1Blessed Natural Mag

1 week before my Big Chop Hey everyone, I hope that you are enjoying your Sunday. I just wanted to discuss the  idea of straightening your hair for a job interview. It has been almost 5 months since my big chop. I have not had to go on interviews. However, many of my friends have stated that they straighten their hair for job interviews. I can understand the reason why they do. Although we have learned to accept our hair, the truth is that many people have not and will not accept our hair texture. Natural hair and/or afros have stigmas attached to them. People often associate the afro with the anger. There will be some employers that will not hire someone because they will view the afro or natural hair is unkempt. I think that others may subconsciously judge the person based on negative stereotypes associated with our hair. My friends have said that they do not want feel like they have lost out on an opportunity because their hair was not straightened. As a result, they will s...

Hey everyone, I have been featured in the Paper Li, Natural Hair Tweets newspaper. Check it out here .                                                     Until next time...                                                      God is good :-)                                        ...

It's been 4 months since my Big Chop. Hey everyone,          We now have a wealth of natural hair information (Thank God) on the internet. You can view blogs, videos, and other websites. But, one must be able to sift through all of the information given and use the methods/products that work for your hair. I remember when I was ten years ago, and I got my first perm. My grandmother warned that my hair would be more fragile with a perm. She said that less hair manipulation was the best. Otherwise, my hair would break off. Now that I am a natural, I have heard many people say that protective styling and low manipulation is best. So, I guess both are fragile??? permed and natural hair.        These mixed signals have become a bit of a nuisance for me lol because I love to try new styles for my hair. I do not want to wake up and be afraid of styling my hair because it might fall out. But, this is all in moderatio...

I was looking for a good daily moisturizer. I saw the Carrot Creme on another blogger's blog, and I decided to try it.  Cost: I paid $3.49 at a local beauty supply store. The ingredients are as follows: Delonized Water, Isopropyl Myristate, Cetearyl Alcohol, Soybean Oil, Stearic Acid, Ceterareth 20, Fragrance, Methylparaben, Propylparaben, Imidazolidyni Urea, Carot Oil, Hydolyzed Keratin Protein, Vitamin A (Palmitate), Vitamin C (Asorbic Acid), Vitamin E (Tocopherol), Carrot Extract (Beta Carotene), L-Cystine, Panthenol (Vitamin B), Peanut Oil, Arginine, Horsetail Extract."  Application: I've used this product on my hair right after washing and applying essential oil to my hair. It worked fine. I've found that this product works better on damp hair. On the back of the container, it is suggested that you use the product daily and style with the "HOLLYWOOD BOAR BRISTLE BRUSHES". However, I only use the Gabriela brush on my hair. I haven't tried ...

Hey everyone, I hope that you all are staying cool :-) My niece's hair was cornrowed last week. I just wanted to show you guys the pictures. It took 6 hours to complete. No hair was added.   The back of her hair has two layers of cornrows.

"Winter Girl" (Afro inspired) handmade greeting card Hey everyone! I have been designing and creating handmade greeting cards for about 5 years now. In 2008, Ruthie's Greetings LLC was established in my grandmother's honor. Ruthie's Greetings specializes in handmade African-American greeting cards, both general occasion and custom cards. I was fascinated with the Afro/natural hair even before I decided to go natural again... "Jamaican Dress" (custom Profile Pic) handmade card "A Hole In One" handmade greeting card "Hello Lady" blue poncho (Afro inspired) handmade greeting card So I've decided to create a natural hair themed greeting card line. Here is one of the cards from the line! "Loving What He Gave Me" handmade natural hair card Let me know what you guys think! ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Please visit http://etsy....

my hair after taking out twists After taking out my twists, I raked the comb through my hair to hide the parts. Then, I put on a headband.    Twist-Out: I've found that my hair is curlier than before my trim.   

Just began trimming my TWA Ok, so I've finished trimming my hair. It took me about two hours. After washing and deep conditioning my hair, I parted in 4 sections. 1. Then, I sectioned off my hair in each quadrant and applied a leave-in conditioner. 2.  Sprayed water on the section 3. Applied shea butter mixed with coconut oil. 4. Used Gabriella (cheaper version of Denman brush) to smooth. 5. Smoothed the hair between my index and middle finger, stopped right before rough ends 6. Cut the rough ends off and twisted my hair.  I knew when all of the damaged ends were gone, because the ends of my hair would curl up at the end of my twists :-)  making progress lol half of my TWA trimmed Finished! Damaged ends

It's been 4 months as of July 3,2011 since my BC, and I have decided to trim my TWA. The pic above is actually of pic of when I cut a piece of my permed hair off lol. Anyway, I have been reading articles that have debated on whether to trim the ends of your TWA. Because your hair does not meet as much friction as long hair, some have said they would rather wait until their year mark. I'd rather trim them now, then have to cut later lol. My ends do not feel as smooth as they were when I create finger coils, so a trim is best. I've found the videos by Sheacutey   and  MsVCharles to be the most helpful. They both discuss dusting and trimming. I will post pictures of my hair after my trim. So, check back later! :-) I would also like to read your stories and comments on this! Please feel free to post!                             ...

Here are more pictures of the Banding Method ! The Banding (Stretching) method for natural hair

Before I washed my hair last week, I decided to try the coconut pre-shampooing method. I rubbed coconut oil on my hair and then sat under a heating cap for about 20 minutes. After washing and deep conditioning my hair, it was extra soft. I strongly recommend this method :-)

Loofah Pad's by Market Spa Hey everyone, I hope that you enjoyed your holiday weekend! I wanted to talk a little about skin care. This week I noticed that my face was breaking out. I remember reading online (it may have been someone's blog) that you have to wash your satin/cotton pillow cases often, because the oils and products from your hair can clog your facial pores. I have experienced that first hand lol. While cruising the aisles of Pathmark, I found facial loofahs. I was very excited lol. I had been using the small round loofah's, but the ones below seemed to be of better quality. I like using them, because they exfoliate your skin without being too harsh. In the past, I've used the buff puffs, but they were rough. The loofah's that I found in Pathmark are like the ones for your body (with the band on the back) but smaller. They were $1.59 each. You can find the loofah rounds at certain dollar stores also. I like to use the Morning Burst Shine C...