Texlax/Relaxer Update #4

Compliments of the season, trust you had a wonderful Christmas celebration. I did my last texlax touch for 2016, last week at 16 weeks post. I had yarn Senegalese twists installed and kept that in for two weeks. I had a touch-up prep. wash day 5 days before touch day. See here to read how I prepare my hair for the chemical treatment. Unfortunately, for this prep wash day I was out of Aphogee Two Step Protein treatment. I substituted that with ORS Hair Mayonnaise, a table spoon of Tropic Isle JBCO with Sage and 2 tablespoons of Braggs Liquid Aminos.

I followed my normal texlax routine. Deep conditioned with Organics Hair Mayonnaise + Motions Moisture Plus + Honey. I air-dried, then straightened my in approximately 1 inch sections at 180°C. Leave-in: African Pride Shea Butter Miracle Moisture Intense Leave-in Conditioner
Sealant: HairvolutionbyBee Whipped Shea Butter
Heat Protectant: Fantasia IC Carrot Growth Serum
I've been dealing with breakage for the past few months. I still don't know exactly why, so I wasn't really expecting to retain length.

Length check

As you can see, I actually retained length, my ends however, are in a very terrible state. My hair has grown into a very annoying thin "V". I guess you could say this is my first setback.

Ponytail

SETBACK RECOVERY STEPS
Cut off thin ends
Keep relaxer stretches to a maximum of 12/13 weeks
Ensure moisture-protein balance
Reduce hair manipulation by keeping protective styles simple (buns and wigs mostly).
Daily moisturising and sealing

Post-trim hair (I would cut off about 1.5 inches more soon)

I hope your ends fared better than mine this year. Kindly share tips you think could help me with my ends. Catch ya in the comments section.

xx,
Bee

Must Have Hair Tools for Healthy Hair

On your quest for longer and healthier hair, you would get to know about various hair products (shampoos, conditioners, leave-in conditioners, oils etc.). Either you go the DIY route or you buy, the kind of products you use would have an impact on your hair. There are are also hair tools that are very important in determining the overall health of your hair or making your healthy hair journey (HHJ) easier.

Wide-toothed comb: Your fingers and/or a Wide-toothed combs are the best for detangling your hair. Combs with small teeth are a no no for healthy hair. They will snag and snap your strands and this would cause a lot of breakage. Also, note that in choosing a wide-toothed comb, a seamless one is the best. However, if a seamless comb is not within your budget at the moment, just make sure the one you choose has as little seams as possible.

Wide-toothed comb

Satin/silk cap/bonnet/scarf: Other fabrics such as cotton tend to draw out moisture from the hair. Satin or silk fabrics are very gentle on the hair strands, help your hair retain moisture and reduce friction/static. All these properties help prevent hair breakage. If you are not a huge fan of covering your hair at night or your better half isn't *winks, a very good alternative is to use silk/satin pillowcases. I personally use both, just because I love the feel and also for nights that I might be too lazy or tired to put on my satin bonnet.

HairvolutionbyBee Lounge Reversible Silk/Satin Bonnet

Spray bottle: Moisture is your hair's best friend. The easiest way to moisturise your hair is by using a spray bottle. You can make your own moisturising cocktails (e.g. Water + Oils + Essential oils) and dispense with your spray bottle. You really can't do without this and you would probably need more than one.

Steaming/ Heat cap: You would need to do a lot of deep conditioning on your HHJ(every wash day), hence the need for a heat source. There are various types depending on your budget and need. There are even cordless ones that you can pop in the microwave or drop the gel pads in hot water. However, if this is not in your budget now, you can simply cover your hair with a shower cap and allow the heat generated by your body to do the job. Note that this would take a longer time, at least one hour.

Electric Steaming Cap

Cordless Heat Cap

Butterfly clamps/clips: You would be doing a lot of sectioning, for example during moisturising and sealing, detangling or styling. These clamps will help keep the sections in place and make things easier and faster for you.

Others: Bobby pins for styling, shower caps for deep conditioning, baggying, and when taking a shower, mixing bowls, plastic spoons or spatulas, applicator bottles for oiling scalp and so on.

Which other tools are must-haves for you? See you in the comment section.

xx,
Bee.

Style Post: My Protective Styles August till Date

Hi darlings,

I decided to do this post because I have not been putting up wash day or style posts. You might not really know what I've been upto with my after my unravelled crochet braids and texlax update. I get bored easily with my hairstyles, so I tend to change them pretty often if I can. Here is a recap of my protective styles between August and now.

DIY Full Fringe Wig

Single Cornrow Updo

Pigtails 

Simple cornrows

Crochet twists (used 3 packs of X-pression Nike)

Frohawk in the making

Frohawk (My current protective style)

That's it guys! Any particular style you fancy?

xx,
Bee

I got featured on Bella Naija #BNFroFriday Series

Hello ladies,

I'm excited to let you know that I got featured on Bella Naija's #BNFroFriday series.

I answered various questions about my motivation for starting my hhj, my favorite hair styles, products and so on. Read more here.

I'm particularly happy about this interview/feature opportunity, because it's a bigger platform to let more people know relaxed/texlaxed hair can be healthy too.  Good hair is healthy hair. It is also really wonderful that healthy hair consciousness/awareness is increasing in Nigeria.


P.S.: I've got some post lined up. stay tuned

xx,
Bee

My Hair Length Progress So Far....

Hi guys, I didn't take a length check picture persay after my last texlax touch-up. This is because I'm waiting till December before straightening my hair. However, I've been doing "measurement length checks" and recording in my hair diary. I stretch out my hair in sections, record with a tape measure and record.

u

Check out the trend!

I retained roughly 2 inches from my 16-week stretch. I had less than in some sections though. Unfortunately, I lost a lot 0f the retained length because I didn't like the way my ends looked. My hair tends to grow into a "V" shape but I prefer U shape. I might just keep trimming my hair to maintaong it's current length. Nothing is set in stone yet though... fingers-crossed.

2 weeks before touch-up

Post-trim Hair

That's all for now guys. How is your hair doing? Catch y'all soon


xx,
Bee

Texlax/Relaxer Update #3

I texlaxed on Monday, 30/08/16 at 17 weeks and 3 days post. I prepared my hair the usual way, using aphogee two step protein treatment. See here, to read how I prepare my hair for texlax touch-up.

For the first time on my hhj, someone else did my texlax for me!!! I had my texlax touch done at HairvolutionbyBee Lounge by one of our stylists. And she did a very good job following all my prompts and instructions. Felt good really. Finally, a texlax day without the stress and arm-ache.

Steps followed:                                  

• My hair was parted into 4 and detangled.
• Petroleum jelly was applied to my previously relaxed hair to prevent over-processing from relaxer runoff during wash. Petroleum jelly was also applied to my hairline and top of my ears
• About one-third of the jar of ORS lye relaxer was mixed with two tablespoons oof vegetable oil. Lol? yea, you read that right. I was out of olive oil which use normally. So i used good ol' vegetable oil from my kitchen.
• The diluted relaxed was applied to my hair. Application and smoothing time (fingers only) was 12 minutes. I left it on for another 4 minutes. Making a total of 16 minutes.
• The relaxer was rinsed out, and shampooed thrice with Vitale Olive Oil Neutralising Shampoo. The shampoo was left on for 4 minutes the third time before rinsing out.     
• Deep conditioned for 15 minutes with heat, with a mix of ORS Replenishing Conditioner, Roux Porosity Control, and Motions Moisture Plus Conditioner.
• Megagrowth Profectiv Daily Leave-in Strengthener was applied and sealed with HairvolutionbyBee Whipped Shea Butter.

My hair was then rolled with large rollers, I sat under the hooded dryer for a while but I didn't have the patience to sit till my hairgot dry. I simply combed out the curls and I was left with fairly straight hair.

This texlax was a very successful one, the vegetable oil was a good call after all. I love the texture I was left with.

Post-trim Hair

However, I observed I'm having an unusual amount of breakage. I'm trying not to freak out. I noticed about two weeks before my texlax touch-up but I believed the Aphogee two step protein treatment would keep it in check. Alas! I was wrong. I ended up trimming so much, I trimmed twice on texlax day, and once the following day. My plan is to give my hair some TLC and do a henna treatment which is long overdue.

I don't think I retained much length this stretch due to the thin ends which I had to trim (1.5 - 2 inches). I didn't really do a length check or comparison pictures because I didn't flat iron. However, I measured for my hair diary before trimming. I will do an update on that in another post.

xx,
Bee

Big Announcement: HairvolutionbyBee Lounge Opening Soon

I'm so excited to let you all know that HairvolutionbyBee Lounge will be officially open for business on Monday, 29/08/2016. Since the start of healthy hair journey ( 2 years plus), I have been to a salon just once and it was not a fun experience. I did not like the way my hair was handled. Anyone on a hair journey around here would agree with me that most salons don't have much knowledge of healthy hair dos and don'ts. Most of them are only all about the lovely, gorgeous hair styles. Thankfully, great salons are springing up especially natural hair salons. Sadly, only ladies in cities like Lagos, Abuja and Port Harcourt are enjoying this "luxury".

I started considering owning a healthy haircare salon about a year ago, because there wasn't any around me. I mentioned it briefly as one of my goals for this year, bit I was not super sure then. I finally took the plunge around March and got a place. Six months after, we are good to go and set for business. It has not exactly been an easy feat. Infact I have been super busy, more busy than I expected. And, that is why I haven't been posting so much. Apologies and I promise to catch up on that. It's been quite a journey and I've learnt a lot. There were times I wanted to quit, but my passion for healthy hair kept me going, I'm also not a quitter. Family and friends that believe in my cause also provided a great support system.

MEET HAIRVOLUTIONBYBEE LOUNGE
HairvolutionbyBee Lounge is a Hair/Beauty salon specialised in healthy hair care, styling and products for both natural and relaxed hair.

Mission: To help everyone achieve their goals of having thick, long and healthy hair and scalp by nuturing damaged hair to health and maintaining healthy hair, while also giving necessary advice and guidance.

Vision: To be one of the leading healthy hair care providers in Nigeria.

Our stylists that have been tutored on healthy hair care practices in addition to their professional skills.

Services offered include:

• Hair & Scalp treatments 
• Protective styling (Crochet Braids, Braids, Ghana weaving, faux locs etc)
• Cut/trim
• Chemical services (Relaxer touch-up, colour)
• Blow out, Straightening & Silk press
• Natural hair styling  (Up dos, Two strand twists, Bantu knots, Finger/Comb coils) 
• Ayurveda treatments  (Henna, Amla, Bentonite clay etc)
• Sale of hair care products, tools and accessories

Contact Details
Address: Shop 6, Block 19, Shop 6, New Central Market, Obafemi Awolowo University, Ile - Ife. Osun state.
Facebook: HairvolutionbyBee Lounge
Instagram: @hairvolutionbybeelounge
Twitter: @hairvolutionbyB

I believe this is great news for hairlistas inIle-Ife and its environs. Hopefully, the salon will also help a whole lot of people aware tIle-Ife and its environs. Hopefully, the salon will also help make a lot of people aware that, Nigerian hair can also be very long and healthy.

Wish me luck guys and hope to see you soon if you are in Ile-Ife.

xx,
Bee.

Style Post: Unravelled Crochet Havana Twists

After 3 weeks of using my curly wig, I decided it was time for a new look. So my new protective style is unravelled crochet havana twists. I simply re-used the     Xpression Naomi boom twists I used here. I washed the twists with warm water and shampoo and spread them out to dry before installing them.

How I Prepared My Hair:
Prepoo: ORS Replenishing Conditioner + Hairveda Sitrinillah
Shampoo: Creme of Nature Moisture and Shine Shampoo (lathered twice)
Conditioner: Alberto VO5 Sun-kissed Raspberry with Chamomile Balancing Conditioner (Left on for 5 minutes and rinsed out with cold water)
Leave-in Conditioner: Profectiv Megagrowth Daily Leave in Strengthener, sealed with Grapeseed oil.
Air-dried, detangled and applied Cantu  Shea Butter Creamy Lotion for Natural Hair just before braiding up my hair. I also oiled my scalp with my oil mix.

My braid pattern and installation method was just the same as when initially installed the naomi boom twists. The only difference between the hair styles is that I unravelled each twist after installing all.

I looove eeit! I really do. This style is a keeper. I'm following my usual protective style regimen. It is important to take care of one's hair and not abandon it while underneath/in protective styles. I spray my hair with diluted Lusters' S.curl Curl Activator Moisturizer and oil my scalp once in 2 - 3 days.


Who else loves crochet hairstyles the way I do?

xx,
Bee

Recommended Hair Products for HHJ Beginners

This post is majorly for ladies that have just started their hair journey and those planning to start. I have received several messages from ladies asking which hair products they would need in their HHJ. I decided to compile this list and make it a blog post so that anyone interested can go through it. I made the list with my naija ladies in mind, although it can also be useful to everyone, so most of the products are easy to find here. They are also relatively affordable and with good reviews.

However, I have to point out that the success of your HHJ is not about products but about practices. Someone using the most expensive hair products but using heat too often and using fine toothed comb will struggle with making progress with their hair.

Read this post to know how and when to use each category of products in your regimen or how to build your regimen.

Shampoos
Creme of Nature Moisture and Shine Sulphate-free shampoo (sulphate-free; can be used weekly)
ORS Creamy Aloe Shampoo (Clarifying/Neutralising; can be used once a month or more)
Alberto V05 Shampoos  (Clarifying;  can be used once a month or more)
African Naturalista Black Moisturising Shampoo (sulphate-free)

Rinse-out Conditioners
Alberto V05 conditioners
Tresemme Naturals Nourishing Moisturising Conditioner
Suave Conditioners

Moisture Deep Conditioners
Organics by Africa's Best Olive Oil Deep conditioner
Motions Moisture Plus Conditioner
Organics by Africa's Best Tea Trea and Cholesterol Deep Conditioner
Queen Helene Cholesterol Deep Conditioner

Protein Deep Conditioners
ORS Replenishing Conditioner  (Light or Balanced)
ORS Hair Mayonnaise  (Medium)
Organics Hair Mayonnaise  (Medium)
Aphogee Two-step Protein Treatment (Hard)
Aphogee Two Minutes Keratin Reconstructor (Light)
Vitale Olive Oil Hair Mayonnaise (Light)

Leave-in Conditioners
Profectiv Megagrowth daily leave-in strengthener  (Protein)
Beautiful Textures Tangle Taming Leave-in Conditioner (Moisture)
African Pride Shea Butter Miracle Moisture Intense Leave-in (Moisture)
Cantu Shea Butter Leave in Conditioning Repair Cream (Protein)

Moisturisers
ORS Olive Oil Incredibly Rich Moisturising Hair Lotion
Cantu Shea Butter Natural Hair Creamy Lotion
Elasta qp Mango Butter Moisturiser
Luster's Scurl Activator Moisturiser

Carrier oils and Butters
Extravirgin Olive oil
Extravirgin Coconut oil
Avocado oil
Shea butter
Cocoa butter

Essential oils (should be used ONLY Diluted)
Eucalyptus oil
Lavender oil
Peppermint oil
Tea tree oil

A good practice before purchasing hair products is to read reviews online.

P.S.: This list is by no means extensive, there are several other great hair products. I will be updating with new products from time to time.


xx,
Bee.

DIY HOMEMADE FACIAL SCRUB FOR BLACKHEADS

I never really had a reason to take facial care seriously until recently. That is because I did not have issues with pimples/acne. My face was just effortlessly. Even the few stubborn ones that pop up at that "time" of the month dry up within a matter of days. The story changed a few months ago when I started having crazy breakouts and blackheads. Alas! my face is not as flawless as it used to be *sobs*. I have still not been able to figure out why I'm get them, age or hormones maybe.

Anyway, I have been more proactive with my facial care/routine. However, while I have been able to significantly reduce the breakouts, the blackheads are more difficult to get rid of. Hence, the need for a scrub. I did some research online and threw together some ingredients I had in my kitchen.

RECIPE
1/4 cup granulated sugar
1/4 cup fine sea salt
1 Tablespoon honey
1 Tablespoon cinnamon powder
1 Tablespoon spoon Grapeseed oil 
Directions: Add all ingredients into a bowl, mix thoroughly with a fork and scoop the mixture in to a container of your choice that has a lid. Quite easy right? I know!

How to use: Wash your face then scoop some of the scrub and apply to your face moving in circular motions. Do this for 3 to 5 minutes and rinse with warm water. Follow with an astringent or toner of your choice. Do this at least once a week.

I especially love the smell of the scrub because of the cinnamon and honey.

Note: To get the most benefits of using a facial scrub, it's best to use it after facial steaming. This is because the steaming would have opened up your pores.

That is it ladies! I hope this works for me, fingers crossed.

Will you give this a try, what other easy diy remedies do you have up your sleeves? I would love to read from you in the comments section.

xx,
Bee.

Hair Update

Hello ladies!
So long! This is a recap of what I have been doing to my hair for the past few weeks. I rocked the cute knotted updo for 2 weeks and had one washday in between. After two weeks I decided to give versatile crochet braid (that I can style in different ways) try. I did a protein treatment with Organics Hair Mayonnaise and followed with Hot oil treatment  (Grapeseed oil + Olive oil + peppermint oil).

I used a little less than a pack of bonny hair for the crochet braids. I left some hair around my perimeter and for middle and side parts. After installing the hair, I did not like it so much, because it was too prone to tangling and super huge. I blow-dried it to make it more manageable and improve the looks. It looked much better after blow-drying but still I could not let the hair down at all for fear of tangles.

After blow-drying

This defeated the purpose of the installing the hair, I wanted to be able to let it down and have it in a lovely ponytail. I had to resort to only updos for the two weeks I kept it in. Next time I try the versatile crochet braids, I will use X-pression braiding hair instead.

Some updos with the versatile crochet braids

I noticed unusual amount of breakage after taking the crochet braids out. :( I was ill for some days and I totally neglected my hair during this period, so I suspect this as the cause the breakage. I used Aphogee Keratin Two Minutes Reconstructor on my last wash day to keep the breakage in check. I have also decided to give my hair some TLC by going back to my wigging ways. :-).

Love love my curly wig

What have you been up to with your hair? Remember, to get great results, you have to be consistent... 

xx,
Bee.

Style Post: Washday Ft. Easy 5 minutes Knotted Updo

When I saw KLP @ SavingOurStrands' knotted updo a while ago, I made a mental note to try it out someday. The day finally came on my last washday. I was not even sure it would look good enough for me to leave it as my protective style for the week. No harm in trying right.

Of course I had to make my hair clean and conditioned first.

• Deep conditioned on slightly damp hair with ORS Replenishing Conditioner for 20 minutes with heat.
• Shampoo'd with Creme of Nature Moisture and Shine Sulphate-free Shampoo.
• Conditioned for 5 minutes with Alberto VO5 Herbal Escapes Sun Kissed Raspberry with chamomile extract Balancing Conditioner.
• Tshirt-dried for about 30 minutes, sealed with Grapeseed oil, applied Megagrowth Profectiv Daily Leave-in Strengthener, detangled in sections and air-dried.
• I oiled my scalp when my hair was dry and followed the pictorial below

Credit: KLP @ SavingOurStrands

My Result

I love love love this updo, so easy and quick to do but looks intricate and complex. I also love the fact that the ends of the hair are well tucked away. This updo has come to stay in my look book. It's my numero uno lazy protective style for now. 

If you have never tried it you should. Check here for a more detailed tutorial.

xx,

Bee 

Henna Washday + Flexi rod set using "Horseshoe Method"

This is a recap of my first washday post texlax touch-up. It also doubled as my Henna application day.

• I mixed 100gms unbranded natural henna powder with cooled green tea (made with 2 bags) in a plastic bowl, covered it and left it overnight for dye release.
• The following day, I was feeling quite lazy so I used the Henna mix as a prepoo. I added 2 tablespoons of honey to the henna mix and applied to my slightly damp hair. I dampened my hair to make applying the henna easier and less messy. For more details on how I mix and apply henna, read this post 

Just after applying the henna mix

• I  left the henna on  (covered with clingfilm) for 4 hours. I rinsed the henna out and then shampoo'd twice with Creme of Nature Moisture and Shine Sulphate-free Shampoo.
• I then deep conditioned with Hairveda Sitrinillah Deep Conditioner for 20 minutes with heat from my Electric heating cap. I then rinsed with cool water and tshirt-dried.
• Now to styling, some weeks ago, I stumbled on a video on youtube with a new approach to flexi rod sets. The Horseshoe Method, what I really loved about the technique is the fact that you would use less flexi rods. Hence, sleeping with flexi rods would be easier, so I decided to try it. Watch video below. 

 CurlDaze Horseshoe Method  (Flexi rod set)

• For my flexi rod set, I oiled my scalp, applied African Pride Shea Butter Miracle Moisture Intense Leave-in Conditioner and detangled in sections. I then applied Cantu Shea Butter Natural Hair Moisturising Curl Activator Cream and sealed with Grapeseed Oil. I used a total of 8 small flexi rods. 
• I tied my hair with my satin scarf and went to bed. The following morning, I checked and some sections especially in front were not completely dry. I was a little worried but I think the curls still came out fine. I applied Grapeseed Oil to my palms and seperated the curls.

I will definitely use the "Horseshoe Method" again. 

Third day curls still popping

How was your last washday? Would you try this new flexi rod set technique?

xx,

Bee