Everyone Loves a Bargain

Kinky/Curly Cutie (and fellow Emory Alumnae) JT wants to know how I achieve my puff when I'm wearing a twist-out. Kerry Washington knows my secret- it's Goody's Ouchless headbands, and she's wearing one in this pic. Here's my tip: place the headband around your head, pull forward, away from your head, and cross, double around your head once more and slide back into desired position. My hair is thick and as dense as a pine forest, so I have no trouble keeping

the band in place. If you're worried about slippage, anchor the band in back with bobby pins, crossed like an X.

Goody Ouchless Headbands, $4, drugstores, Walmart, Target.

I've also seen these at the dollar store and at Walgreens for a buck! Happy Shopping :)

Atlanta Natural Hair Meet Up- The Video

Yay!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! My YouTube debut, courtesy of brwnbarbie24. Enjoy!

More Pics!

The Perfect Puff: Nexxus Leave-In, and Curl Activator Gel



Get some Lil' Better Butter and a cute tee at www.knapsgirl.com



Me and Yanicka: She uses Aussie Moist conditioner and Coconut Oil for sleek, smooth, shiny curls


Please be inspired by these beautiful women. And ladies, keep doing what you're doing! Until next time.........

Atlanta Natural Hair Meet Up

Making New Friends: Lexi, Farrah, Me, Kiki, Stefanie



Kinky/Curly Cuties from all over the Atlanta area gathered at The Blackwood Pizza Bar to talk hair, products, and just have a ball. The event was organized by Lexiwiththecurls on Youtube. She is such a sweetheart and I'm glad to have met her. I also chatted with "friend in my head" brwnbarbie24 on Youtube. She's so funny and down to earth. You should definitely check these ladies' videos out. When I tell you there is nothing like sistah' hood, thesistahchick on Youtube had to give me a lift home because my car broke down :( I definitely enjoyed the fellowship of the evening! Here are some pics from the event. Enjoy!










Farrah's Fierce 'Fro using Darcy's Botanicals and KCKT










HOTD: A quick shingle using Miss Jessie's Curly Pudding. It was raining cats and dogs, so my 'fro shrunk big time and I lost a lot of curl def. I still think it looks cute!













Me and Lexi! She's my hair idol. She used Pantene Curls Gel and Herbal Essences Hydralicious conditoner to get these rockin' ringlets!


Miss Jessie's Girls: (top) Curly Meringue




(left) Her curls and coils were Awesome in person! She used Curly Pudding and Curly Buttercreme.

Emerald Greene Designs F/W '09

Earrings: Designer Original

Get Yours: www.emeraldgreene.etsy.com

Every Kinky/Curly Cutie needs these in their life! Love 'ya. Until next time.........................

I may have to eat my words.........

Solange, at the 2009 MTV VMA's, still a kinky/curly cutie!

Look Mom, no weave! :)

A Tale of Two Conditioners

I've talked about Burt's Bees and Desert Essence conditioners, but I haven't written a review.

Burt's Bees Shea & Graprefruit Deep Conditioner

I picked this up at Ulta because I had a coupon. The ingredients are just okay, and it's expensive for the size ($8, 5 oz.) However, it does work well and I would probably pick it up again- with another coupon, of course!


Ingredients: water, cetrimonium bromide, cetearyl alcohol, sucrose laurate, glycerin, honey, butyrospermum parkii (shea butter), glucose, betaine, citrus grandis (grapefruit) seed extract, citrus aurantium dulcis (orange) peel oil, citrus medica limonum (lemon) peel oil, citrus tangerina (tangerine) peel oil, citrus aurantifolia (lime) oil, zingiber officinale (ginger) root extract, citrus reticulata (tangerine/petitgrain) leaf oil, acacia senegal gum, polysorbate 60, glucose oxidase, lactoperoxidase

Desert Essence Jojoba Conditioner with Organic Jojoba Oil

I discovered this jewel of a conditioner at vitacost.com ($3.51, 12 oz). It's protein and silicone free, which means it really moisturizes, penetrates the hair shaft and doesn't cause build-up. The value is excellent, the ingredients are stellar, and it doubles as my leave-in. Vitacost.com has $5 shipping, and I stock up on several goodies at a time:

Aubrey's
Oils
Vegetable glycerin
100% Cocoa Butter
Skin care

This is a must-try, and for me it's a must have!

Ingredients: Purified Water, Cetyl Alcohol (Vegetable Source), Vegetable Emulsifying Wax, Organic Simmondsia Chinensis (Jojoba) Seed Oil, Aleurties Moluccana (Kukui) Seed Oil, Water (and) Aloe Barbadensis Leaf Extract, Grindelia Humilis Leaf, Symphytum Officinale (Comfrey) Leaf Extract, Lecithin, Vitamin A and E, Methylparaben, and Rosmarinus Officinalis (Rosemary) Leaf Oil.

Support Black Owned: Taliah Waajid Protective Mist Bodifier

This product is awesome, it's an official HG product, and I will not be without it. I can pick this up at my BSS, but you can also get it online.

The claim:
Moisturizes, conditions, coats hair, stops breakage, softens, hair, detangles, removes braids

The ingredients:
Pure distilled water, wheat germ, Indian hemp, olive oil, balsam, aloe vera, bee pollen, silk protein, bay laurel, fruit bioflavenoids, Ancient African Herbal Formula

Updates :)

I've done a lot of make up posts these past couple of months, right? Can't a girl love hair AND make up?

No worries, I'm back with a hair update, pics, and recipes just for you!

New Hair Routine: Part 1

Fall is here, winter is just around the corner, and cold air is waiting to suck the moisture from our hair and skin. My first line of defense against dry locks this season will be protective styling. 2x twists on wash day, worn for 1 week. Twist-out the next week, pulled back in a puff, until next wash day.

Wash Day: Part 2

I pre-poo on DRY hair with a combo of 3-5 of my fave conditioners and seal with oil. Pop on a plastic cap, wrap a towel or scarf around that, and wear as long as I can stand it, sometimes overnight. My current pre-poo conditioners:

Aubrey Organics Honeysuckle Rose
Burt's Bees Shea & Grapefruit Deep Conditoner
Desert Essence Jojoba Conditioner (vitacost.com)
Inecto Pure Coconut Oil Conditioner (Ulta)
Coconut Oil to seal

When I'm ready to wash, I detangle with my fingers as much as I can, then I finish in the shower. I shampoo with Aubrey Organics White Camelia (SLS-free), co-wash with Herbal Essence Hello Hydration or Hydralicious, detangle some more with a shower comb AND a paddle brush, then rinse with cold water. I use a little more of the Desert Essence (quarter size amount) over my entire head as a leave-in. I follow that with a scalp massage using any carrier oil I have on hand (avocado, olive, almond) mixed with a few drops of peppermint and lavender e.o.

New! Hair Mask/Smoothie Recipe: Part 3

I have tried Carol's Daughter Tui Hair Smoothie ($19, 8 oz.) and I don't like the wax that's in it, Jessicurl Weekly Deep Conditioning Treatment ($12.75 + shipping, 8 oz.) and I hate to pay for shipping, and I've been eyeing Karen's Body Beautiful Luscious Locks Moisturizing Hair mask ($25 + shipping, 8 oz.). I simply refuse to pay that much money for product that will be rinsed out, and will only last 2-3 uses. So, a sistah got creative. I took the best ingredients from each of them and whipped up my own luscious creation. Here's what's in it:

shea butter
cocoa butter
coconut oil
castor oil
glycerin
*conditioner (cannot have silicones or protein. I use my Aubrey and Desert Essence)
almond oil
olive oil
rosemary e.o.
Taliah Waajid Protective Mist Bodifier (will post ingredients)

These are products that I use daily. I simply combined them in one product and it is the most moisturizing treat for my hair. I use it as a DT, I twist with it, I mix it in my palm with a few extra drops of oil and use it as a daily moisturizer. It is the business!

Styling: Part 4

Once my twists are done, I like to pin them up for a sophisticated look. My hair usually stays moisturized for 2-3 days using the smoothie. If it looks lackluster, I remove the pins, use the smoothie (with oil) as a daily moisturizer, seal with oil, and pin it up again. That's it!













My puff: Part 5

Kinky/Curly Magazine Celebrates One Year! and Tyra's Real Hair!

I wrote my very first blog entry on September 8, 2008. I let the entire World Wide Web know about my hair-story. Much of that story is still being written. I've fully accepted my crown, and I wear it proudly. I wear it well. My heart's desire is to now help other women accept theirs.

I think it's fitting that today Tyra Banks premiered Season 5 of her talk show by revealing her real hair (sans weave, still permed. It's about baby steps, y'all). She looked beautiful. She looked like that sistah at the mall, your child's always-put-together teacher, like YOU! It made me ask myself, If Tyra's gonna use weave, why use so much of it? Why must the transformation be so far from your original beauty, into a blonde, silky-haired stranger? It's gonna take baby steps, for real.

Tyra noted that the obsession with weave is not just a Brown Girl issue, noting that both Jessica Simpson and Paris Hilton have hair (extension) lines, and that everyone in the industry wears weave. If everyone got nose jobs, Tyra, would you get one too?

Guests on her show revealed how insecure and unattractive they felt without weave. One Black woman said her weave gave her confidence, and that she "hated" her natural hair. A White guest with hair extensions stated "I am my hair." Where did the notion that long hair (straight, or natural) equals beauty come from?

Many men and women I asked said simply that long hair is more feminine, attractive and sexy. Women use it to flirt, men think it's a turn-on and want to run their fingers through it. It's what distinguishes us as the opposite sex. It's magical, the lore of fairy-tales, and it's romantic, and quite frankly, short hair is for lesbians. Not my words, Curlies. Don't shoot the messenger!

I challenge anyone reading this to question your own ideologies about hair and beauty. Can you emerge from the barber's chair rocking a Caesar and still feel FIERCE! If not, what's holding you back? Did you just "big chop" and now you can't wait for your "natural" hair to grow long so you can feel pretty again? Are you obsessed with vitamins and frequent "length checks", counting down the days until your hair is "bra strap length". If any of this rings true for you, ask yourself 'Why'.

Shaving my head made me feel strong and liberated. I defined beauty for myself, beauty was Me. Still is. I challenge you all to do the same.

Next season, Tyra? A twist-out? Can't wait! Until next time, Curlies.......