1 year anniversary!!!

Hip hip hip!!! Hurray!!!!

One year ago today I walked into that barbershop wanting a fade and came out with hair so short it almost didn’t need to be combed!

In actual fact, the anniversary of my big chop was on the 14th of June but I decided to go with my second big chop(July 18th) because with that cut, I started from scratch so basing it on that date shows a truer picture of a year’s growth.
*Phew* That was a mouthful! I hope you understand what I mean though.
Either ways(June or July), I still have one year under my belt!

So here’s a mini timeline of pictures showing my progress over the year!

My first big chop(June 2013)

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My second cut, July 2013

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Last week

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Today’s simple look(ignore the giant pimple)

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Over this first year, I experimented with products, Ayurveda, dyed my hair etc.
Let’s see how the next year goes but from the look of things, I foresee that it will be a lazy year(you never know though).

Taking a page out of AB’s book, I will be setting anniversary goals; these are changes I would like to see/make by my next anniversary.

Here are my goals for the year ahead:

1. Kick dandruff’s ass.
2. Beat hand-in-hair syndrome.
3. More length and thickness at my edges and nape.
4. Growth/Length retention.

I think that’s not too much to ask for!

So cheers to my hair at one year *glasses clink*

Expect a post about my new favorite simple go-to style + a one year length check soon.

Peace!

Curl confessions

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Hi there!

I’ve been seeing people air all their hair’s dirty laundry on various blogs under the tag “Curl Confessions” and I decided to also let the breeze blow this fowl’s butt.

Without further ado, here are a few of my “dirty little secrets”:

1. It seems like I am constantly in a war with dandruff. Sometimes I win the battle for a while but in the long run dandruff runs this war.

2. I haven’t done a protein treatment in ages. I honestly can’t be bothered.

3. I have soooo many single strand knots!!!! They drive me so crazy!

4. I break off the aforementioned knots with my hands. I just yank at them.

5. I’m forever playing with the hair at my edges and nape. This is a horrible habit that I believe is the major reason for my having much shorter hair in those areas.

6. I have hand-in-hair syndrome. Nos 3,4 and 5 must have given you a clue.

7. I am very heavy handed with products especially conditioner. As a member of team cheapskate, this is bad for business as I’m always running out of stuff.

8. I have moments when I think about relaxing my hair.

9. I’m forever obsessing about my hair growing; stretching it this way and that way to see if it has grown in the last 5 minutes, daydreaming about all the styles I’ll do when it’s loooonnngg.

10. Given the funds, opportunity and funds(yes I said funds twice), I would be the Product Junkie of life! Like I would probably go gaga and need rehab.

11. Many times I can’t even be bothered to be gentle cos I don’t have the time or patience. I will pull my hair, comb/detangle aggressively, comb my hair dry etc.

12. I’ve only ever had leave in conditioner twice(although I just invested in some now cos I’m trying to change). Usually I just seal my damp hair with oil or use my regular rinse-out conditioner as a leave in and call it a day.

13. I usually forget to wash my satin bonnet often. The next one I buy has to be white or a light colour so I can see when it’s dirty and be shamed into washing it.

I’ll stop here cos right now I can’t think of any more. Remember God said we should not judge oh!

Do you do any of the things I’ve listed? Do you do worse? Or are you a saint in the hair department? Let us know in the comment section.

In other news, the blog has an email address now. I’ve added it to the “About” page but here it is nigerianandnatural@gmail.com

Feel free to email me.

Xoxo

Driving me bananas

I know, I know; I’ve been MIA! Sorry for the absence. Life happened.

I’m kicking myself for not having any pictures of the dilemma I’m about to tell you.

About 3 weeks ago, I thought I would try bananas to deep condition my hair. I had seen people do it on blogs and a friend of mine had done it in the past. So I steal get two bananas out of my sister’s bunch and keep them till the weekend. Beforehand I did some reading and read somewhere that you should sieve the mixture before use.
Being the rebel that I am(rolls eyes), I did not listen. There was no light(Thanks NEPA!) so I didn’t even use a blender. I just mashed my bananas with a spoon, threw in some honey and olive oil(I think I added a bit of conditioner too but my memory fails me), saturated my hair with my mixture and put on my shower cap nylon bag.
Time to wash it out!! I rinsed my hair and cowashed it and it felt good! I’m thinking “I like this banana deep condition oh!”. I step out of the bathroom and stand in front of the mirror and what do I see? Particles upon particles upon particles. I’m like “Blood of Jesus!”.
I go and cowash again, this time very vigorously and I use a comb this time(been finger detangling for a while now).
Brethren I stepped in front of the mirror and there was no damn difference.
My brain is processing, thinking “what to do, what to do”.
These strings and particles and jammed tight in my wet coils.
I figured the best bet would be to wait till the hair dries.
When the hair dried, my sister helped me comb and pick out the particles. She couldn’t even get all of them out.
I put my hair in flat twists speckled in banana leftovers and wore my new wig over it like that.

Moral lesson of this sermon: DO NOT USE BANANAS IN YOUR HAIR WITHOUT SIEVING FIRST BECAUSE YOU WILL DEFINITELY REGRET IT!!!!

Check out my new wig!!

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WIG DETAILS:
Name: Vivica Fox
Price: N8,950
Place of purchase: Casa Bella, Ikeja City Mall

I’ve been wearing it for three weeks now. Every weekend I wash and deep condition my hair, put it in flat twists for the week and wear my wig over it.

In other news, I’m done with NYSC! Whoop whoop! Praying for greater things and higher heights!

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The blog turned one in May and I missed it :(. I’m not even sure of the date.

My one year “nappyversary” is coming up also and I don’t know which day to even choose; is it the day of my first big chop? Or the day of my 2nd big chop? Maybe you guys can help me decide.

However, here are my dates to note:
Last whole head relaxer- Jan 25th, 2013
Relaxed just the front for a weave- March 8th, 2013
Big chop- June 14th, 2013
Second big chop- July 18th, 2013

Hopefully, I will have another post up sooner than later *fingers crossed*

Till next time guys,
Take care.

I’m bad at titling stuff but this is just an update

Hi guys, it’s been a minute.

I really don’t have much to talk about. My hair isn’t in the best place right now; I have inexplicable dandruff, thin edges and I’ve combed my hair dry one too many times. Hoping to get back on track ASAP and sort my hair out.

In other news, I stopped taking the Biotin. I got a horrible Urinary Tract Infection(UTI). Even though I’d rather not discuss this(lol) it might be of use to someone else. I’m not new to UTIs; I’ve had them a few times in the past but I haven’t had one in over 2 years so when I started feeling the symptoms, I guessed it was something I’d recently started doing that caused it. My mind told me it was the Hair,Skin and Nail supplements but I kept taking them and drinking bucket loads of water to hopefully flush the UTI bacteria out. The infection only got worse until I took to Google and saw that some people complained about getting UTIs from taking Biotin or Hair supplements(some said it was the Pantothenic acid that caused it,some said it was the Biotin itself etc). I’m not very certain the pills caused it but it is highly likely that it is. I stopped taking them and was treated with antibiotics and the infection is gone.

Anyone who is willing to try the pills can email me and I will give it to them(if you can pick it up in Lagos especially in the Maryland/Ikeja vicinity). I took them for one month so I took about 90 pills meaning there should be about 160 pills left in the bottle. Email me at jenniferabah(at)gmail(dot)com if you want it and can pick it up.
As far as progress goes, here’s a before and after.

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It’s grown a bit more since I stopped taking the pills. It’s just hair/nails in the end; it will grow.

As always,I will leave you with a mini gallery of how my hair has been/how I’ve been wearing it. Enjoy.

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You know I love my puffs

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Been trying some Ayurveda. Not yet sure how I feel about it

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Did mini twists and actually wore them out

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Did loads of flat twist outs

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I’m currently looking to buy a wig so that I can keep my hands out of my hair and keep my hair safe from my cruelty.
Will let you guys know how that goes.
Be safe!

P.s It’s been 10 months since I did the big chop! Oh and I’m still thinking about opening a product store so your opinions and suggestions on that are welcome.

Product store in Nigeria

Hi y’all,
Straight to the point.

Finding products in Nigeria is still a struggle for me(I’m sure a lot of you can relate!). Even worse is the fact that when I do find products, the prices send me into a mini cardiac arrest(I’m sure even more people can relate). You know I’m a proud member of the Cheapskates club!

So I’ve been thinking, I want to open a store and sell products! Products for natural hair and for anyone who is looking to have healthy hair or who is on a healthy hair journey. I want to focus on those hard to find products/brands that are mostly only available abroad.

My main aim is to make the products reasonably affordable(Considering shipping cost and all). Another aim of mine is to be able to ship nationwide.

Products will be displayed and available for purchase online. Also, they will be available at a supermarket in Ikeja, Lagos for those who prefer to shop physically and for those who want to pickup what they ordered online(Hopefully, more outlets will be available in the future in other places)

For now though, it’s still just an idea. So I need opinions! I was going to put a poll below but I changed my mind. Please let me know in the comment section what you think.

Here’s what I’d like you to answer:

1. Do you think I should start selling hair products or do you think there are too many stores already?

2. What kind of products/tools/things would you like me to stock?

3. What brands would you like me to stock?

4. What do you think of this idea in general?

5. Anything you’d like to say?

Thank you!

Have an awesome week guys!

P.S. Please help me get the word out so that I can get as many people’s feedback as possible, thanks and God bless!

Product Review: Taliah Waajid Curly Curl Cream

So today I bring your way a product review.

I got Taliah Waajid’s curly curl cream from Casa Bella at Ikeja City mall. It was an impulse buy.

Let’s get straight to it. It’s going to be as short as possible.

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PROS
-It defines curls like it says it will.
This product would be great for wash and go’s because it defines curls/coils. (I however use it to twist my hair mostly and it works well for that too.)
However I have often heard that if you have no curls in the first place, curl defining products will have nothing to define. So keep this in mind and don’t expect a miracle product that will turn your hair to telephone cord type of curls, lol. It’ll define the curls that you do have.

-It’s moisturizing.
I love this stuff when it comes to moisturizing! It makes/keeps my hair soft and moisturized for days. The first ingredient is water and it also has glycerin and Shea butter in it.

-The smell is nice. Nothing too fantastic but nice.

-A little goes a long way. It’s thick too.

-Leaves no whitish residue once you rub it in properly.

CONS
-It’s sticky.
And if you are heavy handed like I am, it can leave your hair feeling sticky and mushy. So definitely use it in small doses.

-The price IN NIGERIA.
I don’t know about other parts of the world but the price here isn’t particularly low. I got this for N2890 I believe from Casa Bella.

-It contains mineral oil.
Mineral oil is number 9 on the ingredient list. Mineral oil is said to weigh down the hair, clog the scalp and cause build up. I think they have discontinued using mineral oil in this product though(either that or they just started adding the mineral oil?) because I googled the ingredient list and all the results came up without mineral oil.(Ps I think mineral oil makes my scalp itch more but this is still a theory for now)

I didn’t look at the ingredients before purchasing because I felt Taliah Waajid would use natural ingredients since they are a natural hair company and I was in a hurry. Don’t make this mistake. Never be in a hurry to buy products. At least google them or look through the ingredients patiently before purchasing.

All in all I would rate this product 3.5 out of 5

I put some on the front part of my hair and didn’t put any at the back so you could see the contrast

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Now for a nail update. I’ve been taking Biotin for a week and 2 days now.

This is what it looked like before I started

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It’s still too early but this is what it looks like 9 days later

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If you’d like to buy Taliah Waajid Curly Curl Cream, you can try:

1. Casa Bella outlets. They sell it for about N2800

2. The Kinky Apothecary. They deliver across Nigeria or you can drop by their stand at L’espace 19A Olosa Street, off Karimu Kotun ,Victoria Island, Lagos. They sell it for N2000(Don’t forget there’ll be a charge if you’re having it delivered)

3. Dab’s import window on Naija Hair Can Grow. From the 1st to 7th of every month you can send her requests on hard to get products and she imports them on your behalf.

Don’t forget to always check the ingredient list before purchasing products and when in doubt, google google google!

Peace!

Biotin? Yes

Hi guys!
I started taking Biotin on Saturday. In the past I talked about how it was expensive and I wanted to avoid it because I’d read that it could cause acne.
Well I decided to put on my big girl pants and shove my hand deep into my wallet to buy it.
You might be thinking the reason is my hair. It’s actually not.
It’s my nails. Yes, my nails.
In Alcoholics Anonymous fashion, let me just say “Hi I’m Jennifer and I’m a nail biter”.
It’s a bad habit that I can’t seem to shake.
Recently I was thinking of creative ways I would take a picture of my engagement ring(whenever I get engaged) without my nails showing 😦
So after drooling at Ez of Beauty In Lagos’ nails for about a month, I decided I had to be proactive.

In the past, I have stopped biting my nails at different times and I’ve even managed to grow them to an extent but I always went back to biting. Sometimes I’ll dedicate one hand or some fingernails only to biting and grow the rest but in the end I’ll return to my habit. I even bite the skin around them( God said we shouldn’t judge others).
Also, they were always weak and brittle and would break and bend and tear.

So this time, I decided to help them out as much as I can.

I googled how to grow nails and biotin came up a lot and I thought “what an irony! The biotin I was dodging”.
To cut the long story short, I have started taking them. Any hair growth will of course be a bonus but the purpose for them is my nails.

I went to a nearby pharmacy and I bought “Nature’s Bounty Hair, Skin and Nails”. They contain 5000mcg of Biotin along with other vitamins. They cost me a whopping N5350 *weeps* so they better do something. There are 250 capsules and you are to take 3 a day which means there are 83 servings in total so these should last me almost 3 months which I hope is enough time to see some good change.
So far, I have no acne out of the ordinary.
As for results, I can’t say because it’s only been 4 days.

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They are not recommended if you are under 18.

I will also get those really good nail hardeners to help the process.

I’m currently in a protective style after a month of having my hair out. Before I went to the salon I did my usual preparation but didn’t do a protein treatment out of laziness. When I got to the salon and the stylist had to blow dry my hair and was combing angrily and proceeded to weave a little too snug, I started regretting skipping the protein.
Anyways, my hair’s tucked away for now and hopefully 4 more weeks(if I can stand it that long).

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This ombré/dip dyed style is a DIY dye job by the way. I think I did a good job.

I came across a conditioner at shoprite Ikeja mall and decided to buy it on a whim(I do this a lot). It’s silicone free but I don’t know about the other ingredients. It was N550

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Alright, that’s about it for now.
Till next time guys,
Hugs and kisses.

Oh I didn’t show you a picture of my nails. So here’s one. Don’t laugh please. Pray with me that the biotin helps them and that my teeth stay away from them too.

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Deep conditioning is the bomb dot com

Hi y’all!

Please please please and please, if you have not been deep conditioning frequently or you’ve not been deep conditioning at all (Ah! *shudders*) you need to hop on it oh! I beg you!

This is for ALL hair types! Everyone can benefit from it whether you’re relaxed, natural, texlaxed or you have locs.

As I told my friend the other day, I am a living testimony to the “wonderment” that is deep conditioning. My hair has really really improved overtime because I was deep conditioning every single week(or at least once every 10 days) since it was barely 1/2 an inch long. In fact at that time my family members will be telling me “please which hair do you have that you are doing all these things to it”.

Now when people touch my hair and say “So soft!” or like someone said “natural hair? And it’s soft like this?!” I know that my deep conditioning and moisturizing are paying off because my hair didn’t start out this way.

I’m not going to go into the science of it all because I’m lazy I want this to be a short post but from my own experience, deep conditioning really improves the look, feel and health of your hair. My hair is a million times softer than it was when I started this journey.

You may be thinking now, “I have to go and buy one expensive deep conditioning treatment oh!”. No you don’t! You don’t need anything fancy. All you need is your regular conditioner and some oil mixed in.

You can be adventurous and mix in other things like glycerin, honey, aloe vera gel/juice, coconut milk etc or you can even go all natural and use avocado, banana, ghee(man shanu) etc.

If you’re not into mixing stuff, you can also get yourself some store bought deep conditioning treatment. Brands like Cantu, Organic Root Stimulator etc have treatments that can be bought off the shelf and would work well.

Whatever one you choose, put it in your hair, cover with a shower cap(or plastic/nylon bag like me. lol), let it sit for a while(you can sit under a dryer if you want to but I don’t. I just let my body heat do the magic) and rinse it out. Do this every week or at least 2x a month.

I’ve tried different things but for me my staple is, conditioner+oil+honey. Sometimes I’ll add glycerin, I’ll use a mix of several conditioners, I’ll use a mix of several oils but basically, it is conditioner+oil+honey. If I don’t have honey, I use just conditioner and oil(olive, castor, coconut, peppermint etc. Anyone you like really or a mixture of all).
I cover my hair with a nylon/plastic bag, tie a scarf or 2 over it and let it sit for at least 2 hours(you can do more or less but I don’t think it should be less that 30 mins or an hour). Sometimes I leave it overnight.

I usually do this after I shampoo(if I’m using shampoo that day), after I cowash(if I’m cowashing that day) or in recent times, on dry hair and then I cowash afterwards. Whatever works for you really(some people do it before they shampoo).

Just use the internet to find different deep conditioning treatments you can do. The options are nearly endless. Try different things and methods and find what works for you.

Deep conditioning should be a part of your regimen. Of course deep conditioning alone will not change your hair. It works hand in hand with other good hair practices like moisturizing, gentle handling, keeping your hair clean etc.

Whatever you use or however you choose to do it, just make sure you deep condition CONSISTENTLY and you will reap the benefits with patience. You will end up with hair you can’t keep your hands off.

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Ain’t you glad it’s Friday

Yeah, I’m not so good with titles so forgive me.
Hey y’all!
I just wanted to drop by and say hi! It’s Friday so I’m in high spirits.

My hair’s been in puffs most days(remember I said they would be my go to style? I wasn’t kidding).
By the 18th of this month, my hair would be 8 months old!!! 4 more months and we’ll be at a year old. Wow.

Anyways, I’m not going to bore you with words today; here are some pictures of how my hair’s been recently for your viewing pleasure.

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20140307-184359.jpg Puffs, puffs, puffs and more puffs.

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I tried mini twists but I took them out after 2 days and I never wore them out of my house.

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20140307-184947.jpgNotice the colour on the side of my head? More on that later

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20140307-185140.jpgShrinkage why??!!!!!

Talk to y’all later,
Peace!

We made a wig!

Hello beautiful people, welcome to March!

So this post is looong overdue considering my sister and I made this in November or so.

I’d recently read two tutorials on making wigs (this one and this one ) and I’d also watched a Youtube video about it(can’t find the link) so the idea of making one had been lingering in my head. I love a good DIY(#TeamCheapskate #TeamAdventurous) and my sister is ever ready to join in so we thought why not make a fringe wig?

The process wasn’t properly documented but please bear with me and the pictures I managed to get.

Tools needed
-A wig cap (I got a pack of 2 for N100 from some hair shop in my neighborhood)

-Your weave of choice (I used a mixture of old weaves I had: Passion,Supreme and some Peruvian I believe)

-A plastic/nylon bag

-Bonding glue (Got a bottle for N300 from the store where I got the wig cap)

-Scissors and(or) a razor blade

-A wig stand/doll or a person to make the wig on (I used my sister since I didn’t have a stand/doll)

What to do

The first step is to put a nylon/plastic bag over the wig stand/doll or person’s head. Trust me, the glue can and will seep through the wig cap so you don’t want a wig that you can’t take off the stand or person’s head after making it.

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Then put the wig cap over that

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So that done, starting from the back, first use the weave to measure the place you’re going to stick it to and snip off any excess. Proceed to put bonding glue on the track of your weave.Then stick it on

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(It should look something like this. Stick it on from one end of the neck to the other)

Keep sticking it on this way until up you get to the top of the ears.
From there on, you’re going to stick it on around the circumference of the head or in a circular pattern so it falls over the face(I didn’t take a picture of this but here’s a picture from The Fashion Engineer)

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So keep doing this until you have a small circle left to fill

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Now what you’re going to do is to take a strip of weave and put glue on the track and roll it up tight(Again, no picture was taken so here’s one from Love Ifeyinwa)

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Then put some glue in the circle left to fill and stick the rolled up strip in there.

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I proceeded to press down that place with a hot straightener(I used a semi-hot iron too. Don’t judge me). Please don’t do this part if the weave you used is synthetic; it will burn.

Now you can cut the fringe however you like.

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Funnily enough, I have never worn this wig out of my house. Maybe it’s because I feel there is something disconcerting about wigs; I feel like I could be walking on the road and a strong wind will take it right off my head.

Wigs are great protective styles. You can cornrow your hair under them and take them off at night so your hair can breathe. They give you full license to take care of your real hair without struggle as opposed to sew ins.

So, if you’re into DIYs or you just need a new inexpensive wig or you just want to try your hand at something new, give this a shot.

Jen out!