2012 - Elle's Year In Review

As the last hours of 2012 are winding down, I leave you with a final post of the year: Elle's Year In Review.

This year has been a year of struggles and successes when it came to my natural hair. I have stepped outside of my comfort zone and tried new hair styles. Some I liked. Some I absolutely hated and will never try again. Some of the hair styles that I have tried have become staples for me. Some I have perfected and others I am still working on. Hairstyles like buns have become a go-to hair style on my bad hair days. I have gone through trial, error, (error, error...lol) and finally success with my wash n' gos.

I have tried new products and found several that I love! (Tresemme Naturals, Miss Jessie's Pillow Soft Curls, and Shea Butter Miracle Bouncy Curls Pudding.) I have ditched my eco-styler gel (which used to be a staple for me).

I have even started to post Natural Hair videos on YouTube. (Say Whaaat?)

And last but not least: I have finally become more comfortable than ever with my natural hair. I have reached goals that I never thought were possible. And I'm truly and utterly excited about what 2013 will bring!

I want to thank all of my followers and visitors for coming to my blog! You are all truly an inspiration and motivation for me to continue to share my hair journey with you all! I hope that you enjoyed my posts this year and I also hope that you will continue to stick around for my natural hair journey of 2013.

Finally, I leave you with my end of the year length check (Pictures ranging from June 2012-December 2012). I seem to be gaining about 1.5-2 inches of hair every three months. I predict that I will be 12" by the end of January, finally at the bottom of bsl and approaching mid-back-length.

Cheers to the end of 2012 and an even more successful 2013!

Natural Hair Styles Video - Remixing the Wash n' Go

Hey loves, I posted my newest Natural Hair Video where I show you how to achieve the following hair styles:

1) The Side Swoop

2) The Twist-n-Curl

3)  The Fro-Hawk

Thanks!!

Miss Jessie's Pillow Soft Curls Review

Ok, this is the last product I will be reviewing for the month of December (wellllllll...I guess that would make it the last product review for the year of 2012!)

I think I am using my blog as a justification for my product junkieness.

The latest product of my obsession is Miss Jessie's Pillow Soft Curls. I kept eyeing this product everytime I went to Target. I didn't have such a great result with the Curly Meringue in the beginning of my hair journey so it didn't leave me too thrilled to try another product from this line. I had no reason to eye the product other than the cotton candy and hot pink colors on the outside.

I came across a couple of reviews of the product last week and my interest turned into gotta-have-it-now-or-else. So on Friday I strolled into Target and grabbed two bottles. I'm glad my interest in this product came at the right time because Miss Jessie's BOGO Free sale was still going on (and it's not over until December 15).

I tried this product on my hair naked (meaning no other product underneath it.) You know when you try a product and you already know from the start that it's not going to work on your hair. Well it was like that.

Then I had the idea to wash the product out and start all over again...yeah yeah, an utter waste of product but I was determined to make this work! I had seen too many good reviews to not reap the benefits myself. I hate feeling like I'm missing out on something good!

My (somewhat) New Product Combination!

Once I co-washed the product out of my hair, I applied the Tresemme Naturals Conditioner as my leave-in. Then I applied the Miss Jessie's PSC ontop of it. It went on with so much slip! Even in its wet state, my hair felt pillow soft already.

I've been using it since. I really love that the product lives up to its claims:

"A fluffy soft curl; pillow soft curls; for people who don't want ramen noodle definition and instead want a larger expanded curl."

I definitely get the softness, fluffiness, and my curls are a bit larger than they were with products I have used in the past. I will continue using this product until I find my next product obsession. :-)

Embracing Obnoxious Hair

My second day hair is rather big, large, well...it's actually kind of obnoxious.

The best part about it is that I don't care.

Ladies, embrace your hair. Whether you are permed, natural, transitioning. Whatever. It's your hair.

Cantu Shea Butter Coconut Curling Cream Review

Last week I picked up a jar of Cantu Shea Butter's Coconut Curling Cream. I was impressed by Melshary's results with the product on YouTube and couldn't wait to try it out on my own hair.

You know the saying: "Everything is not for everyone"...?

That saying rang true with this product.

I tried this product three days in a row, here's what I have to say about it:

The good: Extremely soft hair, even when dry. 

The bad: Dry and dull looking hair when dry.

The ugly: Couldn't get second day hair to save my life. And it left white residue when mixed with EcoStyler Gel. Big no-no!

The results below are when my hair was dried. 

It took a lot to get rid of the white residue just for these pictures alone. 

 

Shea Butter Miracle Bouncy Curls Pudding

***New Product Love Alert***

The Shea Butter Miracle Bouncy Curls Pudding was included in my October Curl Box. Out of all of the products that I received in that box, I fell head over heels for this product!

It makes my hair feel incredibly soft. I use it with my wash n gos (after Tresemme Naturals, before Eco Styler Gel) and I have used it with twist outs. I really love how it makes my wash n gos feel. It's like a moisture IV is placed into my hair strands and is being pumped into it with this stuff. It's that serious!



Product Claims (from African-Pride.com): Keep Textures softer, silkier, with greater flexibility and bounce with African Pride Shea Butter Miracle Bouncy Curls Pudding.

Benefits:

• Nourish & Soften Curls, Coils and Waves

• Stretch & Elongate Curls and Kinky-Coils

• Smooth and Tame Frizz

Specifications:

Available in 12oz bottle

Ingredients:

AQUA, GLYCINE SOJA OIL/SOYBEAN OIL, HYDROGEANTED VEGETABLE OIL, BUTYROSPERMUM PARKII FRUIT/SHEA BUTTER, MANGIFERA INDICA SEED BUTTER/MANGO BUTTER, ARGANIA SPINOSA KERNEL OIL/ARGAIN OIL, COCOS NUCIFERA OIL/COCONUT OIL, OLEA EUROPAEA FRUIT OIL/OLIVE OIL, ROSMARINUS OFFICINALIS LEAF EXTRACT/ALOE VERA EXTRACT, PHENYL TRIMETHICONE, PANAX GINSENG ROOT EXTRACT/GINSENG EXTRACT, ALOE BARBADENSIS LEAF EXTRACT/ALOE VERA EXTRACT, GLYCERIN, POLYQUATERNIUM 11, STEARETH 2, STEARETH 20, DMDM HYDANTOIN, IMIDAZOLIDINYL UREA, SODIUM CARBOMER, PEG 150 DISTEARATE, PEG 12 DIMETHICONE, YELLOW 6, PARFUM/FRAGRANCE, BENZYL BENZOATE, BENZYL SALICYLATE, COUMARIN, D-LIMONENE, HEXYL CINNAMAL, LYRAL, METHYL IONONE GAMMA.

Happy Thanksgiving!

Happy Turkey Day!!

Hope your day is full of spending time with family, friends, and wholesome meals! Out of the many things that I am thankful for, I am surely thankful for all of you wonderful visitors that find your way to my blog!

Black Friday/Cyber Monday Deals

If you're looking for some great Black Friday and Cyber Monday deals, hop along over to the website of one of my favorite natural hair bloggers: Confessions of A Blog Vixen: 2012 Natural Hair Black Friday & Cyber Monday Sales. She's put together quite an impressive and comprehensive list! Happy Savings!!

Cleansing Conditioners

First there was shampoo.

Then came sulfate free shampoo. The co-wash method was also introduced.

Now there are cleansing conditioners.

Talk about alternatives!

If you haven't heard of cleansing conditioners yet, the product "Wen" might ring a bell. Wen is the big named (and big priced) Grandmother of cleansing conditioners. This product and other cleansing conditioner products are used to gently cleanse the hair without stripping or drying it out.

After seeing a few Wen infomercials, I went onto QVC's website to purchase a bottle to try for myself.

Then I saw the price.

O_o

I personally cannot justify spending that much on a product that is going to be washed out of my hair seconds later. It's like sending money right down the drain.

I discovered (thankfully!) that there are some alternatives to Wen, such as:

As I Am - Coconut Cowash Cleansing Conditioner

Darcy's Botanicals Daily Cleansing Conditioner Cream

L'Oreal Evercream Cleansing Conditioner

Hair One Cleansing Conditioner

Speaking of Hair One, I recently tried this product as my first experience with cleansing conditioners. I picked up a bottle of the Olive Oil Cleansing Conditioner from my local BSS (it's also sold at Sally's). I was very impressed. It left my hair soft and almost tangle-free. Two bonuses for me! I have been using it to gently cleanse my hair twice a week.

Of course I still have my eye on Grandmother Wen, maybe QVC will have a Black Friday sale lol...a girl can dream!

Randomness

My favorite boots this Fall. 

Paul Mitchell's "The Conditioner" Review

Two Saturdays ago I purchased a travel sized bottle of Paul Mitchell's Leave-In Conditioner "The Conditioner" from Ulta. I was impressed with Mahogany Curls (can you tell I'm obsessed with her hair?) results and thought I would be able to achieve great results with this product as well.

Boy was I wrong.

Have you ever been so convinced that something would work for you, and you tried and tried, but it just didn't work. That's how this conditioner was for me. I tried using this conditioner three times with three different wash n' gos. and I was turned all the way off by the third and final time.

It made my hair very stiff. Even after *scrunching* my hair once it dried, it was still unbelievably stiff. Nothing like the results I have gotten from using Tresemme Naturals.

I guess if it's not broke, why fix it?

Product Grade: D-

When Things Just Don't Go Your Way

...Rock out with a bun. An easy go-to hair style!

Still Holding Strong

My wash n' go that is. It's all trial and error baby!

Natural Hair Survival

You're stranded on a deserted island. What three natural hair products would you need for survival?

Twist Out vs. Wash N Go

Twist Out/Braid Out: Pros -

Low Manipulation Hair StyleCan be done on wet or dry hairHair is set overnight and is dry by the morningLength of hair can be stretchedSize of twists can determine the outcome (smaller twists = tightly coiled, larger twists = looser curl)Heat is not required

Twist Out: Cons -

Drying time (sometimes) cannot be predicted

Style has to be planned 

Wash N Go: Pros - 

Low Manipulation Hair Style

Quick style, can be completed within ten minutes and you're out the door!

Curl definition is more noticeable

Wash N Go: Cons -

Welcome to: "Shrinkage City"

Dealing with wet hair for at least an hour (unless you use a diffuser to dry hair)

Tangling and Matting of hair

Single Strand Knots

Finding the method that is perfect for you

As you can see, both styles have their ups and downs. It's all about what works for you in the end!

My First Curlbox!

 I'm finally in! It was like hell trying to compete with the Curl Box Server but I finally have a subscription. I probably should have had one months ago, but I kept missing the "window" for when to subscribe. Well better now than never. I'm a self proclaimed product junkie. And this box officially feeds my junkie habits of purchasing on impulse. The best part is that I don't have to leave my house. The box is delivered right to my door!

Information about Curl Box from their website:

And here are the contents of my first curl box:

Exciting! Product reviews on the way!

Three Month Length Check

Two Inches of Growth! Go me!

For the next three months I plan on continuing my wash n gos. I also will be doing twist outs and buns. Oh...and I will only be straightening my hair for Thanksgiving and Christmas.

I would like to incorporate other methods to help with my hair growth. I plan on experimenting with black tea rinses (which are known to be superb for minimizing hair shedding). I would also like to to try Aloe Vera Juice to help with detangling (a nightmare at times!) 

Maybe I Should Reconsider...

At one time I thought that Wash N' Gos were a thing of the summer.

But Curly Nikki and Mahogany Curls have me thinking otherwise!

I am reaching true milestones in my wash n' go journey. I have learned a lot this year:
a) How to do a wash n' go without it turning into a wash n' no-no.
b) What product combination works best for my wash n' gos.
c) How to achieve second, third, and forth day wash n go's.

A lot of this has been trial and error. And of course much thanks to the natural hair gods of YouTube!

Now that I am becoming more attached to my wash n' gos rather than to my twist outs...I'm thinking about doing them throughout the winter as a low-manipulation style (along with rollersets!).

I'll explain my pros and cons of the twist out vs. the wash n' go in another post.

(these pictures are from a day three wash n go)

Red in the Nude

A "pop" of nude?

The Swoop Up-Do

This up-do was done on an old frizzy braid out. I simply parted my hair into a U-Shape, did an old school french roll in the back, and "swooped" the front part that was left out to the side and pinned it up. Fairly simple. I was having an "arrrgghhhh" hair day and found this style to be my saving grace!

Natural Hair Dilemma...Update

Eureka! I think I've found a solution.

The good ol' fashioned bobby pin!

Dampened my ends, added a teeny weeny bit of Eco Styler Olive Oil Gel. Rolled the bottom of my hair up and secured with a bobby pin.

I managed to get four days out of this style without having to use rollers at again (except for that stubborn piece in the front). I definitely need to find a better solution because I am really trying to protect my ends more...and manipulating/toying around with my ends probably won't help me too much!

Natural Hair Affirmation #101

Source: onyxroseonline.com

Natural Hair Dilemma...

Why does my hair have three different textures???

The top of my hair has a very loose curl pattern. The front-left side of my hair is little loose and always looks damn near straight on the ends. And the front-right and back of my hair is coily. I prefer the latter. But blending it all in makes it a styling nightmare. 

It's not heat damage. This loose texture is from root to tip. It's just the way my hair grows. It's so bad that I have to put a rod on the braid in the front of my hair because it barely curls on the end.

I haven't been rodding the left side because the right side curls with no problem and I have a dilemma in my head where I have to do for the right side of my body whatever I do for the left and vice versa. 

Kind of like how you can't wash one hand without washing the other. 

I've done some research but Youtube videos and forums suggest curly gals to twist the hair around your fingers. Let me tell you, that doesn't work! It only makes it worse! 

I was thinking about cutting the left side so that appears to be the same length as the right side.  But when my hair is stretched they are the same exact length.

I know I can't be the only one out there with a variety of hair textures!! 

Left side - look at those straight ends!

Right side - hair love!

Back of my hair - *drool* (if only all my hair looked like this!)

Written by Danielle Elle

Google