A Few First Impressions

{1}Hairitage Hydration Marshmallow Springs (www.hairitagehydration.com)

Soften, condition, and help beat fizz with this custard like hair cream. Made with Marshmallow root for extra slip, you can use this product for a light finger detangle. Also made with rich butters to help lock the moisture in from the aloe vera. Smells like toasted marshmallows!

Ingredients:  Marshmallow Root Infused Water, Avocado Butter, Aloe Vera Gel, Tucuma Butter, Babassu Oil, E-Wax, BTMS-50, Germall Plus, Mallow Extract, Fragrance

First Impression: I fell in love with the first time I used it. It can be used as a styler but I use it as my leave-in/detangler. This product is very moisturizing a detangles like a dream. I was amazed at how easy it was to detangle my hair. It really does have that toasted marshmallow smell and little bit goes a long way. Definitely a staple for me.

{2} Naturelle Grow Mango and Coconut Water (Can be purchased on Etsy)

Freshly made from 100% coconut water, our Mango & Coconut Water treatment will revitalize your hair, leaving it soft, shiny, and ready for styling. This conditioner contains essential vitamins, amino acids and antioxidants that your hair needs in order to grow healthy. Your hair will appreciate this amazing conditioner treatment and best of all, it's all natural!

Ingredients: Coconut Water, Conditioning Emulsifier, Marshmallow Root, Grapeseed oil, Coconut Oil, Mango Butter, Emu Oil, VenaSilk, Sodium Lactate, Agave Nector, aveeno oat, Panthenol, Preservative, Fragrance

Instructions for use: apply the deep conditioner to damp hair once a week, and leave on for up to 30 minutes before rinsing out. Can be used with a plastic cap or warm towel to increase penetration into the hair cuticle.

First Impression: If you read my 28 weeks post wash day you already know the love I have developed for this conditioner. My hair absolutely loves this conditioner. My hair was ridiculous soft and manageable. Detangling was pretty easy to. It has a very light fresh smell to it. Staple

{3} Naturelle Grow Marsmallow Root, Slippery Elm Bark and Cinnamon Deep Conditioner (protein free)

This version is Protein & Glycerin Free - Just a blend of hair softening herbs and organic oils.

Moisturize and melt your tangles away with ease with this super hydrating, detangling and strengthening deep conditioner. Enriched with our unique blend of herbs to aid in growth and supreme detangling and Shea Butter, Apricot Kernal Oil to help prevent breakage and soften the hair. Best of all this one of a kind herbal conditioner helps you to retain and maintain the hair that you are growing. Great for all hair types.

Ingredients: Its distinctive formulation is made with the best organic natural ingredients that will deliver real and long lasting results. Our key ingredients Water, Behentrimonium Conditioning Emulsifier, Shea Butter, Babbasu Oil, Apricot Kernal Oil, Castor Oil, Sodium Lactate, Honey, NatureSilk, Marshmallow Root, Slippery Elm Bark,Cinnamon, Guar Gum, Preservative, Fragrance

Instructions for use: apply the deep conditioner to damp hair once a week, and leave on for up to 30 minutes before rinsing out. Can be used with a plastic cap or warm towel to increase penetration into the hair cuticle.

* Expect some batches to be slightly thinner/thicker than others as our products are handcrafted. This is not indicative of a formula change and will not affect performance in any way. Also, you may see natural herbs present. (this is a good thing)

**Color may vary from batch to batch from light tan to darker brown due to natural color variations inherent in the herbs that we use. This too is not indicative of a formula change and will not affect performance.

First Impressions: When I first used this conditioner. I was kind of on the fence about it. The softness was, as Divachyck said in her review, delayed. The softness kicked in after I towel dried my hair but I'm okay with that. It's definitely a keeper. 

{4} Naturelle  Marshmallow Root, Slippery Elm Bark, and Blue Malva Cleansing Conditioner (moisturizing)

Similiar to our Herbal Cleansing Cream but made with more Herbs to produce even better results!

A brew of herbal delight designed specifically to encourage stronger, longer hair and stimulate growth. The Herbal Cleansing conditioner is a sulfate free, gentle cleansing milk designed for daily and weekly use.

We’ve steeped the very best natural herbs including Marshmallow Root, Slippery Elm bark, and Blue Malva into a creamy, cleansing cauldron of organic pride. Restore moisture and balance to your hair and reap the rewards of a healthy mane through and through.


How to use: Wet hair thoroughly and distribute cleanser throughout hair. Leave on 3-5 minutes then carefully detangle hair with a wide-tooth comb. Rinse well. Repeat only if necessary to remove excessive product build up. Follow-up with our intense deep conditioner. Note: This product does not lather. 

Ingredients:Purified Water (infused with natural herbs: Marshmallow Root, Slippery Elm Bark, Burdock Root, & Blue Malva,), Conditioning Emulsifier, Shea Butter, Panthenol, Polyquat 9, Honey, Phenoxyethanol (and) Caprylyl Glycol (and) Sorbic Acid, Fragrance.


First Impressions: I have used this conditioner about 2 or 3 times and I have not been disappointed. I have used it on damp dirty hair. Basically, I divided my hair into a four sections, sprayed each section with water, applied the conditioner, and let it sit for a bit. When I rinsed it out, my hair felt really clean but nowhere near stripped. This is definitely a keeper in my book.

Manetabolism Update

So here is my progress from January to March. I made a little bit of progress. Would I have liked more? Of course but I'm satisfied. The thickness is definitely there. I am going to continue taking them at least through the end of the year since I plan on trimming my ends until the bone straight ends are completely gone. I want to get as much new growth in to replace what will be cut off. The second picture is from yesterday and I had about an half inch cut off. I'll probably get another trim when I get my hair done again.

Wash Day 30 Weeks Post: Huetiful Salon Chicago Experience (3/22)

http://www.huetifulsalon.com/about.htm



Address: 3428 S. KING Dr in Chicago

At the end of last year Huetiful Salon opened a location here in Chicago and ever since it's kinda been on my radar. Two months ago I went ahead and made an appointment. Today was the day. When I arrived Nina Christmas, who is one of the Senior Stylist, answered the door. She was very welcoming and had a lot of energy. She asked me my name and when I told her she knew which stylist I was there to see. I got there a few minutes before my appointment and I was taken right on time. I must say that the atmosphere is very relaxing. My stylist's name was Tasheara. Check out her video below.

Once she introduced herself, she went straight to work. I had the 90 minute Hydrating and Conditioning Treatment ($65). What I like about this salon is that they let you know what they are doing with each step. 

First she used their clarifying shampoo and followed that up with their moisturizing shampoo. During the moisturizing shampoo phase they detangle the hair. After rinsing, she applied the conditioner which has peppermint oil in it because my scalp had that nice cool sensation. She pinned my hair up and moved me over to her chair. When I sat down at her station she wheeled over a steamer and I had a nice 20 minute steam treatment. It's nice having it done professionally. Their steamers have a drawstring enclosure that allows your hair to get all of the moisture it can. I have a picture of it but I can't get it to post with upright. Once the conditioner was rinsed she blow dried and flat ironed my hair. She had me facing the mirror so I could see her doing my hair. I also had an half an inch cut off. During the styling part, I asked her about the condition of my hair. Basically she told me what I already knew. It's time to get rid of these bone straight ends. So I will be trimming a lot more frequently. Which means I could be hovering around the same length for awhile. I'm okay with that.  Overall my experience was a positive one. I will be going back. I already made another appointment for May. Below is how my turned out. I really like it.

Mid-Week Wash: Naturelle Grow (3/12)

This wash day was done with all Naturelle Grow products. 

{1} Parted my hair into 4 sections. I dampened each section with water from a spray bottle. Applied the Naturelle Grow Marshmallow Root, Slippery Elm Bark and Blue Malva Cleansing Conditioner. I did this on damp hair outside of the shower to help save on time.

{2} I rinsed each section for about a minute once I got into the shower. My hair felt clean but not stripped. Which is great. I have this cleansing conditioner 2 thumbs up.

{3}After my hair was cleansed I went on to applying the Mango and Coconut Water Deep Conditioning Treatment. I sat under the steamer for about 20 minutes. My hair wash very soft and moisturized. 

 {4} After rinsing out the deep conditioner, I towel dried for about 30 minutes or so. I went on to adding my leave-ins and detangling.  I had a few more knots then usual. At that point I finger detangled my hair. I still lost the same amount of hair I normally do. Overall it was good wash day.

Wash Day Chronicle: 28 Week Post

3/8/2014
I must say that this wash day was pretty good. As of this past Thursday I made 28 weeks post.

{1} I shampooed with my Purgasm Yogurt and Cocoa Shampoo Bar. My hair felt extremely clean but not stripped in the least.
{2} I skipped the rinse out conditioning step out of laziness and went straight to deep conditioning with my steamer. I used a new conditioner. Naturelle Grow Mango and Coconut Water. This conditioner here has become a new member of my deep conditioner line-up. My hair was left feeling so moisturized and soft. Look for an initial reaction post.

{3} I applied my leave-ins and then went on to detangling. One of the leave-ins I used was the Aphogee Keratin and Green Tea Restructurizer. I don't think my hair cares for this product. My doesn't seem to need the extra boost of protein that this product gives. Detangling was a bit of chore but I still lost as much hair as I normally do. Nothing to alarming. As long as wash days continue to be this good, I will continue to stretch.
{4} I have been trying out the Tension Blow Dry method and I like it so far. I needed a way to stretch out my new growth and seems to be working.

Here is a picture of my new growth after rinsing out the Mango and Coconut Water conditioner and towel drying for a few minutes. I did the best that I could so don't judge me please. lol

March Goal and February Goal Review

Let's see how it went shall we:

1. Use heat once this month...I got my hair straightened at the beginning of the month. That was the one and only time heat touched my hair in Feb. Passed

2. Use up at least one product...I used not only used up a product I used up three. Check 2 blog posts back to see what they are. Passed

3. Exercise 3 times a week...Failed

4. Take Manetabolism vitamins daily...Passed. I used up a bottle around the middle of Feb and started bottle number 4.

5. Absolutely NO BUYING NEW PRODUCTS...Failed. I am done trying to not buy any new products. I like trying new products. I just have to try and curb the amount of new products I get. I am a product junkie. lol

6. Deep Condition my ends at least 2 times this month...I was able to get in those dc despite my hair being straight a little longer than anticipated. Passed

All in all I did pretty good for the month.

March Goal:

I have only 1 goal for the month March and it is not hair related. My goal is to complete the 21 Day Snatch It Back Challenge on Instagram. This challenge is hosted by the mother/daughter fitness team Ellen and Lana Ector from the Black Girls Workout Too and Black Girls Workout 2 dvds. I have both dvds but I have only used their second one so far and I love it. My issue is sticking to working out. When they did their first 21 day challenge in January I Iasted about 2 weeks. I will do my best to actually finish the challenge.

I will be using their second dvd, pictured above. I love this dvd. It's actually a lot of fun to do. The workout  is broken down into 8 chapters. Levels, which is led by Lana (the daughter), is all about the booty. This squats workout is absolutely no joke. You will feel it the next day. lol I also purchased the very popular Polar FT4F Monitor. I have seen this in several fitness groups. What I love about it is that it can be personalized with your weight, age, and other information. It is very easy to use. So tomorrow is day 1 of 21. Time to start getting healthier and beach ready. 

Aphogee Curlific Texture Treatment

Purchased: Sally Beauty Supply
Price: 9.49 W/ Beauty Club Card: 8.49 (prices are from their website)

Product Description:

• Restores elasticity
• Helps eliminate hair loss
• Helps eliminate hair breaks and split ends

ApHogee Curlific Texture Treatment restores elasticity and life to dry, damaged curls, coils and waves. Weekly use of Curlific! Texture Treatment maintains beautiful hair, regardless of the environment or styling regimen. Also works for color treated curls.


Package Directions:

Shampoo with Curlific! Texured Hair Wash. After rinsing with warm water, work a liberal amount of Textured Hair Treatment through your thirsty locks. Leave on a minute and then rinse, finishing with cool water.

Ingredients:

Water (Aqua, Eau), Stearyl Alcohol, Cetyl Alcohol, Behenamidopropyl Dimethylamine, Glycerin, Panthenol, Butyrospermum Parkii (Shea) Butter, Hydrolyzed Quinoa, Hydrolyzed Vegetable Protein PG-Propyl Silanetriol, Mauritia Flexuosa Fruit Oil, Sodium PCA, Cucurbita Pepo (Pumpkin) Seed Oil, Dimethicone, Amodimethicone, Lactic Acid, Polyester-11, PVP, Isostearamidopropyl Morpholine Lactate, Aminopropyl Dimethicone, Cetrimonium Chloride, Trideceth-10, Silicone Quaternium-22, Laureth-23, Laureth-4, Keratin Amino Acids, Trimethylsiloxyamodimethicone, C11-15 Pareth-7, C12-16 Pareth-9, Trideceth-12, Citric Acid, Sodium Chloride, Disodium EDTA, Methylchloroisothiazolinone, Methylisothiazolinone, Fragrance (Parfum)

Ingredient Analysis (Via the Mane Objective Blog):

• Stearyl & Cetyl Alcohols: Fatty alcohols and lubricants. Serve as a thickeners, and emollients. Both give conditioner its velvety feel without making hair greasy. 
• Behenamidopropyl Dimethylamine: Cationic surfactant and hair conditioner with antistatic and emulsifying properties
• Glycerin: Vegetable-based humectant, absorbs water from the air to help maintain and retain moisture in hair and prevent dryness and breakage.
• Panthenol: Form of vitamin B known to moisturize and soften hair. Is also able to penetrate the cortex of the hair shaft.
• Butyrospermum Parkii (Shea) Butter: Emollient fat from the nut of the East or West African shea nut tree used to moisturize and soften hair.
• Hydrolyzed Quinoa: Protein of quinoa grain that is made smaller through an enzymatic process. Quinoa protein is similar in makeup to animal protein, because of the amino acid profile. These aminos penetrate and nourish hair, providing smoothness, softness, hydration, sheen, and form a protective barrier against environmental stresses around the hair.

I didn't know about this product at all until I saw the reviews from Moknowshair and from the Mane Objective. After seeing the video and reading the blog post my curiosity got the best of me, as usual, and I went and bought a jar. I am so happy that I did. It is amazing stuff. This product doesn't put itself into a box. You can use it the way you see fit for your hair. I've used it 2 different ways. First was as a rinse out conditioner and the second was a prepoo treatment.  What put my love this treatment over the top was using it as a prepoo treatment. I parted my hair into 4 sections, sprayed my hair with water enough to dampen it and applied the conditioner to each section. I let it sit on my hair for awhile under my deep conditioning bonnet. OMG when I rinsed it out of my hair it was so soft. This stuff melted away tangles and knots. At  My hair felt like butta, yes I said butta. lol I did go on to shampoo and condition afterwards. I could have cut those steps out. lol I wasn't too much of fan of the new products I used. That's another post for another time. 

I think from now on I will use it as a cowash from time to time. By performing the steps I mentioned previously but instead if using the conditioning bonnet I'll use my steamer. I can only imagine how it will be adding the steamer. 

The smell: Very perfumey but it hasn't bothered me and it doesn't linger. It might bother you if you are sensitive to smells.

Texture: Very thick and creamy but goes on the hair pretty easily. 

Recommend or Not:

I absolutely love this treatment and would definitely recommend it, 

Have you tried this? What are your thoughts?

Product Empties

On my quest to reduce my stash this year as much as I can this year, here are the products I finished in February.

1.  Hairitage Hydration Soft Coconut Marshmallow Leave-In. This is one of my favorite leave-ins. I use this pretty much every wash day. My hair is always soft and moisturized after using this.

2. Aphogee Curlific Texture Treatment...Review coming soon but I must say that I am loving this treatment.

3. Manetabolism Hair Skin and Nail Vitamins... This is my 3rd bottle of the vitamins. Comparison and a review will be coming in a few weeks after I get my hair straighten.