Quench that Natural Hair Thirst!

 

So I tried this new conditioner on top of my honey pre-poo treatments.   I am wetting my hair nearly everyday and I can feel a difference.  WATER IS THE ANSWER!  I am quenching my hair's thirst, and honey let me tell you my hair is thirsty, this is a milestone! It's softer and I believe frequent wetting of the mane is key.  This new conditioner though, OMG made my hair feel like butter.  When I do my cold water rinse I am sure to leave some in my hair, feels great.  Oh, even my frizz and my puffy crown has improved so much so that the beau has noticed, now you know that's big!  I contribute that to the pree-pooing.  I recently purchased an Infusium leave in which I love so much its almost gone.  Along with a Just For Me detangler, yes I did that!  With the mentality, they can't possibly be serving up harmful ingredients to the babies!!  I'm probably wrong but.......  Of course some grape seed oil and coconut oil especially around the edges.  I have still been pulling my hair up and letting it air dry.  Just keeping you ladies posted :-) I think I'm ready for some braids though hmm.....

-MEI

Coil-Out is the New Twist-Out!!!!!

  I felt like it was time to give my hair some attention after getting my natural curls back from straightening it back in May (last month).  I took my time just to see how this look would turn out.  Products used Oyin Whipped Pudding, Cantu Shea Butter for Natural Hair Cleansing Cream Shampoo, and Eco Style Gel with Argan Oil!!

It took me about 6 hours to coil super small sections of my hair but I was completely satisfied with the results!!!!  Also for those hard to detangle moments try using this

Swimming & Natural Hair Care

After the tedious work of straightening and styling our natural hair, who in the earth wants to mess it up by taking a plunge in the pool?? After spending hours at a salon, paying a hefty dollar all just to cool off by taking a dip in the pool.

Today however, the natural hair movement has grown by leaps and bounds having many women like us shaking off their fear of water, sweat and even working out. Gone are the days of running out of the rain, avoiding the gyms and pool parties. YES! Our natural hair frees us up in many ways. While  there will be more upkeep and maintenance if you are a swimming regular, but with care and careful planning we can swim & work out worry-free.

Creating a hair routine, consisting of the the following should help:

• Prepare the hair:  Opt for a swim cap (if u so dare) or swim freely making sure to wet the hair with water only which reduces the amount of chlorine and/or salt our hair absorbs. Also, be sure to twist or braid your hair prior to help avoid tangling.  

• Shampoo/Cleansing: Rinse the hair completely. If swimming often, try co-washing with your favorite moisturizing conditioner vs shampoos; which tends to dry out the hair.

• Condition/Deep Condition: Condition after every wash and D/C twice a week.

•  Clarify: Whether it's your favorite clarifying shampoo, or natural remedy;  such as ACV or baking soda, these specialized cleansers remove buildup from your strands. 

• Protein: An absolute must if color treated. Apply a couple times per month for extra strengthening.  Use products like ApHogee Keratin 2-Minute Reconstructor, CHI Keratin Mist. My two favorites; ORS Hair Mayonnaise (see my prior review) or for an all natural remedy -plain Greek Yogurt mixed w/your favorite oil.  

Happy Swimming!!!!

Pre poo and Notice the Diff!

Do you pre-poo.  Is there a certain combination you like to use when you do?  I have been using honey, grape seed oil, and coconut oil, warming this mixture before adding to my hair and scalp and letting it set for a while.  There are a variety of oils/products you could use instead.  Then I rinse it out and co wash with conditioner.  Rinsing again with cold water and I add my leave in while my hair is soaking wet.  When you pre-poo you are restoring moisture back to your hair.  With all this summer sun and heat this is especially important.  With prepoo's your hair is softer and more manageable, there's decreased frizz and more definition.  I have noticed these things particularly as of late.  I'm sticking with my pre poo combination for now I love the results.  I'm on a wash and go streak, I found a way to pull my thick curls up into a cute pony ;-).

-Mei

Trouble in my Natural Curls.......

Recently I went to the hair salon just to see my length and to test this Dominican Salon! I was so impressed with the length and really liked my straight strands.  It lasted for about a week and a half then I was ready to see my natural curls again!  So once I put some water to my hair, and here came the curls!!  The downside to this whole process is that I have straight pieces all over my head!  I think my hair has suffered severe heat damage....any helpful hints....

Twist Out

Hello Guys

High humidity + sunshine = hair love.

It's spring again and my hair loves loves loves the humidity. It's my hair's favorite time of year. I get to let my hair down and breathe a lil....yayyyy!!! After prepooing with my coconut, baking soda & honey mixture, I co-washed with Suave Coconut condish, applied coconut & jojoba oil, veggie glycerin, Talia Waajid Enhancing Herbal Conditioner..sealed with Raw Shea Butter twisted..air dried and untwisted (about 10-12 total). Maintain by nightly pineappling..retwisting & moisturizing every 2-3 days.

BTW: My skin & scalp are really enjoying the baking soda, coconut oil & honey mixture. These 3 simple products are great alone and are staples in my home..along with ACV (but that's another post:) 

How To:

Make a paste 2:1 of baking soda & coconut oil depending on your skin's sensitivity. Add in about a teapoon of honey. Small batches work best as to maintain life shelf, although honey is a great natural anti-bacterial agent. I am still using this mixture to cleanse my hair, toothpaste and facial exfoliant. Next post, I will detail how this mix is helping to remove my acne blemishes and even preventing new breakouts. 

Natural Hair Party!

Calling all Kinky Glam!!  There was a meeting of the manes yesterday, and I must say it was a good time.  We were there to make and try flaxseed gel together, but we forgot the dang flaxseed!  Who does that?  I was really excited because I never tried it before and I feel like I'm missing something, but there is always next time.  We were sure to bring other products though, products or methods we may have wanted to try but didn't for whatever reason.  So we explored and this was an inexpensive way to do so. 

There were plenty of products to try.  I did a honey and jojoba oil prepoo and steamed for a few minutes. I also tried Mixed Chicks leave-in conditioner for the first time, and I was pleased with the definition but not too impressed with the smell.  I just love a good smelling hair product.  Products included Cantu, Shea Moisture, Curls Unleashed, Oyin, there were natural products like Shea, and coconut oil, honey and bananas.  There were some dislikes to the Shea moisture, but it works just fine when I use it.  Peep the satin steam cap in the back....that's the bomb!  I will be getting one of those.  There were raves about co-washing with the White Rain coconut conditioner.  We talked about retaining moisture and the damaging effects of shampoo, the build up and the penetration blockage it causes.  It may be sulfate free but I am sure there are other things in that shampoo stripping our hair of its natural oils.  We checked our strands for protein and elasticity, got to see the difference in thickness of strands amongst us.  There was a sugar scrub performed, and by the end she was about ready to fall asleep because a good scalp massage is no joke!  Below, are some twists, which are still in, let down pics coming soon!  She had complaints of build up and dryness after a straightening :-(, so what did we do?  A sugar scrub and cowash as well as locked the moisture in via twists using Shea butter and coconut oil. 

After the Mixed Chicks leave in I just let my hair air dry to see if I liked the results, and I did so I will definitely use that product again in my wash and go.  I twisted my hair when I got home though with coconut oil and Shea butter and let that marinate until this morning when I let my twists down.  I am now the queen of twist outs LOL.  The hair party was fun, it's a great idea if you have a few ladies that want to get together and try new things, brainstorm on new ideas, and its most beneficial when people can actually show you what they are talking about.  Til next time my kinky friends...

 

 

 

 

-MEI