Braids wash day - 10 weeks post

I have had my box braids for 2 week now and Saturday was my wash day.

1. Diluted ORS aloe shampoo with water and poured it over wet hair in sections. 

2 Scrubbed my scalp with the tips of my fingers 

3 Rinsed

4. Diluted Herbal Essence Bee Strong conditioner and applied it to hair from root to tip.

5. Bunned braids and left the conditioner for 10 mins

6. Rinsed off the conditioner and towel dried hair 

7. Applied grapeseed oil, castor oil and peppermint essential oil mix on the scalp and Aussie leave in conditioner to the length of the hair.

8. Left loose to air dry

Happy hair journeys ladies! :-)

“ What lies behind us and what lies before us are tiny matters compared to what lies within us. ” - Ralph Waldo Emerson

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Liebster Award – Take 2

Am so honoured to have been awarded my second Liebster Award, thanks to Tasia from Smooth Cuticles!

As I have already written up on 11 random things about me in an earlier post, I will be addressing Tasia questions in this post.

Tasia from Smooth Cuticles asked…..

[T] Why did you start blogging?

[Y] Well, I started blogging to help me document my hair journey and also interactive with other ladies who had been on hair journeys and achieving amazing results. I honestly did not know or think that black women could grow hair past APL, I really wanted in!

[T] What inspired your hair journey?

[Y] I think the first person I saw on Youtube was actually a naturalista, owner of love naturals, but after watching more videos I stumbled upon prettywitty77, Traycee from KISS and Jeni from Just Grow Already. I really could not believe what these women had achieved and I was inspired, I then found more and more ladies with long amazing hair that was their own hair!

[T] How long do you put post in draft before you post them?

[Y] Haha, not long at all, if I type something that day I will post it by the end of the day, if I have more than one post on one day, I will just schedule the other to be posted later on in the week. I am terrible at proof reading my post. I really do enjoy writing and posting up a new entry.

[T] How do you feel about viewers asking about product recommendation?

[Y] I don’t think I have been asked for a product recommendation before, so not too sure how I would feel about it, the only person who has asked are my non blog world friends. I tried to understand how they thought their hair was doing and feeling and I told them what I thought it needed i.e protein, or moisture, as for products, I told them that they would have to try what suited their hair but gave them 3 sample product names to look at.

[T] How do your family/loved one feel about your blog?

[Y] My family are very supportive about my blog, they recommend it to people and link me on their own blogs and are so helpful when I need their input in terms of photos and just to have a look at my blog. It is always better when the people around you cheer you on.

[T] What is the best hair advice you could give someone?

[Y] Get to know your hair. Give yourself some time to bond. You don’t have to be on a journey but just understanding and embracing your hair, it will be one of the best self-relationship you can ever have. At least it has been for me!

[T] If you could get free products from a company for a year, what company would you choose and why?

[Y] As I am a cheapie girl when it comes to products this will be so wasted on me as I have not delved into the more expensive products *sigh* therefore as of today, I would go for my tried and tested line ORS, I can get my relaxer, shampoo, protein conditioner, moisturisers, not sure they do moisturising conditioner….hmm….but definitely ORS!

[T] Which is better; cake or cookies?

[Y] Definitely cake! I only like cookies when they are hot straight from the oven and maybe when I am having hot chocolate, but cakes are so versatile, and soft! Come on which would you rather have a chocolate fondant and ice cream or a chocolate chip cookie and ice cream? Fondant please!!!

[T] What inspires your post?

[Y] Just my day to day with my hair, or conversations with friends or something I read on the many blogs I follow.

[T] How do you feel when products do not live up to the hype another person loves?

[Y] Oh my hahah, I think I got the most disappointment with my new buy from Herbal Essence, the hair mask ticked all the boxes ingredients wise but oh my, oh my, it was just blah on my hair. I really wanted it to work so badly but it never lived up to all its packaging and words in the ingredients list.

I don’t really go on a product bandwagon so I haven’t really been disappointment due to someone else’s review, most of the stuff I have tried that people raved about actually worked, and got them because I was looking for a similar product.

For my 5 nominees see my earlier post. Thank you for the ladies that have accepted my nominations so far! ;)

Happy Hair Journey’s ladies! :-)

‘To burn with desire and keep quiet about it is the greatest punishment we can bring on ourselves’ – Federico Garcia Lorca

Long term protective style – ready for instalment

These are my 3 checklists before and during installation of any long term protective styles on my hair.

1.     Clarify hair and scalp

·         It is harder to thoroughly wash your hair in a long term protective styling, so it vital to clarify before installing.

2.    DC with a protein treatment before installation.

·         Protein treatment strengthens the hair. As your hair will be manipulated during installation it is important to prepare your hair for this process.

3.    Don’t make the braids too small or too tight, as this is likely to damage your hair follicles. Also be careful with glues.

·         Braiding hair too tight or using extensions that are too heavy for the hair to support will surely damage your hair from the scalp. Permanently damaged follicles cannot be repaired. Also be careful with glues as inappropriate use can lead you to pulling out your hairline.

 

Happy Hair Journeys Ladies! :-)

 

‘Of all sad words of tongue or pen, the saddest are these, ‘It might have been.’ – John Greenleaf Whittier

Iron & our hair

I recently went for blood tests and found that I was low in iron. Low iron is very common in women, and can affect how our hair grows. In this post I will be looking at how iron is linked to hair growth.

Our hair is made up on protein – this is why it is so important to maintain good protein levels in our hair but not to overload it with protein therefore balancing it out with moisturise

To help hair grow we need to have a healthy scalp and good blood flow to the scalp.

For good blood flow we need our iron levels to be at a sufficient level, low iron means less oxygen around the body and less oxygen means you feel tired and other process in your body slow down, ie your nails constantly break and your hair doesn’t grow as fast as it would, why? – these are not vital for your body to operate and therefore will take a backside until your iron levels pick up.

I would never advice to take vitamin supplements as these could cause unnecessary complication in your body, or will just main you are producing expensive urine!

Keep a good diet, to help your body absorb iron

1.     Drink a glass of orange juice in the morning – Vitamin C is helps with iron absorption

2.    Eat plenty of iron rich foods such as potatoes, broccoli, liver, red meat.

 

If you have a good balance of vitamins and nutrients to help your hair grow do

1.     Scalp massages – this stimulates blood flow to the head

2.    Use peppermint essential oil –diluted with your carrier oils or shampoos, it has antifungal properties which is great for a healthy scalp.

3.    Clarify your hair – Clarifying removes any product build up that prevents all the great products getting to your strands.

 

Bottom line message keep a healthy balanced diet, you will be amazed at what good supplements you are picking up even from the junk we eat (side note: this is not to encourage junk eating), however, unless you are found with a vitamin deficiency tablets might not always be the best option for hair growth.

(disclaimer: I am currently on iron supplements to correct my iron deficiency, per doctor’s recommendation, they are not been taken to help my hair growth)

Happy Hair Journeys Ladies! :-)

‘I may not have gone where I intended to go, but I think I have ended up where I needed to be’ – Douglas Adams

Holiday

I have been MIA for the last 2 weeks, as I was on holiday in Malawi for my brother’s wedding! It was amazing! Food, dancing and family would do it again!
For my hair I used direct heat twice #yikes!
For my sister in law’s bridal shower (week before wedding) I flat ironed my hair, my relatives were all gasping about my length and asking what I have been doing

From left: younger sister Angela, me, Mum's younger sister (aunt), mum and second cousin Cathy

Throughout the rest of the week, I had it down

Mr pouter himself, my nephew

For the wedding I went to the salon, armed with my hair oil, pre-pooed hair and wide tooth comb and steamed and rolled steam my hair, and then wrapped it for the wedding, it was a bit of a mess for the church in the morning, but worked something out

At church service for wedding with the other half

For the evening do, I flat ironed it. (Believe it or not I have no selfie of me at the evening reception :( ), new goal take more pictures!

For my engagement dinner (get to know the family dinner) below had a braid out

Me, the other half James and my younger sister Angie.

After that I rocked a side bun, the pictures don’t do it justice, but I think it was cute ( with fiancé nephew) 

         With the little nephew

Then on Thursday last week, I washed my hair and blow dried it and I had box braids installed, as I used a protein treatment just 4 days prior to getting my braids installed I did not do another protein treatment.
So this is me for the next 10 weeks, got my hair done for £13.

Box braids, in mum's kitchen making cookies apparently my cookies are the best

That was pretty much me over the holidays. 

Mum's wedding hair was a mini afro

From left: brother's mother in law, my brother thom, my sister in law Sheila, Mum and Dad.

My sister has locks, she swipe them to the side for the wedding, she was a bridesmaid

Side view in the evening 

Toast to the bride and groom! I have a new sister #yeah!

All the kids from both sides minus my dear brother mwai 

Finally for my hair I packed

1. Head scarf 

2. Wide tooth comb

3. Heat protectant

4. Herbal Essence Hello Hydrations hair mask

5. ORS carrot oil

Happy Hair Journeys Ladies! :-)

‘A bone to a dog is not charity. Charity is the bone shared with the dog, when you are just as hungry as the dog.’ – Jack London

Ginger & Rosemary tea

I have been using a mixture of ginger and rosemary tea recently, I am so happy I have switched out of using black tea, though black tea really curbed my shedding it left my hair shift after using it. I never really had any bad effects with it as I always followed it up with a smoothing treatment.

I have also used coffee before to combat shedding, but the smell…. oh dear me…. it lingers on for days and I found that the shedding was not cut down as well as when I used black tea, so coffee and me are done!

I have been using ginger tea rinse for the 3 or 4^th time now and the rosemary tea was added to my wash day and I really do like the way it works. I do not think it has an impact on my shedding because it has no caffeine, but my shedding isn’t bad.

The reason I am using ginger and rosemary tea regularly now is it does not harden my hair and ginger and rosemary are both beneficial to the scalp!

Ginger promotes blood circulation to the scalp and is therefore great for a healthy scalp and a healthy scalp means better hair growth! Rosemary also stimulates hair growth for the same reason, it aides with the blood circulation to the scalp.

I still use the ginger and rosemary tea rinse after my shampoo and finish it up with a smoothing treatment or an instant conditioner.

I have also bought burdock root, which I am going to try after I remove my protective style

Have you even tried tea rinsing and what tea blends are you using and why?

Happy Hair Journeys Ladies! :-)

‘If you talk to a man in a language he understands, that goes to his head. If you talk to him in his language, that goes to his heart.’ – Nelson Mandela

Goal Review

Review of October goals and setting of November goals.

Now this post has been delayed because I just got back from holiday yesterday went to Malawi for 2 amazing weeks, and witnessed my brother’s wedding and got engaged myself. It was an amazing and family filled 2 weeks, now back to the sub-zero temperatures from 79F to 50F!

Anyway on to the goals

1.     Roller set weekly – missed one week

2.    Drink 1 litre of water a day – was good up to when my holiday kicked in so 50/50

3.    Review goals weekly – Reviewed my goals for 2 weeks and then life took over

Lol, don’t know what to make of these goals, anyway let’s try this again.

1.     Drink 1 litre of water a day

2.    Moisturise my scalp every other day (as am in a protective style)

3.    Go to 2 work social event – need to go big on the work scene.

 

Hope your October goals were better than mine!

Happy Hair Journeys Ladies! :-)

‘Whenever you find yourself on the side of the majority, it is time to pause and reflect’ Mark Twain

Liebster Award Nomination

Yeah!!! I just got nominated for a Liebster Award, by the lovely Tomes from Tomes Edition!
 
This is my first ever blog award, am so honoured! It’s nominated to new blogs with less than 200 followers.
 
Now to fulfil the rules around the award.....

List 11 interesting facts about yourself

1. I am a Taurus (29^th April baby woop woop)
2. I am Malawian by birth but live in the UK
3. I am an accountant by profession and love numbers
4. I am notorious for starting new exercises and never following through
5. I started blogging in January this year on hair, but had another blog before that.
6. I have 1 really cute nephew; he pouts a lot, such a drama king!
7. I recently got engaged
8. I absolutely love pork, but think I might be allergic
9. I used to love chemistry in school
10. I have a younger sister who has dreadlocks
11. I used to love love love baking, but now I don't bake anymore L


and for my nominations……….


- perfect tress
- Scarlet Girl
- dessyluv
- hair here there everywhere
- below the waist



My interview from Ms Tomes….

[1]   Where was your favorite vacation to date and why?

Favourite vacation will have to be my last holiday to Malawi this year, I witnessed my brother's wedding and got engaged myself, nothing can top that!

[2]   What’s your favorite hairstyle to rock?

I loved the results I got from my side bun, so effortless, yet sophisticated.

[3]   What’s your favorite Food and Drink?

Love roast pork and fav drink will be fresh mango juice

[4]   What’s your favorite movie and why?

Hmm... I love my movies, I will say Untouchable, that is the best movie I have seen in a long time, it is a French movie with subtitles and it translates to well, if a movie can be funny after translation, this it’s amazing. It’s wins with me.

[5]   How long does you wash days take?

Hmm... I would say 3 to 4 hours if I remove air drying time, I am really trying to cut this time down.

[6]   Where do you spend some of your free time – Blogs, YouTube, Instagram, Facebook, hair forums?

I love hair blogs, my free time is spent reading blogs and writing blogs and watching YouTube hair video, seriously, it is sooooo addictive!

[7]   If you were stranded on a desert what are the 3 hair essentials you would want on you?

- Moisturiser, my hair will surely dry up on this warm island
- Wide tooth comb – nothing like detangling at 10 weeks plus post
- Moisturising conditioner – I am hoping am not stranded for more than 4weeks J

[8]   What motivates you to blog?

I love connecting with people and helping others out. When I get lazy I always remember it’s a community out there and need to power on.

[9]   What was your career choice when you were a teenager and why?

I wanted to be a chemical engineer, I really wanted me to sit in a cosmetics manufacturing place and just make cosmetics, you would think I would opt for the oil places, but making cosmetics just fascinated me.

 

[10] Describe yourself in 3 words?

- Smiley

- Reserved at times

- A silent fighter

 

[11] Where do you see yourself in 10 years?

 

Wow, with my partner and 2 kids in some hot country working as a consultant, with amazingly long hair!!!

 

 

Thank you again Tomes Editions for the nomination, and I hope you got to know me a little better!

 

Happy Hair Journeys Ladies! :)

 

‘For every minute you are angry you lose sixty seconds of happiness.’- Ralph Waldo Emerson