Saturday, January 25, 2014
The Healthy Hair Product Toolbox
Hey, HHJs! For those
just starting off on their natural hair journey, I thought it might be helpful
to list some of the key items needed for your healthy hair product toolbox. To get more details on specific products that
I use in each category, visit my Favorite Products page or my Amazon store. In full disclaimer, Amazon does pay me a
commission on items purchased from my Amazon store.
- Shampoo or Cleanser - You need something that will bind to oil, dirt and product buildup to remove it from your hair. If you are low porosity, like me, then simply conditioner washing will not always be enough. You need something with cleansing agents in it. I've been working on a cleansing agent post for about a month now, so it should be up soon.
- Rinse Out / Instant Conditioner - The purpose of a rinse out conditioner is to balance ph levels and coat the hair cuticles to make it easier to detangle the hair. In other words, while shampoo binds to oil and dirt, conditioner binds to hair (adsorbs to hair).
- Deep Conditioner - These are particularly important if your hair is damaged, needs an intense moisture boost, or needs a protein boost. Deep conditioners are left on the hair for awhile to give them time to penetrate the hair. There are three types of deep conditioners (moisturizing, protein and hybrids). I've already covered protein conditioners in a prior post. Because I have low porosity and fine strands, I personally prefer hybrids containing light proteins.
- Leave-in Conditioner - These are lighter conditioners that are mild enough that they can be left on the hair long term. Some instant conditioners can double as leave-ins, but some have ingredients that can irritate the scalp with time.
- Moisturizer - I already have a post on finding a great moisturizer. Water is the best moisturizer, so any “moisturizing” product should have water as the first or second ingredient. Some leave-in conditioners can double as moisturizers.
- Sealant - This would be an oil or butter based product. I don’t usually use a straight oil or butter to seal water into my hair as it is less necessary for low porosity ladies. Instead, I use a cream or lotion, which is a mixture of water and oil/butter held together by an emulsifier like BTMS.
What is in
your toolbox?
Saturday, January 18, 2014
Product Review: She Scent It Riche Moisture Mask (The Deep Conditioner Files #2)
Price: $12.50 for 9 oz.
Promise: From the website - "This creamy conditioner nourishes hair that is dry and frizzy. A rich formula loaded with vitamins A, D, E lecithin and amino acids (from Avocados). A special blend of conditioning agents, moisturizers and oils work to soften, detangle and add shine to hair. Sapote oil nourishes the scalp, combats dryness & helps retain moisture. Leaves hair silky soft and healthy."
Scent: Like strong floral perfume
Consistency: Very thin and light. While it is white in color, it is translucent because of how thin it is.
Consistency: Very thin and light. While it is white in color, it is translucent because of how thin it is.
Results: I first tried to use this as a deep conditioner under a heat cap. Unfortunately, I think that after almost a decade of use, my heat cap finally died. It stopped giving off heat during my deep conditioning session. Even
without heat, this conditioner had some slip when I rinsed it out and some
moisture. I was even able to detangle with it a little. Next, I tried it a second time as a deep conditioner overnight. Again, it gave my hair some moisture. Overall, if you don't mind the scent, this is an ok deep conditioner. It provides moisture and slip, though I have gotten better moisture from other deep conditioners.
Love it, Like it or Leave It: Leave it. I am sensitive to strong fragrances, and this one was too much for me.
Wednesday, January 15, 2014
Natural Hairstyling Class
Hey, HHJs!! One of the biggest struggles for me has been figuring out new styles for my hair. I've been watching a lot of YouTube videos and reading a lot of blogs. But I finally decided to take it a step further. I attended a Natural Hairstyling class at Everette's Natural Beauty School with an area Meetup group for naturals. In the class, I learned how to perfect my technique for doing twists and I learned how to do comb twists, among other things. I even got a certificate at the end. It was a great experience!
If you too are looking for ideas on how to style your hair and Youtube isn't enough, look to see if there is a natural hair beauty school in your area that holds classes. In the alternative, maybe there is someone on Craiglist willing to teach you techniques for a small fee.
Even after attending the class, I'm always on the hunt for new style inspiration. What new styles are you trying on your natural hair journey?
HAPPY STYLING!
If you too are looking for ideas on how to style your hair and Youtube isn't enough, look to see if there is a natural hair beauty school in your area that holds classes. In the alternative, maybe there is someone on Craiglist willing to teach you techniques for a small fee.
Even after attending the class, I'm always on the hunt for new style inspiration. What new styles are you trying on your natural hair journey?
HAPPY STYLING!
Saturday, January 11, 2014
Product Review: Darcy's Botanicals Deep Conditioning Mask (The Deep Conditioner Files #1)
Hey, HHJs. One of my personal goals for 2014 is to have three, great go-to moisturizing deep conditioners. I'm getting an early start because of my Black Friday purchases. I currently have 11 moisturizing deep conditioners, so I am going to go through them 1-by-1 in my hunt. First up is Darcy's Botanicals Deep Conditioning Mask.
Price: $20
Price: $20
Promise: "Our Deep Conditioning Mask will nourish, protect, strengthen, moisturize, detangle, soften and promote healthy hair growth! Can be used weekly or monthly to keep your natural coils looking radiant and beautiful."
Consistency: It
is thick and reminds me of Bee Mine's Bee-u-ti-ful deep conditioner
Results: I first tried to use this alone on two occasions, and I think it was just too thick for my hair. My hair just did not feel moisturized at all. Then, I decided to tap into my inner mixologist. I mixed it with honey, avocado oil, and grapeseed oil to thin it out and boost the moisturizing benefits. This worked great. My hair felt moisturized and wonderful. However, I personally feel that I should not have to do that much mixing for a product that costs $20.
Love it, Like it or Leave It: Leave it. It has great ingredients, but I don't think I will be buying any more Darcy's Botanicals products because they seem to be a little too heavy for my low porosity, fine strands. I also missed the fact that this has hydrolyzed oat protein when I bought it, which is one of the proteins I try to avoid.
Saturday, January 4, 2014
2014 Personal Hair Goals
- Continue my no-buy until I get to 25 products or until Mother's Day
- Find 3 great moisturizing deep conditioners
- Determine a protein regimen (how much to use and when to use it)
- Determine a trimming regimen (how often and technique)
- Nail my techniques for airdrying when not doing a wash and go (I have perfecting my curlformer and banding technique as sub-goals)
- Take proper care of my hair so that it grows to bra-strap length by June (I'm currently below shoulder length, and I've had a long-term goal since 2013 of reaching waist-length by the end of 2015)
Here are my challenges:
- Use Up Your Stash 2014
- 2014 Deep Condition Challenge
- Nail Your Regimen 2014
- Setting to Success 2014
- Hide Your Hair 2014 / Wig Challenge 2014
- Waist Length Challenge 2015
What are your personal hair goals for 2014? What are you doing to accomplish them?
HAPPY NEW YEAR!!
Saturday, December 28, 2013
Flat Iron Attempt #1
As a follow-up to my last post on avoiding heat damage, I finally took the plunge
and flat ironed my hair. Here is what I
did.
- First I did an overnight deep conditioning treatment with moisturizing and protein deep conditioner. I mixed Darcy’s Botanicals Deep Conditioning Mask, Curl Junkie Repair Me!, honey, grapeseed oil, and avocado oil. My hair felt wonderful and strong when I rinsed it out.
- I cleansed my hair with co-wash (She Scent It Blueberry Co-wash), and then detangled with another moisturizing protein conditioner (Hairveda Acai Berry Phyto Conditioner).
- Then, I applied more protein as a leave-in (Aphogee Keratin & Green Tea Restructurizer) and heat protectant (Carol’s Daughter Chocolat Blow Drying Cream and Grapeseed Oil).
- I airdried for several hours so that my hair was not soaking wet, then blowdried on the medium setting using a modified version of the tension method. I first tried to use a comb attachment, but it was rough on my ends, so I immediately stopped.
- Finally, I flat ironed at 300 degrees with more heat protectant (IC Fantasia Heat Protectant spray in the pink bottle). Then I banded my flat ironed hair.
If I had it to do again, I would use Curlformers to
dry my hair first. Blowdrying was
unnecessary, took a lot of time, and didn’t get my hair that straight. However, I doubt I will be flat ironing my
hair that often. I did not get it that
straight because I used such a low setting, but I did not want to go any higher
and risk heat damage. At the end of the
day, if I really want a bone straight look, I can always wear a wig.
Thursday, December 26, 2013
Avoiding Heat Damage
Hey, HHJs! Since I
went natural, I have had a fear of heat damage.
As a result, I avoided heat straightening my hair altogether. However, this summer I figured that my fear
was silly and that I simply needed to get over it. It has taken me a good 6 months, but I am
finally straightening my hair.
As with anything else, I immediately started to research the
best tips to prevent heat damage. Here
is some of what I already knew from healthy hair journey and what I’ve learned:
- Moisturize and your hair before applying any heat. This may seem counterintuitive because water reverts straightened hair, but it is important to keep the hair moisturized because using heat will evaporate water from your cuticle. When too much moisture evaporates from the hair or if the moisture evaporates too quickly, it can cause the hair to become brittle and crack. Moisture also helps absorb and dissipate heat through the hair. Thus, a good moisturizing conditioner is important.
- Strengthen your hair before applying heat. Use protein to reinforce your hair strands. Heat damage comes from a loss of structural integrity to the hair strand, which is made up of protein.
- Make sure your hair is thoroughly clean before applying heat. You would not want to bake in any dirt that is sitting on your hair. Also, clean hair heats more slowly than dirty hair.
- Buy Reputable Heat Tools. It is good to be frugal, but don’t be so cheap that you burn all of your hair off in the process. Your flat iron should have a temperature gauge on it so that you can adjust it to the proper setting. Your blow dryer should have multiple settings, including low and cool.
- Use heat tools on the lowest setting possible. If your hair is unhealthy you should not be using heat; but, even if it is healthy, you have to be careful. Healthy hair normally burns at about 450 degrees, but damage and scorching can occur at lower temperatures. This risk is increased if you have fine strands. JC of The Natural Haven has an interesting article on what happens to the hair at various temperatures. Based on her article, the hair's structure begins to change at 320-347 degrees, well before burning.
- Minimize the amount of heat used. If possible, do not use a blow dryer and a flat iron. Rather, airdry first, then use a flat iron. Blow dryers “flash dry” the hair, which can make the hair dry, brittle and more prone to cracking. Doubling up on heat also increases the risk of heat damage. Also, limit the amount of passes that you do with the flat iron and try not to keep the flat iron on your hair for more than 3-4 seconds. I’m sure you’ve seen the Youtube video of the girl, who did not know this lesson (if not, here it is).
- Use heat protectant. Christina of The Mane Objective has an article with a good list of heat protectant ingredients. Beauty Brains also talks about what to look for in a heat protectant for blow drying vs. a heat protectant for flat ironing. For blow drying, look for glycerin and propylene glycol because they slow water evaporation, and hydrolyzed wheat protein polysiloxane copolymer (a protein-silicone hybrid) because it decreases the risk of cracking. For flat ironing, look for conditioners that can penetrate the hair strand, like cetrimonium chloride.
- Take Your Time. Thoroughly detangle beforehand, which will make straightening easier and it will ensure that you do not rip your strands if using a comb attachment. Make sure your hair is dry before using the flat iron so that you do not boil your strands from the inside.
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