Practical Hair care Posts – Page 9

Lade January 17, 2016

COLOURING HAIR WITH NATURAL HAIR DYES

Natural alternatives for dyeing hair have been available for many centuries and are commonly used amongst Indian women. Henna and Indigo are some of the most widely used all natural hair dyes and I will discuss what they are, how they are used and their pros and cons in this blog post. So if you are interested in colouring your hair and would rather stay away from the harsh commercial dyes this post is a must read.

HENNA

What is Henna and How Is It Used
Henna is a plant derived dye which is sold in a powder form that tends to be greenish in colour. The henna powder must be mixed with a low PH liquid such as lemon juice and this will cause the henna powder to release its dye. Some ladies add other natural ingredients such as honey and green tea to enhance the colour or richness of the henna. The paste is left to sit for about 8 or more hours to allow dye release to occur. The paste (mix of henna powder, lemon juice and other ingredients if added) can then be applied to hair and left on for a few hours.

Henna can be very drying because the deposits bind very well to the cuticles ( out layers) of our hair, similar to the way protein conditioners work. It is therefore important that you rinse your hair thoroughly and follow with a moisturising deep condition.

What Kind of Colour Can Be Achieved
100% henna can only give dark hair colours in the red(ish), brown(ish), orange(ish) or burgundy range. Any henna dye which claims to give hair colours outside this range is likely to have been mixed with other ingredients and may not be safe for use. Always purchase what is known as Body Art Quality (BAQ) henna for use on your hair. Sites such as…… and The intensity of the colour will depend on your own hair, how long you leave the dye on for and how regularly you use henna on your hair. If you would like to dye your hair a dark brown or black colour, indigo, which is another natural dye may be used after henna to achieve a dark colour. This will be discussed further below.

How Long Does It Last and How Often can You Use it
Henna hair dye is a semi-permanent hair colour and lasts for a few weeks. Henna can be used every 4 to 6 weeks. Foe ladies who are relaxed, it can be used two weeks after relaxing your hair.

INDIGO

What is Indigo and How Is It Used Indigo is also a plant derived dye that comes in a powder form and is greenish in colour. When mixed with water to form a paste the powder will release its dye. Unlike henna the paste does not have to sit for hours for full dye release to occur. Indigo should only be applied after henna has been rinsed out. Using indigo alone will result in blue hair or the colour may not take.

What Colours can Be Achieved
When used after henna, Indigo will give hair a black or blue-black colour. How Often can it be used Indigo can be used after every henna application.

Pros of Natural Hair Colours

It can be used on all hair types and
It can be used on hair that has been previously coloured with chemical hair dyes
Temporaily thickens hair because the colour deposits sits on top of each hair fiber thereby increasing its diameter
It has strengthening and conditioning properties
It covers gray hair well.

Cons of Natural Hair Colours

It can be time consuming to prepare and use
It is temporary and will fade gradually over a few weeks.
Application can be messy and can stains your clothes permanently and your hands temporarily. So it is best you wear clothes you don’t care about during the process.
Some natural haired ladies note that henna loosens/changes their natural curl pattern….some ladies don’t mind this and this is actually a desired result for some.
They are not as readily available as commercial dyes. You have to either other them online, purchase them from Indian stores or healthy hair stores that carry natural treatments and dyes.

Patch Test
Please note that although henna and indigo are all natural some ladies may react to it. I recommend that you test them on a small section of your hair to ensure you do not have an allergy to either of them

Do Your Home Work
Please note that the content of this post gives an overview of henna and indigo. If you would like to use henna and indigo i recomend that you do more research on the various methods of making the paste and applying it on the reputable websites and good old YouTube.
And that is the basic gist on natural hair colours. Although I don’t use either henna or indigo at the moment I can see it in my future when i have loads of grey hair. Because I don’t plan on giving up texlaxing anytime soon , natural hair colours is most likely going to be my future hair colour.

My next post will be my hair update and a hair style pictorial. Come back soon.

Lade

Learn | Change | Grow

Lade November 9, 2015

Playing With Colour

Hello ladies,

I am sure I have mentioned a few times that if your hair is chemically straightened then you should avoid colouring you hair with a chemical dye. Using a chemical hair dye on relaxed or texlaxed hair means your hair has been exposed to two types of strong chemicals and will be severely compromised.
If you are relaxed or texlaxed colouring your hair with either a temporary wash out colour like a rinse or a natural dye like henna is a much safer option.
Looking at my wigs recently and comparing it to my sister’s collection of wigs I realised that all her wigs are coloured whilst a vast majority of mine are a good old colour 1b.

She recently purchased the Nazuri curls straight hair that I have been rocking recently and had it ombre’d
I really loved how the colour looked on her wig and think I might get mine coloured too. It’s a great way for me to play with colour without any damage to my hair.

I might write a blog post however to share some tips about different types of colour for ladies who would rather colour their actual hair.

I am pre-pooing my hair as I type this up and should have a wash day post up pretty soon.

Happy hair journey

Lade

Learn | Change | Grow

Lade November 2, 2015

A BRIEF GUIDE FOR TRANSITIONING

Hello ladies

There are more and more of us going back to our natural hair texture.
Going natural is something I support and encourage whole heartedly even though I choose to remain texlaxed. In my attempt to cater to black hair in all it forms I realised that I needed to pay ladies who are transitioning some attention.

This blog post will not tell you all you need to know about transitioning…I’ll need a few thousand words to set that out. This post will highlight the changes you should expect in your hair as you embark on your transition and give tips that will help you manage your hair during your transition.
Although I am texlaxed and have no intention to transition to natural hair, I have stretched my relaxers for up to 6 months on several occasions so I do have some experience of how hair changes in the early stages of a transition.

My hair on one of my 6 month stretches

Three main areas ladies who are transitioning need to be prepared for are:

1) How your hair changes over the length of your transition

2) Hair styling during your transition and

3) Moisture and protein balancing for transitioning hair

Weeks 0 to 10 (Two and Half Months Post)

Hair Texture Changes
This stage of a transition is usually the easiest because you will be on familiar ground. You hair is still predominantly relaxed or texlaxed. Some new growth will begin to appear however the difference in texture will not be too difficult to manage.

Hair Style Options
You can wear the styles that you normally would, i.e., buns, roller sets and blending it with weaves will be easy , etc.

Moisture- Protein Balance
Relaxed hair needs protein strengthening more regularly than natural hair. Many ladies will stick to using protein deep conditioner once or twice a month as this stage.

Weeks 10 to 16 (Four Months Post)

Hair Texture Changes
From 10 onwards your new growth will be quite apparent and managing the difference in textures ( natural new growth and relaxed length) should be your focus. You have to alter your regimen and have a plan on how you will care for both textures.

The difference in textures can lead to a lot of tangling and your hair might begin to feel really dry especially at the roots. You will need to detangle your hair more regularly working in smaller sections and increase how regularly you moisturise and seal your hair.

Trimming regularly from this point on your transition can be of great help because ends that are aligned or even tend to tangle less. This will therefore make your transition more manageable.

Hair Style Options
What I always tell ladies who are transitioning or on a long stretch is that you cannot expect hair that has months of new growth to look, feel or behave freshly relaxed hair.

Wearing sleek styles will become more difficult to achieve using the same methods as you did when your hair has no new growth. Daily combing should be avoided. It is important at this stage to master finger detangling your hair regularly. Combing your hair should only be done after thorough finger detangling
Also natural hair is best manipulated when it is damp. At this stage of transitioning, misting or moisturising your new growth before styling will help make your natural new growth more flexible and easier to style.

It is better that you embrace the natural new growth and begin to get used to how it feels and working with it. Do not try to make the new growth look like relaxed hair by using straightening irons regularly. The last thing you want to do is end up with heat damaged hair when you eventually big chop.

Styles which help many people get through transitioning are twists outs, braid outs, perm rod sets, straw sets and roller sets. I call these camouflage styles because they disguise the difference in textures quite well.
Some ladies prefer to begin wearing long term protective styles at this stage such as weaves, braids and wigs as they cut out the need for daily manipulation.

Moisture and Protein Balance
Getting your moisture and protein balance right at this stage may become a little more complicated because your new growth needs something different from your relaxed ends. Your new growth will need moisture deep conditioning regularly and protein deep conditioners occasionally. Your relaxed length on the other hand will need protein more regularly than your new growth however it will still need moisture conditioning.

A way to achieve balance is to apply moisture deep conditioners to your new growth and to give your relaxed length what it needs at the time ( ie it could be protein one week and then moisture for the following two weeks for example)
Remember that the natural new growth will need protein deep conditioning occasionally, ie once every 4 to 8 weeks

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Weeks 16 to 24 (six months post) and Beyond

Hair Texture Changes
At 6 months post your new growth will begin to dominate your relaxed length, It will look thicker and feel stronger than your relaxed length. Your relaxed length may begin to “look” like it is badly damaged in comparison to your natural new growth especially when it is wet. The
The battle between the two textures will also have intensified and caring for your hair may require more time to minimise breakage at the line of demarcation (where the natural roots and relaxed length meet).
Working in section will become mandatory at this stage and many ladies transitioning find washing in braids may help reduce (not eliminate) tangling.
Remember that regular trimming will help reduce the degree of tangling you experience.

Hair Styling Options
Wigs, braids, twists, crotchet braids and a whole host of long term protective styles may be your best bet at this stage. It is important that you continue to care for your hair and have a regimen for your hair when wearing extensions.

It is also important that you have breaks in between wearing extensions to give your scalp and hair a chance to recuperate and more importantly for you to familiarise yourself with your natural texture.
Although you will never really know how your natural texture will behave and look like until after your big chop, getting used to how it feels and how to style it will hopefully prepare you for managing and styling your hair post big chop.

When wearing your own hair out this deep into your transition it is best to wear the camouflage styles that have been mentioned above.

Moisture- Protein Balance
By this stage in your transition you should continue deep condition each texture on your head separately, i.e. use moisture deep conditioners regularly on your new growth and give your relaxed length what it needs at the time ( protein or moisture)

Please note that this method should also be followed when applying your leave-in conditioning products.

Make no mistake transitioning can be quite challenging for ladies especially those who are new to hair care and are still trying to find a regimen that works well for them. As the months of your transition go by try to have a plan or fixed date for when you plan to big chop. Having a goal date can help to keep you motivated on your transition.

I hope this brief guide serves its purpose and is helpful to both ladies who are transitioning and those on a long stretch. Is anyone transitioning or currently on a long stretch? What do you find most challenging and what methods work well to help you manage your hair?

Lade

Learn| Change | Grow

Lade October 23, 2015

Texlax Update

Hello ladies,

So that post about transitioning is not up yet but I hope this post is enough compensation. I finally threw in the towel and texlaxed my hair after a 23 week stretch. I am happy that this stretch was hitch free and I made a better attempt to take care of my own hair when wearing wigs than I have in the past year or so.

MY TEXLAX DAY METHOD

My texlax process was the same as always:

I parted my hair in 5 sections. Three at the back and two at the front.
I gently detangled my hair thoroughly ( this took forever and a day because I had a lot of new growth and I didn’t want to irritate my scalp)
I covered my hair and new growth with a mixture of castor oil and olive oil
I use Organic Roots Stimulator No Base relaxer. I used a little over half the jar and mixed it with 2 teaspoons of olive oil
My sister applied the relaxer to the new growth at the back sections and when she was done I applied some relaxer to the front section. The application and smoothening the relaxer in my new growth took 18 minutes in total.
I rinsed out the relaxer and shampooed with a neutralizing shampoo 3 times. I deep conditioned with a mixture of protein and moisture conditioners for about 50 minutes.
I rinsed out the deep conditioner, applied my leave-in conditioners and blow dried using the medium heat setting.

I dragged some lipstick on my face in an attempt to look semi-presentable and hide some of my tiredness before I took a whole bunch of pictures. I decided to trim 2 inches off and I was done at that point and so I didn’t take any more pictures after my trim but I will after my next wash day.
Now my last stretch is over I am on to this current one. I intend to stretch for 21 or maybe 23 weeks and going forward I will trim off two inches every time I texlax. I genuinely don’t want longer hair. Don’t get me wrong, I think hair longer and bigger than mine is absolutely gorgeous but I am not willing to put in more work than I currently do on my hair……so waist length it is.

I hope that your hair journeys are going well. I hope you are learning how to care for your hair in a way that allows it to thrive. I hope that your are resolving the problems you might have with your hair little by little.

How is your hair journey going?

Lade

Learn | Change | Grow

Lade October 17, 2015

Hair Styling: Making More Effort But Keeping It Simple

Hello Ladies

How are we all doing?

I’ve been rounding things up with my wig regimen as I am preparing to texlax my hair in a week or so. I must say I’ve been having a little too much fun with my wigs of late.
I normally can’t be bothered to style my hair or my wigs for that matter unless it is a style I can create in 10 minutes max or preferably 2 to 3 minutes …….yes 2 to 3 minutes. This is one of the reasons why buns are my hairs best friend.

I do realise however that maybe I should make a teeny tiny more effort in styling my hair ( and wigs). Not every day buns….sometimes something a little more fun is needed. I’ve been doing just that with my wigs recently and I am liking it…a lot.

9 bendy rollers was all it took to create these lush curls on my wig made with Nazuri Curls Straight hair. If you would like to get your hands on Nazuri Curls gorgeous range of hair extensions don’t forget you can still get 10% off using the Hairducation discount code.

Jumbo two strand twists on my Nazuri Hair wig. This took about 5 minutes to create.

Both of these styles were created with minimal effort and took less than 10 minutes so I am winning. As a way to encourage myself to up my hair style game, I’ve been buying a few hair accessories and props for use after I texlax. Hopefully these new toys won’t just end up gathering dust in corner.
I am I the only lazy hair styler out there. What kind of styles do you tend to do with your hair and wigs? What kind of styles do you think I should do with my hair?

The next blog post about transitioning should be up early next week. Come back soon ladies.

Lade

Learn | Change | Grow

HENNA

INDIGO

Weeks 0 to 10 (Two and Half Months Post)

Weeks 10 to 16 (Four Months Post)

. Weeks 16 to 24 (six months post) and Beyond

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Weeks 16 to 24 (six months post) and Beyond