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Tag: Coily Hair (page 2 of 6)

Want to make your detangling a little easier? Try Anita Grant’s Original Rhassoul Condish

March 19, 2014 / / 1 Comment

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Years ago, when I first decided to stop relaxing, one of the names being kicked around the natural hair forum boards was Anita Grant.  Based in London, UK, mixologist Anita Grant has been making all natural hair products for a while.  So I decided to order a few items and my order included her famous Rhassoul Condish blocks.  I think it took about 2-3 weeks to get my package as it was coming across the Atlantic, but I am not sure what the shipping times are like now.

Anita Grant Original Rhassoul Condish

Fast forward some years later and I realized that I still had 3 blocks in my refrigerator!! So one evening, I gave my hair a little extra TLC.  The condish block is made primarily of organic Rhassoul Clay (Moroccan) but also contains some very moisturizing ingredients like cocoa butter and honey.  The clay is supposed to fortify hair, protect it from free radicals, detoxify the scalp and improve manageability.

So I followed the instructions on the website, and used a glass bowl and plastic fork to prepare the mixture.  Due to the high mineral content of the clay, they may interact with metal.  I used one cube of Rhassoul Clay and added enough hot water to create a loose paste.  It took about 10 to 15 minutes to break up the cube with the fork.  It looked like Milo or chocolate milk.  I have used coconut milk instead of water, but surprisingly this Caribbean woman had none in her apartment! :-/

The Condish! 1 cube

Mixing the condish with hot water

So I cleansed my hair in the shower and squeezed out the excess water.  I divided my hair into quarters and applied the Rhassoul mixture.  I made sure that I got it on my scalp and throughout my strands.  It did not drip and it dried quickly on my hair, but I wrapped it in some plastic wrap and left it on for 30 minutes.

My hair before the treatment. An old twistout.

The clay in my hair, after 30 mins

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Vintage-inspired hair accessory by Ododo Originals…..

March 6, 2014 / / 0 Comments

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Ever since I decided to go back to natural years ago, I had a long list of brands and products that I heard about or read about that I wanted to try.  There weren’t a lot of hair accessories or hair jewellry on my list, but Ododo Originals was on there.  Lesley, the founder and owner, makes handmade hair floral accessories in a myriad of colours and designs.  Ododo means ‘flower’ in her mother tongue.  I was immediately intrigued when I visited the website!! Oh the colour!

Fast forward to last Black Friday, I finally ordered my first flower.   I chose to get a neutral colour that I would wear with any outfit  and I had a particular liking to the Art Deco section, which has a particular pattern, and often featured 2 different colour beads.  All of Ododo’s flowers are made of beads of different sizes and finishes and fine wire and come in a couple of different sizes.   You can get the flower with an alligator clip, a pin to use as a brooch or as a headband.  I picked up the Art Deco style in antiqued silver and bronze and that cost USD$45 less 20% (Black Friday deal).  I literally spent all weekend trying to decide which one I was going to start with!

My package came after about 2 weeks, wrapped like this…..

The packaging….

Nice, eh?

In the middle of the de people post office, I opened my package….and was blown away!! I actually let out an audible gasp!  I was highly impressed at how delicate, and beautiful and well made it was!

Delicate as in refined, not fragile.  On the website, the pieces are enlarged, to show detail, but in person it looked professionally made.  The beads are round and smooth with an iridescent/duochrome glaze, so it has a subtle shine.  The petals come to a point and the flower has some flexibility as it is made with bronze coloured wire.  The centre is bronze as well as the edges.  The rest of the petal is this burnished silver.  The flower is about 2.5 inches across with an alligator clip that just slides into the hair.

Used on twist-out high bun

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My holy grail product: Oyin Handmade's Burnt Sugar Pomade!

January 24, 2014 / / 6 Comments

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I have sung the praises about products from Oyin Handmade.  They have a fantastic collection for women how have naturally kinky/curly/coily hair.  But there is one that truly has my heart and I will buy for the rest of time!  Oyin Burnt Sugar Pomade.

Oyin Burnt Sugar Pomade

First of all, this smells every bit as good as it looks! Amazing!! I have been so tempted to eat this thing!   I actually think that it has quite a pronounced scent although it has been described as subtle.

Anyway, this is an all-natural, vegetable-based hair pomade, that has a very thick, almost grease-like consistency.  Like old-school, back in the day hair grease.  And to the touch, it is grainy, as if there is actual brown sugar mixed in it.  But that quickly melts away once you warm it up in your palms.

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My Chagrin Valley shampoo bars review!

July 5, 2013 / / 2 Comments

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NB: Nothing to declare! Product mentioned bought by me!

Chagrin Valley Soap and Salve products!

For the last few months, I have been testing out the two shampoo bars that I purchased from Chagrin Valley.  I have not had too much experience with Shampoo bars and previously I had only used the babassu bars from Anita Grant.  I have been a fan of liquid cleaners as they are more likely to lather (which by the way, assuming they don’t contain sulphates, assist in removing grease and dirt from the hair, but they are not absolutely necessary for cleansing).  Plus the fact, I am not a fan of soap melting away in the bathroom, but I decided to give them a try.  I purchased the Babassu Marsh Mallow and the Butter Bar Conditioner Shampoo Bars.  I got about 7oz. in each bar for about US$8.

See how large the bar is!!! Covers my entire hand!

Good value!  I cut off pieces of the bar as I needed it.

Babassu Marsh Mallow Shampoo Bar – 7oz.

Babassu Marsh Mallow Shampoo Bar –  The main ingredients are Babassu oil, which is great for thick hair and helps with restoring strength and elasticity,  and marsh mallow root, which a well-known botanical used for its detangling, softening and hydrating properties.  This bar had a citrusy, herbal scent that dissipated when rinsed.  I parted my hair into quarters and I was able to get a pretty decent lather from the bar.  It did not strip my hair of its moisture but neither was it super moisturizing.  My scalp looked/felt clean and it did not itch while I was washing it.   I also did not notice any significant ease in detangling.  This was a generally a good bar, not amazing, but I would repurchase.

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Hair haul: My recent Chagrin Valley purchase

April 24, 2013 / / 3 Comments

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Back in the day, before I even decided to go back to natural hair, I did a lot of research on new products that I could use.  I was a member of a number of natural hair discussion boards, as there were not that many blogs available at that time.  This is how I discovered that I could cleanse my hair without sulphates and they (the sulphates)  were probably the cause of the intense itching and dryness that I felt while shampooing.  One of the most widely mentioned brands for cleansers was from Chagrin Valley Soap & Salve Company.  Chagrin Valley makes a variety of handmade soaps for hair and body as well as body balms made with shea butter and herbal rinses.  I definitely wanted to explore the world of sulphate-free, natural shampoos, so I filed this name in my memory bank.

Fast forward to earlier this year and I wanted to try some new products.  I have been loving my SheaMoisture but, you know, the product junkie in me.  Browsing the site, there are a lot to choose from, depending on what you are looking for, the ingredients that you like, scents etc.  They sell their full sized bars as well as sample sizes, which is great!  I ended up choosing 2 full sized bars; the Babassu Marsh Mallow Shampoo Bar and the Butter Bar Conditioner Shampoo Bar.  I’ve always wanted to try hair teas to make detangling easier so I picked up the trial size of the Hair Tea Detangler Blend.

I ordered my items on a Monday night and I had a box waiting for me on Thursday! And this was the cheapest shipping option!  Here’s my haul.

Chagrin Valley Soap & Salve Co. haul!

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