Karen's Body Beautiful Butter Love

Cost: 18.00

Size: 6.7 oz.

Purchased: karensbodybeautiful.com, curlmart.com 

The Good: This is the butter I use when doing the LOC method. It helps to seal in moisture because of all the oils and butters it contains. It makes my hair feel soft and shiny, which is a godsend for my hair which is prone to dryness. I’ve recently learned that my hair is protein sensitive and this product is wonderful because it contains no proteins, sulfates, silicones, paraben, or glycerin. The lavender vanilla scent is actually not overpowering my any means so this is great when paired with other products. Although it’s a butter it’s not too thick or heavy on your hair. It’s very easy to apply and melts between your fingers. 

The Bad: The only issue I have with this product is that it can make my hair feel too oily. It says that you can use it liberally, but I’d advise against that. It also says to use it on dry hair, but I would recommend using this on damp or even wet hair. Experiment with this product. Using this on dry hair adds very little benefits especially if you want to lock in moisture. 

Overall: This product isn’t cheap so it better be worth it if I’m going to buy it in the first place or even a second or third time. I can happily say that it’s worth the money. A little goes a long way so I imagine this product will last you a while if you use it sensibly.

 

As I Am Leave-In Conditoner

Cost: 10.50

Size: 8 oz

Purchased: Curlmart.com, Target, Walgreens, Amazon.com 

The Good: I can’t get over how amazing this smells. It’s hard to pinpoint, it’s warm and citrusy. Despite that, it’s not overpowering and when combined with other products it works very well. I use it as the first or second step when doing the LOC method. It keeps my hair soft and hydrated. It’s a decent size bottle as well considering I have very thick, shoulder length hair. It’s the consistency of pretty much any conditioner and it’s rather light which comes in handy when you’re pairing this product with others. It also contains no sulfates or silicones and is protein free.

The Bad: The smell, although amazing, can prove to be a problem when using other products that contain a scent. You don’t want it to clash or overwhelm you. Also, it is a little pricey. 

Overall: I love, love, love this leave-in conditioner. It's  Paraben, Protein, Silicone, and Sulfate free. I’m willing to splurge on a few products especially if they prove their worth.  If you’re heavy handed when it comes to products just learn to take it easy. Go all out with products that are cheap and plentiful.

Porosity and Hair Typing

High Porosity Hair
Am I doomed?

One of the main issues with hair typing is that it can be used to segregate curly girls and too often encourages hair envy. What appears as admiration on the surface may actually be an inferiority complex. I’ve been there. I used to think that my hair wasn’t as good as someone whose curl pattern was looser than mine. Not only that, but hair typing lumps us into groups and suggests that everyone’s hair in group A, for example, is all the same when in actuality there are other factors at play. I used to believe that if I got a hair product that other girls with my hair type used then it would work the same for me.  This was until I learned about porosity and hair texture.

Not all strands are created equal. You could have type 4 hair which typically needs more moisture, but if it has lower porosity than it’ll have a difficult time soaking up that moisture. This is because hair that has low porosity can hold in the moisture it has, but once it looses it, can’t absorb more. This type of hair often feels like product is just sitting on top of the hair.  Highly porous hair can absorb moisture, but can’t hold onto it, leaving hair dry. Normal porosity means hair can maintain its moisture levels. 

Can we all agree that our hair can’t be lumped into these simple categorizes? It’s not so black and white. There are gray areas here, at least for me. I have at least two different hair types on my head. I know I’m not alone. I’ve been natural for seven years and transitioned by slowly trimming my hair every few months. My hair isn’t a newbie to this whole natural thing so what’s the deal? If you’re like me you’re thinking: Hey! I didn’t sign up for this! 

When I went natural I had no idea that there was an internet presence of girls going through the same thing as me. It’s like a lifestyle that continues to grow and evolve. I guess we’re still learning.

For more on Porosity and how to figure out where you fit on the spectrum click the link below. It's fun and easy to understand. 

The Purpose of Protective Styles

My go-to style during dry winter months. 

For me, the purpose of protective styling had nothing to do with reaching some sort of hair goal. From day one the only goal I had in mind was having healthy hair no matter what. Unfortunately idle hands are the devil’s playthings. I have dyed my hair and attempted to add highlights, all of which ended disastrously. It made my hair dry and brittle. I’d also succumbed to the flat iron demon, which I believed made my hair more manageable and attractive. Instead, it caused breakage and fragile hair strands. I have since gained more confidence and now accept my hair for what it is and for what it isn’t. Above all else it’s beautiful. Even on those days when I feel the most insecure I just try to fake it till I make it.

I think this is something we should all acknowledge. We all have those days when we feel ugly and poke and prod at ourselves in desperate attempts to find a flaw. When this happens we should all have a style in our back pocket that we pull out on those insecure days. For me, it’s a high bun. It works every time and takes less than five minutes to achieve. 

There’s been some discord amongst the natural community about whether or not protective styling is a good idea or a bad idea. I find that it’s a very personal choice and there’s no right or wrong answer to this. However, I would advise you to proceed with caution.  Protective styling has good intentions.  What you want to do, ideally, is to protect your ends and avoid too much manipulation to the hair. It’s all about hair retention or a much needed break from constant styling. 

What you need to keep in mind is that your hair still needs to be moisturized and cleansed. The main issues I’ve had with wearing braids for far too long is that I get so lazy that I don’t keep up with washing or moisturizing my hair. I take a two month vacation from doing anything. This is a recipe for disaster. You acquire lint and matting, product buildup, and dry hair. It’s like going to Las Vegas and throwing caution to the wind. Just think of any one of The Hangover movies. Do you really want to wake up with a tattoo on your face? Actually, instead of a tattoo what you’ll have to deal with is breakage. Either way you look at it it’s still horrifying.

Curly Pants Hair Frosting

My first attempt at making my own shea butter mixture didn’t pan out as well as I would have liked. I followed Curly Nikki’s recipe, modifying it to my liking. One of my biggest mistakes was hand mixing all the ingredients. The result was a hard, gritty mixture that made my twists look alright, but left my hair feeling heavy and gunky.  Where did I go wrong? After some much needed youtube research I discovered that using a mixer to blend the ingredients results in a fluffier product. Below is my new and improved recipe.

Curly Pants Hair Frosting

1 cup unrefined shea butter

5 tbsp coconut oil

2 tsp rosemary oil

1 tsp jojoba  oil

 2 tbsp Aloe vera gel

2 tbsp Vanilla fragrance (optional)

Everyone’s mixture is different so feel free to play around with the ingredients. After measuring out your shea butter melt it either by putting it in a container and setting it in hot water or use the microwave. Make sure not to overheat it. If using the microwave try 30 second intervals. You’ll find out why in just a second.

Next, add your shea butter and all of your oils to a medium size bowl. Mix on low speed until well blended. Afterwards, put the bowl in the freezer for 15 to 20 minutes. To prevent crystallization, that grainy feel of shea butter, you have to cool it rather quickly. This is why we melted the shea butter and didn’t mix it as is.

When you take the bowl out of the freezer your mixture will have begun solidifying. Add the aloe vera gel. If you want to have a pleasant smelling product use less oils that give off a strong aroma, like rosemary oil, and add a fragrance of your choosing.

Now comes the part where you’ll need much patience and a strong arm. Mix everything well for a good 5 to ten minutes. What I did was add the aloe vera gel, mixed for 5 minutes, added the vanilla fragrance, and mixed again for another 5 minutes. All of this pays off in the end because what you end up with is a smooth mixture resembling cake batter. Once all of this is done, using a rubber spatula, scoop into a container (with a lid) of your choosing. This recipe will fill a 16 oz. container.

What you’re left with is a pudding-like substance. When I left my Curly Pants Frosting at room temperature it didn’t completely solidify. It’ll feel almost like butter when you scoop it out. Rub it a little between your fingers before applying. This is a great sealant because we’re using ingredients, like shea butter and coconut oil, to lock in moisture. With that said, make sure to spritz your hair first. This is not a moisturizer, despite how it feels. Remember, for a product to be a moisturizer one of its main ingredients needs to be water and this recipe's main ingredient is shea butter.