Beauty on a Budget: GREASE! Back to basics!

Hello everyone! I am back with another edition of Beauty on a Budget!  So as you can see from the title...I'm talkin about grease! If your a curly girl or an ingredient nazi, then you can stop reading right here, this post is not for you.

However, if you are a chick on a budget like me and looking for products that work and won't break the bank, this post is for you!

So I have been doing some research and watching some reviews on YouTube about using hair grease on natural hair and the theme is the same: grease is a great sealant, gives crazy definition and shine, provide a light hold, and combats humidity.

Of course, it has its cons too. The biggest one, if you use too much, your hair will be greasy and sticky, which is no beuno! It may also actually cause dryness if used alone as it is not really a moisturizer. Another con is that this probably shouldn't be applied to your scap for fear of clogging pores, stick to your oils or natural pomades for that.

How I Use Grease
In my opinion, this works best on really wet, freshly washed hair. I have only done twist outs so far with this and let me tell you, they have been bomb! So after washing and conditioning, I prep my hair for styling. I work some leave in through each section of my hair, then I add the moisturizer of my choice, preferably something light. Then I add a small amount of grease to each individual twist before twisting. I allow to dry overnight, separate, and fluff!

My hair has been soft,  moisturized, defined, and not as frizzy. It has also been holding up in this Georgia humidity!

Bottom Line
Grease is definitely worth a shot! If you have thick, coarse, or hard to define hair, then this may be for you. I firmly believe that grease is still around because it still works! Our parents may have been on to something so we shouldn't discount what they were doing!

Where to Find it and How Much
The grease I have been using you can get just about anywhere! I have been experimenting with Softee Coconut Oil hair & scalp conditioner, Softee Indian Hemp, and Dax. These can be found at your local Family Dollar,  Dollar Tree, Walmart, drug store, or beauty supply store. These jars can range anywhere from $1-$3, depending on what size you buy!

Stay tuned, I have more items coming your way so that you can stay beautiful on a budget!

Peace

How I am facing my hair challenges! (breakage, pjism, protective styles, length retention, etc)

Hello Loves! So my protective styling is going well and I hope that my hair responds. But WAIT......
I must confess that last week, I wore a twist out for like 2 days....but I washed it yesterday and flat twisted it up!

I digress! I am twisted up again and looking to be more creative with my hair. So I challenged myself to this protective challenge and it is definitely a challenge! But my hope is to:
1. Improve my edges and grow out the short sections of hair in the middle. I know I complain about my thick hair, but I'd rather it be thick and healty, than thing and breaking and falling out!
2. Retain some length. So I have never been into long hair, but I am challenging myself to deal with my hair instead of cutting it. Cutting has always been my answer, but I am going to grow my hair and deal with the length!
3. Improve the health of my hair. Constant mainipulation kills my hair and my ends always end up a crunchy  mess as a result. I want to protect my ends and allow my hair to heal.
4. Improve my parting and flat twists skills! Enough said. I suck at this and it needs help. I don't want to pay to get my hair done, so it is best I perfect the craft myself!!!!
5. Use up my products and develop a better regimen. I don't like my hair do's to get old or too frizzy, so I will try to do my hair weekly. I am thinking I will shampoo every other week and co-wash in between. The co-wash in between is only if my hair needs it to create a new style. I will clarify whenever I decide to switch up products and will protein treat every six weeks.

Plus, as you know, grad school has become quite demanding and I really only have time to devote to my hair once a week. I don't want to neglect it terribly and end up with hair in bad shape, so protective styling is my key. I will post pics of what I have come up with later, but right now I am at the library, supposed to be working on my theoretical framework, but instead I am updating my blog!!!!

So for the month of october, this is what I am using and doing to my hair! My regimen is as follows:
1. DC on dry hair using Creme of Nature Argan Oil Intensive Conditioning Treatment and Africa's Best Ultimate Herbal Oil.
2. Shampoo with Creme of Nature Argan Oil Moisture and Shine Shampoo.
3. Condition and detangle with Herbal Essence Hello Hydration Conditioner. Rinse.
4. LOC: L-Cantu Shea Butter Leave-in Conditioning Repair Cream, O-my own blend of grapeseed, coconut, olive, and flaxseed oil, C: African Prides Olive Miracle Maximum Strenghting Moisurizer Lotion.
5. Syle with African Pride's Shea Butter Miracle Bouncy Curls Pudding.

So far this has been okay for my hair, but I am trying to get rid of the African Pride products. They work okayfor me, but I am still on the hunt for a good line of leave-in, moisturizer, and styling products. These products do moisturize, but I feel a dryness after a few days and I don't think they will stand up for the entire fall and winter.This is not my fave, but it will work in a pinch. I would repurchase again if need be, but not at this time! I think they are better suited for spring and summer when there is more moisture in the air!

Pics to come soon, until then......Peace!

My Second Henna! I know, I'm Late!!!! Protective Style Challenge for me!

Forgive me for my tardiness all! My last year of grad school has begun and I have been crazy busy! I did Henna my hair again sometime last month and my hair is doing really well. I like the effects of he henna and all, but honestly yall, I just don't have time for it right now! Straight up! But here is what I will say about my henna experience:

1. My hair is overall healthier
2. There is a nice reddish brown tint to my hair
3. I think I get the same results as everyone else by just mixing my henna with brewed green tea
4. Henna is a PAIN to rinse out! Very long process and requires  A LOT of clean up!
5. It reduces the shedding of my hair and make my hair a bit shinier and healthier
6. I will definitely re-visit my henna journey....maybe next semester when the hard stuff is over and it's time to graduate!


PROTECTIVE STYLE CHALLENGE!!!!!!!!!!!

Okay, so as I expressed above, I just don't have time for my hair. I still want to keep it healthy and moisturized though. I am really trying to grow my hair out and regain some of it's thickness. So until December, I am in protective style mode. Today is the beginning of this challenge. Here are the dynamics of this challenge:

• The idea is to retain length and keep hair moisturized and protected.
• Wash/co-wash and condition/deep condition as often as you normally do. For me, this is about every 2 weeks. I am considering for the next few months only shampooing once every six week and co-washing in between. Just to keep my hair from possibly drying.
• Find a good moisturizing routine that will fit YOUR hair. For me, I will be  doing the following: Leave-in (Cantu), oil (personal oil blend I am using consisting of coconut oil, olive oil, grapeseed oil, and flax oil), moisturizer (whatever I choose at the time but for now I will be using up my African Pride Olive Miracle Strengthening Moisturizer), and a styler (African Pride Shea Miracle Bouncy Curls Pudding...it's almost all gone and want to use it up). When I check back in, I will let you know how these products work and if I am sticking with them or using something different.
• Keep hair in a protected style a minimum of  3 out of 4 weeks in the month. Styles can include twists, braids, weaves, buns, etc.
• We will stay in protective mode until March....that's 6 months! Then by the spring we can see how much progress we have made with length retention and hair health!

Please bare with me through graduation. I will still be checking in. I will post about my oil blend and how it has been working and progress with my protective styles. If I come up with something super creative, I will be sure to post! Until next time friends!


Peace

Twist out with Oyin Handmade Products: A Review

Alright, so wash day has been completed! What I discovered is that I need to do more research before I do my henna! AND......Mini twists make it hard to detangle my hair! OMG....this wash day was quite a task! So this is what I did and how I started!!!!!




Pre-poo and detangle: Products-water, Tresemme naturals conditioner, Africas Best ultimate herbal oil

So I parted my hair into 4 sections and clipped them. Then, one section at a time, I added about a quarter size amount of the oil and worked it through the section. Next, I sprayed with with water to get it very wet. Once the section is wet, I added a very generous amount of conditioner and worked it through. I detangled using a wide tooth comb, then an afro come, and went back through it with my knock off Denman brush to make sure it was knot free. Last, I divided the section into 4 twists. I repeated this process for the other 3 sections. The hair is then covered with a plastic cap and I let it sit for about an hour.

Wash: Products-Tresemme Naturals shampoo
To wash the hair, I wash in sections. So section by section, I undid the twists, rinsed the pre-poo out, then shampoo'd. After rinsing, I would but 1 or 2 jumbo twists in then move on to the next section until my entire head had been shampoo'd and rinsed.

Deep Condition: Products: Oyin Honey Hemp Conditioner
For this part, I just undid my hair section by section, added a generous amount of conditioner, and put the 4 twists per section back in. I re-covered the hair with a plastic cap and let it sit for an hour or more. After I was sure my hair had soaked up all of that goodness, I rinsed with the twists still in Can I just say that I have been using the Tresemme for about 6 months and really like it! It is cheap and does a good job. However, once my shampoo and conditioner are gone, I will switch to V05 conditioners for my pre-poo. I will be returning back to grad school this fall and will be on a tight budget. The V05 are cheap and they do an excellent job as well.

Style: Products-Oyin Juices & Berries (J&B), Oyin Hair Dew (HD), Oyin Burnt Sugar Pomade (BSP)
To style my hair, I undid the twists in a section and combed through it again. Can I just say that my hair was so soft and moisturized after the previous process! I love my Honey Hemp, but I have to give it up this year due to my budget cuts...but I will always revisit this conditioner!!!!!!! Anywhoo, back to styling! So after the section was undone and combed through, I sprayed with the J&B, then added about a nickel sized amount of hair dew, and about a dime size amount of BSP to the section. To twist, I put about 6-8 twists in. I repeated this process for each section.

THE END RESULTS.....




So it's evident that I need an actual camera....don't judge the cell phone pic! But this is a somewhat decent view of the definition I got for my twist out using the above products!!!! I love it! Next week, I think I will be using.....ah, well, I haven't decided yet!!!!!! Peace

5/6/13
So I wanted to update you all on what my hair looked like the next day. All I did was re-twist with large twist the night before, undid them in the morning and fluffed. No product used....Oh, wait I lied! I did spritz my hair with Crème of Nature Argan Oil Gloss and Shine mist.

Not bad aye! Not sure I will do a twist out in this capacity again with my Oyin. I like it better for my smaller twists that I wear for 2-3 weeks. The BSP is great for setting your edges for a puff or ponytail but when twisting for a twist out, I think it is a bit to heavy. For my hair anyway! I will still always purchase this because it's great for my regular twists!!!!

Peace