Lade July 18, 2015

HOW TO BUY HAIR PRODUCTS: Shampoos

Hello ladies

I am so excited to kick of this new series of posts about buying hair products.

Whenever I am buying products, I always come across ladies at the stores looking very confused.
Many ladies, especially those who are not a hair journey, tend to focus on what the products claim to do as written on the front of the product bottles or on the descriptions at the back. Trying to decide what products to buy based on what the product claims to do is what leaves most ladies perplexed, in my opinion.
For example, before my hair journey began, if my hair was breaking I would simply head to the product store and look for “something” that claimed to stop breakage. If you are familiar with hair products you will have noticed that almost all products claim to fight breakage, make your hair soft and bouncy, etc. So how do you know which ones can actually do what it claims?

To become a savvy hair product shopper there two things you need do:

Know what products you need.
Buy what you NEED for hair care (not what you have seen around and are interested in, not some miracle hair growth product). Be aware of the function of the product you are buying.
Focus on product ingredients not product claims.
It’s all about being familiar with some of the ingredients which are good or bad for our hair.
You don’t have to become an ingredient guru. With this series, I intend to give straight to the point and practical tips to make buying hair products a lot easier. First up is shampoo.

What Do You Need: Shampoo

You need two types of shampoo on a hair journey:
1) – A sulfate free shampoo: this is a gentle cleanser which can to be used for regular cleansing (weekly, every 10 days or every two weeks)
2) – A clarifying shampoo: this is a harsh cleanser which is used to remove stubborn dirt. It should be used occasionally (once a month or every 6 to 8 weeks)

How To Buy

A Sulfate Free Shampoo

Products are usually grouped together by brands, eg, Crème of Nature products (the brands shampoos through to its styling products) will usually be grouped together.
Start by looking at the shampoos of the brands you are familiar with. Look at the front of the bottle and check to see if sulfate free written at the front. Do not be distracted by statements like gentle cleansing or moisturising shampoo.
If the front does not have sulfate free written on it, read through the ingredient list at the back. It SHOULD NOT CONTAIN any of the following ingredients
-sodium lauryl sulfate
-sodium laureth sulfate
-ammonium lauryl sulfate
-ammonium laureth sulfateShampoos that contain these ingredient are NOT sulfate free.
If the brand you are looking at has shampoos which contain sulfates, look through the shampoo products of another brand. You could also ask the store assistant for help but do let them pressure you into buying a sulfate shampoo if they do not have a sulfate free one.

A clarifying Shampoo

Start with shampoos of brands you are familiar with. Look at the front of the bottle, is clarifying shampoo written at the front?
If the front does not have clarifying shampoo written on it, read through the ingredient list at the back. It SHOULD CONTAIN any of the following ingredients
-sodium lauryl sulfate
-sodium laureth sulfate
-ammonium lauryl sulfate
-ammonium laureth sulfate
Shampoo that contains sulfate are strong enough to clarify and are usually very easy to find because most shampoos contain sulfates.

My Personal Favourite Shampoos

Sulfate Free
My go to sulfate free shampoo is Creme of Nature Argan oil Moisture and shine shampoo. I absolutely love this shampoo and so do my sister and my mum who has natural hair. I believe that if shampoos were made in heaven, this would be it.

Clarifying Shampoo
My clarifying shampoo is Organic Root Stimulator Creamy Aloe Shampoo.

Additional Tips for Buying Hair Products in Nigeria

1) Don’t wait
Do not wait until your staple products (the ones you use regularly which works well with your hair) runs out before restocking. If your product has finished and then you try to get more there is a high chance (in Nigeria) that the stores you buy from may all be out of stock of the product at that particular time. You would be forced to buy something else which may not work well with your hair. So it’s wise to plan ahead and restock in due time.

2) Double stock or buy big
If you have a product that is a staple that you KNOW your hair loves, if buy two or buy a big bottle/jar if you can afford to.
Even if the stores have loads of it in stock at that particular time , don’t take it for granted, by the time your product runs out they may all be out of stock. So if you buy big or double stock you should be covered for a few months. This is especially helpful with deep conditioners. Most ladies on a hair journey will use up their deep conditioners at a much faster rate than their shampoos so make sure you are well stocked on your fav deep conditioners.
I hope you have found this post useful. I realise that this series will probably benefit newbies me than hair journey veterans however I do hope that every reader gets something it.

What do you struggle with the most when trying to buy hair products?

x

Lade

Learn | Change | Grow

Lade July 12, 2015

COMBING AS A TEST FOR HEALTHY HAIR?

As much as I loved the result of my first and only roller set on my hair journey, my hair doesn’t like combs so I won’t be making a habit of this style.

I used to believe that being able to “glide” a comb through your hair with minimal breakage was a sign of healthy hair.

WHAT I USED TO BELIEVE & WHY

I thought that if hair had been thoroughly finger detangled and an appropriate sized comb was being used, the comb should simply slide through the hair without difficulty. I think I formed this opinion because over the years I have seen many YouTube healthy hair gurus (both natural and relaxed) comb or brush through their hair with ease.

Through my own hair journey, the only way I can comb my hair is if I do it in small sections after detangling.
Even after finger detangling, I cannot slide the comb through the length of my hair, I have to comb gently in small strokes. If I attempt to comb my hair any other way it leads to breakage. Although I consider my hair to be healthy, I always felt that if my hair was healthier (i.e not texlaxed or relaxed) that perhaps I would be able to slide a denman brush through it after finger detangling.

WHAT I NOW REALISE

However at the recent Naija Hair Can Grow Event, one of the speakers, who had really gorgeous, well cared for and healthy natural hair, noted that she hadn’t used a comb in years. She explained that she experienced a lot of breakage whenever she tried to comb her hair so stopped using them altogether. This made me realise that some of us have hair that just isn’t compatible with combing and that I was wrong to think my issues with combing meant my hair had some sort of defect.

On the flip side, I have also come across ladies who experience matting and tangling when they finger detangle and have to comb their hair every other day to prevent matting.
The moral of this blog post is that when it comes to combing or finger detangling, neither should be seen as a test of healthy hair (especially if you follow a healthy hair regimen and take care of your hair).
When I comb in sections on wash days, I don’t lose much hair so I am happy to carry on combing my hair once a week.

What works for your hair, combing, finger detangling or a combination of both? Have you learnt something new about your hair recently?

Over the years I have learnt to style my hair without combing. The styles above were created on hair that had not been combed for days.

My next blog post will be a new series called How To Buy Hair Products.
I decided to start this series because whenever I am buying hair products, either in Lagos or London I always notice one thing……….a confused lady staring at all the products and not knowing what exactly to buy.
I usually try to help and thought it would be great if I could do the same on Hairducation. The blog posts will be short and straight to the point to avoid confusion, they will set out what types of product you need and what you need to look out for when buying these products at the stores.

I know so many of you will benefit from the series and I hope you’ll come back soon.

x

Lade

Learn | Change | Grow

Lade June 30, 2015

PRODUCT REVIEW – MY NEW LEAVE-IN CONDITIONER

Hello ladies

I don’t try new products very often but when I do, if its a great product, I am always happy to share with you all. I decided to try a new conditioner out of curiosity. I actually first learnt about this product from one of my consultation clients. I reviewed the ingredients and though I should try it out for myself because I thought it might work for my hair…….I was right.
I am now on my second bottle and this is now a staple product for me. I hope they never discontinue it or change its ingredients drastically.

The Product

Creme of Nature Argan Oil Strength and Shine Leave in Conditioner

My Previous Leave –in Method and Products

After shampooing and deep conditioning, when my hair was damp, I would spray on a little amount of Aphogee Keratin and Green Restructurizer.
I would then apply a mixture of S-curl and Cantu Shea Butter leave-in conditioning cream whilst my hair was still damp. I would air dry.
To moisturise during the week I used s-curl and Cantu Shea Butter mixture.

My Current Leave in method and product

After shampooing and deep conditioning, I apply Creme of Nature Argan Oil Strength and Shine Leave in Conditioner to my damp hair and let it air dry.
To moisturise during the week I used S-Curl and Cantu Shea Butter mixture.

What I Love About The Product

Silicones

It contains a lot of silicones. My hair loves silicones and so I love silicones too.
Silicones are a type of emollient. Emollients lubricate our hair fibres making it easier to detangle and comb. They seal in the hairs internal moisture and block out external moisture (this helps to reduce how frizzy hair becomes in humid conditions). Emollients also helps to smoothen hair cuticles so that it looks healthy and shiny. Emollients therefore helps to make our hair look and feel good/smooth.

Silicones have a bad rep unfortunately because SOME of them are not water soluble and can build up on the hair. Product build up can prevent moisture absorption and can lead to dry hair because moisture is blocked out. Dry hair = higher risk of breakage. Silicone build up can be removed by using a shampoo that contains sulfates. I love silicones for its benefits and my hair responds very well to it….and I can literally wash out the negative elements of silicone

Its Consistency (very watery and light weight, non-sticky)

The consistency makes this products very easy to apply.

Like most decent hair care products, water is the first item listed on this product’s ingredients list. Following water on the ingredient list is Cyclopentasiloxane which is a type of silicone. Whilst some silicones are heavy and leave hair feeling weighed down, Cyclopentasiloxane is a type of silicone which evaporates and will not leave hair weighed down at all………hello fluffy and bouncy hair……….

my last wash day – air drying my finger detangled hair with just the creme of nature strength and shine leave-in applied. I had to distort the picture because no one needs to see up my nostrils 🙂

Moisture Protein Balance

If you are familiar with my regimen you will know that I like my conditioners, leave ins and weekly hydrating products to be protein and moisture balanced. I often have to achieve this by mixing protein and moisture products together.

The Creme of Nature Strenght and Shine Leave-in contains moisturising and protein elements. I love that the protein it contains are hydrolized which makes it better at binding with and filling in cracks along the hair fibres

Shine

It makes my hair shiny……..That is all.
Shiny hair minus grease and stickiness.

All in all I am very pleased with this product. My sister who has a different hair type ( her hair strands are finer than mine) loves it too.
Have you tried and loved a new product recently?

In my next post I will be talking about my love hate relationship with combs and a new lesson I learnt about combing from the recent Naija Hair Can Grow event. See you soon

x

Lade

Learn | Change | Grow

Lade June 23, 2015

HAIR UPDATE: 6 Weeks Post

finger detangled hair, slightly damp at roots

Hello ladies
Time seems to have flown by and I am now 6 weeks post. I washed and conditioned my hair last night and thought It would be a good point to share a little hair update.
My hair is in good condition I suppose. I don’t have that much new growth yet so I dont have to worry about managing two textures at this point. I air died on this wash day and so my hair has a lil poof going on which I am not opposed to at all 🙂

If I ‘am being honest, when my roots are all poofy my ends look thin comparison. But I had a good look at my ends a and know that they are not damaged or split ( especially because I trimmed off about 4 inches in total this year). I’ve decided to wait till my next texlax in October and then I’ll do a maintenance trim since I don’t intend to let my hair get any longer.

Fully air dried

I have started using a new leave in conditioner which my hair absolutely loves. I am on my second bottle and it is now a stable part of my regimen. I will do a product review of it as my next blog post.

How many weeks post are you? What’s happening with your hair? Have you tried something new recently?

x

Lade

Learn | Change | Grow

Lade June 10, 2015

HOW I WASH MY HAIR IN BRAIDS

Hair had been pre-pooed over night with coconut, olive and a little bit of black castor oil

Hello ladies

How are you? Happy and well I hope.

Washing in braids is not an essential technique on a hair journey but it is one that I began using when my hair reached BSL. Before that period, I could wash my hair in it’s loose state without experiencing too much tangling.
At BSL and with hair that was becoming more and more texlaxed, I found myself with major tangles every time washed my hair loose. I went online and saw that some natural haired ladies wash their hair in braids. I looked up different ways in which this was done and soon found a method that would work for me.

I get asked very often how I wash my hair in braids and so I decided to write a short(ish) blog post which I hope clears it up for anyone who is interested.

How I wash My Hair In Braids

I detangle my hair and apply a little coconut or olive oil to help remove knots and tangles.
I put my hair in 12 -16 box braids. Note that the box braids start at the scalp and are firm but not excessively tight.
To prevent my hair from unravelling during the wash process, I two strand twist the ends of each braid. I find that when I finish each braid with a two strand twist, I am able to unravel it more easily after I have completed the wash and condition process. I hope the above makes sense.
I apply a little more coconut or olive oil to the box braids and cover with a plastic cap which I leave on for an hour or overnight.
I pour water over the box braids until they are well saturated. I apply shampoo and wash the box braids focusing on my scalp and the roots of each box braid.

I DO NOT unravel each box braid.
I rinse thoroughly till I am certain all the shampoo and lather has been rinsed out.
I remove any excess water and apply my deep conditioner. I DO NOT unravel each box braid. I simply apply the conditioner over the box braids.

The box braids with conditioner

I deep condition using my soft hood drier for 30 to 45 minutes.
I rinse out the conditioner very very very well until all the conditioner residue has been removed.
I wrap my hair in a t-shirt to absorb excess water. I unravel one box braid, finger detangle, apply my leave-ins and comb gently. I repeat this step with each braid until they have all been unravelled.

Unfortunately I didn’t take a picture of each stage but I do hope the ones above are of some use.

Additional Tips for Washing in Braids

Size Matters

I have been told by some ladies that washing in braids caused their hair to matt.
I believe that if the braids are too big i e just 4, then your hair may matt at the base. When I wash my hair in 12+ box braids I get very little matting at the base which i can separate/remove very easily. Also if the braids are not firm enough especially at the base then there might also be some matting.

Its Not For Everyone

Also as I always say what works for me may not work for another lady. Do not feel as though you have to wash your hair in braids. If your hair does not tangle when you wash it loose or is not very long then washing in braids or in sections is not something you need.

I hope you have this post helpful.
I spoke at the Naija Hair Can Grow Salon Day Out last weekend and will be sharing my experience and pictures from the event in my next blog post. It was such a blast….come back soon to read all about it

x

Lade

Learn | Change | Grow