Itchy Scalp?

For hair to grow, we need a healthy foundation, that being the scalp. Having an itchy scalp is not only annoying(trust me I know) but it causes damage as well. I don't usually suffer from itchy scalp, but for those who do, here are a few tips that I researched that may or I hope will help.

First thing first is to look at your diet. What we eat not only affects our overall health, but our skin(scalp). Cut back on sugary foods, fried food and drink plenty of water. Focus on eating more fruit and veggies and even adding yogurt to your snack list.

Here are a few other remedies I researched on-line

1) Tea Tree Oil or Eucalyptus oil - Add some tea tree or Eucalyptus oil to either your shampoo, conditioner or even mix with your favorite oil to apply to your scalp. Only add about 4-5 drops though. Or you can purchase Tea Tree Shampoo like from Paul Mitchel or Hair-One(Sulfate free)You can find Tea Tree Oil in any Vitamin Shop or in the vitamin section of your local pharmacy.

2) Apple Cidar Vinegar Rinse- This not only helps with the porosity of the hair, but I read that it also helps sooth the scalp from the horrible itchies. Add 2 teaspoons of apple cidar vinegar to 2 cups of water and as your final rinse, pour on/through your scalp then slightly rinse off. I do this probably about once or every other week which may be why my scalp rarely itches

3) Sulfur 8- The Main purpose of Sulfur 8 is to help with dandruff. I have used this and it helped with that. But it also helps with itchy scalp.One of the reasons why Sulfur is so great for hair growth is because it has some sort of antimicrobial feature and in order for hair to grow, we need a clean scalp. Only caution- Stop use one week before and after a relaxer.

4) Dandruff Shampoos- such as Head and Shoulders and Neutrogena T Gel

Last but not least- VISIT your Dermatologist. If nothing you do seems to work...you have to see a doctor to help solve this extremely annoying issue.

Lil Kim Opens a Salon

Lil Kim just recently opened a hair salon...but what caught my eye where the prices..

On Saturday, Lil Kim, her cousin Katrise Jones and Meagan Good gathered in Charlotte for the grand opening of new Salon Se Swa By Queen Bee. The Salon is owned by Lil Kim and her cousin Katrise and they plan to open one in Atlanta soon. The prices are suppose to be affordable with $10 wash and sets, $10 haircuts, & $35 and up perms

Now that's what I'm talking about! Hopefully their performance is as great as the prices!

Go ahead Lil Kim!

pics from Kidunot.com verbiage from necolebitchie

The Wonderful Benefits of Aloe Vera for Hair

I have been using Aloe Vera Gel for a number of purposes:

Hair Gel
To Shave- Sometimes
Soothing of Relaxer Burn
In my Mix for Braid Spray/as a Moisturizer
As a facial moisturizer in the winter when my skin gets really dry

just to name a few





But never did I think to use Aloe Vera Gel or the Juice as a leave-in...
And boy oh boy was I missing out. Remember how I said I was dealing with extreme tangles and knots..well I tried 2 things to help fix that issue

1. Wash my hair in Sections/Braids
2. Used an Aloe Vera Gel Mix as a leave-in which included:

• Distilled Water
• Aloe Vera Gel
• Castor Oil

My hair has never felt so soft!
I went out and purchased a gallon of Aloe Vera Juice from Walmart...called Fruit of the Earth and I will be using the Juice instead of the Gel in my mixes for now on. Not only will I use it for my leave-in's but I will use it to restore moisture in my hair at night(on non wash days).

2 More things about Aloe Vera Juice which have me excited to use it

• Many reviews of how it slowed down shedding drastically
• Restores the PH level back in relaxed hair

 To read more about the benefits of Aloe Vera see below

Couldn't Hang

Brief Update: So, I ran a 5K yesterday and before I even ran it, I knew my braids would look a hot mess when the race was complete. So, on Saturday I took them out. Thank goodness I did, because it was so hot out yesterday and I was sweating like a pig when the race was over. haha.

When I got home:

• I prepooed in Sections(put my hair in 6 braids and saturated them with conditioner mixed with Hemp Seed Oil) for 1 hour
• After rinsing them out, I shampooed....still in sections.
• Then DC'd in sections with ORS Hair Mayo for 2 hours with a shower cap and a turban towel over it
• Rinsed out and applied my leave-ins and so forth

As you can see doing my hair in sections, is my new thing!

Here's my hair today...just a braid in the front and pulled back in a bun..I'm having a hard time laying down my edges...it's like whatever I use..is not working. Hoping to figure something out tonight.

I think I will be doing cornrows again this weekend...who knows though..if I nipped the tangling and knots issues in the bud then I may not want/need to braid my hair up

Short Hair Styles

No, I'm not planning on cutting my hair anytime soon...but for those who are planning to do so, here are a few cute short hairstyles to choose from. I know a lot of our goals are to grow our hair long, but so many short cuts look so beautiful that I have to share :-D If you look closely..I added myself in there...haha

Eva Marcille

Tell me this woman isn't absolutely gorgeous. Now, this is one new Blonde dye job I do like!

Braids Regimen

Moisturize 2-3 times Daily
Oil Scalp with Castor Oil 3-4 times a week
Clean Scalp with Witch Hazel after each work out
Wrap hair with Satin Scarf/Bonnet Every night

That's about it. I think I'm only keeping these in for 2 weeks, so when I take them out I will detangle, wash, dc...you know the whole deal.

I was too cheap to buy Braid Spray (even though it only cost $4) so my moisturizer will consist of
Distilled Water
Hawaiian Silky 14 n 1
BioInfusion Olive Oil Moisturizer
Aphogee Pro-Vitamin Leave-in
Castor Oil(ran out of coconut oil so I'm using up the Castor before I buy some coconut oil)

That's all Folks :-D

Knots,Tangles and Minor Breakage , Oh My!

Isn't my title Corny..haha! But in all seriousness, I was experiencing some serious knots and tangles in my hair which led to minor(a few hairs here and there) breakage which I did not like at all so I was in serious repair mode last night.






Why the knots and tangles?- As said in previous posts, my hair was underprocessed when relaxed, so now instead of being a 4b(very course, kinky hair) my roots are now like a 4a(less course but still kinky hair). I have about 2 inches of 4a hair and still some 4B hair so it's kind of like I'm still stretching. My newgrowth/underprocessed hair keeps sticking together and my shedded hairs are wrapping around the newgrowth instead of free falling
Side Note-for anyone self-relaxing for the first time, after doing extensive research, always have someone there to assist you.
Another Side Note- I will no longer self-relax, going to my old stylist for now on.

Why the Minor Breakage?- I am having minor breakage because I got lazy with how I airdryed my hair. Instead of drying in several braids or twists, I would dry my hair in one big low braid then tie a scarf over my head causing my newgrowth to matte together even more. Then when I would finger comb my hair the next day,  I would see 5-10 broken hairs, even if my newgrowth and hair was well moisturized.

How I got this issue Under-Control and Tips for those who have the same issues

I deep conditioned with a moisturizing Deep Conditoner on Dry Hair for about 30 minutes without heat then 15 minutes under the dryer- I put the deep conditioner in my hair in sections and lightly finger detangled while doing so

Then I shampooed my hair

Then Conditioned my hair, but left the conditioner on for 5 minutes before washing off

Results where very soft hair!

Next Steps

Sprayed Aphogee Pro-Vitamin Leave-in all through my hair then let my hair airdry for about 15 minutes

While still  a little damp- I applyed Hawaiian Silky 14 n 1 All through-out my hair gently finger combed then sealed with Coconut Oil

When 95% Dry

I sectioned my hair in small-medium sections and applied 2 strand twists all over my head. But applied more moisturizer to my newgrowth to keep it soft. By doing the twists, I stretched out my new-growth which minimized/stopped any tangling and knots

* I did not detangle with a comb or detangler at all, only my fingers because today I will be braiding my hair and I can do that then. If I wasn't braiding my hair, I would detangle using a wide tooth comb and detangler starting from the bottom working my way to the roots. *
This AM
I applied very little moisturizer to my ends and a little more to the roots then untwisted the twists while gently separating my roots with my fingers. My hair was so soft and my roots and hair were not tangled and had no knots! I was soo relieved! But I am happy to give my hair a break in braids!

Hope this helps anyone that has the same issue I did!

Tips when dealing with tangles-
Use a Detangler(I use Mane n Tale, but Silkens Child I heard is a great one too)
Be gentle and patient
Start from the bottom and work your way to the top

Ameriie's Reason for Going Blonde

I first saw that Ameriie went blonde on Hair-i-Am and was somewhat indifferent about it. I thought she looked better with darker hair, but still thought she looked beautiful none-the-less. Then I read on Necole Bitchie, why she decided to go blonde...so here you go..

Via- Rapup.com -I’ve always wanted to go platinum blonde, and I figured I’d finally just do it. One of the things that inspired me are photos I’ve seen of children in the Solomon Islands. They are very brown-skinned, and a lot of them grow white-blonde hair naturally. The contrast in dark skin tone and extremely light hair is really beautiful to me. So I just went for it!

I guess that's a good reason..it's always good to try new things..
I saw comments saying she looked like Beyonce and Kourtney Kardashian...and I can def see the resemblance to Kourtney.

Lloyd Donates Hair to Locks of Love

Remember this beautiful head of hair?

Well, Lloyd decided it was time for a new look and he shaved it all off to donate his hair for a good cause.

Lloyd revealed to his fans today via Twitter that he cut off his luxurious locks that women seem to love so much. He decided to donate his hair to Locks of Love, a non-profit organization that will use his hair to create a hair piece finanicially disadvantaged child who suffers from long-term medical hair loss.


When talking about his haircut here is what Lloyd had to say:
I’ve been growing my hair since 9th grade. It’s time for a new me.
The fact that my hair will go to someone that needs it more than me, makes me feel great about my decision.

Good for you Lloyd!
Source: theybf

I Miss My Hair!

As most of you know, I haven't straightened my hair since April! When I got my touch-up I felt like my hair looked thinner, so I was putting my hair through boot-camp to get it where I want it to be. Meaning no heat and protective styling 95% of the time. I was looking back at my pictures and I realized that length really doesn't matter..I actually like how my hair looks when it's shorter and shoulder length actually fits me well. But I still want APL length hair, just because I have a goal...and I always want to meet my goals no matter what they are!

Anyway's...just taking a look back...I can't wait until I actually straighten my hair and see what kind of results I have ! :-D

May 2009