Friday 22 November 2013

D.I.Y: Greek Yogurt Deep Conditioner

I haven't done a protein treatment in a while... 2-3 months maybe. The other day I stumbled across some information that said fine hair needs protein. I have very fine hair in my nape which is susceptible to damage so I thought I'd give it a go. I loved the Hairveda Acai Berry Phyto Conditioner but as I said in a previous post it was out of stock from my regular stockist. A loved one is getting me the Aubrey GPB conditioner from the US (too expensive here) but until then I thought I'd try a D.I.Y protein conditioner. I can't say that I've had the best of luck with putting food in my hair but no harm in trying, right? This was relatively inexpensive and I plan to eat the rest of the greek yogurt with honey *licks lips*. I applied this to freshly washed hair, I'm sure it could also work as a prepoo but my hair was dirty or so I thought.

Ingredients 
Greek Yogurt- 7 tablespoons
Honey- 3 tablespoons
JBCO- 1 tablespoon
Peppermint Oil - 4 drops
Coconut Oil- 1 teaspoon (liquid)
Aloe vera gel - 1 teaspoon

You can play around with the quantities of the ingredients and substitute my oils for your favourites. Depending on your hair you may need more or less. I ran out of my first portion and had to make some more. I guess I have more hair than I thought.


Verdict
I love the fact that unlike the other D.I.Y conditioners I've made, this didn't leave any bits in my hair... definitely a bonus! The preparation time on this D.I.Y conditioner cannot be beaten, it takes minutes to make... providing you're not eating the yogurt in the process *guilty face*. It's easy to apply, great for detangling and smells divine. I left the conditioner in for about 1hr 30, I had french class to go to so I was in a rush, had the conditioner not been so visible I would have went with it on... out of laziness! I rinsed it out with cold water and cold water diluted with acv, I noticed it did take a little extra effort to rinse out. I loved the way my hair felt once I rinsed it out and the natural parts of my hair were so defined. Once it dried however my hair wasn't as soft, this can be down to a few things: a) I left the house with wet hair into the weather only fit for Santa Clause and his reindeers b) I used shampoo because I've been co-washing for the past 6 weeks c) It's a light protein treatment and I probably needed to do a moisture treatment to balance it out. Notice I refuse to blame my conditioner! On a whole my hair is shiny, more defined, stronger and after putting moisture back in my strands it feels great. Will I be using this again? Of course.

Have you used Greek yogurt in your hair before? Do you have a D.I.Y conditioner to recommend?


Tuesday 12 November 2013

Review: Bee Mine Hair Growth Serum (with sulphur)

Promises: Bee Mine do not explicitly specify any promises but as a growth serum we can infer the promise is increased growth.

Directions: Shake Well before each use. Apply a small amount to scalp. Massage thoroughly throughout the entire scalp. Repeat fall or every other day for best results. Apply a moisturiser after each use. With this product please perform a patch test prior to full use. 

Ingredients100% Organic Cocos Nucifera (Coconut) Oil, Prunus amygdalus dulcis (Sweet Almond) Oil, Vitis Vinifera (Grape Seed) Oil, Select Ayurvedic Herbs, Sulfur Powder, Essential Oils, Fragrance (Phthalates Free) & Vitamin E Tocopherol Oil.

Verdict: This time last year I bought 4 samples of Bee Mine products. This is the only one that I'm yet to review. The reason for this being that it has taken me a long time to make up my mind about this product. I'm certain that I like it but I don't know if I love it. The ingredients are great, the smell is greater! This would be a good time for me to mention that I bought the 'Kiwi and Mango Scent. My mum loves the smell of this, she'll happily apply this to my scalp for me. A little goes a really long way with this, which is great. I tend to use it when my hair is in plaits or twists because it's easier to apply.What I do love about this serum is that even though I only apply it on the scalp my roots end up really soft. I can't say that I've experienced amazing growth with this product but there were times when I noticed increased growth. I can definitely say that I notice increased growth and better hair quality with the use of supplements. I attempted to follow the directions and apply the serum daily or every other day but I found that was too much. The direction that I will emphasise is 'shake well', the sulphur tends to stubbornly sit at the bottom.  The price is fair, a little on the expensive side, I paid £4.50 for 2oz. Would I buy this again? Most probably but not any time soon. I may be more inclined to purchase the serum without sulphur because then I won't be restricted to only apply it to my scalp.

Have you tried any of Bee Mine's Growth Serums?

Thursday 7 November 2013

19 Months Post Relaxer

Today marks 19 months since I got my last relaxer *fist pumps*. My transition to natural will soon be drawing to an end. Where the time has gone? Who knows. I guess it's true what they say, time waits for no (wo)man. I still can't believe I'm 5 months short of 2 yrs post. Roll on the next 5 months... not too quickly though because I have a lot of University deadlines next term *gulps*. I know I change my mind all the time but I'm aiming on ending my transition in the next 5 - 7 months. In the mean time I'll continue to trim 1/2 inch every 8 weeks. My last trim was last week and plan to trim another 1/2 inch off my hair just before the start of the new year.

 I get a few questions on what products I use, these can be found in my regimen. I can only stress that although products are important, how you manage your hair is also important! I think the reason my transition has been so successful is because I keep manipulation to a minimum. I will also tell you that co-washing is your best friend, I wasn't too keen on it at the start of my journey but it has definitely grown on me... my new growth loves it! For ages I have wanted to purchase a silicone free conditioner and have finally got one, Tresemme Naturals..... I've used it once and I love it. A review will be coming soon. I can definitely say there has been a significant improvement since I cut down on my use of shampoo. Currently, I only shampoo once a month maximum, mainly to remove any product buildup. I have also noticed that my growth rate has increased since July. I went from growing on average 1/3 inch a month to more or less 1/2 an inch a month. For those wondering what vitamins I've been taking; I started out with Holland and Barrett's Skin, Hair and Nails, then Tesco's Hair Skin and Nails, and now I'm taking Biotin 1000mcg and a Multi-vitamin a day. I've also been taking the occasional Fish Oil for the Omega 3. As I improve my diet further, I imagine there would be less need for these supplements.

Oh yeah,  my Dad commented on my hair last weekend, he said that it's getting long. This is the same man that I tried to coerce into talking about my transition to natural and had little success. He noticed the difference in my hair, it actually made me smile inside, the little things in life ey?

Here are some picture I took today of my hair. You can definitely see my different textures. The top two are of the front and the bottom are of the back.


Wednesday 6 November 2013

Product Haul: 'The Body Shop'

The Body Shop had a 40% off sale last week and I just couldn't resist. The one thing I love most about The Body Shop is that they don't test on animals... I feel quite strongly about animal testing and other forms of animal cruelty. I guess this is the part where I tell you that despite being against animal cruelty I'm not a vegetarian, although I was for 14/15 yrs, contradiction or what? Don't judge me! So, what did I buy, I hear you ask. I bought a Detangling comb, Tea Tree Skin Clearing Lotion, Brazil Nut Butter and Tea Tree Face Mask. I also received a complimentary sample of their Rainforest Moisture Hair Butter. I've included all the photos underneath with the price I paid and the RRP. Do you have any favourites from The Body Shop?

Sale Price £2.40/ r.r.p £4.00

Sale Price £1.80/ r.r.p £3.00

Sale Price £6.00/ r.r.p £10.00

Friday 1 November 2013

Chunky Twists

Hey Guys, Pinch, Punch, first day of the month... no returns. Happy 1st November, winter is well and truly here. This week my scarf officially came out of hibernation... For all my readers who are not experiencing cold weather, I envy you! In order to protect my hair from the winter wrath, I'll be wearing my hair in twists... my new fav style. I twist my hair with the same products I M&S with, S Curl and Shea Moisture Transitioning Milk. These twists took me about 40mins or so to do. I scruffy parted with my finger to avoid the scalpy look. I plan on keeping these in for just over a week. I love how juicy my twists look and this style will only get better as my natural hair grows out more. I've been asked a few times how I manage to prevent my hair from unravelling, given that my ends are still straight... My answer is twist the hair tightly and use a butter or cream, it holds a lot better that way. I definitely recommend twists as a transitioning style especially for transitioners over a year post. You can change the style with accessories, pin your twists in different ways, whatever you feel like. I'm so happy that I've finally been able to use my flower clip, I never know where to put it.
What do you guys think of this style? How will you be protecting your hair this winter?

P.S. I've finally been reunited with my card reader, so I no longer have to use my phone camera. I have lots of great posts coming so stay posted :).




Custom content

Follow on Bloglovin