NaturalBBdiamond // Multi-Texture Style Icon

*Prepared for BGLH by Meosha Tall of 1MeNaturally

Introduce yourself!
N: Hey everyone! I’m NaturalBBdiamond, 23 years old, YouTuber, Blogger and Scientist (Master degree in Biology). I’m passionate and I love all things creative. I live in France, but I’m originally from Togo (Africa). With my blog and my YouTube channel, I share information, tips and ideas for natural hair care. During 2012-2013, I’ll be the official blogger of the French cosmetic brand Activilong. I’ll also make videos for its YouTube channel.

Why did you make the decision to go natural?
N: As a child, straightening was a habit. I even thought it was an obvious condition to have beautiful hair. I never thought about wearing my natural hair. Fortunately I changed my mind. I started my hair journey shortly after having cut my hair several times because of breakage. I was tired of breakage and bored with my relaxed hair. I started to watch YouTube videos and I found some beautiful American ladies wearing their gorgeous natural hair. Captivated by their beautiful curly/frizzy hair I decided to go natural. I was also curious to see what my hair would look like without relaxing treatments. I think I had a great change of perspective. I’ve been natural for 1 year and 9 months. My last relaxer was in May 2010 and I big chopped at 6 months post relaxer in November 2010.

How would you describe your texture?
N: I have a few different textures, but my hair is mostly 4A/B. My hair is very thick and very dense.

Describe your styling regimen over the course of the month.
N: Twist outs are my favorite style since my 6 months post big chop. Right after my big chop I mostly wore wash-and-go because my hair was very short. Now I love twist outs because it allows me to define my curls and makes my hair softer.

What does wash day look like for you?
N: My regimen is pretty simple. Once a week I wash, detangle, moisturize, seal in the moisture and do between 15 to 20 twists that I remove when my hair is completely dry. I wash my hair with Activilong Natural Touch Conditioning Shampoo or Marseille Apricot Soap. I deep condition my hair using Activilong Acti-Repair Mask. During the mask I detangle my hair with my fingers or with a wide tooth comb, and I do 6 twists. Then I rinse my hair. Sometimes I use diluted apple cider vinegar directly on my scalp. I moisturize and seal in the moisture with Shea Moisture Curl Enhancing Smoothie and pure coconut oil. I use a Tangle Teezer brush to finish detangling and spread products on to my hair.

Describe your favorite go-to hairstyle for days when you don’t have a lot of time to style.
N: I wear twist outs almost every day of the week, but you can see me with my twists in if they are not dry or if I’m being lazy. If I don’t have a lot of time I’ll probably do a bun with my hair or a ponytail with my twists.

How do you combat shrinkage?
N: I use twist outs and the banding method (when I go to sleep) to stretch my hair, but shrinkage isn’t really a big deal. Sometimes I do wash-and-gos and love the shrinkage.

What are some of your problem areas (if any) that require special care and attention?
N: My hair is really dry and needs a lot of moisture. I also have a sensitive scalp.

What are 2 do’s for your texture?
N: Lots of moisture and sealing in the moisture. Avoid loss of moisture by sleeping with satin scarf. Damp or wet styling and being gentle while detangling.

What are 2 don’ts for your texture?
N: Combing while dry. Heat styling. Going longer than 2 weeks without detangling my hair and washing my scalp.

Is there a blog/webpage where we can find you?
N: Absolutely! My YouTube channel is: http://www.youtube.com/user/NaturalBBdiamond
My Instagram: NaturalBBdiamond
My Blog: http://naturalbbdiamond.blogspot.fr/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/NaturalBBdiamond
Twitter: https://twitter.com/#!/NatBBdiamond

Thanks for reading! :)