So I tried a Dye and my hand @ Crochet :)

Before Dye

After Dye

OK so I dyed my hair last night with Henna and Indigo but I don't think there is much of a change. I do like the fact that it is deep black now since I felt that my hair was dirty looking before but of course we are almost the most critical of ourselves. It was brownish black and now my hair is blue black (or is it just me? lol :P) .... I'm still afraid to dye the tips the reddish or light brown I want but maybe when they are longer and more mature, right now my hair is matting but still very soft. Anyway just wanted to show the difference from then and now. What do you think not much of a differences huh? The flash from my camera also messes with reflection of light so yeah I can't really tell. I'm not to sad about it anyhow I do know that henna provides conditioning properties to the hair and makes it stronger and grow something fierce..... something a regular chemical dye could not do but dye with a fry if your not careful.


YA Dig My Tam Man?!





My first attempt at making a hat for myself. I tried taking a up knitting but I found it a little slow not to mention I'm the impatient sort, crocheting is a little faster. Although I threw my project across the room a few times and left it sitting I finally came back and finished the job. I like it :) Now I'm onto my next project its across the room right now (thrown in frustration) as we speak waiting for me to finish it.

Peace

NAt

Au Natural? I thinks Not!

So in my quest for naturalness and good health I find myself looking for products that will fit my budget and be a benefit to my locs. All I can say is that many companies out there are catching the vibe that more and more people want organic this and that......(wait for it) But..... companies will sacrifice quality for the almighty dollar. Our dollars to be exact and what you might happily think is organic and natural is a far cry from it. Now what I thought would be a generally easy shopping spree turned out to be a woe is me fustration fest of "what exactly do I buy?" I mean how do I get products that are great but wont break the bank? If you want something good your going to have to do research and pay out your ying yang for it. Thats what most companies want us to believe and trick us they do very well by all the fancy advertising to lure us to their products. Personally if I see a glossy add I am very tempted to purchase the product knowing very well I'm probably slathering something akin to car grease on my hair or body. Lately I have decided since I removed the lye from my hair i would do the same for my brain as well, meaning that I would choose to care and read the ingredient list on the back of my products. (I do this for most items I buy now anyway) I mean am I being weired? I dont think so. If you can not fully understand or even pronounce the stuff on the back of the jars or bottles is it really worth buying? Why trick us? Anyway I went home and contemplated what I was going to use on my head, did a little research on the net and decided that I was going to use products that I could easily make myself. Or if I did choose to buy would be almost edible or have little to no toxic ingredients in them. This is what I came up with:

So to list everything from left to right would be

~Dr. Bronners Tea Tree oil Castille shampoo 24oz cost me $18.00 but lasts a long while and is worth the money

~Parachute coconut oil (Heavy and not used to often) used for deep condition pre shampoo $2.99

~Organic Root Stimulator Lock and Twist gel & Royal Roots by Tahlia Wahjid (I payed 6.99 for each to me that is cheap considering I live in Canada and people always have to be so extra and charge more for gel of all things)

~Bottle 1 (white cap) is just plain water you can add any essential oil you like this I use for freshning up my locs throughout the day.

~ Bottle 2 (full white) is Sweet Almond oil which like Jojoba is close to mimicking natural sebum in our hair. Cost me $4.99 at Shoppers I use this after a wash my hair I use it liberally depending on how dry my hair gets.

~Bottle 3 (purple cap) Is water and rosemary which I boiled myself the seeds cost me $1.69 they help with itching dry scalp and dandruff

I also use Apple Cider Vinegar (not shown) if I do a coconut condition pre shampoo this was $16 I think bought it awhile back lasted a long time

Simple regimen:

Wash 1x or 2x a week depending if I worked out
spray a bit of almond oil in hair after towel dry and massage
Spritz hair throughout day if a little pick me up needed
Do rinse out in shower throughout week if needed
twist or interlock hair every 4~6 weeks (got to let those roots do them thangs)

At night I usually wear a satin bonnet but lately I cannot locate it for the life of me. At this point my hair is pretty soft so I dont suffer to much from lint. Will probably have to become more diligent as they mature however.

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So technically everthing here did not break the bank. I was on Youtube the other day and I was listening to a lady rant on about how natural products are soooo exspensive and how during the recession with a family full of knatty heads was killing her pockets..... she wasnt lying bout that but personally I think she just wanted to bitch ya'll and youtube is paying her bills the more subcribers she has apparently she gets paid . She could just make her own no sweat ok so maybe people like to spend money cant be mad. All I'm saying is that your hair care regimen doesn't have to be difficult. Keep it light save your money and be happy in these tough times. Doing research will save you and your hair from less then stellar product.

Check this book by Julie Gabriel called "The Green Beauty Guide" a very good read for those of you wanting to switch to more greener ( the real green) products you can make at home or buy from green companies who dont fake the funk. Meaning they use real product that have benefits not some fake ass product that uses maybe less then a teaspoon of shea butter in each bottle and calls it organic. She tells it like it is and helps you make better decisions when purchasing products for your health or making them at home yourself. I hope you enjoy I certainly did.

Anyway peace out yall take care of them lovlies and be good to yourselves

Nat

Just Leave it Be!!!!

So I am very sorry to hear that our pop legend has passed onto the next realm all I can say is at least he in pain no longer. It's a shame all the suffering MJ went through and the only thing he owed us was the music nothing else. I dont know why people have to be so extra sometimes and be up in people's personal business when you weren't invited in the first place. I just pray for his children and hope that they come out in a loving, caring environment as they get older.

Now on to other business. Hair updates and boy has it ever been a month..... all that loppin and choppin and twisiting and fighting with my locs. I finally said "ok hair you win! I'm going to leave you alone. My hair is so free spirited it fought me all the way everyday I guess thats why they call it the teen stages. How do I know were at this stage? because my hair has started those little ballies at the end of the locs and it does whatever the hell it wants lol. Well I cant be mad at it one thing I do try to do is tame the frizzies by adding a little knotty boy wax , but when the jar is done that will be that. It's good to start your hair with because the stuff can wash out reall easy with hot water and shampoo but once the locking gets in there good there is no point putting stuff in there where you cant get it out later am I right? Say no to residue!!!! Anyway I went to a local indian shop today and purchased some brahmi amla oil and some coconut oil to moisterise my hair befor a good shampoo. I dont recommend anyone with newbie locs using this untill you have some serious mattage going though or you constantly get unravelling. Ive noticed that my hair has been a little dry and is in need of some help in the growth department so to help it along my purchases are supposed to help with growth and thickness along with finger stimulation hope that it works well and who doesnt like a scalp massage? I'll get my man to rub the oil in for me I deserve good treatment dont I? lol

Ive also decided to leave my hair be, meaning no twisting, no interlocking no nothing. I noticed that after interlocking some locs my roots were geting real thin and after the last accidental surgery I performed on one of my locs I think leaving it alone has been the best course of action I taken in a long while. Now I can't say I love that ol rasta farian laisser faire look but what can I say I need to thicken up my roots for progress to take place and personally it doesnt look all that bad. I'll be heading back to work soon so I'm going to have to get some major accessorizing going on can't be trepsing into work looking like a mad cave woman. I know it wont fly especially if I'm working on people's mouths and all they can see is my mess of hair but on the flip side it will keep them from thinking about the needles my dentist and I give them. Trust me I'm not evil people are just to afraid for whats good for them getting work done in your mouth aint all that bad. Anyhoo on to other lovely things here are my photos for today my hair is coming along well personally I think they could do better but what you going to do. Your hair is art and creates in ways in which you cannot I can only follow along and go with the flow. So heres to my fellow lockers, the journey and to the art we call our hair.

P.S I look a little crazy in some of the pics I was having to much fun with camera lol

cheers

NAt