Even better hair days! - Updated Natural Hair Care

Hi everyone!  I  have been neglecting the blog again, GRRR.

I hope everyone had a nice Easter.  I myself...drank too much and have a sick pre-schooler who has spread his germs to me. UGH!!   But hanging out with family is always nice.

I realized that I had not updated my hair care regiment since changing it up a bit.  I recently felt the need to minimize all of the hair products in my cabinet, so this would be a good time to update my curly peeps on what I am doing.  Currently in my stash, I have Shea Oil, Avocado Oil, a Jojoba/Argan mixture, Extra Virgin Coconut Oil and Cold Pressed Extra Virgin Olive Oil.  I also have Shea Butter.  Of all of those oils, I will continue to purchase and use the coconut oil, EVOO and Shea Butter.  I know that all of those other oils are beneficial but I just don't think I need them and it will save me a fair deal of money by not buying them anymore.  The past two months I have not used any of my bottled or jarred products either (other than shampoo and condish).  In my cabinet I have Shea Moisture Leave-In Conditioner, Shea Moisture's Curl Enhancing Smoothie, Curling Souffle and Coconut & Hibiscus Curl and Style Milk. Curl Junkie Coffee-Coco Curl Creme, Palmer's Coconut Oil Hair Milk and Eco Styler Olive Oil Styling Gel.  Just using minimal product on my hair these past two months has given me amazing curly hair results.  My curls are very defined, my hair is super soft and I have no visible split ends.  YAY!  (I do think that I should probably schedule my next DevaCut soon though.)

I haven't been using any of the products that I listed above or in my previous Natural Hair Care post here.  Although I did get great results with these products and I would still recommend them to curly girls, I personally have chosen to phase them out.  One in particular is the Trader Joe's Tea Tree Tingle shampoo.  Sadly it seems they have changed the recipe or the ingredients.  It's not tea tree tingly enough for me anymore. I loved it before.  I'm going to purchase one more bottle of it and see if I just got a bum bottle last time.

Over the past two months, this is my hair care line up:

SHAMPOO:

Since I have not been feeling Trader Joe's Tea Tree Tingle shampoo lately I decided to try something new. I tried Organix Hydrating Macadamia Oil Shampoo.  I like it.  It feels very lush and moisturizing and it smells nice.  Macadamia Nut oil is supposed to be really good for your hair.  It is a very light oil and relatively non greasy (as far as oils go).  It easily penetrates the hair shaft as well as the scalp so it can help with dandruff.  Macadamia Nut Oil may also help your hair grow.  Although Macadamia Nut Oil has all of those benefits, I'm not sure how much of the actual oil is even in this shampoo since it is the 17th ingredient listed on the label.  Since I can hardly pronounce any of the ingredients I'm pretty sure that this product is far from all natural although the name Organix might have tricked the consumer (me) into believing it was all or close to natural.  And I'm pretty sure it contains sulphates.  I actually only bought it because I had a giftcard to CVS and I wanted to try something new...and it was on sale.  I probably should've read the bottle better before purchasing.  I do like the way my hair feels after using it these past few washings but I most likely will not buy it again, simply because it has way too many chemicals in it for me to feel like I am doing right by my hair.


CO-WASH/CONDITIONER/LEAVE IN:

I also tried a new conditioner and I LOVE it!!  I have been using TRESemme Vitamin E Moisture Rich conditioner for years.  But, I don't know, I feel like it is not conditioning as well as it once did.  I've heard that you should rotate conditioners occasionally as they become less effective on your hair over time.  So I bought Trader Joe's Nourish Spa conditioner.  LOVE IT!  It was only $3.99 and I dare say it is THEE best conditioner I have ever used.  Not that I want to spend more money, but I would definitely pay more for this conditioner ...if I had to.  Having said that, Trader Joe's, do not jack the price up, please and thank you.  This conditioner has all natural ingredients in it and it smells really nice.  I use this after shampooing every 1-2 weeks and as my co-wash about every 3-4 days or as needed.  I also started using a little in my hair as a leave in conditioner.


MOISTURIZER/SEALANT:

I still use my beloved Extra Virgin Coconut Oil the same as I did in my previous post.  I use it to seal my ends.  I use it on my skin.  I cook with it.  I also make an awesome balm out of EVCO and Shea Butter.  I put them into the blender together and whip it up until it is nice and fluffy and put into 8oz. containers for each family member.  We all use it on our bodies and in our hair (well daddy shaves his head bald so he does not use it on his hair, ha).  I don't think I could ever be without my coconut oil.  And as an awesome bonus, I pretty much smell like an Almond Joy all the time, ha!  YUM!





And I have learned to further love Extra Virgin Olive Oil (EVOO) (as if that was possible).  Seriously!  Just like with the Coconut Oil - I cook with it, use it on my skin and my hair.  I keep a bottle in the kitchen and in the bathroom.





Here is a video of the beautiful Mlle Cafe Au Lait showing what I do to my hair after washing.  This will be better than me typing it all and you having to read it.  (You know I just deleted ALL of the instructions and decided to insert the video instead, right?)




I do this all over my head and then I just diffuse my hair or let it air dry.  If I diffuse, I flip my hair over while blow drying to give me more volume.  If I air dry, I DO NOT touch the hair at all while it dries.  Once it is dry, I flip my head over and shake my hair all around, separating curls where needed in order to get my big hair going on.

I've found that using less products works great for me.  I was happy with my hair before, but I am beyond thrilled with the results I have been getting using next to nothing.  I hope that you find this helpful.  Especially for curly girls that may think that natural hair products are costly.  I am spending next to nothing these days and my hair looks and feels more fabulous than ever.

Ta-ta for now :)