Protective style: Marley Twists

Hello my beauties

What protective style do you enjoy the most?

I like twist because they are so easy to do and maintain. I wanted to share pictures of my attempt at Marley Twists, which are extensions that look like extremely long TSTed natural hair. 

But first thing first!

Protective styling: This is important because naturally curly and kinky hair can easily be broken. In the winter us naturals lose moisture and we are more likely to wear hats, coats with hoods, scarves, or sweaters. All these things will likely snag and pull on your delicate strands causing breakage which leads to loss of length. No one wants to work hard to gain length all year just to lose it all during the cold months. So moisturize style, and hide your ends. Twisting and tucking ends will insure that you can continue growing through the winter.

Items used:

Marley Twist Hair,  Banana Clips, Water, hair cream and gel, JBCO for my salp, combs:

Check it out my Marley Twists:

Check out these YouTube tutorials for Marley Twists (and subscribe to these ladies!):

Cass <--- this chick has hair to die for!>

Marley Twist tutorial: http://youtu.be/Dxp6tBdzs8Y

A. Elle

Marley twist tutorial: http://youtu.be/Kd87jc8D8QY

Serious Shrinkage

Ok so this is serious...

I know that I am not alone in saying that shrinkage is the natural woman's worst enemy. I mean, black women are intellegent and powerful, we can cook, clean, and raise kids, we can build a home a pay for it. Its safe to say we can "bring home the bacon and cook it too".  As naturals we have already overcome the painful journey of accepting our whole selves and not letting the haters stop us from being the fabulous natural divas that we are! So it should be easy right? A breeze. A piece of cake...

But then we have shrinkage..   

 

Our hair can be down our backs when straightened or stretched but let us decide we need to Co-poo, our coils will be having a pow wow with our ears in a heart beat! Now I know that in my blog The ever elusive regimen (Part 2- practice) I talk about braiding down as you go along and that saves a lot of tears, but questions is: why can't I just wash and go?

 Now I have to add a disclaimer:

I love my hair and, while that has not always been true, I have reached a point in my life where I can safely complain about it without running the risk of being too rough, cutting it, or God know what else. We all need a chance to vent... right?? 

My wash and go literally turns into a TWA on the spot. I have to wash-braid-unbraid-GO just to get some definition! LOL :) Well it is what it is, I guess my curls just like being close to home.

Here are some tips to combat shrinkage:

1.          Moisturize- the more moisturized your hair is the less it will shrink. Water make my coils retreat no matter how moisturized they are so try some other water based moisturizers like:

Shea Moisture
Coconut & Hibiscus Moisture Mist

Kinky Curly
Knot Today

CURLS
Creme Brulee

2.         Braid, twist, knot!- do all that you can immediately after your co-poo session. Braid it out, twist it out, or knot it out! Bantu knot it out out, see ya twist it out out! Please play DJ UNK- Walk It Out as you do this. Trust me on this one, you will be done braiding twisting or knot-ing in a heart beat.... I feel inspired, I might make a little D-day sound track and share it with you all.

3.       BRING IT!- Just rock your shrinkage as another facet of your ever changing, ever evolving beautiful self! The best way to do it is the wear it "outted" or straightened one day, wash and wear a TWA the next day. You co-workers will be sooooo confused on how your hair went from long to short overnight and will ask you why you cut your hair, I know from experience. Hehehe.

What ever you choose to do, do it right boo boo!!! 

 Sincerely,

Luvin Life <3

The ever elusive regimen (Part 2- practice)

Hey beauties!

Relaxed or natural, straight or curly, everyone needs a steady regimen for their hair! I will try to share what I know works but this regimen is ever evolving and will not work for everyone... It works for me.

You are welcome to try out my hair care practices and tweek them to make it work for you hair. But first make sure you see the Part 1 - products blog and get the products listed. Then take a look at the glossary page so that you know what I mean when I write EVOO or JBCO or DBCS. 

HAIRDAY!

(I have at least two hair days a month, one to cleanse and style, and another for treatments/cleansing/and styling.) 

Conditioner wash- Co-poo (weekly(ish))

I currently co-poo with Herbal Essence Hello Hydration. I lather it in and rinse after about 2 minutes. I lather it in again, braiding sections as I go, and leave it for about 10 min then rinse, re-braiding as you go along. This will prep your hair for styling.  If my hair was really dirty, like old twist out I will follow up with a ACV rinse.

Deep condition (weekly-biweekly)

I currently deep condition with Shea Moisture Deep Conditioner mixed with EVOO or JBCO. After a good copoo I put this stuff on thick, braid down my hair in big chunks, and sit for 30 min to 8 hrs overnight. :)  When I am done I rinse with warm then cold water.

Cleansing- Prepoo (monthly)

Section hair into at least 4 parts
Spray with water then Coat each section with melted 
VCO or EVOO
Braid sections to make shampooing easier

Cleansing- shampoo (1x month)

I will be changing up this shampoo receipe soon!

Section hair into at least 4 parts
Coat each section with melted VCO
Braid sections to make shampooing easier
Make your shampoo
1 cup EVOO
1 cup DBCS
(or any 1:1 ratio more or less)

Mix ingredients into a squeeze bottle big enough to hold all of your shampoo and still be 1/4 empty. So if you make 8 oz of shampoo get at least a 12 ogz bottle. Shake gently. The mixture should turn into a creamy liquid. Un-braid each section one at a time to shampoo, rebraid as you go along.

 Un-braid each section one at a time, add conditioner Hello Hydration and finger detangle. Re-braid each section  while still drenched with conditioner before moving on to the next. Start over and rinse each section individually, re-braiding as you go along. This will prep your hair for styling. 

I call this: Life

via: theburiedlife

A professor stood before his philosophy class and had some items in front of him. When the class began, he wordlessly picked up a very large and empty mayonnaise jar and proceeded to fill it with golf balls. He then asked the students if the jar was full. They agreed that it was.

 
The professor then picked up a box of pebbles and poured them into the jar. He shook the jar lightly. The pebbles rolled into the open areas between the golf balls. He then asked the students again if the jar was full. They agreed it was. 
The professor next picked up a box of sand and poured it into the jar. Of course, the sand filled up everything else. He asked once more if the jar was full.. The students responded with a unanimous ‘yes.’ 

The professor then produced two Beers from under the table and poured the entire contents into the jar effectively filling the empty space between the sand.The students laughed.. ‘Now,’ said the professor as the laughter subsided, ‘I want you to recognize that this jar represents your life. The golf balls are the important things—-your family, your children, your health, your friends and your favorite passions—-and if everything else was lost and only they remained, your life would still be full. The pebbles are the other things that matter like your job, your house and your car.. The sand is everything else—-the small stuff.  

‘If you put the sand into the jar first,’ he continued, ‘there is no room for the pebbles or the golf balls. The same goes for life. If you spend all your time and energy on the small stuff you will never have room for the things that are important to you. Pay attention to the things that are critical to your happiness. 

Spend time with your children. Spend time with your parents. Visit with grandparents. Take your spouse out to dinner. Play another 18. There will always be time to clean the house and mow the lawn.   Take care of the golf balls first—-the things that really matter. Set your priorities. The rest is just sand.

One of the students raised her hand and inquired what the Beer represented. 

The professor smiled and said, ‘I’m glad you asked.’ The Beer just shows you that no matter how full your life may seem, there’s always room for a couple of Beers with a friend.

Re-posted With Love,

Kenya 

OMG - Curly Nikki wrote a book!!! OMG

Our fellow beauty Curly Nikki has written a book! If you are a natural beauty, you know what this means! This is like Jay-Z writing a "how to make it in the game" book for aspiring rappers, or like Mother Teresa writing a 10 step cheat sheet on how to make the world a better place. Take a look:

Better Than Good hair 

by: Nikki Walton

and

Ernessa T. Carter

The ever elusive regimen (Part 1- Products)

Hey beauties!

Relaxed or natural, straight or curly, everyone needs a steady regimen for their hair! I will try to share what I know works but this regimen is ever evolving and will not work for everyone... It works for me. Here are all the products that I use!!!

·         (All items can be purchased at Target unless otherwise noted)

Shampoo

I wash about once a month, or twice if my hair feels it needs to be washed that often. I cover my hair in virgin coconut oil then I use a concoction of Dr. Bronner's Castile soap Lavender and Extra Virgin Olive Oil. Put this in a squirt bottle and gently shake. This becomes a very creamy cleanser that does not strip your hair like commercial shampoos. Also it is 100% natural! :)

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Conditioner and Deep Conditioner treatments

      I conditioner rinse or Co-poo weekly with Herbal Essences Hello Hydration  is a hot pick. Many naturals use this product and you can get it for about $6. I wet detangle with lots of conditioner because I feel I lose less hair that way so it is important that I have a good conditioner that is also inexpensive!

      

      I deep condition every two weeks. Deep conditions could be just about the most important  process in caring for natural hair. I use Shea Moisture Deep Treatment Masque with some added coconut oil or EVOO. I leave in the masque for some time (1hr) and then rinse. Sitting under the dryer is optional.

     

·         

Other Conditioning Treatments 

Hot oil treatments are helpful when you have extra dry hair or just need an moisture overhaul. This should be done before shampoo or co-poo. I like two different treatments:

• Warm EVOO & Honey hot oil treatment (1 vit E capsule) 
• Warm Hot Six oil & Honey hot oil treatment (1 vit E capsule)

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Daily  use and Styling Products

Shea moisture Organic Coconut & Hibiscus

      Please disregard the Deep Treatment Masque this is a conditioning product that I mentioned above.  

•       Curling Souffle (Agave nectar, flax seed oil)- used for styling
•       Curl Enhancing Smoothie (Coconut Oil, silk protein  neem oil)- moisture, used for sealing with the LOC method
•      Hold & Shine Moisture Mist (Organic coconut Oil, silk protein, neem oil)- Used to rejuvenate styles like twists and braids                                                                                       

Eco Styler Olive Oil Styling Gel
This is the best gel on the market for natural ladies! It has several benefits:

1. Cheap, cheap, cheap! If you are on a budget you can add this to the top of your list.
2. Made with olive oil so it is ultra moisturizing
3. Great hold but will not harden and break your hair!

     

Curls - Curl Creme Brule

      When my curls and styles need a little moisture boost.  Also it smells Delish!

Smooth 'N Shine Polishing
Silk 'n Sleek Straighten Polisher and Heat Protectant
I use this product only when I am blowing out my hair. Works wonders.

      

The ABCs of Curly Hair

NaturallyCurly