Loo's Lip Balm Mix

It's that time of year again!  

I ran out of my homemade body butter so this weekend I went to mixing.  Instead of doing the usual body butter mix, I whipped up a simple body oil (recipe coming soon) and lip balm.  (By the way, my body butters/oils are more like ankle-knee-elbow butters/oils; I use Kiss My Face Lavender Shea Lotion on the rest of my body.)

For the lip balm recipe, I used:
• 2 parts shea butter
• 1 part grapeseed oil
• 1 part (or less) honey
• (a few drops for color) burgundy lip gloss

The instructions: Soften the shea butter by melting it only slightly in a pot on the stove.  (If your shea butter is already soft, there is no need to melt it.)  Mix in the grapeseed oil then follow with the honey.  Lastly add a few drops of lip gloss (or lipstick) for color.  (This prior step is optional.)  Allow the mix to set, and that's it!  You have your lip balm.

For other lip balm recipes, check this earlier post.

Healthy Hair Feature: NowIamnappy

1) Are you natural, relaxed, texlaxed, or transitioning? (And how long?)
I'm natural and on June 20, I will be 3 years natural.

2) What mistakes have you made in your hair care journey?
I've made a few mistakes. Early on I learned the importance of protective styles but one winter, I thought I would be cute and wear my fro for the whole winter. By spring my ends were rough and breaking and I had to trim my hair almost 2 inches . My other mistake I made was going to the hair salon to get my hair straightened. Right from the start there were warning signs that the experience wasn't going to be good but somehow I let her not only blow dry my hair and rip through my ends, but press it and then use a curling iron on it. Not to mention she cut my BSL hair to APL because she wanted to make it even, something I did not ask her for because I never wear my hair straight. In the end, the press was gorgeous but when it came time to wash my hair I had severe heat damage in some areas. I trimmed those right away and went directly into protective styling. I'm happy to say 6 months later I gained those 3 inches she cut of, and my hair is thriving again.

3) What is your current HEALTHY HAIR routine?
Currently I am in a hair challenge to grow my hair to BSL in 6 months, so my hair mainly stays in protective styles. I shampoo my hair bimonthly and cowash once per week followed by a weekly deep condition. After detangling in the shower I put my hair in big twists and air dry. Once dry I style my hair into an updo which lasts all week until its time to wash again. I do however sometimes allow myself to wear my hair down on the weekends, its not always fun to keep my hair locked away.

4) Do you have a HEALTHY BODY routine? If so, what is it?
I'm actually just getting back into being healthy again, I recently moved and allowed myself to slip a little. But, I'm going to back to exercising 3x a week drinking 8-10 glasses of water and day and incorporating more raw foods into my diet. My main problem is sugar so I'm trying to eliminate all candy from my diet once again.

5) Do you have any advice for those seeking healthy tresses?
I would definitely say patience is the key and really learning what your hair needs. For me I use all natural products and very few commercial lines. I prefer to mix my own products and stick with things like aloe vera, shea butter, and oils. Also its so important to do protective styles when your looking to grow out your hair. Some people dont like they way their hair looks in twists or braids, but there's so many styles out there that you can do to protect in your ends besides the usual and thats why I started a fotki and youtube to help people looking for simple protective styles/updos.

NowIamnappy can be found at:
http://members.fotki.com/soontobenappy/about/
http://www.youtube.com/user/NowIAmNappy?feature=mhum

Simple Homemade Hair Gel Recipes

BASIC FLAXSEED GEL
- water
- flax seeds
Recipe and Instructions

"FLAXSEED AND BEYOND" GEL
- flax seeds
- water
- almond oil or jojoba oil
- lavender essential oil
Recipe and Instructions

PURE ALOE VERA GEL
- aloe vera plant
Extraction Instructions
Video tutorial

ALOE AND JOJOBA GEL
- aloe vera gel (purchased or extracted)
- jojoba oil
Recipe and Instructions

GELATIN GEL
- organic gelatin (unflavored)
- warm water
Recipe and Instructions

Do you have a special recipe?  Please share in the comment section.

"Soul" Food Mondays || Addressing Low Self Esteem

Addressing low self esteem. Part I.

"You'll naturally have better self esteem as a by-product of living well."  A major part of "living well" involves fulfilling eight core human needs, according to the articles below:

•The need to look after your body (e.g., eat well, care for you hair and nails)
•The need for meaning, purpose and goals (e.g., set a goal to pay down debt)
•The need for a connection to something greater than ourselves (e.g., God, nature)
•The need for creativity and stimulation (e.g., paint, exercise, learn to knit)
•The need for intimacy and connection to others (e.g., friends, your pet)
•The need for a sense of control (e.g., spring cleaning)
•The need for a sense of status and recognition from others (e.g., recognition that you are a daughter, mother, sister, and/or friend)
•The need for a sense of safety and security

For more insight on addressing low self esteem, I encourage you to read this article.  (Sorry about the format.)

For more on the core human needs, read this article.

New Hair Marketplace - Remy Hair Collective!

Check out Remy Hair Collective where users can buy and sell hair and hair products among themselves. There is no cost to participate.

http://remyhaircollective.com/

3in6: Ending Month #2

See "3in6 Challenge" details here.

Wow, ladies!  That was fast.  We have concluded the second month of the challenge.  

I just put in my third set of twists for the challenge - medium twists to be exact.  It felt so good taking the old, over-frizzed set down and "pampering" myself with this new set.  The plan is to wear these twists for 3-4 weeks.  

As for the rest of the challenge guidelines: I restocked on One-A-Day multivitamins, carrots, and spinach.  I also bought broccoli.  To be honest, I'm not really a fruit person, but I'll try to buy some bananas later today.

How was month #2 for you ladies?  What kinds of fruits and vegetables have you been eating?

Omega-3 & Depression

It has been a while since I've written a soul-related post.  The following may be of interest to anyone with depression.  Of course, please consult with your doctor before stopping any medications or making any other changes to your routine.

"Emerging research suggests [omega-3 supplements] may be effective for people with mild depression or as an adjuvant to medication [1]."

1.  HEALTH SOURCE (2008)
2.  SCIENCEDAILY SOURCE (2010)