November 2016

Saturday, November 26, 2016

Black Friday Aftermath 2016

Hey, beautiful people! Looking at my Black Friday purchases, I didn’t do half as much damage as I have in years past, and my purchases were more focused this year. I think the further I get into my healthy hair journey, the less of a product junkie I become (though I still have some product junkie in me):

Oyin Handmade (saved $27.30 / 30%) – total $63.67

- Hair Dew (1 Liter)
- 2 Free Hair Samples
- Whipped Shea Butter Rich Almond Scent (for body)
- After Bath Body Oil in Rich Almond Scent (for body)
- Black Nerds Unite T-shirt

Naturalsis72 (saved $23.80 / 20% + free shipping) – total $65.20
- 2 Satin Lined Hats
- 2 Satin Scrunchies
- 1 Satin Scarf Hood

Curlmart (saved $79.58 / 25% + 15%) – total $174.87
- As I Am Coil Defining Jelly (8 oz.)
- As I Am Curling Jelly Coil and Curl Definer (8 oz.)
- As I Am Leave-In Conditioner (8 oz.)
- Camille Rose Naturals Aloe Whipped Butter Gel (8 oz.)
- Camille Rose Naturals Cocoa Nibs & Honey Ultimate Growth Serum (8 oz.)
- Camille Rose Naturals Coconut Water Penetrating Hair Treatment (8 oz.)
- Camille Rose Naturals Curl Maker Marshmallow and Agave Leaf Extract (12 oz.)
- Camille Rose Naturals Moroccan Pear Conditioning Custard (12 oz.)
- Camille Rose Naturals Sweet Ginger Cleansing Rinse (12 oz.)
- Carol's Daughter Black Vanilla Sulfate-Free Shampoo (12 oz.)
- Curl Junkie Curl Assurance Smoothing Lotion (12 oz.)
- EDEN BodyWorks Coconut Shea Curl Defining Creme (16 oz.)
- Mielle Organics Babassu Oil & Mint Deep Conditioner (8 oz.)

- Mielle Organics Moisturizing Avocado Hair Milk (8 oz.)

- SheaMoisture Superfruit Complex 10-In-1 Renewal System Hair Masque (12 oz.)

- Soultanicals Mango Dip Detangling Slip (8 oz.)

- The Original Curly Tee Towel - Xtra Long

- Free Sample - Ouidad Moisture Lock Leave-in Conditioner Packette (0.6 oz.)

- Free Sample - Ouidad Curl Quencher Moisturizing Styling Gel Packette (0.6 oz.)

- Free Sample - Curly Hair Solutions Curl Keeper Original Packette (1 oz.)

Total Spent - $303.74

As I Am , black friday , camille rose , carol's daughter , Curl Junkie , low porosity , mielle organics , oyin , product junkie , shea moisture , soultanicals

Thursday, November 24, 2016

Silk Dreams Battle of the Butters (The Braiding Files #9)

Hey, beautiful people! Happy Thanksgiving! This post is long overdue, so I decided to type while I am waiting for all the things in the oven to finish cooking, may daughter is taking a nap and my hubby is watching football.

As you already know, Silk Dreams Haircare is one of my favorite brands. So, when they had a sale a while ago, I picked up three of the moisturizing butters: the Who’s That Curl? Buttersilk Balm; the Satin Smooth Hair Cream; and the Almond Buttercream. There is also a Mocha Silk Bling Butter, but I prefer a butter that has water as the first moisturizer and it has mango butter as the first ingredient, followed by a series of other butters and oils.

I have been using all three butters for a few months to see how my hair reacts each one. Surprisingly, the ingredients are very different, but my hair reacts similarly to two of the butters and not that much different for the third. I wanted to make sure that they remained similar long term. They did not.

Price: All 3 are $12 for 4 oz., which seems a little pricey, but a little goes a long way. Thus, these butters end up lasting as long as some cheaper products, if not longer.

Ingredients: All 3 have great, quality ingredients. Who’s The Curl and Almond Buttercream both have water as the first ingredient, which is likely why they work better for my hair. Satin Smooth has aloe vera juice as the first ingredient, but is the better butter for people who do not like glycerin. It is the only one without any. Who’s That Curl has glycerin as the third ingredient, and Almond Buttercream has it as the 9^th. Who’s That Curl is the only one with BTMS, and silk amino acids (two of my hair loves). Almond Buttercream has hydrolyzed silk protein, but it is way down on the ingredient list.

Scent: All 3 have a nice scent. I have yet to find a bad smelling Silk Dreams Haircare product. The Almond Buttercream has my favorite of the 3 scents though.

Consistency: Who’s That Curl is a whipped butter. It reminds me a lot of Embrace The Natural You’s Twist Truffle Whip. Almond Buttercream is an oily cream (you have to shake it on occasion to mix it up). Satin Smooth is a gel, oil cream consistency that is hard to describe (you have to vigorously shake this one to keep it together).

Verdict: It is a close call between Almond Buttercream and Who’s That Curl as to which one is my favorite. If I had to go by which one I am using up the fastest, it would be the Almond Buttercream, but I still really love the Who’s That Curl. The Satin Smooth is nice, but it left my hair a little dry/hard after a few hours.