Watch to see how I minimize shedding, knots, and breakage using the Tangle Teezer Brush after removing faux goddess locs I had installed for 5 weeks.
TANGLE TEEZER BRUSH VS. DENMAN BRUSH
If you've seen any of my prior hair videos, I've either used a Denman brush or a wide tooth comb to detangle my hair. The downside to using these tools is that I experienced a lot of shedding. What makes the Tangle Teezer brush unique is that the bristles are soft and flexible, which allows the brush to glide through your hair instead of ripping through your coils. Here's a list of the things I'd recommend having on hand when detangling your natural hair:
Until next time, stay beYOUtiful, keep life sweet, & never stop feeding your soul. -xo
TRANSFORM YOUR HAIR FAST
Ever had a bad hair day? Here's a quick and easy fix for when you're feeling too lazy to do your hair, but you want to look effortlessly fabulous in no time. Voila! The answer is in this video. Watch to see how I transformed my 1-week old braid out into a gorgeous fluffy fro!
As always, beYOUtiful, keep life sweet, and never stop feeding your soul. -xo
3 KEY TIPS
There's 3 key tips to mastering the takedown process for your braid out/twist out. I love a braid out that has great definition and enough frizz that I don't have to pick out my hair once I'm done taking the braids down. This was one of those moments! Watch to see exactly what I mean.
Until next time, beYOUtiful, keep life sweet, and never stop feeding your soul. -xo
3 WAYS TO SLAYWhether you're in a hurry and running late or preparing to slay the day away, here's three ways to style your eyebrows for either occasion and even in between! PRODUCT DETAILSBrow #1: Maybeline BROWprecise Fiber Volumizer (Deep Brown) Brow #2: Anastasia Beverly Hills BROW WIZ (Dark Brown) BROW #3: Anastasia Beverly Hills DIPBROW POMADE (Dark Brown) + Anastasia Beverly Hills BRUSH 12 Dual-Ended Firm Angled Brush + Maybeline SUPERSTAY BETTER SKIN Concealer (Medium/Deep) As always, beYOUtiful, keep life sweet, and never stop feeding your soul. -xo
ONE-EYED SASSY PINEAPPLEHere's a protective style that you can wear for 1-2 weeks. The video below will show you how to do this style as well as how I keep my hair moisturized while wearing it. To see how you can maintain this style, keep reading below. HOW TO MAINTAIN
likely to be more dry. I wouldn't recommend the latter, but if you're in a rush, it would work just fine. At night, pull your side bang up and tie your scarf so that the back of your head is completely wrapped and the front has an opening so that your bang can hang in the front, middle of your forehead. In the morning, you can take it down and style it. On day two and moving forward, bobby pins will be your best friend. MAKE IT YOURS
I hope this video has inspired you to explore new ways in which you can style your natural hair. I understand that being natural can have it's ups and downs, but I have found that an easy-to-maintain, go-to protective style makes caring for your natural hair a breeze. Per usual, but with the mindset to excel and never plateau, beYOUtiful, keep life sweet, and never stop feeding your soul. -xo
This is truly a protective style that leaves me feeling like a goddess every morning. Below, I've provided a brief list of why this style gives me life. Wake Up and Go There's really no exaggeration to this. At night, I tie my silk scarf bandana style around my head. To keep from irritating my edges, I tie it loosely, knotting the scarf where my braids sit, rather than tightly around my hairline. The most effort I put into spicing up this hairstyle is laying my edges, which I only recommend doing sparingly to maintain the integrity of your hairline. #SaveTheEdges, which is a struggle I know all too well. Waist Length Minus the Weight Never have I ever had hair to my waist that feels weightless. I love it! It makes you feel super fabulous without the expense of putting stress on your tresses. With goddess braids, you can count on major slayage in length without any drawbacks. Two-Week Protective Style When I think of protective styles, I think effortlessness for weeks. Who am I kidding? I'm thinking at least a month or more. However, as naturals, we must not forget how important it is for our hair to remain clean, hydrated, and moisturized. Sometimes a two-week protective style is best to prevent us from neglecting our hair's health. At the beginning of my natural hair journey, I always kept my senegalese twists in for two months or maybe even more. Looking back, this wasn't exactly a protective style because I pushed the limits on how long the style could be maintained and I disregarded properly caring for my hair. Goddess braids start to look fairly worn after a few weeks and depending on the size, the life-span varies. The smaller the braids, the longer they're likely to last. Essentially, this style will prevent you form neglecting your hair's health in exchange for convenience. Instead, you'll receive the best of both worlds: health & convenience. Pretty Doesn't Hurt If you're tender headed, there's no hope for you with respect to this reason as to why I love goddess braids. If you're not tender headed, then this may be your favorite aspect about this style. Every time I get box braids, my head is tender and a pain to sleep on for nearly a week. While you may have to wait for the hair along the nape of your neck to loosen, it's still a walk in the park on the pain meter. This style is heavy on the pretty and light on the hurt. Kind on the Wallet While there's nothing wrong with doing these yourself, I always think it's a wonderful thing to support your local, trustworthy hair stylists. Typically, this style is pretty cheap in comparison to other braid extensions. In fact, my style only required two packs of hair and most people will only need two to three packs. Little Victory
I hope you all enjoyed my effort at producing better quality photographs. Lighting seems to be a continuous battle, but I'm pleased with how my first hair shoot turned out. Please leave any photography suggestions in the comments below. If you know of any great editing apps, leave those in the comments as well. Since photography isn't everyone's cup of tea, please share a recent little victory you've experienced in your life. Until next time, stay beYOUtiful, keep life sweet, and never stop feeding your soul. -xo NATURAL HAIR CARE ISN'T JUST FOR YOUR HAIRIt was 1:30am. I was finally able to lay my head on my pillow. I instinctively opened Instagram to get a quick peak at what was going on in the one-sided, seemingly realistic, techno-social realm just before getting some much needed shut eye. Then suddenly, in the background of my thoughts, I heard an unfamiliar shuffling as I laid in bed. I had my head resting upon the inner side of my right elbow and my phone set in prime eyesight position inside of my left hand. I quieted my thoughts to listen a little closer and noticed that the shuffling had rhythm. And with an inhale and exhale of relief, I realized it was my heart beating... living... carrying me into each precious moment of life. This moment was a reminder of what a sweet thing it is to listen to the rhythm of your own heart beat. Pun intended or not, the message is always the same. BeYOUtiful, keep life sweet, and never stop feeding your soul. WHAT DOES THIS HAVE TO DO WITH NATURAL HAIR?To rewind a bit, I was up late on this particular weekday because I had #HairGoals. I wanted to properly prep my hair for faux locs, which meant I spent my night and early morning washing, deep conditioning, blowing out, and braiding out my hair. It sounds taxing. I'm aware, but what's overlooked is the calmness that arises from within through this unsuspecting hair care chore.
It's easy to say, "Ain't nobody got time for that," but the truth is that this may be the only time that you truly take to yourself. The only time that you take to count your blessings. The only time you take to reflect on what has been, what is now, and what will be. The only time you take to see beyond your reflection in the mirror, and see where your soul stands in this very moment through all your trials and triumphs. I have found caring for my natural hair to be an experience that enlightens me on where I require growth and where I have grown immensely. Simultaneously, I'm able to observe how my hair care routine has fostered damage as well as growth. Next time you convince yourself that your natural hair takes too much time to manage, ask yourself if you have time for yourself. Just like you would make time for anyone else that you consider near and dear to your heart. Contrary to the norm, I've already wished you well with my usual Sweet & Soul Life saying. Instead, I'll wish you a merry time on a feat that's more rewarding internally than externally could ever be imagined. May your your natural hair journey be ever in your favor. -xo Here's my list of scores and strikes, or pros and cons, when it comes to medium-size, 12 inch faux locs. Below, I've provided a clear cut infographic for a quick read. Check out the expanded information below the infographic for further details. scoresBudget Friendly This style is kind to the budget because it requires few packs of hair. I originally only needed 1 pack of X-Pression hair and 4 packs of Marley hair, but once some locs unraveled, I had to use another pack. That's why I recommend 5 packs of Marley hair for this style. My favorite extension hairstyle is medium-size, waste length Marley twists, which require 7-9 packs of hair. I was relieved to find out that this particular style of faux locs costs me under $40 in hair extensions. Tell your bank account that I said, "you're welcome". Timely My locs were 12 inches long and parted in medium-size sections. Therefore, it only took 6 hours to install. Normally, I block out an entire Saturday to get my hair braided/twisted, but I got this style done one evening after work. The six hours does not include hair prep. It's solely the time it took to install the locs, but compared to my usual 9-hour marely twists, it was a breeze! Ages Fine like Wine This is one of those styles that looks better the longer that it's maintained. Once the locs start to become more nappy, they look more natural and it helps them become less stiff. Protective Style My hair stylist braided my hair into the x-expression hair and then wrapped the braid with the Marley hair. My favorite benefit of faux locs is that they truly protect your hair. With Marley twists, my hair would eventually work its way outside of the twists, which would defeat the purpose of a protective style. Even after I washed my faux locs, my hair was still securely tucked inside of the locs. Light-Weight While long hair extensions make you feel glamorous, the downside is that they become very heavy as your hair grows out. This is a problem of the past when it comes to 12 inch faux locs. As my hair grew, I felt little tension at the root of my hair. strikesLocs Unravel You block out an entire day on your calendar to get your hair done. You sit there for hours, reminding yourself that the sacrifice of time and money is worth it in exchange for 1 month+ of easy hair care. Once they're complete, you're in pure bliss and ecstatic to pay your hair stylist. You leave in glee and a little bit of pain as you await for the locs to loosen. You go on about your life and compliments are flying your way. People love them, they want to know how long it took, and if you'd recommend your hair stylist. Then, one day, you notice a few twists begin to unravel. You're........... frustrated. Trust me, it's annoying and the ultimate downside of faux locs. I bought a lighter so that I could further seal my ends whenever they became lose. This prevented me from making multiple trips to see my hairstylist. However, when the entire length of the loc becomes loose and unravels, there's no saving it with the lighter. Stiff Locs & Styling My hair was extremely stiff for the first week. Since my locs were only 12 inches long, it wasn't enough weight to make the locs toward the top and center of my head lay flat. They stuck out awkwardly, so I had to style my hair. Styling the hair helps the locs loosen and look more natural. I loved wearing my locs half up in a bun and half down. However, maneuvering the locs often caused them to unravel. Locs Tangle Faux locs can become pretty tangled throughout the day, so it's important to do a few hair flips and run your fingers through them every once in a while. They also collect lent where the hair is burned at the tip. Expect to remove lent from your locs once or twice daily. Water Sensitive I like to keep my scalp squeaky clean while I rock my braided/twisted extensions, so I shampoo my scalp whenever necessary. With faux locs, I found it challenging to wash my hair becuase I didn't want my locs to unravel from being weighed down by water. I had to make sure that the water pressure wasn't too harsh and that I focused on the water hitting my head rather than my hair. Don't let me sway youI recommend using this score and strike list as an informative resource rather than a deciding factor on whether or not you should try this style. This is just to keep you from having any negative surprises. Please feel free to leave your tips and tricks in the comments below on how you maintain for your faux locs. Until next time, beYOUtiful, keep life sweet, and never stop feeding your soul. -xo
Whether you're natural, transitioning, or you just big-chopped, there are several natural hair care best kept secrets that are important to keep in mind while shopping. The bare minimumThe only true pitfall that I've discovered since being natural for the last two years is the desire to splurge on expensive hair products. At times it's necessary, at other times, it's not. And what's worse is that you don't even know if the product will meet your expectations or completely fall flat. Each trial run of a new product is a gamble, and when you do the math, it's best to just KISS - Keep It Simple Stupid. Here's a bare minimum list of products that you should always keep on hand as a natural: 1. Oil (plus an optional moisture enhancer) My favorite is olive oil. Others enjoy using coconut oil, jojoba oil, grapeseed oil, castor oil, etc. Many naturals make their own combination of several types. Instead of using water as the only moisturizer before applying oil, there's also the option to use a product like aloe vera juice. 2. Leave-in conditioner These products can easily be mistaken with styling products. Make sure you pay close attention to the label rather than the benefits like "repairs breakage" and "hair growth". Those things are wonderful. However, a styling product won't have the long-lasting, moisturizing effect of a leave-in. I always get distracted by the catch phrases, so don't let them distract you. Shop for the words "leave-in conditioner". 3. Styling product (optional) This is where I've wasted the most money. I've bought so many styling products that are just never quite the right fit for my hair. Ideally, these are the products you can have the most fun with. Maybe you're looking for something that makes your tresses as soft as a feather. Or maybe you're styling your hair in such a way that you need something that melts any knots and defines your curls. My current favorite is Lotta Body Hair Milk. Whatever you desire for this optional product, you can always find with a little trial and error. DISCLAIMER: Try one at a time. You don't need more than one styling product if you're sticking to the bare bones. 4. Deep conditioner/co-wash I love doubling my deep conditioner as a co-wash. Because of the thickness of my hair, I choose quantity over quality. My favorite is Aussie Moist Conditioner. Why? It comes in a 29.2 fl oz bottle with a convenient dispenser nozzle. It's cheap, long-lasting, and leaves my kinks and coils happily moisturized. On a budget, I'd suggest a two-in-one like I use. If you're open to splurging, maybe you use a cheaper product for co-washing and a more expensive product for deep conditioning. It all depends on your preference, but it never hurts to weigh your options. 5. Shampoo This is where every woman can save. We all use our conditioner 2-3 times more often than shampoo. I suggest you buy a great one that's sulfate free. My favorite shampoos are by Shea Moisture. 6. Gel (optional depending on how you style your hair) I thought the eco styler gel craze was overrated. Turns out, it's not. If you don't have some already, you should reconsider. From taming fly always to defining curls, it's a natural's dream come true. The only downside is that gels are drying, so make sure that you properly moisturize your hair before applying. Watch to see how I use my bare minimum, essential hair products to go from havana twists to a two strand twist out. What's your list?Besides these items, there's not much else that you need. Anything else is purely optional. The bare minimum list can be used to prevent you from buying multiple styling or leave-in conditioners at once. While I'm a complete advocate of breaking routine and trying new products, it's best to do this only after you've found a reliable product that works and most importantly, the product container is nearly empty. I like to think of it like this: Don't replenish before it's finished.
I hope this helps you on your natural hair journey. Let me know in the comments what specific products make up your bare minimum hair care list. Until next time, stay beYOUtiful, keep life sweet, and never stop feeding your soul. -xo |
NATURAL HAIR CAREThis is for my type 4 naturalistas! I'm 7 years strong in the natural hair game and I've got some tips & tricks that can make your natural hair journey a little easier. Archives
March 2021
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