Throwback Thursday to my very limp looking ponytail!

Loll! I don't know what it was I was looking for when I stumbled upon this picture from 2011 when I was trying desperately to salvage my relaxed hair. Looking at it and then at what my hair is like now, I can't help but be amazed and thankful that I chose this journey.

Fabulous Natural Hair Styles for our Brides, Graduants and Proud Mums!

It's been graduation and prom season and of course our brides too haven't been left out of the fun! I didn't realize how big a deal graduation had become oh! Even for primary school kids! Loll. It's all good though. We've been having a lot of fun styling so many young ladies for their graduation and prom ceremonies and here's a little snippet of what we've been up to:

One of our June brides, Bukky. She didn't want a sleeked back look with her tiara. That was something she was adamant about. After playing with a few looks, we settled for this low bun in the back and side sweep. 

Graduating in style with a vixen crochet instal - This lovely young lady who's been a customer with us for a while now, wanted a vixen crochet she could style in different ways. Using our beloved Afri Naptural definition braid, we were able to give her a seamless 4 way vixen crochet install which she's styled in different ways! The versatility is absolutely fab!

Silicones, Sulfates and Choosing the right Products for your hair.

As a stylist and salon owner I get to talk and interact with a lot of naturalistas about their hair journey, hair products and hair health. The one thing I have noticed time and time again is that a lot of people are fixated on 'Sulfate Free Shampoos'. They go natural, read up that sulfates are bad for your hair and then invest in sulfate free shampoos - which in and of itself is a great thing.

HOWEVER they begin to suffer from bad breakage, hair starts to thin and even though they seem to be doing the right things and using the 'right' products, their hair is not co operating! Most times when I hear this complaint, the first thing I ask is the name of the deep/leave in conditioner they are using and when you look at the ingredients you notice they have silicones and mineral oil high up on the list.

The thing is while sulfate free shampoos are great for natural hair as they are non stripping, a lot of silicones and other ingredients are non water soluble and can only be removed from your hair using a sulfate shampoo. The continued layering of these products on your hair without washing them out properly will cause build up on  your strands, no moisture will penetrate through and you begin to experience breakage as the hair becomes brittle from lack of penetrative moisture. This is why you will notice most brands that produce 'sets' will have sulfates in their shampoos where they have silicone rich conditioners.

Before we go any further, lets discuss what Silicones are, what they do for the hair and the type of silicones we have.

Caring For Your Hair While In Crochet Braids.

Curly crochet braids - had just washed and conditioned my hair underneath.

It's no news that crochet braids have come to stay!!! Whether short, long, kinky, straight, twisted, braided; the possibilities seem endless and have given us ladies an amazing alternative to regular braids and weaves.

Now one of the great things about crochet is the fact that you get to wear some gorgeous styles that keep for longer than regular braids. Why you may ask? Well for instance as a naturalista, if I got my hair braided with regular extensions, by the 4th day, my kinks will start showing through the texture of the extensions, and by the end of week 1, what once looked nice and fresh will be looking like a hot mess.

With crochet braids, because the hair is first woven down and then the extensions crocheted on top, the hair is well hidden underneath and doesn't start to come through - meaning you can wear the hair for longer.

An example of what the hair looks like underneath the crochet style