New styles anyone?

After trolling the world wide web, I found some pictures of hair styles I have tried over time and some that I aspire to try in the near future. Maybe you could try your hand on some as well.

Well, I'm off to do some more trolling, more to come soon! Watch this space!

No big deal about relaxers....

Hello peeps,

I found this very interesting article while trolling the net. It left me deep in thought and I think it would be great for you to read as well. Please leave your comments!

Source is ; http://akorra.com/2010/03/21/9-reasons-to-avoid-perms-and-relaxers/

Here it goes:

The dependency of African Women on Hair relaxers is truly worrisome especially as  most women are not well informed about the chemicals present in these relaxers. Women relax their hair at least once every month and this ritual continues mostly for the rest of their lives. Being exposed to potentially harmful chemicals in small doses for a long period of time is what's absolutely scary. Hair companies do not print all the chemicals present in black hair products, if they did they’d probably go out of business. I realize there isn’t  a lot of advocacy on this issue which is also interesting as i would assume people would want to know more about what they put in their hair, and once they know it's harmful, would want to spread the message across to others. 

 I always hypothesized that the use of relaxers, in the long run would cause some sort of ailment. But like all scientific hypothesis, it has to be tested. Seeing I'm just a young Scientist with no fancy lab or high tech equipment to call my own, I decided to do what scientists do best which is to find some sort of evidence..but this time using good old Google. I’m happy to say i found a recent study on this.

A new study in the American Journal of Epidemiology has linked hair relaxers to uterine fibroids, as well as early puberty in young girls.

Scientists followed more than 23,000 pre-menopausal Black American women from 1997 to 2009 and found that the two- to three-times higher rate of fibroids among black women may be linked to chemical exposure through scalp lesions and burns resulting from relaxers.

Women who got their first menstrual period before the age of 10 were also more likely to have uterine fibroids, and early menstruation may result from hair products black girls are using, according to a separate study published in the Annals of Epidemiology last summer.

Three hundred African American, African Caribbean, Hispanic, and White women in New York City were studied. The women’s first menstrual period varied anywhere from age 8 to age 19, but African Americans, who were more likely to use straightening and relaxers hair oils, also reached menarche earlier than other racial/ethnic groups.

While so far, there is only an association rather than a cause and effect relationship between relaxers, fibroid tumors, and puberty, many experts have been quick to point out that the hair care industry isn’t regulated by the FDA, meaning that there’s no definite way to fully know just how harmful standard Black hair care products really are.

Fibroid Facts

Fibroids are tumors that grow in the uterus. They are benign, which means they are not cancerous, and are made up of muscle fibres  Fibroids can be as small as a pea and can grow as large as a melon. It is estimated that 20-50% of women have, or will have, fibroids at some time in their lives.

From lessons in Epidemiology, i  learnt that A might be associated with B but not the cause of B. In this case the study found that  there is only an association rather than a cause and effect relationship between relaxers and fibroid tumors. In lay terms this means relaxers are associated with fibroid tumours  but relaxers are not the reason why people get fibroid according to this study.

Until more research is done in this area we can't dispel anything with confidence. My hypothesis remains a hypothesis until someone spends years looking into this.

 PhD thesis anyone?

The Versatility of mini twists.

I find that my hair is easier to manage when it is in mini twists.
I get the twists done by twisting straight from the roots up.
The thing about mini twists is that not only is your hair protected,  you can keep them in for a long time and most importantly,  your styling options are unlimited. 
There are different ways to wear the mini twists. 
You can leave them hanging,  you can push them backwards using different kinds of head bands, you can pin down the front and keep the back hanging and what I love most. ..you can do a myriad of updos no matter the length of your hair.  You can achieve different kinds of looks with Updos.
You also have the option of curling your twists to give them another look.

Some benefits of mini twists include the following:
It helps your hair to retain length.
Can be considered a protective style.
Once installed, it reduces the amount of manipulation you put your hair through over time.
Makes it easy to get out of the house in the morning – Very quick styling since your hair is really already done.
Brings out your creative side when it comes to styling the updos.

After exhausting all your styling options,you can then take out the twists to produce a bad ass twist out which can last for days as the curls will be very defined because of the mini twists.

Why not try twists today?

Finally,  here are some pictures of my mini twists.

Send us an email and we will hook you up!
Enjoy! !

Ronke's Hair Story...Please read!!!!

Hi! My name is Ronke...

My natural hair journey started in August 2011.  I didn't really set out to go natural, it's almost like I stumbled into it.  I went through a phase where I had my hair in braids and weaves for about 9 months without perming my hair. 

After this, I decided that I might as well chop off the remaining permed hair. I was quite nervous and scared about taking this move because I didn't know how it would turn out, especially being that I worked in corporate setting where this is not very common. On the hand, I was looking forward to the idea of not having to deal with relaxers any more. I spoke to a few friends that had natural hair who gave me some tips on how to style my hair.

After the big chop, I felt free. I loved my new natural hair. Yes, it does require a lot of dedication and trial and error to determine what method of styling works best for my hair.  I have received a lot of positive feedback and compliments after the big chop.  However, some others could not understand why I would want to keep my hair natural because of the idea that it is harder to style. Someone asked me "how I am able to comb my natural hair." 

I have kept my natural hair pretty short for the most part so far, but now I have decided to grow it out. I mostly use Shea moisture shampoo and conditioner and Shea moisture curl enhancing smoothie and coconut oil for twist outs. I also do braids throughout the year.

The most important advice I

can give anyone thinking about going natural is to do your research, have confidence in your self and enjoy the process.

Terri's Hair Journey- Please Read!

Hiiiiii ! My name is Terri and hmmmmm there’s no big story or revelation that heralded my decision to cut my hair all off (or maybe there is :D). One day, I just decided I had had ENOUGH of relaxers. I was sick of having to mentally remind myself not to scratch my hair a day before I have an appointment at the salon; I was sick of having to endure the pain of relaxers (forget the fact that all those kit relaxers are not supposed to hurt. They HURT) and most of all I was sick of having my hair start to look ‘unrelaxed’ just a week and a half after getting it relaxed. Don’t get me wrong, I had nice enough hair when it was relaxed; in fact, some people were of the opinion I had really lovely hair and they didn’t understand why I always had it covered (ha! If only they knew I was covering it all up because the stubborn hair refused to stay sleek and straight and flat). 

So just after my birthday in May 2012, I decided to stop relaxing my hair and transition to natural hair.
I didn’t do much to my hair during my transitioning days; I mainly braided for weeks and fixed weaves and THENNNNN..... (drumroll please)....  on the 22nd of October, 2012, I took my lovely self to the salon and announced to my stylist that  I was ready to chop off my hair. Long story short, let’s say he was almost in tears and I had to spend the first few minutes of my arrival in the salon comforting him. Haha! The poor man kept saying ‘I’ve lost a customer ohhh,’ (you know how we can be soooo dramatic in Nigeria). I cut my hair that day… four days later, I went back to cut it some more because I felt I could still see some really straight ends… and finally went back one more time to cut off some more till I was satisfied.  

Fast forward to my first day back at work, (I was off for a week) and OMG, questions everywhere! ‘Terri! You
really did it! You really cut your hair!’ and ‘Nooooooooo, you cut off all your hair!!’. I remember one person in particular telling me I didn’t look ‘nice’ with my hair low,  (in other words she felt I wasn’t as pretty with my short hair as I was when I had my longer hair).One male colleague even asked me if someone died and I had to cut my hair in mourning. I knew he was joking but really?? I got so many mixed reactions from both male and female colleagues and to be honest, I started feeling really unpretty… I bought products and experimented and experimented and experimented. I kept wondering why the products I bought didn’t make my hair soft instantly and curly like all those akata babes I see on Youtube and on blogs. I even started asking myself why on earth I cut off my hair??? Don’t get me wrong, there were some days I’d loooooooove my short hair, or Teeny Weeny Afro (TWA) as it’s called, and then other days I’d feel the ugliest of ugliest.

 I decided eventually that I was going to just look for products that work for MY hair and go to Youtube solely for demonstrations of how to use products and the likes (plus I also went to Youtube and google to search for and drool over beautiful, beautiful natural sisters).

Now, 9 months later, I am IN LOVE with my hair. Like seriously, you can’t tell me nothing about my hair. Truth be told, I get the most ‘toasters’ *cough, sneeze, bless me* when I have my hair out. I feel
soooo confident and kind of, you know, POWERFUL when I have my hair out. :D.  I go out and people are just looking and some are smiling and others are probably debating in their heads if I’m SU or
something. Hahahahaha! When I don’t have my hair out, I braid mostly and I have been known to
fix a weave too. When I have my normal, Expressions braids in (thekanekalon treated one), I don’t really do much to my hair. I wash once in two weeks (bad, I know *covers eyes*) and when I have a weave in, I
don’t do anything to my hair. (Very, very bad!) But when I have my kinky twists in, I co-wash every week and moisturize. On days I have my hair out, I co-wash midweek and then every weekend, I do a shampoo,
conditioner, deep-condition and then finally moisturize. 

My favourite shampoo so far is Crème of Nature Moisture & Shine Sulfate-free Shampoo with Argan Oil, my conditioner for my co-wash is the Tresemme Naturals Conditioner and for my leave-in conditioner, I use the Kinky Curly Knot Today Detangler and then I use my Extra Virgin Coconut Oil and finally whatever moisturizer on hand. It could be raw shea butter, it could be 4 Naturals Afro Stretch Curl Cream. I’ve found that EVOO
doesn’t do as much for my hair as EVCO does so though I used to use,EVOO when I first started my journey, I don’t any more. I’ve also found that my hair is so much healthier now than it ever was when it was relaxed. Everytime I do a length check, I’m amazed at the growth. I experience crazy shrinkage but I have come to embrace it because if you worry about how much your hair shrinks when it is wet, you’d just give yourself unnecessary high BP. 

Ok, I think I have rambled on long enough but I just want to say one last thing, even though you may feel like your hair is just not responding to whatever product you’re trying, or you feel this ‘wahala’ wasn’t what you
envisioned when you decided to go natural, please JUST EXERCISE PATIENCE. Also, try to listen to your hair so you know what it needs. Don’t go trying product after product just because your best friend or some female on the internet used such and such and got amazing results; find what works for your hair and stick with it. Ok, that’s two things I said but I think it’s allowed. 
To those of you embarking on your natural hair journey, I wish you all the best!

YOUR Hair Story.

Hello Ladies,  how's your hair doing today?  Still undercover or wild and free? 

Thank you so much for all your encouraging words. A brilliant idea came to me last night and I think you should all be a part of it.

I would like to share your hair journey stories including all your successes and failures, so if you are in the city and you have begun a natural hair journey,  please can you send me your story and an image to go with it?

  We want to celebrate you and inspire others that might be thinking about going natural.  It doesn't have to be any thing grand...just a few  lines talking about what inspired you to take the plunge,  how you went about it,  the kinds of responses you got from friends and family, your daily routines. .. etc.  

You can send a photo of when you did the big chop and you today, or anything you are comfortable with. 

Please ladies,  I am counting on you guys. ..Let's make it work.
First up will be a friend of mine with a very hilarious story...watch this space. ..
To be part of this,  please send your story and picture to naturalosityafrica@gmail.com

Early Days – Give it some time.

I know that there are many naturalistas out there who think that their hair is nasty. Now that there are no more chemicals, you think it looks ugly because your hair is no longer  straight neither is it curly so it kind of looks like it has no shape and form…well, I want to tell you to give it some time.

When I first began my natural hair journey, it felt this way as well. I was very sceptical and self-conscious because I didn't know how people were going to receive me and my new look. I had to watch over a hundred thousand you tube videos of other people’s journeys and experiences with embracing their natural hair. You can ask my hubby, I was obsessed! This habit gave me a lot of confidence and I saw myself doing it. I also invested in quirky hair accessories and earrings to give myself a lift, just in case the hair was totally wrong, at least I would have something to work with, or so I imagined.

Anyway, I got mixed reviews from different people. There was one particular day; I woke up 20 minutes earlier than normal just to style my hair. I had washed it the night before and sprayed it with coconut oil, olive oil and water and twisted my strands into about 10 parts, hoping to get a fabulous twist out with some definition. So here I was 20 minutes early just so I could loosen the twists. I sprayed the hair that morning with my mix and took out the twist. I was very happy and excited about what I had achieved and finished my look off with a bright blue hair band. My husband told me my hair looked nice and I skipped off happily to work.

As I drove into the car park, the first person I came across was some guy who was the systems administrator at that time.  He waited for me while I parked my car. I strolled over to him, smiling. As soon as he saw me, he raised  up his hands and said… ‘Mosh, your hair looks so untidy!!! Is that how you are going to look all day????’……………….

I was so pissed off! He deflated me right there and then. I didn't ask for his opinion but he gave it anyway. My bounce became a shuffle. I was very unhappy and it affected my mood all day. I just decided to zone out and I didn't look into any mirror at all that day. However, today, he is one of my admirers. Now, he thinks my hair is beautiful and extremely cool. He is even of the opinion that black women need to embrace their natural hair.

My point is that you need to stick with it. It may seem horrible at first but that’s only because you are not used to it. It’s new so it is bound to feel unfamiliar and make you feel unsure but hang in there. Educate yourself about your hair, keep trying different things. Compensate with make up and accessories if it makes you feel better. But just keep at it. It will get better and better, I promise.

Here are some pictures of my early days.

You have done the big chop - Now what?????????

So, you've bitten the bullet and you have chopped off all your permed hair...now what? You have this 'untamed forest' on your head and you don't know what to do with it or even how to begin in the first place...Worst of all, you are in LAGOS...Lagos, not London, not America, not Canada....but in LAGOS! Where do you get reasonably priced products from to work with your hair in Lagos? Very good question.

Here are some pocket friendly products that you should have in your hair bag:

Is Hair in the same category as Clothes?

There is this argument that I usually have with my sister, once in a while. She is one person who loves to wear 'Brazilian hair' weaves. I can count the number of times I have actually seen her hair and she is my sister.
 Anyways, the conversation usually goes like this.:
Me:                 You are such a fake girl, why must you always cover your hair?
Sister:              It looks nicer when I have a weave and I don't have time to start combing my hair or touching up my relaxer.
Me:                 Why can't you just embrace the way your hair grows out of your scalp? Isn't that the way      God created your hair?
Sister:             Get lost joo! Why do you wear clothes? Didn't God create us naked? So why don't you walk around naked as you were created? Please leave me alone, you do you and I'll do me!

And it goes on and on and then we just laugh it off.

Truth is that it is not the same thing. Is one's hair in the same category as one's clothes? Should you change your hair like you change your clothes? Note, that I did not say hair style but hair itself!

People, we need to ponder on some of these things.

Hidden...

Recently had a conversation with a friend. She has had natural hair for 6 months now but is always hiding it under a weave and she feels that she can't do anything with it and so she just hides it...I have come to realise that there are many people with this predicament. They have luscious beautiful hair which they keep hidden under layers of weave...the question is Why??
Is it because they do not feel comfortable enough wearing their own hair?
Could it be that they are unsure of what it would look like? 
Is it that they have grown so accustomed to weaves and straight hair that they would feel naked without them?
Truth is that if you don't embrace your hair in its natural state and try to do something with it and wear it out...you will keep hiding.
The more you wear it out, the more confident you will become and you will understand your hair better.
Haven't you heard that the more time you spend with someone, the more you will get to know and love them...same thing applies to your hair. 
Ladies, please let's embrace our hair and love it! It's real, it is all yours and most importantly, it is beautiful

!!!

Twists and corn row styles to try.

We have a good  natural hair stylist who can give you these beautiful styles.  Buzz us on here!