1Blessed Natural Mag

puff with flat twisted bang Hey my blessed naturals!  I hope you all are doing well. I send my love and prayers out to all of you who are dealing with the aftermath of the ice storm in Georgia and Alabama. God bless! Today, I wore my hair in a puff with a flat twisted, swoop bang . Because my hair is getting longer, it is starting to outgrow some of the hairstyles that I normally wear. I'm having issues with my puff, lol. My hair is starting to get too long to look right with my stretchy bands. It looks okay if I tighten the band into more of a ponytail, but the loose puffs don't look as good. So, I will probably start wearing more bun styles, but, I will rock my puff as long as possible. Did your hair outgrow any of your favorite hairstyles? The 1BlessedNatural t-shirts have arrived!

Angelique Kidjoe (photo courtesy of Flickr- ( specialoperations ) Ang é lique Kidjo's music career spans over more than 20 years. The 53-year old was born in Benin, West Africa. My brother introduced me to her music around 2006 when he heard her rendition of Jimi Hendrix's song, "Voodoo Child." The song replaced Hendrix's guitar notes with Kidjo's voice, creating a fresh and unique spin on the original. Kidjo is a Grammy award winner and an internationally known artist. She has collaborated with several hit-makers including Kelly Price and Carlos Santana. The moment I heard Kidjo's voice, I felt like I needed to catch up on all of her music, lol. I bought her greatest hits album called Keep On Moving: The Best of Ang élique Kidjo. Kidjo's music is a mixture of many different genres. "Her style of music varies from afro-punk, reggae, samba, salsa, gospel, jazz, zairean rumba, souk and makossa which combined together creates her soulful ...

Lupita Nyong'o and Alek Wek ( 1st photo courtesy of Wikipedia Commons -remixed- 2nd photo courtesy of Flickr- ( spiritchasa )  The Internet has been buzzing about the beautiful Kenyan actress, Lupita Nyong'o. The Oscar nominated star played in the movie "12 Years a Slave." On January 18th, she attended the Screen Actors Guild Awards wearing a beautiful sea blue, slim fitting dress. The straps of her dress crisscrossed at her chest and were adorned by matching sea blue and gold flowers. The star rocked her natural hair in a low top fade. Lupita Nyong'o reminds me of Southern Sudanese model, Alek Wek. When I was a kid, Alek Wek was one of the only dark skin models I would see in some Black magazines. Her tall and dark figure seemed to break the mold of the normal standards of beauty. I thought she was gorgeous. Like Nyong'o, Wek also rocked a short haircut. I have heard people say that Alek Wek and Lupita Nyong'o look alike, and I have to dis...

Flat twist into bun style I wore today, style inspired by Sonequa Martin-Green Hi everyone, I hope you all are having a great night or day (depending on where you are in the world) (smile). I keep getting the push in my spirit to talk about God, self-love, and goals. It's funny when I look back on my life and realize how I achieved many things through Jesus Christ. I remember all the people who told me that I would never amount to anything, and God only knows where I would be if I'd listened to them. I'm thankful for the people who did believe in me and pushed me to be a better me. Philippians 4:13 says, "I can do all things through Christ which strengthens me." My grandmother made sure I knew and digested that verse. I'm thankful for the positive seeds that my parents and family planted in me to keep pushing regardless of any circumstances. If you have a dream that you want to achieve, keep praying and pursing it. Use your trials and tribulations t...

after removing my mini twists Hey my blessed naturals, I hope you all are enjoying your Sunday. Today, I took out my mini two-strand twists and rocked a big fro for a short time, lol. My plan was to reinstall them, but I ran out of time. After, washing, deep conditioning, and banding my hair, I will probably just do the flat twist into bun style until I get a chance to put the mini twists back in. Thank God for quick natural hairstyles! Also, please don't forget to ENTER for YOUR chance to win in the 1BlessedNatural T-Shirt and Accessory Giveaway ! Thank you to everyone who already entered. What natural hairstyle are you doing this weekend? The 1BlessedNatural t-shirts are available for purchase here !  Related Articles: Sonequa Martin-Green's Natural Hair.. .                           Bigger 'Fro

Dread locs (Photo courtesy of Flickr- Rashida S. Mar B. ( Urban Love Hippie ) Happy Thursday everyone!  It's been almost 3 years since I went natural (for the second time), and I've received many questions about my style choices. One of the questions that people often ask me is have I ever considered locking my hair. The answer is that I have considered it, but I know boredom would slowly overtake me, lol. Even though, I like some of the locked styles I've seen, styles tend to not stay in my hair for very long. I love to style and experiment with my hair too much to lock it. I can barely keep two-strand twists in my hair for 2 weeks, lol. I can only imagine keeping my hair locked for an indefinite amount of time. I got a taste of the "loc life" when I finger coiled my hair, and it started to lock shortly after. I wasn't about that life, lol. If I wanted them, I would try faux locs before trying the real ones. I won't say I will never...

Weave extensions worn by  (photo courtesy of Flickr: adamp1988 under the CC BY-SA 2.0 ) Yesterday, I was viewing hair photos on Flickr, and I came across a photo of a Caucasian woman wearing her hair cornrowed in long reddish, honey blonde extensions. I thought the photo was beautiful, but it also spoke volumes about the misconception or stereotype that only black woman wear hair weaves. The photo was in addition to the several memes that I'd seen across the Internet addressing the stereotype. Although the origin of hair weaving is Egypt, it is not exclusive to African-Americans. There are many misconceptions that could have lead to the stereotype. It is no secret that many African-American women are particular about their hair. Back in 2009, CNN reported that during Chris Rock's movie "Good Hair", the comedian discovered that the Black women, hair industry was a 9-million dollar industry. This number includes weaves, hairstyles, and products. Not only do ma...

Happy Tuesday my blessed naturals! I hope you all are having a good day. If you are one of the million people experiencing this snow storm in the United States lol, let me know! Be safe out there. In hair related news, it is day 10 of my mini twist, protective hairstyle. My twists have become a bit frizzy, but they still look okay to rock. I will take them out this week. I'm trying to hold out until the weekend. My scalp is dry, but I've stopped leaving oils on my scalp due to the the seborrheic dermatitis . I usually apply Tea Tree Oil to my scalp 15-20 minutes before washing it. That has helped a lot. What natural hairstyle are you rocking today? ENTER for your chance to win the " 1BlessedNatural T-Shirt and Accessory Giveaway " ! Related Articles: Day 4 Mini Twist Hairstyle                          Seborrheic Dermatitis and Natural Hair

 Happy MLK Monday my blessed naturals! In July of last year, I told you that I would be launching a t-shirt line. God is good! I am announcing a huge giveaway to celebrate the kick-off of the " 1BlessedNatural John 3:16" t-shirt line!(see pic above) The first winner will receive a 1BlessedNatural T-Shirt! The second winner will receive a small tote bag full of hair and beauty goodies (see pic below)! The contest begins today and ends at 12:00 AM on Saturday, February 1, 2014. The winners will be announced on Sunday, February 2, 2014 . You can enter the contest below. Please be sure to read and follow all of the instructions to prevent your entries from being disqualified. I wish you all good blessings! Grand prize winner will receive:            1 tote bag           1 eye mask           2 packs of clips, bobby pins, bands ...

Hi everyone, The picture above is the result of pinning the front of my hair and keeping the back shrunken.I kept a few of the pins in and added a stretchy headband. The weather has been rainy and/or foggy all week, and my hair's been loving the moisture. Also, I moisturize my hair with Cantu Creamy Hair Lotion and seal with Coconut Oil every night. The products are not rubbed onto the full length of my twists. I rub my hands together and then squeeze my twists to avoid frizz. If the products do not absorb into my ends, I will rub them in until you cannot see the lotion. I sleep with my hair in a satin bonnet. How many days have you been rocking your latest natural hairstyle? Related Articles: Natural Hair and Shrinkage                           Mini Twist Style Challenge!

my twists, today. Happy Wednesday my blessed naturals, Yesterday, my twists were touching my shoulders; today they're touching my neck, lol. Shrinkage is something else! But, I still love it... sometimes, lol. I can wear my twists out without worrying about my hair snagging on my shirt, necklace, or scarf. Plus, it creates a new style in itself. When I want to rock a big fro or long twists, I'm not too fond of shrinkage. I disliked it more when I was first growing my hair out because I wanted to see my progress. my twists,yesterday Now, I've grown to love the versatility shrinkage brings. Last night, I pinned down the front to keep it stretched and left the back shrunken. One of the great things is that can always put my hair in a bun, band, pin, ponytail, pin curl , curl, twist, wrap , or braid to stretch it. If I want my hair to have a shorter look, I can moisturize, seal it,  and let it go. Natural hair... Ya gotta love it! What do you think about natur...

Happy Tuesday everyone! In my last hair article, " Natural Hair Fatigue " I told you all I was going to do another roller set . I usually use the Foam Wrap Lotion.,water, and Coconut Oil by Motions to set my curls. This time, I tried the Cantu Creamy Hair Lotion , water, and Coconut Oil. The curls that dried thoroughly were fine, but the others dropped. If you decide to use the Cantu Creamy Hair Lotion for a roller set, be sure to allow extra time for your hair to dry. It takes a little longer than when you use the Foam Wrap Lotion. I ended up finger combing all the curls out and doing a puff style. I had little tiny curly throughout my hair from the "roller set gone wrong" lol.  small coils that remained in my hair after the roller set This weekend, I installed mini twists in my hair. I banded my hair to stretch it. It's been a few months since I've done it. This time, my hair looked like it grew another inch and a half. Because my hair w...

 Hi my blessed naturals! I hope you all had a great weekend. I want to talk about casting your cares upon God. Yesterday, When I opened my journal, I landed on an entry from November  of 2013 where I'd listed my concerns. After reading the list, I realized that God had taken care of all of them. I was reminded of the following Bible verses: Casting all your care upon him; for her careth for you.- 1 Peter 5:7   The Lord will perfect that which concerneth me thy mercy, O LORD, endureth for ever; forsake not the works of thine own hands. - Psalm 138:8 We are God's children; He does not want us carrying burdens or worries. Sometimes, we think we know best, and our problems may seem impossible to fix. But, by faith we surrender our concerns to the Lord and He will turn it all around. If you need encouragement, think of all of your concerns He has perfected in the past. We are reminded of this in the following verse: Jesus Christ the same yesterday, and to d...

Toni Braxton (photo courtesy of Flickr- ( louisepalanker ) Happy Friday my blessed naturals! Many of you have been asking how to style your hair like Toni Braxton's short blonde hairstyle. I found the video below, on YouTube. Are you going to try the Toni Braxton inspired style? Related Articles:  Toni Braxton Rocks Pixie Cut and New Music                              LaTavia Roberson Shows Off Her Natural Curls                            Jennifer Hudson Rocks New Pixie Cut                            

Sasheer Zamata (photo courtesy of the Sasheer Zamata Official website) Stand-up Comedian and natural haired beauty, Sasheer Zamata has joined the cast of Saturday Night Live . Zamata is the first African-American woman to be on the cast since Maya Rudolf left in 2007. The 27-year old graduated from Virginia University and has appeared in many sketches and commercials. She is also a performer of the Upright Citizens Brigade. The young comedian's current footsteps of rocking her natural hair are reminiscent of actress and comedian, Whoopi Goldberg's and many others. I was excited when I first accessed Sasheer Zamata's website and saw a big and beautiful picture of the comedian rocking her afro (see pic above). She also has many other pictures of her natural hairstyles. The comedian's favicon is that of a little Black girl wearing a fro decorated with a pink bow. I thought it was very cute! It will be interesting to see if Zamata will wear natural hairsty...

Hey my blessed naturals! Some of you may have been aware that the Ruthie's Greetings Etsy shop was closed for vacation, but now it is back! I'm in the process of adding new Valentine's Day cards. The picture above shows the " High School Sweethearts " card and gift tag duo that I've just posted. You know... Both of the figures on the front are rocking natural hair (smile). The young lady is rocking a puff, and the girl is rocking a fade, lol. Please visit my Etsy shop for more information!  What was your favorite hairstyle from back in the day? Related Articles: (NEW) Winter Natural Hair Greeting Cards                           Ruthie's Greetings Etsy Shop: (NEW) Natural Hair Items                          

Hi my blessed naturals! I hope your day is going well. I need to do my hair, but I really don't feel like it, lol. I've spent the past 3 months focusing on recovering from both protein and moisture overload . Now that my hair is back to normal (thank God), I'm tired lol. It's been in an afro for the past 3 days. I've moisturized and sealed it, but that's it. I have to style it for the week, so I might wash it and do a roller set . I will keep you all posted! Have you experienced natural hair fatigue? Related Articles: Natural Hair Transition: Frustration                            Natural Hair Boredom                           Mini-Twist Updo Frustration                      ...

Happy Sunday everyone! Thank you to everyone who entered the 1BlessedNatural Christmas Giveaway!  The winner is... Lici Lee Congratulations! Blessed winner, yo u have 24 hours to send me your mailing address [1BlessedNatural@gmail.com] Thank you again to everyone who entered.Check back for more chances to win in my next giveaway. It will be posted soon! Related Articles: [CLOSED] 1BlessedNatural's Christmas Giveaway                           [CLOSED]1BlessedNatural's "End of the Summer" Accessory Giveaway                           [CLOSED]1BlessedNatural Presents: E. Burgos Jewelry Giveaway                            [CLOSED]Natural Hair Greeting Card and Product Giveaway ...   

Hey my blessed naturals! If you are on the East Coast, then you may be feeling the effects of winter storm Hercules. The temps are well below freezing. In my Tamar Braxton voice,"Ain't nobody got time for that!" Lol. Be safe, everyone.  In hair-related news, my sister gave me some new hair flower clips that were on clearance (see pic above). I've noticed that many stores, especially discount stores will have a lot of elaborate accessories that end up in the clearance racks. Many of them may be slightly damaged, but not enough to really notice. Some of the accessories just might not have sold. That's a great time to take advantage of good deals. God willing, I will be posting some of my styles using my new accessories. Stay tuned! What hair accessories have you found on sale or clearance? The winner of the 1BlessedNatural Christmas Giveaway will be announced January 5, 2014 ! Related Articles: How to Put Cowrie Shells in Natural Hair          ...

Happy New Year, my blessed naturals! We've said goodbye to 2013 and hello to 2014. I pray that you all have a blessed and prosperous New Year. New Years Day, I rocked a twist-out. NYE night, I put my hair in 4 bunned sections. The next morning, I removed them. I must add that my hair needed to be washed lol, but I liked the end result. My hair has been very dry due to the weather. Also, I'm still getting over moisture and protein overload . Last night, I rinsed my hair with Aloe Vera Juice for protein after washing and deep conditioning it. My hair felt much stronger than it has for the past few days. Making progress! Also, follow me on Instagram ! I will be posting some new pictures that will not be posted on here. What are your hair goals for the new year? Related Articles: From Protein Overload to Moisture Overload                            3 Quick Alternatives to Bedtime Twists   ...