Hair Crush: Keshia Knight Pulliam

I have always loved Keshia Pulliam's hair! From a child star to the gorgeous woman she has grown into, she has always had hair I admire.  

Three Months Post Length Check

I am now 3 months post relaxer and I soooo ready to get my PhytoRelaxer next week. Not because my roots are hard to manage but because I am excited to see the new length!

My new growth has been very manageable this go round as I am consistent with my regimen. I CANNOT believe I am close to bra strap length already!!! Did not expect to get close until May/June. So reaching my June 30th 2011 goal of BSL is pretty much in the bag...YES!!! :)  I had no idea I was getting so close and retaining so much length until I did a mini length check last night. Posted are pics of my luscious new growth and latest LC. 

New Growth 3 months Post Relaxer

What is Cupuacu Butter?

Cupuacu Butter (pronounced Coo-poo-wa-soo) - Comes from a fruit tree of the chocolate family, native to the northern Amazon. Cupuacu improves the appearance prematurely aging and thinning skin while being a superior moisturizer with great water absorption. It offers high levels of essential fatty acids, which with its rich phytosterols, help the appearance of your skin’s elasticity and overall appearance of your skin. Cupuacu's incredible creaminess promotes a special softness and smoothness to your skin to boosts natural moisture and help your skin appear more elastic.

Cupuacu promotes smoothness and softness to the hair increasing the natural moisture and elasticity. The butter has proven to be beneficial for brittle, dry hair due to it's long lasting hydration properties to replenish moisture while promoting a healthy shine. Cupuacu is considered hydrophpllic (water loving) with a high capacity to retain water and prevent moisture loss.

Hair Crush - Melonie Fiona

This Canadian born to Guyanese immigrants sports a seriously gorgeous mane thats all her own. This is dream hair for me!

Alba Botanica: Rainforest Cupuacu Conditioner

I normally love my Suave Almond and Shea conditioner to co-wash, but today I tried something different. Alba has a new series of hair products which feature rainforest ingredients. I LOVE products that have Cupuacu butter in them, so I could not resist picking up the Alba Deep Hydrating Conditioner with Cupuacu.  This ingredient list is so amazing, I will also use as a deep conditioner alternate. After I co-washed my hair was soft and detangling was a cinch! I followed up with Carol's Daughter Lisa's Hair Elixer and then aired dried. Hair and scalp is smiling right now : ) I really liked this Alba conditioner because I can use in all three phases of care...co-wash, DC or even a leave in. The price is right..$9.99 at my local Ulta store. I think I will post a read on the amazing conditioning properties of Cupuacu Butter as I know many of you are like what is that lol. Read on to learn more about this product, it may be a great addition to your product list.

Alba Botanica Rainforest Deep Hydration Conditioner Cupuacu 8 oz. (227 g)

Alba Botanica Rainforest Deep Hydration Conditioner Cupuacu nourishes dry or damaged hair. Creamy Cupuaçu butter, one of the Rainforest's most effective moisturizers, is a rich emollient that delivers deep hydration and helps restore softness and moisture balance and is combined with Jojoba Oil and Cocoa Butter to leave hair smooth and soft. Deep Hydration Cupuacu Conditioner gently moisturizes and restores dry or damaged hair and is perfect for dry, damaged or treated hair.

Hair CareNatural Renewal, Natural Protection Created to help renew, repair and revitalize hair with moisturizing, emollient-rich oils derived from some of the world's most beneficial fruits and nuts.

Ingredients

Aqua (Water), Aloe Barbadensis Leaf Juice, Glycerin, Cetearyl Alcohol, Dicetyldimonium Chloride, Stearamidopropyl Dimethylamine, Helianthus Annuus (Sunflower) Seed Oil, Simmondsia Chinensis (Jojoba) Seed Oil, Theobroma Grandiflorum (Cupuaçu) Seed Butter, Theobroma Cacao (Cocoa) Seed Butter, Hydrolyzed Brazil Nut Protein, Bertholletia Excelsa (Brazil Nut) Seed Oil, Panthenol (Vit. B5), Amodimethicone, Glyceryl Stearate, Ethylhexylglycerin, Potassium Sorbate, Sodium Benzoate, Fragrance (Parfum).

A Little Motivation

Your imagination connects you to what you want. Your desire and feelings of love create the magnetism, the magnetic power, drawing your desire to you!
 - Rhonda Byrne, Author of The Secret and The power

Today I want you to erase negative thoughts you may have about your hair. Words and phrases like "my hair won't grow", or "unmanageable", "damaged hair"...I want them to be deleted from your vocabulary. Start to feel that you have embarked on an amazing health hair journey and now your hair is amazing, beautiful, and manageable! Today, imagine yourself from this day forth with the hair of your dreams, and keep that picture in your mind. Through positive thoughts and love for your hair, you will achieve positive circumstances and BEAUTIFUL HAIR! I never thought I would live to say a fell that I love my hair....but through this hair journey and seeing the results I can say I LOVE my hair.  If you need living proof visit some of my favorite hair community websites and see countless stories and progress pics of sistas everywhere Growing IT! These online communities have been very instrumental in my HHJ.

http://www.k-i-s-s.biz

www.hairlista.com

Top 10 Tips for Growing IT!

Starting your healthy hair journey requires changing those old habits that has caused you to neutralize your hair growth. These are my TOP TEN tips on retaining as much length as possible. We WILL reach our healthy hair and length goals if we are consistant with our regimens and grow our knowledge on hair health.

#1. Keep moisture on your hair. This means co-washing as needed to renew hair's moisture on a regular basis. Apply a leave in conditioner or sprtiz hair with water, then seal with an oil daily to lock in moisture in between washes and co-washes.  Making sure hair has sufficient moisture is the most important step in retaining your length.

#2. Deep Condition often. Once a week is a good starting point. This will keep your hair moisturized and will give it great nourishment.

#3. Keep ends trimmed. Split ends become bigger problems once they travel up the hair shaft; damage will only get worse. When hair breaks it does not break 100% even, so a split is likely to develop on those strands. Doing a light dusting (trimming 1/8 to 1/4 of an inch or trimming visible splits strand by strand) every few weeks on your ends allows YOU to control what you take off the ends.

#4. Make sure your hair has sufficient protein.  Finding the right moisture/protein balance will give you the healthiest hair possible.  Relaxing removes protein from the strands, so it is very important relaxed/ texlaxed heads do a protein treatment periodically to restore the hair's strength.  Missing this step in your hair regimen can be detrimental to your progress. Don't over do it with protein, or you will get stiff, hard hair prone to breaking...always follow up with a deep condition after you finish your protein treatment. Remember balance is key.

#5.  Avoid applying heat to your hair ( especially direct heat i.e., flat iron, curling iron, blow dryers). Heat breaks and then reforms the hydrogen bonds in the inner core of the hair fiber. While the goal of using heat is to alter the inner substance of the hair, the unwanted consequence may be damage to the outer protective cuticle, causing weathering, damage and eventual hair breakage.  If you decide to use heat be sure your hair is clean and conditioned. Always use a heat protectant first! Air dry your hair as much as possible and treat your self to a heated style only on special occasions( at least until you reach your goal length).

#6. Decrease hair manipulation. Excessive combing, brushing and handeling of hair will put more stress on your strands, which can make it more prone to breakage. Style your hair and leave it be for the remainder of the day!

#7.  Get proper nutrition and hydrate for healthier hair.

#8.  Wear a protective style as often as possible. Avoid those that add tension and stress like sew in weaves and very tight pony tails.  You will be so happy you did!

#9.  Educate yourself on what you are putting on your hair. Pull out your trunk of hair products right now. If you see ingredients like sodium laureth sulfate, mineral oils and petroleum, it may be time for you to put more effort info finding products that will foster healthier hair growth.  There are products out there that will cause even further damage to your hair. Take an active approach in avoiding them.

#10. BELIEVE that you will reach your hair goals and everything will fall into place. Put an end to being tired and frustrated with your hair. All hair was made to grow, even black women's hair, contrary to all the ridiculous myths out there.

Apply these tips and you will see a rapid change in hair health...I know I did : )  U grow girl!

Carol's Daughter Macadamia Heat Protection

I am so excited about trying these new finds the next time I flat iron. I was so afraid to put too much oil onto my hair last week in fear it would weigh my hair down. I think these would have helped!

Macadamia nut oil is a growing trend in the beauty market with many new brands offering this hair treat in a variety of products. It is derived from the macadamia tree, a native of Austrailian nuts and has been used in food as well as cosmetics. Its oil rich and is a fabulous protective oil that is highly absorptive.

Deep Conditioning Series: Part One

Deep conditioning is very important for all hair types...if you are relaxed/texlaxed it is critical! Deep conditioning is the ultimate and needed nutrition for hair health.  Each strand of hair has 3 layers. Deep conditioning affects the outer layer which is called the cuticle. The cuticle resembles shingles on a roof. They overlap each other, and should lay down flat. When your hair becomes dry and damaged, these shingles will stand up away from the hair shaft. This is what gives hair the dull, frizzy look. Deep conditioning the proper way and with the right products will help to smooth the cuticle, making the shingles (hair cuticles) lay down again, giving your hair a smoother, shinier, healthier appearance.


Deep conditioning is different from applying a simple rinse out conditioner with only a couple of ingredients.  It is usually done with a thicker heavier conditioner and left on for a period of time with heat.  This restores oils and moisture deep with in the hair shaft that we loose with exposure to natural elements, washing and styling.  If you are missing this step from your hair care regimen, please add it today!  I cannot stress enough the importance of this to anyone who wishes to maintain longer healthier hair.


I have been deep conditioning every week (sometimes twice a week) without fail for the time I have been on my journey.  It keeps breakage to a minimum, my hair is no longer dry frizzy and porous, it is stronger than ever, and much more manageable.  Split ends are few and far in between and my hair has excellent elasticity.  It is also very important to follow up any protein treatments with deep conditioning to counteract the stiffness or dryness and give the hair its elasticity back. There are tons of options out there for you to choose from.  Just make sure you read the labels before purchasing. Find out what your hair needs and what is best for your hair type.  I prefer deep conditioners with a natural and longer list of ingredients. Others may prefer them with fewer ingredients. Check out my second post to this series for a how to for properly deep condition you hair.

Deep Conditioning Series: Part Two

HOW TO PROPERLY DEEP CONDITION YOUR HAIR

What you will need:

Time — About an hour. I usually deep condition in the late evening or weekends when I don’t have to be anywhere anytime soon. Sometimes I will leave it on my hair for hours after the heating process when I want to give my hair some extra pampering. 

A Deep Conditioner — I really believe that you should invest in a high-quality (not necessarily expensive) deep conditioner. There are so many to choose from. Visit www.curlmart.com for a range of great and hard to find DCs. I personally love, love, love Spiral Solution's Deeply Decadent Conditioner, and Shea Moisture's Deep Treatment Mask , which I also love. Drug Store Brands like Suave’s Professional Shea Butter & Almond Conditioner and Suave Professional's Humectant are absolutely awesome in my opinion if you working on a tight budget.

Plastic Cap 

Heating Unit — Hooded Dryer, Hot towel, Heating Pad, Blow Dryer Cap, or a Micro Heat Wrap

How to Deep Condition your hair:

1. If you wish, you can wash your hair first...or like many you can apply to dry hair. I always detangle then braid my hair in 4 sections, before I wash and DC. This minimizes tangles drastically, reduce combing, and I see much less hair in the comb with this method. Saves my precious hair and time!

2. Generously apply your deep conditioner to the hair, and focus on the ends ( this is the oldest and driest part of the hair. Work through with your fingers, or use a wide toothed comb to work through your hair. I would also encourage you to add additional oils to your DC...Extra virgin Coconut Oil, Extra Virgin Olive oil and Jamaican black Castor oil are among my favs. To simplify I have been using Carol's Daughter's Lisa's Hair Elixir to incorporate several different oils in one go. This really enhances the deep conditioning for me.

3. Place the shower cap over hair, and then put the heating device on your head for at least a full 15 minutes ( I personally never go under  30 mins...that's why setting aside time for a DC is critical for me). You need to at minimum allow 15 minutes so the hair cuticle can open fully, and let the conditioner completely permeate and feed your hair. After 15+ minutes or longer, (you could leave the conditioner on at this point, even all night after heating), take off your cap and let your hair cool for at least 5 minutes. This allows your hair shaft to close again.

4. Rinse hair with warm water until about 80% of the conditioner is rinsed out.

5. Do a final rinse with the coldest water you can stand. This is important to seal your hair shaft and get all the benefits of your deep conditioning treatment.

6. Apply a leave-on conditioner (and oil to seal  if you choose) and allow your hair to air dry.

7. Do not wash your hair the next day. Give your hair a break after a deep conditioning for at least 24 hours. 

I suggest deep conditioning at least once weekly. Sunday evenings are the best for me. By doing this, your hair can become healthier, stronger and shinier. It will regain its softness and elasticity. Moisture-robbed hair is more subject to breakage and unmanageability. Remember, deep conditioning regularly is a key step in retaining your length.