First Co-Wash Experience!

Today I co-washed for the first time. (well not the first time I've co-washed in the past when needed, not regularly) It went well, I co-washed with V05 moisture milks. It did make my hair soft like everybody said it would.

Then I DC'd with Africa's Best Rinse-Out and Leave-in Deep Conditioner mixed with one n' only argan oil and castor oil. The consistency of it was really runny, but it did make my hair really soft and it feels moisturized. (a lot more moisturized than the Lustrasilk) Best part about it was it was only $4.

new regimen

WEEKLY:
-shampoo wash 1x
-co-wash 1x
-DC 2x


DAILY:
-oil w/ Castor oil
-M&S

PROTECTIVE/LOW MANIPULATION STYLES:
-braid outs
-bantu knot outs
-rollerset saran wrap


Shampoo- HE Hydraliscious Reconditioning Shampoo, Aphogee shampoo for damaged hair (only used when using heat)
Conditioner- HE Hydraliscious Reconditioning Conditioner, Aphogee 2 minute reconstructer (only used with heat or before relaxer), HE long term relationship
Deep Conditioners- Lustrasilk shea butter and mango, silk elements olive oil moisturizing treatment, oils, ORS replenishing pak
Leave ins- Aphogee green tea and keratin (only when using heat), fantasia frizz buster, Garnier Fructis leave i conditioning cream, HE Long Term Relationship, GF anti frizz serum, GF smoothing milk
Moisturizers- Garnier Fructis leave-in conditioning cream, HE long term relationship
Heat Protectant- Tresseme thermal creations
Pre-poo- ? (i'll figure it out)
Oils- Sweet almond oil, castor, olive, one n' only argan oil, eucalyptus, rosemary, Africa's best herbal oil, coconut oil
Co-wash- suave almond and shea butter


AS NEEDED:
Protein Treatment-egg, Aphogee wash (instead of herbal essences)


Relaxer Every 10 weeks (at least)


Misc: apple cider vinegar rinse


Notes:
-no more Pantene products (might have caused dandruff)
-AVOID MINERAL OIL (threw away some products because of mineral oil)


Wish List:
HE reconditioning shampoo
GF anti frizz serum
GF smoothing milk
Suave almond and shea butter

Castor Oil!!!

I've been using castor oil on my hair nightly and it has been WORKING! I'm not sure if my NG is thicker, but it's defiantly coming in. The only way I know it's working is because before I was using castor oil nightly, I didn't have any NG, now I do. Before, I was only using it a few times a week and mixing it into my DC's. Now I use it every night (a small amount) and massaging it in. My hair is flourishing due to this miracle oil. I at first was a little scared to use it because I don't want my hair to be too thick to the point that it becomes unmanageable. But thick hair is beautiful. I can't wait to see how long my hair gets because of this oil. LOVE IT!

Hiii! :)

I have a reallly good excuse for bein gone for so long! My computer was in the shop and I couldn't blog except for on my phone! Blogging on my phone is terrible so I don't think I'll be doing that again anytime soon. I have soo much to say but I don't want to have a super-long blog.

-Today I bought a 2 oz thing of castor oil. It's super tiny but I hope it does wonders for my hair. I'll be mixing that into my DC's and probably be oiling my scalp with it once a week.

-I said before that I wanted to try Elasta QP products once I finished the Aphogee and/or Silk Elements. I have now changed my mind and I want to use Herbal Essences. I might try the 'Long Term Relationship' full line because I like the conditioner and leave-in conditioner. However, it contains a lot of protein and that is something I want to stay away from for a while. I tried the 'Hello Hydration' conditioner line before but I didn't like it. BUT that was only one use AND now I know my hair needs to use a product more than once before I give it the thumbs up or thumbs down. Since I'm kind of wary of using the 'Hello Hydration' line, I could use the 'Hydraliscious' line instead. I'm not quite sure, but that's okay because I still have ways to go before I finish the shampoo and conditoners I am already using.

HJ, random thoughts, oil facts :)

Soo... I bought the coconut oil at GNC for about $8 yesterday. I forgot how much i hate coconuts and their smell though. lol. my hair isn't much different from not using it. I hate getting all excited to use something new and then its just okay. The same thing happened with the silk elements and stuff. But I want to try the Pantene Conditoner once i finsh the SE one b/c it worked so well last time. And I also want to get either Hot Six Oil or Africas best Herbal Oil. It doesn't matter which one (whatevers cheaper). I like the ingredients b/c they both have alot of oils that are good for hair and no 'bad' ingredients. (besides fragrance) I don't want to use them to MS my hair, more just to use for HOT and to mix into DC.


-Ik its a lil soon (10 days), but i think my hair has grown a little. :)
-I'm thinking of getting Pantene daily oil cream moisturizer again. the reason i stopped using it in the first place was b/c it has mineral oil in it, but it works great for my hair so i might get it again anyways
-I decided not to buy any products for 3 weeks after I get the herbal oil or hot six oil. I want to see how the products i already have work and stop buying so many products so i won't become a product junky.
-i won't take pics of my hair growth until atleast 10/8/10. that'll be exactly 1 month from my last pic. I'll take pics in 1 month increments so I'll see the difference.


H A I R  G O A L S: to be completed by December '10.
-lower manipulation- touching, twirling, smoothing, brushing/combing unnecessicarily.
-Find a regimen that works- I'm already started on this process, but ugh its taking such a long time and i hate wasting money on stuff that is okay/doesn't work at all.
-Find heatless hairstyles that work/ Lower heat styles- I've tried bantu knots, they work okay but i have to flat iron it a lil bit b/c i think it works better. I've also tried braid outs before, it turned out okay but i want it to look better. Next time i do it i'll make the braids bigger so I can get bigger, waves instead of little ones. Eventually I hope to lower my heat styles to 0-3 times a month.
-Learn to Roller set-  roller sets are so pretty to me, I hope I can learn to do them and they'll look nice. What I don't like about them is that their so time consuming.
-Get Castor Oil- When my 3 weeks is up of course. :) (read why below)


Oils: How and Why I choose them:
How I choose my oils:
-figure out what I want my hair to do (longer, stronger, thicker, moisturized, ect.)
-find a oil that does that by googling it and looking at numerous websites that talk about an oil
-once I find an oil i'm interested in, I look for personal reviews and experiences with that oil.

example- I looked up SAO and websites said a lot of great things about it, and i read a lot of personal reviews and a lot of people liked it so i bought it, but when I looked up grapeseed oil, a lot of websites said a lot of great things about it, but personal reviews said it didn't penetrate the hair very well so i decided not to get it.

Why I chose my oils (what they do):


-Sweet Almond Oil:
-nourishes hair and smooths hair cuticle
-makes hair long, strong and thick
-adds shine
-no smell


-Jojoba Oil (ho-ho-bah):
-moisturizes the scalp
-non-greasy
-develops new hair cell growth
-antibacterial
-prevents hair from being brittle and dull
-no smell


Coconut Oil:
-growth
-shine
-gets rid of dandruff, lice, and lice eggs
-provides essential proteins
-controls frizz
-no more hygral fatigue (hygral fatigue: Damage due to swelling and contraction of the hair during the uptake and loss of water. Swelling and de-swelling of hair is one of the causes of hair damage.- more info on hairlista.com)


Castor Oil:
*I don't have this oil yet, but i hear so many good things about it and I really like what I hear.
-moisturizes scalp
-promotes hair growth and thickness
-reduce and prevents damage
-soft and shiny hair


Purpose of DC/Mixing DC:


Purpose:
Deep conditioning affects the outer layer which is called the cuticle. The cuticle resembles shingles on a roof. They overlap each other, and should lay down flat. When your hair becomes dry and damaged, these shingles will stand up away from the hair shaft. This is what gives hair the dull, frizzy look. Deep conditioning the proper way and with the right products will help to smooth the cuticle, making the shingles lay down again, giving your hair a smoother, shinier, healthier appearance. (according to http://www.essortment.com/all/deepcondtionyo_rlhp.htm)


Why I mix:
The first time I saw someone mixing their deep conditioners was ulovemegz on youtube. I thought It was a genius idea that she came up with herself. Then i started using hairlista.com and realized that for people with healthier hair, its more common to mix your conditioners with other things than not to. I mixed my conditioners for the first time last week and compared to not mixing it, it worked A LOT better. my hair was super soft and moisturized compared to not mixing.
   --random: I like to mix my HOT into the DC, but you don't really need a lot of it b/c it'll make the consistency of the DC runny. 1- 1/2 tbsp should be enough.