Max Hydration Method Part 1

Apparently, I have been doing alot so my posts tend to be long. Since I would rather not bore you to tears with my long posts. I split them up so the information is easily absorbed. 

How To Moisturize Box Braids

Hola! Finally, a hair post! LOL. Yes, long overdue. I have actually had this queued up for a few weeks, but wanted to get some other information out to you.


First things first.

If your hair is permed straight or if your hair was in it's most natural state when you had your hair braided, then this method is for you. (stretched natural hair through the banding method is fine as well)

*** Do not use this method if you pressed your hair before you braided it or you braided it on an old press. Adding moisture directly to hair may cause frizzing and that is not hot ***

Here are the steps I use:

1. Spray Leave-in Conditioner directly on hair & gently spread leave in to the tips of box braids
2. Use a sealant oil and apply to braids from root to tip. ( sealant oils I generally use: jojoba oil, sweet almond oil or coconut oil)
3. Clip any frayed ends sticking out of braids
4. Completely cover braids with satin wrap overnight or after moisturizing to minimize frays.

*** In the event you did press your hair, you can moisturize your scalp by spritzing scalp lightly with the Liquid agent and then use the sealant oil that works best for you ***

I have low porosity hair, so I get a lot of build-up on my scalp, but I would rather have moisturized hair that do not break while I wear my box braided style than to have hair coming out in the wads (due to breakage and not normal shedding) when it's time for me to remove the braids. To clean your scalp, use a wet paper towel to wipe away build-up. You would want to do this a few hours after you moisturize your hair to allow for any additional residue to make it to your scalp. This will be done to reduce cleaning your scalp repeatedly during the moisturizing process.

A. Black Spray Bottle - 1/4 part vegetable glycerine, 3.4 water/ few drops of essential oil (rosemary is today;s choice)

B. Wild Growth Hair Oil - use for hair growth (not necessary part of moisturizing process, but what I also used this time around as well)

C. Black Castor Oil - or any carrier oil that moisturizes your natural hair well (I used the castor oil since I have braids.)

My hair/scalp after my moisturizing process. The base of the braids are still in tact and this was after 4 weeks of moisturizing every few days. These braids are out now, but the moisturizing definitely helped especially since I didn't wash the yaki hair before I used it and because the humidity was extremely low with the change of warm to cold weather.

Feel free to leave any questions or messages below. Thanks much! Muah & Ciao!

Guest Post - LaLa Speakx of BeYoutiful Photoshoot!

As promised, here are the photos selected from the recent Curly Girl BeYoutiful Photoshoot. You may have seen the selfy-pics I posted in a past post. Here is the official flyer in addition to a few words from LaLa of LaLa Speakz and the organizer of this shoot.

I'm LaLa of LaLa Speakx and I wanted to share with you a neat idea we did in the DC area that has now spread to Atlanta and New York.

 

The idea originated with me wanting to show my three daughters that even though it doesn't seem like mainstream media might support our natural curls.. we don't have to wait on them to do it. So I decided to get a group of natural ladies together, a photographer donated their time (she's also natural) and do a photo shoot, celebrating in a bold way, our natural hair and its original beauty.

Our goal is not to only celebrate our natural hair, but to also pass that love for it to the generations to come!

Hope you enjoy!

 

 

Blue Roze Beauty Product Review

I created this look with the use of Blue Roze Beauty Products and the results were nice!

 These samples were a total of $10.00 (great price!) and then S&H, so less than $20 in all. They can be purcahsed at www.bluerozebeauty.com

 

From the attached pic, you can tell that I was able to slick my edges down and the curls lasted for about 5 days without recurling them. All i did was wear my bonnet at night and in the am, I fluffed the curls and wet a brush and slicked the edges down again.

 

Read on for more details

From Bra-Strap Length (when straightened) to Mohawk - Find out why!

 Hey all, everyone has been asking, so why'd you cut your hair? Others are upset I did. (wait until my mom sees it, lol n smh) But honestly, I cut my hair for me and I love it!

Eco-Styler Gel Review Pros/Cons

I tried it again...still don't like it. People still paid me compliments, but I just don't like how it feels or looks actually. Everyone has a preference. My preference is for nice bouncy SOFT curls. whether the curls are tight or more loose, SOFT is always a plus...walking around looking like I fried my hair with yesterday's grease is for the BIRDS!

Natural Tresses

How Does the Weather Affect Hair?

 How does Weather Affect Hair? We all look at the weather to make decisions about the clothing we will wear as well as to determine how to wear our hair (ladies and men with hair) For instance, if it’s rainy out and you want to wear gel in your hair, you should probably have an umbrella to cover your hair so that the gel does not become more liquefied and drip down your forehead or not use gel at all…or maybe you may wear your hair in a ponytail to avoid frizz from the rainy weather. However, we check the weather and all seems well enough to wear our hair out, but before noon our tresses look like a puffy stress ball. That once curly fro you left home with now resembles tumbleweed.

THAT IS A NO GO!

So, I did some research because I know that there must be a way to use the weather to determine how to style my hair. And it was a success! Well, in theory it’s a success. I found that the Dew Point (which measures the amount of humidity in the air at that moment) is the best way to determine how to style one’s hair. Let’s say the dew point is 50 or below (dry weather)…it is best to style hair in a protective style (ie. Bun, braided updos/other braided styles, twists pinup, flat twist to name a few)

If the dew point is 50-60, you may be able to wear a pressed style and it will remain nice and fresh (for you transitioners and naturalistas that may want to wear the straight look) Curly Fros are also perfect in this weather (refrain from wash n go’s as much as possible, but if you do it, it should be done at or around this dew point).

If the dew point is 60-70 (can be very humid), a curly fro of any sort would work well. Keep in mind though that if the temperature is hot, you may not want to have a muggy fro. (muggy Fro = fro with old curls or old twist outs that may be full of product) Also, wash and go’s for hair type 4a-4c may be a no-go as well (due to curls getting tighter due to humidity and may lead to detangling issues) or hair that has high porosity or low porosity.

Start with well defined twist outs in the morning...

By noon, twists are slowly looking undefined. Hmmm?

Keep in mind that new air can cycle in and the dew point may change throughout the day. So while your flowing curls may bounce past noon, perhaps later in the afternoon/ early evening, it may not be so bouncy and your curls may drop. While you are indoors, your curls are fine, but to help with retention of hair growth, I would suggest checking the Dew Point before you leave your office for the day, or check your phone on the way out. If the dew point is below 50 or above 70, use a ponytail to pull hair up and pin curls loosely around the base of the pony tail to keep your curls secure and allow them to last longer throughout the work week. The 5 minutes you spend on doing this definitely beats the 30-60mins (if not longer) to re-curl your hair before bed. IJS !!!

TWA’s this portion is for you! Yes, I get it, you got a teeny weeny afro and may not be able to pull your hair up into a ponytail if the dew point takes a turn for the worse. HOWEVER, there are ways around it! Try wearing a beanie after your leave the office with a little hair sticking out on the very top OR twist your TWA into a few flat twist and secure with pins for a quick sleek style.

Got locks?! Don’t ruin your beautifully released curls on the first day due to a low or high Dew Point. Pin your hair up, or pull it into a loose ponytail and secure the ends as much as possible with pins.

Be sure to follow me @lofanaturalista for more tips on how to quickly secure/protect hair from disastrous weather.

MuAh & CiAo!

The Good, the Bad and the Glycerin (Part 2)

The Good, the Bad and the Glycerin (Part 2)

As promised, here is part two of Glycerin. I have been searching for negative attributes to having glycerin in your hair and skin products…I was unable to find any. BUT that is a good thing! Glycerin in products may be seen in the Ingredients list as:

glycerol or glycerine

How many of you remember Paula’s choice…the link with the ingredients search? How about glycerin scored as BEST! That’s an awesome score for a product. Read more...

The Good, the Bad and the Glycerin

The Good, the Bad and the Glycerin! As you may already know, vegetable glycerin is odorless, colorless and is sweet to the taste. It dissolves in water and alcohol and it makes hair and skin feel soft and moisturized with its smooth and creamy feeling texture. This is why many hair and skin products use glycerin.

Raise your hands if you use glycerin. Glycerin is probably the most touch and go product for natural hair. Whether you are using it to combat frizz, create the look of smooth hair or to moisturize, you can achieve this with Vegetable Glycerin. Read more to learn about the PROS & CONS of Vegetable Glycerin and how you can use this product.

Reading Your Product Labels

Reading your Labels

How do you determine if a product is best for you and if the ingredients are safe for your hair? Well, with the use of a hair oil chart and a few other tools, plus trial and error, you will soon learn more about your hair including what oils and styling manipulation is best in order to preserve the health and length of your hair. Read your Product Labels.

This is my favorite products ATM – Shea Moisture’s Curl Enhancing Smoothie. Learn how to check the label of products by following this example.

Steam Treatment

Yesterday was such a very busy day for me. I had a hair appointment where I styled someone's hair in Marley twists, had to deal with car issues and finally do my hair. I was happy I was recently given a hair steamer which doubles as a face steamer to help moisturize my hair.

I happily set it up and used this opportunity to trim my hair. This is what I did.

Natural Hair Event

Recently, I launched the Black History Month Contest 

in honor of Martin Luther King Jr. and Nelson Mandela.

There is an amazing package given to the winner! See previous blog post.

Entry is free and I am excited about what we can all learn this month about the history of black hair and black hair products. It's not too late to begin doing your research and building a timeline. Create your very own timeline that depicts the History of Black Hair. It doesn't have to be perfect, but the more informative, the more points earned towards winning this awesome prize. Read more for details on how to enter.

Winter Regimen

Have dry damaged hair? Is the winter giving your hair the blues? I made a video last night on Winter Regimen. It’s simple and easy to do. Here are the results. Click at the end of this post for the link to the video plus other tips on how to find the right oils/moisturizer to use on your tresses.

This is how I styled my twists. Very simple and yet my hair remains protected from the harsh winter cold.

Happy Birthday to Me!

Finally, I'm able to make the final post about my Birthday weekend. However, before i get to that...In lieu of Martin Luther King Jr's birthday, I just want to pause and reflect on him and announce that there will be a Black History Month contest in honor of Mr. King. There will be more information in future posts which will include details for the contest as well as the prize. This is going to be great!

Meanwhile, I enjoyed my birthday celebrations  and I am so happy that my friends were there to support me me. Every time I think of it, I smile. I think I'm partied out until my 40th birthday or something, if God spares my life. I was so excited, I didn't take a whole bunch of pictures, but I have a few to share. See how more on my birthday party hairstyle.

Marley Braids

I recently styled my friend's hair in Marley Braids.

She wanted to take out the old ones I did for her a few months ago and get a fresh head of hair in, so I hooked her up. Her coworker and an amazing blogger, Chastity wanted to get her mane done as well and I did hers too. Both ladies look gorgeous in their Marley Twists! Yes, I do Marley braids. if you would like to get them done and live in the DMV area, email me at niaimbue@gmail.com for pricing and details.

Tips to maintaining your freshly braided hair:

1. Be certain to wrap hair at night after securing into a loose ponytail. If your hair is in thick braids, that's okay. Simply use a scarf to secure the braids into a ponytail and put a satin wrap over the full head of braids.

 2. Oil the hair and scalp (Don't over oil your scalp) This is only necessary for sheen and shine to hair and scalp and to help in preventing dry flakes on the scalp (the weather being dry could lead to cracking and breaking of the scalp.)

 3. Avoid too much Hand in hair from yourself and others. People do enjoy touching and playing in your hair especially when it looks nice, but sometimes people are not gentle and may mess up your freshly styled do. So be cautious when allowing people to touch your hair.

4. Apply Mr. Hicks or the edge control of your choice to the Marley braids at the hairline all around your head. It gives a clean finish. If the edge control flakes, use a little touch of water or grease (Nature's Best or Twist and Loc by Jane Carter Solutions and wipe it in the direction of the braid) Sometimes if you use too much edge control, it may flake.

If you have done Marley Braids, share your pics with me and I'll post on my 

blog's IG @lofanaturalista

 MuAh & CiAo!

Breast Cancer Dedication - Funky Wrap Friday

In dedication of breast cancer month and specifically one of my clients, I wanted to remind everyone that even after Breast Cancer month is over, women still suffer with this disease and many other forms of cancer. In honor of that, I want this Friday to be Funky Wrap Friday. My client wraps her head in these pretty wraps because when she receives her treatment she loses her hair in clumps. This is a natural occurrence however ...and usually patients will wrap their hair, wear wigs or even cut all their hair off.

Quick tip:
Women, check your breasts every 3 months. Attached is a link to the proper way to check your breasts.

http://www.nationalbreastcancer.org/breast-self-exam

Your health is important. I checked my breasts two weeks ago and all is well. For those of you will lumpy breasts, like me, learn your body so you can determine if there are any changes. Of course you can also wrap your hair if you are looking for a new way to style any type of hair!

Join me tomorrow for Funky Wrap Friday! Follow me at @livlyhood to see pics of my wrap hairstyle. I'm looking forward to seeing your pics. Tag your pics  #funkywrapfriday.

UPDATE

Here are my wrapped pics!

 

Hair Essentials - Hair Length test

I finally had the opportunity to press my hair out so I could do a quick length check. Excited about styling my hair in a pressed curly mane for the Our Natural is Beautiful Hair event this coming Sunday. Here are the before pictures in 2012:

March 2012

Oct 2012



Here are the current pics:

October 2013

Hair Essentials - Natural Hair Care Regimen

Good morning! I'm in a really great mood today, even though I was unable to workout this morning because I went to bed pretty late, BUT that's not what I'm here for. I'm here to talk about my natural hair care regimen. This is exciting because I have made past posts about natural hair updos, braided styles and protective styling, but I have not done a reflection post on what has been working. So here goes:


1. The onion wash (used only twice) & rosemary inclusion in every other wash has proven to be beneficial in hair growth (my hair does not feel stagnated at the same length) FINALLY!

2. I have found that I am a Wen girl! The Wen conditioning cleanser works well in helping my hair feel moisturized and lush. THE BIG BUT is the cost of the product and having to find a replacement for it when I'm finished with my second kit :-( very sad news, but I am up for the challenge and I'm glad you will be with me as I explore finding a cost efficient product for cleansing my mane

3. Trims, cuts, etc. I found that every 6-8 wks I trim my hair UNLESS (and this is important) my ends seem healthy. I put an alarm in my phone that reminded me that it was time to trim my hair about a week or two ago, but my hair was fine and didn't need to be trimmed overall.

Hint: I DO cut split ends and fairy knots as I see them, I DO NOT WAIT until trim/cut day

4. Twists has proven to be a very successful way to keep my hair moisturized and even though I may have HIH moments by myself or others, this protective style has been proven helpful in avoiding fairy knots. So winning!

5. I do deep condition my hair every other wash. There were a couple times where I went 2 wks before washing my hair, but I still kept up with the every other deep conditioning treatment during the wash. WHAT DID I USE TO DEEP CONDITION? The Wen re-plenish moisturizing conditioner...this product will also need to be replaced by a cost efficient product. So stay tune for that as well.

6. My winter regimen and summer regimen were pretty identical. I did oil my hair more in the winter I found and needed less JCO in the summer. I also used coconut oil in my roots and over the months this has proven to be helpful in keeping my hair shiny, but I still am staying away from using it as a sealant. JCO works for me, so no need to switch it up. I use Coconut Oil as I would grease (Current grease I use is Nature's Best and can be found at Yes! Organic Market)

7. I found an AMAZING moisturizer for my 3c-4b natural hair. Leave my hair texture alone! My hair has different personalities. But be that as it may, the Shea Moisture Curl Enhancing Smoothie is a dream come true! I have used the Curly Cream too, but that leaves a more sticky like residue and doesn't work as well in maintaining the moisture in my hair. Shea Moisture can be found in Target, FYI. They have soooo many products, but as I am not really a product junkie, I haven't tried everything, nor do I intend to, lol. I just use what works. I only change products if it's to expensive to maintain or if it doesn't work or stops working. Keep it simple, you know.

8. Mr. Hicks for slicking them edges and not hardening my hair comes in as a winner for edge control! I love this product. After applying, just put a scarf to hold hair in place and all fuzzies will be laid to rest. Amen! lol

So, here I am with at least an inch of RETAINED growth, because even though my hair grows ever so slightly, it's RETAINING the growth that has become an issue. I think I have passed the point to where my hair usually tapers off and I'm enjoying being beyond that point. Time to continue cracking that ceiling and aim for the heavens. Do you have any other "must have' products? Tell me what works well in your hair (store bought product, preferably) that is cost efficient and has a lot of BANG for it's BUCK. I'd love to hear about it.I really enjoy my natural and I hope you do too!

Our Natural is Beautiful! MuAh & CiAo! Follow me at @livlyhood on twitter and IG.
 

Hair Essentials - Two strand braids

WaNtEd TO do SoMeThInG different with my hair for my first day of work on the NEW JOB! So, I did two-strand braids and I'm just gonna rock this style for the rest of the week. I've been monitoring how the products have been affecting my type 4A hair. Seems like the Hair Mayonnaise dries my hair out, but I'm uncertain if it is the Leave-In Conditioner or not...I'll have to use them seperately and see what happens.

check these out. 

These last two pics are of two two-strand braids that I refer to as a the nicer version of slave braids. Hey, to each his own right. BUT, these styles are pretty simple and are both protective styles.