalon hair packs were not only twice the cost of the previous store, they were seemingly half filled and looked as if they had been sitting for years. Probably so, I mean who in the hood would want color 1 or 1b hair, when there are so many rainbow bright colors to choose from, Right :-?
So I drove back to the store where my adventure began and opted for the 4 bags, figuring by the time I was finished installing those bags of twist, that I would have asked around and found another location that sold the same hair.
Installing the hair
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| I look mean, lol. |
Well in the hair world, it's often said that anything you can do on yourself, you can do on someone else. So as I contorted my arms above my head to attach the braid hair onto the little hair I had. Then proceed to twist these long Poetic Justice like twist down to my butt..., I thought to myself, "Yeah, I would really do an awesome job on putting these on someone else".
After 4 bags and a few hours later, I had researched & found the location of 'the cousin's' store. I hopped up, half head twisted, threw on my bandana and headed over to the other hair store. This one was even deeper in the hood, and was like the neighborhood Mecca of weave stores. I walked in to what seemed like a warehouse of hair. I wondered how many people in india sacrificed their hair to the hair gods, just to stock this store alone. But in that same breath I thought not many, as most of this hair had to be primarily synthetic; but I could be wrong. Anyhow not only did they have 2 long rows of nothing but Kanekalon Twist hair, they had Marley braid hair, Kinky braid hair all in (dare I say) really nice array of colors. I decided to get a few bags to match the color of the blonde patch in the front of my hair. I mixed it with 1b to tone it down a bit. And you say, who am I to dare use the word... Hood. Lol.
I completed the install over the span of 10 hours, I kept getting tired and my arms felt like they wanted to fall off. My fingers felt numb & my wrist spasmed from the suspected carpel tunnel I was developing from the twisting motion. But after all the toil, I must say... They looked beautiful! :) I absolutely loved them!
Now this is where the "I probably should've waited" part comes into play. See there was a reason I knew I should've waited until fall. First of all I HATE being HOT! Summer is not, my favorite season, not by a long shot. Which is why when everyone black was uprooting and running to the "A" back in the early 90's, I pack my suitcase and radio & bounced to Philly, which still had the snow and 4 seasons I was used to. There is nothing worse than being hot and sticky to me, and I hate air conditioners they always incite sinus infections for me, so being stuck inside a freezer boxed room all day just won't work. I digressed. So needless to say, it was mid summer and the east coast has been having some very hot weather, which made for a bad choice of time for this hairstyle.
If I wasn't sweating from the heat summer's sun & the 7 bags of hair upon my head, then I was busy trying to balance the hair that I rocked in the biggest of buns on top of my head, which I pulled up to escape the heat & keep sweat from pouring down my neck. Yeah I was cute, but suffering in silence.
Sleeping was a chore. I had to wrap the twist in two bandanas just to get it to hold right. Then I struggled throughout the night feeling trapped to the pillow by the weight of my hair. Trapped by the gravity, then hot from the summer's night. This was definitely the wrong time to do these twist.
I made it two weeks, then snatched my way to freedom as I cut and pulled them from my hair.
Would I do it again? HECK Yeah! Lol. Because in the end being cute Trumps everything Right?
Of course it does. :)
Have you rocked Senegalese Twist? If so what was your experience? Did you love them or hate them? Let a sista know..
What's next?.. Color removal... Taking natural to the next level... & Re-Growing a shaven side.
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