2nd Attempt at Brush Coils

Today on Halloween I decided to try my brush coils again.  I think the key to making them look well formed is that I need to put less pressure on the brush and have a relaxed hand.  This time around I glided the brush across my hair in a circular motion and moved to the next section of hair once I saw that my hair was curling up.  All these pictures were taken after my hair dried.

This time around I think the coils came out better.  I went to my church's pumpkin party with my two year old son and the hubby.  I got two compliments so in my mind these coils were a success.  Until next time...

Blessings

It's Perfectly Natural Root Food - 1st Usage

I have been following Precious Curls blog for a couple of weeks now and recently she featured a lovely woman named Denise.  Reading her story reminded me of my own reasons for going natural that I decided to check out her new product line.  After reading the reviews of this product on Precious Curls and seeing Denise's before and after pictures of her hair loss and regrowth, I decided to give it a try.  By the way, Precious Curls is having a giveaway of It's Perfectly Natural products.  Check out her post if your interested.

Cost - $12
Recommended to be used for - receding hairlines, balding crowns, dry scalp, dry skin, double strand twists and finger coils.

Root Food claims to - "essentially is nourishment for your hair follicles. For those that suffer from receding hairlines and balding crowns, this is a spot treatment that will help to "wake-up" those dormant hair follicles.  Root Food will give your hair softness, shine and manageability, while promoting growth. This scalp treatment is concentrated and filled with all natural organic herbs that will stimulate your scalp and help your hair to thrive again. This will soften your hair, add shine, help define your curls and of course nourish your scalp."
 

I applied a small amount to my fingers and gently rubbed it into my scalp where my hair had thinned a little this past March from my last relaxer.  My hair doesn't look or feel greasy and I like the scent.  It smells like crushed herbs and I don't mind that at all.  I plan to give this product a one month trial to see if my thinning spot fills in a little.  Below is a picture of the thinned out area in my hair.  This area thinned out in March 2011 after my last relaxer and was ultimately the reason why I decided to go natural. 

My problem area where my hair thinned out after my last relaxer.

If you are interested in trying this product out or any of Denise's other handmade products you can find her shop at It's Perfectly Natural.

It's Perfectly Natural  Root Food Ingredients- Castor Oil, Coconut Oil, Olive Oil, Grape seed Oil, Candlelilla Wax , Unrefined Shea Butter, Black Seed Oil, Calamus Root, botanically infused with organic herbs, tea tree oil, peppermint oil, rosemary extract, lavender, vitamin e


Until next time...
Blessings!

Blessed to have my hubby!

This was a long weekend for my family.  My hubby and I both teach so some advantages is that when school is off we have it off together.  On Thursday we went to the teacher conference in St. Paul.  We went to a few sessions and ran into some friends we only really see at events like these.  For lunch he took me to Dixie's on Grand for some awesome wings and creamy crab soup.  It's been very cool up here in Minnesota so soup was perfect.

On Friday we decided to not drop our son off at daycare and have a family day.  We began the day at the vet with Luigi, then the bank for cash, then the post office.  We ended up eating breakfast at Fat Nat's Eggs one of our favorite breakfast diners.  After breakfast we walked across the parking lot to the Ace hardware to pick up some things we needed around the house.  Then we zipped really quickly to this cool hardware store to try to get a new bolt for the front door.  (Remember when the door was "opened" last Friday.  Well the hubby doesn't want that to happen again.)  Then home to install the new bolt on the door, drop off the dog, and change our son. 

Next came some shopping at JCPenny because I had a coupon for 15% off and my hubby has lost so much weight that he needed some new jeans.  He's down to a 34 inch waist!  He weighs the same that he did in college!  After shopping it was home for a nap for the baby.  The hubby then ran to the auto parts store, got a new muffler for my car, and had it installed before the baby got up from his nap!  After dinner the hubby and baby swapped out the spark plugs on the truck and took a bath together before bedtime.

I am so blessed to have a wonderful hardworking man in my life!  We have a saying in our house that my hubby gets more done on accident in the morning than most people try to do in a day. 

I am blessed to have a man who wants to spend time with me and our son.
I am blessed to be loved by a hardworking, thoughtful, caring, God fearing man.
I am blessed to have a man who considers it a honor and duty to be an active member of our family.
I am blessed that I listened to God when he told me to wait for the right man to come into my life.

If God has blessed you with a wonderful man in your life drop me a comment about how you are blessed.  Remember that if you are still waiting, there are blessings in the wait.  I waited a long time for mine to come into my life and it was worth the wait!  Until next time...

Blessings!

First attempt at brush coils

I was browsing YouTube and came across a couple of videos by 4nappiness4eve and part 2 and Toliahi about a technique on how to do finger coils with a brush.  So, yesterday I bought a bristle brush and gave it a try this morning.  I used my Aussie Moist as my leave in conditioner as usual and then some Aloe Vera gel.  Below are some pictures of my first attempt.  Not the best, but I didn't mind going out in public with this look.  I think I just need to practice some more with the brush to get it right. 

Hair is wet.

Hair is dry.

Hair is dry.

Wet hair and my scalp is showing, oh well.

This technique is very simple.  I used a soft bristle brush, Aloe Vera Gel, and my Aussie Moist conditioner as my leave in.  Fresh from the shower with dripping wet hair I applied my Aussie Moist conditioner then some Aloe Vera Gel.  Then I untangled my hair with my wide tooth comb.  Then with my bristle brush in a circle pattern I brushed my hair making sure I was going in the same direction all over my head.  It is very important that you always go in the same circle direction when you change hands.  After the coils formed I slicked my edges with more Aloe Vera Gel and added a head band.  This is the first style I have had the shrinkage worked for me.  As my hair dried the coils got tighter and less of my scalp showed.  

Products I used to make my brush coils.

I think I will practice this technique again and see if I can get my coils better defined.  If I can make this technique work for me I will wear the coil look more often because it only took about 10 minutes.  If I get better results next time I will post a part 2 to brush coils.  BTW the awesome hubby helped with some of the pictures.  His pictures aren't blurry, much better than mine.

Blessings!

I like my curl pattern!

Fresh from the shower with no product in my hair.

This morning when I got out of the shower I glanced at my hair in the mirror and noticed my curls.  I was kinda surprised at how pretty they were that I quickly grabbed the camera and snapped this shot.  This is my hair fresh from my co-wash before I added my Aussie Moist conditioner.  I'm totally and completely in love with my curl pattern!  I thought, wow look at those curls!  It's moments like this that I'm so glad I'm natural.
On a different note, I came across a YouTube video of a technique on how to do finger coils with a brush.  Tomorrow I'm going to buy a bristle brush and try this technique out on my hair.  I have always wanted to do finger coils, but either miserably failed to keep them together or didn't have the patience to do my whole head.  If this technique works for me, I will share the results in a post.  Until then...

Blessings!

So, another length check

Little over 4 inches.

So, I wasn't satisfied with my last length check on October 8, 2011 that I decided to do another quick length check today.  I think this hair came from the crown of my head where I'm starting to believe my hair is longer.  The front of my hair measures a little over 3.5 inches while this hair is a little over 4 inches.  Right now for me a half inch is a big differences because my TWA isn't quite so weeny any more.  I think I'm getting into the teeny phase of my fro.

Rough day, but still blessed!

Today was a really difficult day at work.  First thing this morning until I left was nothing but run run run.  The demands of my job were almost impossible to complete today.  Then to top it all off I came home to find my front door open.  So, after calling my husband and checking the house the one bright side is that nothing appears to be stolen.  Our alarm went off and my hubby ignored the 1-800 number from the alarm service on his cell phone, so the police came out to check the house.  We were very blessed that whatever "opened" the front door wasn't there and that nothing was missing, but still very scary.

So, with the stress of my job and the "surprise" at home I decided that California Pizza was what was for dinner.  A BLT pizza on whole wheat crust with chicken lettuce wraps hit the spot.  I was able to laugh with my hubby who wore a kilt to school today for Renaissance day and steal kisses from my toddler son with pizza sauce all over his face.

I have decided that today was a blessed day.
Today I was blessed by my loving husband.
Today I was blessed by my beautiful son.
Today I was blessed to be respected at work.
Today I was blessed to find my home unmolested.
Today I was blessed to have the sense to know how blessed I am.

So, if you are reading this and realized how blessed you are please leave me a comment and remember that you are always blessed in whatever situation your life is currently experiencing.  As always, until next time...

Blessings!

Buyer Beware!

If you have been following my blog you might have noticed that I tend to not wear a lot makeup.  This is partially due to the fact that I tend to take my pictures in the evening usually after I have removed my makeup I then think "I should take a quick picture".  But last week I experienced a horrible reaction to a L'Oreal product.

I like to look at blogs and sometimes I see reviews on products that appear to be widely successful for other people so that prompted me to go out and buy L'Oreal Paris Studio Secrets Professional Magic Perfecting Base.  I read the directions and gingerly applied some of this cream to my face then applied my makeup like usual.

Within a hour or two I noticed that my face was tingling and by that evening when I removed my makeup my face was a little red.  I followed my usual routine and go to bed like normal thinking nothing about it.  The next morning I followed my routine and included the Magic Perfecting Base under my makeup and head off to work.  Like the day before I noticed that my face is tingling again but nothing I'm not use to.  You see my skin tends to be sensitive, but sometimes I just need an adjustment period and then everything gets back to normal.  I was so wrong this time.

Well that day at work I had several students and staff ask me if I was alright.  It wasn't until my bathroom break at lunch that I noticed that my face was red.  I mean really red!  My pores were so large I swear I could park a car in them!  I did what I felt was the best thing to do.  I washed my face.  Yep, right there in the girls bathroom at my school, I washed my face with hand soap and dried my face with brown paper towels.  Not ideal, but what were my other options.

I became an event in the 2nd floor girls bathroom and two other students offered to help me.  You see working in a high school means that the female students carry all their makeup with them including makeup remover.  I gladly accepted the offers my way and was able to remove all my makeup and get my face cleaned.

I wore no makeup of the rest of the week and returned my jar of Magic Perfecting Base to Target.  All I had to do was lean over the counter and the clerk made an exception to the no return policy on cosmetics.  Below are some pictures of my face on the second day of letting my face recover.  I'm sorry that I didn't think to take any pictures that first day, but I was trying not to freakout too much in front of the baby and hubby.

If you look closely you can see how large my pores are.

Not the best picture, but you can still see the redness.

I learned my lesson.  New product + Tingling = Bad Reaction  I will stick with my old routine and gladly love and use without fail my Aveeno and Oil Olay facial products.
Blessings!

Two Month Anniversary of Big Chop!

Well today is my 2 month anniversary of my Big Chop and my hair measured at 3.5 inches.  My hair was less than 2 inches the day after my big chop back in August and now I have grown over 1.5 inches in just two months.  Not bad for growth.  My hair feels soft and healthy.  First time in my memory.  Below are some pictures I took today in the bathroom mirror.  Sorry, no makeup so only love my way if you comment.

I ran out of my V05 conditioner and tried Herbal Essences Hello Hydration conditioner today and I liked how soft my hair felt this morning.  Hello Hydration I think is going to become my new co-wash.
Blessings!

October 8, 2011 two months post big chop.

Side view length check Oct.8, 2011.

Side view Oct.8, 2011.

Front view length check Oct.8, 2011.

Why I'm blessed!

I'm tried.  My son has gotten me and the hubby up several times this week.  He usually wants simple things like a drink of water, but lately he has been having nightmares.  Monday night my hubby put him in bed with us to help settle him down and he finally went to sleep.  But that darn alarm still goes off at 5:45am and I still have to get up and go to work.

Besides the sleepless nights my hubby and I are both taking classes and helping out the boys group at church.  So, this means that we have very little time for ourselves in the evening once our son goes down for bed.

Our carpets were professionally cleaned this past Tuesday and promptly on Wednesday our big dog (Luigi) threw up all over the carpet.  It wouldn't have been so bad if he could have just thrown up once, but the mess implied that he threw up multiple times.  I think at one point he was trying to get outside because a large mess was in front of the back door.  Yuck!

My big dog Luigi.

So, since I am very sleep deprived and whinny I thought that I would share why I am so blessed to kick me out of this mood.

I am blessed because I have a job I love in this poor economy.
I am blessed because I have a home to live in.
I am blessed because I have a beautiful healthy son!
I am blessed because I am loved by an incredible wonderful man!
I am blessed because I have loving friends and family in my life.
I am blessed because my youngest brother is no longer in Iraq!
I am blessed because the car is working this week.
I am blessed because I have my faith and the grace of God!
I am blessed!

Reminding myself that I am always blessed even when my life is crazy, and messy, and sleep deprived keeps me focused.  I need to also remember that sometimes my blessings come from the most messed up situations and that I need to pay attention to what I am suppose to learn.  Until next time...

Blessings!

Quick Length Check

October 4, 2011 3.5 inches.

I just couldn't help myself.  I was combing my hair this morning and a few strands were in my comb.  So, I taped one to a sheet of paper, laid a ruler down, and took a quick picture.  Sorry that the quality is not very good, but you can see that this strand is about 3.5 inches long.  My two month anniversary of my BC is later this week and I think my growth is coming along well.  On August 9, 2011 the day after my BC I measured my hair and it was just under 2 inches.

I got two compliments about how my hair looked longer and thicker today.  I have realized that some of my hairs are thin while others are much thicker.  I also have noticed that I have multiple types of  curls in my hair ranging from wavy, to spirally coils, to zig-zag z shaped curls.  I plan to take some pictures and remeasure my length on my 2 month anniversary October 8, 2011.  Until then...
Blessings!