Roll, Tuck and Pin

I wore a roll and tuck hair style for the last two days. I am pleasantly surprised that this style  suits my hair without  the usual need for me to modify it due to my fine hair. Even though my hair has little volume I think the style looks good on me. The roll and tuck is a versatile hair style that can be worn for a formal work occasion or for a casual night out.

I particularly love the fact that this style does not take long to do (five minutes) and that it looks so elegant. I tried to take a picture for the blog but unfortunately the pics do not show up the style properly. I need a better camera really... Anyway here is a tutorial on how to achieve this look:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iwHwaT6RF-s&feature=related

The style worked for me even though my hair is shorter than the one on the video. I jazzed it up by adding a couple of flowers at the back as accessories.

Marisa.

Nurture Your Afro with Natural Ingredients

Our hair is an extension of our body and therefore should be treated with equal amount of care. I decided to make an effort to predominantly use products with natural ingredients that would nurture my hair and not be harmful to my body.  This simple decision lead me to realise that ready made hair products which I relied on for years contain too many chemicals or ingredients that hinder healthy hair growth. I was pleased to find out that I can easily make my own hair products with 100% natural ingredients and tailor them to suit my hair’s specific needs. At present my staple natural ingredients are:

Shea Butter (Butyrospermum parkii) 

African Shea butter has been used for centuries for its unsurpassed ability to protect and regenerate the skin. It comes from the nut of the Karite tree, which grows in specific areas of West Africa. The Karite three can grow up to 20 meters high, and its trunk can reach up to 1 meter in diameter. It produces its first fruit when it is about 25 years old, and reaches full production at the age of 40-50, and can live up to 300 years. The fruits of the Karite tree resemble large plums, approximately 3-6 cm. The Karite nut is edible and contains 1-3 seeds surrounded by a thin brittle hull. The creamy substance, known as Shea butter, is produced from these seeds.

Used in its natural form, 100% unrefined Shea butter softens, protects and makes the hair more pliable. Shea butter provides moisture to dry and damaged hair from the roots to the tips, leaving it healthy and shiny. Because it's rich in vitamins A and E, Shea butter soothes dryness, repairs breakage, and mends split ends.

In order to make the most out of Shea butter it is best to use 100% unrefined Shea butter as the refining process removes most of its healing properties. Unrefined Shea butter is either cream or yellow in colour (as opposed to the white refined product). 

Jojoba Oil (Simmondsia chinensis)
 Jojoba oil is a liquid wax derived from the seeds of small Jojoba tree. A shrub native to southern Arizona, southern California, and north-western Mexico. The oil makes up approximately 50% of the Jojoba seed by weight. This odourless liquid is virtually identical to sebum, the oil our scalp naturally produces, and can easily be absorbed by hair and scalp. Jojoba oil lubricates the hair shafts. It is an effective natural cleanser that helps rid the scalp of excessive sebum build-up.This oil provides healing benefits to the hair and scalp. 

These qualities makes Jojoba oil ideal for use with extensions or natural hair styles that are kept for longer periods of time. 

Jojoba oil acts as a hair sealant by forming a thin coating on the hair shaft. It smooths and seals the hair cuticle, even providing protection from any damaged caused by combing and brushing the hair. Jojoba oil helps lock moisture into the hair, thus protecting it from ultraviolet rays from the sun. As a result the hair is fortified, making it stronger and resulting in less breakage.

Coconut Oil 

Coconut oil is one of the best oils one can use on natural hair. It softens, detangles and it is a great hair conditioner. Another benefit of this oil is its ability to strengthen the structure of damaged, devitalised hair. It is often used as a pre wash conditioner. I use this oil a great deal and love its smell. It brings back memories of my grandmother who used it on my hair when I was a child.  

My Shea butter hair recipe:

I mix the three ingredients described above to use as an everyday hair cream.  This is the main product I use on my hair. I have been using it since I've gone natural and it works wonders on my super dry hair! It is a strait forward mix to make and once made it lasts me for about three months. So here’s the recipe:

v  80g of Shea butter (100% unrefined)

v   4tablespoons of Jojoba oil

v  4 tablespoons of Coconut oil

v  5 drops of essential Lavender oil

1. Melt the butter and Coconut oil in a mixing bowl using the Bain Marie method. 

2. Once melted add the Jojoba oil. Place the bowl in the freezer for a few minutes to chill. Wait  for the oils to start to partially solidify (do not allow it to become frozen solid otherwise it will not blend well).   

3. Then I use an electric hand mixer to whip the ingredients together until the butter turns into a soft and creamy consistency. This should take between five and eight minutes. 

4. When the Shea butter turns creamy (something akin to whipped cream consistency) add the Lavender essential oil and mix for another minute or so. 

 5. I then place my whipped Shea mix into a small clip-top Kilner jar. That's it, my Shea butter mix is ready to use.

Tip
If you do not have a mixer you can simply melt the butter using the Bain Marie method. Then add the oils of your choice. Pour the content into your chosen container. Allow it to cool and and solidify. The Shea butter mix will then be ready to use. Although it will not feel as luxurious as the whipped version it works equally well.

In relation to quantities the right mix should be about 75% solid butter to 25% liquid oil.

I get my Shea butter from Enaissance on line store - http://www.enaissance.co.UK. This company supplies a wide variety of natural ingredients at good prices. You may also be able to find a wide range of natural oils and ingredients including the above at your local health food stores such as Holland and Barrets or equivalent.  

Do you have a favourite hair butter recipe to share with me? 

Marisa. 

Frohawk Twist Out for London 2012

This weekend the UK and the world enjoyed a wonderful Olympic opening ceremony. I was fortunate enough to get a ticket for the technical rehearsal on Wednesday 25^th July! It was an exiting and unbelievably enjoyable experience. Well done to the UK and all the talented people which were involved in making it happen.  

Anyway, in preparation for this rare and special occasion I decided to wear a twist out Frohawk. This was my first and I liked the way it turned out. What do you think? 

The couple of days before Wednesday I wore my hair in a twist out style. This involves twisting the hair before going to bed. In the morning all you need to do is untwisting the two strands of hair. The curl definition it creates is a hair style in itself. Here is a tutorial on how to do it http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jmqWnX3I5N4. 

The Frohawk is easy to create and requires minimal preparation time. All I used to create this hair style was:

•     Home made water based moisturising spray
•     My home made Shea butter, coconut and Jojoba oil mix
•     Hair pins.

This is how to achieve the style: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7XBh_P5d7yw .

I will write a post on how I make my hair product concoctions during August. So stay tuned.

Love

Marisa.

Ten Golden Rules for Growing Healthy Natural Hair

 These ten simple rules have helped me improve my attitude towards caring for my African hair.

1.       Accept your hair texture.

Your hair texture is just what nature intended. It has unique qualities to suite you! Learn to understand it, love and enjoy it.  I found Nappturality video’s advice in relation to accepting my natural hair texture valuable when I went natural last year. Check it out:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qtZ3boSNQOE&feature=plcp .

2.        Natural hair needs tender care.

Be gentle when handling your hair.  African hair is the most fragile of all hair types. Therefore use a tender hand to care for your hair. Prevent your hair from tangling but also master the art of untangling.

3.       When it comes to products less is more.

There is no need to buy a thousand expensive products. Applying too many products will clog your pores and contribute to scalp build-up, which is not good for your hair. Look for a few basic products that work for your hair.  

4.       Tender hair needs gentle products and natural hair loves natural products.

Avoid using harsh shampoos or products with harmful chemicals. Start reading product labels and look for natural ingredients and products.

5.       Keep your hair and scalp clean.

Hair can only flourish on a scalp that is free from pollution and free from buildup. So wash your hair regularly.

6.        Moisture, moisture, moisture.

Water is your hair’s best friend so keep your curls moisturised all of the time.

7.       Leave your hair alone.

This is key (particularly if you have fine hair like me!). Do you know why dread locks grow long? It is because hair is allowed to grow without being disturbed. Try to keep a hair style for as long as possible but no longer than three months unless you want to lock your hair.

8.       Say no to heat.

Avoid using heat appliances such as blow driers and stop using straightening irons all together. They damage the coils and ruin the shape of your beautiful hair.

9.       Trim your hair

If you have split ends trim your hair. Split ends tear up your strands and fuel tangling.

10.    Enjoy your hair.

African hair is beautiful and incredibly versatile so have fun with it!

Rules 2 to 10 comes from the Mierille Liong-A-Kong’s book Going Natural: How to Fall in Love with your Nappy Hair. It is a great resource for people who are considering going natural. I use this book a lot for information on caring for my hair.   

Love

Marisa. 

My First Bantu Knots

I always liked the look of the Bantu Knot style. However, until recently my hair was not long enough to do it. In March 2012, I accidentally realised that my hair was long enough to pull it off. I was actually just braiding my hair in big chunks in preparation for going to bed, when I found myself Bantu knotting it! As this was an accidental discovery the end product was not as neat as it could have been. But I decided to wear it for the week anyway.

I kept the style for seven days. I was pleasantly surprised by the way in which the knots stayed in place so effortlessly. I love this style because:

• It’s very quick and easy to make (about 20 min)
• Requires minimum maintenance (only moisturising spray)
• I liked the way that it shapes my face, making it look quite round
• Great protective style for the gym as it keeps my hair completely out of the way  

I have since done it again in a more planned and neat way. The Bantu Knots style is now my top rated protective style.  

How to do Bantu knots

• Part your hair into sections and add your favourite moisturiser or oil ( I use my home made Shea butter, Jojoba and Coconut oil mix)
• Make a two strand  twist, braid or coil (Bantu knots can be started with any one of these)
• Hold your twist close to the scalp.
• Use your index finger to keep the twist at its base while wrapping the rest of it around its base.
• Normally Afro hair texture keeps the Bantu Knots in place. If this is not the case you can use a hairpin to secure the knot if does not hold. 

I found a couple of videos that demonstrates the above. The first one has short hair and starts her knots with two strand twists.  

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=02D4RWUwx6A&feature=related 

The second has long hair and uses the coil method

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c_2xiNke8Ck&feature=related