Where to go for a Sew-In Weave in Seattle

Can we take a moment and get into this epic sew-in that I got back in March!! I originally planned on filming a YouTube video to review the hair, but got busy and decided to share the video my stylist Rigat (@RoyalRoots on IG) filmed.

Her prices aren't cheap, but her quality is fucking amazing! I swear her fingers are blessed... plus she braids secure and flat, blends to perfection and all of her clients have edges! She's the MVP and only person I'll let do a sew-in weave on me in Seattle.

The pool of stylists doing weaves in Seattle is small in comparison to major cities with black populations, but if you want to make sure you don't look a hot ass mess... please do your research and give Rigat a call. I always try to warn people that her prices may give you sticker shock, but the quality is superb. I stand behind her quality 100%, but with that said I must warn you -- do not, I repeat DO NOT get a quality sew-in with cheap hair. I have made this mistake 2 times with Rigat (once w/ curly hair, another time with straight hair) and I promise you'll feel like an asshole rocking the best sew-in of your life with cheap hair. Just say no. Don't do it. Get your coins together, do your research, and pick a style that you know you'll love.

If you have any questions please feel free to ask away.




Stylist: Rigat
Salon: Hands of Artistry Salon
Location: Renton, WA

Be sure to tell her Ishea sent you!

How to Care for your Kinky Curly Sew-in Weave

I intended to post this video a few weeks ago when I originally filmed it. I was nearing the end of my 2nd installation with the Indique Bounce Collection Coil Curl hair and wanted to share with everyone how I'd been caring for it the 2nd time around.

Alas, I've already taken this sew-in out, given my hair a break for a few days, and gone into my 3rd sew-in with the hair lol... but the way I care for it is still the same. Take a look and let me know if you have any questions.

Enjoy!

Fluffed out Afro on Natural Hair or Weave

So, I'm back in a sew-in using the same Indique Bounce Coil Curl hair I originally bought back in June. I remember clutching my pearls at the price ($189 and up per bundle), but it turned out to be one of my best hair investments to date. I'm currently about a week into this 2nd install and the hair is doing great.

After a night full of wine and Jimi Hendrix, I was in a 60s/70s mood and wanted to fluff out my hair. So many naturals are obsessed with getting perfectly sculpted ringlets, kinks, or curls... but I wanted an old school fro.

The night before I'd thrown my hair into a high ponytail and went to sleep, so I was already working with less defined hair.

To add more volume and further diminish curl definition, I used my Denman Brush to fluff out my leave-out and the Indique hair.

I'll admit that I initially felt a bit intimidated by having such big hair. I almost pulled it back up, but my bf helped ease my worries... he was like, "if you're gonna rock it, you need to really just rock it." Wearing a fro is dope, but it does feel like the spotlight is on you... and honestly it really is. You have this big ass, dope hair! It's big, fluffy... blowing in the wind. It's awesome, but not for the faint of heart.

Anyways, in person the hair was SUPER big, but my iPhone 4s didn't truly capture it.

How-To: Caring for a Curly Sew-in (Using Indique BOUNCE Coil Curl Hair)

I've been rocking my Indique BOUNCE Coil Curl sew-in for the past 3 weeks and I'm head over heels in love. This hair is so amazing... it's actually amazeballs! I remember my girlfriend Kacey telling me that she couldn't wait until I retired the word "amazeballs" lol... but I had to pull it back out of the crates for the sake of truly capturing the awesomeness of this hair.

Caring for the hair has been very easy and I wanted to share my tools and tips with everyone in case you're wondering what's necessary to keep your Indique coils curled up.

Below is a quick video sharing my top tips, styling tools, and opinions on the overall quality of the hair. Enjoy!

Sew-in using Indique BOUNCE Collection Coil Curl Hair (via @IloveIndique)

I've always thought of myself as low maintenance when it comes to my hair, but dropping a ton of coins on a hair weave is the least low maintenance thing I can think of.... however, y'all  - - can I just say how AMAZING. Scratch that, FUCKING AMAZING this Indique BOUNCE Collection Coil Curl hair is! It's the best hair weave decision I've ever made. Ever.

I filmed a quick video showing the results of the weave, how it blends, and my initial thoughts since rocking the weave a few days. Take a look and let me know what you think!

Sidebar: Indique sent me a "mystery discount code" valued at anywhere between 5% - 20%, but it expires at 11:59 pm on 6/27. If you are going to purchase hair from them this week, leave a comment below and I can send you the discount code! I promise you this hair is game changing.

Indique BOUNCE Collection Coil Curl: Unboxing 10" Bundle + Initial Impression (via @ILoveIndique)

 So, I bit the bullet and bought the Indique BOUNCE Collection Coil Curl hair. It was a splurge. Actually, more than a splurge. I reached deep down into my pockets and pulled out all of my coins (and fucks) and decided to go for it. This is officially the most expensive thing I've ever done with my hair... and the sew-in isn't even installed yet (read: when I'm writing this).

It's currently the night before my big weave adventure with the priciest hair in all of the land, and I'm lying to myself about how tired I actually am. I should be sleeping, but I'm up cranking out this post. I still need to seal the weft (because I can't recall or find any information online stating whether or not the weft came sealed), wash my face, and get my life together so I can make my 8am hair appointment. In hindsight I was probably being a bit too ambitious when I made that 8am appointment. Blame it on the excitement of my summer/birthday weave.

While living in loft ranks high on the "cool factor," but finding a place with doors, quiet, and lighting to film is a nightmare. I finally said eff it and filmed outside on my patio. I did manage to wait for the sun to set a bit so the lighting wasn't terrible.

In the video I show the unboxing of my hair, share my initial thoughts, and how I still feel like a slight d-bag for dropping so many coins on a weave. Take a look and let me know what you think!

How much is "too much" to pay for a weave?

My 30th birthday is right around the corner, so I've been brainstorming what kind of hair I want to rock for my special day. My hair appt has been made, but I'm wavering on whether or not to go all out and cop some high end weave.

One of my blogging boos, MsDanti, has been rocking the Indique Bounce Organic Curl and slaying IG in every pic. You know how you see someone rocking something and want to jump on the bandwagon? Well, that's exactly what happened to me... until I went to the Indique website and say the price started off at $189/bundle... and I'd need 2 bundles. Plus shipping and tax... you can only imagine how quickly my heart sank.

The idea of spending close to $500 JUST on some hair? I don't know... it's just crazy to me. I know that it could be spun as an investment and "worth it." I also know that it's some of the best hair out there, but something inside of me is causing me to get cold feet and be unsure about jumping ship and diving into the world of high end weave.

Am I crazy? What's the most you've paid for hair weave? Was it worth it?

Blending Zury 'Wet and Wavy' Jerry Curl Sew-in with my Natural Hair

So, I totally meant to post this video back in April, but you know the usual excuses... life got in the way, I was busy with work, wrapping up a class, getting ready to travel... just doing me. So, yeah... this is late lol.

Blending. It's one of the most important aspects of a sew-in and was at the forefront of my concerns when using the 'Wet and Wavy' hair. Overall, I was happy to try out the Wet and Wavy hair because I felt it was a good match for my actual hair texture. When straight, the hair had texture to it and blended easily. I also enjoyed having my hair and the weave sweat out at the same rate. That's winning, all day, every day.

Below is a quick video showing how the hair blends.

Sew-in Weave using Zury Indian Remy 'Wet and Wavy' Jerry Curl hair (Initial Thoughts)

Hey Y'all! So in addition to getting a snazzy new blog layout (what do you think?) I also got some new hair! I took some time to decompress from the epic marley twist fail I previously blogged about, and reemerged ready to face the world with a freshly laid sew-in!

I went to Rigat at Hands of Artistry Salon in Renton, WA and y'all... her ability to lay a weave super flat is truly mind blowing! This is the first time I've used a weave net and had a weave lay down this flat. I'm in hair heaven.

Also, I was flip flopping between curly and straight hair, but knew I didn't have enough time to order high quality kinky curly hair online... so, I ventured into my local beauty supply and decided to take a leap of faith with Zury's Human Indian Remy "Wet and Wavy" Jerry Curl hair (color #2 in 14 inches).

I'll be doing separate posts on my experience at Hands of Artistry Salon, using the Zury 'Wet and Wavy' hair, and filming weekly vlogs to show how the hair is holding up. Below is a video of me showing the results and sharing my initial thoughts on the weave.

Sew-In using VABK Kinky Curly Fro (via @VAsBestKept)

Known on Instagram as "VABK", Ashley Robinson is a Richmond, VA hairstylist known for the popular Kinky Curly hair she promotes and sells. My girlfriend had been waiting a long time for her Heat Free Hair to arrive, so she opted to give VABK's Mongolian Kinky Curly Fro weave a try! I'm so happy she did because the results were amazing and I ordered some during a bundle special she had.

My VABK Kinky Curly weave finally made its way into my life force a few days ago, and I was full of anticipation to open it up. I shot a quick video showing the hair and my "before" to give folks an idea of what it's like prior to my install.

Initial Reactions:

Pros
1) The delivery was relatively quick. I think everything shipped out within 2 weeks.
2 The texture of the hair is probably 4a and looks amazing
3) The hair comes already washed

Cons
1) Packaging for hair is plastic bag and very generic
2) The lengths were not marked on each bundle
3) The wefts are not sealed



Sidebar: Can I just say that I run my mouth so fast when recoding videos, I NEVER get good YouTube stills lol

I will be getting my sew-in later tonight and will (of course) film a follow-up video showing the results, along with a few other videos to track the upkeep, durability, and overall experience with the hair.

Flats Twists on Sew-In Weaves

I'm low maintenance when it comes to my natural hair and rocking my sew-in is not much different. I like to take the styling concepts I've learned with my curls and apply them to my leave-out and weave. So far flat twists have become a staple in my word. They're relatively easy to do, take almost no time, and can be a great option for the gym or going out.

Flat Twists on my Natural Hair

Typically, I'll style my natural hair in 2 flat twists (above) as a quick, go-to style. The picture above shows the way my flat twists look on my natural hair, no weave.

Flat Twists blended with my Weave

The idea of wearing a straight weave can seem like an invitation to OD on heat, but I actually have been using less heat than when my hair is w/out the weave. I wash my hair about once a week, following up with a quick blow dry on the leave out... letting the weave hair air dry. Once that is done, I'll take a flat iron to my leave out. Voila! I'm done. When I'm going to bed or the gym, I'll do 2 flat twists (above picture) and braid the bottom portion to help the hair not unravel.

2 Flat Twists pulled back - - very hippie lol

Like I said before, I'm low maintenance. My goal with the weave was to give the majority of my hair a break from styling, add some length and fullness, and ditch the curls for a while. I'm not someone that really has the  patience to come up with super edgy looks to rock with my weave, so I keep it simple. The above picture is an example of how I style my leave out blended with the weave for a look that requires no additional heat be placed on my hair. I actually have an inner hippie that loves this type of thing so it works for me. 

Most people think you MUST put heat on your hair daily when rocking a straight weave, but that's not the case. There are plenty of ways to have fun with a weave, while still taking care of your leave out.

Sew-In Weave for Natural Hair (aka Protective Styling)

Instead of just spring cleaning my house, I decided it was time to spring clean my hair life force! I was craving a break from the daily styling of my curls - - something every natural can relate to at one time or another, and decided to go straight. While I wish my hair was long enough to rock a high messy bun (a la Curly  Nikki), it's not lol... so my ever so talented girlfriend Alicia hooked me up with a dope sew-in.

Most people know that I'm super low maintenance when it comes to my natural curls, and whenever I rock a sew-in it's more of the same. This was my first time getting bone straight hair, but the front section of my hair (aka "leave out") takes heat extremely well. Basically blending wouldn't be a major issue. Let's be honest - - there's nothing worse than being the chick with the bad weave.

I don't ever keep a weave in for a long time. I'm talking maybe 6-7 weeks at the absolute longest... therefore it wasn't crucial for me to get the best hair. I opted for a mid-range ($99/pack) brand: Outre Velvet Natural Yaki in 1B, 12 inches.

Outre Remi Velvet Natural Yaki

What I liked best about this brand was 1) it was available at the beauty supply 2) the texture was very similar to that of my flat ironed hair. It didn't look super silky, but you could actually see the texture of the hair and the luster was low and 3) It was 10% off.

I should also mention that I used Dark and Lovely Fade Resistant Rich Conditioning Color in Natural Black #372. I had highlights and didn't want to run the risk of turning my hair green using a rinse. I also wanted to make sure my weave matched and blending/color issues didn't rain on my hair parade. This did the trick and was a near perfect match. I will, however, point out that in the past few weeks the color has started to fade a bit on my tips. Don't know if it's just because of the sun, washing or what... but it's not as intense as it was initially. Still, the weave blends w/o major issues.

Blend, baby... BLEND!!!

I'm probably one of the only people irked by the term "protective styling" (it just sounds like it sucks all of the life force fun out of hair care...), but this is a great option to give myself a break from daily styling, and let my hair chill out.

For anyone in the Chicago-area interested in getting a sew-in done by Alicia, contact her via email at Ali_Ivy@yahoo.com. Tell her I sent you :)