Getting Down To Frizzness: Curly Chronicles!

Great Monday, Curlies....I pray your week will be a blessed & INSPIRED one!

Today, I'm completely stoked to bring to you some curly wisdom via Autumn, the stunning You Tube phenom behind the Curly Chronicles & The Retro Natural Blog! I am so honored she took the time to share her story wth us....just look her fantabulous style & you'll see why I'm locked on my happy pudding-face smile today! Swoon!

How long have you been rocking your frizzness?I’ve been a proud frizzhead since 2003 ..although in highschool, I definitely had my poofy, frizzy moments :)

Did you desire a second date following your BC/End of transition, or did you make reservations for a party of ONE?RSVP for one, I didn’t transition but I didn’t have a perm, my hair was just really damaged by heat and color so I starting cutting at it and lopped off about 4 inches which left me with maybe 3 to 4 inches.

Natural Hair doesn't define who you are BUT.....It’s made a huge difference in how I view myself and how much confidence I have.

What was your natural epiphany moment? I was standing in the mirror frustrated with my purple dyed hair that barely went past my shoulders. It was thin, stringy and dry. I couldn’t be happy with it straight and so I said “let’s take a step back and leave the hair alone for a little while.”

Because natural manes are so unpredictable, how do you combat feeling defeated on days when your crown seems less than stellar (based your OWN criteria)?I tend to accessorize when my hair’s being a bit “special”. It’s easier to toss on a bow, snood, or fascinator when your hair’s not looking how you’d like it to. Updo’s are easy as well and they easily mask that hair that’s desperate for a washing!

Do random people attempt to lay hands in your mane?Very rarely, but I think it’s because I don’t wear my hair down much, it’s normally pinned up in a retro style. I use to get a hand here and a hand there roaming hahaha but not so much anymore..I’m happy about that, I like having my space.

Do you find your mane becoming the grand topic of conversation?Not as much anymore but it used to be..I think, again, it has to deal with the fact that I don’t wear it out much. If I wear it down, I’m certain that it’ll be a topic..but a fun one! I never mind talking about hair and makeup :)

CONFIDENCE CHECK: Has natural hair allowed you to dance as if no one is watching, or has your aurora remain unfazed since your relaxed days?I’ve always danced like no one was watching but the only difference now is that I can actually whip my hair back n forth a little bit better! ;)

Share some secrets leading to a fabulous, happy, HEALTHY mane...promise we WILL tell!
Hmmm, I don’t think I really have any secrets, I don’t do anything truly special outside of deep conditioning treatments and scalp massages here and there (I should do them more often though!)

What was the WORST mistake you’ve made along the way?I think I’d have to say blow drying my hair too often and applying too much high heat, that showed the most damage!

What advice can you bless new, transitioning or frustrated kinky curly queens with?Be still for a moment and think about what your want your hair to look like but be realistic about it. Think about the biggest problem you’ve always had with your hair (dryness, shedding, too thin) because you may find yourself encountering these problems while natural as well as you wanna make sure you know what to do to combat them! Try to understand right off the bat that there’s no such thing as an effortless journey. It takes time, dedication, practice, and an optimistic attitude. You don’t excel at anything when you’re drowning yourself in negativity so try your best to have fun and don’t get mad when your hair doesn’t do what you want it to, try another method and if it just doesn’t work, you gotta accept it and move right on along.

What natural experiments put the glam in your crown? Which ones ended up filed under Campaign EPIC FAIL?Mixing coconut oil and leave in conditioner was fabulous, when I first figured that out, I was so happy…so was my hair! An epic fail was mixing Kinky Curly Curling Custard with ..I think it was Giovanni Direct Leave In conditioner. I think that was the combination from hell, white specs – everywhere! Oh the horror!

What's the most fabulous part of your journey to frizzness?Bearing the fruits of my labor! I have so much fun styling my hair. I could NOT say this was true before I decided to wear it natural. The hard work has paid off though and it’s nice to see the progress. I absolutely adore my hair and even when I don’t want to deal with it, I love it.

Outside of your gorgeous mane, what inspires you?The arts (really dancing and classical music), the pursuit of happiness, nature, my beloved, and I’m always inspired by animals, I have a great connection with them!

How can our beautiful readers find you on the web?
I feel like I have too many but here we go!
Videos and tutorials: www.youtube.com/curlychronicles
Vintage Inspired Hair and style: www.theretronatural.blogspot.com
For meetups (though I don’t know when the next one is!): www.facebook.com/curlychronicles

Many thanks & blessings for getting down to frizzness!