Monday, April 18, 2011

Weekly Inspiration

"There is no fear in love; but perfect love casteth out fear ... "


1 John 4:18





Revisiting Old Products

 The summer is coming and humidity is no joke in Texas. This summer I want to rock more curly styles but I have to get the moisture balance in check first. Now that I’m completely natural and recently learned my hair is highly porous things have changed. For me I need added protection and hold to battle the humidity if I want to wear my hair curly. Unlike some naturals I’m not a product junkie and I refuse to pay for expensive products.


So in order to keep my routine simple I decided to revisit an old product, aloe vera gel. Before when I used the aloe vera gel on my transitioning hair it left my hair hard and crunchy. Everyone raves about this gel but for some reason it didn’t work for me. Now that I’m 100% natural I decided to give it another try. Boy I’m glad I did because the gel gave me hold without all the “crunch”. An added bonus is that my curls lasted for 7 hours of humidity, heat, and wind before starting to frizz. By this time I was at home for the rest of the day and proceeded to moisturize and seal my hair.

Now the plan was to try to get 3 days worth of curls from this braid out. For moisture I used my Hawaiian Silky 14-n-1 and sealed with my Shea butter mix. Yes Hawaiian Silky has mineral oil in it but again I’m not an ingredient Nazi. This product worked wonders on my transitioning hair so I was excited to see the results. The next day my hair was very soft and moisturized but after an hour of being outside, frizz city! For now I plan to continue experimenting with the aloe vera gel.


Monday, April 11, 2011

Weekly Inspiration

"The greatest discovery is that a human being can alter his life by altering his attitude."


-William James

Eye opening experience on Hair Porosity

Last month when I flat ironed my hair I was really worried about heat damage for some reason. My intent was to wear my hair straight for two weeks but between working out and dry hair I decided to wash after a week. Luckily for me my hair reverted with no problem. However, I had a discovery about hair porosity during my short stint with straight hair.


After research I discovered the sink or swim test for measuring porosity. Unfortunately my hair sunk which means my hair is overly porous. Overly porous hair means the cuticle layer is raised and moisture is released quickly because the cuticle is not closed causing dryness and frizz.

Since I could not retain the moisture in my hair I ventured to Sally’s for a new product. While there I did not buy anything because a lot of products have alcohol in it and my natural hair hate it. Now I’m not an ingredient Nazi but alcohol definitely dries my hair out. As I walked up and down the aisles looking for a “miracle” product I thought to myself “I need to just keep it simple. I know what my hair loves….water. Why am I here?”

On the ride home many thoughts ran thru my head about what works with my hair. Now I have to admit that my conditioner mix was dropped by the waist side simply due to laziness. Since I ran out of kinky curly knot today I didn’t want to pay $12 to buy it again which stopped me from making my mix. But something had to be done to get my hair on track and make my length goal at the end of the year. At the same time, I want to enjoy the length that I have but the summer is coming and humidity is a beast in Texas. Until the dryness and frizz problem is conquered hair freedom is not in the immediate future.

After learning about hair porosity I “reinvented” my conditioner mix in a spray form. The answer for me was that I needed to close my hair cuticle in order to retain the moisture. A ph of 5 usually does the trick for my hair. This lesson about porosity and my battle with retaining moisture was an eye opening experience for me. Thank goodness I had this discovery early because down the road I could have experienced a setback.



Caruso Set on Flat Ironed Natural Hair

Last month after flat ironing my hair I wanted big curls. In order to get big curls without using more heat I used my caruso set.


Tuesday, April 5, 2011

Q1 2011 Length Check

Here is my first length check of the year on my road to bra strap hair by December.





Monday, April 4, 2011

Weekly Inspiration

“A lie, no doubt has speed; but truth has that endurance that we all need.”




-Michael Franks

Straight Hair inspired by my Mom

Two weeks ago my mom sent me a picture of her hair after she flat ironed. She retained so much length and her hair is growing nicely. Inspired by her picture I decided to flat iron but I wasn’t too impressed with the results. The night before I deep condition with honey and glycerin mixed with my fav conditioner. The results were amazing and the mix really made my curls pop. The straightening experience I didn’t really like.




My ends need a much needed trim but I’m not too concern right now. I’ll trim my hair the next time I flat iron at the end of the year. This time around I really hope my curls revert because I used a new product as a heat protectant. Until I wash I plan to enjoy the straight hair for now. Today I decided to rock a braid out on dry hair using my Shea butter inspired by my “Butter-n-braids” post. The next morning I was really pleased with the results but by the time I got to work all the curls was gone. Humidity is a beast I tell you and I have to learn how to tame it. Thank goodness I grabbed a couple of bobby pins and a flower before leaving the house.




Since I wear protective styles Monday thru Friday I’ll like to wear a curly style on the weekends. Sad to say but I may need to result to an oldie but goodie that worked for my relaxed hair. This product I’m sure contains mineral oil but since I wash weekly I’m not too concern. Expect a review/update later on the product and results.

Saturday, April 2, 2011

Twist-n-Bun





Dress: asos.com
shoes: endless.com

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