Okay so you want healthier hair but, don't know where to start. We've all been here and some of us choose to go natural while some might want to try something else. Well, what's something else? Can you have healthier hair without going natural? The answer is yes, if course you can!

One thing I feel strongly about (in regards to natural hair) is, not doing the Big Chop until you're ready. I feel that some women rush into the Big Chop (where you cut off all of your relaxed ends and are often left with a TWA- teeny weeny afro) and regret cutting their hair so short. Going natural and coping with having short hair is enough to have anyone thinking "What in the **** did I just do!?! Where is my perm?!".

Well here are some options! If in the end you decide to go natural, great! But, if you don't, that's fine too. The end goal no matter what you choose should be healthy hair.

Here is a list of some of your options for achieving healthy hair: 

1. Stretching Relaxers- This is when you go longer than your usual time in between relaxing. For example, if you go 6-8 weeks, you would stretch that to 8-10 or 3-6 months. Some women even go 12 months before relaxing again. One benefit of stretching your relaxers is that it gives you more "new growth", which allows you to relax only the new growth and not over process your hair. Over processing is the cause of breakage for a lot of relaxed ladies. Check out KISS- Keep It Simple Sista's Blog for information on stretching relaxers.


2. Weaves- Weaves? Yes, weaves! Weaves, when done properly, are a great way to grow out your hair. Getting weaves installed properly and by a professional "weaveologist" (that's what they're calling them these days...hmm) can help you maintain and grow long healthy hair. This can be expensive due to quality hair costing a pretty penny, from $50-200 a pack or per so many ounces...or whatever it's called. Check out this thread about "The Don'ts of Wearing Weave"


3. Heat Training- Heat training natural hair is when you use heat (blow dryer, flat iron, or pressing comb) on a consistent basis. This often results in a loosening of the curl pattern and allows the hair to stay straighter longer. Usually, heat trained hair acts like relaxed hair because, it doesn't revert back to curly easily. It usually stays straight until wash day. This is a great option for those who want to stretch their relaxers or want to wear straight hair but, don't want to use chemicals to achieve the look. Heat training does take lots of care because, your hair can become damaged and break off from excessive use of heat, if not done properly. Check Out Brittanynic16 on YouTube. She explains how to heat train natural hair and shows her results. 

As with all things, there are rules and the above options have their do and don'ts and pro and cons. Make sure that while you partake in these hair care practices, you pay special attention to your hair to watch for breakage or excessive damage.

Hope this helps some of you who would like some other options besides going 100% natural. 

As always thanks for reading!

Have you tried any of the above methods of growing out your hair? Did you like them?

For Your Body & Hair Butters Visit: DIY Hair Care Products

All About Hair: How To Use A Denman Without Damaging Your Hair

Scandal aside, MopTopMavens blog is an awesome resource for natural hair women. She was kind enough to break down the different uses for each Denman brush and how to get the most out of each brush! I bet you didn't know a Denman could help with blow drying, did you? She shares more tips and tricks in the below post, enjoy!

All About Hair: How To Use A Denman Without Damaging Your Hair

By: MopTopMaven

The Denman brush was undeniably one of the most hated tools in my styling arsenal. I couldn't understand the hype around something that could rip and pull your hair to shreds. Needless to say, my first experience with a Denman brush was nothing to write home about. - After revisiting this brush a few times, it has become one of my go-to tools whether wearing a twist-out, or hair that has been blow-dried and pressed. The key was learning when to use it, and how to use it properly. 

Here is what I learned about using the Denman Brush

Denman D4 brush can be purchased {here}

Using a Denman brush to aid in blow-drying: Using a denman brush to blow-dry the hair makes for hair that is very silky, straight, and full of body. I use a Denman D4 for this because the rows of this brush are very close together, it aids in the sleek finish. To avoid damage, keep these tips in mind:

• Make sure the hair has been thoroughly detangled with a seamless comb prior to blow-drying


• Towel dry the hair carefully; the hair should be damp, not soaking wet while blow-drying


• Use a leave-in conditioner [I love Sebastian Potion #9 for styles that require heat], it will help lubricate the strands keeping your hair free of tangles, matting and knots while working with your hair


• Blow-dry in small 1/2 inch sections of hair 


• Lightly blow-dry roots and entire length of your 1/2 inch section before brushing the hair with the Denman Brush, as it is better to brush hair that is slightly damp versus hair that is wet.  


• Once hair is slightly damp, blow-dry hair as normal using your Denman brush instead of a comb.  
  

 Denman D31 can be purchased {here}

Denman D41 can be purchased {here}

Using a Denman brush on wet, natural hair: I use a Denman D31 to help smooth the hair out before doing a twist or braid set. This brush also helps enhance your natural curl pattern and distribute styling products evenly throughout your coarse, kinky, strands. The bristles are wider apart which means it is better for natural, highly textured hair [If your hair is uber thick and prone to excessive tangles, pick up the D41 instead]. Smoothing my hair with a Denman brush helps make my set silkier and softer. To avoid damage, keep the following in mind:

• Even though this can be used on it's own as a detangling brush, I still recommend detangling with a wide-tooth comb beforehand, especially if you have type 4 hair.  


• Work in small 1/2 sections of hair to prevent excess tangles, knots and matting


• Always detangle with product in your hair, whether it be conditioner, or a detangling mixture like the one featured in {this post}. 


• Brush hair from the bottom up to prevent unnecessary snagging and tension

Hope this post helps those of you looking for new detangling tool or those of you who have a Denman but, don't love it.

Do you have Denman? If so, do you like it?

I have one and I LOVE it! :)

For Your Body & Hair Butters Visit: DIY Hair Care Products 

I love fixing hair. I actually know how to care for naturally curly hair (well I take pretty great care of my own...lol) and as life would have it, I am the mother of a sweet little girl, who does not like getting her hair done. If you're like me, you couldn't wait until she had enough hair to put in little puffs! I had rainbow colored rubber bands, little clips and huge bows! I was armed and ready to make her look like a walking gum ball machine. So, imagine my disappointment when at 2 years old she refuses to let me do her hair!

Sigh.

I've read all the blogs where people condemn mothers and say children don't like getting their hair done because mothers aren't gentle enough. That's a bunch of hogwash. Some children just do not like getting their hair touched. So, here is what I've learned and hopefully it will help the rest of you who are dealing with toddlers that don't/won't let you fix their hair without a fight!

1. Ponytails- I know you want to make bunches of ponytails and do all kinds of cornrow styles but, don't. Stick to simple ponytails that can be redone in under 15-30 minutes. I try to stick to styles that can be done while she is eating and distracted. Thankfully, I have a child who loves to eat!

2. Co-Wash- When her hair when it gets a bit dry, I take all the ponytails out (use rubber bands and you can just snap them out or cut them out). I pour water on her hair, then apply a heaping amount of conditioner, and rinse.

3. Oils- While her hair is wet from her co-wash, I apply a leave-in (sometimes) and a large amount of coconut or olive oil. I then grab 2 rubber bands a slap her hair in 2 puffs. I use a Denman brush to smooth down her edges. With a headband this is THE cutest style ever. Quick and simple. I find that the oils help keep her hair from shrinking up too bad and also help keep tangles at bay.

4. Detangling- I only detangle her whole head when I'm doing a complicated style. As I section off her hair for ponytails I detangle GENTLY with my Denman brush. For us, the Denman gets out the tangles without her feeling much of the pulling. With combs, she seems to feel every little snag. Co-washing helps keep her tangles to a minimum so I don't have to detangle more than once every 2 weeks.

5. Keep It Simple- I cringe when I see parents making their toddlers sleep with scarves or caps. they're toddlers, let them live! Save all those balls and cornrow styles for the big girls who can easily sit down for hours. Doing simple styles also puts less stress on their hair and helps prevent breakage.

6. Breathe- She won't hate getting her hair done forever (let's hope) and by being gentle and not forcing her, she'll come around sooner. I know my daughter is just going trough the "No" phase and this too shall pass. Soon they'll be begging us to fix their hair and do all kinds of styles.

Remember, toddlers are cute in their own right without anything extra. I'm not let your child look homeless but, don't be too hard on them. Children sleep wild and mess up styles so just save yourself the stress and keep it simple.

Do you have a toddler? Do they like getting their hair done? What are your tips to getting your toddler out the door with decent hair?

For Your Body & Hair Butters Visit: DIY Hair Care Products 

Questions and Answers about my (Jarmelia) Natural Hair!

I have been getting questions on Twitter, Facebook, Email and Comments asking me for my regimen and for more information on how I care for my hair. Here are some common questions I get and the answers. By the way, I love questions so if you have any please feel free to ask me and I'll be sure to answer!

On to the questions!

1. What shampoo do you use and how often?
I use and have been using shampoo bars since November. I started out using black soap (which I still use from time to time) and now use my very own shampoo and body bars from DIY Hair Care Products on a weekly basis.

I shampoo once a week.

2. What rinse out conditioner do you like the most?
Giovanni Smooth as Silk and for detangling, White Rain Topical Coconut or DIY Aloe and Chamomile Detangling Conditioner.


3. How often do you trim?
Every 3-6 months, depends on how my ends feel. I just got a trim in April and my ends still feel and look great!

4. What leave-ins do you use?
I only use one and its DIY's Neem and Green Tea Hair Milk. Been using it since January under my Shea Avocado Hair Butter and I haven't used anything else since.

5. What do you use to deep condition?
Molasses, honey, wheatgerm mixed with a conditioner. I deep condition as needed, which means I'm too lazy to stick to a regimen for it. Lol!

6. How long is your hair and how long have you been natural?
My longest layer is bra strap length and I have been natural for 2 1/2-3 years.

7. What is your hair type?
A 4a I think. I have some loose curls and some parts that don't curl at all but, it seems most naturals also have these patches.

8. What do you use to detangle?
A Denman brush. I have used a wide tooth comb but, I seem to get less damage with the Denman. I have been using my Denman since the start of my journey.

That's all folks! All the products I use are linked to the words! Please be sure to leave any comments or questions in the description box!

Thanks!


*All pictures are of my hair.

For Your Body & Hair Butters Visit:DIY Hair Care Products

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When deciding to go natural and join the natural hair community many of us unknowingly get signed up for the natural hair military! Sometimes, it can feel like an all out war among relaxed hair ladies and natural hair ladies, with many natural hair ladies being referred to as "Natural Hair Nazis". Just scroll Youtube or Twitter and you will see instantly what a "Natural Hair Nazi" may be. The question that is often asked is to these women is; "Is hair ever that serious?"!

When I went natural years ago, I had no idea there was a "natural community" heck, I didn't even know I had went "natural"! Truth be told, it was comforting to find women who also shared a common interest in curly hair care. I would be on hair care forums for hours a day and go around educating my friends on "natural hair". Before long, I was touting all kinds of "facts" about how harmful relaxers were, how black women got relaxers to try to be white, how black women were ashamed of their hair, and so on. I had become a Natural Hair Nazi!

I was literally brainwashed and truly felt bad for relaxed women! Thinking that because I had accepted my natural hair, I was somehow above other women even though, I still suffered from low self-esteem in certain areas. No other word can describe my state of mind but, delusional. I was delusional!

Point is, having natural hair does not make someone more accepting of themselves no more than a relaxer means a woman is ashamed of her hair. Yes, a lot of black women (white women alike) may not like their curly, kinky, highly textured or (whatever we are calling it now) hair we still can't assume anything about the hair care choices an individual has made. A lot of women use relaxers out of habit and some do like the ease of maintenance (post coming soon) that comes with relaxed hair. But, to say some women relax because they want to be white or have low self esteem is degrading and shows a large amount of ignorance.

Having been natural for a few years, there are many natural hair ladies with low self esteem. I guess some thought going natural would change that but, it obviously didn't. That's all I'm going to say about that!

True confidence is when you can make a decision for yourself and not need any outside approval or to put others down. This is why I am always hesitant to state I'm a part of the "natural hair community". I don't knock anyone for using relaxers, while they aren't for me at this time, everyone is entitled to do with their hair as they please. (just please leave the relaxers alone when it comes to the children!) Sometimes, we all need to eat a piece of humble pie, it does the brain well!



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This post is one that has been rattling around my head for months! Well, after reading a comment on College Curlies, I have decided to tackle it. The Big Chop! What is The Big Chop? Do you have to Big Chop in order to have natural hair? Do you have to go bald to become natural?

Here is the comment posted on College Curlies that inspired this post:

"This is a depressing comment sorry but it's something I don't really share. I just wanted to give a differen perspective that people might have to also overcome. For me, it's not so much that it's not straight anymore because the texture and thickness is why I became natural but it's how short my hair is right now. Maybe I should have transitioned longer but honestly, I think I went as long as I could (5 months)....I wig it up but I do take good care of my hair underneath and I'm still taking the time to learn what works for it and what doesn't. (..........) I guess I can't carry a short cut...it scarred me, really did. (......)"

What is The Big Chop?

If you're transitioning from relaxed to natural hair, when you cut off the relaxed hair and leave only the "new growth" or natural hair this is called your Big Chop. You no longer have any relaxed hair on you head, only curly hair.

Do you have to Big Chop in order to have natural hair?

Yes, if you have relaxed hair. You have to cut off the relaxed hair in order to be considered a "natural" or as having natural hair. If you have relaxed ends (the tips of your hair) but, have let the roots (new growth) grow out, then you are transitioning.

Do you have to go bald to become natural?

Of course not! You can grow out your relaxer for as long as you want or need. This is called transitioning. While transitioning you will be dealing with 2 different textures of hair; the new growth and the relaxed hair all on one strand! It can be a challenge to come up with styles for transitioning hair. It is also very important to detangle properly and keep a great protein moisture balance to keep the hair from breaking at the demarcation line (the point where the "new growth" and relaxed hair meet). This is where the hair is very weak.  Pictures of transitioning hair


So, if you are not a fan of short hair or just don't want to cut all of your hair off then transitioning is for you! I have seen some women transition for 24 months and some as short as 2-3 months. It's a personal choice and one that you need to make depending on your hair preferences.

If you do decide to Big Chop early, and don't like how short your hair is then you can always do protective styles to grow your hair out.

Lots of ladies have their transitioning journeys on YouTube, so check them out as well.

Don't get discouraged or feel bad if you don't like the short curly look. Do what makes you comfortable. Not liking a short hair cut doesn't make you less confident or anything of the sort. Every style isn't for everybody!



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So you've heard all the news about going natural and you want to see what's it all about, huh? Well, first, lets bust some natural hair myths! We'll call them black hair myths. These are the lies or "theories" or even "old wives tales" that have been passed down for generations about black hair and black hair care. These myths, have discouraged (understandably so) many women from going natural and discovering their natural hair.

First, let's talk about what exactly is "black hair"? To be honest, I don't believe in "black hair", none of us, no matter if we are all brown and have African ancestry, have hair that is the same. Hair varies from person to person or I should say head to head. Yes, a lot of us have hair the has similar traits but, when you get to comparing hair between all races, you'll find many of us share the same hair traits.


This post is going to be my attempt at encouraging those of you who are interested in going natural or are newly natural and a bit frustrated. Let's get to those myths, shall we?

Black Hair Care Myths

• Black hair is more brittle.  Brittle hair is a trait of dry hair. Dry hair is hair that doesn't have the proper moisture. Learning how to properly moisturize and seal in the moisture will help keep hair from feeling dry. Also, maintaining a great protein moisture balance will help prevent hair from becoming weak and damaged.
• Black hair is more dry.  I have read a few studies on why curly hair tends to need more moisture than other types of hair and concluded that this is not a symptom of black hair but, of curly hair. Studies have shown that our scalp makes a natural oil called sebum. When hair is curly, the sebum has a harder time traveling down the hair strand. To rectify this "problem" (I don't find it a problem, it just seems like this may just be a difference in hair types and there is possibly a reason why straighter hair may need the extra sebum.) we can add oils to our hair strand that "mimic" sebum such as, jojoba oil.
• Black hair breaks easily. With education on how to properly care for your hair you can minimize breakage. If your hair isn't properly moisturized and doesn't have a healthy dose of protein, it will break easily. Learning how to gently detangle your hair will also minimize breakage. (Remember how mom combed root to tip? Ouch! Yeah well, you will have better results combing tip to root.) 
• There are not many natural hair styles. It's 2011! Just about any style you can do with relaxed hair, you can do with natural hair. Some natural haired ladies even know how to get their kinks relaxer straight and keep their hair healthy. (check out YouTube for tutorials)
• Natural hair is nappy and has a lot of tangles! To minimize tangles, using great techniques when detangling will remove all or majority of the shed hair. Shed hair is what causes a lot of those big tangles. Also, be sure to your keep hair moisturized (seeing a pattern here?) this will help keep curls clumped and keep them from having love affairs with one another, in my experience.
• Black hair doesn't grow. With the proper knowledge on how to care for natural hair, MANY naturals have experienced 6+ inches of growth a year and some, 1 inch a month!  The average seems to be 1/4 -1/2 of an inch a month for growth but, I think many of us have passed the average. *smiles*

On this natural hair journey I have learned that sometimes as we try to encourage others to go natural we can be pretty hard and negative about our hair. I wouldn't want to go natural either if someone was constantly telling me my hair would be brittle, dry, tangled, and just down right undesirable. Yeah, I would reach for the relaxer too.  Truth is, natural hair or "black hair" isn't bad at all. Yes, curly hair has it's challenges but, once you get the hang of things, it's not that hard at all.

What have you learned about YOUR hair?

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 With all of the "new" knowledge surrounding natural hair, it may be easy to forget the basics. One of those basics is finger detangling. One of the biggest hurdles when having curly hair is how to detangle? I think it may be time for me to revisit finger detangling.

Recently, I have been reading reviews on the Tangle Teezer {pictured right} and while some love it, there are a few who hate it and decided to go back to finger combing or finger detangling. I thought;  finger combing, do people still do that? Then, I thought well if we all finger combed we wouldn't be trying to find a magic brush or comb to get rid of tangles. I know I stopped finger combing long ago when I realized I was getting matted roots and dreadlocks but, I may not have been doing it right so I'm willing to try again. I may be getting splits from my Denman which I love but, I'm willing to try something different.

Another benefit to finger combing is you don't have to worry about combs or brushes ripping your hair out. You can be as gentle as needed with tangles to ensure less breakage and prevent splits. Breakage and split ends are 2 of the biggest complaints when it comes to natural hair. I can't think of how finger combing would cause splits or major breakage. This may also be the answer to single strand knots.

Here is a great video by Curly Chronicles on Finger Detangling <---click link for video :)

So all of this lead me to think maybe some of us are doing too much. I get that we want healthy hair and most of want long healthy hair but, is it really so complicated?

I may try simplifying my regimen some more and getting rid of some methods to see if they help with shedding and breakage. I plan to continue to wash just once a week, co-wash if desired and finger comb to detangle.

Hope this post made sense! I am in the midst of taking twists out...ugh! I am going to be updating you all with pictures and a length check soon.

Thanks for reading!




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This post is prompted from a post on: To Be a Naturalista about being a Responsible Vlogger/Blogger it should be no surprise to many of you (if you read my blog) that I agree with her post completely!

Here is a excerpt: "So many naturals make a point to rant against enemies of natural hair including sulfates, mineral oil, petroleum and boar bristle brushes. But I am willing to bet less than one percent of those who do actually sat down and took the time to invest in serious scientific research as to why these things are harmful to our hair. I can bet on it because I know if they had done the research they’d be singing a different tune. And no, watching youtube videos does not count as serious scientific research…"

I think many people don't realize the importance of study and making factual AND honest statements. I have never considered myself a guru or haircare "know it all" as I have a lot to learn but, when it comes to blogging and listening to others I do notice a lot of "know it all" mentalities among people who haven't studied anything. There are many myths about haircare, many many many many myths. These myths exist because someone took the advice of someone else and didn't research it for themselves.

Let's discuss 3 myths involving natural hair for example:

• "Black hair" tends to be dry and brittle.

Dry and brittle hair isn't a characteristic of healthy hair. If you take care of your hair and learn what works and what doesn't, no matter your "race", your hair will be moisturized and strong. Any person of any background can have healthy hair. Unhealthy hair, period, is dry and brittle, the color of someone's skin is not a determining factor in that.

• Mineral Oil and Petroleum make your hair dry.

While it is true, these products if not used correctly can result in dry hair, they don't MAKE hair dry. Hair becomes dry when it loses moisture. Some people have used vaseline in their hair with great success. Being that these ingredients fall in the sealant category, they can't be used as moisturizers. If you don't use an adequate moisturizer underneath a product that contains these ingredients as the main ingredients (top 5), you haven't put moisture into your hair shaft, thus resulting in dry hair. Moisturize and then seal. 

• Brushes will break your hair off!

The proper statement to make would be, brushes can break your hair off.  Again, if you don't use any tool correctly it can cause damage to your hair strands, this includes brushes, combs, rollers, blow dryers, flat irons, etc. For some, the trick is to only brush hair that has product in it (such as a leave-in conditioner) and to use a soft bristle brush (some use baby brushes).

And there are many more myths that I could list but I won't because we would be here all day...

Your hair is as difficult or as simple as you make it. All of us want healthy hair, they route we take to get it can be long and hard or it can be simple and short, it's up to us.

I'm going to be participating in a challenge being hosted by Naturally Imperfect titled: State Your Reference in support of spreading factual information about haircare.

Anytime, you state something as "fact" your will have to state where you got that information from. Easy enough, right? Will you join us? Join in the comments, or on Twitter (WAHMTown) or on Naturally Imperfect!

No matter what we speak about we should always strive to give reliable and honest information. This is a great practice that can and will build a positive character in us.

Also check out: http://www.naturalhairunity.com/ for discounts, giveaways and other cool prizes! I will be hosting giveaway soon with more info!


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A few months ago I wrote a post(s) complaining about the lack of integrity in a lot of small businesses these days. You can read them here "How to find cheap haircare products" & "Small Business Rant". I strongly believe that getting great quality cosmetics should not cost a lot. Well, all I could do was rant about it and try to sway people to buy from better companies....or so I thought.

I was ranting to my husband about the whole base issue and customer service and he, probably tired of  my rants, asked why don't I sell the bases and products. Well, why not? Right? Well, there are of a lot of reasons why not!! Hell, I didn't want to deal with irate customers, shipping, packaging, and all the other things that come along with selling actual products. (I'm just keeping this thing 100% honest). Running a actual product based business is hard work.

So, I sat on the idea for a few weeks....

Well, I finally bit the bullet and decided to go ahead and at least look into selling products. Let me tell you, it is not easy to crunch numbers and keep a budget. Shipping is high, raw materials are even higher and quality is not something all wholesalers have on their mind.

But, I have honestly enjoyed the process. I have enjoyed finding quality ingredients, making my own products and designing my own Etsy store: DIY Haircare Products.

But the best part? Knowing that I am helping women find quality haircare and skincare products for a great price and giving them a company they can trust, who believes in fair pricing and honest customer service.

I truly, love my business. I love what I sell and I love learning. I hope to expand my business into a full "One Stop Shop" with more herbs, bases, butters and packaging. I know that if I work hard and effective, I will be able to solve many of the problems many customers face when it comes to small businesses.

So, I just wanted to let everyone know why I started my business and  the thought process behind it.

If you have a business you want to start, make sure you research it and really learn about marketing. Marketing and how to advertise are the 2 biggest things you NEED to learn.

Okay...I think have rambled long enough. I'm going to stop now.

Remember: It is never my intention to push products on anyone, so don't worry about my blog turning into an infomercial.

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When you start learning about hair care and YOUR natural hair forget everything you thought you knew about hair care.

For me (and many others) when I started taking care of my natural hair, everything I previously thought about my hair was wrong. My hair wasn't thick, wasn't prone to breakage (at least not in it's natural state), can't lay down with just water and a brush, my scalp didn't need to be greased...

Getting to know their natural hair is something many women don't do because, I see so many women stuck at shoulder length even as naturals and I have to wonder, Did they ever learn what works for their hair? Obviously, not. Many us go by what people say works for black hair. That's your first mistake right there...

Kimmaytube (check out her youtube channel) is a great example of learning your hair and doing what works for you. When you have learned what works for your hair, you will see consistent results with length and health.There are others on youtube you can check out too of course.

 Even after being natural for 2 years I had to step back and relearn my naturally curly hair. I don't have black hair, I have my hair and what it needs will differ from what someone elses natural hair may need. I have had to really look at why I was doing certain techniques and examine if they were really working for me.I had been taking care of my hair for years, how I was told black hair needed to be taken care of even after going natural. This is what caused me to have a full year of set backs!

I have also learned not to take what other naturals say as "WORD!". There is no hardfast way to take care of natural hair that fits ALL curls.Yes, people can give great advice but, all it is is advice. Take it or leave it but, if what you're doing isn't broke don't fix it!


So, learn your natural hair. Learn what it likes and doesn't like.This is your hair care journey and it isn't going to be the same for everyone!



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I have been using molasses in my hair for over 3 years. I swear by it in my deep conditioning treatments. Oddly enough, I never really read up on the benefits of it in haircare. I knew it strengthened...but that's about it. In my efforts to stay educated on WHY certain ingredients work for my hair, I have finally found out the benefits of molasses in haircare.

What I have found:
"Benefits:
Molasses - contains natural sulfur/sulphur which is a mild natural fungicide, that rehydrates & detoxifies cell fibers by allowing water & nutrients into the cells & toxins to flow out. Sulphur is one of the key building blocks for healthy hair growth. A lack of sulphur may weaken the skin cells causing irregular sebum activity on the surface of the scalp." [SOURCE]

I can say the above is absolutely true in my experience with molasses.

My usual recipe:

• 1-2 tablespoons molasses
• 1/4 cup conditioner OR deep conditioner
• 1-2 tablespoons honey

Mix together well and slather on hair from root to tip. Put on a plastic cap for about 15-20 minutes. Rinse and shampoo and condition as usual.

You can use this mixture before shampooing on dry hair or you can use this mixture after shampooing and before conditioning. Personally, I find that applying this mixture before shampooing yields the best results on my hair.

I always use this after protective styling or when I have breakage. It always strengthens my hair and leaves it soft and healthy.

Try it and see if you like it!!!


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Due to some interesting discussions on Twitter about natural hair and how it can be discriminated against in the workplace, I have decided to lay my opinion out on my blog.


Discrimination in the workplace. It's no secret that people of ALL colors and backgrounds can face some type of discrimination in the workplace. One thing many women fear when they go natural, is hearing their boss tell them their natural hair is not acceptable.

Is this discrimination? Yes and no. No?! No!? Is this girl crazy?! Let me explain the "no".

Almost every single workplace in America has a dresscode. They outline what you can and can't wear to work from hair to clothing to shoes. Yes, hair. Many companies do not allow certain dye jobs, hairstyles such as buzz cuts, mohawks, twists, locs or big afros. These guidelines are not discriminatory because none of these are ways hair grows out of someones scalp. (big afro aside in some cases)

Contrary to popular belief, most natural curlies have to actually style their hair into an afro, which makes it a hairstyle, which means a job can allow or not allow it. Culture? They don't have to respect your culture. Religion, yes. Culture, no.

Locs, although natural are not the way your hair grows out of your scalp. So, therefor they are also a hairstyle. Trust, there are women of all colors and backgrounds who rock locs. Don't even for once think it's a "black" style only.Do they cry about discrimination? No. They're probably sitting next to you with their hair in a bun.

Now, curls. If my hair is curly I have a right to wear my curly hair. I shouldn't be told I have to relax or straighten my hair to work anywhere. This to me, falls into the line of discrimination. If a workplace blantantly asked me to straighten, wig or relax my curls to work there, I would be upset.

I wouldn't be upset if they told me not get to zealous with the wash n gos and big hair. I could see how walking around with huge hair could be a distraction. (I love me wash n gos ya'll but, I have to keep it real)

Bottom line, not everyone is going to accept what you do with your hair and body. Companies are out to make money. If you are representing a business, they are going to have some say-so in how you dress, talk, and behave. Don't like it? Don't work there.

Can't cry foul for everything, be honest with yourself. If a hairstyle is more important than your job...well...that's you. For me, my workplace is not the place for me to "express" myself. If they want me to bun it or keep the wash n gos tamed, hey, I can work with that.


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When transitioning from relaxed to natural hair, many woman choose to do a Big Chop. A Big Chop or a BC is when you cut all of the relaxed ends and usually end up with a TWA (Teeny Weeny Afro).

Similar to this:

Some women go bald and others go a  bit longer than the above picture of Solange. For many women when they BC they go into shock. They don't know what to do with their hair. They're relieved to be all natural but, seeing themselves with short hair is understandably hard.

I didn't do a BC. I let my hair grow out with braids, wigs, and puffs. I don't think everyone has to do a (short) BC and I don't believe doing one has to be a part of going natural. If you do decide to BC your hair into a TWA and don't want to wear your hair short in public here are some suggestions you can try:

Wigs: There are lots of channels on YouTube that review different wigs. I personally like "Muffinismylovers". She not only reviews the wigs but, she styles them and tell you how to apply them. She gives her honest opinion of each wig. She has reviewed hundreds of styles and brands.

Braids: I grew my hair out with Kinky Twists. You can do micro braids, yarn braids, cornrows, crochet braids, pixie braids; this list is endless. Just make sure the braids are not tight around the edges and moistuize well to keep your hair from drying out and breaking off. "MsVcharles" has great videos on protective styling and how to moisturize your hair while in braids.

Disclaimer: I do think that if you choose to wear your hair in a protective style or hide your hair while it grows out, you should try to wear it out on the weekends or inbetween styles. I feel this is important so you can learn how to work with your curls


Don't be ashamed if you're not comfortable with short hair, I wasn't and still am not. Short hair doesn't look nice on me, in my opinion and you may feel the same about your hair. It's okay.

Just grow your curls out to a length you feel comfortable with and then bust them out!

If you have already did a Big Chop, how did you feel afterward? Did you wear a TWA? Did you protective style it? Let me know in the comments!

Thanks for reading!

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Creating a haircare regimen can be an exciting as well as a daunting task. We all know that having a great haircare regimen and sticking with it is one of the key factors to retaining length.

Here are 5 tips you can use to create your haircare regimen:

1. Start simple. Don't add a lot to your list at once. Keep it simple, wash, condition, moisturize, seal and style. Figure out how often you need to do these 5 steps and work from there.

2. Trial and error. Learn from what doesn't work.just because you read that co-washing is great for someone else that doesn't mean it's going to be great for you. Try it and if your hair doesn't like something, move on.

3. Don't trim. Learn how to spot split ends and what causes them for your hair. Don't make the mistake of trimming too often, you will end up cutting off healthy hair and length. Some people only trim once a year, others twice a year.Basically, don't worry about trimming just yet, that's putting the cart before the horse.

4. Water, water and more water. You can have all the products in the world and have soft hair but, if you aren't both drinking and applying water to your hair, you won't get the proper moisture your hair needs.Make sure you're moisturizing and conditioning your hair often enough.

5. Patience. You can deep condition every week, moisturize and seal every night, protective style every month but, if your hair only grows 1/2 inch a month, it's only going to grow a 1/2 inch a month. Just be patient.

Here is a simple beginner regimen you can use as an example:

• Wash and condition once a week.
• Detangle on wash day.
• Moisturize and seal 2-3 times a week. 
• Deep condition once a month.

Keeping things simple will help you get a better idea of what works and what doesn't, without having to weed through a bunch of products or a lengthy regimen.

There has been a bit of chatter...well there has ALWAYS been chatter in the natural hair community about what it truly means to be or go natural.

What does being natural or natural hair mean, to me?

It simply means, I do not have a relaxer in my hair. Simple as that.

What is not natural, to me?

Relaxed, texlaxed, texturized, anything that someone does to their hair to relax the curl. I don't care if it only relaxes the curl for 2 days and then you wash it out, while your hair has that chemical in it, it isn't natural to me. Like the Brazilian Keratin Treatment.

Hair color? I don't even care. Eat junk food? I don't care. As long as the hair on your head is in it's natural curly state, the way it grew out of your head without any chemicals added to it, you have natural hair in my eyes.

Sometimes too much knowledge can get over whelming and confusing. This is something that seems to be occurring in the haircare community. As many of us learn how to take better care of our hair we look to forums, youtube, and blogs. There is a plethora of haircare knowledge sweeping the web and just recently, bookstores. There seems to be a lot of product junkies still struggling with their hair and a lot of women that think "natural hair is hard to take care of" not true at all.

Here is a great youtube video by "msvcharles" about how simple taking care of your hair can be. I agree with her completely, it doesn't take much at all to take are of your hair.

Checklist:

1. Shampoo- if you use an "all natural" soap to wash your body, try it on your hair and see how your hair reacts. I use Nubian Heritage soaps for my body and surprisingly they also work well for my hair.

2. Conditioner- I use the Giovanni line. I honestly think it you figure out what your hair needs this is a simple choice. Dry, itchy scalp? Get a conditioner with tea tree oil. Slow hair growth? Try one with peppermint. Read reviews and narrow it down to 2 or 3 companies.

3. Leave-In conditioner- You need your leave-in to moisturize so, you need to look for water as the first ingredient. If you feel like you can't find a leave-in you like, try a water and vegetable glycerin mix (50/50). Water and glycerin are usually the first 2 ingredients in most leave-ins.

4. Sealant/oil: Your options are endless here. You can use shea butter, mango butter, avocado oil,olive oil, coconut oil, vitamin e oil, the list is endless. Some oils are lighter than others and even penetrate the hair shaft to moisturize (coconut oil).

5. Gel- This is optional. You can even make your own gel with flax seeds or use aloe vera gel.

This is just a starter list. Of course you will need to do your research and find out what your hair likes.

One thing I will suggest is making sure you are not sending you hair on a PH roller coaster ride as Kimmaytube calls it. Here is her video on this: PH Balance. This is something I suggest being aware of when you start mixing ingredients and using "homemade" hair recipes. Just because it is natural doesn't mean it is great for our hair.

Also, the products found in the stores are usually already tested for PH, this is why most companies suggest you use their shampoo along with their conditioner.

Remember, women have been growing their hair since the beginning of time and they didn't have all these product lines, they kept it simple.

So, there has been much ado about Afroveda raising their prices... Click Here and here and here for some opinions on the situation.

Now, for those of you who have never heard of Afroveda, it is a WAHM owned business that makes natural haircare products, website here.

What has everyone in such a huff? The fact that they raised their prices not a few cents or even dollars but, 100% increases! Yes. Products that were in the tens of dollars are now $30 plus.The reason the company stated they had to increase the prices was because of the increase in the cost of the raw materials they were using.

My thoughts?

Dang!!! 100% increase? And no warning? I don't care about the "why" she did it, I just can't believe she did it. I don't care to question her business, it's just that as a business owner you should have all your ducks in a row BEFORE you put your product on the market. Now, I know we all make mistakes (I did as a WAHM) but, after you start gaining a loyal customer base, that has been buying your products for years, that is not the time to raise your prices 100%. Seriously?

I have never bought Afroveda products and never will because this type of business move is just bad business in my opinion. I understand a company can do what they want but, a customer (or future customer) can too.

That was a bold move to raise their prices 100% on some products when they have such a huge customer base. Whoever advised that plan needs to be fired. The motives behind raising the prices seems shady and at this moment the best move seems to be to just close their doors all together. If they couldn't afford the materials they were using when they charged $12 then they definitely won't be able to afford them now with so many people pledging never to buy her products again.

Like most women I care a lot about my body (well I should say most humans, right?). I try to keep myself as healthy as possible by constantly learning about and cleansing out toxins. Well, back in 2006-2007 ish (my brain is a little fuzzy, alright...) I started changing my diet; I stopped eating out completely, stopped eating food that I deemed unhealthy for me such as pork, certain sea foods, and other junk. During that time my body went through many changes (with the help of cleanses); my skin became clearer, I lost a lot of weight in certain areas, and my hair changed. Before we get into that part let's get some background info....

My mother started relaxing my hair when I was about 5 or so. I remember my grandmother saying, "I don't know why she put that in your hair!". At the time I didn't really know what was going on but, I do remember thinking I had long hair. My hair was about 2-3 inches past my shoulders and it stayed that length until I was about 9-10 (5th grade). In 5th grade I started to notice my hair had gotten A LOT shorter. It was barely to my shoulders and in the middle it was very thin.

Well, I'm not going to go into all of my hair struggles I went through after that because it includes a "S Curl" (Yes.  horrible, right?), braids and then back to relaxed. We would be here all day if I went through all of that. I hated my hair. I hated it natural (when I had braids my mom didn't relax it) and I hated it with the "S Curl". I wanted my hair back to how it was when I was younger; thick and somewhat long.

My hair always had a little "curl" to it, even after a relaxer. And when I got older (high school) the middle of my hair stopped relaxing. It would never take to the relaxer. Well, I started experiencing the same thing in 2007 after I started changing my diet around; my whole head wouldn't relax. I tried Revlon, African Pride, Supreme, and none of them could relax my curls. I was looking a hot mess because my hair was breaking off and shedding. It wouldn't even straighten with the hot comb! A mess!

So, in December 2007 I decided to go natural. I decided I was going to grow out my hair and stop relaxing. I threw out the conditioners I was using and read up about haircare online. I purchased Nature's Gate Tea Tree Calming Conditioner and Shampoo.

I got them from my local health food store. I loved them but, a friend of mine told me about Giovanni and I have been using them since. I love them! I have tried the Tea Tree Triple Treat, 50/50, Smooth as Silk and the Direct Leave In.

I have seen Giovanni almost everywhere; Publix, health food stores, Wal-Mart and Target.

Currently, I use Giovanni Smooth as Silk conditioner. It says deep moisture on the back (each hair product shows how moisturizing it is on the back) but, it is also high in protein. So, if you're protein sensitive this product may not be for you or you may need to use it rarely and alternate with a more moisturizing conditioner.

For shampoo I have used the Giovanni brand and I do like it but, for now I am using the Nubian Heritage Black soap.

I know you might be thinking; soap? Yes. Soap. This soap is all natural and contains no harsh ingredients. It is  very moisturizing and doesn't leave my hair feeling stripped. When I scrub my scalp really well with this soap, my scalp can go without itching for a little over a week and a half. I also use this soap for my body.

To be continued...

• Leave Ins
• Moisturizers
• Co-washing
• Twists
• Deep Conditioning
• Protein vs. Moisture
• Water, Water, Water
• Wet Buns
• Wigs
• and more....