Natural Ladies...be careful!

I know it's been a long time since you heard from me. Been really busy!! The salon has kicked off well and we will soon be clocking a year!!! How time flies!

So, I have this friend/customer and she comes to me crying about this 'hair emergency'.

She tells me with excitement about this fab "natural hair group" that teaches her so many things. That's great, right? 

Next thing she tells me about how someone in the group said that you could get straight hair which would look relaxed by applying a concoction of ...listen to this... Of avocado, lemon and a full cup of vegetable oil, whipped together and it would get her hair bone straight!!!! 

So, foolishly, she applied the mix and guess what happened?? 

Her hair was clumpy and smelt like fried plantains and it was still as kinky as ever! 

I was kind of surprised that she would believe such rubbish!! Vegetable oil??? Straight natural hair???? Nawa!

Of course we had to do a good clarifying wash and a deep deep conditioning to get rid of the mess.

In the end, although it is good to try new things and learn about natural ways to manage your hair, you have to be careful! 

Do your research yourself, learn for yourself. Don't just take what any Tom, Dick and Harry says just because!!!

Let's learn to research and do sensible things!

Have a nice week ahead!

Naturalosity Opens Shop!

Soooooo, it seems like we've been lazy and have gone  incommunicado....but there's a reason for the silence.

Guess what???

 Naturalosity Salon is finally open for business!!!!!!!!!!! The opening was wonderful. There was lots and lots to eat and drink. We had free henna art services which was a hit even with the men and the kids. The salon was buzzing with so much activity. Pictures to follow shortly!

We are now ready to create all those beautiful styles on this blog, using your lovely kinks and coils. Think about twists, flat twists, double strand twists, twist outs, perm rod curls, pipe cleaner curls, cornrows and twists styles, just name it! We will hook you up to make you look fabulous!

We also have a fab, fabloctician on site who retightens and installs traditional locs and micro locs.

We have ORS products, natural oils, curlers and butters on sale at the salon.

Please come in and try us out for a very personal and unforgettable experience. For the first 20 people who would like this post,  we will be offering a free deep conditioning treatment with any hairstyle that you would like to try out.

We look forward to your patronage. 

Here are some images of our products and one of our very happy customers. 

I want to go natural...please help me!

I get people asking this question all the time, so I have decided to write a post about it.

 Are you tired of the creamy crack (relaxer)? Is your hair fast thinning out. Has all your hair "chopped" in the front, making you look like 'mama Iyabo'? Or are you just plain tired of your hair and want to try something else?

 Has the thought of going natural crossed your mind recently?

Well, congratulations!  I think that you would be making a good decision. 

So if you really want to consider transitioning to natural hair, here are some ideas that helped me along on my journey and may also help you as well.

First things first, no more relaxer!! Take that phenomenon out of your mind and off your shelf! You need to retrain your mind.

Now,you will then find out that you will begin to manage two different textures in your hair so you need to be thinking about how to make the combo manageable.

The next step is to deep condition your hair as often as you can so that the two textures do not cause you any headaches as you would have straightened hair at the tips and natural hair at the roots and the pont at which they meet can be difficult to manage which could result in your hair breaking off.

You also need to start trying other kinds of styles that may not necessarily involve extensions. Styles that will protect your hair while you are transitioning. If you are going to use extensions, it may be wise to use something that can work with the two textures in your hair ie kinky braids etc. however, whatever you decide to do, you must still be moisturising your hair and scalp even while in braids, plaits, twists or any other style. Notice how I have not mentioned a weave or a wig, lol!

Thing is that if you really want to go natural, you will have to be brave enough to wear your hair loose and not hide it under anything. Embrace your hair so that you can understand it better and begin to know what works for your hair and how to manage it. Be edgy, try things like Bantu knots, twists, rod sets, straw sets, cornrows and twists, twist outs etc.

You will need to invest in products that moisturise, deep condition and masque your hair. Also, natural oils need to be your friend. Oils like coconut, castor, avocado, olive, sweet almond oil.

Take it one day as it comes and when you feel ready, then you can do your big chop and begin your journey. In the meantime, keep researching and finding the things that you need to know about embracing your natural hair.

I can tell you that it is an exciting journey, you will have some high moments and some very low ones but don't give up. Ignore all those stereotypical people and try it. You will be glad you did.

Please share your experiences with us.

Have a fabulous week ahead. 

Remember, Love Your Roots!!!!

Thermal Cap

Thermal Cap?

So I tried a thermal heat/ steam cap today. 
I haven't deep conditioned my hair in a while so I decided to do so today.  
I sectioned my hair into about 12 single plaits.  Washed it in those plaits in preparation for my deep conditioning. (I find that my hair is easier to manage and manipulate when I section it in single plaits or twists.) 
Then I mixed organics deep conditioner,  a mixture of coconut oil,  castor oil and peppermint oil and then my Taliah Waajid herbal conditioner and applied this mixture unto my hair,  massaging deeply into my scalp follicles.  

I plugged in my  steam cap and sat under it for about 20 minutes while watching 'Generations'...Yes, I watch 'Generations'. *covering my eyes*

I then rinsed out the mix with warm water Afterwards, my hair came out so so shiny and soft.

Next, I undid the plaits and applied some leave in conditioner and Creme of Nature's Argan Oil Foaming Wrap Lotion and set my hair with the smallest sized bendy rollers, letting it air dry.

I ended up with some nice loose curls and I was a happy bunny after that!.

Voila...the end!

Please, if you are on this page, kindly tell us how you deep condition your hair. We could learn some things off you that could work for us on our hair journeys.

Here are some pictures...enjoy!!

Please leave a comment! Thank you.

Thermal Cap?

So I tried a thermal heat/ steam cap today. 
I haven't deep conditioned my hair in a while so I decided to do so today.  
I sectioned my hair into about 12 single plaits.  Washed it in those plaits in preparation for my deep conditioning. (I find that my hair is easier to manage and manipulate when I section it in single plaits or twists.) 
Then I mixed organics deep conditioner,  a mixture of coconut oil,  castor oil and peppermint oil and then my Taliah Waajid herbal conditioner and applied this mixture unto my hair,  massaging deeply into my scalp follicles.  

I plugged in my  steam cap and sat under it for about 20 minutes while watching 'Generations'...Yes, I watch 'Generations'. *covering my eyes*

I then rinsed out the mix with warm water Afterwards, my hair came out so so shiny and soft.

Next, I undid the plaits and applied some leave in conditioner and Creme of Nature's Argan Oil Foaming Wrap Lotion and set my hair with the smallest sized bendy rollers, letting it air dry.

I ended up with some nice loose curls and I was a happy bunny after that!.

Voila...the end!

Please, if you are on this page, kindly tell us how you deep condition your hair. We could learn some things off you that could work for us on our hair journeys.

Here are some pictures...enjoy!!

Please leave a comment! Thank you.

Sabirah's Story...does it sound familiar?

I went natural in October 2009. 

As cheesy as it may sound,I went natural because I felt I wasn’t being true to myself. I was at a stage in my life where I was asking myself a lot of important questions about who I was and why I did the things I did. It had never occurred to me that having natural hair was an option for me so as soon as I realized I could do it I went for the big chop.

It was exhilarating and scary at the same time, the week that I first cut my hair ,I found myself wearing lots of make-up and jewellery. I probably looked clownish. Soon enough though, I got used to it and came to love my short hair. As it grew, I changed too. My hair added an edge to my personal style and became one of my favourite features. It also  became a great conversation starter.

Over the past years, I've tried various styles and my favourite are definitely twists, braided styles and updos. I never quite became the product junkie, I just stuck to what worked. My hair regimen has always been no fuss; water, good oils and butters and the occasional styler.

Being natural has been fun for me, I love the versatility, I love how different natural hair looks- no two people have the same head of hair, and I love the positive message it sends. 

Embrace who you are, fully!

 I totally adore updos and I like to try my hands on different styles. 

  The beautiful thing about an updo is that you can create one with anything. ..as long as you have some hair on your head.  Yes! Even with short hair,  you can create some kind of updo.

What is an updo anyway? 

Personally and simply put, it is when you create a style pushing all or most of your hair to the top and centre of your head and creating different kinds of styles with your hair placed at the top of your head.
Updos accentuate different looks and you can rock one for many different reasons.

Rock an updo.....

* when you have had twists installed and are tired of leaving them hanging down
*when your hair refuses to obey you and is getting on your last nerve
*when you have that fab wedding/event and what to look all elegant and glam
* when you are in a quick hurry and don't have time for any major styling
* when you want to protect your ends from the elements
*when you have some new or interesting hair accessory that you have been looking to rock
*when you are having a bad hair day and trust me,  there are many days like that

...bottom line is that there is always a reason to rock an up do.

All you need are:
♡ loads and loads and loads and loads of hair pins at your disposal. ..I mean loads!!! Lol.
♡lots of creativity and imagination
♡a mirror
and you are good to go.

Here are some pictures of updos I have tried along the way.  

     

What about you? Have you tried an updo? Kindly send us some pictures of the styles you have achieved tonaturalosityafrica@gmail.com