Category: Natural Hair Care

Thoughts/opinions, tips and tricks, and occasional product reviews (maybe ;)

Current Hair Care Routine

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My hair isn’t very porous, thus I leave nothing to chance. Sooooo… Here’s my current routine:

  • Co-wash every 3 days
    • I section and wash my hair with a co-wash cleanser such as Shea Moisture’s Co-wash Conditioner Cleanser or Eden’s All Natural CoWash. I also use conditioners such as Shea Moisture’s Curl & Shine Conditioner or Alaffia’s Everday Shea Moisturizing or Coconut Super Hydrating Conditioners.
    • After the wash I will deep condition if this is my second co-wash for the week see below in the “Shampoo” Wash section for more info about deep conditioning).
    • I follow with Shea Moisture’s Yucca & Baobab Thickening Growth Milk (hair) and olive and coconut oils (scalp and a little on hair)
    • Finally, I use Numa’s Honeysuckle Kiss Leave-in Conditioner
    • I usually twist-(out) using Camille Rose’s Almond Jai Twisting Butter (just a little for hold) or Numa’s Sweet Honey Loc & Define Pomade
  • “Shampoo” Wash every 2 weeks or when necessary
    • Pre-poo with olive and coconut oils (a lot on scalp and hair) and a conditioner such as Shea Moisture’s Curl & Shine Conditioner or Alaffia’s Everday Shea Moisturizing or Coconut Super Hydrating Conditioners. After I apply the oils and conditioner I put on a conditioning cap and sit under a cap dryer for 20-30 minutes.
    • I rinse my hair and wash with a natural/organic ingredient (mostly) shampoo. Shea Moisture and Alaffia are the brands I’m currently using. I also have a little bit of Taliah Waajid Clean and Curly Shampoo (gifted by a friend) left.
    • Depending upon the type of deep conditioning I plan on using, I may follow the shampoo with a standard conditioner.
    • A deep condition is completed after my wash. I currently use Shea Moisture’s Deep Treatment or Anti-Breakage (I use a standard conditioner after my shampoo if I use this as a deep conditioner) Masques. I apply the product and sit under my cap dryer for another 20-30 minutes
    • After I rinse the deep conditioner, I massage my scalp with olive and coconut oils (I rub a small amount of the oils on my hair).
    • I seal everything in with  Numa’s Honeysuckle Kiss Leave-in Conditioner and style (see twist-(out) above).
  • Other things I believe help …
    • A good multivitamin. I take food/plant based vitamins because other vitamins, such as Centrum, make me nauseous 🙁 Currently I take Whole Foods‘ Women’s Food Based Multi
    • I also try to properly manage stress and exercise.

The Good Hair Shop

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I did it! I finally found the perfect salon and stylist to fit my hair care needs. I really love The Good Hair Shop and the stylist/owner Mrs. Kiyomi Rollins. She has wonderful styling products that are handmade as well. If you live in Atlanta (or visit) or if you want to try new wonderful hair care products visit the shop online for appointments or to create your order at: http://www.thegoodhairshop.com/

Hair Product Sales Alert

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I try to use organic products on my hair and in my search this weekend I came across a couple of sales. I’ll try to post these in a more timely manner, but I just realized I could post things like this 😉

Sally Beauty Supply BOGO FREE! While they only have a small section of natural hair products that are truly “organic”, I still shop there when it’s deals like this. For example, I got the Shea Moisture Curl Enhancing Smoothie and since I was out of cheap “pre-poo” conditioner, I grabbed a bottle of the BioTerra Ultra-Moisturizing Conditioner (non-organic, but it’s for “pre-poo”-ing) This sale doesn’t end until tomorrow, 2/16. You must have the following code (555421) on this flyer/email:

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For all of my Shea Moisture fans Walgreen’s has these products BOGO 50% off (no coupon required), unfortunately this ends today 🙁

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Happy shopping 🙂 !

Who told you going natural was easy AND inexpensive!

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Thinking back to my decision in March of 2012, I’ve realized I was an idiot! Just kidding 😉 Seriously, I assumed that going natural would be inexpensive, especially since I didn’t have to give up $50+ every 6-8 weeks (depending upon the season) for a relaxer retouch. I must say, it hasn’t been quite that expensive, but all of the product sampling has tired me out 😉

Now, as for the “easy” part… Well, I hoped it would be easy. All I had to do was keep getting my hair straightened/flat ironed during the winter and wear my hair curly during the summer (lots of heat just like a relaxer without the chemical) and everything would be okay right? WRONG! Who knew that continuously applying direct heat would ruin my curl pattern slightly, especially on the ends? Yeah, everyone’s experience with “direct heat” is different, but it definitely didn’t work in my favor. So, eight months later and two rounds of braids, I can finally see some natural curling, but I know I have a long way to go.

So, this is what I’ve learned so far:

  1. Everyone’s hair is different. What works for someone else probably won’t work for me.
  2. Read product labels carefully! I prefer the ingredients in products that I use to be primarily organic as to not damage my hair (chemical free, no relaxer, remember). When in doubt, shop Whole Foods or another grocer who specializes in organic goods (doesn’t mean you have to purchase from there, but at least you know the product doesn’t contain any harmful chemicals).
  3. 3b, 3c, 4a, 25z… None of that hair coding stuff fully classifies my hair (I think I’m between a 3c and 4a; rephrase – I was told I was between a 3c and 4a).
  4. Direct heat is not my hair’s friend. The two just didn’t get along, and probably never will. In fact, if I want straight hair, I’m buying a wig.
  5. Know your primary reason for going natural. I wanted to wear my hair curly. If I wanted to wear permanently straight hair, I would’ve kept my hair relaxed.
  6. through 10. Did I mention everyone’s hair is different?

That reminds me. Don’t expect a lot of product reviews of hair products on this blog. The product either works really well, or it doesn’t work at all (yep, no grey area).

That being said, it’s late, and I have to go to work tomorrow. Hope you found my first post interesting enough to return and read more. This concludes my first post. Hello world!