Going Curly

It has been a month since to starting using chemical fire beauty products and I do have to admit I was skeptical but very much surprised at the results. My complexion has gotten better and my skin has never felt so soft and smooth for a while. Two weeks ago I dumped out my liquid makeup for a DIY recipe I found on Scratch Mommy that I tweaked to fit my skin tone. I also found an awesome powder foundation recipe by Live Simply, also tweaked to my liking. My skin feels like it could breathe and my breakouts have been minimal. I make the video below so that you guys can see. I do use a few store bought products like mascara, brow powder, VS face flash (LOVEEE this product) and this lip gloss I really love. There are recipes online for making this items but I did not venture down that path yet. Soap Delicatessen has great beauty DIYs and also sells her products if you do not have time to make your our stuff.

HAIR: I have written a draft about my hair issues. 20+ years of hair dying, flat irons, curling irons, blow drying, many many products with lots and lots of chemicals etc., started to take its toll on my hair. It was lifeless, dry, broken, damaged. Fearing that I would wake up one day and have no hair I had to make a stand and save this hair of mine. The hair I got loads of complaints for during my teens and 20s. I had thick curly hair that I straightened both chemically and with heat tools. Noticing that my thick beautiful hair was becoming thin and dead I had to bring it back to life. My husband LOVES my curls and had been telling me to embrance them but then I listened to others that were like your hair looks bad curly make it straight. But I was going against the...curl. It was more work to keep my curly hair straight so I decided to put my old products and tools to rest and start reviving this hair.

HAIR JOURNEY: I starting research online mostly on YouTube looking for demos on how to care for curls. Yep that's right, this curly girl had no idea how to care for her locks. I found that all these girls had one thing in common, they all raved about The Curly Girl Handbook, a bible for curly girls. The last time this hair felt a flat iron was in November 2013 and my hair has been getting more healthy. It took some self control not to reach for the flat iron a few times in the beginning but my hair has gotten used to it and it is growing!! But it still has a long way to go. What I did was I changed my normal hair gel that was drying my hair to a cream curl enhancer and purchase a more conditioning conditioner and used coconut oil in my hair before shampooing.

 


CHEM FREE HAIR: For the past 2 weeks I held an experiment with my hair, I wanted to see how it would be if I only used natural shampoo, conditioner, and gel. I have an herbal shampoo for dry scalp and a apple cider vinegar rinse as the conditioner (it goes hand in hand with the shampoo because the vinegar rinses out the shampoo and anything else but keeps your natural oils). Dr. Bronner's liquid soap is great for making natural shampoos and facial cleansers. Before I shampoo, I detangle my hair with coconut oil and my fingers. Then I shampoo and rinse with the ACV conditioner and then I use Mane & Tail and comb out my hair in the shower with the conditioner in my hair and then rinse out. Wrap my hair in a cotton t-shirt. I did more YouTube research to find a natural hair gel. Now if you do not have the time or the items to make these products you can purchase them at whole food stores, but really it only take some time and then you can store in your frig for 3-4 weeks keeping only a week's worth in the bathroom and it really saves money. So I found a really cool video on how to make hair gel using flax seeds. OMG!!!!! so easy and it works!!!! I was also very, very skeptical. I watched so many videos about this gel and everyone seemed pleased with the results so I figured what the hell. Boil some water and add flax seeds, how easy. Check out Natural85 and search for more videos about this gel while your there. Yes, it was and the gel works so nice. It enhances your curl and feels natural. I don't feel like my hair is weighed down with product. And you can customize to your liking. This is my recipe and it lasts for 3 weeks in the frig. Using the gel right out of the frig works great to seal my cuticle and the curl - frizz free curls. Apply the gel and DO NOT touch your hair until it dries and then flip your head upside down, shake curls and you are done. I also made a lavender spray for next day curls. I put in a little honey for hold and it's also good for your hair, a tablespoon of coconut oil and a few drops of lavender essential oil. I try to keep a black tea rinse in my frig (it lasts for two weeks in the frig) to keep those grays at bay. Check out the video below.

July 2013 Curls

May 2014 Curls

This is my first real video hope you like it and sorry about the audio being so low. Still trying to get the hang of this. And don't forget to subscribe!

Dirty Beauty Gone Clean: Clean Deodorant

Why natural deodorant? Here's the story. Deodorant has always irritated my skin, always, but I don't wanna stink right, so I continued to wear it. Who hasn't heard people say the same, in fact my husband does not like wearing it and does not because of the aluminum in the stuff. Ah yes, added chemicals, how can I forget it is in everything we buy. So since I cleaning up my food, why not try to clean up my beauty products as well.

I did a little research on deodorants and the ingredients that make it up. I found this:

"Many popular store bought deodorants have some of the following ingredients that are harmful for our health, increasing our chances of breast cancer, possible Alzheimer’s and other diseases and illnesses:
Aluminum - linked to Alzheimer’s and breast cancer; the risks increase when added to the skin AFTER shaving! Propylene glycol - shown to cause dermatitis, liver and kidney problems in animal studies. May inhibit skin cell growth and cause skin irritation Butane - ingredient in aerosol deodorants, is listed as a skin irritantPropane - ummm, what? Enough said. Talc - Acute to chronic lung disease (talcosis), contributes to ovarian cancers

 Why are these ingredients so dangerous? They are applied to shaven skin (hair acts as a protective barrier), and to the underarm which is a location where a group of lymph nodes are gathered to help fight infection. We apply these toxins directly to an area of our body that has already been compromised because of shaving and to an area where these toxins are easily absorbed into breast tissue, into our lymph nodes and into our blood stream helping us to compromise our systems in life-threatening ways.

 What's the alternative? NATURAL DEODORANT using common products..."


We women use so much product, WAY more than men and we do not stop and read what is in these products we use everyday. Makeup, lotions for everything, DO, nail polish, all sorts of hair products etc have harmful chemicals and these products are not regulated by FDA so you have to take a stand and be more wise. It was hard to read about the ingredients in deodorant having links to breast cancer. These chemicals soak into the breast tissue which extends up into the armpit area. Scary because we use DO everyday for years. Do not trust what the ad or packing on the box tells you, research. I did a few more reviews and experiments of those expensive eye creams you get at swanky shops and beauty boutiques you can make your own at home. Stay tuned for that post.

So back to this DIY deodorant. It was super easy to make and this will last me 2 months. The hardest part was cleaning out the old DO container. Did you know that soap did not even help cleaning the gross DO? Goes to show all the garbage it was made from. So I searched high and low for the perfect natural DO to try for you guys. One that will not make me smell, one that will not melt or separate, one that would smell nice without using essential oil (I am wanting to buy some soon, I am just beginning here). The base of natural DO, I found, is always cold pressed virgin coconut oil, organic baking soda (no aluminum), organic cornstarch or arrowroot powder. Why organic? Because we want to make sure there are no GMOs defeating the purpose of natural. Kathleen's blog Becoming Peculiar, has a great post with pictures on how to make you own DO that won't melt in the summertime. I tried this recipe and tested it last night at the gym and it happened to be a warm day here in NY, it worked great and smelled delicious. I tweaked the recipe a bit because I did not have any essential oils on hand. I was very pleased with the results because I sweat crazy and if I did not wear DO I'd be stinking. This does not stop the sweat but controls the odor. I really love it. If you are wearing black or sleeveless anything, wait until it dries and maybe wipe off excess.

LEMONY FRESH NATURAL DEODORANT
1/4 C arrowroot (or organic cornstarch)
1/4 C organic baking soda
3 T coconut oil
1 T grated beeswax
zest of one lemon
cleaned out deodorant container

Double boiler: Use a medium pot and a recycled glass jar. Fill pot half way and bring water to a boil. While waiting for water to boil put coconut oil in the jar and zest the lemon if you have not done so (only the yellow part no white). When the water is at a boil turn down to low. Take a few minutes to put oil in the jar and place the jar in this water bath. Use a chopstick to stir the coconut oil until it melts fully. Now put in the zest and let it sit in this bath for 15 mins. Use a cheesecloth or coffee filter and strain the zest and oil. Squeeze the oil out of the zest and discard. Put oil back in the jar and add the beeswax and place this jar back into the bath and stir until the wax is fully melted. Combine cornstarch and baking soda together in a bowl. Pour this mix into the jar in the water bath and stir until fully combined. Working quickly pour this mix into the DO container and place in the frig to harden. Smells deliciously lemony fresh!

PERKS
arrowroot (for sensitive skin)/cornstarch - absorbs moisture
baking soda -  eliminates odor
cold pressed virgin coconut oil - has antibacterial, anti-fungal and antiviral properties
lemon - smells nice, eliminates odor, has antiseptic properties

Hope you guys try this and let me know what you think. 

Dirty Beauty Gone Clean: Sage and Black Tea hair dye

I don't know how I stumbled across Holistic Chick's blog about hair dying using teas but I couldn't resist this article. I have been restoring my curly hair since November 2013, first by stopping my addiction to heat tools and now watching what products I put in my hair. You can now start to see the difference in my curls compared to when I first started but I have another post about that. I dyed my hair a month ago because unfortunately now when I dye my hair it's not for novelty. The dye made my hair take steps back in its progress to recovery. I was not too happy about that. My hair did not curl property and was so dried out and it was because I had damaged it with the harsh chemical dyes. I have to dye my hair but I do not want to lose my hair and have it brake off and look damaged and have to wear a wig or a weave. I love my hair. Like WTH, man?! I was not even searching for this and like I said I had no idea how I came across Holistic Chick's post, but it got me really excited to try this because I did not like using henna and the hair dye were you have to leave it in for an hour or more over a hair dyer was VERY annoying and VERY messy and that dye stained my scalp along with the shower (husband was not happy about that at all hehehehe). HC's post had a link to the detailed instructions for brunettes. The more I read the more I wanted to try this, so here is the report:

I used Lipton tea bag (we had lots leftover from the farmers' market days) that makes one gallon of tea, 4 Tbsp of ground sage, and 4 C of water. Note, this is what worked for me everyone's hair is different. I have thick, curly, medium length hair that is under repair. If you don't have patience and an open mind do not try this. Read my conclusion at the end of this post about my thoughts and what I would do different. Trials and errors.

Bring the 4 cups of water to a boil. Drop in tea and sage and let it simmer until it reduces. We want a high concentrated tea. If you are wondering, the sage is used if you are trying to cover grays, it opens the hair follicles.

 

Let it cool and pour into a bottle with a squirt tip. You can find this at a beauty supply store. This one is from a kitchen store I think. Simmering this tea makes the whole house smell so nice better than the choking on the fumes of my old hair dye.

Work into hair as you would but take in account that this is more liquidity than what you might be used so it drips so work fast in the front to cover grays and than place your head over the sink and continue working the "dye" into your hair. Smells so nice, did I mention that already? Pile on top of your head with a clip and go about your business. 

Did it a make a mess? Yes. But it wasn't bad to clean up. Some vinegar cleaner, a sprinkle of baking soda and a half of a used lemon did the trick. 

I left the tea dye in until it was almost dry and than I rinsed it with cool water a few times. Squeezed in out and let it air dry. I went to the gym later on after it dried just threw on a hat. DO NOT SHAMPOO FOR 24 HOURS. My hair still smelled nice even after it was rinsed. 

Sorry about the crazy eye in the right photo, I was trying to look in the mirror with the camera. Shampoo, condition and style as usual the following day. 

Before and after thoughts. This tea dye rinse really brought out my natural highlights and gave oomph to my color. I would definitely do this again and the best thing is that you can do this as many times as you like without destroying your hair. Hope you give this a try.

Conclusion. I would definitely do this again. I love the results of my hair. The grays in the front of my hair turned a golden color and if it gets another rinse of tea dye it will get darker. Next time, I will pay more attention to the back ends of my hair as well. I read on the site that tone lasts 3-4 weeks and it's a subtle fade. I would have strained the tea and sage with a finer strainer because there was pieces of tea falling out of my hair when it was dry. I really loved the smell. This might be my new hair dye.

Check out Kinky Curly Coily Me to read more about black tea benefits on dark hair. Read Holistic Chick's post for more about blonde and red hair.