Napfrocurlzgirl

Wash Day Giveaway!!!!

2013-05-13T18:11:00.001-04:00

If you missed the first giveaway, here's your second chance!

http://www.theninanetwork.com/naturalnina/2013/05/natural-nina-giveaway-wash-day-conditioning-pack/?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+theninanetwork%2Fbmrx+%28Natural+Nina%29

Why does your hair get all of the attention?

2013-05-12T12:24:00.001-04:00

You have probably spent countless hours and dollars on natural hair techniques and products, but what about your skin? If you're trying to drink more water and eat healthier, kudos to you! But like hair, skin needs nourishment inside AND out.

If you rely on lotion to moisturize your skin, I'm sad to tell you that's not enough. In fact, you might be harming your skin, especially if you use lotions whose ingredients are varied and hard to pronounce. If you're wondering why, think about it this way...lotion is to skin what conditioner is to hair. So, if you're careful about what you put on your hair, why wouldn't you be careful about what you put on your skin?

With that in mind, Wash Day has finally launched an all-natural soap line! All soaps are made by me and contain only the same oils and butters you find in all-natural hair products! Some are scented. Others are not!

And they feel so good on the skin!

If you haven't stopped by the Wash Day Etsy site in a while, there are some minor changes, but three of several new soaps to be posted weekly are there for you to try! And, stay tuned because new batches of soap are made every Saturday and will be uploaded as soon as they're ready for the public!

Hair's Summer!

2013-04-29T19:45:00.002-04:00

The time has arrived to unleash the kinks and curls and wear your hair OUT! Sometimes, ye' old twist-out can get tired, boring and predictable so try this on for size!

I've debated having layers cut in my hair, but have figured out a way to manipulate my hair to make it look like I have layers when I actually don't! And it freshens up the twist-out look!

So, I washed and conditioned my hair as usual prior to twisting finger-size sections of hair. The catch is, I did bantu knots on the top half of my hair and the bottom is just regular two-strand twists. I let it dry for two days (that's my average drying time now) and gently untwisted. BUT, I didn't separate them. And if you're digging my shine, I get maximum shine without the greasy feel via my Bounce Butter. Did I forget to mention that Bounce Butter will maintain your curls and coils for a full week without reapplication and your hair will move with every step you take?! If you haven't gotten your hands on it yet, take it from me, Bounce Butter is a summer must-have!

Bounce Butter is available at https://www.etsy.com/shop/HairProducts.

And stay tuned. I've been cranking out more soaps!

Pink Himalayan Salt cakes with my custom Ocean fragrance blend.

Rich, creamy unscented castille soap topped with spirulina and Dead Sea Salt.

Chained to the Kitchen

2013-04-17T21:21:00.000-04:00

I've been having so much fun this past month! While keeping up with steady Wash Day sales and working my day job, I've been crafting handmade soaps every Saturday! I got started with a sea kelp soap scented with sweet almond oil and sprinkled with yellow cornmeal. But, my next two babies are my pride and joy!

We all know how good chocolate is for our hair, but it also does wonders for the skin, too! So, here's the creamiest soap you'll ever use. Made with shea butter and cocoa butter, this luxe lathering soap also contains 100 percent organic cocoa powder and is scented a warm, deep dark chocolate! So far, this is my favorite soap as it made my skin so soft and silky!

I haven't met a natural yet who doesn't love coconut oil, so this one is sure to be a winner as it's 100 percent coconut oil and nothing else...well, it's got a little something. This lightly fruit-scented soap contains little grains of toasted coconut and swirls of rice flour throughout! And the bubbles, oh my, the bubbles this little beauty creates!

Not sure what's on the horizon yet for this coming Saturday's soapmaking session, but I'm thinking of the ocean. Stay tuned!

P.S. Did I mention that I'm going to learn the old-fashioned art of canning next month?!

Handmade soap, anyone?

2013-04-09T22:17:00.000-04:00

What a busy month it's been! Wash Day orders have been flying out the door and I've added a completely new product to the Wash Day line...handmade soap!

Protective gear from head to toe is a MUST! Not cute, but necessary.

I started with an almond-scented soap with sea kelp and yellow cornmeal. It might not be pretty, but it smells amazing and the kelp and cornmeal have nourishing and exfoliating properties! My second batch of soap is incredible. Dark chocolate-scented, this soap is a shea butter and coconut oil blend that contains raw cacao. It made my hands softer than any lotion or hand cream I've ever used.

Here I am mixing my oils, butters and lye!

This coming weekend, I'll be making a 100 percent coconut oil soap with bits of raw coconut mixed throughout. Later this month, I'll add a goat milk soap or two. Sadly, after the soaps are made, they take at least a month to cure so these beauties won't be on my sites for a while yet.

Preview of the chocolate soap. It's much darker now.

But while the soaps are curing, don't forget to stock up on Bounce Butter! Twist-out season, if it's not already here, is rapidly approaching, but your twist-out won't be the best it can be without Bounce Butter! And while you're at it, don't forget to grab a tub of Brownie Butter to help wake up your hair as it comes out of winter hibernation!

Wash Day Launches New Products!

2013-03-09T20:56:00.000-05:00

It feels like I've been in production forever, but alas, it was worth it and four new products are on the Wash Day shelves! Let me introduce you:

Red Hot Grease: Imagine tiny fingers massaging your scalp 24/7. That's what this herbal oil blend of castor oil, pimiento oil, cayenne pepper, and sea buckthorn and saw palmetto essential oils feels like as it gets to waking up those sleepy follicles to help you grow some hair.

Red Hot Grease is for sleepy follicles.

Natural bright orange-red color.

Vedi Good Grease: I love all things Ayurvedic, so why not an Ayurvedic hair grease? A blend of hibiscus, amla, shikakai, brahmi, neem, orange and bhringraj powders, will help strengthen, thicken and darken your hair while adding lustrous sheen and shine, and correcting any topical scalp issues.

Vedi Good Grease is very good Ayurvedic hair grease!

Natural greenish yellow color.

Green Grower's Grease: This nourishing blend of sweet almond oil, horsetail, coltsfoot, blue malva, nettle leaf and burdock root herbs, and rosemary, sage and carrot seed essential oils will fertilize your scalp and give those follicles the food they need to help you grow strong, healthy hair. It's also soothing to itchy scalps!

Green Grower's Grease is the fertilizer your scalp needs!

A natural fun almost neon green color.

Brownie Butter: This rich, creamy dark chocolate deep conditioner comprised of bentonite clay, cocoa butter, avocado oil, cocoa powder, espresso powder and neutral henna will cure whatever's ailing your hair, and make those kinks, coils and curls pop out all over the place. Just mix these solid deep conditioning cubes with your choice of hot water, aloe vera juice or coconut water or milk, and let Mother Nature work her magic. This is a sinfully delicious treat for your hair!

The ultimate deep conditioning experience.

Chocolate's not just for eating!

If you haven't been by the shop lately, you're missing out! And, stay tuned for an update on my own hair as it comes out of winter hibernation!

New Wash Day products and changes!

2013-02-15T22:03:00.004-05:00

It's been a minute since I've posted anything, but I haven't forgotten you guys! Just wanted to give a brief update...I've been MIA because I've been developing and testing new products! In the next couple weeks, Wash Day will be expanding a little bit to include four new items!

Green Grower's Grease, Red Hot Grease and Vedi Good Grease are my newest babies! Green Grower's Grease, pictured below, is an herbal infusion that feeds the follicles! Not pictured are Red Hot Grease which is an herbal and spice blend to stimulate the follicles to encourage hair growth, and Vedi Good Grease which is a blend of seven Ayurvedic herbs to help you develop strong, healthy hair.

Green Grower's Grease

Also in the works are Brownie Butter conditioning bars. I'm super excited about these as they are deep conditioning bars teeming with the indulgent nutrients of chocolate, coffee, cocoa butter and a few other goodies for your hair! These edible-looking nuggets, mixed into any hot liquid and then slathered onto the scalp, has a high butter content which makes them super easy to rinse out.

Brownie Butter

I plan to launch these new products in about two weeks...just waiting on packaging and enough raw ingredients to produce large batches.

And, stay tuned for a redesigned Wash Day web site and a few more new products a little later this year!

New Sofn'Free product review

2013-01-13T18:57:00.002-05:00

This weekend, I was pleasantly surprised when samples of Sofn'Free's GroHealthy's Nothing But line showed up in my mailbox. Among the samples was their Intense Healing Mask. Y'all know me...I love deep conditioners, so I decided to give this a try first but not without some hesitation.

This smelled like peppermint even though there's citrus oil in it.

First, it's "made with nothing but simple ingredients," and "it penetrates deeply to repair, soothe and smooth damaged, brittle hair," while also touting that " In no time, your curls will bounce back with renewed health and vigor." Second, it proposes to repair "weak, fragile hair" and is "real help for transitioning."

I don't know about you, but when something sounds too good to be true, it probably is because only a pair of scissors can repair damaged hair. Regardless, I decided to give it a try with my steamer. Oh, but wait! What's in this stuff? To my dismay, the ingredients weren't listed on the packaging or enclosed informational brochure so I had to hop on the Internet. Look what I found!

Ingredients: Cyclopentasiloxane, Dimethiconol, Cetearyl Alcohol, Behentrimonium Chloride, Glycine Soja (Soybean Oil), Butyrospermum Parkii (Shea Butter) Oil, Hydroxypropyl Starch Phosphate, Acetamide MEA, Hydrolyzed Keratin, Panthenol, Propylene Glycol, Sorbitol, Sodium Cocoyl Collagen, Amino Acid, Cocoyl Sarcosine, Wheat Germ Acid, Triticum Vulgare Oil (Wheat Germ), Linolenic Acid, Linoleic Acid, Sulfur, Oleth-10, Simmondsia Chinensis Seed Oil (Jojoba), Tocopheryl Acetate (Vitamin E), Hydrolyzed Glycosaminoglycansance, Diazolidinyl Urea, Iodopropynyl Butylcarbamate, d-Limonene, Linalool, and Citral.

That's a mouthful, huh? Even more interesting is that while this product line is void of petrolatum, mineral oil, sulfates, parabens, colorants and phthalates, it does contain silicones! Personally, I'm not afraid of cones, but you might want to avoid this product line if you're picky about what you put in your hair. Sofn'Free says Nothing But is "simple," but how simple can it be with more than 20 ingredients?

Enough's enough! Now for the product review! This minty cream feels very pleasant in the hair. It smooths snarls and tangles, it spreads easily and evenly, and it washes out fairly well. Beyond that, my hair didn't feel or behave any differently. Maybe I would've noticed a difference if my hair was suffering from damage, shedding or thinning, but I keep it in a protective style throughout winter so it's relatively strong and healthy.

Overall, I can't say yay or nay to this one. But, I can say that at $10.99, this won't be part of my arsenal when it comes to deep conditioning treatments. I've found cheaper deep conditioners, i.e. LeKair Cholesterol for $2 or $3, that work much better at a fifth of the cost. Nice try Sofn' Free, but no coils up for you!

Mixed Feelings About Havana Twists

2012-12-30T17:10:00.001-05:00

There's nothing quite like building up your expectations for months only to have them dashed to the ground.

For months, I've been wanting Havana Twists. And to add salt to my wounds, I've been wanting Havana Twists with hair from Fingercomber. Like you, when I saw that "image," I fell in love.

Gorgeous, gorgeous, gorgeous!

So, biting the bullet, I followed Fingercomber's suggestion and bought six packs of hair to achieve the look above. Since I've never worn extensions before, I practiced with some much cheaper Marley hair for a month until I deemed I was ready to use the Fingercomber hair.

First and foremost, DO NOT purchase this hair if your own hair is armpit length or longer. Mine is so I had to fold my hair in half so the Fingercomber hair covered my ends. After all, I'm doing this as part of my winter protection regimen so I can't leave the ends of my hair out!

Other complaints are that this hair is super rough and dry, sheds a lot and is incredibly stiff. The first time I used it, I didn't put anything in it so I could get a feel for how it was going to behave. Big mistake as quite a few of the ends of my twists kept unraveling. I'm on week two of using this hair so this time I used Organic Root Stimulator's Carrot Oil in an attempt to soften it up. I know Fingercomber says the hair will soften after a few days, so let's hope that's true.

My other complaint is Fingercomber suggests buying 5-7 packs of the hair at $12.99 each to achieve the look in the picture. Well...I did that, but I think it was overkill, at least for me. I'm very conscious about weight and tension on my roots, so I can't fathom using more than two packs on my head. While my hair was wet/damp, I sectioned it into two-inch sections and added two pieces of Fingercomber hair per section. My twists don't fall into a nice neat bob like the model's. I'm guessing the stylist cut the Fingercomber hair, but I can't do that for fear of cutting the ends of my own hair since my hair is longer than the Fingercomber hair.

Sorry, long weekend sans makeup!

In my third and last attempt to work with this hair, I'll add one weft of Fingercomber to a one-inch section of my hair. If that doesn't work, I'm done with this hair and will go back to my Marley hair which I LOVE!

Overall, I am deeply disappointed with the end results. The only thing I like about this hair is it gives me much thicker twists than what I'd have without it. This product gets two coils down. Seeing how I have four extra packs of hair, if you want to buy them for just $10 instead of $12.99 plus S&H, let me know. This product gets two coils down. It just didn't perform the way I'd hoped it would.

Winter Hair Upkeep

2012-12-09T13:45:00.002-05:00

My Marley Twists are working out quite well...even if I do have 6 packs of extra hair, but it's wash day and my scalp's driving me crazy. Last week I redid my twists, but I didn't feel like redoing them this week so here's another first!

I hopped on YT to see what alternatives there were to washing hair with extensions and picked the no-rinse method using a liquid shampoo. Excited, I hopped on Google to find a no-rinse shampoo in my area and was directed to Walgreen's...their web site said my desired product was in stock. After a 15-minute search, with my eyes landing on two different dry but powder shampoos, I left empty-handed. On a hunch, I stopped at my fave beauty supply store on the way home and OMG, why did they have exactly what I was looking for?!

I need to keep this stuff around!

Clean Life Products' No Rinse Shampoo and Conditioner have the consistency of water and lack scent and color. Both are applied directly to the scalp. The shampoo is massaged into the scalp until it foams. Then, you have to towel blot your hair dry. The conditioner is used similarly, but it doesn't foam.

It took no more than 20 minutes to use these products and I must say, the results shocked me! Not only did my hair feel soft and clean, but my scalp stopped itching...it always itches when it wants to be washed and cold, dry winter air makes it worse.

Since the ingredients in these products are questionable, I decided to grab something else to ward off the itchies until I get ready to wash and redo my hair next week.

Might have to keep this around, too!

I've been using my Snake Oil (a blend of black castor oil and Ayurvedic herbs) on my scalp throughout the week, but decided to try Organic Root Stimulator's (ORS) Anti-Itch Scalp Oil. Not only am I a huge fan of ORS products, but this oil is in gel form so there's no dripping or oozing! The ingredients are 100 percent natural, but this does contain a paraben.

Overall, I'm VERY pleased with my no-wash results and will definitely use this as a back up plan to extend the life of styles with extensions!

Marley Twists Redo

2012-12-02T20:37:00.001-05:00

So, my Marley Twists held up all week for the most part. Only four got loose at the roots so I had to redo them mid-week. Fortunately, my hair is long enough so there was never any fear about them slipping off my head to be left behind at my desk, the grocery store or the gas station.

I'd never done anything like this before, so first I watched a ton of YT vids to see how to best approach this. The general consensus is to add the hair to blow-dried or stretched air-dried hair. But, this weekend I opted to redo them and had much better results on wet hair!

Prior to reinstalling, I washed my hair as usual, applied Giovanni Direct Leave-In Weightless Moisture Conditioner and OBI Natural Hair Care's Curl Enhancing Custard to one inch sections of my hair and then twisting in the Marley hair.

I LOVE Marley Twists!

Immediately I noticed a remarkable improvement compared to last week. This time around, my roots are tight and the Obi product, which has a gel-like consistency, helped my own hair blend with the Marley hair. Doing this on wet hair also shaved two hours off last week's time of six hours! While my hair air dries overnight, I suspect I won't have any slippage or loosening of the roots as the week goes by although I liked the loose, fuzzy roots look better.

So, when it's time to do my Havana Twists, I think I'll be doing them on wet hair. Anyone else prefer to add extensions to wet hair?

Winterized My Hair

2012-11-24T17:11:00.000-05:00

It's that time of year again...time to prep your hair for winter! The concept is simple-protect your hair from harsh winter elements. I never really paid attention to winter hair, but when I experienced frozen hair for the first time, I knew it was time to give it some serious thought. So last year, I bought my very first wig.

I got mine in a 1B.

I loved La Jay and wore her every single day. She was such a close match to my bantu knot-outs, no one knew I was wearing a wig unless I told them. And I loved the ease of wearing a wig. Every weekend, I'd wash my hair as usual and twist it up. In the mornings, I just plopped on my wig and went to work.

This year, I wanted to find another wig, but my hair has grown quite a bit and I couldn't find a wig similar to this that was longer in length. So, I decided to go with a different protective style this winter-Havana Twists!

This was love at first sight!

I've never worn extensions or weaves, let alone had my hair braided so this is a first for me. So, I ordered 5 packs of hair from Finger Comber to give this a try. But first, I got 5 packs of Marley hair to give this a test drive, and....I am ecstatic with my results! Ironicaly, I needed 1 pack of hair plus three strands from a second pack to complete this look.

So proud of myself!

Close up side view.

After watching a few YT vids, thanks Alex and Black Onyx, I decided to try this myself and it was so easy! It took me 6 hours and I used some hair gel I had laying around with Organic Root Stimulator Carrot Oil. When I was done, I pineappled and went to sleep, praying I wouldn't lose any and I didn't! So, I think this is going to work for me this and subsequent winters! In a month, I'm going to install the Havana twist hair. I also plan on getting their wefted Coily Comber hair to make a wig.

What are your plans for winter hair?

Wash Day Give Away!!!

2012-11-20T22:33:00.000-05:00

Hey curly friends! My good hair buddy, Natural Nina, is sponsoring a giveaway of the entire Wash Day collection! Check it out! You've got six days to get 'er done! Good luck!

http://www.theninanetwork.com/naturalnina/2012/11/natural-nina-giveaway-a-five-piece-set-of-wash-day-natural-hair-products/

Flexirods Can Be Fun!

2012-11-18T20:42:00.000-05:00

For the past week, I've been on all the social sites, researching Flexirods. So, before we plummet into winter temps, I decided to try my hand at them , too! Armed with 6 6-packs of 5/8-inch rods in two different lengths, this is how I did my own Flexi set.

After my weekly protein steam deep treatment, and washing and conditioning, I finger parted my hair from ear to ear, split those sections in two and clipped them all out of the way. To keep my hair damp, I spritzed with aloe vera gel mixed with distilled water and began applying Giovanni Direct Leave-In Weightless Moisture Conditioner to the first section followed by an old favorite, Organic Root Stimulator's Carrot Oil.

I've always loved the smell, and how soft and shiny it makes my hair.

All of my research revealed a cream "moisturizer" is one of two ingredients needed to get bouncy spiral curls from a Flexirod set. A lot of people use Miss Jessie's Quick Curls or Curly Pudding, but I've never used the first and the latter doesn't agree with me. So, I used what I knew worked for me!

After applying the Carrot Oil cream, I then applied a little bit of As I Am Naturally's Curling Jelly. I still had two sample packs they'd sent me, but only needed one pack for my whole head. I'm not a fan of gel, but I only used enough to give my hair a little bit of slip.

Then, I brushed the section with my Denman until it was as smooth as possible before applying an end paper to the end of my hair. Last step was rolling the hair in a vertical direction from bottom to top and fold over the ends of the rods to secure. It's very important to maintain tension while rolling.

My research also revealed that some people sleep in these things overnight or sit under a hooded hair dryer. I know I didn't roll the rods that tight, but after a few hours, they started hurting my head so I knew sleeping in them wasn't an option. I also don't own a hooded hairdryer, so this is what I did:

I grabbed a plastic grocery bag, stretched it out a little, put it over my head and stuck my hair dryer inside on the low/hot setting. In a few seconds, hot air was circulated all over my head and my hair was dry in about 30 minutes!

I was a little nervous to remove the rods because the hair has to be absolutely dry before you remove them, but I was excited about the shine and how smooth my hair was. A few spots didn't have enough tension, but for a first try with rollers of any type, I was pretty pleased with the anticipated results.

Just look at that silky shine!

With the Flexirods removed, I see a few trouble spots, but I think the effort is definitely worth it. I just need to get more rods and maybe some smaller sizes, and to maintain tension on every single section of hair. It's obvious I took more care with the Flexirods on the lower half of my hair and less on the upper half, so next time around, I know what to do and my Flexirod set will be perfect. I left the hair like this overnight, but will post a pic of my hair tomorrow after I've separated the curls and fluffed my hair!

I am so digging these curls!

Tune in tomorrow for the final results! I'm praying I don't turn out looking like Little Orphan Annie, so...

The final results!

I think I'd like to try this again, but I definitely need more rods as I put too much hair on a some so my hair wasn't smooth in a few spots. The true test is how long this look will last! Stay tuned, though! I just got a package from Finger Comber today! I'm using two of their styles for my winter hair and I'll be placing another order for a third winter hair style!

My New MAC

2012-10-17T21:07:00.003-04:00

No, I didn't get a new computer although I wouldn't mind, but I did get some new makeup over the weekend.

After numerous years of only using Maybeline's Dream Matte Mousse, my daughter convinced me to switch to MAC Cosmetics a few years ago. I think her and her dad were sick of me frantically running around town once a month trying to find my oh so popular shade or the 50 percent off sales.

Making the switch, I got started with MAC's Select Cover-Up. I balked at the price of $17 for this puny tube, but that little tube lasted about six months versus buying the Maybeline at $10 a jar every month.

NC45

In conjunction with Select Cover-Up, I also used MAC's Studio Fix Powder Plus Foundation. Again, I balked at the $27 stick price, but the compact lasts me at least six months and the coverage is buildable.

NC50

The past few years, I've been working really hard to achieve clear skin and I'm almost there, but I still need a little help. So, bored with my makeup routine, I decided to switch things up again by replacing Select Cover-Up with MAC's Studio Fix Fluid.

Sadly, my salesperson failed to sell me an $8 pump for my little bit of beauty in a bottle and she also failed to mention that this particular packaging is being phased out (I believe they'll be replaced by pump bottles), but I'm still happy with the overall results...even if it does cost $27.

NC45

Studio Fix Fluid goes on uber smooth and provides buildable coverage that I've really come to enjoy. Just a little bit goes a looooonnnngggg way. Equally impressive is how matte the finish is. A lot of people prefer that dewey, fresh-faced look, but I have oily skin so matte is what I need. After a light dusting with the remnants of my Studio Fix Powder, I'm out the door! The best part, though, is this stuff lasts! With my previous makeup regimen, I had to blot my face I don't know how many times a day and it was annoying, but with this, I haven't had to blot at all! Not even once! I have no shine for at least 10 hours and I've never been able to achieve that unless you count my forays with Milk of Magnesia as an oil mattifier since I'm too cheap to buy one.

Since my powder is also a foundation, I think I'll go back to the MAC counter soon and switch to the Mineralize Skinfinish Natural. Then again, I think I might have an unused jar of their Set Powder laying around somewhere. Or was it Prep & Prime? Upon reading about the differences between the two, I hope I have P&P!

OBI Natural Hair Care Update

2012-10-14T12:07:00.002-04:00

As promised, I gave OBI Natural Hair Care's Curl Enhancing Custard a full week's try before issuing my final review. (drum roll, please!)

Big, big fail for me, but...

As I mentioned before, I knew I was in trouble as soon as I dipped my finger in the jar...the consistency was all wrong for my hair. Curl Enhancing Custard is like a thick version of Kinky Curly Knot Today which I've repeatedly tried, but could not like. Also, when my hair fully dried, it was hard, crunchy and extremely dry. I'm used to having soft, moisturized hair.

OBI Natural Hair Care's Curl Enhancing Custard is really designed for the style-conscious. If you only want a product to hold your locks in place or don't want someone's hands running through your hair, this is the product for you. I think this stuff could actually stand up in one of those wind test tunnels!

If you aren't style conscious and your foremost concern is having healthy hair, run from this product! Obviously, I'm of the latter ilk, putting health over style every single time so Curl Enhancing Custard is a no-go for me. Yes it held my curls all week without reapplication, but that's all it did. Perhaps the worst part was the thick white paste it left between my fingers when I began detangling. Way too much product build-up and it'd be super nasty if a devout cowasher used this product. GROSS! This gets one coil down!

So, today I skipped my weekly deep conditioning steam treatment and washed my hair loose...twice...with two different commercially-made shampoos to ensure I got all of this goop out of my hair. Now, back to the drawing board with my own Wash Day Bounce Butter for soft, shiny, weeklong curls!!!!!!

Holding All Curls!!!!!!!!

2012-10-07T19:04:00.000-04:00

A few weeks ago, OBI Natural Haircare sent me a few full-size samples to try out. Y'all know I'm crazy about my own line, Wash Day, but I do love trying out other stuff from time to time.

Last week, I washed and conditioned as usual before spritzing with OBI's Curl Moisture Spray.

Pretty awesome stuff!

I immediately noticed a wonderful. My hair has some serious combination strands, but this spray helped my curls and waves look more uniform, and my hair felt really good! After a few spritzes and smoothing this through each section, I swear my hair had beautiful coils worthy of wearing it out in a WNG-something that's always alluded me. This product has earned a spot in my hair care closet and definitely gets two coils up! I only wish it came in a bigger bottle. I used almost half the bottle!

Then, I used OBI's Curl Moisture Cream. I might add that it's compatible with Giovanni Direct Leave-In.

Don't be fooled by the power of this light, fluffy cream.

Now, creams and I don't really get along, but to my surprise, this hair cream played quite nicely with my hair! It's well-known that I wash and set my hair once a week with my chosen styling product, so whatever I use in my twist out has to have some staying power. And, this does the trick...for the most part. Mid-week, I did have to retwist the top half of my hair, but I used the Curl Moisture Spray instead of adding more Curl Moisture Cream. While my hair was gorgeous, it felt and looked dry, and lacked the bounce I'm used to having. So, I give this one coil up. Not sure I'd add this to my arsenal, but in a pinch, it'll do.

This week, I decided to try out the Curl Enhancing Custard, so that review will be posted soon. But, here are my thoughts so far...

Jury's still out on this one!

I'm a little concerned about how my hair will turn out tomorrow. So far, my hair is almost fully dry and it's stiff, dry and crunchy! While I was pleased with the amount of definition I can see I'm going to have and how nicely my ends coiled without any extra help, I do not like how my hair feels. But, I kind of knew this as soon as I dipped my fingers in the jar. The consistency is like Mod Podge mixed with hair gel, and I am not a fan of hair gels. But, if you like Kinky Curly Knot Today, you will probably like this as it feels like a much thicker version. Crossing my fingers...

I also used a different shampoo this week, thanks to the LUSH store in Novi, Mich.

I love me some LUSH, so I was happy to get a freebie of this to try out!

First, let me say it smells amazing, but looks like...chunky orange puke? Aside from what it's designed to do, I was intrigued by the texture which makes following the instructions incredibly important. Your hands and hair must be sopping wet. Scoop out a nickel-size amount of Curly Wurly, lather it up in your hands and apply it to your hair. Honestly, I thought my sample was way too tiny for me to be able to give this a try and I even contemplated stealing my daughter's sample (sorry Ana!), but I only used half of my sample and it lathered my whole head!

Curly Wurly made my hair soft and if I didn't know any better, I swear I saw curls popping where I've never seen them popping before. Curly Wurly also cleansed AND conditioned my hair without stripping it, and it lathers up really, really well. Since it's chock full of coconut oil, some of the coconut oil did solidify due to our dropping temps in Michigan so I had to pick little white chunks out of my hair, but I like this product. Curly Wurly gets two coils up, but I don't think I like it enough to buy it at $23.95.

Itchy Scalp Problems

2012-09-28T23:49:00.001-04:00

It's no secret that the very front patch of my scalp has always plagued me. No amount of ol' school scratchin' with a fine-tooth comb, dabbing at my head with a cotton ball soaked in tea tree and other essential oils, greasing my scalp or just plain washing my hair helped. In fact, this irritating problem didn't subside until I laid off the heat two years ago. But, it's back!!!!!!!!!!!!!

This time, however, my whole scalp was crawling with invisible ants and I attribute it to last week's 911 regimen. And if I'm going to be totally honest, my heart skipped a beat last week when I saw a few flakes in the front of my scalp as soon as I'd finished washing my hair. As the week progressed, the itching got so bad, I was patting my head like the wig-weave girls!

Last week, I put my hair in mini-twists with the intent of leaving them in for two weeks. I was planning to wash my hair on Sunday with the twists intact, but I was itching too bad to wait just two more days to wash my hair so I washed it tonight! You should have seen the look on my partner's face when I told him what I was going to do at 10:30 p.m., LOL!

Instead of using shampoo, I decided to co-wash with that amazing As I Am Naturally CoWash Conditoner. Almost immediately, my scalp felt soothed...I attribute that to the heavy coconut oil in the conditioning treatment as coconut oil happens to be a natural antibacterial. I then followed up with Herbal Essences' Honey, I'm Strong Strengthening Conditoner.

I'm ashamed of how many HE products I really like, so just add this to my growing list!

I've been drooling over the commercials for this, so I finally got some to try out and I like it! With honey and apricot extract, it allegedly gets hair 10x stronger in just one wash. More importantly, it's supposed to guard against "future" damage, reduce breakage up to "99 percent," yada yada yada...

Ignoring all the hype, the combination of As I Am's Coconut CoWash and HE's Honey, I'm Strong made my hair as soft and fine as a feather. And, no more itchy scalp! My hair had sheen, was muy pliable and had a very pleasant, but light after-scent.

Would I buy this again? I don't know and I don't know because I still prefer HE's Hello Hydration over this particular conditioner. But, I definitely give this at least one coil up.

Counteracting Heat Damage

2012-09-22T00:25:00.001-04:00

With temperatures plummeting, I decided last week to flat iron my hair one more time this year before my hair goes into hibernation. Normally, I'm very careful when applying heat, but I did miss a few steps and did a doozy on my hair. When all was said and done, I don't think I could've paid my comb to get anywhere near my roots and my ends (going up three to four inches towards my head) felt rough and crispy.

Unable to properly comb my hair and panicking about the damage I might have done to the hair I'd worked so hard for over the last two years, I spritzed it down, slapped in my hair butter and wore the most gorgeous bantu knot out I've ever achieved for the rest of the week. How's that for irony?!

After much Googling, YTing and reading product reviews, I resolved to hot foot it to Sally's Beauty to save my hair although I am fully aware that heat damaged hair cannot be saved. But, I just couldn't fathom cutting off three to four inches of my hair after working so hard to take care of it for the past two years!

So, here is my 911 Regimen to Rescue Heat-Damaged Hair:

I parted my hair in four sections, spritzed each section with a random conditioner mixed with water and detangled. Then I applied Queen Helene Professional Cholesterol.

I prefer LeKair Cholesterol with Aloe, but Sally didn't have it and I had a 911!

After steaming with the Cholesterol, I hopped in the shower to wash my hair with ApHogee Shampoo for Damaged Hair. I was shocked how well this worked. My hair felt clean and indescribably different, but not stripped. And, I only had to apply it once!

I used so little of this, I think this bottle is going to last a whole year.

After just one shampoo application, I then applied ApHogee Keratin 2 Minute Reconstructor and left it on for five minutes. This product has more slip than you can ever hope for and it left my hair feeling smooth and soft.

Again, a little bit goes a long way!

Post-shower, I wanted to add a little extra oomph to my hair so I spritzed each section with ApHogee Keratin & Green Tea Restructurizer. The idea is not to saturate the hair with this product, so I just spritzed each section a few times after a brief comb-through. Ideally, you're supposed to apply heat to your hair after applying this, but body heat works fine too according to the directions.

I have mixed feelings about this as it made my hair feel a little weird.

The final steps in saving my hair was to apply my Giovanni Direct Leave-In Weightless Moisture Conditioner to each section and then separating each section so I got two twists out of each section. Then, I put huge bobby pins on my roots, pulled all my twists to the back of my head and banded them into a pony tail with two scrunchies to stretch the hair as it dries over night. I also tied a satin scarf on my head so my edges lay down. I'll twist my hair tomorrow when my hair is dry.

You're probably wondering if any of this worked and while it's too soon to tell how much damage was done, I can assure you that my hair is going to be just fine. My curls returned as soon as I washed my hair and I had more curls than I've ever had by the time I rinsed out the conditioner. Only one small section was wavy versus curly, but my hair's always been like that. I had not one single shaft of straight hair!

So, ApHogee gets two coils up! My hair was left feeling soft and smooth, and has lots of shine and sheen and I haven't even applied my hair butter yet! I also was shocked that only ONE hair was in my detangling comb when I detangled a second time and that NEVER happens! I am definitely going to use this as a one-time monthly regimen.

NOTE: While my hair loves protein and is treated to some type of protein treatment every week, a lot of people have protein-sensitive hair. If you are protein-sensitive, I'd do a strand test first. Also, ApHogee products are designed to work together to repair your hair, so I wouldn't recommend subbing or swapping out products when using ApHogee. And, please thoroughly read AND follow the directions when using these products.

P.S. Assuming the worst, I was planning on using ApHogee Two-Step Protein Treatment but I'll save that for another day and hopefully that will be a day when I want versus need to use it!

This is a heavy-duty treatment not for the faint of heart!

As I Am Naturally Triple Failure

2012-09-10T19:47:00.001-04:00

Last week, I was so in love with my curls I didn't want to wash my hair. But, y'all know me...I MUST wash my hair every week. So, in an attempt to try something new, I tried to wash my hair while retaining my curls with the help of three As I Am Naturally products. The end result...BIG FAIL! Here's the gist of what I did:

I carefully sectioned my hair, misted with distilled water and applied As I Am Naturally's Hydration Elation to each section prior to twisting.

This didn't leave my hair feeling any better or worse than any other deep conditioner, store-bought or DIY.

After steaming with Hydration Elation, I proceeded to wash and condition as normal. Then, I applied As I Am Naturally's Twist Defining Cream to each section.

My hair felt "funny" compared to when I use my Bounce Butter.

Then, I applied As I Am Naturally's Smoothing Gel and twisted each section.

Still not knocked out. Hair still felt "funny."

Crossing my fingers and whispering prayers to the Good Hair Angels, I let my hair dry overnight and eagerly awaited the big reveal the next morning. To my utter disappointment and dismay, my hair did not turn out as expected, nor did I retain the beautiful bouncy spirals I somehow achieved the week before.

Yes, I have body and lots of it, and yes I have curls popping all over my head, but my hair lacks the shine and softness I've come to expect. In fact, the back of my hair feels like it's been dipped in a bucket of pure chlorine...rough, immovable and undefined frizz. And when I feel my hair, it rustles and crunches-a sure sign to me that my hair is desperately dry. But, for those of you who want to try this line, the good news is I didn't get those annoying white balls when I used both of these products together, so they're at least compatible.

Sadly, however, I must give Twist Defining Cream and the Smoothing Gel two coils down. Hydration Elation gets one coil down. Considering these products cost upwards of $20 each, I expected more. I really, really, really wanted to like them, but I don't.

Fortunately, I had free samples to try out. Had I bought full-sized containers of these products, I would've been pissed to the highest of pisstivity! If my hair didn't feel so awful, I'd leave it as-is to see if my curls hold for the duration of the week (which they do when I use my Bounce Butter) without product reapplication, but As I Am Naturally just isn't worth the risk. Bounce Butter here I come!

Ayurvedic Treatment and Co-Washing are a Go!

2012-09-06T23:02:00.003-04:00

Forgive me if this is a little herky jerky, but I'm writing this while watching POTUS speak during the DNC.

Anyway, last week, I decided to try this co-washing thing again. I've always been a co-wash naysayer, but let me explain why, first. All of the co-washing methods I've seen and read about use cheap conditioner, sometimes diluted with water. Personally, I need and want to have a clean scalp, and I know conditioner can't do the trick. A lot of co-washers say they don't like shampoo because it's too harsh or strips the hair. While whatever shampoo you use might have a higher than desired pH balance, if you're of that ilk, water naturally reduces your hair's pH level as you rinse out the shampoo. Second, conditioner closes the cuticle so how can you get your hair clean if the cuticle is closed?! Last, ALL hair experts agree that if you co-wash regularly, you MUST wash your hair with shampoo at least once a month...but don't let me go off on that tangent 'cuz that's really gross when I think about it. All I have to say is if you wouldn't dare wash your clothes with just fabric softener or take a shower/bath with lotion, why would you wash your hair with conditioner?

With that being said, I had tried a sample of As I Am Naturally's Coconut CoWash a while ago and really enjoyed it, so last Sunday, I broke down and ran to my local Sally's to (gasp!) buy a full-size jar. HINT: Even the instructions on the jar advise co-washers to shampoo their hair periodically, LOL!

Just $7.99 at your local Sally's!!!

So, in keeping with my regimen, I spritzed my hair, gently detangled with my trusty old Mebco Detangling Shower Comb, applied the Coconut CoWash made 10 loose twists on each side, clipped them to the top of my head and slid under my Huetiful steamer! Honestly, my hair never felt better! I was tempted to do a WnG, but I don't have the right hair type to even attempt to pull it off, but still...

Trippin' off my good hair high, I decided to make a potentially new Wash Day product so I pulled out my stash of Ayurvedic herbs and one other special ingredient to create a moisturizing Ayurvedic hair mist!

I'm not a daily mister, but I did mist my hair with my new concoction while twisting my hair with my Bounce Butter. It's too early to tell, but I think I'm on to something!!!!!!!!! Not only does my new concoction contain a wonderful and sweet smelling humectant, it's filled with multiple herbs to strengthen the hair's root and shaft, promote gloss and sheen, ward off the greys, cleanses and conditions the hair, stimulates hair growth, corrects scalp issues, thickens the hair, prevents hair loss...Need I say more? Are you as excited about this as I am?!

Rhassoul Clay and CoWash!

2012-08-05T21:46:00.000-04:00

It's been more than a minute since I've been on here, but don't worry, this is not a rant about Gabby's hair (which I happen to find utterly ridiculous).

Normally, I faithfully wash my hair every weekend, but I just wasn't up to it this weekend so I decided to try something new...to me. Pura Body Naturals posted a blurb on Facebook about a hair treatment. I'd never seen it before, but decided to give it a go. According to their post, you mix together rhassoul clay, coconut milk, vegetable glycerin and honey, apply it to your hair, and let it sit for 20 minutes prior to rinsing out. I had some Anita Grant Deep Conditioning Rhassoul Bars I bought a year ago, and glycerin and honey, but no coconut milk. But, I did have an unopened jar of coconut cream concentrate left from last year. I mixed them all together and got this:

I made enough for two applications!

Application only took 15 minutes and there was no mess as the consistency was like fudge before it sets. And it smelled so delicious, I literally had to stop myself from tasting it! It spread super easy throughout my hair and there was no mess whatsoever.

I let it sit in my hair for an hour and noticed a definite difference when I rinsed it out. My hair was clean without feeling stripped, and slightly elongated. And, it was a cinch to rinse out, possibly due to the oil in the coconut cream concentrate (Note to self: Mix coconut cream concentrate with henna, clays or Ayurvedic treatments).

Rinsing this out was quick and easy, and it only took a few seconds until the water ran clear. Granted I loved the way my hair felt, I also decided to co-wash for the very first time so I applied my sample of As I Am Coconut Co-Wash and fell in love with my hair even more! As a post-treatment, I used my As I Am sample of CocoShea Spray which made me love my hair even more!!!!!

My natural texture's kind of screwy, but gotta' love the sheen and shine!

Both As I Am products smell amazing. There's no lather with Coconut Co-Wash, but it is a thick cream that has a lot of slip. The CocoShea Spray caught me off guard since it looks like milk and has the consistency of water. Now that my hair's almost dry, it's left a super light oil sheen on my hair without any scent.

I am soooo in love with today's hair treatment and will most definitely do it again. I think the key for me was adding coconut cream concentrate to my rhassoul clay. My hair has been totally saturated in coconut oil today and it feels and looks pretty amazing. I think I'm going to do this once a month!!!!

Spotlight in and on Leading Ladies of Business

2012-05-31T20:59:00.001-04:00

Last night was one of this year's highlights as Wash Day was featured on "Leading Ladies of Business," created and hosted by Naikeya Haley, CEO and founder of the "Nina Network." We also were joined by Donnilah McClendon (aka Nina Simone on Facebook), founder of "just blaque" and co-founder of the "Nina Network."

At 9 p.m., EST, Wednesdays, Naikeya talks with women via live video chat who've parlayed their hobbies and ideas into businesses. And, I'm honored that I got to be one of them!!!! In case you missed it, here's the clip and be sure to tune in on Wednesday evenings! Naikeya has some good stuff, insightful interviews and A LOT of useful information followed by a live Q&A!!!!

In case you missed the Wash Day interview, here it is! Enjoy!

http://www.vokle.com/events/64896-a-live-q-and-a-session-with-diy-queen-robbin-melton-of-wash-day-natural-hair-products

Before and After

2012-05-20T22:27:00.000-04:00

Three years ago on July 4, my hair was in pitiful shape. While it wasn't subjected to chemicals, it was brittle, dry and damaged due to ye' old blow dryer and hot comb. Heat protectant? What was that? Detangling? Moisturizing? I didn't know jack! And the proof is in the pudding! Just look at that thin, frizzy hair! It would grow, but as soon as it hit my shoulders, it'd either break off or I'd burn it off. Lots of trimming back then!

July 4, 2009

I struggled along for another year with my head lookin' a mess until I got sick of straightening my hair. I remember it was a hot, humid day. I was closed up in the house with the A/C on. I'd just finished straightening one side of my hair, but when I got ready to do the other side, the first half was already starting to frizz! Seeing that my efforts to get my hair bone straight were futile, I packed up my straightening equipment and decided to wear my hair in its natural state. Almost three years later, I have this!

May 20, 2012

Now, over the years, I had worn my hair natural, but I had no idea what I was doing and there were only two companies that made natural hair products. And, those products could only be obtained via the Internet or catalog. With my decision to go natural full-time, I did my share of YouTube and blog research, but only about 10 percent of what I found actually gave me the results I wanted which prompted me to go rogue!

Most of the year, I stick to twists. On occasion, I straighten my hair a couple times a year. I deep condition with my steamer before washing my hair with shampoo every week. I oil my scalp. I only comb/brush my hair once a week. Product is only applied to my hair once a week and it has to be 100 percent natural ingredients. When I sleep, I pineapple in a stocking cap.I only style my hair once a week.

I don't worry about eating healthy, unless it's for weight control. I don't take hair vitamins. I don't cowash or oil wash. I don't trim my hair, well, maybe once every couple years. I don't spritz my hair with water unless it's my wash day. I don't use fancy or expensive ingredients in my hair products. I'm not a product junkie. I don't switch up my hair styles-I wear two basic styles all the time.

Some people are shocked by the hours I spend on my hair on my wash day, but it balances out since I don't do anything to my hair throughout the week except to fluff it up in the mornings and go. Besides, my wash day is kind of like my zen moment and I love doing my hair. I can't wait until it's time to wash it again! While I'm very pleased that my hair is the healthiest, thickest and longest it's ever been in my life (even under the bi-weekly care of a hairdresser), I'm not done. I'm aiming to just let it grow solely so my twists are a few inches past shoulder length. Perhaps when I'm older, I'll forgo my regimen and hiding my grey, and just grow me some long silver dreadlocks. Being a former dread head, though, I do realize that they come with maintenance of their own kind.

How's it going on your own hair journey?

African Pride Shea Butter Miracle Bouncy Curls Pudding

2012-05-17T00:24:00.000-04:00

Okay, so I've been working with African Pride's Shea Butter Miracle line for the past two weeks and have gotten some seriously mixed results. We all know the Buttery Creme was a major fail, so I switched to the Bouncy Curls Pudding halfway through the week and continued to use it throughout the next week.

I had the pleasure of trying this product in two different ways. The first time I tried it, my hair was wet from washing. My hair felt rough and dry when I applied this to my hair which became an immovable Brillo pad helmet once it dried. It was so bad, my twist-out had to be converted into a bun for the day. I had crazy curls void of uniform direction, frizz, crinkles...you name it, I had it.

As soon as I got home from work that day, I redid my hair with the same product, only this time I applied it to damp hair by spritzing and retwisting each section with more Bouncy Curls Pudding. My hair still didn't feel as smooth as I'm used to when I use my Bounce Butter, but I was pleased with the results once my hair dried.

This is Day Three and I have not had to reapply this product or redo my hair. And, I'm pleased with the curls. Bouncy Curls Pudding definitely holds the shape and curl pattern, and I have a little bounce. But, I don't have the shine I'm used to, so this will be getting one coil up.

Overall, Bouncy Curls Pudding isn't bad, but it's not great either. I'd keep it as backup in case I run out of my own hair butter, the amazing Wash Day Bounce Butter!