YouTubetorial: Getting a Clean Scalp

I saw the title of this video by You Tube's PrettyDimples01 and immediately wanted to share with all of you. If you're like me and struggle with some scalp issues, you probably enjoy learning as much as you can and trying new ways to keep the scalp healthy. I especially liked this video because I also wear twists a lot and do not always want to remove them to cleanse my scalp.

The original goal for the video was to be able to wash the scalp without getting the rest of her hair wet. As you'll see later on, things did not go exactly as planned however the resulting style was still beautiful. It gets pretty funny a few minutes in when you see what method she attempts to keep her twists dry while she cleanses!

Click to watch:


After all is said and done, the takeaway for me was the fact that she accomplished getting her scalp nice and clean using an easy, thorough method and simple products. Even though she ended up having to wet her hair, she was able to extend the life of her twists and achieving a new look.

Have you ever tried this method to get your scalp clean? If so, what were your results? Also what, if any, wacky methods have you tried when it comes to your hair?

Natural Hair: The US Surgeon General Explains Why Health Should Trump Hair

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If you do a google search for Black women, hair and exercise, 12.5 million results pop up. There are seemingly endless blog posts, articles, and videos dedicated to the dilemma so many black women face regarding their health and hairstyles. The ability to exercise freely without the worry of ruining or sweating out a style is one of the main reasons some Black women decide to ditch the chemicals and embrace their natural texture.

I know that in this forum I am preaching to the choir and this is not new news. But, in case you are unaware of the issue, this excerpt sums up the sentiment:

According to the American Journal of Public Health, less than 30% of minority women in the united states get the right amount of exercise, one of the reasons being "The hassle of keeping their hair looking good".

"They don't want to mess it that style up once they leave that salon, because it's like look what I just did, I just sweated this out, and now I have to go back and curl it the exact way she did it," says Hair Dresser, Kendra Johnson. {excerpt credit}

It may seem like a trivial concern to people with loosely textured tresses. I can see how straighter-haired women may not understand why their kinkier-haired counterparts would sacrifice their health and fitness levels for beauty. However, for those of us with kinky and curly locs, we understand the pressures that come with attempting to be deemed socially acceptable, especially in the workplace. Even with all the advances in the natural hair movement, many women (and men for that matter) continue to face discrimination and unfair treatment due to rocking their naturally kinky, coily and curly hair.

Well according to the U.S. Surgeon General Dr. Regina Benjamin, this issue is serious and not just limited to African Americans. In a recent interview with CNN Health, Dr. Benjamin explains:

"Other ethnic groups would come up and say the same thing. I’ve heard it from Hispanics. I’ve heard it from a couple of my older white patients that I have at home. They’re saying I get my hair done every weekend- I don’t want to be exercising after I get my hair done." {excerpt}

According to Dr. Benjamin, it is as much about money as it is about looks.

"If you go out and spend $40-50 to get your hair done, you don’t want to go out and get it all sweaty and wet that afternoon before you got to show it off." {excerpt}

(Click here to read the interview in its entirety.)

While I did not get into regularly working out until a few years ago, well after going natural, I can totally relate to not wanting to mess up a fresh style. As most of us know, in addition to being expensive, often times a trip to the salon is time consuming. Time and money are precious commodities to most people I know and it is logical to not want to waste either. Now I have much more freedom with natural hair so workouts no longer phase me. (Ahem, when I am on my workout game. Currently my "game" consists of broken sleep and mommy time, lol. But I digress...)

After reading all of Dr. Benjamin's interview, I was interested in what others had to say in response and I scrolled through the comments. Uuuuugggh. Why did I do that? Sometimes I forget just how ignorant, uninformed, and down right racist people can be outside of my natural hair blogiverse. I guess one good thing always comes from it, though. Just when I think we are over-saturated with info about natural hair, my stuff included, I see we have oh so far to go to reach the masses. So many people still just don't understand Black hair and all its complexities.

Anyway, what are you thoughts on the interview? If you are relaxed/transitioning, how do you fit in both health and hair? If you're natural, have your workouts increased or stayed the same?

For some YouTube inspiration, check out this video from BeautifulBrwnBabyDol's channel. In case you don't know, she works out a lot and has many cute styles that stand up to her sweat sessions.Love her!

Natural Hair: Erykah Badu to Host Natural Hair Parade

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The buzz around the net is that Erykah Badu will be sponsoring and hosting a natural hair parade in Dallas, Texas over the Labor Day weekend! This is a free event to celebrate natural hair and share knowledge in the process.

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Some more info about the parade:

Isis Brantley, also known as the "guru of natural hair care," is celebrating 31 years of natural hair prowess and, being a spokeswoman for black ancestral culture, is throwing the "Nation's First World Natural Hair Parade And Festival" in Dallas, Texas. Read the rest here.

Do you live in the Dallas area? Would you attend a natural hair parade? If you go, send pics!

Natural Hair: Shelli's Hair Journey

Shelli from hairscapades.com sent me her hair story to share. She has gorgeous hair so check out her journey. Thanks Shelli!

Q: How long have you been natural?
A: I’ve been natural for about 11 years.

Q: Were you a long term or short term transitioner, and why?

A: I guess I was a relatively short term transitioner, if you could even call it transitioning. I BC’d at 6 months post relaxer. Those terms and the idea of “transitioning” didn’t exist in my world or vocabulary at the time. I got my first relaxer and hair cut at 13 at a salon. From then on, either my mom or I relaxed my hair once every 6 months with a home perm. I could probably count on my 2 hands (maybe even 1) the number of times I got my hair professionally relaxed. I was too cheap for that. Anywho, at about 26, I had a bad experience with a relaxer that a “stylist” insisted she must put on my hair for a doobie at a Dominican blow out spot. I hadn’t had a relaxer in 6 months; my norm. The stylist (if you could even call them that, because it was like a huge factory assembly line in this spot) decided to pull that junk through almost the entire length of my hair and not just the new growth!!! My hair started to break off badly after that. So, that was it for me. Plus, I wore my hair curly even with a relaxer because I worked out 5-6 days a week and sweat like a race horse. I very rarely even wore my hair straight for that reason, because it would have meant putting heat on my salty hair on a daily basis. I knew that was a no-no. So, I relaxed my hair, but then I would use products to scrunch in the curls (my hair was never bone straight anyway). So, the decision to go natural was easy and practical for me. I didn’t wear my hair straight anyway and I was experiencing breakage, so at the point when I would have usually gotten another relaxer, I did the BC.

Q: What is your current regimen?
A: See my Regimen post.

Q: How do you maintain Length? Moisture?

A: I never struggled with maintaining length, but I’ve achieved my longest hair in the last year, which is about an inch past BSL. In February, I requested a “trim” that turned into a cut and it looks like I’ve lost a couple of inches=/. I have learned over the years that there are probably four things that stimulate my hair’s growth and allow me to maintain a healthy, moisturized head of hair. Those things are deep conditioning every time I wash my hair (once a week or every two weeks), applying a leave-in conditioner and combing through my hair before styling (learned from a Ouidad stylist – makes detangling a breeze the next wash session and keeps my hair moisturized), using a hair butter or oil to seal moisture into my ends and staying away from protein heavy products (conditioners, stylers and gels – thanks Nik;-). Oh, and there is one more thing that I think has been very important, but has not been in my regimen as of late. If I am wearing a WnG, I never re-wet/re-fresh with water. If I re-wet/re-fresh it is with a leave-in conditioner (like Infusium 23) or a regular conditioner diluted with water.

Q: Night time routine?
A: I sleep on a satin pillowcase and wear either a satin scarf, bonnet or both. I sometimes pineapple if wearing a TnC, but it’s still not the best solution for me. My nape hair is almost completely straight and I have to work to make it blend in with the rest of my hair. The pineapple can stretch that hair and ruin my blending efforts. However, given that I’ve been wearing a lot of protective styles lately, I haven’t had to worry about securing loose hairstyles.

Q: What would you tell a new natural, or transitioning diva?
A: You know, the most important thing for me to tell a new natural or transitioning diva is to love their own head of hair. I think we all have moments of curl envy as we see all the gorgeous heads of hair out there. You may think that someone has the most fabulous head of hair ever and that they couldn’t want anything else, but you’d probably be completely wrong. I drool over hair of all different shapes, lengths, curliness, kinkiness, thickness, etc. and wish for thicker hair, curlier hair, hair with more shrinkage, longer hair etc. But, at the end of the day, I’m good with my head of hair=). I enjoy it immensely. So, I think it’s important to look at these blogs and youtube videos with a healthy appreciation for all the variety out there, but a healthy appreciation for your own head of hair too. There’s nothing I hate more (well, that may be a fib … but, I’m trying to prove a point;-), then someone saying “you have ‘good’ hair” or that, if they had my grade of hair, they would have been natural years ago. It’s nothing against the person who says it, but I get annoyed that our world that has “taught” people this lie. I just want them to know that no matter the texture or length of their hair, it is and can be beautiful if they take the time and have the patience to learn how to treat their hair well.

Q: What’s the best thing about being natural?
A: For me, the best thing is inspiring others to go natural! My sister and mom both went natural shortly after I did. My mom rocked a short, tapered cut with a Jerri Curl for a couple of decades!! Long before I decided to stop getting relaxers, my sisters and I would constantly tell her she should stop getting Jheri Curls because the “new growth” at her shaved nape was full of gorgeous curls! So, it was very rewarding when my youngest sister, then my mom, went natural within a few years of my BC (though my sister recently told me that I didn’t inspire her, that she was already contemplating doing it and that my mom was inspired by her. Go ahead Shana, I know you want to say it. *LOL*). All of our textures are different and I constantly want to get my hands in their curlier heads to experiment with all of the styles that I’ve learned over the last year=)! Also, a few people at my job went natural after I did, and I think my natural hair may have played a little role in that (or maybe not). So, it is really rewarding to see others let go of the “chemical dependency” and embrace healthier hair.

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Natural Hair: New Site for Coupons and Online Deals

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I received this email in my inbox and wanted to pass it along. I am not affiliated with this site or company in any way, simply wanted to share in case it interests you. Let me know how it works if you end up using it.

Naturally Me! Media, LLC announces the launch of the first and only website that features coupon codes and offers from curly hair product and natural hair product brands on NaturalHairProductDeals.com.

Due to the increasing amount of women going natural and purchasing natural hair care products online,Naturally Me! Media realized the need for an one-stop website that offers women a simple and organized way to share and use these codes for their purchases. NaturalHairProductDeals.com allows their users to submit coupon codes and offers that they may receive on a daily basis from their favorite hair care companies to save money on their favorite products.

"In these uncertain economic times people have to prioritize their purchases. NaturalHairProductDeals.com allows women the access to get their hair care and styling products at a discount instead of completely cutting them out of their budget. The purpose is to create a community of sharing in order to pass the savings along to their fellow curlfriends.", Tarin Boone, CEO of Naturally Me! Media, explained.

The main features of NaturalHairProductDeals.com are:

• database of current hair care product sales, online coupon codes, printable coupons, and free shipping offers.
• easy user friendly interface to submit coupons in 5 minutes or less.
• coupons categorized for natural hair products, dreadlocks products, and children's products.
• ability for users to review coupons and sales.
• new coupons and offers added daily
• natural hair and curly hair product makers to submit their sales and promotions to an extended network for free.

The combination of the user friendliness, customer savings, and the power of sharing will surely makeNaturalHairProductDeals.com the first choice for naturalistas to search and find their best bargain natural hair product coupon codes and deals.

Natural Hair: Homemade Mix & A Cornrow Twistout Style

A few days ago I decided to combine some of my favorite oils together with some shea butter. In the past I've combined coconut oil with shea butter and used that to seal my ends. This time, I added a few other oils to the mix.

Here's what I did and what you'll need if you want to try:

Ingredients:

Shea Butter (5+ tablespoons)

Vatika Coconut Oil (2 tablespoons)

Grapeseed Oil ( 1 tablespoon)

Castor Oil (2 tablespoons)

Vitamin E Oil (1 tablespoon)

Steps:

1. Heat shea butter so it is slightly, but not totally, melted.

2. Warm the Vatika oil (or any coconut oil) if it is solid. Measure 2 tablespoons and add to the shea butter.

3. Measure 1 tablespoon of grapeseed oil and add to the shea butter.

4. Measure 2 tablespoons of castor oil and add to the shea.

5. Add 1 tablespoon of vitamin E oil to the shea.

6. Blend the oils and shea butter together with a hand-held mixer, whipping until everything is evenly combined.

7. Cover and place into the refrigerator for about a half hour or until the mix has cooled and stiffened.

I like this mix because it melts easily into the skin and the hair. It also made my hair super shiny, defined, not weighed down, and it sealed my ends beautifully. The shots below are from a twistout that I just did two days ago on dry, stretched hair. I left the twists in until I unravelled this morning.

For this style I parted my hair horizontally from ear to ear. I twisted the back using water and the shea-oil mix. I tested my braiding skills and cornrowed the front. It is tough to braid your own hair but I think I did ok. I did not braid tightly and I parted in a way that accommodated for my recovering edges. We'll see how long they last before they get frizzy!

The humidity is out of control right now so I will probably have to re-twist at night to maintain definition. To do that, I will simply re-mist with water and twist, adding more of the shea-oil mix only if needed.

And voila, there you have it! What new mixes have you tried lately?

Tracee on Top!

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I don't know why but I love glossy magazine covers. Especially when beautiful ladies like Tracee Ellis Ross grace the front page. In the September edition of Essence mag, she will be discussing her new BET sitcom, Reed Between the Lines. I like her as an actress and she seems like a really down to earth person. I remember seeing her on one of the last episodes of Oprah and she had such a nice energy. Of course her style is amazing and her hair is simply gorgeous! Will you check out her new show?

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Reed Between the Lines, starring Tracee Ellis Ross (Girlfriends) and Malcolm-Jamal Warner (The Cosby Show), pictured above. The show follows Alex, an English professor, and Carla, a psychologist, as they navigate life’s ups and downs with wit and humor. (Excerpt from bet.com)

Culture & Society: The New Spider-Man habla Español?

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According to Latina.com, Marvel Comics is gearing up to debut a new character, replacing Peter Parker as Spider-Man. Miles Morales, an Afro-Latino teen, is helmed to take over in the role of the arachnid super hero as part of the Marvel Ultimate Spider-Man series September relaunch.

Marvel’s Editor-in-Chief Alex Alonso shared insight on the New York City teen hero in a broader context. “What you have is a Spider-Man for the 21st century who's reflective of our culture and diversity,” he said. “We think that readers will fall in love with Miles Morales the same way they fell in love with Peter Parker.” (excerpt from Latina.com)

I am not a comic fan, never really read them growing up and was only marginally entertained by the Hollywood renditions on the big screen. But this is still an interesting choice, especially considering race relations in the comic world. So what do you all think? Are you excited to see this new character? Do you agree that it reflects diversity in our culture or is it a gimmick?