You did what?

When I first thought about going natural, I didn't think about who
would like or dislike it. That was the last thing on my mind.

What I DID think about was how it would be seen in the work place. I
currently work in an office environment. I had to think about
whether or not some of the styles I'm considering would violate regulations .

The last thing on my mind was how people would perceive me after I did
my BC. I actually wasn't nervous until after my hair was cut and it was
time for me to look in the mirror. You see my hair has been short
before, so I knew it would look cute on me. What made me nervous was
not knowing how the texture would be. It definitely didn't have
anything to do with whether or not my family, friends, coworkers, etc. would like it.

However I was eager to share with my parents and friends afterward. They all liked it, at least, that's what they expressed. My dad however, didn't like it too kindly. He's a hair man and watches my mother's like a hawk after her salon visits. He doesn't want her cutting her hair, so his reaction was, "Why she do that? Why did she cut all her hair off?" I told him, "It's hair, dad. It will grow back."

I also had a friend, Mr. Luscious, cry out in horror; whether real or not, I don't know, when he saw it:

Him: What did you do??!! You cut your hair!
Me: I told you I was going to cut it.
Him: I thought you were just playing.
Me: Why would I do that?
Him: My hair!...Now, I can't run my fingers through it when I give you the luscious...Yeah (in denial)

He's special.

I have also had a few people who don't matter question why I did it and who made comments I felt they could have kept to themselves. I just dealt with them accordingly and kept it moving. What they eat don't make me ish, so there was no need to dwell on it. You know? For the most part, though, I've gotten a lot of compliments and praise.

I live for the weekends, because I can't style my hair any way I want during the week. For those of you who don't know, I'm a member of the armed forces and we have rules and regulations concerning our hair. I can't wear anything that is faddish or gets in the way of me wearing my cover. There are rules about braids, cornrows, plaits, etc.

I know I've been pushing it with some of the styles, but my chain of command hasn't said anything. I haven't done anything outlandish. I've just worn some headbands. They were black, which matched my hair color, so I'm thinking that's why they didn't make a fuss about it. I also wore it in a puff; which was a bit risky, since we're not supposed to wear ponytails. Ha!

Anyway, what about you? Have you gotten any flack for going natural?

Lusciously Curly

In my last post, I mentioned I'd talk about another product.

It's one I actually hadn't seen much about, but what I read peaked my interest enough for me to want to try it; mainly because I needed an itch relief and at the time I hadn't purchased Lisa's Hair Elixir.

Even after using the Elixir and finding it was doing its job, this product stayed on my mind. I had to have it, so I decided to go ahead and buy it. My gut told me I'd be satisfied with it after trying it. The product is Bee Mine Luscious Balanced Cream Moisturizer.

I got the CC=credit card out and got to ordering. It took a while for me to get this, which originally turned me off. I ordered directly from the company, so I began to have misgivings about it. It was taking entirely too long for me to get it in my opinion. You ever order something and it takes so long to receive it, you actually forgot you ordered it?? Yeah, that's what happened to me. When I did come around to thinking about it again, I pulled up my shipped confirmation email and tracked it; that was a good move by the company.

Well, come to find out, the lateness of the shipping had nothing to do with the company and EVERYTHING to do with my local post office. Jack asses! After I tracked it, I found out there had been a delivery attempt more than a week prior to my inquiry. I hadn't received anything; no notice, not a slip from the post office, etc. Since it was late when I checked on it, I called my post office the next day to find out what the deal was.

My package was still there, so I went to pick it up and informed them they needed to do better about giving people package notifications. Ever since my mail carrier changed, I've been having issues with receiving my mail. She needs to get it together. Hmph.

Anyhow, after I got home an opened it, the size caught me by surprise. I guess I forgot the size I chose. I didn't think it would be that big. It's an 8 oz container.

When I opened it, man, the smell blew me away! I'd described the scent as citrus, and it wasn't overpowering. I was happy about that, because there's nothing I detest more than a product that's just too loud/strong for me to use. It woud wreak havoc with my sinuses!

The consistency of the cream isn't thick at all and it reminds me of whipped cream, but looks more to me like whipped icing; but not as thick. Yeah, that's it! I've been trying to find a great way to describe how it looks and that's perfect. See for yourself. It's easy to spread on and you don't have to use a lot of it either. Even though it's not as dense as other butters, it makes a big impact.

I’ve used this on both dry and wet hair. My first time using it was on wet hair after a normal wash and condition day. I actually didn't leave in the conditioner, and even in wet hair, it made my hair oh so soft! I was cheezin hard and my hands stayed in my hair. LOL

For dry hair, I used it to retwist a braidout after having it for about three days. I wasn't sure how it was going to do, so I made sure to do it on the weekend. LOL

It worked very well, both moisturizing and again softening my hair. Now, my hair is already soft, but using this cream makes it even softer and silkier to the touch. I also used it on my scalp, and it felt SO good! I haven't experienced any type of build up or residue like other products I've tried, and I can't stop using it! I love how it makes my hair feel!

Below are pics of the first dry twist out I did using this product. I hope you like them!

Overall Shot

Close up

Itching For A Scratch

Image courtesy of www.carolsdaughter.com

After doing the BC, I noticed my hair began to itch. I washed it, cowashed and I kept it moisturized.

I couldn't for the life of me understand why it was itching. Since I kept it moisturized, and I didn't have dry scalp, I was clueless. Walking around scratching your scalp all day is NOT the hotness, so I called Mr. Google and he and I got to discussing this thing. Hehe It seems I'm not alone when it comes to the itchy scalp. Ha! Who knew? (sarcasm)

I discovered the cause of the itching was simply my scalps reaction to the product I was using. That let me know, it didn't like it, so I got to searching various sites on what to use to cure the itching.

There were a few products that sounded like they would do the trick, but I decided to use Lisa's Hair Elixir by Carol's Daughter. I'd heard good things about this line, so I decided to give it a try. I stopped by Macy's while out and about to pick it up, and also bought the Healthy Hair Butter.

There was another product that peaked my interest, from another line, but I'll talk about that in another post. Let's discuss Carol's Daughter for now.

The Hair Elixir can be used to condition, deep condition and as a hot oil treatment. Since I was no longer going to use the other stuff, I decided to do a deep condition. As I rubbed it in my hands, the smell that filled the air was of peppermint. I liked it immediately. After applying it to my hair, it felt a bit tingly on my scalp.

I left the oil in my hair for about five to seven minutes. I then rinsed it out with warm water and proceeded to shampoo my hair. I use Organix Nourishing Coconut Milk Shampoo and the Smoothing Shea Butter Conditioner.

I'm seriously thinking of finding another shampoo and conditioner, because both products have silicones with the suffix -cone, which I read should be used sparingly, because over time it causes frizz. I'm currently searching for another wash and condition combo. If you know a good one, let me know.

Oh! Some of the ingredients in the Elixir are: Soybean Oil, Sweet Almond (Hehe..inside joke) Oil, Olive Fruit Oil and Peppermint Oil to name a few. I loved the way it made my hair feel, and after using it once, the itch was gone. The second time I used it, I did a hot oil treatment, which I believe has done wonders for my hair. I think it's also helping with the growth of my hair, because after the second week, I saw a significant change in the length of my hair.

All in all, I'm loving Lisa's Hair Elixir. I have tight curls, and my front tends to eat up moisture, but since I've been using this, I've noticed a positive reaction in the front. It gives it more shine, and I don't have to worry about feeling like I have too much moisture going on.

Since I started using the Elixir, I've done weekly hot oil treatments. I'm LOVING IT!

Do you use this product? Have you ever used it? If so, how did it work for you? Or did it work for you?

I'm Kinky: Now What?

What's up? This is your girl, Kayla. I'm doing something a bit different than what I've done with my other blogs. This blog will be dedicated to my journey as a natural girl.

When I first thought of becoming natural, it was simply because I wanted to know what my hair looked like at its natural state. It's been a long time since I've seen it that way. I was also curious about my texture.

As a little girl, my mom took very good care of my hair. I can remember the days of laying on the kitchen counter top and standing in a chair pulled up to the kitchen sink so she could wash my hair. LOL I also remember that damn hot comb burning my scalp, or as my mom told me, "It's the grease." Ha! She didn't hot comb my hair often, though.

I was 14 when I got a jheri curl. Yep, I fell victim to the hype.

My hair at the time was healthy and long. My wanting a jheri curl had everything to do with what was hot at the time than anything else. I didn't NEED to get one. My mom was definitely not sure about my doing so and questioned me when she found out how much hair needed to be cut to establish a curl. It was a LOT! I was so sure of my decision, though. I walked into that salon with shoulder length hair. When I left, I probably had two inches of hair. SMH

Anyway, eventually, I started getting relaxers and I have to say majority of the time my hair was relaxed, it was healthy. It has been as long as beyond my shoulders to as short as a fade, but what I've found is I'm LOVING it in its natural state the most.

I've never been one to be all about my hair. I left that up to my stylist; who hasn't seen my hair as of yet. I had the same stylist for twelve years, but I digress. As I said, I've never been one to be all about my hair..until now.

After returning from a stint overseas, I decided I'd made a mistake in getting another relaxer. You see, at the time, I was going on seven months without one. That would have been the perfect time to go natural, but everything happens in due time. After about three months of being at home, I decided I wasn't going to get anymore relaxers. It wasn't a hard decision to make since I usually only have about three of them at the most a year.

So, at my five month mark, I decided to do the BC=big chop; cut all of my relaxed hair. I called my cousin, whom I trust very much when it comes to doing anything with my hair, and she was on board. I'm not sure if you restart the count after you do the BC or not. I guess my natural sisters can help me with that.

I'm learning a lot about how to care for natural hair and have gotten advice from a few friends who are natural. There is a lot of information out there; which can be a bit overwhelming. It's all about finding what works for you, though.

I don't have it down pact yet, but I'm willing to learn what works for me and my hair, so follow me along the way.