Product Ingredients to Avoid

Believe it or not, I actually have some more information to give you on hair products.  As you can see, I am a recovering product junkie.  I say "recovering" because I when I first started transitioning, I ordered anything anyone raved about on Nappturality.com like it was a compulsion.  As MDR loves remind everyone, every couple of days he would find a little brown box with my name on it in the mail.  Now I have a better idea of what my hair likes, so I only buy when I run out of something (for the most part :-) ).  Anyway, one thing that keeps me from buying everything I see in the stores is knowing what product ingredients are good for the hair and those that are detrimental (except when I'm in store specializing in organic products, like Whole Foods or Rainbow Blossom).

Check out this short article entitled "10 Chemicals to Avoid" by Deecoily, the founder of Nappturality.com: 10 Chemicals to Avoid 

I also avoid products that contain beeswax because it builds up and dries my hair out.  For the same reason, I avoid products containing silicone, as well as ingredients that end with the suffix "cone," such as dimethicone.

Admittedly, I do not always follow these rules.  Because many of these ingredients are in most products (some because they are cheaper than products that are good for you), it will be hard to find products that don't contain at least one.  If you really like the product, I say go for it.  It's obviously not the end of the world  if you use them.   For example, I use Miss Jessie's Baby Buttercreme even though it contains beeswax, mineral oil, and petrolatum.  What can I say--marketing and advertising work.  Also, my Pantene clarifying shampoo contains sodium laureth sulfate.  However, I only use it every four to six weeks.   (I think) the government requires cosmetic companies to list ingredients from the highest concentration to the lowest, so at least try not to buy products with these ingredients listed as one of the first five ingredients.

The featured link for this week is meganjerai's natural hair journey, which is featured on YouTube.com: My Natural Hair Journey.  Keep it up, transitioners!  Your hair will be this healthy one day.

Another reason why I decided to go naturale: God don't make no junk!  I thought about the fact that my kinky/coily/nappy hair texture is so unique as compared to many other nationalities, such as caucasians, asians, indians, and native americans.  Sometimes it is hard being different, which makes one want to do everything one can to be like everyone else.  However, I realized that God made us all different for a reason, and that my nappy hair was not a mistake that needed to be fixed by relaxers.  We are all fearfully and wonderfully made (Psalm 139:14).  If my naturale hair is good enough for God, then it's good enough for me!

Good News and Bad News about Carol's Daughter

I was so happy for Carol's Daughter when Sephora began their products.  I love to see black-owned businesses get mainstream success.  Also, it provided an opportunity for me to smell all the different scents and get a feel for what products I liked in the store without taking the risk of buying them online and not liking them.  So, when I saw that Louisville was getting a Sephora in Oxmoor Mall last year, I was so excited.  But imagine my disappointment when I the store opened and they didn't carry Carol's Daughter's products!  All they had was their Candy Paint lip gloss.

Ok, here's the good news: I was walking through Sephora yesterday and saw a beautiful Carol's Daughter display!  Yay!  :-)

The bad news: Still no Tui Herbal Shampoo, one of my favorite Carol's Daughter products.  :-(  It's still out of stock on the website, too, but it said that they're expecting it to be back in stock in the spring.

Coupon

Not a full post this time, but in case anyone is interested in the Goody Styling Therapy brush, someone posted this $1 off coupon on Nappturality.com:

http://stylingtherapy.com/res/PrintOutCoupon.pdf

Enjoy (treat yourself to a pack of gum or something)!

Products and Tools

You this already, but I guess I'll make the following disclaimer: no two heads of hair are alike, so not all the products I am about to recommend will work for everyone. You'll have to do your own trial and error, but my recommendations are based on what has worked for me.

Here are the basic hair products that I use to take care of my natural hair: clarifying shampoo, moisturizing shampoo, protein deep conditioner, moisturizing deep conditioner, detangler/leave-in conditioner, scalp pomade, moisturizer, gel, and curl cream (something with hold).

Here are the basic hair tools that I use: rattail comb, regular comb, wide-toothed comb, boar bristle brush, denman brush, clips, headbands, ponytail holders, sponge rollers with end papers, satin scarf, satin bonnet, satin pillowcase, and conditioning bonnet attached to a hairdryer.

Additionally, there is a new brush that I haven't tried yet that I'm very curious about. It is called the Goody Styling Therapy Brush add + shine (infused with jojoba oil). http://stylingtherapy.com/main.taf?p=1,2. I read about it on Nappturality.com, and boy are they crazy about this brush. They're saying it detangles better than the Denman, at half the price. I will probably try it soon. LKY, I know this comes a little late, as you have already shelled out cash on a Denman. However, I just thought I'd put it out there.

Finally, there are Curlformers (http://www.curlformers.com/). After watching the YouTube video, I was sold (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_Qp9lnwjQKw)! After seeing ABK' pictures, I now officially know that they work on transitioning hair, too. I will be getting these sometime soon as well.

That's basically what I use. For more details and specific recommendations, see below:

Some good clarifying shampoos are: Pantene and Suave (I use Pantene), which can be purchased at any grocery or drug store. Clarifying shampoos remove product build up and dirt from the hair and scalp. They are very strong, so they should only be used once every four or six
weeks. If it ever feels like the products you once loved aren't working anymore, it could be that you just need a good clarifying shampoo! When I use it, I normally shampoo with the clarifying shampoo first, then I do one or two other washes with a moisturizing shampoo.




I am still looking for my all time favorite moisturizing shampoo. One I've used and liked is Elucence Moisture Benefits Shampoo. I'm not sure , but I think that Elucene can only be purchased online, either at elucence.com or curlmart.com. It is pretty moisturizing and smells like peaches. It works really well with the Moisture Balancing Conditioner. LKY says the Redken Smooth Down Shampoo is really good, so I may try that soon. I also like Carol's Daughter's Tui Herbal Shampoo, but it has been out of stock on her website for at least 4 or 5 months now. I wonder if she'll bring it back (hope so!).



Protein deep conditioners are good for strengthening hair, and are really good for damaged hair. I don't really worry about using them that much because since my hair is natural and way stronger than when it was relaxed. However, when I got my hair colored, my colorist highly recommended that I use a good conditioner with protein. I was at an Aveda concept salon, so of course, she recommended the Aveda damage remedy Intensive Restructuring Treatment. It works pretty well. I only use it every now and then because 1) it was so expensive and I want to stretch it out, 2) it comes in such a little tube, and 3) I've heard that protein is good, but can make the hair hard and break off if it is used too often.

There are lots of moisturizing deep conditioners out there that are great. However, my all-time favorite deep conditioner that I've ever tried is Redken Smooth Down Butter Treat. I don't have any right now because I'm trying to use up all my other conditioners before buying anymore (and trust me, I have a LOT!). No matter what conditioner I use, I always add the following ingredients to kick it up a notch: coconut oil, olive oil, castor oil, and honey (OFF TOPIC: I also like to put castor oil on the ends of my hair if it is especially dry). I warm up the ingredients in a bowl in the microwave for 15 seconds (because coconut oil is solid at room temperature, and it helps mix everything together). Then I add as much conditioner as I think I'll need, mix them together with a spoon until creamy, apply the mixture to my hair and scalp, put on a shower cap, and sit under a conditioning bonnet for 15 minutes to an hour. If you have tangled hair, you can detangle with your wide-toothed comb or Denman brush at this point. Then I rinse, apply a detangler/leave-in, and detangle with a wide-toothed comb.

As I mentioned in my post on detangling, Kinky-Curly and Qhemet Biologics make good detanglers (I use Kinky-Curly's Knot Today). Both of these are creamy leave-ins. I also like watery leave-ins, like Carol's Daughter's Black Vanilla Leave-In Conditioner.








I'm still searching for the best scalp pomade (hair grease) as well. I like Oyin's Burnt Sugar Pomade (http://oyinhandmade.com/).

I just got Qhemet Biologic's Tea Tree and Grapeseed Therapeutic Pomade in the mail (http://www.qhemetbiologics.com/) today. Once I use it, I'll let you know what I think.

I've tried a lot of moisturizers. I believe almost anyone will like either Oyin or Qhemet Biologics's products (see web addresses above). I have had a lot of success with Karen's Body Beautiful Hair Milk (http://www.karensbodybeautiful.com/). I use it on the edges and sides of my hair when I put my hair up in a puff. I don't really use it on twist-outs because it is water based and causes my hair to lose some of the definition. Oh yeah, her shampoo and conditioner are pretty good, too. She has lots of scents to try. So far, I like the White Tea scent the best.



I prefer butter or oil based moisturizers for my twist-outs, but I'm still searching for my favorite. Right now, I'm using Miss Jessie's Baby Buttercreme (http://www.missjessies.com/). It's ok--it gets the job done. I only use it a couple of times a week because it has mineral oil in it, which can build up. It is very expensive, too. I buy Miss Jessie's products during their bogo free sale in December, so that helps. Once I use up this jar, I'm definitely going to search for something else.




I use IC Fantasia Hair Polisher Styling Gel with Sparkelites (why is that name so long?), which can be bought anywhere. I use it to slick down my edges and puffs. It can also be used for twists, twistouts, rod sets, flat twist sets, etc., although I've never used it for those styles. It is the most recommended edge-slicking gel I've seen on Nappturality. I can use it every day without it drying out my hair or flaking up, and is very affordable.





I like to use curl creams for my twist outs. For a long time, Miss Jessie's Curly Meringue was my all-time favorite curl cream.

However, I recently discovered Curls (http://www.curls.biz/). Curls Whipped Cream is now my favorite because it is less expensive, moisturizes, and holds while leaving the hair soft. It is the best of all worlds! I like to use the Quenched Curls Moisturizer underneath it (they call it underwear for your hair).

Hair tools are pretty much self explanatory, so I won't include many pictures.

• I use the rattail comb to smoth my edges for twists and twist-outs. It's also good for precise parts if you ever need them.
• I use the regular comb for parting for twists and extra detangling after detangling with the wide-tooth comb.
• I mostly use my Denman brush for brushing my hair up into a puff. It really does glide through natural hair well (remember, I only comb or detangle my hair when it is wet or highly moisturized).
• I use the boar-bristle brush for smoothing my hair into a puff (I'll go into more detail in later posts on hairstyles).
• I use clips and ponytail holders to hold my hair out of the way when I'm putting in twists.
• I generally wear headbands every day when my hair is down. I just like the look.
• I use sponge rollers to set my twists for a curly twist-out the next day (I get SOOO many compliments when I wear my hair that way! :-) ) I use them with end papers to protect my hair from snagging or drying out. You can also now find satin-covered sponge rollers just about anywhere. Maybe I'll ask for some for Christmas.
• I wear the satin scarf on the way to work to set my edges and sides of puffs. I have a separate scarf that I sleep in to protect my hair at night.
• The satin bonnet protects your hair at night. It is really good for keeping curly styles longer because it doesn't press your hair down. I try not to wear it too much because it is NOT sexy (know what I mean, ladies?). The scarf is a little more attractive. :-)
• If you don't like wearing anything on your head at night, a satin pillowcase also gets the job done.
• I use the conditioning bonnet with my deep conditioner.

Sorry it took me so long to post, but I knew this would be a long one and I needed some time to get it together. Here's another educational site on caring for natural hair: http://www.motowngirl.com/. Wow, she provides SO much information! This site really helped me out when I was transitioning and newly natural.

Another reason why I decided to go naturale: I wondered what my natural hair looked like. My hair had been pressed or relaxed for as long as I could remember. I was curious about what my unaltered texture looked like (curly? coily? shiny? did it have luster?) and felt like (soft? smooth? strong?), and how long it could grow.

See you next time!

Detangling Tips

Detangling natural and particularly transitioning hair is very important because it is more fragile than relaxed hair. You can't just pull a comb through your hair from root to tip anymore, especially when your hair is dry. I believe that there are three cardinal rules of detangling: 1) Use a wide-toothed comb; 2) Only comb when hair is wet and has leave-in conditioner, regular conditioner, or some sort of moisturizer in it; and 3) comb from ends to the root.

Those are the main rules of thumb, but here are a few more tips to keep in mind. When you are combing from ends to roots, hold your hair in the fist of your non-combing hand. This further prevents breakage. If you have tried all of the above detangling tips and you’re still having trouble with detangling, try combing your hair while your deep conditioner is in. After you wash the deep conditioner out, you will be surprised at how easy it is to detangle. If you still are having trouble, try sectioning your hair into four sections (vertically and horizontally), and keeping them separated with hair clamps. Wash each section separately, clamp them back up, and then take a section down and rinse each section separately. This is so much better than washing your hair all in one big glob. Now that my hair is longer, I do a variation of this. I part my hair with my hands and wash each section separately, but I don’t clamp each section.

Some good detanglers to try are Kinky Curly’s Knot Today (http://www.kinky-curly.com/shop.html) and Qhemet Biologics’ Olive Cream (http://www.qhemetbiologics.com/conditioning.htm). You can also use cheapo Suave conditioners, like Tropical Coconut.

Tonight’s featured website is the FAQ page on Kinky-Curly’s website: http://www.kinky-curly.com/tips.html. You may especially want to check out the transitioners tips at the bottom.

One of my reasons for going natural: Relaxers were tearing up my scalp! I had this deep down itch in my scalp that I could never get rid of, even while I was shampooing. I had really bad dandruff. I ALWAYS burned when I got a relaxer, even if I didn’t scratch for a week beforehand. The burns would leave scabs that leaked some kind of liquid, and my newly straight hair would stick to it. The burns were so painful—they stung while they were fresh. The scabs and scars were so ugly, too--so much that I was too embarrassed to pull my hair back. So, relaxers were just simply bad for my health. Now that I'm natural, most of the symptoms are gone. The deep scalp itch is completely gone. I only have isolated patches of dandruff (dermatologist said I have a chronic scalp condition), but there's no painful burns with leaking liquid. Sometimes I can go 2 weeks or more without shampooing, which was impossible before. Hurray for a healthy scalp!