Single Strand Knots- A Natural's Nemesis

Lately I have been experiencing Single Strand Knots also called Fairy Knots. A single strand knot, is hair that has tangled itself into a ball on the end of a single strand of hair. (I have been getting rid of them though!)

This knot forming, is usually a sign of dry hair. When the hair is dry it rubs against itself. Another way is through shampooing. When Shampooing, you are suppose to add the shampoo to your scalp, and not pile the length of your hair on top of your head (I am guilty of this). Cotton Towels can also cause dryness in hair, however, I have heard of those using cotton T-shirts, which does not take as much moisture out of the hair, as a cotton towel would.

Hair accessories can also cause knots, if your hair becomes tangled in them. If you like to bun or wear pony tails often I suggest using Goody's Ouchless Hair Ties, or any brand of hair ties without metal.


To get rid of these troublesome knots, it is best to snip them off with hair shears, you want to make sure to use hair shears, as these are sharp and are made to cut hair, regular scissors can cause more damage due to the blade's bluntness (it can bend hair, and cut jagged/unevenly). You can try to untangle the knot possibly with a needle, or if you catch it before it tightens, otherwise, I would try the search (for single strand knots) and destroy (remove) method. I have been guilty myself of snagging knots, but that is not suggested! Remember, the ends of your hair is the oldest, and most delicate, you want to hold on the them! Of course not if damaged, it is not good to hold on to damaged ends, but if it can be salvaged, then so be it.


Ways to avoid getting Single Strand Knots, is Moisture! It is important to keep your scalp as well as your ends moisturized.

Make sure you are shampooing properly (not piling hair on top of head), if using a cotton towel to dry hair, try squeezing excess water out of hair instead of rubbing vigorously, or try the T-shirt method.

Cowash in between wash days, as this helps keep hair clean and moisturized, it is also important to detangle (using wide tooth comb, or paddle/denman brush) while cowashing.

Deep condition regularly.  Using moisturizing and protein based conditioners, as it is good to have a balance to avoid moisture or protein overload. (protein overload will result in shedding/ breakage, and moisture overload will result in limpness/loss of elasticity)



Seal & Moisturize. To seal means to lock in moisture from a water based conditioner with an oil. This helps hair to retain moisture. (It is not necessary to seal if your conditioner is oil based)


If you have a regimen, you should be doing these things on a daily/weekly basis, which means you should be knot free, congrats! If not, then just follow the tips listed, and it should prevent future knots. Hope that helps!

Until next time, HHG to All! Naomi ~

Dusting (Natural) Hair

I felt it was about time that I went ahead and gave my hair a good dusting, so yesterday, I went ahead and flat ironed my hair. I do this because it is a lot easier to see ends fully and get to uneven or even split ends, that you cannot see as well when hair is it's natural state.

* To dust means to cut a very minimal amount of hair, that it resembles dust.

I twisted my hair whole, not two strand twists, and tried to trim most of the hair that poked out of the 'twist', as well as dusting the end of the 'twist'. I got this method from a video by Dprincess28 called How To Trim Split Ends on youtube. I used hair shears, it is important to use shears, as the are made to cut  hair, and are sharp, scissors can be blunt and cause more damage than good.

As this was the first time I've tried to dust my hair, I found that video to be extremely helpful. It was a bit tough to dust the back, but I did the best I could.

Dusting is a good way to scan your hair for split ends, without having to trim inches off your hair! I believe hair only grows 1/4-1 inch a month. So if you trim every three months and you get an inch of growth each month, and you 'trim' 3 inches, you just cut off all your growth. Which could explain how one's hair can stay at the same length for a long time. Which is why I feel trimming should only be done when necessary.

If you go to a stylist to have your hair trimmed, ask them for their honest opinion, if they really feel you need one, if they are a good stylist and value their customers hair, they will tell you the truth. I would also specify how much you wold like to cut, some stylists, not all, not only trim, but try to cut hair to a length where it all looks uniform, which can be great, but that can mean cutting more hair then YOU intended.

So to counter that, I would not only tell the stylist how much you would like trimmed, but also to show you how much they have cut, sure, it may be overbearing, or seem so, but it is your hair! You can also ask for a mirror so you can look at the back of your hair, so you can see what is going on back there. 

I just wanted to share my experience dusting my hair, and the methods I used to do so, and a few tips! 

Until Next Time, HHG to All! Naomi <3

Uneven Hair Growth

As you all know I have been natural for the past six months, and everything has been going well. My bald spots are growing hair, thanks to my cayenne pepper treatments, my hair is healthier than it's ever been, I experience little to no shedding or breakage, I have no heat damage, no split ends that I know of, but yet my hair decided it wanted to grow unevenly.

I BCed at home, and I believe my hair was EL (Ear Length) or close to NL (Neck Length) since then the back has grown to be about SL (Shoulder Length), but yet the front only reaches about CL (Chin Length) /EL, I know this because I decided to flat iron my hair, since I am not home, and cannot style it everyday because I do not have my beloved products! 

I am sure this is pretty common, but I am frustrated! I am hoping my hair becomes even by the end of this year, I refuse to claim SL until then! I also have a piece of hair that broken off while I was relaxed due to hair care ignorance lol. To help influence growth, I will keep up with my reggie, I have not been trimming/dusting (dusting means to trim a tiny amount of hair, small enough to resemble dust, hence the name), because I really haven't felt a need to, my ends are not not split, they are uneven in places, but I want to give it a chance to catch up, especially because it has been so long since I have retained length.

While I was relaxed, my hair never surpassed EL, which was really upsetting, because of how badly broken off it was, I cut my hair short back in 2007 so my hair would look decent. What I did not know, was cutting my hair was not going to solve the problem if I still had the same bad habits, you know, relaxing every 4 weeks, not sealing, not deep conditioning,washing/cowashing, basically not doing anything, and relying only on my visits to the salon, and the "advisory" of the beautician.

Anyway, I am entering myself in my own challenge! The retaining length for even hair challenge! Lol, my goal, like I stated before is to get my hair close or the same length all around without trimming or dusting. I hope it works, I am giving myself until the end of this year to complete this challenge! You all are welcome to join me, or set your own personal challenge, and share your experiences!

Until Next Time, HHG TO ALL! Naomi <3