The Joys of Natural Hair!

A few months ago I woke up and just decided to hack all my hair off and go all natural. I did take some pics right afterwards but am currently too embarrassed to post them now, lol so all you are gonna see of me now are just nice glossy pics :)

This isn’t the first time I’ve cut off all my hair but it is the first time I cut it off by myself. The first time I did was in the 12^th grade and I just went to the barber and told him to cut it all off. I quite liked it, I have a relatively small head with a nice shape and I thought I still looked quite attractive :p However, my bubble was soon popped and busted like a hot air balloon with no air. Some lil’ rude kid told me I looked like a boy and another man once told me that don’t I know that men prefer women with long hair??? . . I mean, who asked him (big hiss)

Luckily for me, I didn’t let that deter me and I stay cutting my hair. I just think that women with short hair styles look super sexy. However I do get bored with my hair very easily so I’ve twisted it, grown it back out, retouched it, cut it again, grown it out and now am back at square one but this time I actually want to grow it out and stay natural.

Anyways I do prefer my hair short, for me there's just a certain versatility and freedom about it. I really have not tried out that many different products yet but am going to provide some reviews from a trusted natural hair sista. Enjoy!

Natural Hair – Product Junkie Reviews by Dayah Au Naturale

1) Giovanni Tea Tree Triple Treat:

Love it! Very invigorating and kind of therapeutic =). I love that its pumped out (to control my "heavy handiness" lol) and the slippage...a little goes a long way also. Smells great...I just sit back and relax while it in my hair and it feels great. I like the tingly feeling too. Becoming my fav for cowashes and conditioning

2) Eco Styler Gels:

Ok...so I decided to try other kinds of eco styler gels for slicking my hair back into a ponytail.
The pink says its for curls and waves....not good for slicking back but seemed good for defining curls.
The black (or dark brown) is hands down my fav.
All of them (the pink, green, and brown gives a firm hold)

3)Fruit of the Earth Aloe Vera gel:

I love this gel! My new favorite! It slicks hair back and holds it in place without flaking, making it hard, or looking like u have gel in ur hair!

4)Dr. Bronner’s Magic Soaps Hemp peppermint soap made with organic oils:

...some ingredients include organic coconut oil, hemp oil, jojoba oil, peppermint oil and glycerin. Tried it out as a shampoo.

The smell is very therapeutic...makes u wanna leave it in ur hair for a while and go kick back lol. I wouldn't use it all the time tho (or any shampoo) and I would read the bottle throughly before applying. Hope this helps :)

5)Tropic Isle Living Jamaican Blk Castor Oil:

My first impression of this oil is that it is very thick. It greases my scalp no matter if my hair is dry or wet. But putting it on ur hair...I prefer my hair to be dry first. Will see how that work another day

Love this for deep conditioning. I add some to my conditioner by mixing in a bowl before putting it in my hair...after 30-45 minutes with a cap on....my hair looked and felt very moisturized and healthy. I also tried putting it on my scalp and ends with my hair dry instead of wet and I think I like it better on my dry hair than wet :)

Doesn’t penetrate the hair too much when dry :/ I dont really see a difference in my hair. Much rather stick with evoo, evco, or jojoba oil

6) Shea Moistures Curl Enhancing Smoothie:

This has been my staple moisturizer for the past month. Definately leaves the hair moisturized. I used it with evoo and my hair is moisturized and shiny (not greasy) for days.

7) Curls Passion Fruit Curl Control Paste sculpting shine pomade:

Slicks down unruly edges, tame frizzy, out of control curls. And adds amazing shine all in one step.
No sulfates, silicones, parabens, mineral or petrolatum oils!

Love it! Def controls and sculpts to keep hair in place without a hrd hold And it smells good too :)

I used it to tame edges and make my style more neat and together

Not good for when the hair is wet or damp :/

8) Shea Moisture Organic Line:

I love this stuff...it makes my hair soooo soft (very soft even after just shampooing) and easy to detangle. Hair feels and looks moisturized and smells good :)

9) The Tangle Teezer:

...a detangling brush ideal for all hair types....gentle effortless detangling for both wet and dry hair...increases shine noticeably

 Now this...is a detangler!!! It detangled my hair in no time and there wasn't much hair on the brush at all. I used it on soaking wet hair that I also applied a water-based leave-in. I'm going to have to see if it detangles dry hair the same way as it claims :)

10) Africa's Best Ultimate Herbal Oil. A blend of penetrating natural oils for bath, body, hair, and scalp:

Use for my scalp and hot oil treatments :)

Ingredients: soy bean oil, walnut seed oil, kiwiw fruit extract, olive fruit oil, castor seed oil, sesame seed oil, jojoba seed oil, carrot seed oil, sweet almond oil, tocopheryl acetate, safflower oil and calendula extract, yarrow extract, cucumber extract, carrageenan extract, ginseng extract, sage extract, confrey extract and aloe extract.

11) Apple Cider Vinegar (acv) rinse:

I mixed 1 tbs of acv to 1 cup of water (2 tbs acv with 2 cups of water) and did a final rinse with it after washing/conditioning my hair. I poured it over all my hair. But for now on I'm going to use a bottle with applicator tip to pour on my scalp. It will remove the left over residue after I finish cowashing or conditioning my hair to make sure ever thing is out, it restores natural ph balance, and close cuticles.

12) 1875W Conditioning Hard Bonnet Dryer:

Ionic conditioning makes hair healthy by smoothing the cuticle to reduce frizz...hair cuticle is visibly smoother and conditioned resulting in softer, shiner hair.

13) Jane Carter Solution:

LOVE LOVE LOVE Jane Carter Solutions. All of her products. They all moisturizes my hair well and does what it say it will do. Definately worth my money.
PASS =)

14) Denman Brush:

...supposed to make detangling thick, coarse hair easy and less painful

People swear by this brand brush, but I really dont know what they rave about. It helped clump my curls together, but tangling was not easier. It seemed like more hair was on the brush than it is on my wide tooth comb. I prefer my wide tooth shower comb over this any day :/

15) Shea Moisture Organic Coconut & Hibiscus Conditioning Curl & Style Milk:

Love it for moisturizing my hair after conditioning

Makes hair very soft too

16) Luster Pink Hot Oil Treatment:

I love that this hot oil treatment is self-heating :)

Makes my hair really shiny after I wash it out and gives it life again without adding any products after I wash it out.

17) Carol’s Daughter Hair Milk Line:

Shampoo gets hair squeaky clean, not moisturizing.
Conditioner has good slip and detangles well.
Curl Definer didn't define too well and dried my hair...seemed like it sucked all the moisture out :/
Overall...failed :(

18) My own mixture of oils for a pre-poo :) :

 Didn't achieve the tingly feeling, but great at re-moisturizing hair before shampoo

19) ECO Styler: Defines curls very well, but will leave hair flaky and not good for more than one day, also good for slicking hair back into a ponytail.

20) Jane Carter Solution- Curl Defining Cream:

PASS. Defines curls. Only downfall is that I have to put it in with my hair soaking wet :/

21) Mixed Chicks Leave-in Conditioner:

moisturize, control frizz and defines curls

ok...so I've used this leave in for a week and now it seems like its doing nothing for my hair :/ Has anyone else got that a product worked perfect the first few times and then does nothing for your hair later?

 Update...I don't like this product anymore...I think it might only be good for ppl with a twa (teeny weeny afro)

22) Twisted Sista:

I brought it to eliminate frizz and to try it out for a wash n go. The conditioner made detangling easier and made my hair soft. I like that there wasn't a time limit on how long to leave it in my hair before rinsing. The curl activator did define some curls, but not all over my head. It says to apply generously and that's what I did but like all wash n go products that I've tried, it left white residue in my hair :/. Not satisfied.

It did tame frizz tho

23) Honey Nutt: My second favorite line :) very moisturizing! Love the shampoo, conditioner, and twist out!! PASS =)

24) Kinky Curly:

Shampoo cleans hair to a squeaky clean.
Leavein/detangler good...moisturizes and helps a little with detangling. Only bad thing is that it doesn't penetrate too well and can leave a residue when ur heavy handed with it.
Kinky Curly Curling Custard isn't there (I gave it away). It did define curls, but cause a lot of shrinkage. Good for wash n go and twist outs but can leave a film in the hair. :/

25) Mixed Chicks’ Deep Conditioner:

Thick consistency, but didn't do enough for my kinky hair. Not enough slippage.
Not for me :/

26) 100% Extra Virgin Coconut Oil: I know it says cooking oil, but I can't wait to try it as a deep conditioner for my hair :)