New Additions to the Staple Product Family Part 2 [shea butter and coconut oil]

Okay so, if you peruse hair blogs like I do, you've most certainly seen/heard talk about shea butter in its natural state (unrefined) and/or coconut oil. Let me tell you, they aint lie [jay-z voice] lol. Recently, I discovered that the BSS (beauty supply store) in my neighborhood now carries unrefined african shea butter...imagine my PJ (product junky) excitement :D! So yesterday, I went out and bought a 16 oz jar for around 7 bucks (not bad considering that when whipped it's like 32 or more oz.) and decided that I would try to make shealoe (shea butter and aloe vera gel) little did I know, shea butter rehardens when cooled -___-   It still kind of worked tho, even though it was hard to work with. I washed my hair last night and melted my concoction in my hand and applied and them curls were poppin like L'il Mama's lip gloss! Anywho,  i did some research and found that in order to prevent shea butter from rehardening, one needs to add a carrier oil...hmmmm....yeaaaa idk what that means either, but upon further research, I learned that coconut oil does the job so, when I get home, I'm going to try again. Stay tuned!!!!

Here are links to the recipes I was going to combine and try:
1. http://www.agrlcanmac.com/2010/01/mixtress-chronicles-shea-pudding.html
2. http://mixology101.ning.com/profiles/blogs/shaes-pudding-curly-pudding

Here is the tutorial I'm going to use later:
http://blackhair.about.com/od/products/ss/howtowhipsheabutter.htm

BTW....
i also discovered that the vitamin shoppe has an entire line of natural products!!!!! (that's where I got my coconut oil and essential oil)  yaayyyyyyy!

Beanie = Care free Protective Hairstyle

It's getting quite chilly in Jersey, and since my hair is getting longer, it's also taking longer to dry.  Because of this, I can't really do the wet set styles that I love any more :( However, I discovered beanies last year (while still relaxed) and always rocked it with my bang out.   When I decided to go natural, I didn't really think that I could where it anymore because my hair wasn't straight. THEN, I saw a lot of other naturals sporting gorgeously on the web and decided to try it too.

relaxed 

natural ...kind of ;)--side view

 

Method:

Last night (like every weekend) I triple conditioned my hair (co-wash, conditioner, deep conditioner). Then, I 2 strand flat twisted the sides with my fave oils (castor and avocado or olive oil) and Eco-Styler Olive Oil gel with a little spritz of my Aussie leave-in ...it's my fave thing to do! After that, I put the back in two braids and pinned them away, because I knew that portion wasn't going to show. To get my poof in that wave pattern I put my Herbal Essences leave-in on the whole front section, two strand flat twisted it and put the remaining hair into a bantu knot. It gives me the perfect curl/wave w/o being frizzy!

This, and variations of it, will most likely be my staple style until my BC...Stay tuned!!!!

none of your frizzness: smoothing leave-in cream

This one is good too. It makes my hair rly soft and it smells yum! It's also a good curl definer. My hair loves it! I actually like it better than the long term relationship leave-in because this has more of a water base, so sometimes I don't have to use anything else with it which really makes for less build up.I think I like the Aussie spray better, though.

Aussie Hair Insurance Leave-In Conditioner

I love, love, love this stuff! On the bottle it says "The Hair Insurance collection, accented with splashes of natural Australian Botanicals, helps protect and strengthen your precious ‘do against damage." I bought it because my herbal essences none of your frizziness leave-in was almost finished and I went to restock. Damage protection seemed ideal for my transitioning hair and I wanted a leave-in that wasn't so thick. Let me tell you how this leave-in made my hair feel amazing. I don't even need to use it on damp hair as instructed to get the desired results. I just spray it on a section (for a bantu knot out for example) and my hair comes out sooooo soft and bouncy the next morning and not at all greasy. I'm really loving it.

New Additions to the Staple Product Family

Normally, this post would go under the "Product Reviews" tab, but these products are special....special enough to be featured as its very own post. "What are these products?" you ask, why! conditioners of course!!! I finally found the most perfect conditioner that leaves my hair feeling fabulous and doesn't cost an unreasonable amount of money.This conditioner is the Suave Humectant Conditioner. It is amazing. The thick consistency penetrates my defiant curls and softens them instantly making me swoon under its power (that sounds like a romance novel lol)  I truly love this product, I've NEVER, in all my years of washing and conditioning, felt my hair this soft days after my wash.  It is now Tuesday, and I washed my hair on Sunday, and it's still super soft without a tangle in sight!

Following this conditioner, I used a  Herbal Essences Leave-In Conditoner called None of Your Frizziness Smoothing Creme (hair forums rave about the long-term relationship one, but I prefer this one after trying both...the Long Term Relationship scent is kind of harsh). This creme eliminated frizz as promised and softened my already soft hair. I always thought that Herbal Essences products were only for "white people's hair" (whatever that is), but I'm so glad I tried it. I love love love my new staple products!

Additions to my arsenal

Yesterday, I finally found glycerin! I found it in the most random store too! Guess where....Kmart! Like i said in my product reviews, you'd be surprised how many products and beauty supplies you can find at a general supply store. I only wen there for a leave-in, but I decided to look through the other aisles and in the very last aisle of the beauty section, there were tons of natural oils! I got tea tree oil, sweet almond oil, rosemary oil ( i have no idea what i'm going to do with that yet), glycerin, castor oil, and olive oil all in the same section. Time to do what I do best....experiment! Wish me luck!

P.S: I also got a Conair shower comb, can't wait to try it!

Softness is Bliss

I've come to the conclusion that my hair doesn't like Lustrasilk Protein Conditioner. Instead of diagnosing my hair as protein sensitive, I will simple say that my hair is senstive to this particular type of protein. In sunday, after I did a cowash and got my trim, I used my moisturizing spritz and castor oil to set my twists. Today, I finally took the rods out and my hair is incredibly soft!!! Before, only my roots were soft and the rest was kind of hard, but now, all of my hair is soft and apparently moisturized. I don't think I'll be needing that Lustrasilk protein anymore., my hair feels amazing without it. I used the castor oil to seal my ends and you should see how they glisten in the light. I've said this in previous posts, but I think these oils are my new best friend =D

Moisturizing Spritz Results

A couple days ago, I told you guys about the moisturizing spritz I concocted for my twist n curl. When I took the twists out, my roots were really soft and responsive (like I said, my hair loves olive oil), but I hadn't made much so it was done really quick. Luckily, I had some more Infusium 23 Leave-in Treatment and my friend gave me more oils so I just made more. This new one was even better because it had castor oil, Vitamin E, and olive oil in it. My hair was even softer!! I looooove soft hair! I'll let you know how this one turned out, stay tuned!!!

My Moisture Spritz

I've been reading on other blogs that when doing a wet set, the best thing to use is not the obvious liquid: water. Naturalistas such as Milan and Mae have said int heir blogs/vlogs/ and fotkis that a moisture spritz is the best way to go because water dries out eventually, but oils lock in moisture. Being an experimenter, I decided to try it last night, but since oil and water are infamous enemies, they need an emulsifier (glycerin) to make them compatible.  At that particular moment, however, I didn't have access to any glycerin :( but I remembered that I had a leave-in treatment (Infusium 23). I checked the ingredients and lo and behold! There was glycerin! So here's what I did, I took a little oil mixture I bought at my BSS and poured a little of both in a separate bottle.  Honey, it was so moist and sealing, my hair rejoiced!!! The Infusium 23 is also a detangler, so a detangler that moisturizes is definitely the best of both worlds; I didn't even feel the need to put an extra sealant on the ends. It even felt like my line of demarcation was stronger, but i don't know just yet, we'll see!. I can't wait to see how it looks when I finally take them out! Until then I'll continue to spritz! Stay tuned!

I can feel the difference in the texture at the roots!

Apparently, my hair, like me, loves attention because it's been thriving well. I've noticed recently that my hair is getting thicker and softer. It's so weird because when I used to relax my hair, I would notice how coarse my hair was when it needed touching up, but now, 3 (almost 4) months post-relaxer, my hair is growing out of my scalp soft and not at all coarse. Here's my regimen:

I twist n curl every night because I like the fresh look.

I use my Oragnic Root Stimulator Olive Oil as a sealer at the roots and ends, and my Lustrasilk olive oil protein to keep my hair moist.

I also use my Infusium 23 leave-in treatment before I start my twists.

I actually haven't been washing or rinsing my hair everyday like I thought I would, I just mist it with water in a spray bottle and my hair has been surprisingly moist and responsive to my olive oil fetish. One thing I've noticed, though, was that my ends are really weak (snapping off) which is probably a result of the micro braids ( i haven't cut the ends just yet, but when I do, I'm thinking 2 inches). I don't really care about that though, I'm trying to get rid of my relaxed ends anyway =D

That's just a quick update on my progress, I'll post pictures when I try my new style (two strand flat twists). I'm actually thinking about doing that this week, but I have to wait for a sunny day because I'm doing lemon juice highlights, too!

Finally taking them out!

Its been a while, but as we speak, I'm taking these braids out of my hair!!! I have soooo much new growth after only a month and a half with the braids in (in some parts up to 2.5 inches). I'm really excited to finally take them out and condition my hair (i washed it 2 days ago with the braids in) and see my true texture! before I put the braids in, I had about 2 inches of new growth after 2 months w/o relaxing my hair so now there should be about 4 inches of new growth...well four stretched inches so im excited. Im actually going to the beauty supply store after I'm done typing this to pick up some products:

• Lekair Cholesterol (probably the one with olive oil)
• Perm Rods for the twist n curl style I found on agrlcanmac.com
• Infusium Leave-In conditioner

These products will help me to get my regime started: co-washing every other day with my leave in and deep conditioning with my lekair.

Wish me luck!!

Expect pictures soon!!