2016 | Looking Back

Hi everyone, I hope you are all up and ready for the holidays. Happy Holidays, this will probably be one of my last posts (if not last) for 2016. I always like to look back at the year and my goals and to be true to myself in evaluating what I have achieved.

This year was nothing short of amazing! So many great things happened in my life for which I am grateful! My hair on the other hand, did not fair as well. If I were to count the number of setbacks, it would probably come to about 2 in total...

I started the year off with a bang! 

Protective styled most of the first half of the year, only to realize that my hair was breaking as the ends of my hair were not tucked in properly while I had my crochet braids... 

Then I went on holiday without a protective style! Another not so good thing especially because Greece was super hot.. My hair ended up looking like this, I had gained some length but my ends were in a bad shape.

I had to part with quite a lot of my hair - I have not shared pics of my trim, I am not ready to share this as yet but I will in due time.

I have been on a back-to-back protective style regimen for about 16 weeks now, just to give my hair a break from me and everything else that has happened to it. I was meant to relax my hair this month but I decided to postpone until some time next year.. And no, I am not transitioning to natural as yet...

In terms of my hair goals:

1. Maintain healthy & thick ends. Partly achieved, last few months of the year...

2. Do long-term protective styles for at least half of the year. Achieved, protective styled for about 8 months...

3. Reach Bra-strap Length. Not yet

4. Continue with relaxer stretches, for at least 16 weeks at a time. Achieved, but I need to see if this is working for me, especially my ends.

5. Participate in at least 2 hair challenges this year. Nope, I fell off the bandwagon here..

6. Drink at least 1 litre of water a day. Yes, most times :-)

7. Revamp my blog. Yes, I did! At a very low cost, it is looking much better than it did before - I love it, I hope you do too!

8. Post at least 4 blog posts per month. Hmmm, I did about 2 a month on average

9. Exercise at least 3 times a week. Unfortunately not, but I have done about once a week on average, which is much better than nothing at all. 

10. Reduce my stash!! Yes! My stash has reduced by more than half! Will share pics after the holidays

And to end it off..

I hope you had a healthy hair year!

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Product Review: Keracare Moisturizing Conditioner

Price: Ksh 1,650/ $17

Purchased at: Super Cosmetics, Westlands

Promises: 

Helps maintain glorious hair color without sacrificing healthy hair. Exclusive patented Fiber Strengthening Complex protects hair from thermal and mechanical damage. Strengthens hair between color services. Minimizes color fading. Provides UV protection. Available in 8 fl. oz.

- Minimizes color fading.
- Moisturizes and fortifies hair.
- Exceptional conditioning deposition.
- Leaves hair exceptionally soft and silky.

1

Back-to-Back Protective Styling

Hello everyone and Hello December!!

Only one month to go until we end it off... I am looking forward to reviewing the highs and lows of the year!

So after my setback (second one of the year I think...), I decided to give my hair a very long break. I started with protective styles in September, and I have not done anything else with my hair since. Here are some of the styles that I tried out:

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Product Management - Do a giveaway

After going through so many tubs of conditioners over the past few months, I realized that I still had a lot of products that I could not possibly consume in a short space of time, like moisturizers, heat protectants, etc.

Solution? Giveaway!

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Choosing between Lye and No Lye Relaxers

I am nowhere near transitioning to natural, although this is something I would like to do once I achieve my length goal. So until then, the relaxers will remain in my hair regimen

From my last relaxer update, I mentioned how disappointed I was in the Mizani Relaxer. It could be that the relaxer had gone "stale" as I had bought it a couple of months ago. However, in addition to this, the breakage I have been experiencing is making me to question every part of my hair regimen, including the relaxer that I use. 

So I am considering switching relaxers, and OMG there are so many relaxers in the market it is nothing short of overwhelming. So I took a step back, and started doing research on different brands and also types of relaxers, just to make sure that I switch relaxers with all the information that I need to make the decision.

I have been using Mizani Butter Blend Lye Relaxer (Normal Strength) since I started this hair journey. Although I tried using ORS relaxer on the very first relaxer day of my healthy hair journey, and it completely underprocessed my hair. In hindsight, perhaps I did not apply it properly or I rinsed it out too soon, it was in the early days of my HHJ, so I need to give it a benefit of doubt.

Before I started my HHJ, I used Dark 'n Lovely, and it worked pretty well, and my hair was always nice and silky after relaxing. Although I would not want straight hair like that again...

2

Product Review: Eden Body Works Jojoba Monoi Conditioner

Hello dear ones, I haven't done a review in ages, so I thought I would share my experience of a new product that I have tried.

Eden Body Works products are now available in Super Cosmetic Stores in Nairobi, which is totally awesome. I read so many reviews about these products and I longed for the day that they would be easily available where I live. And the day came..

Price: Ksh 1,295/ $13

Purchased at: Super Cosmetics, Westlands

Promises: JOJOBA Natural Deep Conditioner strengthens hair through its botanical combination of Coconut, Jojoba, and Monoi. Formulated to replenish hair strength and restore hair's natural beauty from over processing, damage, and dryness. Fortified to balance the hair's moisture level, resulting in stronger, healthier, more manageable hair. Excellent deep conditioner for all textures and hair types.

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New Product Buys: September 2016

Can you believe that I only have three deep conditioners in my stash?? And these are the conditioners that I plan to keep in my regimen :-)

It feels great to open my drawer and not have so many choices over which conditioner to use on a wash day. Simpler is truly better!

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Dealing with hair breakage...

Hi there! I mentioned briefly in my previous relaxer update post that I had to trim my hair, and the main cause of this was the breakage I experienced in the last 2-3 months. When you are on a healthy hair journey, breakage is the enemy because it keeps reducing the amount of hair that you retain.

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Relaxer #2 2016: Update

Helloooo! I am so ashamed that I did not write even one post, not one post in the month of August :-( So sad, I should have planned but life seems to be going too fast for me this year. I hope to be better for this blog and show more commitment for the last few months of the year! Hold me to this!

Moving on, my last relaxer day was nothing short of dramatic. I had planned to relax my hair over the weekend, but ended up having no time at all to do so. I had to take a day off from work to do my hair because I was travelling for a few weeks and I did not want to travel with 7 months of new growth... Sigh... Anyway, it finally happened and I relaxed my hair exactly 7 months after I last relaxed it.

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Last wash day of this stretch...27 weeks post relaxer

Hiii everyone! Hope you are all doing well. I am really missing the sunshine and warm rays beating on my face. This "winter" must be the worst one that we have experienced in Kenya in a long time. Yes even the equator gets cold....

I have been looking forward to finally ending this stretch and seeing whether it was worthwhile. From the looks of things I have gained about 3 inches of new growth and up to 3.5 inches in certain areas of my hair. I am happy with that, and I am now nervous of how my ends will be looking after I texlax my hair this coming weekend.

To prep for the relaxer day I followed the same routine as before:
(1.) Detangled with Mane 'n Tail Detangler and coconut oil.
(2.) Applied ApHogee 2-minute Keratin Reconstructor and placed my hair under my hothead heating cap for about 20 minutes.
(3.) Hopped into the shower and shampoo'd my hair with Creme of Nature Sulphate-free Moisture & Shin Shampoo
(4.) Towel-dried my hair and deep conditioned overnight with a mix of the last few amounts of my Beautiful Textures deep conditioner + Neutrogena Hair Triple Moisture Hair Mask + Aussie moist 3-minute conditioner.
I am now 3 conditioners down and have only 5 conditioners remaining (including instant conditioner). YESSS

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Hot Head Conditioning Cap.. Yay or Nay?

I purchased the hot head conditioning cap on Etsy about 3 months ago. 

Price: 35 USD, excl. shipping
Bought from: etsy.com
The purchasing process was really smooth and I got a tracking number to track my parcel right until its arrival in Nairobi. It took about 7 days to get here which was quite fast compared to other online purchases I have made in the past. 

The cap came in a packet and a cute thank you card which I thought was quite nice and smart of them - good marketing.

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Dry Hair? Try Water....

Hiii everyone! I have gone MIA again... Sigh... I hope this is the last time that this happens this year... So much to do and so little time. However, I am happy to say that I have still been able to find time to take care of my hair and read your posts on Bloglovin' even though I haven't been commenting on all of them *hides face*

I am now 24 and a half weeks post relaxer, and I am counting down the days to my next retouch.. I don't really know the exact day but it is definitely any time from now.

Remember in my last post I asked for tips on what to do with dry hair? Thanks ladies for the tips they all came in handy. In fact of late, I have been using water and an oil to moisturize and seal.. shoutout to KLP of savingourstrands.com and Kim of fancyflairlady.com for reminding me of the miraculous powers of H20....

My hair is low porosity + thick, which makes it very difficult for anything to penetrate into my strands. I have found water to be very helpful. 

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Product Update

Empty Products:

I have used up so many deep conditioners, thanks to my new growth that uses up a lot of conditioner. These are just a few of the bottles that I have used up over the last month:

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My longest relaxer stretch...yet...

It's a new month! We are almost halfway through the year.. Happy June everybody!

I am now 21 weeks post relaxer and the initial plan was to have my hair relaxed last weekend, but.... I decided to see if I could make it to 28 weeks post relaxer, that would be 7 months. I do not know if I can hack this, but this is what I intend to do with my hair to keep myself from the "hands in hair" syndrome:

Protective Styling as Usual
Wash days are also taking ridiculously long at this stage, so any protective style which can reduce the number of washes without causing damage to my hair, would be great

My last protective style was very successful - mambo crochet braids. I intend on doing 2 more protective styles before I end this stretch. I would like to do a short-term and a long-term one since I still have about 8 weeks to go.

Short-term protective styles

- Goddess twist with synthetic hair

- Flat twists

Buns are a no-no at this stage, because the new growth just cannot be tamed, and my face looks so puffed up when I try to hold my hair in a pony tail in the middle.

Long-term protective style

- Single Twists vs. Crochet Braids: Right now I am leaning towards crochet braids because they have worked the best for me when it comes to keeping my ends fully protected, except for that one time when I most probably burnt my hair with hot water as I was trying to curl the Marley hair.

Regimen. Same old with a few changes

1.) Wash once a week (when my hair is not in a long-term protective style), alternating between co-wash and shampoo

2.) Deep condition when my hair is not in a protective style, and spray with deep conditioner when it is protected.

3.) Oil & Scalp massage 3 times a week

4.) Moisturize DAILY, yes DAILY. My new growth gets very dry, so I have to keep it soft and manageable by moisturizing it daily. My ends also have a habit of becoming dry easily so the daily moisturizing comes in very handy. I have tried the LOC method, but it becomes too heavy for my hair. If you have any tips on how to use this method without your hair having too much product, please let me know :-)

5.) I DO NOT USE Clarifying/ Cleansing shampoo during this time. I opt for sulphate-free shampoos and co-wash conditioners when my scalp does not have a lot of product build-up.

Do you change your hair regimen/ products as your hair changes? 

Head on to savingourstrands.com or justgrowalready.com and share your #washdayexperience with us!

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Buns, Buns, Buns

I finally took out my mambo braids after 5 weeks. This is the last stint I tried with these braids...

The good news is that my ends remained intact and my new growth is popping! I have about 1.5 - 2 inches of new growth, which is in line with what I would expect at 16 weeks post relaxer. The bad news is that my fully relaxed hair is looking even thinner as the new growth and texlaxed hair keeps outgrowing the texlaxed hair. 

This is how the rest of the wash day went:

(1.) Removed all the cornrows and then detangled in very small sections. I used Mane 'n Tail detangler and some olive oil, and it worked so well.

(2.) Applied coconut oil to my hair and my scalp and used my hothead conditioning cap to do a hot oil treatment.

(3.) Shampoo'd with Creme of Nature Sulfate-free Moisture & Shine Shampoo and lathered about 4 times. There was a lot of build-up in my hair, so a few more lathers than usual were needed.

(4.) I started off with a protein conditioner: Parnevu Hair Mayonnaise. Under my hothead cap, I kept the conditioner in my hair for about 30 minutes.

(5.) I rinsed with warm water and then deep conditioned with Creme of Nature Intensive Conditioning Treatment + olive oil. I used my hothead conditioning cap again....The heat lasted for about 20 minutes, at this point I was too lazy to wash my hair again so I did an overnight deep condition.

(6.) I rinsed the conditioner off in the morning and my hair felt so soft, rejuvenated and strong.

(7.) I applied my leave-ins, i.e. Kurlee Belle Thirsty Kurls Conditioner + OGX Coconut Oil Serum + ApHogee Keratin Restructurizer (for an extra protein boost to my ends).

(8.) I then did a braidout later that day , and the next day I tried out a braidout bun. It still needs some working on, but I liked how it came out as a first try.

I am contemplating on the next protective style to do, maybe just a simple goddess braid with synthetic hair, which may last one or two weeks, so that I have a chance to wash and deep condition my hair in between...

I hope you had an awesome wash day :-)

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Hair Update

I haven't done a proper update in a while, since I have been on this protective styling run.

Current Hairstyle:
- 4 weeks and counting in my mambo braids. I am taking them out this week, I realised that my hair suffers more than it gains when I keep these styles in for long.

Next Relaxer date: 
- I really don't know, I am just winging it for now, until I feel my hair telling me that it's time... I am 14 weeks post relxer now.

Loving: 
- My hair steamer. I can't go wrong when I use it, I always feel the difference in my hair's moisture after using my steamer.

Recently purchased: 
- A HotHead Deep Conditioning Cap. I haven't used it yet, but I am super excited about it. Purchased from etsy.com

Emptied: 
- aPhogee Keratin 2-minute Restructurizer
- Creme of Nature Leave-in Conditioner
- Tropic Isle Living Jamaican Black Castor Oil 8oz
- A jar of Shea butter

Wish list:
- Nothing, still purging my stash so I am not trying any new things until I cut down on what I have.

Other updates:
- I have been exercising at least twice a week, and I am hoping to increase this to three times a week. It has definitely help me feel better about myself and my health.
- I stopped taking hair vitamins for the past month or so, as I have been on medication. I am hoping to start again soon. I saw good results in terms of my hair thickness when I was on the vitamins. Hopefully I will get the same or better results in my hair's thickness and growth rate.

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My comeback plan - Protective Styling for the Win

My last protective style was awesome, I tried sooo many hairstyles with my crochet braids, and enjoyed the experience.

But then the day arrived when I had to take them out. And that is when I realised that I lost some hair with it. I had a lot of breakage and dry hair, and had to trim off about 1.5 inches off. This is more than the amount that would have grown over the 2 months (approximately 1 inch) that I had the style on.

Disappointed, demotivated, all the sad words you can think of, describe how I felt. I have been trying to keep my hair manipulation to the lowest amount possible, but this backfired on me this time.

I am not giving up, no! Two weeks ago, I tried a new protective style: Mambo Braids. I got a different stylist to do my hair, who is just awesome. Check her IG Page out HairbyMakanye. Her cornrows were very neat, and she tucked in the cornrows nicely so that none of my hair would be left to dry out.

This is what I have been doing to ensure that I get the most out of this protective styling session:

1.) Moisturize my hair every other day
2.) Two times a week I use my DIY Moisturizer made of conditioner+olive oil+water to give my hair an extra moisture boost
3.) Steam my hair once a week: I do not want to shampoo my hair this time round, just in case some shampoo doesn't wash out and has worse consequences than if I just left my hair like that
4.) Oil my scalp and my cornrows twice a week. I know where the ends of the cornrows are, so I have been targeting those areas to ensure that they are properly moisturized and sealed.
5.) Keep the protective style for a maximum of 4 weeks: I have learnt that my hair loves deep conditioning, and a long period like 6 weeks without a proper deep conditioning session just leaves my hair dry.

I will also be leaving my hair out in between protective styles for at least two weeks, so that my hair can get some pampering from my normal weekly wash day sessions.

Hopefully, I will reap the benefits of protective styling this time round :-)

19

Trouble managing your product stash? Try these few tips

I made one of the biggest mistakes in the first few months of my healthy hair journey. We all get excited when we embark on this new journey, but sometimes we get too excited. Within 6 months, my products could no longer be contained in the one shelf that I used to keep open for hair products. They overflowed to a second, third and fourth shelf. 

In November last year, I did a stock take of all my products, and was so shocked that I had so many products that were meant to do the same thing.

One of my resolutions for this year has been to minimise my stash, keeping only the products that have been of the most help to my hair. This is what I have found most useful as I try to contain my product arsenal...

(1.) Go to the cosmetic shop once a month: This helps keep focus, and I end up preparing a list of the things that I NEED, because I won't be able to go back until the next month.

(2.) Go to the cosmetic shop with close to the exact amount of money you need for your shopping list

(3.) Do not try to fix what is not broken... If a product is working for you, and you read a really great review of a similar product, hang on to your product until you finish it. Then you can try the next one. 

(4.) Have a limit to your storage space and stick to it: This way, you will know when you are reaching the limit, and when you need to hold a product buying "freeze"

(5.) Give products that don't work away: Your hair and the receiver will thank you for it

(6.) Recycle products: Conditioners that did not work can be used for co-washes and pre-poos, Moisturizers can be used as leave-ins, oils can be mixed with your deep conditioners, etc etc. KLP of savingourstrands has a whole list of what else you can do with your products.

(7.) If you've not used it in the last 6-12 months, you are unlikely to ever use it again: How many can relate to this? Even with my other stuff in the house, I use this rule and it helps me clean out my cupboard every now and then.

What has helped you the most in managing your product stash?

6

Where have I been + Protective Style out

Hi there! It has been an awfully long time since I updated my blog. I missed all the awesome wash day themes this month :-( So much has happened this month, including travel, lots of work, and a few personal projects that have come up. There is one that you may be interested in, which I will be sharing very soon, so stay tuned...

I had my crochet braids for 6 weeks, and I could have kept them longer but I could feel my hair was crying for moisture. And I was right! After undoing my hair, my ends were not looking good at all! Was it the dry weather we have been experiencing? Or the fact that I may have accidentally dipped my hair in hot water when I curled my braids a few times? I am not sure, but the only thing I know was that those ends had to go. I got rid of about 1.5 inches in total, which I would call a mini set-back, since I had religiously moisturized my corn rows underneath, and even washed them twice during this time! But anyway, lesson learnt: Listen to your hair always! 

Wash day routine:

1.) After undoing the crochet braids and cornrows underneath, I used my tried and trusted Mane 'n Tail Detangler.
2.) I did a protein treatment with my ApHogee Keratin Reconstructor, 
3.) Shampoo'd my hair with ORS Creamy Aloe Clarifying Shampoo. 
4.) Deep conditioned overnight (yasss!) with a mixture of Creme of Nature Argan Oil Intensive Treatment + (lots of) olive oil. My hair felt very soft and moisturized the next day after washing the conditioner out. But there was so much shedding. I thought I removed all the shedded hairs before washing my hair, but I came out with almost the same amount of shedding after washing out the deep conditioner and detangling my hair.

Was this protective style a success? I wish I could say yes, but the fact that it defeated its purpose of retaining my length as much as possible, I cannot say yes. Although I have always had issues with my ends even with the regular trims, so maybe I need to figure out exactly how to keep them in tact irrespective of the style I am wearing.

Here are a few tips I learnt that may help you when you do your protective style again:

1. Do not keep your protective style for longer than your hair can handle. If your hair underneath feels dry even after moisturizing it, it is time to remove the protective style and give your hair a good deep condition. 4-6 weeks is probably your best bet, but this will differ for everyone.

2. Ensure that the plaiting/ cornrow pattern underneath protects your hair as much as possible. Beehive pattern is probably the best as it only leaves one small part of your hair exposed. At some point some of my hair was sticking out because the stylist did straight-back cornrows and sowed the ends together with a thread. The ends unfortunately unraveled before I removed the protective style.

3. Stay away from hot water styling if you cannot tell the difference between your hair (the cornrows/ plaits) and the synthetic hair that has been sown on to your hair. 

4. Always moisturize + seal your hair under your protective style - it will save you a lot of unnecessary split and dried up ends when you take your protective style out.

Any more tips you can think of that have helped you get the most out of your protective style?

14

Hair Update & Dry Scalp Remedies

I am currently 7 weeks post-relaxer... I have been in my crochet braids for the last 4 weeks and I have absolutely enjoyed having this style on. I have experimented with it and quite a number of styles have worked really well!

The latest style I have tried is a simple blow-out. I simply made use of my denman brush to brush the curls out, and this was the result...

Since starting this healthy hair journey, I have learnt the importance of taking care of my hair even while it is in a protective style. This is what I usually do to my hair:

1.) Moisturize: I have been using this moisture spritz that I recently bought from the cosmetic store. I am loving it so far, but because of the dry season, I can feel that my hair is a bit dryer than I would like. I sometimes spray my hair with a watered down conditioner mix for an additional moisture effect.

2.) Scalp massage: I do this at least three times a week. When my scalp is dry, a little bit of castor oil + peppermint oil + rosemary oil always does the trick. When my hair is not in a protective style, I also like using a peppermint tea rinse which makes my scalp feel fresh and relaxed!

3.) Dry shampoo: I know that many ladies prefer  not to wet their hair when in a protective style, but I cannot go for more than two weeks without my scalp feeling itchy. The oil scalp massages also require a clean scalp for maximum effectiveness. So I use my ORS Dry Shampoo and alternate with a "full" wash every other week.

4.) "Full" wash: I mix Creme of Nature Sulfate Free Shampoo with lots of water, and spritz the mix onto my scalp and hair. I make sure to rinse it out thoroughly before applying a conditioner that will stay in my hair for less than 5 minutes.

What do you to keep your scalp clean during protective styling?

12

Crochet Braids...Take 2

After I had an unfortunate experience with the crochet braids that I got installed a few weeks ago, I decided to take them out and redo them with the brand of hair that I had used before.

This is how I prepared my hair for the installation:
(1.) Pre-poo'd with coconut oil
(2.) Co-Washed with As I am Coconut Co-Wash
(3.) Deep conditioned with a mixture of ORS Replenishing Conditioner + ApHogee 2-minute Keratin Reconstructor. I added a tablespoon of olive oil for a moisturizing effect.
(4.) I then sat under my hair steamer and steamed my hair for 15 minutes. This way, I got a protein treatment with a moisturizing effect from the steam.
(5.) Rinsed with warm water (my hair does not like cold water rinses), and t-shirt dried overnight. My hair was soft but strong, which is what my hair needed.
(6.) The next morning I applied my leave-ins: Creme of Nature Argan Oil Leave-in Conditioner + ApHogee Green Tea & Keratin Reconstructor. 
(7.) I later moisturized and sealed my hair with Shea Moisture Extra Transitioning Moisture Milk & Castor oil
(8.) My stylist applied castor oil to my scalp after she finished plaiting the cornrows.

I haven't had a chance to wear my crochet braids out, but I have tried a few styles with these braids and I am loving the versatility! I have learnt that crochet braids are much more than perm rod curls. You can do just as much as you can with your hair, if the braids are done properly. It's all about the pattern of the cornrows and the way the knots are tied onto the cornrows.

Here are a few pics of styles that I have tried:



I tried a mohawk style with these braids. It wasn't perfect, but good enough for a first attempt :-)

This week, I braided the marley hair into 12 braids, and dipped them in hot water. When unravelling, I only unravelled the braid, and did not separate. I have learnt that separating the braids further creates a lot of frizz and removes a lot of definition from the braid pattern. And voila...

 What do you think of these styles? Yay or Nay?

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Do your research before you go shopping...

I went to get a few products from the cosmetic store a few days ago. First, I must say that once again, Super Cosmetics has extended their range. Shea Moisture products are now available at any Super Cosmetic Store in town!

They do not have all the different product ranges within the Shea Moisture line, but they have a good handful to choose from.

As I was picking up my products from the isle, I found a lady who was asking the shop assistant to recommend the best Shea Moisture Shampoos. The assistant recommended the JBCO Clarifying Shampoo, which is definitely not a shampoo to be used everyday... Check my review on it here -> Shea Moisture Products Review

The lady then asked for a conditioner that would go well with the shampoo, and the assistant handed her the strengthen, grow & restore masque. The assistant's recommendations were completely random, she did not even ask the lady what her needs were, and what type of hair she has.

I was very tempted to say something to this lady, because she was clearly going to buy products that were possibly not suitable for her hair or the purpose for which she intended to use them. But I didn't...

The morale of this story is that many store assistants (and even owners) may not have enough time to talk to you and find out exactly what your needs are. They could end up giving you the wrong products, or even giving you products just so that you can spend as much as you possibly can. At the end of the day, if:

- you want to get as much out of your products, and
- you want to keep a simple regimen,

(1.) Research: It is best that you do your research at home before you head over to a cosmetic shop
(2.) List: Prepare a list of the products (or type of products) that you are planning to buy and carry the list to the shop. Stick to the list!
(3.) Read the ingredients before you purchase, ensuring that the ingredients match the need that you are trying to meet. E.g. if you need a moisturizing conditioner, you will look for fatty alcohols or natural ingredients such as natural oils, cetearyl alcohol, stearyl alcohol, with water being the first ingredient.

Happy product shopping :-)

4

New Buys: February 2016

I can't believe that I did not buy one single hair product in the month of January except for my crochet braids which I would not really consider to be a product as such.

This month, I had to replace a few items, and I was very disciplined in doing so.

Here's what I got in my basket for the month:

1. Parnevu Hair Mayonnaise (replacement): I used ORS Hair Mayo for the last few medium-protein treatments that I have done. I did not find it particularly useful for this purpose, so I am going back to what I used before I started on my hair journey.

2. Shea Butter (replacement): This Shea butter has been imported from Uganda. I have used it before, and I liked the texture and smoothness of this brand. It melts easily in the hands as well...

3. Jamaican Mango & Lime Pure Naturals Conditioning Mist (new): I have been on the lookout for a good moisturizing mist, especially for the times when my hair is in a long-term protective style. I read the ingredients on the list and it seemed to be a good product. All natural, no parabens, sulphates, etc. It smells amazing too!

4. Crochet needle (new): Since my last crochet fail, which cost me a lot, I have become determined to learn how install crochet braids. It will be a big saving if I can pull this off.

That's it for my January & February purchases..ION my stash has been reducing steadily, and I hope to do a stock-take soon to show you the progress that I have made so far... 

How many products did you buy in the month of January?

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