Hello to all of my lovely naturals,
I hope that everyone is getting ready to enjoy their New Years celebration because I know I am! You will hear a lot of naturals talk about ACV (apple cider vinegar) When we choose to co-wash our hair there will eventually be build up and it is suggested that an ACV rinse will get rid of any build up. ACV is also know to help with frizzes and make your hair shiny. I don't know about you all but when I first started out natural I had like 3 things in my regimen and now I am up to about 7 UGH but hey when you know better you do better. Anyhoo I have used ACV before and I just didn't see the results that the others are talking about. I mean I did not hate it some people say that afterwards their hair feels stripped but I am pretty sure that they are not diluting it. When you co-wash your hair with non-organic conditioners then you are placing silicone's in your hair which leads to build up (unless you have a silicone free conditioner) Check out my post on silicone's for more info. Since I co-wash my hair I know exactly the feeling when you have too much product on your hair and when that time comes I wash my hair with my homemade shampoo (check that post out its delightful and easy/cheap to make) and that usually does the trick. Now if you notice product buildup then you really need to rinse/wash the product out of your hair. So after I co-washed my hair I used 1/2 cup in about 3 cups of warm water and poured that over my hair and let it dry. No your hair does not smell like vinegar once it dries you can not smell it. At the time I did not have product build up but like I stated before I really did not notice any difference. I suggest that if you have product build up skip the co-wash and just rinse it with water and then apply the rinse. Give it a try and tell me if you noticed any difference....Oh and Happy New Years!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Always,
Verano
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Thursday, December 30, 2010
Wednesday, December 29, 2010
Is Getting a Relaxer a Lifestyle or a Hairstyle
Hello to all of my lovely naturals,
Well in my many years of being natural and not being natural this is a debate that I often find myself into and I have come to notice that people get angry over this issue. I know that I am guilty of praising natural women and barely noticing non naturals...but that doesn't mean that I don't compliment a fly hairstyle its just that I get super excited about a dope natural doo. In most African-American households little girls get there hair relaxed as young as 6 because their Mothers complain that their hair is not "manageable", actually I know of a girl that had a relaxer put in at 2 and she has a permanent bald spot. Before we start shaking our heads at these practices we need to understand where the Mothers are coming from. Think about it if your hair was deemed "unmanageable" at the tender age of 6 or, for argument sake before you were 10. This means that you never learned to "manage" you hair so to your Mother who has had her hair relaxed all of her life you hair is "unmanageable". I say this to show that our hair in our natural state is "unmanageable" when using tools for people with no curls or when compared to bone straight hair. You will often hear natural women say that they never knew beauty until they were able to see their natural hair. If you have never even had the opportunity to see or touch your natural hair and then you go natural it is an eye opening experience. If all that you know is your relaxed hair then I would consider your relaxer being a lifestyle choice for you, I know calling a relaxer a lifestyle sounds silly but I consider being natural a lifestyle for most. I can remember times when I would opt out of going out because I needed a "relaxer" or when I was a young natural and I insisted on putting my hair in 2 strand twists because I could not imagine going outside with my hair unkept. Those actions are taught not by my parents (whom did not let me relax my hair until I was 14) but by society. If we teach our children at a young age that their hair is beautiful,curly,thick and so on and so forth then we will not have teenagers and adults running to the salon in order to avoid that dreaded kitchen showing its face. By teaching our children that our hair is beautiful then we will change the negative connotations behind getting your hair relaxed. I have been natural, gone to a relaxer, and gone back natural and have no shame...because getting a relaxer is not a lifestyle for me it is just a hairstyle. I have seen my hair "managed" it and decided that right now I want a change like I am sure that many of you have done. If you have not witnessed your natural hair with you own two eyes or touched it...I suggest that you try it you might like it and if not then change it up but at least try it. Oh P.S. my number one irritation is if your hair is falling out or not growing stop relaxing it and watch it grow like wildfire
Always,
Verano
Well in my many years of being natural and not being natural this is a debate that I often find myself into and I have come to notice that people get angry over this issue. I know that I am guilty of praising natural women and barely noticing non naturals...but that doesn't mean that I don't compliment a fly hairstyle its just that I get super excited about a dope natural doo. In most African-American households little girls get there hair relaxed as young as 6 because their Mothers complain that their hair is not "manageable", actually I know of a girl that had a relaxer put in at 2 and she has a permanent bald spot. Before we start shaking our heads at these practices we need to understand where the Mothers are coming from. Think about it if your hair was deemed "unmanageable" at the tender age of 6 or, for argument sake before you were 10. This means that you never learned to "manage" you hair so to your Mother who has had her hair relaxed all of her life you hair is "unmanageable". I say this to show that our hair in our natural state is "unmanageable" when using tools for people with no curls or when compared to bone straight hair. You will often hear natural women say that they never knew beauty until they were able to see their natural hair. If you have never even had the opportunity to see or touch your natural hair and then you go natural it is an eye opening experience. If all that you know is your relaxed hair then I would consider your relaxer being a lifestyle choice for you, I know calling a relaxer a lifestyle sounds silly but I consider being natural a lifestyle for most. I can remember times when I would opt out of going out because I needed a "relaxer" or when I was a young natural and I insisted on putting my hair in 2 strand twists because I could not imagine going outside with my hair unkept. Those actions are taught not by my parents (whom did not let me relax my hair until I was 14) but by society. If we teach our children at a young age that their hair is beautiful,curly,thick and so on and so forth then we will not have teenagers and adults running to the salon in order to avoid that dreaded kitchen showing its face. By teaching our children that our hair is beautiful then we will change the negative connotations behind getting your hair relaxed. I have been natural, gone to a relaxer, and gone back natural and have no shame...because getting a relaxer is not a lifestyle for me it is just a hairstyle. I have seen my hair "managed" it and decided that right now I want a change like I am sure that many of you have done. If you have not witnessed your natural hair with you own two eyes or touched it...I suggest that you try it you might like it and if not then change it up but at least try it. Oh P.S. my number one irritation is if your hair is falling out or not growing stop relaxing it and watch it grow like wildfire
Always,
Verano
Tuesday, December 28, 2010
Hair Serum Recipe
Hello to all of my lovely naturals,
I remember using serum when I had a relaxer and all that I can remember is that it was super expensive and it smoothed my already straight hair. It was like $10.00 for that little bitty bottle. Now that my hair is natural and I am always looking for something to better define my curls by smoothing out the frizzes it is worth taking another look into. I am not all that familiar with the ingredients in hair serum but I am pretty sure that they contain chemicals and since I am not that into chemicals I decided to make my own. I have not tried it yet because I have to first henna my hair, but I will be trying it on this new hairstyle that I plan on posting on youtube. So I will let you all know the results in a couple of days.
Hair Serum Recipe Smoothes, Softens Coarse hair
Ingredients:
3 ounce Coconut Oil
1 ounce Castor Oil
5-10 drops fragrance or essential oils (optional)
Directions:
Mix oils in a 4 ounce bottle then store in a cool dark place.
I remember using serum when I had a relaxer and all that I can remember is that it was super expensive and it smoothed my already straight hair. It was like $10.00 for that little bitty bottle. Now that my hair is natural and I am always looking for something to better define my curls by smoothing out the frizzes it is worth taking another look into. I am not all that familiar with the ingredients in hair serum but I am pretty sure that they contain chemicals and since I am not that into chemicals I decided to make my own. I have not tried it yet because I have to first henna my hair, but I will be trying it on this new hairstyle that I plan on posting on youtube. So I will let you all know the results in a couple of days.
Hair Serum Recipe Smoothes, Softens Coarse hair
Ingredients:
3 ounce Coconut Oil
1 ounce Castor Oil
5-10 drops fragrance or essential oils (optional)
Directions:
Mix oils in a 4 ounce bottle then store in a cool dark place.
Soooo try it you might like it and let me know
Always,
Verano
Monday, December 27, 2010
Coconut and Honey Hot Oil Treatment
Hey all my lovely naturals,
I am back....boy oh boy the holidays are always so chaotic so I had to take a week long break...but I am back and better that ever ; ) So with the break I had a chance to sit back and think about how the weather was affecting my hair and what was working and what was not working. One of the things that I realized is that it is so hard for me to keep my hair moisturized so I will be looking into different methods to keep it moist. Oh and I really enjoy having my hair in protective styles. Now between Christmas eve and Christmas I went to 4 parties...exhausting but def fun. Needless to say my hair smelt like smoke (which I was excited about) forcing me to wash it..I like trying out new things when it comes to my hair so the smoke forced me to try this new hot oil treatment. Some of you might remember that about a week ago I started giving myself hot oil treatments again. I like hot oil treatments because I don't wash/rinse the oil out I keep it in my hair and then style...this works perfectly for the winter time and especially when you are going straight into a protective style. Last time I used extra virgin olive oil, castor oil, and coconut oil, but I thought this recipe was worth a try. The only thing is that I am nervous about coconut oil freezing in my hair (which it will do) but other than that I liked the results and will use it in the future. I am not sure if it will replace my evoo because I am obsessed with it but its a nice change. Here is the recipe
I am back....boy oh boy the holidays are always so chaotic so I had to take a week long break...but I am back and better that ever ; ) So with the break I had a chance to sit back and think about how the weather was affecting my hair and what was working and what was not working. One of the things that I realized is that it is so hard for me to keep my hair moisturized so I will be looking into different methods to keep it moist. Oh and I really enjoy having my hair in protective styles. Now between Christmas eve and Christmas I went to 4 parties...exhausting but def fun. Needless to say my hair smelt like smoke (which I was excited about) forcing me to wash it..I like trying out new things when it comes to my hair so the smoke forced me to try this new hot oil treatment. Some of you might remember that about a week ago I started giving myself hot oil treatments again. I like hot oil treatments because I don't wash/rinse the oil out I keep it in my hair and then style...this works perfectly for the winter time and especially when you are going straight into a protective style. Last time I used extra virgin olive oil, castor oil, and coconut oil, but I thought this recipe was worth a try. The only thing is that I am nervous about coconut oil freezing in my hair (which it will do) but other than that I liked the results and will use it in the future. I am not sure if it will replace my evoo because I am obsessed with it but its a nice change. Here is the recipe
4 tbls Coconut oil
2 tbls Natural honey
Directions:
Place coconut oil and honey in a small plastic bag and place the bag in a hot cup of water for 1 minute to warm. Apply to hair, wrap hair in a towel for 20 minutes. Wash then dry hair
Remember that I do not wash the oil out of my hair...my hair loves it so try it both ways and see what works for you.
try it out and let me know if you like or if you have any hot oil treatment recipes that work for you
Always,
Verano
Tuesday, December 14, 2010
Organic Conditioner Review
Hello to all of my lovely naturals,
In my never ending search for natural products I decided to try some homemade conditioner. I am not really sure how I felt about it I tried a conditioner that added texture to your hair, but it didn't really appear like it had more texture and it didn't really feel moisturized. Let me show you the recipe before I continue:
1/4 ounce organic plain yogurt
1 egg yolk
1 smashed avocado
Okay so I mixed this up and placed this on my hair for 40 min and rinsed it out. I mean it was not bad but I didn't feel like it made my hair feel extra moisturized nor did it help to define my curls. Oh boy and the biggest factor in me not liking this homemade conditioner was that the egg white partially cooked in my hair, leaving behind little bits of egg. So I walk out of the bathroom and my husband was like..."wait what's that in your hair, I mean its all over your hair" he was referring to the little strings that the avocado had left behind in my hair. Needless to say I will not be trying this one again...but I do have this recipe for mayo conditioner. Don't get me wrong I love my Shea Moisture Organic Raw Shea Butter Deep Treatment Masque, but I also love to try new things. This however was a FAIL but hey on to the next..Do you all have any homemade conditioner stories that were positive or negative? Please share.
Always,
Verano
In my never ending search for natural products I decided to try some homemade conditioner. I am not really sure how I felt about it I tried a conditioner that added texture to your hair, but it didn't really appear like it had more texture and it didn't really feel moisturized. Let me show you the recipe before I continue:
1/4 ounce organic plain yogurt
1 egg yolk
1 smashed avocado
Okay so I mixed this up and placed this on my hair for 40 min and rinsed it out. I mean it was not bad but I didn't feel like it made my hair feel extra moisturized nor did it help to define my curls. Oh boy and the biggest factor in me not liking this homemade conditioner was that the egg white partially cooked in my hair, leaving behind little bits of egg. So I walk out of the bathroom and my husband was like..."wait what's that in your hair, I mean its all over your hair" he was referring to the little strings that the avocado had left behind in my hair. Needless to say I will not be trying this one again...but I do have this recipe for mayo conditioner. Don't get me wrong I love my Shea Moisture Organic Raw Shea Butter Deep Treatment Masque, but I also love to try new things. This however was a FAIL but hey on to the next..Do you all have any homemade conditioner stories that were positive or negative? Please share.
Always,
Verano
Monday, December 13, 2010
Stylin n Profilin: Individual Braids Placed in an Up Do
Hello to all of my lovely naturals,
First I would like to do a quick update on my lip gloss...okay its just alright so back to the drawing board. Now last week when I did my hot oil treatment I placed my hair into individual braids instead of my usual two part twists. Once I got tired of the braids I took two braids and with some whipped shea butter I placed them into twists and twisted those into bantu knots. I let the knots stay in for a couple of days and then I unraveled those and placed my curly braids into a nice up do...check out the pics below and then check out my video on youtubehttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=desKjK62v7s let me know what you think.
Always,
Verano
First I would like to do a quick update on my lip gloss...okay its just alright so back to the drawing board. Now last week when I did my hot oil treatment I placed my hair into individual braids instead of my usual two part twists. Once I got tired of the braids I took two braids and with some whipped shea butter I placed them into twists and twisted those into bantu knots. I let the knots stay in for a couple of days and then I unraveled those and placed my curly braids into a nice up do...check out the pics below and then check out my video on youtubehttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=desKjK62v7s let me know what you think.
Always,
Verano
Sunday, December 12, 2010
Homemade: Super De Duper Easy Cranberry Lip Balm
Hello to all of my lovely naturals,
So for those of you who know me, you all know that I am a pretty natural person. I am addicted to a couple of products that aren't natural and it drives me crazy so I have made a list and I want to find natural solutions for these addictions. Now I have been addicted to lip gloss since I can remember. I love it, if anyone in my immediate circle has some awesome lip gloss they know to keep it away from me because I will steal it. With that being said it bothers me that I am putting all of these chemicals on and in my mouth. So I have found a recipe for natural lip gloss right now I am letting it sit but it looks and tastes pretty awesome. I wanted to share this with you because doing things naturally is not hard yes it takes more effort then going to pick it up from the store in some situations, but knowing what you are putting in and on your body is totally worth it. This took me all of 7 min to make and I already had all of the ingredients except for vitamin e oil, I exchanged that for castor oil.
Below you will find the recipe check it out, try it, and let me know. I got this recipe from mybeautyrecipes.com awesome site! and I will fill you all in on the results later on in the week.
P.S fresh cranberries cost about $2 they are on sale now because of the holidays and whatever you don't use you can place in the bottom of a glass vase/container with water and place on display for the holidays!
Ingredients
Mix all the ingredients together in a microwave-safe bowl (bowl may also be heated in a pan of water on the
stovetop).
Stir well and gently crush the berries. Cool mixture for five minutes and then strain through a fine sieve to remove all the fruit pieces. Stir again and set aside to cool completely.
When cool, transfer into a small portable plastic container or tin.
Always,
Verano
So for those of you who know me, you all know that I am a pretty natural person. I am addicted to a couple of products that aren't natural and it drives me crazy so I have made a list and I want to find natural solutions for these addictions. Now I have been addicted to lip gloss since I can remember. I love it, if anyone in my immediate circle has some awesome lip gloss they know to keep it away from me because I will steal it. With that being said it bothers me that I am putting all of these chemicals on and in my mouth. So I have found a recipe for natural lip gloss right now I am letting it sit but it looks and tastes pretty awesome. I wanted to share this with you because doing things naturally is not hard yes it takes more effort then going to pick it up from the store in some situations, but knowing what you are putting in and on your body is totally worth it. This took me all of 7 min to make and I already had all of the ingredients except for vitamin e oil, I exchanged that for castor oil.
Below you will find the recipe check it out, try it, and let me know. I got this recipe from mybeautyrecipes.com awesome site! and I will fill you all in on the results later on in the week.
P.S fresh cranberries cost about $2 they are on sale now because of the holidays and whatever you don't use you can place in the bottom of a glass vase/container with water and place on display for the holidays!
Ingredients
- 10 fresh cranberries
- 1 tbsp sweet almond oil
- 1 tsp honey
- 1 drop of Vitamin E oil remember I used castor oil
Mix all the ingredients together in a microwave-safe bowl (bowl may also be heated in a pan of water on the
stovetop).
Stir well and gently crush the berries. Cool mixture for five minutes and then strain through a fine sieve to remove all the fruit pieces. Stir again and set aside to cool completely.
When cool, transfer into a small portable plastic container or tin.
Always,
Verano
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