Tell me about yourself!
I am an Intuitive Body & Lifestyle Designer, proud island girl and I use my Exotic Caribbean Cocktail to help smart, ambitious, results-oriented women develop the mindset, habits and skills to take the necessary actions in order to lose weight (or gain a few pounds), develop tons of self love and unshakable confidence to live a fabulous life, on their terms in bodies they love.

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Were you a transitioner or a Big Chopper? What was your journey like?
I have been both; most recently (2 years ago), I transitioned and having done the big chop prior knew what to expect.
The journey certainly wasn’t alway smooth because my hair is super thick and it was frustrating.  At times I really felt like shaving my head.
I love grown to  hair at all stages; however, on reflection; I probably had more fun when my hair was about 2-4 inches long because I experimented a lot more.

Had you always embraced your texture?
For the most part, I’d say I have always embraced my texture but on the odd occasion when I am in a hurry I would love to be able to do a wash and go.  My texture does not allow me to do that but I am very grateful for my hair because it is thick and healthy.

How did family and friends react to your decision to go natural? What was your response to them? 
I’ve always had mixed reviews – all unsolicited may I add.

I believe my family and friends know me well enough to know that I’ll do whatever I want to do anyway.  Some say I’m crazy and don’t know what to do with my hair.  Others say my hair looks great no matter what I do and they wish they had my type of hair. Others ask why I just don’t relax it.

Describe your hair (fine or coarse, thin or thick, highly porous, low, etc.)
Super thick; coarse; of a low porosity; healthy looking and often mistaken for a wig or weave.

What’s the craziest thing you’ve ever done to your hair?
I have done a number of crazy things but the craziest to date has been a full head DIY honey blonde dye job using Clairol Textures and Tones.  Let’s just say that you saw my hair before you saw me.

What’s your biggest hair related regret?
The dreaded flat iron episode which was done by a “Professional” and resulted in heat damage.

I subsequently relaxed it; enjoyed my hair in that new state for a few months and at the earliest sighting on regrowth cut a few inches off and braided it until my hair braider (thanks Sharon) had enough natural hair to braid before I cut all the relaxed ends off.

What’s your current hair routine? How often do you wash, condition, and style? Favorite products! Deets!
I don’t have a routine per se – I go with the flow.  The only thing that I always do no matter what is deep condition every single time I wash my hair which may happen every 2-3 weeks depending on what I’m up to and how I feel.  If my hair is not doing what I want it to do I’ll co-wash and restyle but this doesn’t happen very often.

Right now I am loving:
A natural oil blend of sweet almond oil, jojoba oil, olive oil and tea tree oil which my cousin put together for me (thanks Kara)
Vitale Olive Oil Hair Mayonnaise
Giovanni Direct Leave-In
Cantu Shea Butter leave in conditioning repair cream

What’s your favorite hairstyle? Where do you get hairstyle inspiration?
A big unruly twist out is my all time favorite.  I wish I could wear my hair like this all day everyday.

I head on over to YouTube, Curly Nikki, Urban Bush Babes or simply type in “natural hair” over at Google whenever I need a bit of inspiration.

Who is your curl crush?
Cipriana Quann over at Urban Bush Babes is my hair crush.  Her hair looks healthy and she creates these really interesting structures with it.

How do you maintain your hair at night?
At times I cover my hair with a satin scarf and at times I don’t what I have been doing recently is sleeping on a satin scarf – that’s it.

How do you maintain healthy length?
I stay hydrated and eat well; I love to see long natural hair but my priority is having healthy hair and if it happens to be long that’s ok too.
I’m not into tons of products at all; if I find a product that works well, I use it until it’s no longer working for me.

What’s the best thing about being natural?
By being natural I am being true to myself and honouring who I really am.

I don’t have to avoid certain activities such as hitting the beach – I would never go to the beach if my hair was freshly relaxed.  I’ve rocked relaxers from the time I was 11 because my hair was long, thick and it was believed that my hair would be more manageable and it was but that came with burns and waiting in a salon for hours.

Where can folks find you on the web?
www.paulajanewnbfpro.com
https://www.facebook.com/thereinventionconcierge?ref=bookmarks