BAA Challenge Month 3

So I’m actually on time this time! LOL

I didn’t really do anything different this month. I did get some Yes, to Cucumbers and some Suave Humectant that I’ve been playing around with the last couple of weeks. I tried a new style: Bantu-Knot Out. I loved that style of course. I didn’t do many WNGs this go round. I did re-incorporate Castor Oil.

Hey, if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it. LOL! I am thinking about getting the Yes, to Cucumbers shampoo, but it has sulfates in it, so I’m still marinating on it. Oh, and I’ve been adding Raw Honey and EVOO to every DC. I can’t tell you the ratios, I just kinda eyeball it.

 

Without further ado, the pictures:

Bantu-Knot-Out

This was actually done in Month 2 (and it shall be tagged as Month 2), I was just too lazy to do it then.

So I finally got around to doing some Bantu-Knots, they weren’t comfortable to sleep in at all. Here’s the final result of the first set:

 

 

(click for larger pictures). Pretty, eh? LOL, well once the humidity got to my hair it looked like:

 

(click for larger picture)

So I put them back in that night, and the new set lasted for the rest of the week WITHOUT me having to “sleep pretty” because I don’t “sleep pretty”, when I try to do that, I don’t end up getting much sleep.

 

It wasn’t as fluffy as the first one, but it was still very pretty. Anyway, over the fold to see how I did it.

Two Months Down!

In honor of my second month natural, I made a video of what I did this month. Enjoy!

LOL

Gotta love shrinkage. . .

 

 

SheaMoisture Organic Raw Shea Butter Deep Treatment Masque Review

Okay, I am totally backlogged on everything I keep meaning to blog. LOL, I’m going to try to catch up tonight. This is the product I’m reviewing:

The ingredients are:

• Deionized Water
• Butyrospermum Parkii (Shea Butter)*
• Argan Oil
• Cetyl Esters
• Sea Kelp Extract
• Panthenol (Vitamin B-5)
• Ammonium Salt
• Essential Oil Blend
• Avocado Oil
• Lonicera Caprifolium (Honeysuckle) Flower (and) Japonica (Japanese Honeysuckle) Flower extract
• Tocopherol (Vitamin E)
• Hyssopus Officinalis Extract
• Salvia Officinalis (Sage) Leaf and Equisetum Arvense Extract
• Soybean Oil
• Daucus Carota Sativa (Carrot) Seed Oil

*Certified Organic Ingredient

 

Now as you can see, this product is supposed to be for Dry, Damaged hair. I don’t think my hair is or was particularly dry or damaged, but I’d seen other people on different sites raving about it, so I was excited to try it.

First thing is first, this stuff smells DELICIOUS. I wasn’t sure if I wanted to eat it or put it on my hair, and while it was on my hair, I kinda wanted to eat my hair. LOL. Also, the price was pretty reasonable at $9.99 for 12oz.

Other than the smell, this product disappointed me. It has a consistency like cake icing (the kind you buy at the store), but when you put it on it doesn’t feel nearly that thick unless you use a whole bunch of it. When I used it I left it on for 45 minutes to an hour. I tried it twice, once without heat, and once with heat. Neither result impressed me. My hair didn’t really feel particularly soft and/or moisturized afterwards.

The instructions state that you can also use this product as a leave-in, but I don’t think that will work if you aren’t doing something like twists. I tried it as a leave in for a wash n go, but it’s too heavy for that. That may have been my own heavy-handedness more than it was the product, but I applied the same amount as I do of my Garnier Fructis leave in. I had sat under the dryer to expedite the drying process because I was gonna go somewhere later that day and didn’t really want to roll out with wet hair, and it was drying WHITE (if you remember my KCCC experience, you know I HATE that), so I ended up rinsing it out like it was just a DC and my hair did fine.

So basically, I don’t think this product was really all that moisturizing. I will try to use up what I have but I will probably add honey and EVOO to it to see if I get better results.

I will not be repurchasing this product. Heck, I might give away what I have, I don’t know. . . LOL. Anyone wanna trade?

I give this product 2/5 Afros for the smell and the price.

BAA Challenge Month 2

Hola chicas, so I’m checking in (late of course) for my  BAA Challenge, month 2

First off, what I’ve been doing since the last length check. I’ve added shampooing once a week to my regimen. Co-washing was great and all while transitioning, but after I BC’d (as I’m sure I mentioned before) I really wanted to start shampooing again. I still co-wash for WNGs and if I’m washing again after an initial wash. The night before I wash, I detangle my hair with water and EVOO, and leave the EVOO on with a conditioning cap and satin bonnet to sleep (aka pre-poo). I use the SheaMoisture shampoo I reviewed below. I shampoo twice, the second time I shampoo I de-tangle with the shampoo in it.

After I finish shampooing, I do my deep condition once a week. I used the SheaMoisture Deep Treatment Masque twice, I don’t think that’s really something I will/want to use every week. Other than that I used my staple ORS Replenishing Conditioner to deep condition. Once or twice I sat under a warm dryer to speed up the process, other times I just left it on with a conditioning cap and my satin bonnet for 30 minutes to an hour.

After I rinsed out the DC in cold water, it was time to style. I think I did mostly twists for the entire month. There was a week in there where I did a bunch of WNGs when I was trying to perfect my method, but so far my go to “protective” style has been twists. Maybe this month I’ll stop being lazy and start trying to do different things like Bantu-knot outs and braid-outs.

When styling I did my traditional sealing method, but I cut out the last step. Since it’s hot outside and too much product on my scalp when I’m sweating makes my head itch, I just do a water based leave in, and then seal with EVOO. Then if I was twisting I’d use my Shea Butter mixture (which my hair and I LOVE).

During the week I’d spritz my hair with water, the last couple of weeks I started using Green Tea for my daily spritz, and it made my hair really soft.

So I haven’t really been using any new products or done anything unusual with my routine. the biggest change I’ve made from my “winter” routine was using EVOO instead of Castor Oil to seal, and skipping the creamy moisturizer to seal, oh and shampooing once a week.

 

Things I think I want to try for the next month:

• Hot Oil Treatment
• Braid-Out
• Bantu-knot out
• learn how to cornrow/french braid

I don’t know if that last one will ever happen because I always lose motivation when I try. LOL. So it will be on my list until I accomplish it.

Now for the length checks: