GETTING GREAT HAIR WITH BEER

I enjoy finding  about more unconventional methods of  growing healthier and longer hair without spending so much money on fancy products.

 It is believed that beer can help your hair, that are special component within beer including Vitamin B, wheat proteins and maltose sugar.the complex carbohydrate in beer have a hydrating effect, while the proteins coats each strand giving them more strength and elasticity. it has similar benefits as apple cider vinegar.

  

After washing hair apply flat beer: this means beer without carbonation, that has lost its 'frizz' with no bubbles.

Leave on for a few minutes, and rinse thoroughly with old water.

•  i have not tried the beer rinse will definitely be trying it on my next wash day.

IMPORTANCE OF PRE-SHAMPOO

When i started my healthy hair journey, one of the things i didn't really get to understand was the act of  pre-shampoo. why put so much of my delicious oils and end up washing then away on wash days.it sounded backwards, because i grew up to understand you oil your hair after shampoo and not the other way round.

Cleansing the hair with shampoo is important because it washes away products build-up, dirts,pollution and any other thing that has gotten stuck in the hair during the week. the downside of most shampoo is that it can strip our hair of it's natural oil, and our hair need some amount of oil to remain healthy. we don't want our hair to be squeaky clean. so this is where i found out why is very necessary to always pre-shampoo our hair before washing.

The pre-shampoo gives the hair a softening , deep oil treatment and also provides extra protection so that our hair does not get completely stripped during the shampooing process. its is also very important to use pure naturals for this process and this is very beneficial to whether you are relaxed or natural.

APPLE CIDER VINEGAR TONER

Since finding about the whole natural and healthier lifestyle, i have been getting to know so many informations that are so overwhelming and which sounds so good to be true.

   I have always had serious problems with my skin since i can remember. pimples, zits, Acne ,breakouts, whichever they name they are called i have had them all. its been absolutely horrible and just depressing.

Have tried almost everything both conventional and unconventional methods. products like proactive, neutrogena, clearasil, clean and clear, oxy,clinique, olay, cetephil, i can just keep naming them and i have even tried going to the dermatologist and getting prescription creams and drugs, nothing seems to just to work. sometimes it even seems to make it worse because my skin will just be seriously irritated.

so i have decided to try the so much talked about apple cider vinegar toner;

• get any clean, empty plastic bottle with a lid.
• fill the bottle 3/4 with water
• fill the rest with apple cider vinegar
• add a few drops of tea tree oil 
• close the bottle and shake to mix very well. pop lid open and pour a little on a cotton pad or cotton ball.
• after cleaning your face like you normally would, swipe the ACV soaked cotton pad over your entire face, avoiding the eye-area and lips. A little burning may occur, but its noting compared to some of the alcohol based astringents or toners that i have tried before.
• let your face dry completely, then apply your serums, creams lotions as you normally would.                                                        

I just started mine on the 1st of November and lets see how this one goes, will bring an update after 2 months so that you also can see if this is going to be my saving grace from a life time of struggle with bad skin. 

• anybody who cares can join me so we can motivate each other to achieve clearer skin
  
  please excuse the very ugly expression on my face. the nose just looks so arhhhhh..... was only trying to get a very close shot of my face.

LIEBSTER AWARD 2013

I was nominated for the liebster blog award by my two beautiful blog sisters( onyeka, so sorry for taking so much time in accepting the award, this is by far the hardest post i have written.) and uzoma@Don't touch that hair.

What is Liebster Award?

Liebster is a German word that means kind. The Liebster Award is a blog award nomination presented to novice bloggers in an effort to spread blog love and increase blog exposure. 

Here are the rules:

• Thank the person who nominated you and post a link back to their blog
• Answer the 10 questions provided by the blog that nominated you
• Provide 10 questions for the bloggers you nominate
• Let your nominees know of their award.                                                                                              Here are my answers to onyeka's questions:                                                                             
• What do you like about blogging and why did you start blogging? i love talking and sharing about things i never knew where helpful to our hair and i started blogging when i had a terrible experience with my hair that left me with a lifeless limp of damaged hair.
• 
  
• Who do you have in mind when writing your blog posts? people like me who didnt know about some simple changes that would make a whole lot of difference in the growth of our hair.
•  
• Do you have a favourite blog(s) you visit often? yes!! i love Linda ikeji's blog, where i keep to date with Nigerian gossip and news.
• 
  
• Do you always leave a comment on posts on blogs you like or follow? sometimes when i can relate to what the blogger is trying to say.
• 
  
• If you do not like or you are not in support of a post on a blog would you say(comment) or ignore (pretend you didn't read the post.? yes i pretend i didn't read it
• 
  
• Are you into 'KEEPING FIT AND HEALTHY EATING'?   yes am struggling to keep fit and eat more healthier 
• 
  
• What's your favorite food in the WORLD?  bitter leaf soup and fufu!!!!!!
• 
  
• Do you wear your hair relaxed or un-relaxed?  am trying to transition to a more natural hair.
• 
  
• Whats your 'hair goal'? 
• if you have any....  right now i will love to pack it in a bun.
• 
  
• If you were asked to make a wish, what would you wish for? i would wish for a pimple free face  and very clear skin.
• 
  
• What do you hate most about yourself? i tend to start things with a strong force and loss interest very quickly( i pray it does not happen with my poor blog)

And here are uzoma's questions

My 10 questions for the nominees:

(1) Why did you decide to start a blog? trying to document my hair growth challenges and share with people some fascinating things i have been learning from the internet

(2) What is your favorite thing about blogging? sharing useful tips that can help

(3) If you could travel to any place in the world, where would it be and why? the  Bahamas i have heard is like a slice of heaven.  

 (4) List one interesting fact about yourself? am a very good listener and i try very hard not to judge people

(5) Fanta or Coke? i used to loooove coke, i think i was even addicted. but i try to drink water more these days.

(6) What is your favourite TV series? greys anatomy

(7) What three words that best describe your hair? damaged, ear length and in- recovery.

(8) What is your favourite piece of clothing or accessory in your wardrobe? my leather jacket.

(9) Do you have a hidden talent? What is it? don't think i know of it

(10) What is your favourite song? Whitney Houston i look to you 

thank you so so much onyeka and uzoma.  ONE LOVE

My questions to the nominated bloggers…

 

Tell 11 Interesting Facts about Self and answer the below questions

 

• What single quality do you most appreciate in people?

•  Why did you start blogging?
•   what you know now, what advice would you give your 13-​​year-​​old self?
•  one interesting fact about yourself
•  How many times do you post per week?
• How do you balance life, blog, social media ?
• What are three things you cannot live without?
• What is your most prized possession?
• Describe yourself in three words.
• What is your guiltiest pleasure?

The Nominees:

 beauty

yours truly

the chronicles of lady G

its not all about my hair, honest

yvonneslove

So, there you have it. I’m looking forward to seeing the responses. Thanks so much, 

myrebornhair and 

donttouchthehair.

WATER, OUR HAIR'S BEST FRIEND.

 Although while growing up,i was taught to avoid water touching my hair except on wash days. that water was not good for my hairstyles and making my hair to last longer while in cornrows or braids, that water was the enemy!!!. Now that i know better, mineral oil and petroleum based products are our hair's real enemy.

Keeping our hair moisturized is one of the biggest challenges when on a healthy hair journey, as hydrated hair will experience less breakage.

   we can try keeping our hair moisturized by some of these methods:
Finish every wash with a cold rinse, washing our hair with warm water helps to remove dirts and products build up, it also increases the hair porosity i.e the cuticles open up so that all the good stuff from your shampoo and conditioner are easily absorbed.                        Rinsing hair with  cold water at the end of washing process will help to flatten the cuticle and lock in moisture.

• Always try to apply moisturizers to your hair before you applying natural oils and shea butter.                                          oil is not a moisturizer, oil and water don't mix hence when  used, oil  should be applied last so as to help hair retain moisture and natural oils and shea butter are excellent in locking in moisture.
  

spritz hair twice a day, this helps it hydrated.

• Drink lots of water; a lot of hydration operates from the inside of our bodies.
  
• sleep with satin bonnet at night or use satin pillow case, because cotton absorbs the moisture from your hair a lot more than satin does and it is also more smoother than cotton  so making your hair less vulnerable to breakage.
• 
  
  

• Also try wearing protective hairstyle when the weather is harsh. when its very hot or windy hair tends to dry out quickly.

SIMPLE HOMEMADE ALOE VERA LEAVE-IN CONDITIONER

I feel that there is no need to spend tons of money on some simple things you can easily make on your own, just like the aloe vera leave-in conditioner which of course is all natural and very healthy for your hair. the best part about making this conditioner is you only need three ingredients. 

With a pH range of 4.5, the acidity of aloe vera is what works for our advantage. it adds to closing the hair cuticle. this causes our hair to be smoother, minimizes fizz and gives our hair strands more definition and shine. 

pure aloe vera is light enough to keep hair moisturized without feeling greasy or weighed down. it also gives hair control without making it stiff and crunchy.

 
  Aloe vera gel leave-in conditioner.
4oz water
4oz aloe vera gel
10 drops of essential oil(pick any of your favorite!)

Add water and aloe vera gel into a small bowl and stir very well with spoon. pour the mixture into a spray bottle and shake well. add your favorite essential oil and shake well and voila you have your own leave-in conditioner.
use daily or as often as needed to restore softness.

Benefits;

• gives hair moisture
• detangles
• defines curly hair
• reduces itchy scalp
• tames oily hair
• balances pH level of hair 

WASH DAY!!!!

• Pre-shampoo- this is basically applying a conditioning/treatment to the hair prior to shampooing/washing so as to help add moisture the the follicles.                                   i did mine by applying the hot oil treatment using extra virgin olive oil and grapeseed oil, the night before washing my hair.

shed hair after taking down my braid extensions.

• washing: i first saturated my hair with diluted apple cider vinegar to help remove product buildup from wearing braids for almost 5 weeks.

i shampooed all my hair without putting them in sections since my hair is not even ear length or shoulder length to put into sections.

• i towel dabbed the excess water before applying my homemade mayo/egg/honey deep conditioner.

i finger detangled before using wide tooth comb to complete the detangling, i made sure not to over comb,then covered it with a plastic bag and let it sit for about 2 hours.

• rinsed: i rinsed with cold water and also rinsed with black tea. and i let it air dry.
• results:my hair was clean and happily fresh and wash and there was less breakage than what i normally experience. the detangling process was my least favorite as my back hurts so bad from bending over and trying to run my fingers through my hair.

It took over 5 hours to complete the whole process, i can imagine what people with longer hair have to go through each wash day, because i was really exhausted from washing my very short ear length hair.

i pray and hope all my hard work will pay off.