Here Comes the Sun + Old Favorite[s] July 27, 2009

It’s towards the end of July,  Summer has hurriedly reached it’s halfway mark…and somehow…someway, I still find myself baffled each time I take down my twists after a wash+condition+style cycle.  I’d want to hearken this all to a ‘glutton for punishment’ mindset…me knowing & listening to the humidity forecast before applying my first styling product, yet still floored when ‘poof’ is the only scenario starring me in face.

Alas, this morning I took the final hint, and realized if first day hair comes out looking like five day old hair…it’s still alright.  The blazing sun/heat yesterday tore through my twists to dry them in air fashion, but…maybe a bit too well.  My strands were endlessly parched after taking down in the a.m., leaving me weary of adding any kind of butter/moisturizer/curl cream.

Finally getting down to the bare bones of my sample poo bar from Chagrin Valley.  My Tea Tree and Neem bar has lasted well over four washes…a plus considering the intial size of the bar and the scope of my hair. Washed with the bar this week, but also decided to use up the palm-ful of Oyin’s Honey Wash leftover from many moons ago.  LUV this stuff for softening & cleansing my hair the only way curly/coily hair should be cleansed…gently/nourishing.  All good stuff.

AOHR, the only conditioner left in sight after the past few weeks of using up the goods.  Detangled, smoothed on condish in sections…twisted, and DC’d for a couple hours while I exited to the laundromat.  Multitasking is the only way I know how to do Sundays, and thankfully my hair was treated to a much deserved DC after nixing on it last week.  Before rinsing, applied old fav ACV to my scalp a ( added Hairveda’s CoCosta Oil), massaged in the scalp…cold rinsed and dug deep to find my old bottle of KCKT.

Applied KCKT, under Donna Marie’s Lock & Twist Pudding.  After the twists were fully dry,  the ends were a bit dry/under-moisturized, sealed with Afroveda’s  Ginger Almond Twist Butter.  The ‘do’ this morning  was less moisturized than what I’d been used to after using the KCKT + Donna Marie Combo.  HUMIDITY!!

How does one argue with your hair… to lay right, suck in that moisture…but not too much! Stay low…avoid the frizz, play nice with the other coils.  I can’t…and as I type…my place has  suspicously reached Sauna like temperatures.  Here’s to whatever tomorrow will bring;-)!

 

Edit:  After perusing some old posts, I did notice the same problem after using  KCKT + the lock twist pudding.  A combo of excessive humdidty with these two probably…not a good thing?!  

Poo Bar June 22, 2009

Lately I’ve been on a quiet budget of sorts. Trying my best to conserve any extra $$ because, honestly it just seems like a really cool plan. To have some extra loot in the bank or under the mattress is always a nice comfort. As a result, I’ve been happily delving into my PJ stash, repurposing old goodies and trying out new ones that were on my ‘mean to but never got around to’ list.

So this week I scanned my PJ area, noticed a full jar of Lustrasilk’s Shea-Butter and Mango conditioner/styling crème and went to work. These days I just can’t seem to help myself with the pre-pooing…so I started within those lines using Suave’s Coconut conditioner. To that, I added a couple squirts of Hairveda’s CoCasta Shikakai Oil, twisted into large twists and added a bit more of the CoCasta to my scalp. Massaged the pre-poo, then left on for 5-10 minutes before rinsing. Nixed on the ACV this week as well as a co-wash and happily sampled a poo bar from the Chagrin Valley collection of soaps. My bar of choice was their Neem & Tea Tree body/shampoo bar, which I lathered onto my hair, then applied directly to my scalp. Plenty of lather with this bar, so I was easily able to work up the suds and feel as if my hair got a good cleanse. It’s surprisingly non-stripping, but even BETTER…moisturizing! My hair felt cleansed and fairly soft.

Ingredients:

Saponified oils of an elder flower, calendula, dandelion, and comfrey infused sunflower, neem, and rice bran blend, coconut, palm, castor bean, jojoba, palm kernel, and wheat germ; filtered rainwater; organic aloe vera; essential oils tea tree, lavender, thyme, and peppermint; vitamin E oil; and rosemary oil extract.

The Goods:

Enhanced with jojoba and wheat germ oils, this bar will soothe and moisturize your skin, and add body and vitality to your hair. The liquid oils have been infused with the anti-inflammatory botanicals of elder and calendula flowers, which have been used topically to heal rashes and to help soften and soothe dry, irritated skin and scalp. It leaves your skin and hair clean and soft.

The sample bar ran me a mere $2.60, and will thankfully last a good while. DC this week was the tried and true LustraSilk Shea Butter Cholesterol. To be honest I can’t figure out if its works best as a DC, curl crème or a leave in…?! While searching the label I found no answers, so just went ahead and twisted, detangled and worked my way into a conditioning cap for 45 minutes before my final rinse. Styling this week with old time fav KCKT under Donna Marie’s Lock & Twist Pudding. Twisted into larger twists this week to cut back on time…untwisted this morning to dry hair, but instantly began the battle against humidity. It’s been typically warm and humid some mornings over the past couple weeks, and my hair doubled in size as soon as I began to unravel each twist.

 

Alright, so bottom line…I’m choosing to embrace the added poof! This past Sunday was the official first day of Summer and I think it’s also time to change the expectation of my hair during the warmer months. Volume as an added bonus to curly/afro textured hair adds a great softer look, which if worked/pinned/styled right can look effortless/glam/wonderful!  So with no qualms over the added height of hair, I added a smidgen of KBB hair butter and let the rest be.

Back to Roots May 18, 2009

So this week I had focus and a clear goal in mind as far as my hair went.  Cleanse, cleanse cleanse! Because I’d been thrown off track with my ‘hair schedule,’ I had to steer myself in the right direction by removing all the product buildup my hair had accumulated from the slick-back do’s, pinups, and buns that required more gel than I ever like to use.  Thankfully I didn’t have any flareups around my hairline from using too much product, but instead the rest of my scalp felt a tad irritated from lack of proper cleansing. This week to start the process, I first focused on my scalp and worked my way down.

I was long out of bentonite clay, but knew that my scalp could really benefit from a treatment, so I headed over to Vitamin World to score a tub and while there picked up a bottle of Nature’s Gate conditioner (tea tree calming).  In the past, to mix a good batch of bentonite for proper cleaning/nourishing, I’d often mixed in ACV, coconut oil, hemp oil, vitamin E oil, honey & agave nectar…all of which I had lying around, but decided to experiment with some powders instead.   In a mixing bowl went a heaping mound of bentonite clay, marshmallow root powder, nettle powder and enough water to form a cake like batter.  The powders I’d purchased a while back at an Indian Store that supplies a wide variety of herbs.  For $3, I was able to snag about 45 grams of each…a price I still consider reasonable considering I didn’t pay shipping costs! 

Nettle Leaf:

Nettle Powder

*Nettle leaf has been used as a hair and scalp treatment for centuries, and again, those uses are being supported by research as well. Nettle leaf extract seems to promote hair regrowth and thicken hair, as well as reducing dandruff and scalp conditions when used as a rinse. The nettle leaf and root both have medicinal properties, but each is more effective against different complaints. Nettle leaf is used traditionally as a diuretic, and as a treatment for rheumatism and arthritis. In Germany, a standardized extract is sold for the treatment of inflammatory conditions and prostate diseases. Nettle leaf’s effectiveness against rheumatism and other inflammatory diseases is well documented, and borne out by chemical analysis of the plant.

 

Marshmallow Root:

 

Marshmallow Root

*This sweet mucilaginous (a.k.a. plant protein) rich herb has expectorant properties that strengthens the cell tissues and controls bacterial infections.  Marshmallow is  medicated, conditioning herb that provides an abundance of  ’slip’ which helps to nourish and detangle naturally curly, wavy & Afro type hair.

Safe for Skin!

*Boosts the skin’s immunity at cellular level helping to minimize skin inflammation as well as fighting any skin degeneration.

For added goodness, I topped off with about a tablespoon of Hemp Seed Oil, then applied the mix to freshly pre-pooed hair (used Suave Coconut Condish), dividing in sections as I went along to evenly distribute.   I guess the best way to describe the application process is to compare it to how you’d normally apply a regular relaxer.  I start at the scalp, massaging the mix in, then evenly coating each section of hair.  I do this for the entire head, smooth down any potential lumps from the clay mix, and sit with a conditioning cap for 45 minutes.

I began rinsing with lukewarm water to avoid drying out the scalp, then followed with Nature’s Gate Tea Tree Calming Conditioner to help rinse out any remaining residue.  You want to make sure the water runs clear and not murky to ensure you rid your scalp and hair of any clumps of clay.  After rinsing the mix out,  I DC’d with AOHR conditioner for yet another 45 minutes. I detangled, separated into sections by twisting, then cold-rinsed. And just to make sure the process wasn’t long enough, I did a final rinse with ACV, first applying directly to roots to rid any lingering residue, then applied to rest of hair. 

Afterwards, I honestly couldn’t wait to see how my hair turned out, so I raced to a mirror to inspect and noticed my hair was SUPER clean and shiny, and my scalp…felt amazingly fresh! Didn’t truly feel like experimenting with any new goodies this week, so I dipped into my Donna Marie Lock & Twist Pudding, over Alaffia’s  Virgin Coconut & Shea Hair Lotion as a leave-in.   To avoid over-moisturizing similar to last week, I opted for the Alaffia because it’s a penetrating conditioning leave-in that goes on light, sort of what I needed this week to give my scalp and hair a break from too much stuff. I twisted in record time again this week…clocked in at about an hour or so!! Managed to clip the roots to prevent the poof, air dried because I thankfully had time on my side this weekend, and sealed my ends this morning with Afroveda’s Hemp Butter before untwisting  to shiny, bouncy, CLEAN hair and scalp.  And because it’s just become habit and adds that extra ‘umpf,’ I smoothed some KBB hair creme before heading out the door.

 

*Neem info courtesy of  www.mountainroseherbs.com

*Marshmallow Root info courtesy of www.anitagrant.com

 

tiniest of disclaimers: please use judgement when using herbs for medicinal purposes, or consult with a doctor before using.  All recipes or procedures listed are not meant to treat any form of ailment.

Frizzness May 12, 2009

My laptop is playing nice again..even though I’ve still got fingers crossed! I dropped a but load of money to get it fixed so I’m just a tad nervous these days as I type…lol!

But I have to admit, it’s been frustrating, not only with my PC sickness but with my hair as well.  I went off course this past week, choosing to wash and style my hair on Friday as opposed to Sunday which threw a couple of things out of whack.  I had an event to look snazzy for and wanted the do to look just right…which it absolutely did! I pre-pooed with AOWC mixed with water, washed with Alaffia’s Neem Shampoo (added oils yet again), DC’d with AOHR, cold rinsed then styled with KCKT under Donna Marie’s Lock & Twist Pudding.  I’d started the whole process around…6:30′ish Thursday evening and finished by 12am.    I’d finished twisting by 9:30-10 and immediately began drying with my soft bonnet under the lowest setting.  Ironically, with all that drying time, my hair was STILL not dry by morning.

Yah…frustrating was the word of the week, waking up in the a.m. to damp twists knowing I had an event to attend that evening. So, frizz was sort of inevitable with damp twists…I did try my best not to manipulate it too much…after sealing each twist with Afroveda’s Hemp Butter I carefully let each go to do whatever.  Before leaving the house, I applied my trusty KBB hair cream for shine and ceased upon the ‘ol HIFS.

My hair did withstand the test of a normal work day, and I attended the event happy and confident in my hair….ehhhh, but I knew I’d be in for something lacking in the coming week.  The Process was a good one…but I was definitely hasty in applying product…a.k.a…I overapplied KCKT along with the Pudding.  The end result next day was over-moisturized strands that did not turn soft…instead turned a bit brittle and lacked my normal shine.

Today’s Tuesday and I’m nowhere near ready or willing to start down the lane of wash, style etc., which is unfortunate because what my hair needs right now is a good clarifying rinse ( I sorely miss my ACV), a good DC (under my heating cap) and styling minus the rush.  I’ve made the mistake of over-moisturizing before, and already know how to reduce frizz when drying hair so in essence I brought this on myself…lol! Monday was headband day…today was headband + pinup…

Wednesday, Thursday, Friday,…..Bun, Bun…BUN!

 

Upcoming Posts:

• *Anita Grant (longest story ever told)
• Hairveda
• Oyin Handmade
• Chagrin Valley Soaps
• Savor
• KBB
• Zaja Naturals
• Darcy’s Botanicals

(and a bit more that my PJ brain can’t recall at the moment, shame;-)!

The Process Saponified: Part Deux April 14, 2009

Here’s to another PJ filled week!  I had a goal in mind to restock on KCKT because I’d planned to style with Donna Marie’s Lock & Twist Pudding, but found it sold out in all the distributors near my workplace.  So I tiptoed to Whole Foods to peruse their lovely organic filled section of hair products, and what I found was good stuff!

Neem & Shea Scalp Recovery Shampoo

I pre-pooed this past week with a remainder of AOHR mixed with water before rinsing and cleansing my scalp with my latest find, Alaffia’s Neem & Shea Butter Scalp Recovery Shampoo.  I don’t know why I picked this up…but lately I’ve had an eye for things that say ‘recovery’…and could help address my scalp issues.  This one seemed to fit the bill, was affordable and met my check list as far as what I’m looking for in a shampoo.    Now, how did it work?  First, the target was my scalp so I dumped half a bottle of the poo in an applicator bottle and applied DIRECTLY to my scalp, then began massaging until I worked up a good lather.  I’d guess I used up about a palm full to get the job done…not bad! I remember in the past wasting up to half a shampoo bottle to cleanse my hair because my strands were greedy and soaked up everything.  The ingredients aren’t harsh enough to strip the hair, but effective enough to cleanse the scalp thoroughly.  The first two are an infusion of Neem Leaf and African Black Soap followed by a saponification of shea butter and virgin palm kernel.  Veggie glycerin, panthenol, essential oils and tea tree wrap up the remaining list.  

 

*Here’s some info on the amazing properties of Neem:

Neem is antibacterial, antiviral, antifungal, antiseptic, and antiparasitic. Because of these properties, it is widely deployed in many different toiletries such as soap, toothpaste, hair care products, and skin care products. It is used to treat a wide array of diseases, illnesses, and problems, and is considered a cure-all in India. The oil has moisturizing and regenerative properties, contains Vitamin E, and has essential fatty acids. Scientific research today validates many of the traditional uses of Neem Oil, it is used to treat bacterial, fungal, and viral infections, boost the immune system, and for many specific health problems. Among other conditions, Neem Oil has been historically used to treat the following: Malarial fevers, diabetes, urinary problems, acne, eczema, psoriasis, scabies, gingivitis, swollen and bleeding gums, cavity prevention, ringworm, chicken pox, lice, dandruff, burns, wounds, athlete’s foot.

 

That’s a lot of punch for one herb to have, which is what made me curious from the get to try this stuff, and I’d have to say I wouldn’t mind alternating this poo with my ACV in the coming weeks. Following the Alaffia, my DC this week was again AOWC, which I left on for 1 hour under conditioning cap after detangling into small sections.

Rinsed with cold water, followed by another new find in Alaffia’s Virgin Coconut & Shea Enriching Hair Lotion.  Instead of tracking down KCKT, I leaned on this leave-in that’s formulated for dry, damaged and curly hair.  The closest leave-in comparable to the Alaffia would have to be Giovanni’s leave in…consistency wise they match up, yet strangely the Alaffia goes on much lighter, not much slip… but nonetheless it penetrates the hair and does an adequate job of setting up for Donna Marie’s Lock & Twist Pudding. 

After twisting I managed to secure the root of each twist with a clip, then sat under my soft bonnet for a good two hours (under the lowest setting).  The following morning my twist were fully dry, my roots less poufy due to the clips…before untwisting I sealed the ends with Afroveda’s Hemp Seed Lock Twist Butter.  The results were…a well defined twistout….zero frizz…& bouncy curls;-).

 

 I got caught in the rain today, so I’m finally experience some frizz, but nothing a little KBB hair creme can’t cure.

 

*Neem info courtesy of mountainroseherbs.com

The Process March 9, 2009

This week I wasn’t expecting to experiment too much with anything extra ordinary, pretty much wanted to try my hand at consistency…see if I had what it took not to open that new jar of buttercreme.  Overall I did good! I pre-pooed with some leftover conditioner I’d wanted to finish for a while, and went a head and mixed my ACV rinse.  Still adding the Khoret Amen oil, but also mixing in some vitamin E oil I’d found underneath my mound of bottles.  I’d purchased the vitamin E oil at the beginning of this year and seriously forgot I’d had it! My scalp towards the end of the week was beginning to act up again…a fault of mine because I’d forgotten to moisturize regularly with my coconut oil…and I was undoubtedly stressed at work.  Stress is always a huge factor, relative to the health of my scalp, something I’ve tried to keep a handle on but failed miserably this week. 

So added to my mix went the Vitamin E oil, which if what ‘they’ say is true, will help to stimulate my scalp, improving blood circulation.  To help the process along I massaged my scalp while the ACV rinse was in my hair for a good five minutes, making sure to move in circular motions…basically just enjoying the experience! A scalp massage is a fantastic stress reliever btw! 

After rinsing the ACV, I followed with a final wash of  Oyin’s Honey Wash.  A palmful was all I needed to distribute evenly and work up a good lather. I spot checked the crown of my head for that stripped, overly clean feeling and happily found zilch! I picked up on this habit late last year as a way to distinguish which washes/rinses/conditioners were doing the best job at cleansing/conditioning my hair.  I simply create a part down the center of my hair, stopping midway and sort of inspect for buildup, moisture etc. This week I had zero buildup, and found that my hair was shinny and well moisturized. 

Spot checks also help me in figuring out exactly which conditioner or DC to use for that week.  Usually I can figure it out the day before I wash, sort of just by keeping tab on how my hair progressed for the week, and yesterday I found love again in Aubrey Organics Honey Suckle Rose.  This was only my second time using this conditioner, and I’ll be honest it was sort of on a last/ second chance trial basis.  The first time I used this about a month ago after hearing rave reviews from the blog community,  I’d finally buckled and purchased while at the Vitamin shop (where it’s considerably cheaper than at other distributors btw!), came home…DC’d and was left very unimpressed.  At the time I couldn’t figure out why my hair didn’t react well to all the great and natural ingredients found in the conditioner, I just decided to move on.  And yet I still had more than half a bottle left, so I opted for a second chance, and was blown away by how great it worked!

I guess it’s a go-figure type thing….? What could I have done differently this time around…I’m not entirely sure…I detangled my ends with a wide toothed comb, applied the AOHR, then ran my denman through to further detangle.  I donned my conditioning cap and sat with it for 30 min before rinsing, and was surprised at how well my hair came together…and by this I mean I had virtually no frizz and my curls behaved by curling!  They honestly seemed to enjoy the combo of ACV + Honey Wash + AOHR. 

To style I applied KCKT followed by Donna Marie’s Lock & Twist Pudding.  This morning I wore my twists to work for the first time in a long time because I was a tad bit tired to unravel them.  Losing that hour of sleep is not pleasant! But again, my hair has tons of  shine and is moving beautifully…honestly I couldn’t find a better product to twist my hair! It’s easy to apply, and to apply you need very little.

 

On a side note, my internet is down this week….Arrggh! And I’m lagging behind on some product reviews I need to push out the door…some uppers and some downers I found while reviewing my old stash of things, so hopefully I can bang those out in a few days. 

 

Countdown to Spring: 11 Days

Updates February 26, 2009

So, Spring is somewhat in the air…n’est pas?  I thought I felt it on a breeze or two yesterday morning while walking to work, my gloves were tucked away in my pocket so my hands were free! What can I say, I give in to hope a lot when it comes to the weather…

I’ve got fingers crossed it’ll last through the weekend though,  because I’m seriously ready to stretch my legs a bit, do some walking in my neighborhood for a change. I’ve been meaning to swing by Karen’s shop in BK for the longest, but fall back every time…again, weather is somewhat of a deterrent for me. But I have determination as my ore and will take a trip, it’ll be a shame to pass up on the sale that’s going on!

Apparently her uber popular leave-in conditioners are on sale @ buy 2 get one free! Now this applies to her milks, hair nectar and the super silky, and you can pick and choose your scents to your liking. The top favorites across the board have been lavender vanilla & chamomile sage, but I’ve got my eye on the sultry sandalwood.  The name alone wooed me!  Also, new to me is her Fabulous Freebie Fridays…? Don’t know what’s in store but I’ll check in to see what’s up. Click here to take a peek.

 

It sucks that February is such a short month though, I feel as if I’ve been scrambling to catch up on all the good deals left during the home stretch.  But as a gentle reminder Curlmart is offering 15% off your entire purchase, (excluding kits, curly cocktails, and Wen products) until the 28th along with a $7 flat rate charge, just enter coupon code blogger15 at checkout.  I’m still eager to see if they’ll have re-stocked some product hopefuls like the Oyin goodies, but we’ll see.

 

I finally snagged my Curl Junkie Rehab!! I was afraid I’d been too late for the sale because my Paypal account was acting fuddy, but alas I saved and restocked on my DC.  The Curl Theory Mositurizing conditioner is also on the sale block for $14, something I’m looking forward to trying in the future. 

 

 

Another Valentine’s Special is coming to a close over at  Miss Jessie’s camp with her Creme De la Curl Cleansing Creme (originally $20) & Creme De la Creme Conditioner (originally $26) marked down to $16 bucks.  I’ve never tried either product but have in fact purchased several of their other puddings and what nots.  The reviews for both haven’t been bad, the cleansing creme is somewhat thicker in consistency than the conditioner, but apparently both still work effectively.  Again, I haven’t sampled these, nor have I checked out the ingredient list, but if you’re a fan…kudos! Let me know how they work for you.

I was also able to score my  new wonder, the Donna Marie Lock & Twist Pudding this week.  The site is updated and it seems to be back in stock, so I took advantage like a good PJ. I also snagged up another one of her goodies after hearing rave reviews from the curly/kinky community, but I’ll vote and reveal what it is later;-).  If you’re tempted to try her products you can purchase from here, or head over to afrokinks.com where there’s a hidden coupon code on the homepage (if you can’t find it leave a comment down below and I’ll cough up).  I love this site because you can find just about the best of the best that’s out there for naturally/textured curly/kinky hair. There’s also a neat sale rack link with items at clearance prices!

 

What I’m really excited about is taking a trip over to Karen’s in BK, aside from her hair care collection, her body oils and butters are out of sight! The neighborhood is a fun and alive place to hang out if she’s quickly whipping up a batch of her special goodies, so if you’re in the area look her up and stop by, the sale applies to in-house as well but ends on March 3rd.

 

HAVE A GOOD ONE;-)

Donna Marie: Lock & Twist Pudding February 18, 2009

Here’s an embarrassing PJ truth, lately I’ve been dabbling into a world full of custards, souffle’s and puddings.  I’ve had my hands in jars of Miss Jessie’s Pudding, Curls by Sisters Smith Wet Set pudding….KCCC…Curls Souffle…Donna Marie’s Lock & Twist Pudding…and my recent get…Afroveda’s Curly Custard.

Hopefully I’m not the only one, but whenever I hear a product is whipped or puddingfied…I instantly think MOISTURE!  My head goes into a tizy and I must purchase, must sample to see if it meets my hair criteria.  Can’t be sure how long this crazy tick is going to last…but several weeks ago when I ordered Donna Marie’s Lock & Twist Pudding, I had the hopes on high because of all the fab raves throughout the kinky curly community.

I’m going to take it old school for a minute and say…yo, this stuff is ridiculous! Verbage meaning…this stuff is fantastic, crazy good! Two weeks ago this puppy contributed to one of the best hair weeks I’ve had on the books to date! I used it in conjunction with my ACV rinse and my KCKT leave-in.  My hair had bounce for days, moisture round the clock, and SHINE…a near obsolete because of winter here on the east coast.

I used the pudding to twist my hair and achieved great results.  It was the first time in a long time, after taking the hair out of the twists that I didn’t try and manipulate the final look.  My curls were well defined enough that they stood proudly on their own, bouncing from one place to the next! Basically, I had fun with my hair…couldn’t keep my paws out of my head while at work!

Ingredient List:

Deionized water, aloe vera gel, carbomer, kokum butter, mango butter, sweet almond oil, glycerin, flax seed gel, hibiscus extract, carrot seed extract, burdock root extract, agave nectar extract, silver citrate, potassium sorbate, and natural fragrance

The consistency is not unlike a gel, but not unlike a creme either, so the best description is something that falls in between.  My hair absorbed this stuff up instantly, so I was forced to watch how much or how little I applied.  I didn’t get a silky, slippy feeling when applying, but my hair did seem to air dry faster than usual.  On the other hand, the next morning when unraveling the twists my hair felt silky, manageable and soft to the point where I could run my fingers through without disrupting the waves too much. 

I’ve heard positive reviews with this product across most boards, and found the only drawback to good results is the amount applied. How many times have we heard the saying, ‘a little goes a long way,’…..A LOT! And when I do hear this I take note and apply sparingly…adding more product only if necessary.  Most Donna Marie products are in fact heavily concentrated, so it makes sense to follow the tips of your fingers rather than the palms of your hands to apply. 

The way I look at it, I save money!  How do you know  a product is well worth your time and $$….exhibit A:  they are constantly sold out on-line.  I was thinking of reordering to stock up but they are indeed out of stock until further notice.  I have about half a jar left and refuse to dip into it until I get another on deck.  It’s my PJism, I know…drives me to unpractical methods of living.  But eh…No woman forgets those head turning, fabulous hair days, and I intend to see that day sometime soon;-)

Curl Rehab Review February 3, 2009

Here’s the deal.  I am officially on second day hair as of this morning.  I washed, DC’d and styled my quasi- bouffant this past Sunday and have to say….my second day hair looks FABULOUS compared to yesterday! Honestly, I figured yesterday was going to be sort of like the pinnacle of the do…but after untwisting my hair this morning I shuffled my feet in excitement yet again!! Bounce. Shine. MOISTURE!! All three were present and accounted for and I love em for it!

But often times when I think back on all the good hair days that I’ve had in the past, I get this nagging feeling or desire to want to pinpoint exactly what it was I’d done differently, whether it was detangling differently, conditioning differently etc.

I tried a couple of new things Sunday, the first being my first go at an ACV rinse. That rocked out for sure! My scalp for the most part felt thoroughly cleansed and fresh.  Second, I applied Curl Rehab, a new DC treatment from the Curl Junkie line. Now, this was a treat to apply because, man the smell of this puppy is delicious. Third, I styled with Donna Marie’s Twist Pudding, a light styling product that acts like a gel but produces results like a creme…an automatic added bonus!!

But what every curly head knows is that the jumpstart to anything good hair related begins with good conditioner, and DC’ing with the Curl Rehab for two hours after my bentonite disaster last week was  certainly my jump start point… and perhaps even the way I’d sectioned the hair before applying.

I applied the Curl Rehab into smaller sections this time around to cut back on my styling regime, and my guess is the DC worked it’s magic! The consistency is light, and your hair will absorb this stuff almost instantly which makes detangling a breeze because of the slip. The smell is heaven, a true girl friendly mix of gardenia and coconuts…but a little goes a long way so apply sparangly!

Ingredients:

Water, Aloe Barbadensis Leaf Juice, Cetearyl Alcohol, Butyrospermum Parkii (Shea Butter) Fruit, Behentrimonium Methosulfate, Equisetum Arvense (Horsetail) Leaf Extract, Urtica Dioica (Nettle) Leaf Extract, Melissa Officinalis (Melissa) Leaf Extract, Mentha Piperita (Pepperment) Leaf Extract, Yucca Leaf Extract, Rosa Mosqueta (Rosehip) Fruit Oil, Simmondsia Chinensis (Jojoba) Seed Oil, Theobroma Cacao (Cocoa) Seed Butter, Theobroma Grandiflorum (Cupua Seed Butter, Phenoxyethanol, Caprylyl Glycol, Vanilla Planifolia oil, Cananga Odorata oil, Lecithin, Fragrance, Citric Acid.

After I rinsed the DC out of my hair, there was a noticeable difference in my curls, particularly the front crown of my head where my curls fall into looser waves.  When coaxed properly they behave into well defined ringlets, something I haven’t seen since my heat damage fiasco last summer…but my ringlets made a surprise appearance after I rinsed with the Curl Rehab!

It’s hard for me to say that my hair was simply just soft, which it was…but besides that it felt healthy, something  I’d been longing my hair to feel since I trimmed my heat damaged ends off last year.  Honestly it was personal vindication! My hair was finally willing to work with me, all I had to do was apply the right products/routine… and the Curl Rehab along with the ACV was my kickoff to that.

I’ve definitely found my DC treatment, so the search was short and sweet! I’ve cataloged Curl Rehab into my arsenal of products and plan to use sparingly when my hair needs extra TLC.  I’ll post a review for the Lock & Twist Pudding laterz;-)

Product Haul: Donna Marie, Curl Rehab… January 26, 2009

So this past week I’ve been a bit out of sorts, sick with the flu…staying home from work one day then dragging myself along with my packets of tissue to work the next, only to be sent home early out of pity from my boss.  Shame really…bottom line, the best way to take care of yourself while you’re sick is to first admit to yourself that you are sick, rest up and get better…!

But man, the days that I did stay home were a true test of my strength.  Even this past weekend I hauled myself in my place with just the right amount of groceries, so I didn’t have to step out in 17 degree weather,  checked out some of my favorite curl friendly blogs,  and luxuriated in season one of the Mary Tyler Moore show (season 1&2 on sale at Target for $19bucks!! ). 

Another thing I often do when confined to a spot for longer than a couple of hours is go absolutely stir crazy… so to alleviate this I buy products!!  I mean, they make it so easy these days with easier shipping/payment methods that I kept saying to myself…why not;-)

Lock & Twist Pudding

At the start of the weekend I lurked around www.naturallycurly.com looking for reviews on any Donna Marie product, a curl friendly line I’d been curious about trying for some time.  Most reviews were for the popular curly butter creme,  a product some have compared to Kinky Curly Curling Custard.  But because of the cold weather here in NYC I decided to keep that on my to-try list for the summer, and instead ordered the lock &t twist pudding! The product description from the site claims to make twists and locks moisturized enough to keep your hair soft and silky.  Not bad…I was pretty much sold on the moisturizing properties rather than it’s claims to make my hair silky…something that can happen in winter but I’ve learned not to bank on it’s magical appearance each week. 

Ingredients:

Deionized water, aloe vera gel, carbomen, kokum butter, mango butter, sweet almond oil, glycerin, flax seed gel extract, hibiscus extract, carrot seed extract, burdock root extract, agave nectar extract, silver citrate, potassium sorbate and natural fragrance.

Payment was fast and easy, and I received a confirmation that my product shipped the next day! Ohhh how I love to know that my products are en route…lol!

Next up I lingered around the new Curl Junkie website to see if I could put an end to my DC treatment search.  Often times I linger around sites, reading recommendations from users while taking note but often times hold back because DC’s often run a bit more $$! Makes sense if their intent is to give your hair more punch, but lately I’ve been drawing back on spending over $20 bucks on something I’d use several times a month. 

But here’s what I love, sites that offer discounts! Yes, introductary discounts on new products are something I can wrap my pennies around! Curl Junkie is running a sale until January 27th  on some of their new products, and luckily there was a 30% savings on a new DC treatment!.

Curl Rehab

Their Curl Rehab Moisturizing Hair treatment has the main thing I typically go ga-ga over, and that’s moisture!

A description from the site:

Give your hair the moisture it deserves. Check your dry, frizzy curls into rehab! Let your hair drink in a wonderfully rich cocktail of Aloe, herbs, and healing butters & oils to rejuvenate and restore your precious curls! Wonderfully scented with the rich and beautiful Gardenia flower with a hint of Coconut and mystery, this treatment is excellent for taming frizz with much needed moisture. This is a real treat! This treatment is lightweight, yet moisture packed. Give everyone curl envy!

An added bonus for me lately as well is a glycerin free product,  a humectant that’s common in most conditioning treatments, but lately my hair is poofing from too much glycerin due to my choice of styling products and my co-wash conditioner.  I love BIG hair for my twist out’s but lately my big hair comes on first day hair rather than 3 day old hair and I’ve been fishing around for even more product to combat the poof! I love glycerin, but too much of a good thing is always not good for my hair…balance is key!

Again, processing was a breeze! My new DC shipped the very next day and I hope to have by end of week!

Oh dear…so I wasn’t done.  On top of lingering on the curly hair boards, I peeked into some youtube channels that offer hair care reviews, and found myself taking note on the growing popularity of another creme based moisturizer for twists and coils. 

Wet Set Pudding

Curls by Sisters Smith’s site looks a tad non-discript but the reviews for their products have been close to raving! The  product that really stood out was their wet set pudding curl enhancing creme.  The pudding is non-greasy, so it has no oils or waxes, gives you a light hold without the crunch similar to other holding products, AND for an $5.50 you can get a hefty 8oz jar to try!  The ingredient list floored me a bit because…well there are only three: glycerin, aloe vera, & olive oil.  Floored because I failed to notice any kind of preservative, which is odd for most curl enhancing products.  But eh…we’ll see…for $5.50 I’m willing to take a chance! Each batch is custom made according to your specified scent which range from:

• unscented
• green tea
• vanilla 
• summer garden 
• summer citrus
• floral blend
• brown sugar
• lavender
• peppermint

By the end of the weekend I’d received confirmation that my pudding had been shipped, so they too are quick and efficient!

Whew! By Sunday Night I was feeling great! My products were on their way, I was saving the planet by using less tissues to blow my nose AND one of my favorite bloggers had a new post up…and oddly enough it had nothing to do with hair products.  Botticelli Babe is known for her more than honest reviews on curly-hair products and her willingness to try out the most random of stuff on her weird product Wednesday posts. 

This go round though,  her review centered on a staple she’d come to rely on as a showering soap, something she calls, “ creamy, often whipped-like, versions of [...] soaps.”  The line, called Savor is an Etsy creation which means they’ve got a lot of love going into them, simply because the products are home based…and affordable!

Princess Bride

I purchased two of their frothy souffle soaps to sample, Princess Bride and one of their mini  chai creme fraiche scents! The pics on the site are delicious to look at, so here’s hoping they feel as good as they look on film!

 

I’m going to be in new territory with these new products so if you guys have tried any of them feel free to let me know how they worked, what you liked best, what didn’t work etc.  I rarely do product hauls, so this will hopefully last me until the end of winter:-)

 

et finir!