Butter Treat is the truth!

Girls - my hair is soooooooo soft.  I can't stop touching it!  I did my hair on Tuesday and haven't put any type of moisturizing cream in it since.  I haven't needed it!  If you have dry hair, I really really reccomend picking up some of the Redken Butter Treat deep conditioner.  Best buy of 2009 for sure.

I'll be posting pictures tomorrow of my new color.  Can't wait!!!!

My 2nd trip to see Nicole @ Pure Beauty + the BEST deep conditioner

So after 7 months (yes shameful) I finally returned to the hair salon for the dreaded "trim". Nicole loved my color but thinks that my color is too drying *sniff sniff*. So I will probably be saying good bye to my beloved Textures & Tones. She suggested that I let her color my roots, put a glaze on my ends, and highlight my hair. So that's the good news - this upcoming Saturday, I hope to be more golden for the summer!!!!

So for the bad news, she trimmed a lot of my hair, so much that we decided not to straighten my hair until I get my color done or even not until I have a really special occasion. She thinks my natural hair suits me sooooo well and since my hair is on the dry side, she wants to hold off on straightening it, until she can color it and I can then get that silky straight look.

So the verdict - I will be visiting Nicole on a much more regular visit to hopefully avoid these traumatic cutting sessions. I was totally bummed on Friday and my poor bf had to listen to me whine all weekend. But yesterday, I had a breakthrough and I am really digging the shape of the cut she gave me, something I had been lacking for a while. You can definitely tell that my hair is shorter in the pictures below. I'll post pictures this week of my twist out.

Nicole also put me on to a great deep conditioner and it was only $15! My new "can't leave home without product" is.... *drumroll please* Redken Smooth Down Butter Treat. Ladies, this stuff is amazing. Some of the great ingredients include macadamia oil and candelilla wax. The directions say to leave it in for 5 to 10 minutes, but I left it in for 2 hours while I did some GMAT studying. After I rinsed it out and applied a concoction of my Aveda smooth products, BioSilk and the Fantasia IC anti-humidty serum, I blew out my hair and my, my, my is my hair super soft! So Nicole is my hair angel at the moment and she is quite an expensive one.

Update: Pics of my dry twist out today (one day later) post "trim".

New Pictures + Scalp Woes

Happy (freakin' ) Friday! Yes I am feeling that kinda way! Anyways, I noticed that I hadn't posted pictures in a while, so enjoy the pictures of my wet twist out a week later (I'm wearing blue) and a dry twist out I did a couple weeks ago (I'm in the black). I'm not really feelin' the wet twist out but, hey, it works. Not sure how long this 'no heat' thing will last. Meah.

My scalp is irritated. I noticed a... pimple yesterday! WTF! So I think I need to pay very close attention to cleansing my scalp, especially since I either use Wen or co-wash. I need to make sure I get all the build-up off of my scalp. I was thinking about mixing up some type of concoction to cleanse my scalp - I still haven't gotten my peppermint oil, but maybe this will help a little bit. Maybe an apple cider rinse? I really just want to cleanse my scalp - I don't know if my hair needs a serious cleansing too. Any suggestions?

Tonight is hair night. On the agenda tonight - a serious, under the dryer deep condition, a clear rinse to make my color shine some more and maybe a dry twist out - yes I know, I said no heat, but my hair doesn't do well with the wet to dry look. It shrinks to darn much!

Side note - My mom just told me that she knows a natural that swears by Nick Chavez hair products... thoughts?

Stimulating my scalp + my rod set FAIL

So let's start with the good "news". As I have blogged about before, oils really don't do a lot for my hair, but I am going to start massaging my scalp to hopefully promote hair growth. I still take my Biotin supplement just about every day, but I sometimes notice that my scalp is itchy or tender in some spots. I am thinking of stopping by Aveda today to get some peppermint or ylang ylang oil for nightly scalp massages. I don't see why I can't incorporate this into my nightly twist regimen. Scalp massages are great for stimulating and getting the blood circulating in your scalp.

Now on to my epic fail - the rod set. I was so hype on Friday about rod setting my hair this weekend. I went to my beauty store and got tons of rods - TONS (on a side note - I stumbled upon a creme gel and leave-in that rival my Miss Jessie's products AND are much cheaper)! So I get home, wash my hair with Wen and deep condition with the Garnier Fructis hair masque (not so hype about this one - I like the Pantene one better) and I start to rod set. So I am doing good and as I am move on to my second row, I go back to feel/check the first row. Low and behold my ends are unraveling, even with the gel on them. Needless to say, I had a mess on my hands. Luckily I only opened 2 packs of rods and took the rest back and got my $20 back. I think I'll stick to the wet/damp 2 strand twists for now and revisit this style later!

I'll post about my new product discoveries soon!

PS - I am still discouraged about styling my hair wet/damp. It's so hard for me, but I sometimes I feel like I am the only person who has awful shrinkage, hair shrinkage that is ;)!!!

Okay yea this isn't working

Okay - I can't do this.  I feel like a poodle.  My hair curls to too tight for the shingling method or any kind of wash and go 'do.  I will be sticking to either wet or dry twist outs.  UGH.  I am so frustrated and I hate my hair right about now.

No heat for 3 weeks - can I do it?

Okay I am officially awful - I know. So sorry for not posting recently. Life happens and the GMAT sucks, but I digress. I'll post my Aveda straightening regimen soon, I've tweeked it a little bit and added some BioSilk to the mix and get much better results.

So I am going to a wedding Memorial Day weekend and I am getting my hair professionally straightened by hair goddess Nicole at Pure Beauty in DC. You might have remembered me talking about her in a post a while ago - she was the first person to straighten my hair :o). I am dreading the visit because I know she is going to chop a bunch of hair off. I hope I don't cry. I digress (again) - I am trying to avoid heat for the next 3 weeks to save my hair for her blow out. I might try shingling again with the Curly Meringue. I tried with a little piece first, before I set myself up to be pissed.

My hair definitely curls it just shrinks. BOOO! So maybe I'll buck up and wash my hair and try the shingling method all over. I am not really sure. UGH.

UPDATE: Below are pictures of my hair right after the Curl Meringue (it's still drying). I guess we will see how my hair holds up after a work out tomorrow morning. Stay tuned..
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Aveda gets me every time!

So I am going to a conference tomorrow in Chicago and I wanted to wear my hair straight(ish).  Well, we all know that me + straight hair = a mess.  So I have been reading about Aveda's Smooth Infusion line for a while.  I finally went to the store and the woman that helped me was very knowledgeable and basically got me to purchase everything *sigh*.  I am going to do my hair tonight and see how it turns out.  I'll provide yall with some pictures and include the "instructions" she gave me, as well.  She told me that I should be pleased with my results once I am done.  We will see!  Stay tuned!

Top 5 Beauty "Must Haves"

I know I usually stick to hair, but I really wanted to share my top 5 beauty "must haves".  But before I get to that, I wanted to share pictures of my straight hair and trimmed ends - and yes I trimmed them myself (thank you Amber for giving me the confidence to do it)!  Check out the pictures below and look at how long my hair has gotten!

Okay so now on to my top 5 beauty "must haves".

1. Proactiv - I never had acne or blemish problems as a teenager, but as of lately, my skin has been acting crazy.  So after talking to my best friend about her experience with Proactiv, I decided to get some.  Already after about 3 weeks of using it, my face looks amazing!  I once again feel confident and comfortable leaving the house without foundation.  This stuff is a "must have" if you are experiencing skin problems.
2. Sexy Curves Mascara by Rimmel - I LOVE mascara.  I am actually pretty crazed when it comes to mascara.  I have tried it all too.  From the expensive stuff like Dior Show to the cheap drugstore stuff.  And I must say, I have better success with the mascara I buy from CVS.  I was skeptical about Sexy Curves when it came out, but I am in love with it now!  The mascara actually does it what it says it going to do.  Love it!
3. Olay Ultra Moisture Body Wash with Shea Butter - I haven't experienced dry skin since I started using this body wash years ago.  Sometimes, especially in the summer, I can go without lotion or just use baby oil after a shower.
4. Wen Hair Cleanser - Anyone who has read my blog knows that I love Wen Hair Cleanser.  It is sulfate-free and can be used as a cleanser/conditioner/detangler/leave-in.  It is definitely worth the money!
5. Bare Escentuals - Once I tried the foundation, I never looked back.  It is easy to control how much or little coverage you want and it feels like you aren't wearing any make up!  I never had a problem matching my shade.  Since the make up is all natural, if you happen to fall asleep without washing your face, you won't break out.  Their products are great for sensitive skin.  I use the foundation, eye shadows and shimmers.

You be the judge..

Yall can be the judge of whether my hair color looks any different. The first picture is from this weekend and the second and third picture second is from today, after I colored it. What do yall think? I kinda see a difference but I am not sure...

Spring is here!

So you all know that I have been toying with the idea of going lighter. I have been torn because I continue to get so many compliments on my current hair color, but I want a change. Well after a lot of research about mixing box hair color, I am going to color my hair in a few minutes using Textures & Tones in Light Golden Brown and Honey Blonde. I have read great things about the outcome of mixing these two colors together so I am excited to see the results! I think having the Cherrywood color in my hair right now, will make the color a bit warmer. I didn't want to use just Honey Blonde because I feared that the color would end up brassy or orange. I will post pictures of the results - please pray it comes out pretty!

Update: So I colored my hair. There isn't a huge change in the color, but I think it looks a little more golden. I won't really know until I untwist it and see it in the sunlight tomorrow. The picture below is right after my blow out. Ugh! I was definitely hoping for more drastic results! Maybe a rinse in a gold color will make the color pop more. I have no idea. Night yall!