YOUNG, Fly, and Natural

Greetings All and Happy Holidays!  As a nod to the season, I thought I would give you all a nice little "present" to kick off the holiday season.  This is a post that I have actually been sitting on for a while, waiting for the perfect time to release it because it's just that special to me.

Over the summer I got a call from a member of my glam fam...Ms. Randi.  Ran asked me for what she considered a big favor...but what I considered an honor.  Ran wanted to set up a time for her to bring her mini me Cameron, her 10 year old daughter, over for a visit.  A little while back little Miss Cam decided that she wanted to wear her natural (virgin/never permed) hair out in a fro.  And Ran, being the supportive parent she is, granted Cam's wishes.

Initially, Cam's excitement was met with a little opposition from some of her female classmates.  Cam was teased about her hair because it was "different" from the girls in her class.  But, this didn't deter Cam, especially since she had lots of reassurance from her fab mommy that she was beautiful and her hair was fab.

Now...back to the favor...Ran asked if her and Cam could come over to learn about some good products and to get some styling tips.  I don't know who was more excited out of the three of us...I'm willing to put my money on myself.  One Friday afternoon I relished in playing in products and experimenting with different styles in Cam's hair.  She left all smiles...so I'm sure she had fun too.

Cam even gushed about how healthy her hair is in it's natural state and that she observed that some of her classmates who were teasing her before, couldn't say the same.  

I absolutely adore Cam for her confidence in and love of her natural coif! Especially, at such a young age.  She is proof positive that little natural girls rock too!!!

Until next time...

Ms. K

PRODUCT REVIEW: Aveda Be Curly

Hey All!  This is my first jab at a Vlog. The video may not win any cinematic awards, but I promise, future vlogs will get better. :-) Oh and ignore the hair color...that is a long story within itself.  But, I am happy to report my hair is not that/those (lol) colors anymore. 

Enjoy the vid!

Ms. K

PSA: BRAZILIAN BLOWOUTS WARNING!!!!

Hello All!

I recently came across a warning regarding Brazilian blowouts (also known as a Brazilian Keratin Treatment or BKT) that I felt needed to be shared with you all.  I, probably like most of you, have friends who have had the BKT, or at least friends who are heavily considering it.  I remember the first time I heard about the process and I myself was a little leery of a process that uses a chemical to straighten hair, but yet maintains that it's not in fact a chemical.  The proponents of this process maintain that the product is simply keratin, a protein that we have in our hair anyway.  *side-eye*

Strike #1 - I asked my hair stylist (very knowledgeable in hair care and I would trust her with anything concerning my hair) at the time about it and she assured me that there indeed was a chemical in the product and that it was not possible for the product to achieve straightening without a chemical being involved.  I did a little more independent research and discovered that BKT's contain formaldehyde (as in the chemical used to embalm dead people).  I was shocked and appalled!!!!

Strike #2 - Recently, Ash and I were having a conversation and she told me that her dad told her about an article he read that talked about how research linked the BKT to cancer.  Again...shocked and appalled.

Strike #3 - Today i was flipping through my September Essence and on Page 80 I found this warning:

OSHA WARNS ABOUT BRAZILIAN BLOWOUTS -
"In June 2011 the U.S. Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) issued a hazard alert to hair salons about potential formaldehyde exposure from working with Brazilian Blowout and other hair-smoothing products,  The warning confirmaed an initial investigation done by Oregon OSHA last fall, in which they sampled 105 various hair-smoothing products from 54 salons.  Thirty-seven samples came from Brazilian Blowout Acai Professional Smoothing Solution, and they were found to have formaldehyde level averaging 8.8%, even though they were labeled formaldehyde-free.  OSHA requires anything above 0.1% to be listed on the label.  Since the international Agency for Research on Cancer lists formaldehyde as a human carcinogen, how can you protect yourself? By banning straighteners made with these: methylene glycol, formalin, methlyne oxide, paraform, formic aldehyde, methanol, oxomethane, oxymethylene, or CAS Number 50-0-0."

Lessons learned: BKT is a chemical, BKT contains (the chemical) formaldehyde,  Formaldehyde is a carcinogen (can cause cancer) - thus BKT is a carcinogen (can cause cancer).

Now, althout I'm on TEAM NATURAL, that does not mean that I don't support others who decide to chemically relax their hair.  If you choose to chemically straighthen your hair, be informed and don't be afraid to ask to check the labels of any chemical straighteners that is used in your hair for any of the ingredients mentioned above.

#TEAMHEALTHYHAIR

Ms. K

NATURAL HAIR INSPIRATION: Jania

A few posts back I did my first Natural Hair Inspiration post.  This is a series of post I decided to do to highlight some women I know who have naturally fab hair.  This time around I am featuring my very dear friend Jania.  In my very humble opinion, and I'm sure you all will agree...Jania has Joan Carroll Clayton (Tracee Ellis Ross) hair.  It's full, thick, luxorious, and glamorous hair.  I have a serious hair crush on this lady.  Like my last hair inspiration, Krystal, I remember when Jania went natural.  She hit me up for advice and now she is a pro who I solicit style tips from.  Her latest luscious look made me swoon and I'm sure it will do the same for you. Check it out.

And of course, because I love you all...here are the instructions on how to achieve Jania's fab look:

Quick Bantu Knot Instructions:
1. I section my hair off (into 4 sections) & comb through with a wide tooth comb to detangle.
2. I thoroughly wash each section & comb through again to make sure my hair doesn't tangle
3. This time I used some samples (the Miss Jessies we received from the festival) I deep conditioned with the super sweetback treatment. It was pretty decent & smelled great. I saturated each section with the treatment & let it sit for 30 mins. I put a plastic cap over it & I wrapped a  towel I put in the dryer ( to make a walkable hooded dryer. Lol)
4. Rinse & put in cantu leave in conditioner.
5. I blew dry each section of my hair (for length) using a heat protectant called
6. Used the baby butter cream & created a bantu knot. Size of bantu knot determines the wave or curl. For this style I only did 10-12 on my head. I was in a rush & have a lot of hair
7. Normally I sit under the dryer for about 30-45 mins but this time I kept the knots in for like 2hrs...
8. End result...wavy Tracee Ellis Ross ( my idol & not just for  hair reasons)


One more thing...tomorrow is Joan Jania's birthday.  Join me in wishing her a VERY HAPPY BIRTHDAY!!!!!!!  Jania, you bring so much happiness to others, you deserve nothing but happiness out of life...so here's to you getting just that! ;-)

Ms. K

NATURAL HAIR INSPIRATION: Krystal

Previously I did a post on the women who's natural locs are my inspiration for being a proud member of TEAM NATURAL.  In that post all of the women are celebrities, but there are a number of women who are not celebrities who have swoon-worthy hair.  My cousin (and namesake) Krystal (aka Al) is one of them.  I remember when Al decided to go natural and called me for advice.  Now I think I ask her for more advice than she does of me.  She has gorgeous natual thick locs that she is not afraid to showcase in a myriad of styles.  Her latest coif I instantly fell in love with.  So much so I decided to feature her on the blog.  Check it out.

And of course...because I love you all so much...I had her give me step by step instructions on how to achieve this fab look -

Instructions:

1. Blow dry hair out
2. This part is optional but you can make a part around the crown of your head about .5 inch and put the rest of your hair into a ponytail high on the side of your head
3. Use a flat iron to straighten the hair that was left out - so you can have straight edges
4. Join the straightened hair with the the rest using a seperate hair band
5. Take your hair in sections and finger role each section to the shape/size you want
6. Pin where necessary :)


Ms. K

A Little Nudge

For those of you who know me...you know that I have "gone natural" about 3 times in my adult life (including now).  Let the record show - THIS WILL BE THE LAST TIME, as I fully intend to stay natural this time.  Anyway being the expert that I am at this point on natural hair (I actually have learned quite a bit) in general, and my natural hair in particular, I know when my hair needs a little nudge in the growth department. 

Now, in general my hair grows back pretty fast (as you can see from the pics below), but it gets to a certain point where I needs to help it along a little.  Well, i'm at that point.  What I usually do is get my hair braided.  Since I no longer have the patience for that, I a sew in weave is the next best thing.  Don't get me wrong, I love a sew-in weave so I am in no way implying that its second fiddle.

So what did I do...I called my personal weavologist...the fabulous Shanee Greene and as always...she hooked me up.

For those of you unfamiliar with the process...it goes a little something like this...

Shampoo and Condition your hair as usual.

Side Note (SN): Can you believe how much my hair has grown???

Then blow dry your hair until it is completely dry throughout (getting it straight at this point isn't imperative).  PS-Yes, that's Shanee in the background, lol!

All dry! (She kept trying to give me a mohawk).

Then braid your hair in a circular pattern from back to front (if you have short hair, add some synthetic hair in the braiding process to make sure the braid is safe and secure and will not unravel).  Leave enough hair at the front to cover the tracks of the hair.

Aerial view of my hair post-braiding, pre-weaving.

Now begins the fun...take a curved weaving needle and begin sewing the tracks/wefts of hair to the braids.  Note: Be sure not to cut the hair into pieces, it interrupts the flow.

Half-way point!

Home stretch!!!!

Finishing touch.

Final (FABULOUS) Product!

Back view.

Side view.

End result - a low maintenance hair do that allows my natural hair to grow just a tad bit faster. ;-)


Ms. K