Venturing Outside the Box: My First Bantu Knot

March 15th, 2011 at 9:05 am.

After two weeks of barely caring/touching/manipulating any parts of my head, a woman was finally able to emerge triumphant this past weekend during her first attempt at a bantu-knot!! Meaningful for me because, well…twistouts-n-such are about the approximate of most of my hair styling ….and lately due to my aggravated shoulder ‘thang,’ I haven’t been able to lift so much as a book let alone a Denman/Teezer to detangle.

But I managed this week, and with very good results. I was feeling better, began on Saturday to ease the onset of agita and set to werk! Two weeks worth of shed, tangled hair is just….unfair. Happy to see that my hair’s been able to retain a bit of length over the past few weeks, but this also leads to another issue I wasn’t prepared to tackle…increase of tangles & my first true experiences with single strand knots! Oh…their were plenty, and there was a painstaken process of cutting through my strands using all of my tools (i.e. wide tooth comb, fingers, tangle teezer, an ENTIRE bottle of conditioner)

I digress, because while I could go on and tell you the amount of mini breaks I took while detangling and the number of movies I’ve watched on Netflix from the beginning of this week’s process to the tippy end…I’d rather not. I did a bantu knot, y’all…what!!

it’s the little things….

Products Used:

  • Pre-Poo: Scalp Oil Blend of Vatica Oil/Grapeseed & Tea Tree Oil
  • Cleanse: Organix Therape Shampoo
  • Deep Condition: Shea Moisture Balancing Conditioner
  • Style: Kinky Curly Knot Today + EO’s Moisture Rich Conditioner

There are a myriad of Bantu Knot Out tutorials on the ol YouTube, and after watching more than a few, I finally decided to just go for it. Hair was already sectioned and twisted during the detangling process, which made twisting and securing the knots all the more easy. I chose to two strand twist the hair prior to securing mainly because I want the style to last for at the least 5 days, and I’m certain if I maintain with a decent night time routine I’ll be fine.

This is a great tutorial by Naptural85 who’s results are so beautiful.

I won’t lie, it takes an insane amount of time for hair to dry if you want to start with freshly washed. I decided to begin the knots on slightly damp hair and applied a jojoba hair oil before securing. Before taking down, I applied a tad more oil to the palms of my hands to reduce the amount of frizz and was very happy with the results. Yes, I look like I’m about 16 and shirly-temple(ish)…but successfully trying a new style feels so great that I simply don’t care…much.

I’m anxious to see how it will hold up over night and into the rest of this week. I’ve decided to do two side ponies (loosely held) and moisturize lightly with either KBB hair cream or Shea Moisture’s Shine Mist spray.

In the meantime, I’ll be digging into my reserve patience bin to help me endure any upcoming detangling sessions. Longer hair takes work! I’m finding I have to be a tad more gentler with my go to tools & use a lot more conditioner to get the job done. In the end, it is worth it because the  results do leave me more than satisfied…but dang.

I’m very glad I tried something new though! Actually…proud is more the word. I ventured out, and attempted a style that before seemed so daunting (don’t know why) and it ended up just taking practice and patience…two things I’m already familiar with.

16 comments ( Reply )

  1. sarah
    Mar 15, 2011 @ 10:06 am

    good job Chai! glad you’re feeling better.

    i’ve switched up my detangling methods as well, since my hair is getting longer and more prone to knots. i dry detangle. well, i start with dry hair and work in about ten sections that are dampened with warm water from a spray bottle. this has been working wonders! AND i only use a paddle brush, so it should work with your tangle teezer. after detangling a section, i twist it up. then i shampoo after it’s all done. test it out.
    sarah recently posted..oh Baltimore

    Reply

    • chai
      Mar 15, 2011 @ 3:15 pm

      thanks, Sarah! I might try that…start removing shed hair while it’s dry to save time. I also didn’t detangle in the shower which has been such an added bonus in the past

      Reply

  2. Tiffany
    Mar 15, 2011 @ 12:57 pm

    It came out sooooo nice, I am cheesing for u. I luv it! Please keep us posted on how it holds up over the next few days.

    Reply

    • chai
      Mar 15, 2011 @ 3:16 pm

      thanks, Tiffany! I’ll keep you guys posted…today’s a good day 2, definitely held up. I’ll post updated pics on Facebook & here at end of week:)

      Reply

  3. Alice
    Mar 15, 2011 @ 3:36 pm

    So pretty! One thing that helped me detangle (especially now that my hair is longer) is damp detangling. My hair hates being manipulated when it’s dry, but a few squirts with a spray bottle with my pre poo + conditioner works wonders.

    Alice
    Alice in Nappyland
    Alice recently posted..Hair Idol- Erykah Badu

    Reply

    • chai
      Mar 15, 2011 @ 7:06 pm

      thanks, Alice. at this point I’ll try anything…the amount of shed hair I lost gave me *pause* lol.

      Reply

  4. LaNeshe
    Mar 15, 2011 @ 10:47 pm

    Love it! Bantu knot outs are definitely one of my new favorite styles, I’ve done it twice, just have a hard time making it last more than 2 days. Any tips?

    Reply

    • chai
      Mar 15, 2011 @ 11:23 pm

      today was my 2nd day with the style, and I still love it!at night I apply a light hairdress (that has nourishing oils in it) to seal in moisture. I’m addicted to the KBB hair cream because it works well both as a night prep & morning refresher. I did two side ponies, loosely tied and secured with a satin scarf. In the morning I fluff and go…results are still ok;)

      Reply

  5. PBG
    Mar 16, 2011 @ 12:04 pm

    Hi Chai!

    Your bantu knot style came out so beautifully. I recently did this style myself with success for the first time. I think this may become a regular method of getting the curly look without using any heat.

    Great job!

    Reply

    • chai
      Mar 16, 2011 @ 2:29 pm

      thanks, PBG! don’t think I could’ve been any happier with the results & already looking forward to when I can try it again. achieving this look without heat is really the added bonus, I’m on day 3 and hair is still holding up, full of body and curly fro action:)

      Reply

  6. Cookie
    Mar 20, 2011 @ 9:19 am

    Your hair looks amazing! I can’t wait to try bantu knots…even though I have about 2 months before I can do that. In the meantime, finger coils it is:)
    Cookie recently posted..Never eva too late

    Reply

    • chai
      Mar 20, 2011 @ 6:01 pm

      thanks!! I love what you’re working with now though, easy peezy

      Reply

  7. Joy
    Mar 22, 2011 @ 10:03 am

    Very nice results. Your hair is gorgeous and the style is even more fly as the days go by! Good for you! Still transitioning but anxious for the days where I can try this on my own hair. The curiosity of what I’ll end up with is killing me though…..

    Reply

    • chai
      Mar 22, 2011 @ 1:15 pm

      thanks, Joy! Why can’t you try it on your hair now? A friend of mine who transitioned a few months back tried this style a handful of times, and loved it! The results were a cute curly fro..the style is very versatile;-)

      Reply

      • Joy
        Mar 24, 2011 @ 9:54 pm

        Hey Chai,

        I have tried while transitioning and it wasn’t cute. LOL!! It may be worth another effort, however, I think I at least need to get a trim first. My straight ends are not doing a good job of holding any kind of definition…..you see, I had been tex-laxing for a while – last process April 2010, and in July 2010, I did a Brazilian blowout. My hair was not bone straight to begin with by any means, in fact the tex-lax was not too far from my natural texture – however, the BB left me with very straight ends even 9 months later. It’s supposed to revert in 12 weeks. Not in this case! Sigh…but that’s okay – I’m on my journey and I’ll get to my destination eventually. I plan to get a trim in the next few weeks. Hopefully by the end of summer I’ll be close to getting rid of most of those straight ends. If nothing else by the end of the year :-) .

        Reply

  8. mangomadness
    Apr 09, 2011 @ 1:19 pm

    Super cute! I love bantu knot outs!

    Reply

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