haircuts!

finally, the man got a haircut (given by moi)! we decided to make a day of it and he gave the munchkin her first trim as well.

the man's hair

the munchkin- pre hair trim

daddy did a great job!

the munchkin- post hair trim

perfect curl product: raw shea butter

winter is here and my hair has been feeling it! my hair has looked pretty nice but has been feeling dry to the touch. ive been doing deep conditioning treatments, being a bit more heavy handed with my conditioner and oil and nothing seemed to work. last winter i had alot of growth and there were two things that i did differently: (1) i wore my hair up alot and (2) i used shea butter. so this year i told my sister to buy me some shea butter for christmas and now im back in business!

for 1st day hair, i applied my leave in + castor oil to my hair like i always do. then i took a few dabs of shea butter, rubbed it in my hands to melt it, and then smoothed it on my hair. my goal was to concentrate it on my ends, but i did apply it all over. it has been a while since ive used raw shea butter so i was hoping that the castor oil combined with the shea butter wouldnt result in a greasy mess. and it didnt. woo hoo! for my 2nd day hair, i took my hair out of the pineapple i sleep in and then applied the shea butter on my dry hair, the same way i did it on my wet hair.

its only been two days, but im starting to remember why i love shea butter so much. its great for sealing my ends, keeping my hair soft, reducing static flyaways, smoothing edges, and its a great skin moisturizer! i even used some on the man's coarse, thick type 2 hair. i used some to smooth his flyaways and to soften his dry, raggedy ends (he desperately needs a haircut).

3 cheers for raw shea butter!

fotki update

laziest blogger ever checking in :)

i added some new pics of my hair (as well as the munchkin and the man) to my fotki. check it out....

http://public.fotki.com/subbrock/

the man and his hair

this is the man's ponytail. he's threatening to cut it all off and dontaing it to locks of love. i must say i will miss the mane. when we first met almost 3 years ago, his hair was a bit longer than ear lobe length. hes a big fan of the same light oil blend i use (i havent told him about castor oil yet) and paul mitchell the conditioner as a leave in. he shampoos no more than once a week and after applying his leave in, brushes his hair with the denman.

product review: jane carter solution, devacurl, lush

like many curlies, im constantly on the quest for even better products than what i already have. in general, im disappointed with my new finds and realize that elucence moisture balancing conditioner is truly my HG (holy grail) product. but that never seems to stop me from trying. here are a few things ive tried recently:



jane carter solution twist and lock

product description: This lock cream will help to re-moisturize your locks while adding shine to your hair. If you twist or lock your hair, this product was created for you. Once you use it, you will wonder why you haven't been using it all along. No longer do you need to use bee's wax or that gooey brown gel. Twist and Lock is made with natural butters for shine and a light polymer for hold. Mix with Nourish & Shine for best results. Twist & Lock does not flake or leave residue. It does not attract dirt and dust and it rinses water clean.


my experience: i dont like it. i initially bought this product because i was looking for a daily moisturizer i could use on my dry (as in not wet) hair. granted i neither wear my hair in locs nor twists, but i figured the products wouldnt know. it didnt leave my hair noticeably shiny and it doesnt leave my hair feeling moisturized either. it does leave my hair feeling product-y. it also has a VERY strong herbal smell. i think it stinks. the best results i ever had with it were when i applied it to my damp hair. my hair did feel soft and moisturized once it dried. not sure if i should try to sell it, give it away, or chuck it out of the window while im driving to get another product. if anyone has any insight on how to make this product work for me, please let me know!

deva curl one condition

product description: It's all in one! This super-rich conditioner will keep the moisture level of hair and scalp balanced to perfection. One Condition restores, hydrates and neutralizes detergent and product residue with the fresh scent of lemongrass.

my experience: not completely sold. ive heard good things about this conditioner, so i decided to give it a try. as a conditioner, it doesnt really qquench my thirsty curls. but when i use it as a deep treatment, im fairly satisfied with my results. as i sit here now im using it as a dt. i melted a bit of honey, olive oil, veggie glycerine, and shea butter together in the microwave. then i added the one condition. while the mixture was still warm, i put it on my hair and then put on a plastic cap. i'll rinse it out in about 30 minutes. i did let the man try it out (coarse, thick, dry hair) and he said it left his hair feeling like straw too. ive used it on the munchkin and it works beautifully on her hair (fine strands, dryness isnt an issue for her). this conditioner does contain amodimethicone. so if youre on a strict CG hair diet, youre going to want to skip this product. i wont repurchase, but im not kicking myself for trying it out either.

lush seanick solid shampoo bar

product description: Orange blossom scented shampoo bar makes limp, lifeless hair buoyant. Don't let Seanik's compact size fool you. This little puck of joy buffs and shines like no liquid can. A couple of swipes worked up into a lather to moisturize the scalp, breathe life into the lifeless, and shine your hair like a champ. Economical and easy to use, Seanik's citrus and seaweed combo enriches and enlivens while its fragrance entices all who cross your path. Now proudly SLS-free.

my experience: ive used this shampoo for nearly a year on my daughter with wonderful results. its long lasting--im still on the same bar that i bought last july. its vegan. it does contain a sulfate, but its a gentle sulfate (sodium coco sulfate). for the first time i finally used it on myself and i had the same great results as my daughter: bouncy, shiny, soft, clean hair. very awesome. the closest luch store is about an hour away from me, but i like this shampoo so much id be willing to make the drive or pay for shipping. and that says ALOT since im not made of money!

not so perfect curls

most of the time people post pics of their decent to great hair days. i decided to switch things up a bit and show you our bad hair days. the reason being, is ive looked at tons and tons of pictures of people and said "wow, they have gorgeous hair" or "whoa, shes beautiful," thinking it wasnt something i could attain because my hair didnt look like that at the time. finding the right products and routine makes all the difference.

i'll start. this is my hair last weekened. i refused to detangle it for at least 3 days and wore it in a bun/ponytail the entire time because i didnt feel like dealing with it.




the man:
im not exactly sure what happened to his hair. maybe he fell asleep on the couch so he didnt have the beenfit of sleeping with his satin pillowcase.


the munchkin: the first pic is before i found products that actually enhanced her curls. back then i was just using detangling spray and no styler or leave in conditioner. the second pic is her morning hair. notice how the curls are still in tact, due to sleeping on satin.



just because you dont wake up with perfect curls, doesnt mean you cant attain them!