What I Wore: The Dress Skirt

Posted in Fashion, Not hair, What I Wore by Jen

So I have this maxi dress I got from my sister that I don't like so much.
I don't know, I just feel it makes me look fat~~ter~~

My first thought was to cut it up and make it a two piece like Desola of Dee Mako did here.

In the end, I decided to just be the razz lazy girl that I am and fold it into a skirt.(Shhh! Don't tell anyone)

Maxi dress: Kivenst
Denim Shirt: Way Jeans
Camisole: Next
Sandals: Zara Basic

What item of clothing have you repurposed/found a new way of wearing lately? Should I keep the outfit posts coming? Share with us pretty please!

5Feb2015

My Hair Stash (Feb 2015)

Posted in hair practices, products by Jen

Salut, hello, howdy!

I am not a product junkie! I really am not. However I seem to have a lot of stuff for someone who basically uses mostly shampoo, conditioner, leave in and shea butter 95% of the time! I did not realize until I was taking pictures for this post that I had so much stuff that I don't use often! I had to dust some of them before taking pictures sef

(Photo Cred: @thecreamycrackrehab on Instagram)

Without further ado,behold my stash

CLEANSERS/SHAMPOOS

-Bobeam shampoo bar in Shealoe (purchased from The Kinky Apothecary ). I have had it for over a year y'all)
-Dudu Osun- melted down and mixed with water and olive oil (Can be purchased from your local grocery/beauty store)

My staple: Dudu Osun

CONDITIONERS

-Shea Moisture restorative conditioner (a gift from someone who went abroad but can be purchased on The Kinky Apothecary as well as Olori)
-V05 herbal escapes conditioner (purchased at NITC but can be bought at many local grocery/beauty stores. I mostly buy it at Bruno's Place opposite Silverbird at Ikeja City Mall)
-V05 tea therapy conditioner (purchased at Bruno's Place)
-Herbal Essences ignite my color conditioner (purchased at Maxmart in Accra but can be found at Casa Bella or Goodies)

My staple: V05 conditioners(any kind but I like the Moisture Milks line the most I think). Haven't had a chance to use the Shea Moisture much yet.

DEEP CONDITIONERS

-Vitale hair mayonnaise (purchased at Spar but can be found at many local grocery/beauty stores)
-Coconut milk (purchased at Spar and can be found in most big grocery stores. You can also make yours)
-Shea Moisture purification masque (purchased at NITC but can be purchased on The Kinky Apothecary as well as Olori)

My staple: None. I haven't used them long enough but I like the purification masque. Still not sold on the Vitale. Coconut milk is something I've used a number of times and I like but I don't use it very often(I mix it with other stuff e.g conditioner before use). Usually I deep condition with my regular conditioner and don't use a store bought deep conditioner so these are relatively new(except coconut milk as I explained)

LEAVE IN CONDITIONERS/MOISTURIZERS

-Cantu Shea butter leave in conditioning repair cream-2 tubs. (One was a gift while the other was purchased on Olori)
-Elasta QP olive oil and mango butter moisturizer (Purchased at Casa Bella but can also be bought on Olori)
-Water in a spray bottle (purchased at… Just kidding)

My staple: Cantu and water

STYLING PRODUCTS

-Shea Moisture curl enhancing smoothie (won in a giveaway but can be purchased on The Kinky Apothecary as well as Olori)
-Eco Styler olive oil gel (purchased from The Kinky Apothecary at the same time as the Bobeam)

My staple: None. I don't really use styling products. Eco styler works well when I want a laid down sleek look.

OILS

-Olive oil (Can be found at your local grocery store)
-Silverbird Eucalyptus oil (Can be found at your local pharmacy)
-Canola oil (Can be found at your local grocery store)
-Castor oil (can be found at your local pharmacy)

My staple: None. I'm using oils less and less. If you had asked me in the past I would say Olive oil but ever since I realized that it does nothing for me when it comes to sealing, I now only use it for occasional oil rinses, prepooing and deep conditioning mixes. Silverbird I use because it is so affordable compared to other essential oils and I like the menthol feel and smell. Castor oil I use mostly when I have a protective style on or if I see my edges vanishing. Canola oil I used out of curiosity and only use for oil rinses and prepooing occasionally.

BUTTERS

-Nasheaba Shea body butter (purchased at Shoprite Accra)
-African Naturalistas hair butter in Sweet Rosie (won in a giveaway but I believe the formula has been revised. Can be purchased on African Naturalistas or Jumia)
-Shea butter (purchased at Game Accra but can be found at your local market)

My staple: Nasheaba or any Shea butter mix/whipped Shea butter really.

MISCELLANEOUS

-Apple Cider Vinegar (purchased at Spar. Can also be found at Shoprite. The organic version can be found at Health Plus)
-Neem powder (purchased on Olori)
-Shikakai powder (purchased on Olori)
-Bhringraj powder (purchased on Olori)

My staple: Apple cider vinegar. I use it as a final rinse most times when I wash my hair(don't know if it makes a difference but I do it) and I use it to clean my scalp when I have a protective style on. Still haven't gotten the hang of Ayurveda though.

C'est fini.

What are your staple products? Is your stash less, similar to or bigger than mine? What products do you recommend I try? Please share!

28Jan2015

What I wore: Stripes and Nude

Posted in events, Fashion, Not hair, Product store, products, What I Wore by Jen

This might come as a shocker to you but this is an outfit post! *jaws drop* LOL

Remember I’m dabbling and diversifying? It’s all in a bid to make me post more consistently.

I read a number of blogs: hair, makeup, fashion, food etc.
Of recent I think I have read one too many fashion posts so that might be the inspiration behind this post.

I am not a fashion blogger neither am I a fashionista but I think style is relative and maybe someone out there might find mine interesting.

If you ask me to describe my style in 1 word it would be ‘comfy’.
However, my sister and my good friend say I am boho/hippie(I do not agree though).

I wore this outfit to work sometime last week.

And because I see them do this on fashion blogs:

Top: Apt. 9 essential

Blazer: Dorothy Perkins (from Debra’s Grace, a cool store in Yaba)

Pants: Next (I’ve had them for years and have rocked the life out of them so much so that they are fading)

Shoes: I don’t know (long story)

Bag: Michael Kors (obtained from my mama)

Hair: Twists using Noble Gold (4 packs, uncut)

Oh and have you heard of Design Essentials? It’s a product brand that makes products for people who want healthy hair and has a line for natural hair. I first heard about them on Kemi Lewis’ blog.She uses their products in her natural hair salon.

Design essentials just launched a flagship store and training centre in Ikeja(yay for the mainland!) that stocks their products.

Their natural hair friendly products are silicone, paraben, paraffin, petrolatum, mineral oil and sulfate free and include the:

-Curl cleanser

-Moisturizing conditioner

-Almond and avocado detangling leave-in conditioner

-Honey curl forming custard

-Honey and Shea edge tamer

and more.

I love the packaging and I also sniffed some of the products(they smell great!) plus Kemi Lewis speaks well of them so I’m looking forward to trying them out!

Store details:

LOCATION: Angels Super Store, 88 Awolowo way, Ikeja by Fadeyi, beside Holy Trinity Hospital.

TEL: 08033029107 or 08033264570

OPENING HOURS: 9-7, Mon-Sat

What do you guys think of outfit posts on the blog every now and then? Yay or nay?

Have an awesome week!

20Jan2015

Crochetastic

Posted in protective styling, styling by Jen

Hi people!
Remember I said I had crochet braids?
Today I want to tell you in words and show you in pictures my crochet experience.

I had wanted to try crochet braids for so long but the prices the salons that could do it were calling were heart attack worthy so I figured why not do it myself?

So how did that go?

WHAT DID I USE?
-A big bobby pin
-1 pack of Supreme Afro Twist Braid (colour 1)
-1 pack of Noble Afro Braid (colour 1)
-2 hours(approximately. Excluding cornrowing time)

It works better if you widen it like so.

BRAID PATTERN

I cornrowed on clean, moisturized hair. I made 8 neat cornrows in front(making sure to line the centre and side where I wanted the part to be because I wanted to be able to wear the hair both ways).
I then joined two cornrows together to form one ugly one at the back so I had 4 at the back(hope you understand this my weird explanation).
Lastly I made one horizontal cornrow at the back below it all, that is at the nape.

Truth is you will be fine just doing all back cornrows. Don’t mind my senrenre

DID I DOCUMENT THE PROCESS?
No 😦
I was sick at the time and didn’t feel up to it.
However, this pictorial from The Kink and I as well as a quick Google/YouTube search will be of great help to you.
It’s super easy to do!

I cut some of the hair into halves and used these shorter pieces around the middle and sides where my proposed partings would be so it could have a somewhat layered look.

Here’s what it looked like when I was done. Don’t judge the pictures, remember I was sick.

Did I like it?
Yeah, but it wasn’t really me.
So I thought, let me see what it looks like curly.
Some twists, bendy rollers(flexi rods) and hot water burns on my neck later, it was curly.

And did I like it? No! I preferred it in its original state but there was no way to get it back so after a bit of deliberation, I combed it out.

I would take a section, spritz with water, apply conditioner and go to town combing with my wide tooth comb.

IT. TOOK. 4. HOURS!!!!!

And I was left looking like a lioness but I actually liked it

MAINTENANCE
FOR THE EXTENSIONS
Combed out, this hair tangles a lot!
I put it in big twists at night or whenever I wasn’t going anywhere to curb the tangling. The twist outs were nice too so this was a win-win.
Saturdays were the only days when I combed it. I would spritz with water and give it a thorough combing.

FOR MY REAL HAIR/SCALP
I would spritz my cornrows with water only from time to time, say twice a week.
I oiled my scalp about 3 times a week(and whenever it felt itchy) with a mix of castor oil and eucalyptus oil. I oiled my edges more often.
On Saturdays before I combed the extensions, I would clean my scalp with cotton wool dipped in a mix of apple cider vinegar, eucalyptus oil and water.

HOW LONG DID THE STYLE LAST?
I kept it in for 4 weeks but it could very well go for much much longer!

HOW I WORE THE STYLE

Minnie Mouse did not leave the house though. It was too big for me.

I never wore it down much and when I did, by midday I’d have put it up. Lagos is too hot yo!

TAKEDOWN
You can easily cut the extensions where it connects around your cornrow and pull it off. I however wanted to reuse the extensions so I opted to not cut. I used a bobby pin/comb to raise/loosen the knots the extensions made around the cornrow, unknotted and pulled out the extensions.

WOULD I TRY THIS STYLE AGAIN
Definitely! It’s easy to do and it’s a good protective style. If I can find other extensions to use for a different look that would be even better.

You can do this style yourself but if you’re in Lagos and you’d rather get it done at a salon, you can visit:

-KL’s Natural Beauty Bar
29C Ikorodu Crescent in Dolphin Estate, Ikoyi Lagos.
08063650977

-Savvy and Chic Hair and Beauty Hub
34A Awolowo Rd, Ikoyi, Lagos.
08090613325

-Tunmise Natural Hair Salon
147b Ogunlana Drive, Alhaji Masha Roundabout, (Opposite the Taxi Park) Surulere, Lagos.
08039138342

Have you done crochet braids yourself? Tell us all about it! Have you gotten it done at a salon and you’d like to recommend that salon? Would you try crochet braids? Please share!

9Jan2015

Tresses And Body Organics

Posted in Feature, Product store, products, Spotlight by Jen

Hey guys,

It’s always a delight to learn about a new Nigerian store or brand that caters to natural/healthy hair and well being. So that when you’re feeling a little rich or you’re in need of some good products, you have places to splurge in and products to splurge on!

Today I’d like to introduce to you Tresses and Body Organics.

What do they do?

“We specialize in everything organic, 100% herbal with no harsh chemicals or additives. Our products nourish, heal, hydrate, tone and keep the skin and hair healthy. We deal with popular brands like Shea Moisture, Cantu, Jessie Curls, Ambro Styl, Softee, Infermo, Silk, Twist n Lock, Vaadi Herbals, Beautiful Textures, African Pride, Forest Essentials etc.

We sell at wholesale and retail, products include:

-Vaadi Herbals

-Shea Moisture range

-Essential/ carrier oils e.g Palmarosa, Argan, Indian Rose, Pimento berry, Clove, Clary sage, Peppermint, Neroli, Tangerine, avocado etc.

-Natural hair products like Jessie Curls, Cantu, Beautiful Textures, Carson’s, Shea Miracle etc.

-Ayuverdic powders from the Middle-East and India e.g Morroccan Rhassoul clay, Neem powder, Amla powder etc.

-Sulfate free shampoos

-Sulfate free conditioners

-Heat protectant serums

-Hair Moisture butters

-Hair Growth oil

-Revitalizing Scrubs

-Facial wash

-Body scrubs

-Home spa kits
Etc.”

Where do they deliver to?

“We deliver nationwide and carry out door to door delivery”

Contact Details:

Phone number- 08075542049 or 08183412877
BB pin- 2B6CAC09
Facebook page- Tresses & Body Organics Ent.
Blog- Tresses and Body Organics
Address- 33, fatai irawo street, Ajao estate, off Int’l airport road, Lagos Nigeria

So that’s it folks; feel free to contact them and buy to your heart’s(and hair’s) content. I haven’t bought from them yet but hopefully I will soon.

If you sell/make natural hair products or offer natural hair related services, feel free to send me an email.

Take care beautiful people,
Have a fun-tastic weekend!

3Jan2015

Pounds and inches

Posted in Not hair, Random, Weight loss by Jen

Bonjour mes amis,

How have you been finding the first few days of 2015?

My year started off with a cold. And as someone who likes to sleep in their underwear(TMI or nah?) with the AC on the coldest, my cold is not getting any better.

I spoke to customers(My new job is in customer service) all day yesterday in the most irritating, nasal-congested voice.

Anyways people, while thinking about 2014 blog wise, I realized that I wasn’t the most consistent blogger at all! I had only 24 posts in the whole of 2014! That means 2 a month basically. I don’t think those are good stats. I’m thinking 4 a month i.e 1 a week should be the worst case scenario for a blogger. Scream not when I tell you that my other blog only had 1 post in the whole year! So this year, my aim is to be a bit more consistent with blogging.

I have thought about it and seeing as I might not have hair related stuff to talk about every so often, I might be dabbling in and posting other random stuff and tidbits of my thoughts and life on the blog. What do you guys think?

For today’s random dabble, let’s rein ourselves back in to the title of the post.

I need to lose some pounds and inches in 2015!

At the risk of giving you guys the story of my life, I used to be quite skinny and then I was quite fat and then I lost weight and now I don’t know what I am.

In 2015 I need to get that crop top body for real! Know what I mean? Who’s with me!

I need to cut out the junk food, eat healthy, watch my portions, not drink my calories, throw in some exercise(this is the hardest for me), think positively and just basically do it!

The reason why I’m blogging about it is so that I can be held accountable. By the end of 2015, I can look back on these words and see if I met or failed my goal.

-Do you want to lose some weight in 2015 as well?
-Any weight loss tips to give?
-What do you want to be held accountable for this year?
-Anything you’d like me to post more about in 2015?
-Anything you’d like me to start posting about in 2015?
Please share!

Whatever your goal might be this year, don’t forget to put it in words, make a plan and work towards it.

1Jan2015

2014 final length check

Posted in hair update, Length check by Jen

2015 is here!!!!!

Without taking too much of your time, I just want to wish you a happy new year. May 2015 be filled with boundless joy, unending peace, unmeasurable success, heartwarming love & every good thing for you & yours!

I also want to show you my final length check pictures of 2014.

Comparing these to my 1 year nappiversary length check, I’m pretty surprised at the difference because my hair was out most of the time(hardly any protective styling) and quite honestly also close to neglected half the time.

So that’s it for this very brief post. According to my stats for 2014, the blog had over 15,000 views and 24 new posts. Let’s see if we can triple that in 2015 ei? I’ll work hard to post more often.

Thank you so much to everyone who reads the blog, leaves comments, sends me emails, follows the blog, likes posts etc.
I love you guys!💗

Let’s have an amazing year, shall we?
If you’re not following the blog on Instagram I don’t know what you’re waiting for oh! Oya follow @nigerianandnatural

17Dec2014

8 Common Hair Practices My Hair Just Can’t Handle!

Posted in hair journey, hair practices, Reblog by Jen

Read this post and thought to share with you guys. You do not need to do every method out there suggested by the “gurus”. Find what works for you and run with it.
Here’s the comment I left on the post so you can see my own experience with trying to do everything I read on blogs: “May the good lord bless you for this post! Up till last 2 months I was still on the lighter oils bandwagon cos of my fine strands and I didn’t know why my hair was not retaining moisture. Now I have switched to Shea butter I can see and feel the difference! Also I was applying oils every single time I spritzed with water! And I hated the oily feeling. One day I decided to spray with water alone and massage it in and twist without the oil. The next day my hair did not dry out! I started wondering why I was using oils every blessed day to seal in the moisture. Now I can have soft hair that isn’t oily. Tea rinses leave my hair a hard tangled mess. When I did GHE my hair smelt like clothes they soaked for 2 days. Bottom line, not everything works for everyone so do you!”

Coily Head of Hair | Top Nigerian Natural Hair Bloggers

Hey world! Goodness its been a long time since I have been here. To you all that have been awaiting new posts. My apologies. Life got the better of me and it aint gonna do it no more lol. I am sharing this 8 common hair practices my hair personally doesn’t roll with..so to speak.

8) The Green house effect method, A.K.A GHE method:

A lot of naturals swear by this method for faster growth rate. I used to do this during my TWA days; well not for faster growth but to maintain moisture levels in my hair. Now when I GHE, the result is always this mushy hair with a kind of ‘’rain fell on relaxed hair’’ smell to it. That’s not something I want to constantly do to my hair.

7) Co-washing:

Yes. You read right. Conditioner-washing. That’s the best thing that ever happened to hair…

View original post 686 more words

17Dec2014

All I Want For Christmas

Posted in Not hair, products, Wish list by Jen

Hello my people! How body?

Let’s overlook the fact that I’ve been MIA ‘kay? Okay

I’m here to share with you my ~~unrealistic~~ Christmas wish list. You know talking about hair 24/7 can get boring so sometimes we’ve gotta switch it up a bit, no?

Without further ado and in no particular order, here’s what I want(so Santa take note):

1. An iPhone 6

God said it and I believe it that 2015 is my year to be the proud owner of a gold iPhone so that I can also be taking mirror selfies or what do you guys think? So readers as you are reading, if The Lord is laying it in your heart, you can email me and I will receive the phone from you with great gratitude.
(P.s there is an iPad giveaway over at She Loves The Finer Things so don’t dull)

2. Man Candy

Every girl has a/some point(s) in her life where she wonders if she is repelling the good guys and attracting the creeps(Don’t lie!). At the moment, it is basically creep central station for me. So this Christmas, dear Santa, I need me some man candy. Easy on the eyes and sweet too. Is that too much to ask for? I think not.

3. A DSLR Camera

I’ve been wanting one since 2012! I even made a list of the possible options. The Canon T3i is currently topping that list with it being somewhat affordable in comparison yet really great. Hopefully I’ll get one soon *fingers crossed* and that would mean beautiful picture quality on the blog for you all to enjoy.

4. A Vacation

I started a new job guys *fireworks*. But it has only been a little over a month and I am already so stressed out! I need to be on a beach somewhere sipping on a strawberry daiquiri and watching the blue waves rise and fall. Or perhaps in a 5 star restaurant somewhere saying “I’ll have the whole of page 1 and also page 3 and then give me page 6 for dessert”. You know! *sigh*

Of course I have to include some hair stuff too!

5. Herbal Essences Hello Hydration Conditioner

I can hear some of you saying “now she is being realistic”. I’ve read so many rave reviews of this product and I am dying to give it a go. As a matter of fact, I spotted it in Accra and purchased it with the speed of light only to walk out of the store and bring it out of the bag to sniff it and realize it was the shampoo! The Kink And I is currently having a huge giveaway which includes this product and you can be sure I entered(again, don’t dull people!)

6. The kinky Apothecary’s Whipped Batter

So I won a giveaway hosted by The Kink And I and The Kinky Apothecary. They gave me Shea Moisture’s Curl Enhancing Smoothie but I also found a cute little sample tub of the whipped batter when the package arrived. I’ve used it now and I love it so much. This stuff smells amaaaazzzing! I want it! I need it!

The Kinky Apothecary is actually giving away 12(yes 12!) tubs of it to 12 lucky people on their Instagram page so do not dull oh!

So that’s it folks. I have loads more on my list but these are the basics.

So do you want any of the things on my list? What do you want this Christmas? Please share!

Hope you’re having a lovely week.
Bises! (‘Hugs/kisses’ in French)

Images gotten from Google, The Kinky Apothecary’s Instagram page and myself

5Dec2014

Double standards

Posted in fiction, random ranting by Jen

My first memory of it was when I was 8 and my uncle gave my brother, Ugo and me a box of crayons to share. The crayons were 15. I wanted to take 8 so Ugo could have 7 after all I was older but Ugo threw a tantrum and said he wanted 8. I ran to my mum and she said to me “Chinenye, let him take 8. He is a boy and you are a girl”.
I didn’t understand what she meant. If she had said “He is your baby brother”, I would have understood even though I wouldn’t give up that 1 crayon willingly. I would have understood.
But she said “He is a boy and you are a girl”.
You see, I’d never thought we were different until that moment. Sure enough I knew daddy always gave him a bigger share of the dried meat he brought home often but I always just thought it was because he was younger.
When daddy told Ugo not to help mummy cook anymore because the kitchen is a woman’s place even though Ugo loved it, I began to wonder.
I said to mummy “why can’t Ugo do what he likes? Does it matter that he’s a boy?” And she said “Nne it does. Some things are for boys while some things are for girls. That is the way it should be”.

In JSS1, I remember practising for weeks the points I would make during the inter-school debate I was meant to represent my school in. I was so excited. My parents were coming to watch me with a photographer to cover the event.
We had had an in-house debate in school and I had won the votes of my classmates beating Vincent 150-40.
On the morning of the event I was dressed in my cleanest, most ironed pinafore with my socks whiter than snow and my shoes so polished you could see your reflection in them. I got to the school bus only to be informed by the debate master that “Vincent will be going for the debate instead. We decided that he will do a better job because he is more confident and assertive”
I cried for days! Vincent that couldn’t even string a sentence together without a grammatical error. Vincent that couldn’t even look you in the eye when he spoke, “more confident and assertive”?. Of course my school lost.

I had worked at B&G Holdings for 7 years and I was due for a promotion. It was down to me and Segun Aina and everyone knew I would be the one because Segun had been in the company for a little over 2 years and hadn’t brought in half as much business as I had. It was a no-brainer, the promotion was mine.
When Segun got the promotion instead, I went to my boss and asked why. He said “Chinenye, you know you are a woman. Very soon you will get married and your family will become number one in your life instead of the company. Besides Segun will be a better representative. People will take him more seriously as the face of the company”.

All the inspirational quotes tell you to work hard so you can be successful. They never mention that you should be a man too if not you will live your life always almost getting to the top, always being second best even when in all honesty you are the best.

***********************************
It’s been too long guys, I know!! Forgive me! This post is fiction but is inspired by Chimamanda Adichie’s “We should all be feminists” speech(I’m too lazy to get you a link but you can google it and watch it on Youtube. An excerpt of it is in Beyoncé’s Flawless) and by my baby brother telling me “You can’t be rich unless you marry a rich man. That’s what I heard on Afmag” after I said “I can’t wait to be rich!”.

What do you guys think? Are there (still) double standards when it comes to men and women especially in Africa because I think there definitely are? What can we do about it?

P.S: if you’re ever looking for me, I can sometimes be found over at my hair blog. You can check it out here if you’re into that sort of thing.

Peace!

Jennifer Abah

Author Archives: Jen