June Goals

Source: Google Images

It seems like forever since I have done a monthly goal post. I am due to have my baby girl in a couple of weeks so I should be able to do something to my hair soon. I really miss doing my own hair! Well below are my june goals.

• Wash and deep condition my hair at least 1x 
• Steam hair for at least 30 mins using homemade steam method. (Will share in a later post).
• Clarify hair! 
• Do a set of two strand twists
• Make homemade shea butter
• Use castor oil on my scalp and edges at least 4x per week for at 2 weeks.

I think my goals are simple and obtainable. What are your montly hair goals?

I Did It: Salon Visit

Lately I have been very lazy with my hair and for that very reason it was starting to suffer. I was experiencing breakage. It wasn't a massive amount of breakage, but enough for me to take notice and take action. I'm finally into my third trimester of pregnancy and it's very similar to the first trimester; I'm always tired and sick.Add work and family to the list and I'm just worn out. I stopped doing my weekly washes. I didn't even co-wash because I just didn't want to deal with the dentangling session. I would moisturize and seal before I styled my hair for the day, but I wasn't thorough the way I should have been. I also have not been sleeping with anything on my head. That was due to plain laziness.

I decided it was time for me to take action. My doing something to my hair was a very low option on my list. Washing my hair would have surely made me nauseous!! I also would be super tired before I finished my wash day and some step in my regimen would have been omitted. Lately deep conditioning was the step that went on the back burner. I normally d/c on dry hair so I can eliminate jumping in and out of the shower, but wash days have been so spur of the moment. After some contemplating and researching I decided to visit a stylist. My Fiancee was elated because even he grew tired of my frequent bunning.

I just moved to this area in October so I was not familiar with any salons or stylist. I have a co-worker who visits a salon frequently so I took down the information. Normally I would have gone to her stylist without asking anymore questions because her hair is always sleek and well kept. What stopped me is that we have different textures and with me being 5 months post relaxer I wanted to make sure the stylist I chose would be able to deal with my hair without causing a disaster. I googled "natural hair stylist in" my area and a few shops popped up. I chose to go to a salon that specialized in natural and relaxed hair because I figured they would probably be able to properly deal with my many textures (natural, texlaxed, and bone straight).  I called the one with the most reviews and scheduled an appointment before I changed my mind.

Friday evening I went to the salon and immediately noticed the decor. It was a very nice, clean, and spacious salon. The stylist Kesha greeted me and informed me she would be with me in a few moments. I was in her chair within 10 mins of walking through the door. She asked me questions about my hair and what I was trying to get done. I informed her that I had not had a relaxer since Nov and wanted a roller wrap. She suggested trying a blow out and curl since I had so much new growth and my roots could come out puffy. I decided to go for it even though that is a ton of heat. It felt AMAZING to have someone else wash my hair. She gave me a nice scalp massage. I got a deep condition and she sectioned my hair off and began detangling. She wasn't rough on my hair, but I think I would have been more gentle if I were the one doing the detangling. She applied a creamy heat protectant (I forgot to ask the name) and began blow drying section by section. After that she curled my hair using a flat iron. She did an amazing job and I will definitely be going back to her when I don't feel like doing my hair. It took her about 1.5 hours to have my hair completely layed! Normally I'm in the salon 4+ hours even when I'm not getting a relaxer. I'm planning to go back in a few wks to get the same style for a wedding I will be attending.

I will say I was skeptical at first, but I'm glad that I decided to bite the bullet and go to the salon. I'm even more pleased that I have found a stylist who is gentle on the hair and does a great job. I'm currently going in to day 4 and I'm loving my hair. I posted a pic on IG of my day hair. It has never looked so healthy, full, and bouncy!! It feels great to see all my hard work paying off! Excuse the photos in this post. I did not have my camera with me to take pics and I've worked every day since my hair has been done and have not had the time to find my camera. There will be better photos in the future. If you're not already, follow me on IG @blu2kizmet



Day 1



Day 4

Product Review: Shea Moisture Deep Treatment Masque

Ingredients: Deionized Water , Butyrospermum Parkii (Shea Butter) , Argan Oil , Vegetable Glycerin , Emulsifying Wax , Sea Kelp Extract , Panthenol (Vitamin B-5) , Essential Oil Blend , Avocado Oil , Tocopherol (Vitamin E) , Hyssopus Officinalis Extract , Salvia Officinalis Leaf and Equisetum Arvense Extract (Sage) , Soybean Oil , Daucus Carota Sativa Seed Oil (Carrot)

**From walgreens.com** 

Promises:  Our all-natural intense treatment masque deeply penetrates to moisturize and repair over-processed, dry, brittle or damaged hair. Sea kelp trace minerals detoxify hair follicles of impurities and residue. Argan oil restores shine and rebuilds hair elasticity. Shea butter deeply moisturizes and repairs damage to hair and scalp.

How to Use: After shampooing, massage into wet hair and leave on for 5-45 minutes. Add plastic cap and moderate heat for deep penetration.

My thoughts: The only things I like about this product is that is smells good and it has a semi-thick consistency that melts into my hair. This product did not condition my hair at all. It left my hair super dry and it felt like I had not deep conditioned at all! I tried this on dry hair as well as wet hair after shampooing and got similar results. I dislike this product so much that after two uses I REFUSE to put this back in my hair. It made my detangling sessions painful! I used this product last week and if I had time to rewash and recondition my hair I would have in a heart beat. I would not be repurchasing nor using this product any longer. I rate this product as a 1/5. 

Product Review: Shea Moisture Curl Enhancing Smoothie

Ingredients: Deionized Water , Butyrospermum Parkii (Shea Butter) , Cocos Nucifera Oil (Coconut) , Macadamia Ternifolia Seed Oil , Persea Gratissima Oil (Avocado) , Vegetable Glycerin , Aloe Barbadensis Leaf Extract , Silk Protein , Ammonium Salt , Melia Azadirachta Seed Oil (Neem) , Daucus Carota Sativa Seed Oil (Carrot) , Sorbitol Esters , Panthenol (Pro-Vitamin B-5) , Caprylyl Glycol , Essential Oil Blend , Tocopherol (Vitamin E) 

**From walgreens.com** 

Promises:  Shea Moisture Curl Enhancing Smoothie moisturizes and adds body and style. Shea Moisture's Coconut & Hibiscus Curl Enhancing Smoothie for thick, curly hair hydrates, defines curls and protects. Enriched with Silk Protein and Neem Oil, this all-natural styling aid helps strengthen hair, reduce breakage and imparts amazing shine. Provides a smooth, soft hold without the crunch that can occur with gels for bouncy, healthy-looking curls.

How to Use: Section hair and apply product sparingly to damp or dry hair from root to tip to enhance curls. Massage completely into hair. Do not rinse out. Style hair as desired. For best results use as a styling cream for twists, braids and wash-and-go styles. 

My thoughts: I really like the smell of this product. I also like the consistency of this products. I have used this product when doing a braid-out as well as a moisturizer. At times my hair remained moisturized for an entire day and other times it felt like my hair was not very moisturized after applying. I think this product worked best when my hair was already moisturized from another product. I didn't notice any more definition with this product when doing my braid-out. I was afraid that this product would leave residue on my hair because of it's thick consistency, but I honestly didn't have that problem. Overall this product was ok. It's not close to being as moisturizing as my Elasta QP Olive Oil and Mango Butter Moisturizer. I will not be repurchasing this product again. The rating I would give this product is a 3/5. 

Hair Update with Great News

This post is long over due! I know I have been MIA for a while, but I've had good reason. One main is reason is that I'm pregnant with a little girl and I just didn't feel well enough to do much with my hair. Here is what I'm doing/have done to my hair since my absence.

• Washed and deep conditioned every 1-2 weeks
• Flat ironed my hair 2x since November
• Did a clear rinse
• Tried Shea Moisture Deep Conditioner 
• Did a flexi-rod set on wet hair (It was an epic fail because I didn't let them dry long enough).
• Flexi-rod set on dry hair.
• Restocked on my staples (Will share in a future post)
• Purchased a few new products (Again will share in a future post. If you follow me on instagram you already know.)
• Made my 1 year relaxed healthy hairversary on December 4, 2012!
• Reached my goal of full APL!

That's pretty much what has been going on to my hair. I'm in my second trimester so I feel much better now. I plan to do much more with my hair. I can say that since being pregnant my new growth seems to be much more manageable. I'm wondering if I'm retaining any length at all because my new growth has not been out of control. I'm currently 14 weeks and 2 days post relaxer. I plan on stretching my relaxer until after I have the baby if my stretch continues to be this smooth. I've relaxed my hair while pregnant with my son so I'm not afraid that it will harm him. I'm really prolonging my stretch because I don't feel up to self-relaxing and I don't trust anyone else to relax my hair. 

My goals for the next 4 months will go as follow. 

• Wash hair every 2 weeks. Washing weekly will just be too much for me as my pregnancy progresses. 
• Use the steam room in the gym. I can not wait to see the results of steam on my hair. I may be able to justify purchasing a steamer in the future. 
• Try roller-setting with magnetic rollers.This will help with my stretch
• Wear a satin scarf to be everyday.
• M&S as needed! 
• Blog more frequently
• Soak up as much information as possible on natural hair so I can successfully take care of my daughter's hair.

Thank you all for sticking by me during my absence. Your continued support is much appreciated! I have been keeping up with all the blogs I follow. I just have not been posting comments due to time and pure laziness. I promise to do better. I hope you all reaching your hair goals. Until next time keep growing!

Blutiful Blaq

Organic Root Stimulator Olive Hair Masque

Ingredients: Aqua (Water) , Polysorbate 60 , PEG-150 Stearate , Cetyl Alcohol , Ceteareth 20 , PEG-20 Hydrogenated Lanolin , PEG 40 Stearate , Cocos Nucifera Oil (Coconut) , Polyquaternium-7 , Cetrimonium Chloride , Behentrimonium Methosulfate , Cetearyl Alcohol , Polyquaternium 37 , Propylene Glycol Dicaprylate , Dicaprate , PPG 1 Trideceth 6 , Glycerin , Dimethicone , PPG-3 Benzyl Ether Myristate , Hydrolyzed Keratin , Prunus Amygdalus Dulcis Oil (Sweet Almond) , Olea Europaea Fruit Oil (Olive) , Panthenol , Hydrogenated Olive Oil , Amodimethicone , Trideceth 12 , Hydroxyethylcellulose , DMDM Hydantoin , Disodium EDTA , Citric Acid , Methylchloroisothiazolinone , Methylisothiazolinone , Caramel , Parfum (Fragrance) , Benzyl Benzoate , d-Limonene , Hexyl Cinnamal , Lilial , Linalool (From Walgreens.com)

Promises: An intense treatment conditioner that helps restore heat and color damaged hair. Infused with natural and other ingredients, this product will revitalize and detangle the hair, leaving it soft, shiny and smooth.

How to use: Remove excess water from hair after shampooing. Place hair masque in palm of hand, apply liberally to hair. Comb hair to ensure coverage from root to end. Let sit for five minutes without heat. For severely damaged hair, place a plastic cap over the hair and sit under a warm dryer for 10 minutes. Rinse hair thoroughly with warm water and proceed with styling. Not recommended for daily use.

My Review: One of the first things I noticed about this conditioner was how thick it was. It's thick, but it melts in your hair and doesn't seem to just coat your hair. I have tried this conditioned on dry hair and well as freshly washed hair and felt the conditioned melted into my hair. It smells really good to me. It has a sort of minty smell to it. It's not very strong unless you use too much and don't rinse it out well. This happened to me once. It makes my hair extremely soft! It seems to condition and detangle my hair all in one which is a plus. I do notice this this works better on my hair when it is freshly was opposed to dry hair. This may pose as a problem for me because I like to d/c on dry hair. It eliminates me having to jump back in the shower which can save me a lot of time. Another thing I didn't like about this conditioner is that if you use too much you have to rinse your hair thoroughly or your hair will flake. This happened to me when I was in a bit of a rush. I didn't notice the conditioner was in parts of my hair until I blow dried. Being that this conditioner melts into your hair you have to be very mindful in not applying too much. Overall I give this product a 8/10. I'm not sure if I will be repurchasing only because I prefer a conditioner that is not this thick.

Have your tried this product? What were your thoughts?

Wash Day

Today's wash day went really well. I had plans to roller-set my hair, but they fell through due to lack of time. Here are the steps to my wash day.

1. Pre-pooed with a garlic and NTM conditioner mix. I finished the last of the NTM Daily Conditioner. I probably will not repurchase since I was using it as a conditioner rinse and may have found a substitute. I didn't mention this is my previous post, but my hair has been shedding excessively. This is my reasoning behind this particular mix.
2. Shampooed with CON Argon Oil Moisture and Shine Sulfate Free Shampoo.
3. DCed with ORS Hair Masque. Review coming later this week.
4. Rinsed out DC and applied Paul Mitchell Super Skinny Daily Treatment and rinsed after about 5 mins. I loved how smooth my hair felt. I think this will replace the NTM conditioner! So far I LOVE this stuff, but I will have a more through review after a few more uses.
5. T-shirt dried for about 5 mins then added Cantu Shea Butter Leave-In and sealed it with GVP's Paul Mitchell Super Skinny Serum. The combination of this serum with the PM SS Daily Treatment was a heaven send for my hair. It left my hair so soft, smooth, and shiny!! A+ combination! I just hope it works like this every time I use it.
6. I airdried my hair in a bun d/t a lack of time. I'm thinking about adding some bantu knots or flexi-rods to it tonight. I need to do something with my hair because on my days off I have not even touched my hair. It has been sitting all over my hair and my Honey told me it was wayyyy past time to do something to my hair. I definitely agreed with him.

Hair 100% dry at this point.

So with that being said I'm gonna try to stay clear of bunning my hair for a about a week or two. I may even flat iron it for Christmas. Lately I've been thinking of going to a salon to have someone else do my hair for a change. I'm not sure if I will be able to go through with it, but it has definitively been on my mind.

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