DIY - Egg & Mayonnaise Deep Conditioner

I hate mayonnaise. I hate it on toast, and all kinds of sandwiches in general, and only tolerate it in potato salad. So, I was already pretty skeptical I would like the idea of piling it on my head to condition my hair. This is pretty standard fare as many different bloggers across the spectrum of hair textures swear by it.

I am not sure there was much difference, but my hair was feeling particularly dry today, so I decided to give it a whirl.

So, as per all the blogs and health sites I viewed, you will need 2 eggs, 5-6 tablespoons of Mayo and 1 tablespoon of Olive Oil or Honey for shine. Most of the sites out there recommend whisking by hand so that it doesn't become too runny.


So, after my black tea rinse, I added the mayonnaise mixture from root to ends and then wore a plastic cap for an hour. I have to say that I am not a fan of the smell and it became very messy as some kept escaping in streaks of cream liquid, but that can be solved with tightening your plastic cap or wrapping a towel. Then,  I rinsed it out and conditioned with my usual conditioner, which took care of the smell and removed the mayonnaise more thoroughly.

I can't promise this will become a routine thing for me because unlike a lot of the blogs I read where naturalistas claimed their hair immediately felt softer, I did not have that experience. AT. ALL. In fact, it didn't feel soft until I conditioned as usual. I may try it again next week. 

- W.

DIY - Flaxseed Gel

Hey there!

Recently I decided to see if making flaxseed gel was as easy as they said. I happened to be in TJMAXX of all places and found a discounted bag of Golden whole flax seeds (I'm sure you can find some at your supermarket like Walmart, Whole Foods, Target..etc...) and so, I couldn't avoid it anymore.

So, I went home, got

- two cups of water to boil,
- 1/4 cup of flax seeds

and let it boil for about 15 minutes,
stirring until it was viscous, but not sticking to the pan.

Then, I got a stocking cap and strained it with some tongs (I just used the ones I serve salad with...lol)

And then added a few shakes of Peppermint Essential Oil (You can add Vitamin E and any other fragrant essential oils you want).

 And that was it!!


THAT. WAS. IT!

I never knew I could make gel in my kitchen.

And research shows that flaxseeds contain lignans, disease-fighting compounds that may help fight hair loss.

Go figure!! :) :)


Ok, Take care!! 'Til nex' time!

-W.

DIY Shea Butter Moisturizing Creme

Hey there!

After watching Naptural85's YouTube vid, I decided to do a similar version of my own Shea Butter moisturizing creme based on what I had in my cabinet at the time.

I use Shea Moisture products religiously, but making my own from a 100 percent unrefined Shea Butter and extra virgin oils is like making your very own gelato from freshly picked fruits instead of getting store-bought ice-cream. They both taste amazing, but you are certain of its contents, and in this case, "natural" means just that.

So, in my cabinet I had 8oz of  unrefined Shea butter, extra virgin coconut oil, extra virgin olive oil and Tea Tree Oil. (Naptural85 used castor oil, jojoba oil, coconut oil, olive oil and Vitamin E.)

So I added all 8 oz of Shea butter, one tablespoon of olive oil, four tablespoons of  coconut oil and one tablespoon of tea tree oil and whisked it my blender.

That was it! (Next time, I plan to add peppermint oil for to add fragrance and to stimulate the scalp.)

Then, after co-washing with my regular conditioner, I couldn't wait to apply it in my two-strand twist. I also made another batch using equal oil to Shea butter ratio for thinner daily moisturizer.














I had planned to do a twist-out, but I decided to keep it twisted for a few days. :) :)




Okay. Thanks friends. 'Til next time. Take care.

-W.

Black Tea Hair Rinse - First Attempt

Hey there.

Recently, I noticed that my hair was shedding and before I could fully freak out, thanks to looking at a million online tutorials, I discovered that doing a black tea rinse could stem that problem.

I LOVE TEA (I guess that was one of the legacies the British colonizers left Jamaicans...lol), but avoided teas with too much caffeine since it doesn't agree with my stomach (I avoid coffee like the plague). Either way, I had never envisioned that tea was not just for ingesting.

I have since learned that other teas, such as peppermint, rosemary, horsetail, burdock root, green tea and hibiscus (sorrel) <------ (which is confusing since "hibiscus" and "sorrel" are too distinctly different things in Jamaica...lol), can do wonders for your hair.

But apparently, a bit of caffeine is awesome for strengthening hair follicles. So, I boiled two cups of water, and then steeped two bags of Yorkshire Black Tea in my largest teacup.

Then, waiting until it was cool, I put it in a glass container and put it in the fridge (Note: You can use it right away. I didn't only because I was tired and decided to do it the next day. :> ).

The next morning, I transferred it in my spray bottle, sectioned my hair in four parts, and saturated each section with the spray.

Then, I added some moisturizing conditioner and twisted my hair, tucking the ends under to ensure they didn't lose moisture, since my hair is short.

 Afterward, I simply threw on a shower cap and waited 30 minutes.

Then, I washed out my hair, and  I did my usual LCO moisturizing method -
L - liquid - (Water) Hair damp from wash
C - conditioner - Shea Moisture Curl Enhancing Smoothie
O - oil - Extra Virgin Coconut oil










I then finger coiled with home-made Flax Seed Gel (I will tell you how I did this in another blog).







VERDICT: It's too soon to tell, but my hair did not feel as soft as it normally feels after a co-wash and of course, I did not notice any immediate difference in shedding. I probably will have to do this over a period of weeks to notice a marked difference. I will do another entry about my progress in the coming weeks. STAY TUNED :)


Okay, 'til nex' time. Take care.
-W.

My Natural Hair Story

Hey there.

It has long been established that black hair has negative stigma because of the flawed, Eurocentric ideals of beauty imposed on our race from the seventeenth century until now. Words like "nappy" and as we say in Jamaica, "kiya" or "picky-picky head," take away our power. It suggests that there is only ONE way to be beautiful all else is inferior. I actually know some black men who told me they wanted women with "good hair," meaning, the straighter the better.  In my childhood, black hair was something to be tamed and pulled into submission.

My mother did not want my sisters and me to alter our hair with relaxers, but we always had our hair in canerows (cornrows), and plaits. I actually begged my mother to have a relaxer once I got to college, because I wanted to be like every one else. I wish I could go back in time and slap that 16-year-old girl silly and tell her to embrace her hair.

On the LEFT - I wore relaxers from age 16 to 29. ON the RIGHT - My first year as fully natural in 2012 (after I cut off my loc extensions) was one for experimentation - real trial and error.

The problem was, though, is that was a different time, when there were misconceptions about black hair care, like water was the enemy and was only a necessary evil every week, that we should grease our hair with stiff Petroleum Jelly or Vaseline. There just wasn't the deluge of information as there is today.  "Co-wash," "Pre-poo," "Protective Styling" "Low Manipulation Styling" "Essential oils," What? That was just jargon that I didn't have at that time.  So I wore relaxers from age 16 until 29, just before I headed off to grad school in 2010. Then, I cut it all off, not to be political, but in fear that I wouldn't find a great black hairdresser where I was going to in the quiet Berrien Springs village in Michigan. Then, I got a texturizer and briefly went back to relaxer but I felt very depressed about it because I had begun to enjoy my natural hair and wanted it back. I felt like a slave to my hair and I never interrogated why I felt compelled to straighten my hair to begin with. I've made a lot of mistakes since then, but I really committed to being a "naturalista" in 2012 and learned to do ALL the protective styles, and hair regimens myself.

In January 2013, I had been natural for approximately a year and was just loving my texture, reading every blog, every magazine article and raiding haircare stores. I eventually calmed the hell down...lol.

Then, May 2013, dying my hair red using bleach and harsh permanent color was my undoing!! ONE YEAR DOWN THE DRAIN!!

I wasn't pleased with myself but I rocked it like had done all my big chops before and decided to learn from my mistakes. :)

June 2014, almost another year has gone and have forgiven myself and have been working to keep my hair healthy. It's grown about 4 inches since then and that doesn't seem like a lot but I just want to keep at it, making better choices this year. :) :)

See you next time. I am going to try the Black Tea Rinse for the First Time EVER! I'll let you know how it went.

Tek care mi love!

-W.