Ode to the ACV Rinse...

Apple.  Cider.  Vinegar.  Is the bizness.  Period.  Yes it smells to high heaven, but the benefits far outweigh the short stint that you have to smell the stuff.  It removes any buildup in your hair and scalp and it seals the cuticle so that your hair shines through.  Here's what I do:  I put a capful of the vinegar into about a 12 ounce applicator bottle.  I usually use room temp or directly out the cap water.  After DCing my hair, I rinse the conditioner out and then pour in the solution, making sure i get my scalp (you can do this either in the sink, or in the shower, but be careful not to get it in your eyes), and massaging it in.  I then rinse with lukewarm water and wala!!  The hair is still extra soft from the dc, but now it also extra shiny because there isn't any leftover residue in it.  See what you can find in your cabinet.  Maybe I'll use honey this weekend and show you those results.. hmmmmm...

Oh My Gawd, Becky Feel My Hair!!

This stuff right here, this stuff right here girls, is the holy grail of deep conditioner!!  *Cue holy angels singing*This is the best $8.99 that I have ever spent on conditioner.  First it smells awesome, which is a plus, but I put it in my hair and I immediately felt the softness.  After leaving it in for almost an hour, I rinsed and it still felt like buttah.  Next I will be trying the shampoo, and see what kind of awesomeness comes out of that bottle!!!  (BTW I know trying the conditioner before the shampoo is weird, but I am far from normal!) Happy DCing!!

Black Tea Rinse = No More Shedding

I know that some of us have an excess of tea bags in the cabinet that will probably never see the light of day past their expiration date.  But that is when I learned that they could be used for other things, like a black tea rinse.  My hair sheds when the seasons change (i swear its like a tree), and I want to hang onto as much of my tresses as I can.  So I heard about this from the ladies at LHCF, and I decided to try.  I shampooed and DC'd first, then used 3-4 huge black tea bags and let them steep for several hours.  Then I took the mixture and poured into an applicator bottle so that it would be easier for me to apply it to my hair.  I applied it, over my deep conditioner (which I had had in for a couple hours) and let it sit for maybe another two hours.  Rinsed it out and whala!  No loose strands!!  The caffeine in the tea also stimulates the scalp, which promotes hair growth.  Two gold stickers for me!  Deep conditioning is a must because the tea acts as a protein treatment and may leave your hair a little hard, and if your colored, it may darken it slightly because of the potency of the tea.  Another thing is that you can make a big batch, using more tea bags, and store it in the fridge to use at a later time.  How cool is that?  And directly from your cabinet!!

Product Review: Organix Moroccan Argan Oil

"It's been a long time, I shouldn't have left you, without a dope beat to step to!  It has been hectic the last few months, but my current goal is to at least post once a week.  Minimum.  My hair is constantly on my mind (pun intended) so why isn't my blog?  Ok, back to the matter at hand.  Organix.  *Le Sigh*  I really don't like to discredit a whole line or even a partial line of products but as wonderful as they say it makes your hair, but it comes up a little short in my book.   I purchased the shampoo, conditioner, and the weightless healing dry oil.  Bottom line:  It made my hair hard as a rock.  As in combing it was not an option, and I had to put additional products in it just to make it work.  Some of the ladies at the LHCF swear by this stuff, but it wasn't for me.  It's even sulfate free!  I won't return it because I got such a great deal on it (buy one get one half off at Ulta), but I may mix it with something to make it work for me.

Relaxer 101

First, I am not a professional (I am in my own mind, but I digress), so take these things as advice but not from an expert (again, all in my head).  When working with chemicals you have to be careful that you are not allergic to them, nor will they take out your hair.  Here is a list of the things I use:  Good fitting latex gloves, rattail comb, clips, relaxer, oil, neutralizing shampoo, clarifying shampoo, moisture shampoo, deep conditioner, and leave in conditioner.  I do not have a specific relaxer that I use.  One, because they do mostly the same thing, and two I'm cheap and I add things to it.  Things you say?  Why yes, let me explain.  I have a dry scalp some seasons, and I tend to scratch the aforementioned scalp.  To combat this I one, base my scalp with oil (which is a combo of coconut, walnut, jojoba, argan, and evo oil) from an applicator bottle, then I put 1/4 cup in my relaxer.  Now how special is that?  What this does is add barrier to my scalp to keep it from getting those nasty burns.  It also allows me to leave it in a bit longer (I usually have it in there from 10-15 minutes).  Here are the steps I take.

1. Apply a liberal amount of oil to your scalp and let it sit 10-15 minutes
2. Part your hair in 3rds, or 4ths, and clip them.
3. Put gloves on and apply conditioner to your already permed ends, to prevent overprocessing
4. Mix relaxer with 1/4 cup of hair oil
5. Apply your perm to wherever your hair needs it first ( i do front-back then alternate)
6. Wait for however long it takes to get the desired straightness, but don't process over 30 minutes
7. Rinse it until its gone, then rinse it some more
8. Wash with neutralizing shampoo, rinse, repeat
9. Wash with regular shampoo, rinse
10. Wash with clarifying shampoo, rinse(you only need to do this once, and it should get the remaining residue out of your hair
11. Wash again with neutralizing shampoo, rinse (you should see that the suds are no longer pink)
12. Wash with regular shampoo, rinse
13. Give your hair a good oil rinse, and comb it thru, let it sit for maybe 10 minutes, rinse
14. Apply conditioner until fully saturated, put under a conditioning cap or dryer for 20 minutes, cool rinse
15. Spray with leave-in conditioner, use as much as you need according to length of hair
16. Style as usual

It may seems like you washing your hair quite a bit, but you have to get the relaxer out of your hair.  If you don't it will be hard and crunchy.  Which isn't something you want.  A relaxed and moisturized head is a happy head.  Happy Relaxing!!

Viva la Creamy Crack!!!

Some call it a relaxer, some call it a perm, I call it the holy grail of hair care: The creamy crack.  Now don't get me wrong, rocking a natural is phenomenal, but it just isn't for me.  I want my hair to be so straight that even if the wind is blowing 1/2 a mile an hour, my hair will move.  I honestly tried the no chemical regimen, and got almost to the 6 month mark, but when I stepped off the plain in San Antonio in my 5th month of post-relaxer, two inches of roots shriveled up and sweated, while my ends were as straight as the day was long.  I looked like a wet spider monkey during mating season.  AKA a hot a** mess.  So shout out to the chemicals, which make my follicles oh so fine, and stay tuned to my next post that explains in detail how I relax my hair.  Viva la Creamy  Crack!!

It's finals week!!!

So I have been off of my routine, but stay tuned next week for more ideas in hair care!!!!! Ciao!