Nzuri Natural Hair Show December 2012

On December 8, 2012, I attended the Nzuri Natural Hair Show in Houston Texas at the Reliant Center.  I had a few criticisms, but overall it was a success.  I attended only one day which may explain the fact that I could not locate Eden's Body Works.  I was lucky enough to meet popular vlogger Chary Jay and the CEO & Founder of CURLS, LLC Mahisha Dellinger.  The products I purchased are as follows:

From Curls: Cashmere Curls Leave In, Cashmere Curls Jelly, Curlicous Curls Cleansing Cream and Curl Ecstasy Hair Ted Heat Activated Conditioning Treatment 

From the Sof n Free Nothing But Line: Curl Sealer, Intense Healing Mask, Cleansing Conditioner,                  Pure Pudding

From Jane Carter: Revitalizing Leave In

Chary Jay 

Mahisha Dellinger CURLS, CEO & Founder 

Clays & Powders from Henna Sooq

The fact that I don't use shampoos has lead me to look into other methods of cleansing and conditioning my natural hair and scalp. When I went to the Natural Hair Show in Atlanta this past October, I saw a booth for Henna Sooq.  I picked up a brochure  because I've been thinking about using henna as a color.  I checked out the website and their products but the Henna I wanted was out of stock, so I purchased the Shikikai Powder, Brahmi Powder and Rhassoul Clay as starters.
  

Shikikai is used to promote hair growth and used for deep cleansing 

Bhrami is used to strengthen hair roots, make hair dense, promote growth, leave shiny and help with the tone of your hair.  It also reduces premature graying and hair loss.

Rhassoul Clay is a volcanic clay that is used as a hair mask to add shine and thickness.   

I combined about 1/2 a teaspoon of the Shikikai and Bhrami powder with my a 1/2 cup of VO5 Tea Therapy Revitalizing Conditioner Blackberry Sage Tea and Kaolin Clay mix (Co-wash mix).  

The first thing I did was apply the Shikikai Powder, Bhrami Powder and my Co-Wash mix to my scalp and hair.  I massaged the mix into my scalp for about 5 minutes.  I then rinsed it out thoroughly and then applied the clay mix and repeated the massaging process for about 2 to 3 minutes.  I rinsed the clay mix with warm water for 5 minutes.  The result was clean hair without the stripped feeling.  

I then mixed 1 tablespoon of Rhassoul Clay and 1/2 teaspoon of Bentonite Clay to make a watery paste for a cleansing rinse.  

The smell of the powders and clays were earthy which I didn't mind, but some people may prefer to add essential oils to their mixes.  Just remember not to add too much.  Carriers oils are always a better choice in my opinion.  

Would I use this again?  Absolutely.  I loved the fact that my hair and scalp felt clean without that squeaky clean stripped feeling.  It is an effective cleanser without all the chemicals.  If your looking for an effective way to cleanse your hair and scalp without using expense products, I suggest you try Shikikai and Bhrami powders.  

My Staple Products

Since deciding to become natural, I've developed a regimen that has provided me with steady growth and healthy hair.  Although my hair doesn't grow super fast, I've been able to maintain healthy growth throughout my journey by finding natural products that work well with my hair.  Some of the products that have helped me along my journey are oils, butters and Aloe Vera Juice.

I've tried a variety of oils and learned early on in my journey that oils alone don't work for my hair.  I started looking for other methods of moisturizing my hair and came across Shea Butter, Mango Butter, Aloe Vera Juice and Aloe Vera Gel (not the kind the dried out my hair).  My staple products are products that I have to have and use on a regular basis.  They are the foundation of everything I put in my hair.  Of course I use other products, but I add my staple products to all my store bought conditioners, leave ins, and deep conditioners.  So far, its worked great. 

Above is the most recent picture of my hair.  I took my kinky twists out and this is the result.  

I may add more to my staple product list and I'm always on a quest to keep it as natural as possible.  Stay tuned for future additions to my staple product list. 

Black Friday & Cyber Monday Deals

There were a number of natural hair companies offering discount prices and free shipping for Black Friday and Cyber Monday this year.  Some companies were very familiar and others I have never heard of.

In order for me to take advantage of any deal, it had to meet certain guidelines.  My guidelines were as follows:

 1.  Whatever I purchased must be more than 20% off
 2.  The shipping had to be reasonable
 3.  The product must be something I used and not something I just wanted to try

I had a list of products I wanted to purchase and companies that were offering deals.  Upon closer review of some of the deals, I noticed that either the shipping fees were insane or you had to purchase a certain amount in order to get the deal.  There were some great deals and some not so great deals.  I ended up purchasing 2 jars of "Beauty Boss 101" from Karen's Body Beautiful.  It was 30% off if you spent $25.00 or more and the shipping was a flat rate.  This is the only product I've ever purchased from Karen's Body Beautiful and I absolutely loved it and therefore didn't mind purchasing it again.

Another company that seemed to have a great deal was Eden's Body Works.  Their deal was 50% off everything.   Before hitting that "confirm order button" I noticed that they were charging me $36.00 in shipping for 6 products.  I immediately cancelled the order.  I would be better off purchasing this at the regular price at Walmart.  This ended up not being a good deal.

Hopefully next year some of these companies will get their act together and not mislead us into thinking 50% off is a great deal even though they'll make it back in the shipping.

Being Sick & Caring for Natural Hair

Being sick and caring for natural hair isn't easy, but it can be done.  Like most people, I catch the common cold from time to time.  I caught a cold recently and didn't know if I had the strength to be bothered with my hair.  My usual regimen is to moisture at night doing the LOC method.  This consists of a Liquid, Oil and Creme.  I usually use my spray bottle of whatever liquid I'm using.  The liquid could be plain water or in my case Aloe Vera Juice mixed with castor oil.   After applying the Aloe Vera Juice and castor oil mix to my hair, I apply my creme mix.  My creme mix is usually a creamy styler ie: Shea Moisture Curl Enhancing Smoothie or Eden's Body Works Peppermint Hair Milk.  I mix the creamy styler with an oil and more Aloe Vera Juice.

Since I've been sick though, I've had to revise my regimen by just using my cream mix.  Because I have a bad head cold, I didn't want to saturate my hair with my liquid oil mix and apply my creme mix.  For the last 4 days, I've just been using my creme mix only and it's worked great.  My hair is soft and moisturized and not dry.  Luckily, my head cold wasn't too bad and I was able to keep my hair moisturized.  This is my first time getting a cold with natural hair, so I was unclear about how to care for my hair.  Applying my cream mix worked for me and I'm glad I wasn't so sick that I neglected my hair.

Combating Dryness

Recently, I've experienced some dryness.  My texture has changed from moisturized to a frizzie dry mess.  I wondered what I had done differently and what new products or new mixtures I was using on my hair for it to react this way.  The first thing I thought it was my products that had glycerin as an ingredient.  I immediately rushed home and put all my homemade products that I add glycerin to in the freezer.  Then I mixed a bottle of aloe vera juice and castor oil to see if that would add the needed moisture along with a cream I made weeks ago for the LOC method.  I tried my mixture for two days to no avail. My hair still felt and looked dry and crunchy.  WHAT COULD IT BE? Then I realized it must be this cream I made out of a hair milk and an Aloe Vera Jelly.  That had to be it.  That is the only thing I did differently this month.

The Aloe Vera Jelly had the following Ingredients: Organic Aloe Vera Juice, Vegetable Glycerin, Witch Hazel, Phenoxyethanol, Carbomer, Triethanolamine, Tetrasodium EDTA, Citric Acid

Witch Hazel is a natural astringent known to remove excess oil, Phenenoxyethanol is a preservative, Carbomer  is a thickening agent and emulsion stabilizer, Triethanolamine is an emulsifier and surfactant, Tetrasodium makes hard water become soft and Citric Acid is a common ingredient used as a preservative.  

Most of the ingredients listed in this jelly are preservatives, emulsifiers and thickeners. Witch hazel is known to remove excess oil.  Although research indicates witch hazel is not damaging to the hair, it can remove the natural oils and added oils needed to keep my hair moisturized.  

Another ingredient that may cause a problem is Vegetable Glycerin. Glycerin is a humectant and draws moisture from the air.  Supposedly, if there is no moisture in the air, it draws moisture from your hair leaving it dry.  I've used glycerin since I became natural and have never noticed dryness.  This maybe due to the fact that I live in the state of Florida which is known for it's humidity.  Since the weather is cooler in Florida in November, i've limited my use of glycerin simply because the humidity is significally less now due to the cooler weather. 

I learned a valuable lesson.  "If it ain't broke, don't fix it".  What I was doing with my hair was working perfectly fine.  I just wanting to mix a cremey "leave in" that I didn't have to refrigerate.  In reality, I should have just stuck to what was already working for my hair.  Not everything will work for your hair. At the first sign of dryness, figure what you have done differently that could be causing the dryness.  Not all homemade or semi homemade products will work on your hair.  I had no problem throwing my mixture away because its absolutely did not work on my hair. 

How I maintain my twists & prevent breakage

Since deciding to become natural, I've had my hair in braids or twists which is considered in the natural community as a "protective style".  I starting wearing twists because I think they're much easier to do and I experience less breakage around my edges.  I braid and twist my own hair and that allows me to save a considerable amount of money.   

The way I maintain my twists is to co-wash every week and moisturize daily.  To co-wash, I use a spray bottle filled with a conditioner + aloe vera juice.  I use a spray bottle because it allows me to distribute the conditioner easier.  To moisturizer, I use a spray bottle filled with either a leave in conditioner with aloe vera juice or simply aloe vera juice with castor oil.  Most times I do the LOC method which is Liquid Oil Creme.  I make a creme out of a creamy leave in or styler such as "Shea Moisture Curl Enhancing Smoothie" or "Eden's Body Works Peppermint Tea Tree Natural Hair Milk" some Aloe Vera Gel and a little bit of my Shea Butter Mix.  I apply it maybe 2 to 3 times a week to prevent product build up.  The days in between the LOC Method, I just spray my aloe vera juice and castor oil mix into my hair and seal with my Shea Butter mix.  

To prevent breakage, I remove my twists by 4 weeks.  My hair matts together pretty easily, so I try to take it out after the 4th week.  To remove my twists, I now use a homemade detangler which works great and save a considerable amount of time.  

In conclusion, I love twists and think they are easy to maintain. My experience with them however has lead me to believe that leaving them in for more than 4 or 5 weeks promotes breakage.  If you read this and you experience breakage with braids or twists, try taking them out at the 4 week mark.    

Intro to my beautiful natural hair journey

My natural hair journey began without me even knowing it at first.  I decided to stop perming my hair when I realized my hair was severely damaged.  After taking my weave out in September 2011, I discovered my hair was falling out.  I had no idea what to do, but one thing was clear "I couldn't perm my hair ever again".  I started braiding my hair with extensions since it was the only thing I could do to mask the damage and give my hair a break.  I barely had enough hair to put in braids, but I was successful. I continued braiding my hair and eventually cut the damaged hair off slowly.  By February 2012 I began watching youtube videos and just put in the search engine "natural hair".  I wasn't prepared for what I found.  A wealth of information on how to grow your hair naturally and make it look fabulous.  It was an epiphany for me.  At that point, it was clear I was transitioning into natural.  It wasn't until 5/03/2012 that I finally decided to BC.  I've haven't looked back since.