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Disclaimer

The hair tips, advice and recommendations given on this blog are given based on the experiences of the authors. These tips may not work for everyone and every hair type and it is important to acknowledge this since we are neither hair specialists nor trichologists.


Also many pictures on this blog belong to the authors but there are others that we do not have ownership for and thus we do not claim ownership of the ones that do not belong to us.

Sunday, November 29, 2009

Holiday hair

We had Thursday and Friday off for the Muslim holiday. So I decided to try something different with my hair. I wore a side bun for two days.





And then on the third day I wore a curly fro.


I kind of like the way it turned out. I achieved this style by putting my hair into about ten twists and rolling the twists with rollers. (I actually do not use rollers. I just use strips of cloth to roll my hair) I slept with the twists in my hair and the next day I took them out and divided the twists. And the above was what i got. I really liked this style. Next time I try it I think I need to use a product to give me more hold.

Thursday, November 26, 2009

Detangling Hair

How do I detangle?

So basically, I had been loosing wayyyyyy too much hair and I could not figure out why. After reading about some naturals who used finger detangling. I was able to come up with a detangling method that works for me. I attribute this to divine inspiration because I do not understand how I could be natural for 8 plus years and still have no clue about how to leave hair on my head when I detangle. 

 


My method is like this:

When I take out my twists, I simple do a pre-wash conditioning treatment then I wash my hair. Sometimes I wash by putting my hair into big plaits but lately I have not been doing this. I just wash my hair loose and it works for me. I think making a choice to wash your hair loose depends on how long your hair is.


It is important for me to do a deep conditioning treatment before I detangle.


After I rinse out the deep conditioning treatment and remove excess water from my hair using an old shirt, it is now time to detangle.


I take little sections of my hair, put some shea butter in it and use my fingers to separate the hair. Then I detangle the section using a wide tooth comb starting from the tips and working my way to the roots. When I’ve combed through my hair, I twist it up. When I’m all done I can go to sleep with the twists and  the next day my hair is stretched out enough for me to style.

Tuesday, November 24, 2009

Fake versus Real Coconut Oil

I only just discovered that real coconut oil will start to 'solidify' when it is in a cold room. But the coconut oil I bought from Ojota market recently does not do that. Hmmmm, I think my coconut oil has been mixed with another type of oil. I'm not happy at all :(

For those of you who buy your coconut oil from the market, watch out for the fake stuff.

Monday, November 23, 2009

Hair Interview with Ibhaze


Name

Ibhaze Uduehi


Where are you from?

Edo State


What do you do?

I work as a Business Development Officer in an Information and Communication Technology firm in Abuja.


So I know that in secondary school you wore your hair natural but afterwards you tried relaxers and texturisers. Tell us why you decided to go natural again?


I was in France for a while when I noticed my relaxed hair had started breaking off and it was getting more and more difficult to maintain it. Of course, in the small city I was living in, there were only 2 African hair salons and they weren’t cheap, so I had to beg a friend to help me relax my hair whenever she could(she was studying law so that was almost never).


So, one day, I walked into one of the African hair salons and noticed a framed picture of a black woman with a glorious natural mane. That was actually the 2nd time I cut my hair.

The first time was after Oghomwen came over, I saw her lovely long hair and wanted to do a transplant. So some months later, I woke up one fine and cut all the relaxed hair off. Since then, I tried jehri curls and baby curls for the “mixed” look but it just never felt right.

So I cut my hair early this year and I’m back to my natural wiry kink for good!



What’s your natural hair regimen?


I’m actually at the “obsessive” phase of my hair so this is the point where I’m trying anything and everything that’s claimed to be gold for natural hair. So far, I’ve been using Oghowmen’s shea butter mixture with essential oils, castor oil and glycerine as hair cream, Dark ‘n’ Lovely Ultra Cholesterol Deep Conditionning which I leave in overnight with my hair in a wrap and any basic oil spray to soften and moisturize my hair.


So far, so good! Now onto the famous coconut oil and I’ll be trying the Organic Mayonnaise Conditioning to see if it’ll make my hair softer and even healthier than it is right now.


I’ve had my hair in braids for a couple of months now with barely any intervals between braids so I feel it needs to breathe and be nurtured. So I’ll be doing a lot of deep and leave-in conditioning and try to make it a habit.


How do people react to your natural hair? Are they positive or negative?


People are actually very positive about my natural hair. Random strangers walk up to me and ask if it’s my hair that I’ve twisted or did I put something in? Then, they touch it and wow at it and go on to tell me why they could never do what I’m doing cos their hair’s too this or too that. I used to believe that I had the worst hair texture in the world as it’s really wiry (hairdressers never fail to stress that) and it’s not that full. But I’ve and am learning to maintain it and am loving the adventure!


People sometimes ask, with amazement on their faces, why I’m keeping my hair natural. A male friend though recently advised me to relax it for people to see the length. That was funny.


Comment about natural hair in the work place. Do you feel awkward about wearing your natural hair to work?


Not at all! And I’ve never been brought to book on my locs, twist/twist out or whatever style I had on. People compliment and also generally mind their business otherwise. As long as I look good and presentable, there’s no problem at all. It also helps to have a mouth that puts them in their place when they start voicing opinionsJ.

**bisous**

Saturday, November 21, 2009

Digging for Gold


It’s easier to strike gold if you’re digging. Only once in a while do you hear about people who actually stumble upon something of worth when they weren’t looking for it. Sometimes, you hear about people who stumble upon something else while searching for another thing. For example, you may be digging for gold but then strike oil instead. Either way you were digging.


Occasionally, when you’re digging for gold you may not find anything at all. That’s life. You win some and you loose some. Digging is never a waste of time though, because digging helps you develop strong muscles. So if ever you decide to stop digging and start building something, like a pyramid for example, at least you would have had some practice in hard labour.


At other times you may find that while you are hard at work shoveling and grunting, somebody significant stumbles upon you.  After inquiring about what you are doing, he or she may decide to employ you to dig for them on their own land where they are sure that there is gold. The decision of whether to keep on blazing your own trail or abandoning your territory to blaze the trail for another is entirely up to you.


There is also the possibility that you may be digging in the wrong place or with the wrong tools which is why you are not finding anything. Since we are only human, we make mistakes like this. However, a knowledgeable spectator may decide to let you in on the secret that you are digging in the wrong place or with the wrong tools. Then at least you would have acquired the knowledge you need to correct yourself.


At this point I will add that this same law applies to fishing, cooking, sewing, and many other professions. You are definitely more likely to catch something if you are fishing. Just like you are more likely to make a garment if you are sewing.


In case you missed it, the translation for digging is W-O-R-K. By work I mean you need to be doing the activities that push you forward and move you closer to what you want to achieve. In summary, you are more likely to succeed at something if you are working. You need to work to actually make something happen. If you are not working but instead loafing about, you are definitely on your way to achieving nothing. Dreams don’t just happen; people actually work to make them happen. Careers don’t just materialize, instead everyday people with the same abilities like you and I wake up every morning and spend hours of their day putting the pieces of their careers together. Businesses don’t just start by themselves. Nope. People make them happen. One reason why successful people are actually successful is because they decided to get up and work. So, pick up your shovel and start digging.


 

Oghomwen

Thursday, November 12, 2009

Hair Spa Afternoon - Toronto Style

Hey! Hey! It was a great day when a few natural/nappy/kinky haired women got together for a Hair Spa afternoon. We laughed, talked, argued, disagreed, encouraged one another, exchanged hair products, and sighed too. I have to thank the ladies who came out because they made it a great day.



So the Hair Spa Afternoon was inspired by the blog post from Indigenous Productions which you can read here.

After reading the post, I decided to go for it! I invited some ladies who have natural and relaxed hair. Hopefully the hair tips we share on the blog can be used by anyone who wants to have healthy hair. The women who came all had natural hair and are in different phases of being natural. We had new napps, old napps and “napps in hiding”. *LOL*



During the afternoon, we talked about why we went natural. We learned some cool hair tips like how to extract coconut oil from coconuts. Trust me, you have to be patient to extract coconut oil from coconut and you need a whole lot of coconuts to get a reasonable quantity. We learned that ALL NATURAL UNPROCESSED shea butter can be used to cook too. We heard horror stories of salon visits. One of the ladies went to a salon where she was told that she is confused because she is natural but wanted the hairdresser to press her hair. Can you believe it? She said she was bewildered by the hairdresser’s accusation. The funny thing is I have been to the same hair salon and had a horrible experience with exactly the same hairdresser. I think I shall post a blog entry on hair salons that are napp haters. We heard about how family and friends reacted to the news that we were going natural. We also gave one of the ladies a hair treatment. We twisted her hair using Kinky-Curly curling custard. She loved it! We did too.





One thing that was so cool is how everyone wanted to touch everyone else’s hair. I think this is something only natural haired black women do. I could be wrong but I doubt it. Ladies complimented their hair and asked “Can I touch your hair?”. Another cool thing is how everyone said to everyone else “You have nice hair.” I think that is so wonderful! It is encouraging and empowering when you interact with people who appreciate and are excited about natural, kinky, nappy black hair. It started as a Hair Spa Afternoon and ended well into the night. At the end of the night, each lady got a bag of goodies. They got all natural shea butter, black soap, hair jewels and candy. Sweet gifts for sweet ladies!



So go ahead, get your friends together and have a Hair Spa Afternoon. Email us and let us know how it went.



Omozo.

Tuesday, November 3, 2009

Today we are coloring with Henna




 Omo’s henna recipe taken from SimniCity and modified

Ø  Half pack of henna
Ø  2 eggs - Protein will help strengthen your hair so it is not brittle
Ø  Half tub of full fat yoghurt (I do organic) / or 2 avocados (your choice) – fat to help your hair remain soft and shiny
Ø  1 big mixing bowl
Ø  A spoon to mix
Ø  Cling film
Ø  2 tea spoons of coconut oil or 1 cap  (5mls) of sweet almond oil + 1cap (5mls) castor oil – to help moisturize the scalp and add shine to your hair
Ø  Oven (or somewhere warm)

In the large mixing bowl, pour half the content of henna into it, crack eggs and beat it lightly.

Add half a tub of yoghurt and 2 teaspoons of coconut oil and the other oils, mix thoroughly until it is almost a green brown color (I think this is dependent on the type of henna you buy so just mix until there are no clumps and it looks even. I mixed mine for about 20mins. )

Then cover with cling film and put it in your oven at 50degrees C or lower (or put it somewhere warm) overnight.

Day 2 – part hair into sections and apply using hands or a small comb.

Apply product on hair up to ends if you want. Cover hair with shower cap and a towel around it to retain the heat. Leave on for 3-4 hours (I recommend even longer ‘cos my hair did not retain a lot of color).

Rinse out with warm water, do a warm oil steam, wait 30 mins then wash hair gently with mild sulphur free shampoo.

My hair turned brown or color 33 (a darker shade) and I loved the way it came out in streaks. I did this in April, its October and the color is still vibrant


I took out my braids last weekend and I am putting another one in again. I am happy to say 1.3” of new growth sprung forth.

Have an awesome weekend people don’t hesitate to ask any questions and for those who are in transition, hang in there and please remember; we are here to help you get through this hurdle.

The first picture is the final result with Henna.  The second and third pictures are showing my hair after I took out the braids and the growth, which I am so proud of. 

Also you can read about henna here

Omozee

My first experience with henna was over 15 years, in Malali village, KadunaMy “bestest” friend for a long time Halima, stole some henna from her mum’s room and taught me how to mix and apply it on my finger tips and soles of my feet.

A few months back, I stumbled on SimniCity (unfortunately she is off youtube at the moment) and her henna recipe for coloring her hair. Halima’s image came to mind so I called Halima up; and asked if I could use henna for my hair. She told me about henna, and how to identify the good ones (there is no trick to recognizing good ones, read the label and make sure it is LEAD AND MERCURY FREE) and where to get it (Most south Asian stores (Indianand North African Stores (Egyptian) ) and so I am going to share this with you. Let me put a disclaimer saying what works for me, may not work for you!