Haircare: Brutal Cold + Dry Hair = A Steam Session

This winter has been brutal on everyone's hair. My hair has been been drying out in record time lately, so I think it is time to pull out the heavy arsenal and do some steam treatments. 
 A few years back, I invested in a good quality bonnet steamer. I used religiously once a week for several months, then stopped when summer rolled. After washing, I will mix up a nice, deep conditioning masque and sit under the steamer for 30-45 minutes. Hopefully this will stop my curls from screaming for moisture! LOL!
Image Courtesy Of BlackHairInformation.com

Product Review: Phytomist Instant Hydrating Conditioner

I got a sample of this as part of a Phyto Sephora VIP gift box featuring this product,  and I must say I am very happy with it's moisturizing properties and i have been spritzing on my length with concentration on the ends when I braid out at night.  I have been sealing with a mixture of Cameilla oil and Castor oil and so far so good. I've gotten up to four good days of braid outs with this method which is great! You can read more reviews on this product here.

What it is:
A weightless leave-in conditioner that instantly detangles, boosts radiance, and protects color.

What it does:
With mist of this spray-on conditioner, color-treated hair's moisture levels and brilliance are restored. Sunflower extract prevents color from fading by protecting hair against oxidation. Lotus flower hydrates and softens while red algae protects hair from environmental stresses.

What it is formulated WITHOUT:
- Parabens
- Sulfates
- Synthetic Dyes
- Petrochemicals
- Phthalates

What else you need to know:
This formula works as a daily treatment and suits all hair types and textures.

Product Review - Pantene Curly Hair Series Deep Moisturising Treatment

I've been pretty much sticking to my regulars when I do my deep condishes, I've been slacking off a bit as of late, I'll admit, but have made a commitment to do once a week from now through September. It appears that in it's natural state I get a good amount of growth during the summer months. This is only my second natural summer, though, so we will have to see. I took a look at my deep condish arsenal and saw that it was time to do a re-stock.  Pantene has always had pretty good condtioners and shampoos, and I have used them off and on through the years while my hair was relaxed.  What caught my attention with this paticular formula is that is specifically has been formulated for Curly Hair. At around $7.00US I decided to pick one up and try it out.
Most definitely a keeper!!  Creamy without feeling overly heavy on the hair, lightly floral in scent with a slight undertone of coconuts, it goes on smooth and easily distributes through the hair.  I bagged and tagged my hair (Beanie speak for plastic cap and scarf, LOL!) overnight after doing about 30 mins. under the heat cap and rinsed out the next morning.  Rinsed out clean to moisturized, smooth, silky and defined tresses.
 I am wondering how this stuff might work as a leave in mixed with say HH Hello Hydration? Will have to see.  This is one of a new series released just this May and I will be sure to pick up a bottle of their Light Conditioning Detangler, as it gets high marks across the board too according to other websites.
Definitely recommend this one and it goes along side the Neautrogena Deep Treatment as one of my staple low priced Deep Condishes.

Where U Been?!?~

Yeah..it's been a little bit since I posted...working on a machinima production (animated vignette) for the World Expo in Shanghai, China, so been a bit busy with filming that in Second Life.

 I've posted the trailer I made below for you all to check out. :-).  If anyone is interested in taking a look at Second Life - email me or leave a comment and I'll give you a tour. :-)  We are planning to have an event in-world and I would love to see all of you there to support!



Now...for the hairs...all I can say it THANK GOD IT"S SPRINGGGGG!  I can definitely tell a huge difference in my hair moisture in the past two weeks.  I was joking with my cousin Rob over at Luvbenet's Coily World that our hair moisture returning is going the be the way we mark the coming of Spring every year from now on!  LOL!  As far as a hair cut..I kept putting it off and putting it off until I finally just pulled it back in a pony tail in the shower with conditioner in it and cut off a half inch in the back.  It needed it..I also ended up trimming a bit off each curl on the sides to make sure I got some of the ends off on the sides. 

I've been washing and going every day this week except today.  I'm going to do a deep condish with a mixture of deep conditioners I have little bits left of and sleep in tonight.  It's suppose to be in the low 80s for the next couple of days and then get cooler again after that. 
Update hair photos! First one is before trim second one is after trim. I can't tell you how glad I am summer is here!

Product Review: Tigi Moisture Maniac Conditioner

I decided to pick this conditioner up after reading the ingredients on-line and noting it had one of my hair's favorites, Behentrimonium Methosulfate. It definitely delivered in all departments. It literally MELTS any tangles and knots from your hair on contact and give a huge dose of moisture to your tresses. Massive conditioning power. I didn't need to use a large amount, either, which is good because the bottle is on the small side.    Brilliant pina colada fragrance. I swear it's THE best smelling condish I've had on my hair in a long time!  I used it as a leave in and topped with a dollop of my JessiCurl Weekly Deep Conditioner and the result is soft, shiny, delicious smelling, defined, smooth curls! It is kinda pricey for the amount you get, though. I bought the 8.5 oz bottle from my local Stop and Shop for about $14.00.  I found it here on Amazon in an 25.36 oz size for $16.36 and it has free super saver shipping!! I bought 3 bottles to stock up as I know this is going into heavy rotation in my hair conditioner arsenal.

Ingredients:  Aqua (Water), Cetyl Alcohol, Behentrimonium Methosulfate, Cetearyl Alcohol, Cetrimonium Chloride, Glycerin, Acetamide MEA, Cetrimonium Bromide, Stearyl Alcohol, Parfum/Fragrance (Fragrance), DMDM Hydantoin, PPG 2 Myristyl Ether Propionate, Pentaerythrityl Tetracaprylate/Tetracaprate, Methylparaben, Propylparaben, Tetrasodium EDTA, Silk Amino Acids, Orange 4 (CI 15510)

Product Review: Aveeno Nourish + Moisturize Conditioner

I'd been seeing references both on line and on the beauty blogs I read about Aveeno Nourish + Moisturize conditioner.  I've used Aveeno products in the past and my current face wash is even the gentle oatmeal liquid cleanser from their baby line.  I made a mental note to pick up a bottle after looking on line at the ingredients.  The third ingredient is Behentrimonium Methosulfate - Naturally derived, but not all natural. It emulsifies and thickens the conditioner. Also aids in static control and comb ability. This is what makes the conditioner creamy and detangling.  Behentrimonium methosulfate is the mildest hair-detangling ingredient available. It is made from non-genetically modified rapeseed oil. This scientifically sophisticated ingredient is renowned for its superior detangling ability, without causing build-up on the hair.

Since my other favorite atm condish - HE Hello Hydration and has the cheaper version behentrimonium chloride ingredient, I was expecting it to be thicker and creamer.  The consistency is liquidy and the scent is pretty much non-existent.  I smoothed it on my hair passed my head under the shower quickly and "lathered" to emulsify, shower capped it and finished my shower.  I blot it dry with either a t-shirt or one of my curl cloths and seal with my Jessiecurl Deep Conditioner. Results in the photo.  I like the conditioner as it does create great curl definition and smooths frizz. 

I've styled today by raking hair back with my fingers while wet and securing with a cute Goody double headband.

Hot Mess Hair In The COLD!

Whewww!  My hair was gonna go on strike soon if I didn't give it some TLC immediately!  My scheduled Henna/Alma treatment didn't happen.  I was feeling crappy with a cold, not to mention the single digit temperatures and the howling winds outside the past few days (and into the week and coming weekend, I hear).  I have not co-washed and detangled since Christmas Eve and my hair has rewarded me by becoming a dry, matted, hot mess!  So today after a through wetting, I packed on the Herbal Essence - Hello Hydration conditioner and detangled.  Luck for me, my hair detangles pretty easily once wet and has condish on, so it took not time to comb through. 

 It is far too cold to expose my  wet tresses to this extreme cold air, and since I have to go out, I opted for a moisturising deep conditioner bake overnight and rinse in the morning.  I reached for the Aubrey's Rosa Mosqueta Conditioner.  Rosa mosqueta is rose hip by any other name. Whatever, you want to call it, the seeds are high in (fatty) linoleic and linolenic acids as well as Vitamin C, all of which are essential for the health of the hair and skin. Flavonoids, a ketonic compound (namely 3-pentenpropyl-kentoe) and trans-rhodanic acids have been detected. In fact, rosehip seeds are about 77% fatty acids.  This should put my stressed out tresses back to a normal state!

Ingredients:

Coconut Fatty Acid Cream Base, Coltsfoot Extract, Horsetail Extract, Organic Rosa Mosqueta® Rose Hip Seed Oil, St. John’s Wort Oil, Wheat Germ Oil, Organic Aloe Vera, Amino Acid Complex (Cysteine, Methionine), Organic Evening Primrose Oil, Balsam Oil; Extracts of Fennel, Hops, Balm Mint, Mistletoe, Camomile and Yarrow; Organic Rosemary Oil, Organic Sage Oil, Aminobenzoic Acid, Carrot Oil, Aubrey’s Preservative (Citrus Seed Extract, Vitamins A,C and E).

Devachan Conditioner Leave In Results...

Well...hummm...there are pros and cons to my rotation leave in results with the return to Devachan.  It did give me some insight on where to go next with this whole experiment, though. 
PROS:  Eradicates FRIZZ!! I mean...NONE on my canopy (top layer of hair) where I always have some.  Smells good. 
CONS:  Consistency similar to watered down elmer's glue and does not spread through hair easily.  Had to re-wet hair (and i apply my leave-ins in the shower) to distribute. Dries with a harder "set" than I'm used to.  I like my curls touchable and even thought they looked good and had a really defined curl pattern, was kinda eggh to touch for me.  Gave more shrinkage than I'm used to seeing.
Soooo...I've decided to take a two step approach.  First attempt will be to mix Devachan with Aubrey's Honeysuckle Rose (1 tablespoon of Devachan to 2 tablespoons of AHR) and see how that works.  If that doesn't work, I will put Devachan just on the canopy and AHR everywhere else.).  Will post results tomorrow on first run!

Time To Rotate Leave Ins....

I'm convinced my Tresemme Moisture Rich conditioner is not performing up to par any longer, so it's time to rotate it out for a bit. Today I used what was left in my bottle of Aubrey's Honeysuckle Rose Conditioner (about 1/4 full) and poured in some Evian water, shook and used it as my leave in today and I was quite pleased with the moisture retention and curl definition aftr it dried. I also bought a bottle of DevaChan One conditioner today to use as my leave in. I have used this in the past (beginning of the year) with good results, plus it smells fantastic!  So hopefully I will have good results again!  Planning a Henna glossing this weekend!

Today's Hair - 12.01.2009

I did a deep condish last night with Biolage by Matrix Ultra-Hydrating Conditioning Balm and I didn't like it as much as the Delicate Care Conditioner.  In fact, my hair is a little dry today..not sure if this is from the conditioner or if it's just time to rotate my leave it from Tresseme to something else for a bit.  Will have to play around with it.  I mixed in my Camellia oil, aloe gel and honey in a dish and squirted the entire tube of condish in and mixed it.  Steamed for 30 mins and capped, rinsed this morning.  It felt strong and smooth after rinsing, but when it air dried completely...a little dry....I think I should increase the humidifer in my bedroom.  LOL!

Winter Proofing My Hair, Skin, Sinuses and Eyes!

My apartment is hella hot and I have no control over my heat (it's free though..lol) so I usually will have windows open somewhere in here at any given time. I don't like heat when I'm trying to sleep, it's very disruptive. I've been using my warm mist cheapo Vicks humidifier on the table next to my bed, but it adds to the heat issue. I finally broke down and did a search on google to read reviews and find a large cool mist humidifier to quench my parched self.

I finally decided on Air-O-Swiss 7145 Ultrasonic Cool Mist Humidifiers- Deluxe Package. The deluxe package includes 2 silver ionic sticks and 3 demineralization cartridges. The keep to proper usage of these things is to keep them CLEAN and replace the necessary parts as needed. Base on the reviews, I hope to alleviate the desert dryness and add lots of great moisure back in the air.