Queen Eartha ~ Queen Of Kinks, Curls & Coils® (Neno Natural)

7/12/2013

1. What's your name and where are you from?

My name is Eartha Wight and I hail from the beautiful twin island of Trinidad and Tobago(more specifically Tobago).

2. What is your hair type?

My hair type is 4c.

3. When did you go natural and what made you do it?

After finishing university in 2010, I decided to go natural again. This was because my relaxed hair became scorched and damaged by the excessive use of curling and flat irons. In addition to that,my hair care regime was very poor. I hardly took the time to truly take care for my hair because of my busy school life. My hair started breaking badly and so I decided to grow it out instead of cutting it all off.

4. What was the most challenging thing about going natural?

The most challenging thing about going back to natural, was the transitioning period. My natural hair is very thick and so it was very hard to style my hair especially with the straight hair at the ends of my new growth. I had to resort to braiding my hair and occasionally weaving it (something I don't like doing a lot, since it affects my hair line).

5. What is your weekly regimen?

My weekly regime is quite simple. I wash and deep condition on Sunday mornings.

Washing
Before I wash, I usually comb my hair into chunky twists,spritz it with water then wash using Vo5 normal shampoo. When I'm finished washing I add argan, jojoba, vitamin E, castor and shea oils to my hair. I also add my Organics olive oil deep conditioner to my hair, before covering it with my plastic cap. I then use my blow dryer by setting it on 'warm', allowing it to blow on the plastic cap on my head for about 5 mins, to allow my hair follicles to open up, so that the oils and conditioner could get to the roots of my hair. I usually keep my plastic cap on for most of the day, before rinsing it out.

Rinsing
I rinse my hair with warm water at first, and then continue with cold. I do this because, the warm water rinses the stuff out really well and the cold water closes my pores at the end.

Drying
I dry my hair with an old t-shirt to prevent 'snagging'. I also air dry my hair. My hair usually takes two hours to dry!

After my hair is dry, I use African Pride leave-in conditioner on my hair and argan oil on my scalp and then massage (all this time, my hair is still in the chunky twists). I then untwist my chunky twists one at a time and comb through with a wide tooth comb. I then style.

On Wednesdays, I usually co-wash using my Organics deep conditioner.

I have major shrinkage issues, so I sometimes stretch my hair by plaiting single plaits, that stay in for at least a day!

6. What is your daily morning regimen?

My daily morning regime begins with a spritz of water and oils. I then twist out my hair if that's the style I'm rocking for the week. My twist outs usually last a week. Other weekly styles that I rock are two-strand twists and cornrows.

7. What is your daily night time regimen?

I don't have an elaborate night regime. I put on my satin bonnet and go to sleep.

8. Do you use heat on your hair at all?

I do not use flat irons or curling irons on my hair. I only use heat when I use the blow dryer on warm or cool settings to dry my hair out, when I'm in a hurry.

9. Do you braid your hair? If so, how often do you do so in a year?

Sometimes I braid or weave my hair, when I want to leave my hair alone. Although I'm extremely conscious about the impact of these protective styles on my hairline, these styles help me to gain growth, which is something that I'm working on. Healthy hair and length retention is very important to me.

10. Wide-tooth comb or Denman brush?

Wide tooth combs work for my hair. It reduces the amount of unnecessary breakage that could be done. If I were to use any brush at all, I would only use a brush if I'm doing a high bun, something I don't do very often.

11. Is your hair normally loose or in a protective-do?

At the beginning of my natural hair journey, I mostly wore my hair in two strand twists, but now I'm mostly twisting out because it looks soooo darn good! :D Plus, I get a lot of compliments from guys and gals on my twist outs!

12. Have you ever had a hair tragedy? What was it? How did you recover from it?

As with any natural, I too had my fair share of hair tragedies. The one that was most tragic was when I got sick in 2012. My hair was breaking badly and it seemed as though it stopped growing. I was also experiencing very painful and heavy periods and was extremely fatigued during the day. When I finally ended up at the hospital, I was diagnosed as being anemic and also having polycystic ovaries and fibroids.

I spent a week at the hospital to get my blood count back up to normal. I was devastated as I read about these varying diseases and their impact on the body. Besides finding out about possible infertility, cancer etc, I also did some research and found out that my anemic condition,was having a direct impact on the condition of my hair...At this point, I decided that I must get well and so I continued doing more and more research on my conditions and the natural ways of going about getting better. Since then, my diet has changed, my polycystic ovaries are gone my fibroids have almost disappeared and my hair is growing again! I feel great and empowered as a black woman to take charge of my life!

13. What's your biggest tip for maintaining healthy or long hair?

My tip for maintaining healthy or long hair is not so much what you put in your hair, but what you put in you body! More greens, fruits and nuts! Drink more teas and fruit smoothies and less dairy and sugary drinks. Exercise every day and relax when necessary. Most of all, feel good about yourself and be the best you,that you can be!

14. Where can we find you online? (blog, Facebook, Twitter, YouTube) - if you want us to feature one of your most viewed YouTube videos here we'd love to.

You can find me on Facebook at facebook.com/thandwie.boullion