Protective Style Lookbook || Banana Clip Updo

By popular demand, this is a series showcasing various protective hair styles.  Protective styling does not have to be boring. :o)

Model: Chrissy

Difficulty level: 1/5

Description: Roll and tuck style with a banana clip.

Product Review || Organix Renewing Moroccan Argan Oil Conditioner

NOTE:  This product was purchased at Walgreens.

Purpose: "... creates softness and strength while protecting your hair from harmful styling heat and UV damage ..."

Ingredients: Water (Aqua), Cetearyl Alcohol, Cetyl Alcohol, Behentrimonium Chloride, Glycerin, Argania Spinosa (Argan) Kernel Oil, Hydrolyzed Keratin, Theobroma Cacao (Cocoa) Seed Butter, Persea Gratissima (Avocado) Oil, Aloe Barbadensis Leaf Juice, Glycol Stearate, Glycol Distearate, Ceteareth-20, Isopropyl Alcohol, Dimethicone, Cyclotetrasiloxane, Citric Acid, Cyclopentasiloxane, Panthenol, Cocos Nucifera (Coconut) Oil, Tetrasodium EDTA, DMDM Hydantoin, Methylchloroisothiazolinone, Methylisothiazolinone, Yellow 5 (Cl 19140), Red 40 (Cl 16035), Fragrance (Parfum).

Number of trials: ~3-4

How I used it:

Applied to the ends (the last few inches) of freshly washed hair.
Waited for 3-5 minutes (as instructed).
Then rinsed.

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THE REVIEW:

This conditioner was okay.  It did not leave me blown away or wanting to purchase more.  I get the same (or probably a bit more) softness and strength from my ORS Replenishing Conditioner and ApHogee 2-Minute Keratin Reconstructor. 

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PROS: pleasant smell, nice consistency (not runny or watery), pretty bottle

CONS: over-priced (~$6.99 for 13 fl. oz.)

RATING: Overall, I give the Organix Renewing Moroccan Argan Oil Conditioner 2.5 out of 5 stars.  

This product is ideal for those who:

- experience a little (but not severe) breakage and splits

Hair Diary || A Month of Chunky Twists to Hair Boredom

Throwback pic (Dec. 2013).

Okay, it has been a while since I've posted in the "Hair Diary" ... largely because I've been bored with my hair as of late and do not want to think about it.  My thoughts have gone from cutting my hair down to neck-length to putting in some highlights to loc-ing to relaxing it ...

*Gasps from the readers*

Yep, for the first time in years I've thought about relaxing.  Why?  For ease of care.  The detangling process on my natural hair really gets on my nerves sometimes, and I start to reminisce on the relaxer days when fingers and combs would glide effortlessly through my hair.

At the end of the day, though, I do not miss the regular application of relaxer just to keep those roots straight, the breakage, the scalp burns, the relaxer smell, and the permanent straightness.  After all, if I want straight hair, I can always pull out the flat iron (which I eventually did do recently) on my natural hair.  What's so funny is that the "straight" phase always passes within a couple of weeks because flat-ironed hair is so boring to me after a while.

Agh, anyway, as I figure out how to spice up my hair boredom without doing something drastic, here are some more hair pics from last month:

First set of chunky twists.  Overall, I had to re-twist my hair weekly (as expected) which is too much manipulation for me. Back to my usual smaller twists.

The front of that set.

This was more of a big/medium size set of twists.  In the following week, I did some actual chunky twists.  (No pics for that unfortunately.)

Other angles of the above look.

Study || Herbal Oils as a Natural Sunscreen?

According to quite a few studies, certain herbal oils can provide a level of protection from the sun.  The calculated SPF values range from 0.248 to 7.549.  Olive oil and coconut oil are among the highest ranking ones.

Now, though these oils provide some sun protection, I would not go so far as to use them in place of a regular sunscreen.  After all, many dermatologists recommend that women of color wear a sunscreen with an SPF of 15 or even 30.  Olive oil and coconut oil have an SPF of only 7.5 and 7.1, respectively.  Some of these oils, however, can decelerate damage caused to the skin after sun exposure ... which is something that sunscreens generally do not do.   (Check out my earlier post on olive oil after UVB-exposure.)  Additionally, these oils can provide our hair with a level of sun protection. :o)

SOURCES
SPF DETERMINATION OF HERBAL OILS IN COSMETICS (2010)
OLIVE OIL ON UV-INDUCED CANCER (2000)
EFFECT OF ALMOND OIL ON UVB-INDUCED PHOTOAGING (2007)

Healthy Living || Health and Fitness Goals Are About Total Life Transformation

By Stephanie of Infinite Life Fitness

 

When I work with clients I try to put all of the focus on improving all aspects of their life.

When you are working towards a health and fitness goal it is not just about working out and losing weight.  It is a total life transformation!  You have to think and act differently on a daily basis.  You have to be less critical and grow a patience not only for yourself but for other people that are around you.

When you create health and fitness goals I also suggest to create other life goals.  This journey is not just about losing the weight; it is also about becoming a better person! You have to condition yourself to think differently and that also means having less negative thoughts about yourself and other people that are around you.

The more negative things that you limit or try to cut out of your life, you will start to notice the smaller and more enjoyable things that happen day to day.  There are so many great and beautiful things around you if you take a moment to stop and notice them! People who are negative usually are to wrapped up in what is going wrong with their life to notice all of the good things that are going on.

When working towards your health and fitness goal you have to work on all aspects of your life.  You have to work on your physical, mental, and emotional challenges.  Once you start to better these areas in your life, your journey will have so much more meaning and you can enjoy the process (and the results) so much more!

My motto for this year...."It could always be worse".  Try to cut out all of the negativity and focus on the good things that happen to you!  No matter what is going on, or how bad your day is, there is always someone else out there who is going through something worse than you are.  I am not saying that your troubles are not meaningful; I am saying do not let them define you!  Yes we all go through rough times in life but it is how you overcome them that helps to build you into a better person!

Today's challenge:  Try NOT to complain about anything!! Someone at work is bothering you? Walk away from them! Do not go and gossip about them with your co-workers or your boss.  Is a friend or family member bugging you today?  Try not to answer their phone call or tell them that you are busy and can not help them today.  You may notice you may enjoy the day a little more when you have less things and people to complain about!  Try this for a day (or for all week) and see if this starts to help you on your journey!

This is Stephanie from Infinite Life Fitness. Please feel free to stop by my blog for more health and fitness tips!

Mixology || Recipe for a Conditioner-Based Leave-In

This leave-in is great for reviving a wash-n-go or dry hair.  It can also be used after a fresh wash.

Ingredients:
4 oz distilled water
1 oz Tresemme Naturals Conditioner (the original white label) or Suave Naturals Conditioner
1oz avocado or olive oil

NOTE: If you prefer to use a conditioner other than Tresemme or Suave, just be sure that it is an instant conditioner that is NOT heavy in protein or silicones.

Directions:
1. Pour all the ingredients into a spray bottle or mister.
2. Shake the bottle well to thoroughly mix the ingredients together.
3. Can be used on damp, freshly washed hair or on dry hair.
4. Store in a refrigerator to prolong the shelf life.

Healthy Hair on Youtube: Naturally High

What I LOVE about Naturally High is that her kinky, natural hair is super healthy and super long (almost hip-length).  It is rare that I see naturals with my hair type who are hip-length or this close to it.  (The only other one that comes to mind is Sera before her cut.)   It further weakens the silly argument that "black girls cannot grow long hair".

Naturally High shares some great hair care tips and interesting natural hair experiences on her YouTube channel. Here is one video in which she discusses, what I would call, a natural hair experience you would NEVER want to encounter: