Best of 2009!

Happy New Year, Curlies! Better late, than never, right?

I still love you, I just want to make sure I'm giving you the best information I can, so I write when there's something exciting to write about. 2010 will be full of new product reviews, updates, beauty, skincare, videos and more! Before we jump into the new, let's recap some of the best products of 2009. Here we go......

Overall Hair Care: Curly Girl Method, "Baggy", and Sealing

Eliminating sulfates and -cones in my hair products has been the single best thing I've done for my hair in 2009. It retains moisture better, it's softer, shinier, and it simply looks healthy. For more info, check the tags in the side bar.

Shampoo: Aubrey Organics White Camelia

This cleanser is sulfate-free, but still does a great job cleaning my hair and scalp. I only use this product once every 2 weeks, focusing mainly on my scalp.

Co-Wash Conditioner: Trader Joe's Nourish Spa

Deep Conditioner: Aubrey Organics Honey Suckle Rose

I get much better results with a damp washcloth over my hair, plastic cap, and a hooded dryer for 30-45 minutes. Makes detangling a breeze!

Leave-In Conditioner: Desert Essence Jojoba Conditioner and Taliah Waajid Protective Mist Bodifier

Moisturizer: Shea-Aloe (with a KinkyCurly Twist)

Follow the recipe for basic Shea-Aloe. Once the oils have cooled, add 1/4 C of conditioner (must be silicone and protein free) and 1/4 C Taliah Waajid Bodifier. Mix until creamy

Oil(s): Auromere Pre-Shampoo Conditioner

This Ayurvedic oil is a blend of Indian herbs, coconut, and wheat germ oils. It gives my hair nourishment and amazing shine. For an amazing hot oil treatment- saturate hair with oil, pop on a plastic cap, and sit under a hooded dryer for 20 minutes. Wash and style as usual.

Styling Product: Taliah Waajid  Lock It Up "gel"

This product defines curls like a traditional gel, without the drying alcohol. It's also made with nettle, hemp, and Taliah's Black Earth formula.

Routine: Check these    posts

Skin Care (For my dry skin)

Cleanser: Oil Cleansing Method (All skin types)

100% African Black Soap

Moisturizer: I love experimenting with the ingredients that I have on hand. This winter, my skin has been loving shea butter, jojoba oil, and aloe vera gel mixed in the palm of my hand.

Exfoliator: Philosophy The Microdelivery Peel

Worth every penny! Vitamin C crystals and lactic/salicylic acid gel combine to exfoliate and resurface skin revealing glowing, just-had-a-facial skin. This will last months-a little goes a long way.

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.

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

Do It! Do It!

It's been a while dahlings, but I'm back. I've been trying new products, attending industry events, and mixin' it up in the lab (aka my kitchen).



Since going natural and adopting the CG Method, I've been scrambling to find products that work for my hair, and struggling to find a weekly routine I could stick to. Browsing the hair forums, I came across new methods like "baggying" and "sealing" that I had never done before to my hair. After reading hundreds of threads, I think I've found a weekly routine that I can stick to. It's work, I use way too many products, but my hair looks healthy, feels great and I'm worth it! In a perfect world, this is what I do weekly:

Pre-poo overnight with oil

Wash 1x monthly with shampoo

Co-wash with conditioner

Detangle out of the shower with wide tooth comb and paddle brush. Section hair into 4 sections

Leave sectioned hair in clips and rinse conditioner


Apply hair mask 1x month

Apply deep treatment to hair in sections



Sit under hooded dryer 30 minutes

Remove clips and rinse DT

Moisturize with Qhemet Biologics Detangling Ghee and Taliah Waajid Protective Mist Bodifier. Comb through

Apply Trader Joe's Nourish Spa conditioner as a leave-in

Apply shea butter

Seal with oil

At this point, my hair is cleansed, soft, detangled and full of moisture. I can style it any number of ways, usually in 2x twists.

Apply light oil to scalp. Massage

Spray each day with a mix of water, conditioner and oil in a spray bottle. Spray again at night and baggy.

The Vocab:

Sealing- Applying an oil to well moisturised and conditioned hair to lock in moisture

Baggy- Applying moisturizing product to hair and applying a plastic cap and leaving over night

Pre-poo- Saturating hair in oil and leaving overnight. Shampoo in the morning

Word to the wise: Do your research. What works for one kinky girl may not work for another. Experimenting is the fun part of this natural journey. Good luck, dahlings! Until next time.....