 I think we all can agree that the summer is not the most cooperative season for naturalistas! Between the humidity, frequent pool/beach visits, traveling, rain, etc. natural hair will always try to do it's best to fail us. So I'm going to list 4 tips that can help keep natural hair tamed and poppin during the summer months. 1. Twist outs/Braid Outs Instead of Wash and Go's If you are someone who loves to wear your hair out year round, doing a braid out or twist out in the summer is going to show a BIG difference in the amount of moisture your hair is retaining daily. A wash and go is awesome because I myself prefer a wash and go over any other style (I mean it is my hair at its most natural state, I'm proud of these tresses! Lol) BUT when you apply your product to your hair while it is soaking wet and then proceed to twist or braid your hair (don't have to be small, they can be chunky) your hair will absorb the water and product ten times better than it would with just washing, detangling, applying product and air drying (wash and go). Twisting or braiding gives the moisture more time to work its magic. 2. Conditioning Under the Sun If you know you have a long beach or pool day ahead and all you know you'll be doing is tanning - take advantage of that sun and deep condition. When you're getting ready for your tanning session, dampen your hair, get your favorite conditioner (make sure it's organic) and apply it to your entire head from root to end and put your hair in a high bun. Sitting under the sun with conditioner is as natural as the deep conditioning process can come. When you go home to rinse your hair out, it should feel soft and rejuvenated. 3. Protecting Your Hair From Beach/Pool Water If you are someone who loves to swim and be in the water all summer long, this one is for you! Before leaving for the beach or pool, give your hair three layers of protection. The first is a no brainier - water! Make sure you have soaked your hair from root to end before starting anything. This prevents your hair from having to go from dry to submerged in chlorine or salt water - ultimately causing a frizz ball. After you've soaked your strands, apply a generous amount of 100% avocado oil and finish off with just a dime size, if that, of conditioner. These three layers will keep your hair protected and when it is time to rinse it out, your hair will be so soft and luxurious. 4. Protective Styles!
A protective style gives your hair time to relax because of the low manipulation and if your protective style is done right, you will have a more lasting "twist out" or "braid out" like I mentioned in the first tip. Protective styles serve a simple purpose - to protect your hair (hence the name) You won't have to worry about dealing with tip 2 or 3 if you have a protective style in. Protective styles always allow you to stay true to your personal style or preference with hair styles because there are so many options. Faux locs, box braids, Marley twists, goddess braids, Senegalese and more. They take a good amount of time to install but it is so worth it in the end. All protective styles require of you is a scarf at night and daily/weekly moisturizing of the scalp. If interested in booking an appointment for a protective style, please click the button below to be navigated to the contact page. For simply reading this blog post, you will recieve a discount on your protective style as a thank you for your support! :)
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 Extremely happy to announce that I will be a photographer featured at the Brown Girl with a Camera Photography Exhibit on August 6th at The Loft in Washington DC. This is an event created specifically to celebrate, uplift and empower brown women who are photographers! Though women are slowly on their way up in the world of photography, it is still a male dominated field so to be a part of this movement is extremely humbling. Such an honor to have been chosen among 11 other talented photographers and I would really appreciate if you all came out to support us! My work will be sold at the event as well so if you're interested in purchasing prints, come on through! Click the link below to purchase tickets for the event. There will lots of dope energy and you don't want to miss it! https://www.eventbrite.com/e/bgwac-host-2nd-annual-photography-exhibition-for-women-of-color-tickets-26172100457?utm_source=eb_email&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=new_event_email&utm_term=viewmyevent_button  Motherhood - the state of being a mother. Spousehood - the state of being a spouse. Both motherhood and spousehood are very rewarding but one must put the work in order to receive great results. I pretty much started my journey as a mama and a wife around the same time. Why? Because I knew what I wanted. My husband and I talked about starting a family and getting married since.. what seems like day one. To be honest, the first qualities I saw in Josh were - a great husband and a great father. Don't get me wrong, he's far from perfect and I saw a lot of other things lol - however, there was always something in him that lit up when it was time to talk about family, goals and his future. He's always been a man about business and has a humongous heart. I have a gift of being able to read people almost instantly (I get it from my mama) - so the fact that I was able to read so much positivity in him within a very short time span of "talking" to him, when at the time, I didn't know him from a can of paint, spoke volumes.  We actually didn't start the title of "boyfriend and girlfriend" until a year after we'd met each other. There were a lot of obstacles he and I had to get over before we were ready for a serious commitment. Because I personally, never dated for fun - I'm a business woman myself lol. So, once we made it official, it honestly was a wrap from there. I've always known I was going to marry him. One of our biggest battles before becoming husband and wife, was the distance, and one of the best ways to overcome a distant relationship, is COMMUNICATION. We told/tell each other every little thing and never held back, no matter how bad it may be. So the communication, along with many other important attributes that allowed our relationship to progress, only spilled over into our marriage. When we found out we were pregnant, we soon after decided on a date (because getting married was never a question for us). Originally before we found out we were pregnant, we wanted to get married September 23, 2015 (his late grandmother's birthday) BUT little ole me was due with Ivan the Great on September 13, 2015 - so clearly that was not going to work. He ended up doing a big proposal at his senior basketball game, during the middle of his recognition as an honorable team Captian and teammate, in front of the whole school. That just goes to show how dope he is - he made an event that was supposed to be about him, about us. I was flabbergasted and speechless...literally Lol. From there, we bumped the date up to June 6, 2015.  There were a whirlwind of emotions that went along with the major life changing events that were upon me. Now I am definitely the optimistic type of person, I always manage to see the good in any and everything - so I made sure I found every way to not allow the wedding, carrying our child, balancing two jobs and school stress me out. People often assume that optimistic people are so overly bubbly and unrealistic but that's really a negative way of looking at it - because despite my optimism, I'm not that super bubbly girl nor am I unrealistic. Being a true optimist is a constant choice to choose the positive thought over the negative thought. This doesn't mean that the negative thought does not come to mind because I can vouch that as a self proclaimed optimist, negative thoughts definitely circulate. However I constantly try to commit to the most beneficial thought that helps me move towards genuine happiness. So on my bad days, especially during my pregnancy and wedding prep, I have to really tell myself how blessed I am because my mind can run wild at times. Being able to wake up and get another day, another chance at life, is enough blessing in itself. So I had/have plenty of reason to tell myself to cool it. Lol  Being able to get through those times - from distance with my best friend/love, pregnancy and wedding season; then fast forward to now - a little over a half year of motherhood and pretty much a year of marriage, I am so happy to say that I have kept my sanity and happiness. All of the glory goes to God.
God is the reason for successful marriage, successful motherhood and sanity. When you consciously keep God first and recognize that he is in control AND can be comfortable and confident in the fact that he has carefully stitched your entire life since day one... It will bring you so much peace and choosing to speak that positive thought into existence over that negative thought, will be that much easier.  Natural hair is often said to be a very time consuming commitment - this is true. Lol. However it is very rewarding. To be able to watch your hair flourish because of the time you spend to take care of it is a beautiful process. I am going to list three major yet underrated hair tips, in other words - tips that are often circulated but rarely done.
1. Scalp massages - Giving yourself scalp massages at least 3 times a week will really get your hair follicles open and moving, allowing your hair to grow at a faster pace. I like to use black Jamaican castor oil when I do my scalp massages, that way I am moisturizing and massaging all at once. 2. Finger detangling/combing - This is honestly what makes the difference in my curls now compared to when I first started wearing my hair out and natural. Using your fingers with product allows you to get the product IN your strands versus ON your strands. What's the difference? When the product is IN your strands, the moisture lasts longer, giving you longer lasting styles. When the product is ON your strands, it is not working to keep your hair moisturized. Ultimately, wasting your time putting the product in. Also, when detangling on wash days, using your fingers allows for you to feel your knots and tangles and you are able to delicately get them out - versus ripping through your tangles with a comb. Ripping through with a comb will cause you to lose a much larger amount of hair compared to when you finger detangle. However please do not be mistaken, losing small amounts of hair when detangling is completely normal. 3. Knowing your hair type - Figuring this out will change your life as a natural haired gal or guy. What turns most people off is the ongoing search for the "perfect" product. When you know your hair type, you'll realize that the product does not have to be perfect, however the consistency of the product is what needs to benefit your hair type/texture. ***If you need direct help with any of these tips, please contact me and I would be glad to assist you! |
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“Bringing light to the lives of others.” SCJ
| Psalm 46:5 |
| Psalm 46:5 |