Hair

Flat Iron Curls

I just wanted to share one of my favorite hair pics with you, one that was taken back in March when I was following a heat styled regimen for the winter.

Happy New Year!

NYE  Look 2012

Happy New Year Everyone! I hope you enjoyed ringing in the new year last night. I know I did ;-). NYE gives us ladies an opportunity to get extra glam, so I went all out last night! If you'd like to see my entire look from head to toe, step inside...

Hair

Heat Styled Natural For The Winter?

Yes, you heard it here first. Your girl has caved in. I've had it! I have officially decided to become a heat styled natural for the winter. Why you ask? Very simple. It's as cold as an iceberg and I'm finding it extremely difficult to keep moisture in my curls/braidouts. Everyone knows that it's much easier to keep straight hair moisturized than curly hair, and I've said before (see Q and A Volume 2: Transitioning, Winter Tips and Fairy Knots) that if you were ever thinking about straightening your hair, winter is definitely the time to do it!

Hair

My Regimen for Long, Strong, Natural Hair

Lord knows I have experienced several ups and downs in my hair care journey. Even at times when I knew better, I suffered setbacks thanks to laziness and lack of care. Over the years, I've experimented with tons of products, tools and techniques. If I've learned anything throughout this little adventure of mine, it's the products, care and styles that work best for my hair.

Hair

Clip-ins Revisited

After my sew-in experience a few weeks ago, I decided, yet again, that I am a clip-in kinda girl! I love the ease of clip ins. They can help you add length or fullness in no time, and there is no thread or glue to mess with. They take very little time and commitment, for all you have to do is clip 'em in and clip 'em out!

Hair

Fiyah

In my March Beauty Haul, I shared the extensions I purchased and what I planned to do with them. I dyed them red, then had a few tracks sewn in the back for a peek-a-boo effect.

Press Release

What Should You Know About Alternative Straightening Systems?

Alternative straightening systems are the latest craze to sweep the hair industry. These systems have become popularized by women with naturally curly textures who seek frizz-free hair, and want the ability to retain their curls. Alternative straightening systems are presented as a means to have both smooth, silky hair and manageable, curly tresses with the ability to go back and forth. Unfortunately, misinformation abounds with regard to the nature of the systems, the ingredients contained in the products and the after-effects of usage. Design Essentials®, a multicultural industry leader for over 20 years would like to share some facts about alternative straightening systems for women who may have heard the term but don't have the full scoop.

Hair

How I Heat Protect & Air Dry

Many of you have asked me to demonstrate how I prep and protect my hair for heat styling. Although I've shared the process through pictures and words in my How I Air Dry My Hair Prior to Straightening post, I finally went ahead and put together this video tut for you. Enjoy!

Hair, Makeup and Outfit

Birthday Hair, Makeup and Outfit

Hey everyone! Today is my birthday, and I'm so happy to share with you the outfit, hair and makeup look I rocked this past weekend. I celebrated it a bit early, and am thankful to God for allowing me to see another year! I'm also thankful for you guys, because today also marks my third vlogging anniversary. It was three years ago today that I posted my first video, 10 Tips for Healthy Hair. So...Happy Birthday to us!

Hair

Beyond the Zone Stiff Head

I've been looking for a wax stick ever since I saw YouTuber BrittneyWins use one to slick her edges back in one of her tutorials. Although the Pre-conditioning Light gel by Isoplus does a great job of slicking my edges down when my hair is curly, it causes my edges to wave up and basically revert when I apply it to flat ironed tresses. So, I figured a wax stick might be just the thing I need to keep my edges in check when I rock straight looks.

Hair

Str8 Hair Maintenance Update

I've been getting a lot of questions lately from subbies who want to know how I maintain my hair while it's straight. As time goes on, I definitely learn more and more about what works best for my hair, and strongly believe that everyone should experiment to see what works best for them, as convention does not provide a one-size fits all regimen.

Hair

More Bad News for Brazilian Blowouts

The latest issue of Essence magazine features a new warning for the hair straightening system known as the Brazilian Blowout. I recounted my introduction to Brazilian Blowouts in my video, Thanks & Brazilian Blowouts, and even discussed my reservations about the process. Now thanks to new data, my reservations and skepticism about the safety of the process have been confirmed.

Hair

From Curly to Str8: My Hot Tools

In this video, I share the heat styling tools I use to go from curly to straight.



For more info on...

1. The hooded dryer: Belson Gold' N Hot 1200 (My model may be obsolete, but you can check out the newer version on Amazon).
2. The blow dryer: Helen of Troy Ionic dryer (Look for it @ Ulta or Sally Beauty)
3. The flat iron: The Herstyler can be purchased online at Herstyler.com or Amazon.
4. The curling iron: Revlon (Check out their latest model @ Ulta)
   

Please take a moment to check out the new design of my YouTube channel. Big shout out to Erickah at Swagg Designz for the new look. You can hit her up @ erickah@swagg-designz.net.

Hair

A Random Hair Update

Okay so, I thought I'd bring you up to speed on my hair. As you already know, based on my results for the TBYHC 2011 Edition, my hair is in pretty good condition. However, I am extremely BORED with my hair right now. For one, my color has faded and grown out significantly.

Just look at how dark it is now compared to here.

As far as length goes, my hair is longer than it's been in a while. For one, a lot of the layers have grown out, and because I've been taking better care of my hair (I've been deep conditioning it more often, using less heat, eating my Wheaties, etc.), I have a lot more bulk on the ends than I did in the past:

(Left pic posted to blog on 9.17.09; right pic taken on 6.17.11)

You can see just how much the short, choppy layers in the pic at left have grown out (BTW, my layers only looked that crazy because my hair was windblown and not moisturized, but when moisturized and wrapped, it looked like this).

I got pregnant shortly after the pic at left was taken, and I must say that the pregnancy definitely did my hair some good (i.e. my hair grew quicker and got thicker. To learn more, see Pregnancy & Hair).

Although I've been able to retain a lot of the length and thickness I gained during those 9 (or really 10) months, I'm still not sure how long I want my hair to be. Right now I'm cool with the length, but I don't really have a length goal because I've been so focused on the health of my hair. Plus, it seems that anytime my hair grows I get the urge to cut it, just like I did last December. Take for instance how I'm feeling right now. A part of me wants to grow my hair to waist length (it hasn't been that long since high school) just so I can have something to aspire to, but another part of me wants to cut my hair into a cute, sassy style. It doesn't necessarily have to be short all over, but bangs and layers would be cool.

The last time I straightened my hair was on June 17th. I was crunched for time, so I used a blow dryer for the first time this year. I recently bought a new one (I plan to do a vid on my heat styling tools, so stay tuned...) because my old one, which I had for about 6 years or so finally conked out, and I basically just wanted to see how well the new one worked on my hair. I normally air dry my hair but figured I should get a blow dryer for hair emergencies. Plus, I'm what you call a "kitchen beautician," so I need one to use on my "clients" (and by clients I mean fam and friends ;-)).

The pic at left is of my hair after it was straightened, and the pic at right is of my hair after I put some curls in it (just for body and movement) with my curling iron:

I'm debating whether or not I'll be straightening my hair this week for an event I plan to attend on Friday. I really don't intend to use heat much, if at all this summer just because a) it's so hot out, and b) I've been exercising hard to lose the last 10 pounds or so of my baby weight. Chances are I'll just sweat it out, so I'll mainly be rocking my natural curls.

Because I've been upping the intensity of my workouts, I've started doing co-washes again, which is something I had eased up on. I had basically replaced co-washes with rinsing my hair in the shower post workout, as I found this to be adequate in removing sweat from my scalp and product buildup from the hair. However, now that I'm doing co-washes and rinsing my hair almost daily, I'm going through my styling products a lot quicker. Since buying jars upon jars of styling aids is not good for my wallet right now, I've decided to just allow my curls to do their thing. Thus, I just focus on sealing in moisture because I can stretch leave-ins and oils a lot further than any styling product. Take for instance what I did to my hair on Thursday after I shampooed and deep conditioned it using ORS Olive Oil Replenishing Conditioner:

Here's what my hair looked like post wash with nothing in it:

And here's what my hair looked like once dry with just coconut oil:

This was just a little experiment I did to see how my hair would fair with just coconut oil because that's all I put in my son's hair, and his looks great. However, since my hair isn't baby fine, it needs more moisture, so yesterday (Sunday), I rinsed my hair in the shower and applied some of my Bronner Bros. Moisturizing Hair Lotion and sealed with the coconut oil. This gave my hair the moisture it needs, but I still didn't use any styling aids to hold my curls in place.

My hair may be looking wild and wooly without any styling products, but until this heat lets up, and I lose the rest of this baby weight, I figure I may as well leave it alone. In the meantime, I can do some research and decide if I want to color my hair again, what products I want to use, and how I'm going to style it.

So, how are things going with your hair?

XOXO,

DPrincess28

Hair

Ulta Wants You to Love Your Hair!

I love Ulta because I consider it to be a one-stop shop for all things beauty. Being an Ulta rewards member means that I receive coupons and circulars in the mail featuring all the latest and greatest products and events Ulta has to offer. In their most recent catalog, they have announced their upcoming Love Your Hair event that will be taking place in all 400 of their stores across the country. This is a fabulous opportunity for curly heads, wavy heads and straight heads to learn how to style and care for their natural texture. Peep the schedule of events below:

Week 1: May 8 – May 14

The focus is on CURLY hair as live demonstrations will be held on Wednesday, May 11 and Thursday, May 12 from 5pm – 8pm. Redken and Chi products will be featured.

HINT: Have the curly hair, blow dryer blues? Try showering at night before bed and while hair is wet, apply a curl creme. Section off hair, twirl each section around fingers and use a bobby pin to secure to scalp. By the time the sun rises, you are sure to have luxurious frizz-free curls!

Week 2: May 15 – May 21

WAVY hair is the star this week. Learn tips and tricks on how to define waves and add shine. Live demons will be held on Wednesday, May 18 from 5pm – 8pm and Saturday, May 21 from 12pm - 3pm.

HINT: Define those waves! Finish off a wavy look with a non-aerosol fixing spray for long-lasting humidity resistance and all-day frizz control. Twirl hair around your fingers to shape curls in front of face for a more polished look.

Week 3: May 22 – May 28

Get your STRAIGHT hair looking and feeling luscious thanks to live demonstrations that will be held on Wednesday, May 25 and Thursday, May 26 from 5pm – 8pm.

HINT: Dry shampoo adds volume and spares you shampoo time leaving hair smelling and feeling fresh. Whether you use a powder or spray-on product, the oil-absorbing dry shampoo will keep your blowout looking beautiful for an extra day.

NOTE: Attendance to live demos is free, and no reservations are needed.

For more info, visit: www.ulta.com/loveyourhair and www.facebook.com/ULTA.

Hair

Experiment: Flexi Rod Dry Set

I often share experiments gone right, but rarely share experiments gone wrong. I've had these jumbo flexi rods for quite some time now and wanted to see how my hair would look if I used them on dry hair. I knew I wasn't feeling up to doing the traditional wet set, so I simply took small sections of flat ironed tresses and twisted each section from root to tip as I normally would when I place my hair in bantu knots. I then took each twisted section and twisted the hair around the flexi rods like so:

I put on my satin bonnet and slept in the rods overnight. The next morning, I took the rods out...


untiwsted each section, and this is what I got:

A frizzy mess!

What I think went wrong:

1. I didn't apply any setting lotion or moisturizer to the ends
2. I shouldn't have twisted the hair down to the ends because some were difficult to undo and resulted in a frizzy mess

Some parts turned out okay, like the front section in this photo:

Oh well. Better luck next time!

Hair & Makeup

Thanksgiving Day Hair & Makeup

Hey everyone! I hope you enjoyed a wonderful Thanksgiving with family and friends :-). I wanted to share the fun, colorful look I sported this Thanksgiving, so check out the video below. I also did a quick hair tutorial, so if you want to find an easy way to jazz up your straight locks, here you go:



Products used:

• Too Faced Shadow Insurance Primer
• Creative Me #1 palette by Coastal Scents
• EP24 Unforgettable palette by L.A. Colors
• Pur Mineral foundation in Deeper
• Blot powder by MAC
  
• Raizin powder blush by MAC
• A golden bronzer by Icing
• Cutie lipgloss by Ulta

Pics of the makeup, hair, and total look:















P.S. Did you happen to catch a glimpse of my special guest at the end of the vid? Many blessings to you and yours!

Hair

Heat Protectant?

I have a cousin who is a hairstylist, and she has fabulous looking natural tresses. Although her hair is curly, she chooses to wear it straight most of the time. Envious of her super straight, shiny locks, I asked her what products she uses when flat ironing her hair. Seeing that I was prepared to run out and buy whatever product she named, I was flabbergasted when she said she uses absolutely nothing on her hair. She doesn't use a heat protectant prior to blow drying or flat ironing, nor does she use any moisturizers to protect her ends from splitting. Believe it or not, she's not the first sistah whose locks I've admired that does the same.

Now, most of us in the natural hair community would absolutely resist the idea of not using any product to protect or moisturize our hair, as natural hair tends to be drier than relaxed. However, I recall how I used to "grease" my scalp regularly, as most of us were conditioned to do so during childhood. At one point I would have looked at someone sideways had they told me my scalp didn't need any oil or grease. Yet, I don't put any product on my scalp today, and haven't done so for many years now, as I've learned that my scalp really doesn't need all that product. With that in mind, I'm now wondering how essential a heat protectant really is.

Now, don't get me wrong, I have no plans of going the product-free route, as I really don't think my fine hair could handle high heat with no protectant. I think everyone's hair is different, and although some folks, like my cousin, can be product free and still have long, shiny locks, I don't think that forumula would work well for everyone. I can admit that I've been guilty of using too much product, so I will definitely consider using a lighter touch when it comes to a protectant. After all, in order to get that salon "swang," the hair can't be bogged down with too much serum or oil.

What do you divas think about heat protectants? Do you know anyone who has fabulous hair, who claims not to use one? If so, do you think you would get the same results? If not, what is your heat protectant of choice? I look forward to hearing your responses.

XOXO,

DPrincess28

Hair

Thanks & Brazilian Blowouts

In this video I thank my lovely subscribers for all the well wishes during my pregnancy. I also share my introduction to and opinion of Brazilian Blowouts. For more information on Brazilian Blowouts, check out the links listed below the video.

1. Brazilian Blowout FAQs
2. Have You Had a Brazilian Blowout Hair Treatment?
3. Brazilian Blowout Report on Good Morning America
4. The Brazilian Blowout Allegedly Contains A LOT of Formaldehyde: What Does This Mean For The Future Of Hair Straightening?

Hair

Hair Update: Playing it Str8

In my recent YouTube video titled "Hair Update & Hair Chatter," I provided updates on the status of my curly hair. Many of my subscribers commented on the noticeable improvement in the health of my hair. Some also stated that they thought my hair looked shorter...au contraire!

The reason my curly pony appeared shorter to some is because my hair is getting healthier, thanks to little to no heat and constant moisturizing. It therefore looks shorter now while curly because I have regained a lot of my shrinkage. As you'll see in the pics below, not only is my hair still long, but it's growing and thriving!

Hair pre-trim and home straightened: April 2, 2010

Hair post-trim and professionally straightened: April 23, 2010