Havana Twists - 1st Install (19.07.14)

"After many months of procrastination, I installed these Havana twists as a short term protective style for my holiday in Ibiza at the end of July."

A couple of months ago I made a last minute mad dash to Old London Town to pick up some Marley hair as I had an overwhelming urge to install some Havana twists.  Needless to say, when I got home and found my mind [which I had apparently lost shortly before jumping on that London bound train], I realised that really didn't feel like standing in a bathroom for hours on end installing hair - so I just kept wigging it!

Fast forward two months, with vinegar pre-soaked synthethic hair in hand I kept my camera handy to document the install and took a few photos of the process.....


My wash day prior to install was a week beforehand so seeing as I am firmly in my 3 week wash day pattern (don't judge me, it's working for me so I'm not changing that anytime soon!), I didn't feel like going through the whole rigmarole of washing my hair again besides, my new growth (if that what it's still called when you are 1 year post?) was nicely stretched and perfectly prepped for the installation of the extension hair.

Below are the pictures I took during and after install.  This will be a pic heavy but brief post because truth be told, I am having trouble typing - my nails are too long at the moment and I've not had a chance to file them down and redo them since I returned from holiday earlier this weekend.

For the install I used a mixture of Jazzy Sof N' Silky Afro Natural hair and Jazzy Premium Quality Kankelon Afro Kinky braid hair.  Both types of hair installed where a colour 2.  I used the same products and tools in my hair during twisting as I used when installing Kinky Twists.

Some shots of the current state of my natural/transitioniong hair at one year post.  It is really growing well and I am loving getting to know my natural texture.  I am not sure how much longer these relaxed ends will be sticking around.....

This is the amount of growth I have had at the 1 year post mark.  Not a quick grower but it is so healthy!!!!  My shrinkage ain't no joke though!

Along with healthier hair, it is so much thicker than it has been previously.  This is the first time since October 2013 that all of my hair has been released from the 10 sections at the same time.  I was expecting to have a 'perma-part' in my hair after all this time but luckily I didn't have anything to worry about on that score.  I installed the twists using four pieces of hair at the back and three at the front and twisted using the Senegalese twist method.  This was a first for me and I found it a bit of a brain teaser trying to twist my hands counter-clockwise and then twist those twists around each other without them unraveling!  I am sure for my next install I will be faster.

After about 4 hours this was the end result.  I got exactly the look I was going for, long thick twists which were not tight anywhere or heavy and had the appearance of worn in but much loved locs.  I was really pleased with how they turned out.

This is how I wore the the twists 95% of the time.  I redid my high bun every other day and basically kept it like this and slept with it the same way albeit with a scarf around the perimeter to protect my edges.  Because my install was loose I was able to wear them up in a high bun immediately without causing any stress to my hair, especially around my edges.

Occasionally I let it down.....

Other times I twisted it.....which created an interesting bun at the back and a softer look.

I truly love the versatility of this style!

As I write this post, I am sitting with my deep conditioner on my hair ready to detangle as I removed the twists this evening (my intention was always to wear them for only two weeks as wash day is due).  It took me less than an hour to remove the 43 twists I installed.  I will definitely be installing this style again - I have actually kept the hair and intend to wash it and install it again next time.  I also plan to purchase some official Havana Twist Hair from Finger Comber at some point in the next few months as I see this style as being a quick and easy go to protective style for me when I don't feel like wigging it.

Ciao 4 Now