Beauty of the Week: Andrea Castillo

tightly coiled natural hair

We had so much interest and success with last week’s Beauty of the Week that we’re back with the delightful Andrea of Deer and the Wolf. She’s been receiving quite a bit of attention from the natural hair community, and rightly so! We love her tightly coiled natural hair AND style. Read on to learn more about her beauty and curly hair tips…

1. Why did you go natural? How long have you been natural?

I’ve been natural for 2 years and 5 months exactly. I decided to go natural because I was tired of getting relaxers and straightening my hair so much. I hadn’t seen my natural hair since I was around seven so I was curious to see how it would look if I stopped processing it. I stopped relaxing and straightening my hair and researched how to transition so that I could maintain both textures and after 11 months I did the big chop.

2. Can you summarize your current hair regimen?

My hair regimen is really simple the only thing that changes are the products. I love trying new products and I get a lot of products from my best friend whom is a product junkie so I’m always switching it up. I usually do twist outs with my hair, I like the results better than a wash and go. My current routine consist of me:

• shampooing with Shea Moisture Raw Shea Retention Shampoo(if needed)
• co washing with Tresseme Naturals Conditioner,
• deep conditioning with Aussie 3 Minute Repair Deep Conditioner under a hooded dryer
• putting in Giovanni Leave in Conditioner to detangle
• using Qhemet Biologics Alma and Olive Oil Heavy Cream before I do my twist
• sealing my ends with coconut oil
• Carols Daughter Hair Sheen for after I unravel my twists

I sleep on a satin pillowcase and in the morning put jojoba oil on my hands before unraveling my twists. The key to big hair is combing out the roots, for that I either comb or pick out the roots and shake my hair gently with my fingers. Always make sure to only pick the roots that way your ends are still curly.

3. What are your staple hair products?

• Coconut Oil
• Jojoba Oil
• Eco Styler Gel

It’s always good to have oils and a good gel handy!

SHOP THE PRODUCTS

4. What are your favorite hairstyles?

I love braid outs but it takes too long for me to take them down compared to a twist out. So I’d have to stick to my signature twist out. I also love blown out hair especially when the ends don’t frizz up.

5. For many naturals it’s a journey to fully understand their hair. It’s a process of trial and error. What was your “Curls Understood™” moment (the moment you felt like, “I’ve got this!” or any essential advice you wish you had known at the beginning of your hair journey)?

The best advice I can give is to stay positive, to some people it’s just hair but to many of us it’s a whole other world. I was so lost transitioning but I found experienced naturals on Youtube who already went through the process and literally watched videos for hours so that I could find products and styles.

I’m barely to the point where I’ve stopped longing over other naturals curls and patterns, I mean I do have a little hair envy from time to time but I’ve accepted my texture and embrace it fully. The funny thing is we all want what we don’t have, there’s been many of times where I see women with looser curls and they tell me they wished the had a fro instead of their hair which sounds crazy. But its true!

I think after you get out of your comfort zone you realize there was nothing to be scared of in the first place and thats when you have your ahaaa moment. Plus, you get to experiment more with your hair. Theres endless options of cuts and colors we can do with our hair and thats what’s fun about being natural! After I got into a routine and didn’t force my hair to do something it didn’t’ want I had my curls understood moment.

You can keep up with me on my blog and Instagram!
Blog: deerandthewolf.blogspot.com
Instagram:deerandthewolf

If you’d like to be featured as a Beauty of the Week, email us at [email protected].

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