MaraBerk

I too am an african american and looking for styles to wear on my cruise. i have natural hair also. i never had braids before and needed to know do they hurt? I was thinking of getting a wavy shoulder length weeve. i just want low maintaince at whichever i choose. any suggestions. haiti. jamica and cozumel in nov 2013. can't wait. yes this is my first cruise.

I am tender headed so braids absolutely hurt, but that doesn't mean I don't get them done. I cringe & suffer through the pain.

Honestly I would suggest all natural women to wear their own hair because its easier to maintain if you plan on swimming.

If that isnt an option for you I'd choose weave over braids always.

Enjoy your trip!

The hair quality was amazing. I installed it 5 times & had it tightened each time. This was not my everyday weave lol I got this hair for my wedding & made sure I got my wear out of it. I would only spend that much on hair again if I went back to the same stylist! Price of hair+installation+tip = appx $1,950. After the wedding my husband found the invoice & almost passed out lol That was an investment for sure smh

Lexi I've spent $600+ on hair alone so I'm always looking for a bargain! Thank you kindly :D

Lexi that was really awesome of you to share that info ;)

I would buy black hair (#1/1b)and have a colorist color/dye it for you.

Lexi I was thinking the same thing. Human hair sheds but will not clump/mat/tangle that horribly bcuz of swimming. There was something not right with that hair.

Just got that Freetress half wig and I don't know...

 

The one I got has so much brown in it and not as much blonde on the top or sides. Way more brown than all the pics online I looked at before I bought it. I know colors can vary so maybe it's my bad luck.

 

I just bought Roux Porosity Control conditioner from Sally's and used it this morning. I think I like it. My hair has more tiny ringlets/curls and less frizz. So maybe I can just rock my OWN hair on this cruise(even though it's shorter than the wig). I'm not sure I want to mess with it, though, because my hair is so tempermental in different temperatures and water types. Then I'd have to slick it back in a bun the whole trip like I do at home. *sigh*

Sometimes I just throw in some conditioner and let my hair do what it wants to do lol I throw in the towel and say hey I can't always win :D I'm leaving next Wednesday on ccl splendor and have decided to wear my own hair. It's easier for me to treat it & maintain its health after the pool/beach. Hopefully luck will be on my side and my hair will agree to let me be in control ;)

I may try the Marley twists- they look much easier to install since they are so much bigger! I do Havana twists with my natural hair (my version of 2 stranded twists when I am lazy LOL). If I am home for a weekend I will do a co-wash with havana twists and then two or three corn rows out of the braids- once they dry the curl pattern is really pretty. I can pineapple it at night and get a few days out of it!

Pineapple = the savior of many hairstyles :D ;)

I am a naturalista as well!

 

I just do a curly bun for the entire vacation- I can swim with it and then wash my hair and slick it back for dinner. While on vacation I may do an overnight conditioner and I am easy on the shampooing. I use a tiny bit of shampoo to get the chlorine/salt water out (I believe all cruise ships use salt water pools only) and then I use lots of conditioner to keep it moisturized. While doing overnight conditioning I do chunky braids and seal it with aloe vera gel (I also use this aloe vera gel after tanning so I buy the 100% pure kind as opposed to the fancy smell good green kind)

 

My friend does the same curly bun for the pool, but wears a wig for outside of the pool.

 

My other friend has Senegalese Twists (the really long twists). I wanted to get these this summer but my husband hated them (I think they are beautiful though). I was going to get them anyway (he already knows- its my hair/body so I do what I like LOL) BUT a naturalista at my swim club said they were very heavy in the water so I will stick with my natural curls and a wash out.

 

Box braids are a good choice. They may also be heavy in the water though. You can dress them up by doing a large bun, half up/half down etc.

 

My other friend (I might as well call them friend A,B, and C now LOL) uses a half wig. She does the curly bun thing in the water like me, washes her hair, and just slicks back the very front of her hair.

 

Good luck with all of your naturalista choices!!!

If you want to try twist I would suggest Marley twist or havana twists-the hair is much lighter. I installed them myself (waist length) and they were very light.

First let me say, this thread is AWESOME! Thanks to all who contributed! I've learned so much in a short time.

 

Secondly, I love these two strand twists! I get them every now and then and love the ease of taking care of them at home, but I also love to swim in the ocean and pool so thanks for sharing how long they'll last. I'd planned on getting 2 strand twists for our upcoming cruise but will probably do a wet and wavy sew in instead because I want as little maintenance as possible.

 

I had box braids (occasionally micros) in my hair for about 10 years straight which thinned and damaged it badly. I went completely natural about 3 years ago and haven't looked back, it's grown some but more importantly my hair is finally healthy and slowly growing back - it's about shoulder length now.

 

Here are pics from our last cruise in 2011, I'll probably get the same style (sew in) but longer hair just so ALL my cruise pics don't look exactly the same :) I don't look very happy in the first one, think I stepped on a shell or something getting outta the ocean lol but we had a lotta fun. That was probably day 3 or 4. The 2nd was first elegant night.

 

 

 

Additionally, I'm not that chick who is all into hair (which is probably another reason why I don't have much lol). I don't remember doing anything special on the last cruise except putting on a scarf at night, then shaking and going in the a.m. It was GREAT not worrying about washing, flat ironing, etc. It did seem a little dry looking by the end of the cruise, but overall it held up very well. I left some hair out in the front and wore headbands a lot. I'll probably take it out within a week after we return (from 7 day cruise).

 

Any suggestions on what to put into it to keep it looking "wet and wavy"? I don't even remember if this was all synthetic or a human hair mix I had last time.

 

Sorry so long and so many questions - just excited to find somewhere I can actually discuss my hair type! :)

When I've had that type of hair at night I would section it wet it a little add a little gel or mousse & some sort of sheen product then braid it. In the morning I would take each braid out and add a tiny bit more sheen/hair polish.

Thanks for the tip! I actually bought it today with my cousin who gets extensions often. I will make sure to do that as I don't want to get any kind of allergic reaction.

 

I'll come back to post a picture when I get it done.

After installed if they itch or burn spray your hair with the water/vinegar combo. I had to learn the hard way lol good luck & enjoy your birthday!!!

I just read through this whole thread and it's provided me with some great info!

 

I've always been natural and on my previous cruises, I've just gotten my natural hair done in two strand twists, but because of the humidity, it will start getting rough around the 3rd day.

 

So, for my upcoming cruise, I've decided to get kinky twists put in. I've never had extensions before, but I want to be able to enjoy my vacation a bit more without worrying about what to do with my hair. I bought the hair today and am looking forward to seeing it done. My birthday is 3 weeks before my cruise, so I plan to keep it in for about 6 weeks.

 

This was my hair during my last cruise. It was the first day and by the 3rd day it had started to drop, but it was getting rough around the edges.

 

DSCN0027 by Virtopia, on Flickr

I would suggest you purchase the hair in advance & soak it in a water/vinegar for 15-20mins to remove the alkaline coat. Many people including myself have a horrible allergic reaction to synthetic hair. YouTube has many video showing this process.

I don't know if anyone has mentioned this before, but we went to high tea on our May 18 cruise. We didn't try any of the desserts on the lunch buffets or any of the cakes at mdr dinner so we have nothing else to compare it to on the cruise, but the cakes, cookies, & eclairs at the tea were unbelievably fabulous. The meringue sandwich cookies were sooo good I could have eaten the whole tray and the chocolate filled cake was so rich I could only eat a small bite, although I could sure go for some right now. I wish I hadn't waited til the end of the cruise to go to the tea or I would have gone more times so I could try everything. It's only on sea days at 3pm.

Thanks for this info we always regret missing tea...I always forget:( I'm making a todo list this time around!

no FTTF and i seen 2 S&S kiosk, one was by guest service desk and one was by the fun shops (starboard side)

FTTF is coming soon to Splendor, as announced by Carnival. Pride is next and Splendor should follow shortly after.

Thank you!

Is FTTF available yet on Splendor???

Also wondering if Splendor has the kiosk you can put cash in for your S&S account?

What a treat! Very impressive read :D

Yes you can purchase the program on the second day

I just spoke with a rep and they said $42.95.

There is definitely misinformation going around. I guess I'll find out on 8/21 lol :confused:

With gratuity, yes.

Thank you Don!

Wait since when??

Looks like I'm not doing this program anymore

 

 

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I've read on the boards that the price has gone up and it is now $57.50 pp per day with gratuity. If it goes up anymore I don't think I'll participate during my 8/21 trip on splendor-it wouldn't be worth it with all the limitations.

I just need some updated info. Is cheers now $57.50per person/per day?

Here's a pic of my first ever tree braids install with deep wave hair. I got the speech about how the hair should have some kind of curl to camouflage the cornrows. My initial thoughts:

1. That only took 4 hours!

2. I feel like Diana Ross.

3. This looks really tight, but it doesn't hurt.

4. How in the world am I going to get these out!

5. The people at work are going to be so confused! LOL

Looks good:D , enjoy the ease of this style!!! I remove this style by taking the braids out. The hair comes out easily...rarely will I have to cut the knot to uninstall.

It is cute! Loooked at a YouTube video showing how this type of hair has to be knotted a special way to prevent it from sliding out.

 

Karen

You'll defiantly be fine-you got your gameplan and your ready for action :). I dedicate an entire day to do this install because I take long breaks often so my arms don't get too tired.

That's a cute style. It should work out fine.

Ok, can't wait to see it.