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

24/5/2014

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

My name is Jackie aka J. Marie Natural and I’m repping the Southside of Chicago.

2. What is your hair type?

4a, 4b and 4c

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

I did my big chop in January of 2009. I wanted to just be myself and stop wearing weaves. It was one of the best decisions I’ve ever made!

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

I went natural before the revolution that is going on now so I had almost no support from family and friends, but I persevered and I’m better for it. Plus, almost all those people that didn’t initially support me went natural after they saw my progress!

5. What is your weekly regimen?

I make my own hair products under the J. Marie Natural line. I co wash once a week with a J. Marie Natural conditioner (coming soon). Then I use argan, or rice bran oil to twist my hair and seal with my Curl Boost Butter.

6. What is your daily morning regimen?

I spritz my hair with water and use one the J. Marie Natural styling products.

7. What is your daily night time regimen?

I make about 4-8 twists and sleep in a satin bonnet.

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

Once a year (usually in December) I get my hair professionally flat ironed. I also get a good trim at this time.

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

I wish I was a great braider, because I would braid my hair all the time! However, I get my hair braided at a beauty shop about 4-6 times a year. When it’s not braided, I do a lot of twists, puffs and buns.

10 Wide-tooth comb or Denman brush?

I recently threw my Denman brush away in favor of a wide tooth comb. Over the years (I’m 5 years natural), I’ve found that less is more. I don’t need to comb or brush my hair other than to keep tangles at bay so I only need a wide tooth comb to do this.

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

Protective styles are my friends! I have 2 small children and protective styles help me save a lot of time and encourage growth.

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

Why yes I have! When I was transitioning, I did the worst thing ever! I wanted to wear a sew in with the front part of my hair out so I permed the front part of my hair to match the straight weave that I had sewed in. Needless to say, I totally regretted that because now the front part of my hair will forever be 6 months behind the rest of my hair (in terms of growth). It’s all good though, because it did eventually grow out and I learned a huge lesson.

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

Make sure your hair is moisturized (add water and seal with oil and/or butter) and be gentle to your hair. I’ve found that my hair grows at a great rate, but if I’m not gentle when detangling or taking down twists/braids, that’s when too much hair may come out in the comb and inhibit growth.

14. Where can we find you online? (blog, Facebook, Twitter, YouTube etc).