by
Meosha
*Prepared for BGLH by Meosha Tall of 1MeNaturally
Introduce yourself!
M: Hi! My name is Melissa, but everyone calls me Mimi. I was born in Brooklyn, NY and raised in Miami, FL where I currently live.
Why did you make the decision to go natural?
M: I never knew what my natural hair looked or felt like. I can’t even remember when I first got a perm. But I do know that I got tired of perms burning my scalp and my hair breaking and becoming thin. I wanted volume and health for my hair. But what pushed my decision to become natural is hearing my daughter say she wanted straight hair like mine when she has such beautiful, curly, spongy natural hair. I wanted to be a role model for her and show her that natural hair is beautiful, but I couldn’t show her that with permed hair. So I took a giant leap into the natural world and I love it! I’ve been natural since June 27, 2010.
How would you describe your texture?
M: I’m not exactly sure what my hair type is. If I had to choose I would say the majority of my hair is 4b. My hair is thick, but soft and manageable. The back of my hair has a tighter curl pattern and shrivels up more than the rest of my hair (almost like a 4c, but not quite) and the front middle section of my hair has a looser curl pattern that’s a bit more straight (more like a 4a). The rest of my hair is 4b.
Describe your styling regimen over the course of the month.
M: I usually wear twist-outs. I 2-strand (and sometimes 3-strand) twist on dry hair using Carol’s Daughter Loc Butter only. I spray very little water on my hair and apply the butter to each twist and leave the twists in for 1-2 days. I do about maybe 30 twists all over my head. I unravel them and separate them to my liking. To keep them looking fresh throughout the week, I twist my hair in bigger chunks (about six twists) every night and put on a satin bonnet.
What does wash day look like for you?
M: I try to make my wash days as simple as possible, but I have to dedicate a COMPLETE DAY to wash it. I wash my hair every 2 to 4 weeks (depending on how lazy I feel). I wash with Terressentials Pure Earth Hair Wash Lavender Garden. It’s like a mud mask for your hair. The wash cleans your hair of dirt, but keeps the moisture so I don’t have to use a follow-up conditioner. Once my hair is clean I moisturize with Cantu Shea Butter Leave In Conditioner and an oil mixture of Jojoba oil, Avocado oil, Olive oil, Castor oil, Sweet Almond oil and Vitamin E while my hair is still wet.
Describe your favorite go-to hairstyle for days when you don’t have a lot of time to style.
M: Generally my hair is always out in a twist out so I let it flow. But for those days when my hair just doesn’t want to cooperate, I throw it up in a pony puff or bun.
How do you combat shrinkage?
M: My hair is usually stretched and sometimes blow-dried, so once shrinkage sneaks up on me I either bantu knot it, do a twist out, or pull it all up in one. Sometimes I’ll even wet my whole head with a spray bottle and let the shrinkage take over.
What are some of your problem areas (if any) that require special care and attention?
M: I always make sure to take extra special care of my edges and my ends. My edges don’t always lay flat and I don’t use gel often at all. I usually spray my edges with water, apply a little oil (and on occasion some Eco Styler Olive Oil Gel), brush it down and wrap a satin scarf tightly around my head for a quick 5 minutes or so. When I remove the scarf my edges lay flat and last throughout the day. As for my ends, I always manage to spray a little water on them and run some oil on them to keep them moisturized. I only clip my ends probably once a year.
What are 2 do’s for your texture?
M: Oil and water. They say the two don’t mix, but they work wonders for my hair. I keep the product level on my hair very low. Also wearing a silk or satin bonnet helps my texture keep the moisture.
What are 2 don’ts for your texture?
M: Combs and chemicals. I lose more hair with combs than I do with finger detangling. No matter how gentle I am with a comb, raking from ends to roots, I always end up losing more hair than with my own fingers. And I absolutely, positively keep chemicals out of my hair. I have never dyed or color treated my hair (relaxed or natural) and I don’t apply texturizers. I’m so protective of my hair, so I’m very careful of the things I put in it.
Is there a blog/webpage where we can find you?
M: You can find me on Instagram: @ShyFlyQTPie
49 Responses
You are my hair twin!! I have been looking for my hair twin for years! YEARS! Im so happy. How do you do your bantu knots? Is there a youtube video you use and like that you can recommend? or do you do your own youtube videos? I have a ton of questions for my hair twin smh
Aww I’m glad to have a hair twin finally too lol. And ask as many as you need. I don’t have any YouTube videos unfortunately (but I’m thinking about making some), but the way I do my bantu knots are simple. I do mine on dry hair. I take medium sections of my hair and spray it with a little water. Not too much where its dripping but like one to two sprits is good enough. I put moisturizer in my hair (I use either Cantu Shea Butter Leave in Conditioner, or Carol’s Daughter Loc Butter). I do two-strand twist my hair, then begin to spiral my twists to form the bantu knots. The tighter the better. If the knots don’t stay, I use bobby pins to keep them secure. I usually do it at night and take them out in the morning for a nice twist out for work but the longer you keep the knots in, the better 🙂
Loving every picture! Her hair is just so exquisite and healthy… I’m awe-struck! 😀
Lol “Awe-struck” I like that. Thank you so much Aliyah! ^_^
Gorgeous!
Thank you Jackie!
Amazing…that’s all I can say! She breathes such life into her styles, and it’s very inspiring. Her message seems to say, “Do what works for you, and your hair will handle the rest!” This is really great! What a great icon!!!
Thank you so much Miss JoeyK! ^_^
Ok…the luciousity( is that even a word?)level of your hair is off the scale. I love, love, love it! Simply Beautiful.
Lol thank you Mrs. Martin 🙂
Are you wash do put the cantu in and then the oil?
Yes. After washing I put the Cantu in first then the oil. I tried it the other way around before but my hair didn’t seem too thrilled about it. I know the LOC system is Liquid, Oil then Cream but it felt like the oil was blocking the cream from penetrating my hair. It works different for everyone’s hair though.
Wow gorgeous! I love your hair and you’re very pretty.
Aww thanks so much jenni ^_^
Love, LOVE your hair! It looks so healthy and full. I’m a big fan of Carol’s Daughter Loc Butter too!
Thanks caramelcurls. My hair didn’t know what it was missing without that loc butter. That’s my twist out secret!
Hair is beautiful so lush with so much sheen!
Thank you karajw 🙂
I saw the first picture and thought – oh, she’s like 17, 18…then read “daughter”…huh??!?!… honey, don’t know how old you are but you look great!!!
Lol thanks sweetie. I’m 30.
Finally my hair twin! I use all the same products except for eco styler gel and I am having trouble with my edges but I am beginning to put castor oil on them daily. Love this! definitely finna go follow this girl!
Thanks hun! And I see you followed me too lol 🙂
had too! lol
Very well put! Nice
Thanks twa4NOW! 🙂
gorgeous woman and hair! love your pics especially the one with the white shoulder one!
Aww thanks so much Keisha! 🙂
Beautiful hair!!
Thanks Akilah! 🙂
Hi!! I was raised in Miami too ( yea Miami Norland!) Anyway, do you have any tips to help me through our super humid spring and summer time or do I just have to give in to the poof :). Your hair is beautiful!!
Thanks Antrelise! Well last spring/summer I wore my hair in 2-strand mini twists a lot. Maybe you can try that out too. It was too hot to wear my hair out and too humid for my puffs and buns to stay in tact. This year i’ll be doing the same thing but i’ll try styling it up a bit. Maybe curl my twists or do a bantu knot out with them and style them up or something. The rain can be so unforgiving down here for us naturals lol.
Gosh, it’s so thick and shiny and long and beautiful; you go girl! Absolutely love it.
Thanks so much D.K. 🙂
Awesome-tastic! (that’s a lot of awesome with a mix of fantastic!). My hair wants to be like hers when it grows up 😉
Thanks RukiyatG. And with the right hair care it will. Maybe even turn out better than mine!
hey dear wat kind of cream shld i use can u pls send me de name cos it soo many cream i reail love to make my hair natural? i wnt to go en buy some so send it for me yea.email li*******@**ve.com
This is one of the prettiest heads of hair I’ve seen on here. Thanks for sharing.
Aww! Thanks so much Lotus ^_^
Nice, thick, lush lol I could go on beautiful hair!!
Thank you Cleo! 🙂
Great interview! Great style and beautiful hair!
Thank you! 🙂
GREAT HAIR STYLES..simply beautiful!
Thanks G! 🙂
Your hair looks so healthy idk y but I feel like my hair never looks fluffy and soft it’s frizzy and the ends suffer. I cut off half of my length and its still acting cray all I use is tresseme naturals and olive oil and once a month wash it with a sulphate free shampoo
Maybe it’s my diet and deep conditioning with protein that I need to add
Maybe the products you’re using aren’t the thing for your hair. Have you tried switching products to see what it does for your hair? I tried a whole lot of things before I found my staple products. Not to mention having a regimen to follow helps a whole lot too.
@ Tonisha It could be a combo of things…re check how you are handling your hair. Do you use cool/cold water for final rinses, over-handling hair daily (protective sytling may help) vic HIH (hands in hair?) At night, do you have a silk or satin bonnet/pillow case? Do you need to change your products or make your own? Drink tons of water! Check youtube for good advice just to choosey and other hair blogs and vloggs. The book, The Science of Black Hair is suppose to be good too. All the best to you! <3
What a beauty?! Her hair gives me lyfe!!!! Keep it up sis.
Thanks so much sis!