Who is the Enemy?

First and foremost, all prayers warriors please stand down. This post is addressing a completely different kind of enemy. The enemy to which I refer reveals itself in the form of Hair straighteners,  blow-dryers, curling tongs and the like.

HEAT! Excessive direct heat is one of the biggest causes of damage to black hair. Heat breaks down the  cuticle layer of your hair which is there to protect the hair fibres and shaft. A damaged cuticle layer leaves hair dry, brittle, and riddled with split ends.

If you already have split ends, unfortunately there is not much to be done about them. The only real solution is to trim them off with a sharp pair of scissors, keep your hair moisturised and ideally avoid heat completely.

To try and avoid heat after a wash, a good tip is to let the hair air dry. This means after washing, detangle hair GENTLY with a large tooth comb, blot it dry GENTLY with a towel and leave it out to dry for as long as necessary. No heat involved.
To give hair a straight finish, wrap it round your head after moisturising and sealing and tie tightly with a head scarf overnight.

Now I bet all this is going in one ear and out the other for some of you who simply cannot imagine life without your hair straighteners and blow-dryers. If you absolutely must apply heat to your hair, here are a few tips to help protect your hair.

1. Invest in a good heat defence product and apply it from the root to tip of your hair before applying any heat. A good product is TRESemme's  heat defence styling spray. It protects your hair from heat to up to 230 degrees.

2. Use your blow dryer on medium to low heat. You don't need your hair to be crispy for confirmation that it is dry.

3. If you get a roller set, apply your heat defence as described and then protect your hair from direct heat with a perforated head scarf before going under the dryer.

Heat is the enemy people. Protect yourselves

xx

 

Styling tools

 Heat Defence spray

                                                                Heat defence spray
                                                      Blow dryer on medium heat

                                                              Blow dryer on low heat
 
                                                                       Head Scarf

Happy New Year

Happy New year Everyone! I hope you all enjoyed the holidays.

I am not really one for new year resolutions but there are a couple of things I would like to see happen this year with regards to beauty.

Hair

I am starting on a hair challenge. The challenge is to retain at least 5 inches of my hair growth this year. I plan on achieving this by treating my hair Like.A.Bambino. No slacking off, No cutting corners, So help me God!
As I go along, I will let you guys know any new tips and tricks I discover. 
I have taken pictures of my hair as it is currently and I will take pictures again in December to see if I hit my target.
To my sister/brother Thomas who doubt it is possible to retain 5 inches in one year, I can tell you for a fact that it is. On average, hair grows around 6 inches in one year. Yes some people are on the lower end of the spectrum and others are on the higher end of it but the aim is to retain as much as you possibly can.
If anyone out there is interested, please feel free to join me on this challenge. Give it a shot and see what happens.

Skin

I am hoping to be able to permanently clear up spots and hyper pigmentation (dark marks after spots aka pimples  are gone) on my face this year. Again I will be sharing whatever works particularly well for me. Like with my hair, I have taken photos of my face as it is now to compare with my face in December when the challenge is done. Again, anyone who wants to come on this journey with me is welcome to do so.

And that's it! Hair like Rapunzel and a face like a baby's bum. That is not asking too much is it?

The best of luck to anyone out there who wants to go on this journey too. Please let me know in the comments if you are. It reminds me people are reading and encourages me to put up more posts, particularly relating to topics you enjoy.

P.S Let me know if you are interested in seeing current hair/face photos.
xx

Snip, Snipity Snip

The topic of Trimming hair is taboo to so many women! The idea of cutting off hair they have worked so hard to grow just does not go down well. My dear dear ladies, the truth is, if you do not trim your hair when it needs it, you will lose the hair through breakage. Every time you wash it, every time you comb it, every time you whip you hair, every time you dutty whine, every time you turn your head to check out a hottie, your hair will break. Give your hair a little trim ladies, you'll be happier for it....trust me, I am a hair doctor. (No not really LOL) 

Trimming is important to remove split ends or small knots that cannot be unravelled.

There are 3 main ways to trim hair depending on the length of your hair, the extent of damage in your hair and how much hair you are willing to take off.

The first method is the Search and Destroy method.

This method is for people who want to lose as little length as possible. Simply take very small sections of hair, seek out any damaged/split strands and carefully snip approximately a centimeter away from the end of the strand. You can do this as often as you need to.

The one small disadvantage to the method is that you might end up with slightly uneven hair but at least what you have left is all healthy hair and you save a lot of length.                                    (that is me actually searching and destroying)

Method number two is Dusting. This is for people who regularly get knots and split ends. The method is to cut off less than half a centimetre of hair regularly (about every 6 to 8 weeks). It ensures that the problem does not get enough time to travel further down the hair shaft. However, if you are forced to dust more regularly, you are probably doing something wrong with your hair care regimen. Change things up. Do some research to solve the problem.

                                                          (that is me pretending to dust)

The final method is the regular trim. This is great to remove old unhealthy ends and is a good base level to start off managing you hair better. After a regular trim, you can then move on to the dusting or search and destroy methods. A regular trim takes off as much hair length as is necessary to fix the problem. Taking hair in small sections, cut off about an inch or more at a time until all the unhealthy parts of the hair have been removed.

NOONE should have to do this regularly.

 

(That is me pretending to do a regular trim and praying to Jesus I do not cut off my hair by accident)

 

Something  to note, Always use sharp scissors.

 

This next tip is for your general hair care.

If you go to salons regularly, do not be afraid to tell your hair dresser what to do! I have sat in fear, saying prayers to God on one hand and convincing myself on the other that my hairdresser knows what she is doing as I had my hair butchered or endured bad relaxers, or somebody combing through my whole hair with a fine tooth comb, or slathering pomade in my hair, or walking out of a salon with stark dry hair, and all manner of abuse. 

If you think your hairdresser is doing something wrong, Speak up! half the time they have no idea what they are doing. It is your hair. 

 

xx

Where does it come from? Essaouira

I went on a lovely holiday to Morocco with my sister and a couple of friends in January. From the minute we bought our tickets, I knew the one thing I had to do was see where Argan oil comes from. Argan Oil is only produced in Morocco you see. As it is all the craze in the cosmetic world at the moment, I was tres excited to see how it is made.

We took a two hour drive from Marrakech to the sea side town of Essaouira during which I got to see the beautiful Moroccan country side while my wonderful counterparts slept and snored quite a bit. (Girls, if you have a problem with this statement of fact, show yourselves and leave a comment below LOL)

About 20 minutes from Essaouira, we arrived at one of the biggest Argan Oil producers in the area. A small women's cooperative. 

We were greeted with loud cheerful singing from the Berber women as we entered this little "factory" and then assigned a guide who walked us through the still very traditional production process of Argan Oil production.

Raw argan nut on the left, roasted nut on the right

Baskets of Argan in the background

The nuts are roasted and then cracked open

Cracking the pods open

The roasted nuts are then ground and the oil extracted

 From the top left, plain Argan oil,  top right, Argan oil mixed with honey, bottom left, Argan oil mixed with spices, bottom right, Argan oil blended with almond oil popularly used in cooking in Morocco

We got to taste the just produced Argan oil which was amazing but I was more excited about buying some of the famed "Moroccan Elixir" to try out when I got back home to London. There is a long list of cosmetic benefits the oil is supposed to have. 

• Moisturises the skin 

• Slows the appearance of wrinkles 

• Improves skin elasticity 

• Regenerates and rejuvenates aging skin 

• Restores the life and shine to hair 

• Promotes scalp health to restore hair growth and vitality

• Prevents split ends 

• Relieves skin damaged by sun and smoking 

• Prevents stretch marks 

• Moistens dry itchy scalp 

• Aids dry brittle nails

So far I have only used it in my hair and I have found it excellent for my hair. It was also amazing to see those women make it and I would recommend the stop for anyone who happens to be travelling through Essaouira. If you do make the stop, buy me some Argan oil please!

xx

Moisturising and Sealing

Moisturising and Sealing (which I will refer to as M&S from here on out.......please reel your minds back in from Marks and Spencer......and their beautiful delicious food adverts. Adverts for perfectly golden roasted chicken with moist drumsticks glinting with delicious sticky honey, a drop of which is rolling down the side of the steaming bird.. and those decadent chocolate deserts th.... err where?, what was I? ....oh *clears throat*).

Like I have said many times before, dry hair is brittle hair and brittle hair WILL break.
I hear people go on about how their hair just does not grow. Really? If your hair didn't grow then pray tell, what is this undergrowth you are forever running to the salon to get touched up? (p.s relaxers are another topic for another day).
The fact is that everyone's hair grows. Retaining that growth is the tricky part thanks chiefly to dryness.

It is therefore extremely important that our hair gets moisture. What is the ultimate moisturiser? Water. This is another reason why regular washes are important.
Between washes though, we need to find ways to hydrate hair and keep it hydrated. Which is simply what M&S means. Moisturising to prevent dryness and keeping the moisture you have added locked/sealed in.

After a wash, when my hair is about 90% dry (almost completely dry but still a little damp to the touch), I moisturise. Now is the time I reach for that water based hair moisturiser. Taking small sections of hair, I apply moisturiser generously starting from the ends, up to the roots. Once a section is moisturised, I use some natural oils (Coconut mixed in with Castor) and seal in that moisture. Again from ends to roots, I cover each section with the oils. Move on to the next section and continue until the whole head is done.
The idea is to do this regularly even when I haven't done a wash (same method from dry).

I try to do this every other day but I have to confess that so far, I have tried and failed. It is just SO MUCH WORK! It is very important though so I am still working at it.  In the mean time though, I have discovered a little trick that has made my life considerably easier with regards to M&S and I will share in a future post.

Remember people, Moisturising and Sealing are like brother and sister, twins, they always go together. Never one or the other. Capisce?

Something to note

Some oils are weightier than others e.g. Castor/Olive Oil are heavy and so might weigh your hair down more than Argan/Coconut oil will.
Use whatever combinations you are happy with.

If I lost you at Marks and Spencer food adverts and you have absolutely no idea how to go about moisturising and sealing, let me know and I will make a tutorial video the next time I M&S.
xx

Rapunzel Rapunzel, Let down your hair

Since my last post I have had so many hair related questions. "what is a hot oil treatment?', "how do you do a hot oil treatment?", "what other products can you recommend?". 

I finally decided it was best for all parties involved if I just did a series of posts on what I have been calling "my road to Rapunzel status". In the next few posts, I will be explaining what tools and techniques I have been using on my hair journey and hopefully you will get some good results from them too. 

To get started, there are a few basics any self respecting Rapunzel wannabe needs to own.

A wide tooth comb - This is pretty straight forward. You want to treat you hair as gently as possible. After your fingers, a wide tooth comb is the best tool for detangling hair. Always detangle you hair starting from your ends and working your way up. Patience is key people!

A pair of scissors - You need these to deal with split ends. There are various ways to manage split ends and I will be elaborating in a future post. Just buy some scissors ok?

A shower cap - You will need this for treatments as they generally require some sort of heat (instructions tend to be; 1. Put products in hair 2. add shower cap.). Shower caps help trap in body heat.  

A Satin scarf - I say satin scarf but what I actually use is a satin bonnet. A snug satin bonnet. A snug satin bonnet with strings to keep it tied to my head. I got tired of waking up every morning and literally LOOKING for my scarf! Satin scarves just cannot stay on my head through the night! *sigh*

Natural Oils - You already know about this don't you? Oils are extremely important to keep your hair healthy. Again, more details in a future post.

Moisturiser -  Hair needs moisture and you have to make sure to give your hair as much moisture as it requires. Dry hair is brittle and will break.

Remember to moisturise your hair strands from root to tip. Give your ends some extra loving. They are the oldest part of your hair, and frankly, they need the TLC to stay attached to your head.

Make sure to use a water based moisturiser. If you currently own any petroleum based hair products, please step away from whatever device you are reading this on, walk towards that product, pick it up and put it in the rubbish. Apple hair cream is NOT your friend.

You know a product is water based if the first ingredient on the list at the back of the product is water/aqua.

Shampoo - I dont believe this needs a lot of explaining. You need to keep you hair and scalp clean to encourage growth. A point to note is to avoid shampoos with high sulphate contents. Sulphates strip hair of the natural oils it produces and this my friends, is no bueno. We are looking to clean hair not dishes.

Again, refer to the ingredient list on the back of the product.

You also need to know exactly what the shampoo will do for your hair i.e cleansing, moisturising, volumising, e.t.c and use accordingly.

Conditioner - The only thing worth saying here is that the road to Rapunzel status is littered with conditioner bottles. You will go through A LOT of conditioner. 

Pay attention to if what you are buying is a leave in, rinse out, or deep conditioner all thee types have a place in the healthy hair journey. 

Deep conditioner - Protein is essential to prevent hair breakage. Deep conditioners / protein treatments help strengthen hair and so are extremely important for your hair.

Ok people, that was Rapunzel 101. I know it was a truck load of information but no one said the road to Rapunzel status would be easy. Personally, I am determined to grow this hair atop my head and I hope one or two of you will join in on the challenge. 

xx