Our hair journey began when we accepted a referral for this little 9 month old girl named Sifan...
We are fortunate to have many pictures of her as a baby, and at 6 months her hair looked like this...
At one year old , she wore the headband we sent her for her first birthday...
Soon after her birthday she moved to the YWAM home in Adama where we got a picture of her hair in puffs for the first time...
Soon after this we received another picture showing her "free hair " as it had gotten longer...
When we saw our baby girl for the first time, her hair was fixed by the nannies in little finger coils...
On the second day , they had her hair braided in several braids...
Her first shampoo by mommy on Gotcha day...
I took baby shampoo and the "Just For Me" Hair milk I used as a leave in conditioner.
A headband was the first style of choice that first night after her first bath...
I tried my hand at twisting her hair in several twists the following morning...I still was getting used to how to even think about combing through it...I had read the blogs but experience is everything....
Yes, those are little rubber bands, I don't recommend them as they are bad for hair breakage, though her hair is very fine and does not hold twists without something to hold them in place...
Until I had time to practice more on her hair , I opted for headbands most of the time while in Ethiopia, as well as after we returned home...
Here she is at the beach one month after returning home...
We began a routine of shampooing only once or twice a week and washing with conditioner only in between. I first began using Aubrey Organics Honeysuckle Rose Conditioner. I could find it on sale at The Vitamin Shop for around 8 dollars a bottle..It was pricey but seemed to do a good job of getting her hair looking nice and healthy..It also provided a lot of slip for detangling with a wide tooth shower comb...
At 3 months home her hair was looking like this...
By 4 months it was looking like this...
At 5 months home, wearing a twist across the front of her hairline which we did regularly for awhile...
At 6 months home she is in two pigtails , another favorite for awhile...
Soon after this, I began experimenting with braiding. I had not even figured out how to part the hair at this point, I was just pinching little bits of hair and braiding..
..
I then branched out and tried to learn corn rows..
Here are my first ones, with some pinch braids in the back....
When I began doing the corn rows, I found that you need a thicker styling product with some hold to get a smooth look and prevent the fly aways and fuzzies...
From here I began to learn how to part the hair and experimented with my first set of box braids...
Box braids up in pig tails...
We have had fun trying lots of different things...
finger twists...
PonyTails...
Pig Tails...
Afros with hairline twists...
Pig tails with criss cross braids and corn rows...
Lots of corn rows...
and snaps...
we experimented with bedtime routines...wish I had introduced this sleep cap from the very beginning...
And banding at night to make detangling a breeze in the morning...
Our first set of yarn braid extensions...
Combinations of pony tails and braids...
Bows...
and more bows...
And more braids...
loose hair is always a favorite...
On her 3rd birthday last month...(loose curls here defined by Kinky Curly Knot Today)
We have tried several different products from the inexpensive to the very expensive.
Currently we are using Aussie Moist Conditioner mixed with water in a spray bottle as a leave in conditioner for detangling. Most of the time I use nothing else. Occasionally I will use a curl definer like the one above.
It has been a fun journey with my daughter. The time spent doing hair has been good bonding time.
She loves her hair and she is a beautiful girl inside and out!!
I look forward to many fun hair times ahead!!!
W O W! You are doing a great job! I kinda laughed a little bit at your first try at corn rows. But, only because they reminded me of my first try...which I was not brave enough to photograph and which I have yet to re-visit. :) I LOVE the styles near the bottom, that picture with the pink flowers in her hair and her hands under her chin is PRICELESS! Thanks for sharing, I can't wait until I am far enough along in our journey to share as well. But, we're still working with pretty short hair here in the Lemanski Casa.
ReplyDeleteBeautiful girl!
I was thinking about you the other day - wondering how our girl's "former roommate" is doing. :) You are way ahead of me in the hair dept and this post gives me hope. Our C is 26 months old now and we're still working on sitting still for detangling. Thanks for the tips.
ReplyDeleteYou have come a long way! It is amazing how little she looks in those early pictures.
ReplyDeleteThis is exactly what I'm already nervous about. I totally bookmarked this post for when we get our little darling home! You're doing an AMAZING job! Gorgeous!!
ReplyDeleteI love all these pics! I am SO encouraged because the early pictures DO look a lot like Chally's hair....maybe we will end up with some gorgeous Corrie-curls!! YAY! I am definitely coming over to play hair salon with you when Charlotte grows enough to really work with. I already LOVE playing with her hair =)
ReplyDeleteYou really have become quite the expert. Corrie always looks beautiful, and her hair is amazingly done. Can't believe how much she's changed and grown, right under our noses!
ReplyDeleteThis is a great post. Her hair seems alot like Dinqee's. You MIGHT find the older she gets the more 'loose hair' days you will have. Dinqee's hair simply doesn't hold the braids.
ReplyDeleteShe is getting so BIG! I am thrilled for her!!!
Hi my name is Bonnie. I am so proud of you taking the time to research and find different ways to do your daughters hair before adopting her. Most white women find black hair to difficult to mess with. So they cut it or just leave it kinky or messy. My family is full of mix, white or black hair we work will together and learn from each other. God bless and great job mommy.
ReplyDeleteMy little girls are mixed (3 and 6 months) and I'm struggling with my 3 year old's hair now. I loved your page bc there are so many similarities in hairstyles. I'm at the "Beginning to experiment with braids" phase. I put in to little braids to control the front while the rest is in two puffs. I just RECENTLY got a sleep cap for her-before that, she had perpetual bed head! I should have figured that one out long ago! It's a journey. Thank you for your inspiring page. I can't wait to learn and their hair looking as gorgeous as your little girl's .
ReplyDelete