HAIRDRESSER RANT!

All my life, I have been disappointed by hair dressers more often than not. Allow me to rant! I am not a trained hairdresser nor do I aspire to be one but I have had it with hairdressers! I am yet to meet a hairdresser who will tell me that I am due for a protein treatment, deep conditioning treatment, or clarifying shampoo! I never knew these things until I got to do my research on the internet. That makes me wonder what it is they teach in hairdressing school or whatever it is called! Why didn't I know about doing protein treatments and deep conditioning treatments and that there must be a balance between the two? I always thought treatment is treatment and it doesn't matter....they all have the same purpose. I never knew that I should moisturize and seal my hair. Why do they not educate us on proper hair care for black hair? Some will even go the extra mile to retouch, color and blow dry or flat iron your hair all in one day! Are there no ethics in this industry? Is the training specific on ethnic orientation of the client or is it collective? 

Another major issue I have is that the hair industry here in Kenya is so so LIMITING!!! I have been to several hair salons in this lifetime and most hairdressers are in a very limiting comfort zone!!!! Here is just one encounter. Last month I purposed to refrain from using direct heat because in January I found myself flat ironing my hair weekly (the road to transitioning can be tough). So one day I washed my hair and went to the salon for a roller set and this raised eyebrows in the salon. I was 6 months post and the hairdresser kept saying I should flat iron instead (knowing full well my heat history), she even went ahead to say that it's about time I retouched my new growth right after I had told her that I am transitioning to natural. She was not amused about my transition!!! I could care less!! So as she was putting on the rollers I happened to ask about straw sets which I though would be interesting to try out during my transition, They went ahead to tell me that a straw set can only be done on freshly relaxed hair!!! WTH?? Check out the number of You Tube tutorials on straw sets on even NATURAL HAIR!!!!! Honestly this was the last straw for me. Hairdressers should be on the forefront of creativity and healthy hair practices but all I have had this far are disappointments! For the hairdressers who know your job and you actually take your time to learn more on the job, kudos. For the ones who choose not to explore and continue with the "norm" , please look for a job that demands less creativity!

Whether you choose to be relaxed, natural, or texlaxed, that is your decision to make! Entirely up to you! Be advised on how to keep it healthy in whatever state! Do not leave your hair care to your hair dresser alone. Your hair belongs to you. You decide what goes in it and how you want it! Do not go product hopping all the time at your hairdressers. Find the products that your hair loves and stick with it.Product hopping all the time is also one of the reasons people experience breakage. Changing relaxers....Just stick to one! Complain if your braids and your weave is too tight and protect that hairline that you so love deeply! Do your research on hair and see just how much progress you can achieve by having a personal hair care routine. This post is not meant to discredit hairdressers. I just needed to let this out as a matter of observation over the years and my personal experiences.

LOVE YOUR HAIR. It belongs to you.

Happy Wednesday lovlies,

Xx

Box Braid Diva!

This young beautiful lady knows how to style her box braids. Stylish from head to toe! Click HERE to check out how Miss Vavavum styles her braids.

Be blessed!!

L'oreal Garnier BB cream Launch!

Hi beauties! Hope you all had a fab weekend like I did. I was honored to be among the bloggers invited for the L'oreal Garnier BB cream launch on Friday at Ambience Restaurant. So the BB cream is a great product made for those ladies who have such a busy lifestyle or are just lazy (like me) to do the whole beauty/ make up routine daily.

The BB cream was inspired by the Hollywood famous, Asian blemish balm used after cosmetic surgery to conceal blemishes on the skin! This cream is evens skin tone, blurs imperfections, smoothes fine lines, has SPF 15 and also moisturizes the skin. All in one! The perfect cream to get you ready for the day with just one application. Y'all should try the BB cream ladies! I love that it is not greasy and it gives the skin such a good glow! BB cream has definitely earned its place in my beauty regimen. I <3 BB !!

The event was a success, with Patricia Ithau (L'oreal East Africa Managing Director) formally launching the product, Caroline Mutoko's as the MC, ladies getting mini make overs at the make up booths. Thumbs up to Africa Practice for making it a success as well.


The beautiful Caroline Mutoko in a gorgeous red maxi dress accessorized with a gold belt and yours truly :-) in a green leso peplum dress.

Have a lovely Day and stay fabulous!
Xx

All about hair dyes

Hey y'all! I want to talk about hair dyes in relation to overall hair health as requested by one of my readers. Most chemical hair dyes consist of two main ingredients. The ammonia dye which contains ammonia, and a developer which in most dyes is hydrogen peroxide.

These two are mixed together and applied to the hair. Not too sure about the right proportions but I guess it depends on the shade you want to achieve. Just a guess.

Ammonia literally seperates/ opens up the hair cuticle for the color to penetrate into the cuticle while the hydrogen peroxide oxidizes the hair and bleaches it for it to show the new color.

These chemicals are quite harsh on the hair and damaging especially to hair that is already relaxed or heat damaged.

Hair dyeing is also drying to the hair so if you fail to follow it up with a good and intensive care routine then your hair is bound to break a lot! Proper hair care is necessary.

Color treated hair requires more special attention when it comes to keeping it moisturized because it is drier than your average hair. Moisturizing is a must!!! My ends are color treated and I have to moisturize them so much more compared to the rest of my hair which is not as brittle and as dry. Protein treatment is also very necessary after dyeing your hair because of the stress that the hair cuticle goes through during the dyeing process.

The other important rule is you do NOT dye hair that is already dyed!! This is the ultimate mistake! Hair can only weaken futher just like relaxing hair that is already relaxed!!!

My alternative to chemical hair dyes is 100% natural henna which has my preferred shades of color and is also a natural protein treatment. It strengthens hair and reduces breakage. I follow it up with some goooooood and intense conditioning.

Henna loosens curls naturally so over time and frequent henna treatments you may start to notice this. It's like a slow, natural and long term 'relaxer' that won't get your hair bone straight or necessarily give it an relaxed look.

Natural henna gives colors within the range of red, amber and brown. Any Henna that promises anything outside this range for example black, is not natural henna. It has added chemical dyes.

For those who wish to darken their tresses naturally, consider using Amla oil or powder which is used pretty much like henna, or brahmi powder which is also said to darken hair. Famous with Indians so you can do some research on those two herbs.

Again, for chemical dyeing, be sure to give your hair the extra tlc that is needs to avoid major setbacks.

Have lovely evening :-)

Melissa Harris Perry sums it up!!

This has got to be my favorite Melissa Harris Perry video. So straight forward about "Black hair" do watch and enjoy this video.
Happy Monday lovelies :-)

More for the newbies!!

Hi everyone! I hope you have been well. Finally back to blogging. Been an interesting month so far with Elections going on in Kenya....thank God it was peaceful and now it's over!

First of all I want to answer some questions one of my faithful blog readers asked. She is a newbie in this whole healthy hair thing and some of the hair jargon had her confused (sorry :-) ) These are a few basic terms that I will explain in this post.

Co-wash

Co-washing is simply washing your hair with conditioner instead of shampoo. Shampooing too often also strips the hair of its natural oils so some people substitute shampoo for conditioner on some of their wash days also to just detangle their hair.

Clarifying

Over time, the products you use on our hair eventually build up and weigh down the hair even when we use our sulfate free shampoos (which are less harsh). So every once a month I wash my hair with a Clarifying shampoo (one that contains sulfate) which removes product build up due to its harsh nature. Some clarifying shampoos are clearly indicated on the labels that they are clarifying. However shampoos that contain sulfate do serve this purpose. It is important to clarify your hair every so often especially after a relaxer for at least the next 2 or 3 washes to completely get rid of traces of the relaxer in your hair.

Pre-poo

This is an oil treatment done by either just one oil or mixed oils prior to shampooing. The purpose of this treatment is to protect the hair from harsh shampoo chemicals which strip oils from the hair and scalp. You can use castor oil, olive oil, coconut oil etc. Apply the oil, wear a shower cap and let it sit for an hour or more before your shampoo. Some people do it overnight too.

I think I have answered the three major questions I got. Now highlight of my month is I finally found my Coast Coconut oil!!!! Last year in my desperate search for an everyday oil I found Coast Coconut oil in Healthy U store at Yaya center. At the time it was Ksh.185 for the 250ml. I had tried many coconut oil brands before this one and I just did not feel at satisfied especially because most of them had a very strong smell and I just couldn't seal my hair daily with them. 

It unfortunately went out of stock for about 5 months and recently my sister spotted it at Uchumi 250ml now going for Ksh.370 and about Ksh.400 at Healthy U. Still not bad considering how amazing this oil is!! Had to get it!!! <gold rush style> :-) 

So this coconut oil is absolutely THE BEST!!! It is extra virgin, therefore no additives, as natural as it can get! It melts so easily on my scalp which makes it quite easy to spread and economical because I don't end up wasting or using too much. Solid at room temperature and it is also great for cooking! The smell is not over-bearing, quite mild and wears off in a couple of minutes! It gives my hair a great shine and is light enough to not weigh my hair down when I seal in moisture with it. Honestly it is magical and amazing! :-) 

Here it is 

I highly recommend this oil. Have a lovely week!!

:-)

Pat.

Keep Calm and Detangle!

Wash days can become very frustrating when all you see a huge hair ball of after your wash! We loose most of our hair during wash days and that is why it is very important to detangle your hair properly during this process.

First and foremost you need a conditioner for effective detangling. It is better to wash your hair in the direction that you comb it therefore I wash my hair in the shower where I tilt my head backwards to have my hair go in the same direction as the water as opposed to leaning forward and having to comb my hair backwards later on. This way you spare your tresses a lot of tangling and breakage.

I apply my conditioner when my hair is 100% damp and gently massage it into my hair from roots to ends. As the water runs through my hair, I first finger comb gently to loosen the knots and then I use a wide tooth comb to detangle a little more. By the time I use the wide tooth comb my hair is usually 80% tangle free using this procedure. Remember that when you comb your hair you should comb from the ends all the way up to the roots and not vice versa. After your wash apply your leave in conditioner to keep your hair less tangled or tangle free as it dries and to prevent further breakage.

One of the first things I did when I started my hair journey was to toss my small tooth combs away. They cause a great deal of breakage. They pull and cause a lot of tension on the hair strands that eventually snap and break.

Protein treatments also cause the hair to feel a bit coarse and tangled so follow up your protein treatments with a conditioner to detangle for more manageable combing.

Have a lovely week!