When Good Products Go Bad

As you know I am currently doing a no buy challenge (check out Naturally Nu's No Buy Challenge page on Facebook), which means I can not buy any new hair products until the Black Friday sales the day after Thanksgiving.  Last night I received confirmation that this is the best thing I could be doing right now. My daughter, Minnie, was going through my products trying to decide what to use on her hair to style it for today. She brought a jar of Darcy's Botanicals Madagascar Vanilla Styling Creme to me and said ,"Mommy I think this has gone bad."  I took a whiff of it and sure enough the smell had changed completely.  When I purchased this product over a year ago it smelled like vanilla cake, now it smells like bad Elmer's glue.  The sad part is the jar is almost completely full and I really liked it!!!! Ughhh Ok I do want to be clear this is NOT a fault with Darcy's Botanicals Products. The products made by this company are amazing and I do use their products each and everyday. I could not live with out my Darcy's Botanicals Plum Kernel Nectar, I literally use it every single day. One thing that is easy to forget is the products I used when I was relaxed lasted for years because they were full of artificial ingredients, additives and preservatives. When you use products with all natural ingredients it's like buying fresh produce at the grocery store it will only last so long. Some natural hair companies post expiration dates on their products others tell you that it will last a certain number of months after the seal is broken.With all that being said the problem in this case is me.  That's right I have to look at the Natural in the Mirror. I have so many products that I open something and then I try something else and then something else and meanwhile because I only use all natural products that are free of the additives and preservatives they can start to go south.  So in addition to a "No Buy" I am making a new rule: If I open something and I like it I have to use it all before I open a new product in that same category no matter how bad I want try another product. SMH I still can not believe I let this happen because I really did like the product. As a matter of fact I have never tried a single Darcy's Botanicals product that I did not love. So let this be a lesson to you if you like it use it and don't open too many at the same time. Lesson learned now time to use up some products. Oh and I almost forgot.. School is out Yiippee. (I'm a High School Assistant Principal) so I will be doing alot more experimenting with my hair and products so be on the lookout for reviews and even some new hair styles.

And the Winner is.........

People we have a Pura Body Naturals Giveaway Winner!!!!!!!!!

TrueKinks aka @naturallyMeena on Twitter You are the winner!!!!!

Please email me at nurekad@aol.com with your mailing address so I can send it to you. Since this is my first ever giveaway you just might find a few extra things in your package as well. Yay!!!! 

If you did not win this one there will be other giveaways soon. And in Aug I will be doing a huge giveaway to celebrate the anniversary of my Big Chop so stay tuned. 

No Buy Challenge!!!!

All my Hair Products back in the fall

(I have soooo much more now)

WNHS Product Haul

As you can see from the pictures I have a problem.  I did not set out to own every natural hair product ever made, but..... well I think I do. Much like most additions it did not happen over night.  While I transitioned I gathered products very slowly, then I started attending natural hair events and started winning giveaways and learning of various natural hair companies and wanting to try new things as I experimented with my new all natural texture.  Fast forward a few months and I now have enough hair products to do everyone's hair in Louisville, Ky for at least a year. Ok that might be an exaggeration, but you get the point.  I know my weaknesses are cute packaging, a great smell and a good sale or free item with purchase. If a product falls into these categories I will buy it every time no matter how many products are currently in my stash. I am not the only natural out there with this problem it seems many of us turn into product junkies once become fully natural.  It really is hard not to.  Enter the Naturally Nu No Buy Challenge, in an effort to shrink my current stockpile of products I have decided to embark upon a self imposed no buy. This mean I promise I will not buy any hair products from now until the Black Friday sales the day after Thanksgiving.  Yes that is a LONG Time. But I know I can do it. I have also challenged some of my friends to this No Buy Challenge as well.  My friend and hair twin Haley of www.Derbycitynaturals.com has taken me up on my challenge. Trust me she has even more products than I do. Then there are those like my other bestie, Tanya10312000 on You Tube who refuse to participate but love to tease us about our no buy.  While I know it will be difficult for all of us to pass up great deals and new and interesting products I think it will be great to find creative ways to use the products we do have once our favorites start to run out.  I will be updating my blog with info on the challenge, but you can also follow what is going on with everyone ion the challenge or even join us yourself by adding yourself to my Facebook challenge page: Naturally Nu's No Buy Challenge. See you there

S/N

The current subscription services that I am already signed up for will continue. This does not count as me buying new products. We can also trade products with each other. There has been some of that going on already on the Facebook page.  Sharing is great!!!!!

National Natural Hair Meet Up Day: Presented By Derby City Naturals

May 19,2012

http://www.nnhmd.com

National Natural Hair Meetup Day was a day where beautiful ladies across the country gathered together on the same day to meet, mingle and show each other love all in the name of natural hair.  Locally Haley of Derby City Naturals (check out www.derbycitynaturals.com) organized the Metro Louisville meetup.  There was great food, various vendors, an awesome panel discussion with experts in hair, skincare, modeling and even a nationally known blogger.  There were tons of giveaways (OVER 30!!!) and the best part of all SWAG bags!!!!! There were two levels of swag bags. The was regular admission swag bag that contained numerous samples and 1 full size product and a VIP swag bag that had tons of samples and 2 full sized products. Both bags also had tons of coupon codes for products that were in the bags. Now which level do you think I got... You guessed it VIP!!!!!! Below you can see pics of all my goodies. Haley did a phenomenal job getting sponsors for the swag bags.  She truly went above and beyond to make sure this was an awesome event.  I  am still in awe of all her hard work.  I now have tons of new products to try and review for you guys. Not sure when I will get to all of them but I plan to start experimenting very soon.  So stay tuned between these items and all the stuff from the hair show I should be posting tons of reviews. 

View from the top of the inside of my VIP swag bag

all my samples and full sized products minus the coupon codes

Items I purchased from the vendors at the NNHMD

If you missed out this year no worries, there will another NNHMD next year on May 18, 2013.  Stay tuned to http://www.nnhmd.com for more details.  

GIVEAWAY!!!!!! Pura Body Naturals GIVEAWAY!!!!!

Cupuacu Hair Butter 

 4oz for $14.00

www.purabodynaturals.com

Description from www.purabodynaturals.com
100% Natural
A rich creamy blend of natural butters and oils to combat dry, brittle hair.  Cupuacu is well known for its high fatty acid content which benefits dry, damaged hair while protecting moisture and leaving hair soft and silky.

The greatest benefit is cupuacu promotes long lasting hydration due to its ability to absorb water to help maintain moisture.  Cupuacu hair butter can be applied to natural, relaxed, and transitioning hair.

Ingredients: Cupuacu Butter, Murumuru Butter, Mango Butter, Illipe Butter, Organic Shea Butter, Virgin Coconut Oil, Organic Olive Oil, Jojoba Oil, Organic Brazil Nut Oil, Organic Mamey Sapote Oil, Castor Bean Oil, Herbal extract blend (horsetail, nettles, burdock root) and Essential Oil Blend/and or fragrance

IT'S GIVEAWAY TIME!!!!!!!!!!

This full size jar of Pura Body Naturals Cupuacu Hair Butter in Tahitian Vanilla scent can be all yours!!!!!!
In order to enter the Naturally Nu Pura Body Naturals Giveaway please do the following:

1.  Post a comment to this post telling me why you want this product and how you will use it.
2. Subscribe to the Naturally Nu Blog by entering your email in the "follow by email" in the upper right corner.

Bonus Entry
*** Follow me on Twitter @Naturallynu502

The Contest will run from May 21, 2012- May 30, 2012.  I will announce the winner on May 31, 2012. Get those entries in!!!!!! Good Luck!!!!!

May The Look Bag Reveal

Beauty Subscription for $10 per month

Available www.thelookstore.com

What was in The Look Bag

-  The New Black nail polish - two colors (red and orange)

-  L'Oreal Paris wear infinite pressed eyeshadow in a beige color

-  Erno Laszlo a collection of skincare packets

-  Naked Princess lip gloss sampler (4 nude shades)

- Kelly Teegarden Organics chemical free skin care

I finally got my first shipment from The Look Bag.  As you know from my recent posts I am subscribed to a total of 5 such services, 3 beauty and 2 hair subscription services.  I have gotten some really great stuff in my other boxes this month.  As for this shipment....Meh. It is just ok.  The lip glosses seem pretty cool. I like the colors, but a L'Oreal eyeshadow?? Really? I expect more.  I am not going to cancel just yet. I will give them one more month and we will see what is in June's shipment. The nail polish is cute too.  I'm sure my daughters will have fun with those.  So stay tuned for more.

Ohhhhh I almost forgot.  Please subscribe by entering your email in the upper right hand corner. I will be doing a giveaway next week and if you are subscribed you will be the first to know. 

Product Review: COCO Curls Moisturizing Styling Cream

Available at www.cococurls.com

8 oz $15 16oz $25

I was able to get mine at the World Natural Hair Show 2- 8oz for $20

It is thick and creamy and smells like butterscotch candy. Yum

From their website

"Coco Curls combines the properties of both  SHINE & MOISTURE, as well as HOLD & DEFINITION. A small amount goes a long way and works best with wet hair. You don’t have to worry about a white residue or greasy after affect – perfect for wearing a 2 strand twist style right out the salon! Coco Curls is made with all natural ingredients, that combine to nourish and strengthen natural hair." 

Ingredients:

Aloe Vera Juice, Shea Butter, Jojoba Oil, Coconut Oil, Cetearyl Olivate and Sorbitan Olivate, Hydroxypropyl trimonium Honey, Lactobacillus Ferment, Helianthus Annuus Seed Oil (and) Rosmarinus Officinalis Leaf Extract,  Dehydroxanthan Gum, Fragrance Oils.

Minnie's hair in 2 stand twists with Coco Curls

The back

Twist out results after keeping twists in for a week and a half

Side View- Great Curl Definition

She loved her hair. Yes those are feetie pj's lol 

Beautiful Curls

I stalk YouTube for product reviews.  Before going to the hair show I saw lots of vloggers reviewing the Coco Curls Moisturizing Styling Cream and all the reviews were very positive.  I also knew they were going to have a booth at the World Natural Hair Show so I decided this would be a great time to give it a try because not only could I buy it at a discounted price but I could also get it without paying shipping. Winning! I have to say the ladies that were working the booth were very friendly and eager to help. They were running a deal to buy 1 for $12 or 2 for $20. I love a good deal so I walked away with 2.  When I got home I decided my oldest daughter, Minnie, would be the one to test this product. The label says you do not need a leave-in and that you can use it for wash n go's or twists. So for an entire week Miana tried using it for WnG's  both with and without a leave in. The result was not very good. There was not much curl definition and lots of frizz.  So I decided to try it for 2 strand twists. SUCCESS!!!!! She washed and conditioned her hair and I applied Curls brand creme brulee as a leave-in conditioner and then CoCo Curls on top and I twisted her hair. The results were amazing. The first pictures are of the day after I twisted her hair.  She wore the twists for over a week and a half and then took the twists out.  While her hair was twisted NO extra product was used, no water, no sprays and no oils or butters. Her hair stayed moisturized the entire time.  She did not even add any more product to her hair after she took the twists out.  It was not until day 3 of her twist out that I took a small amount of the Coco Curls and rubbed it through her hair.  Today she is still rocking her twist-out and it still looks really good. Today is day 5 of her twist out.  So lets add this up she had the twists in for a week and a half and so far has had her twist out for 5 days, that is over two weeks on one application of the product and I only had to do her her one time!!! Winning again!!!  I can say we really like this product and will purchase it again. I don't think it works well for WnG's but it is outstanding for twists. I give this product an A+++++++++. 

Product Review: B.A.S.K Y.A.M Nectar

Available at http://www.baskbeauty.com

8 oz for $20

I was able to get mine for $13 at the World Natural Hair Show

INGREDIENTS: Pure Clover Honey, Vegetable Glycerin, Yucca Oil (Virgin Olive Oil infused w/ Yucca Root), Avocado Oil, Meadowfoam Seed Oil, Manuka Honey, Behentrimonium Methosulfate (and) Cetearyl Alcohol, Panthenol, Essential oils of Rosewood & Copaiba, Fragrance, Phenoxyethanol (and) Ethylhexylglycerin.

Feels like a thick rich honey

Smells amazing, like sweet buttered honey with a slight floral scent

I separated my wet hair into 7 sections with clips

This is one finger full. I used about two of this amount per section.

I smoothed it through each section and then used a wide tooth comb to de-tangle that section. I then twisted that section and moved on. De-tangling was ridiculously easy 

After de-tangling my ENTIRE head this is all the hair that I SHED!!!!!!!! I was in disbelief.

After sitting in my hair for almost two hours. 

This past weekend my oldest daughter had a sleepover. On Saturday morning as I waited for parents to arrive I decided it would be a great time to do a deep conditioning treatment on my hair because I knew it would be a while before I left the house.  I figured it would be the perfect time to try the B.A.S.K Y.A.M  Nectar.  I had been wanting to try this for months based on YouTube reviews.  I was able to get mine at a discounted price at the World Natural Hair Show a few weeks ago.  All reviews for this product have been outstanding stating that the honey like texture turns into a thick rich cream when smoothed into the hair and that it leaves the hair very soft and moisturized.  Count me in for all of that.  Keep in mind last week I styled my hair with Kinky Curly Curling Custard as usual which lasts all week So it had been 7 days since I had de-tangled my hair. I started by wetting my hair in my bathroom sink.  Then I sectioned my hair into 7 sections as seen above. One section at a time I smoothed about two finger fulls into my hair and then used my wide tooth comb to de-tangle it.  I then twisted that section and clipped it again and moved on to the next section. I could not believe how easy it was to de-tangle my hair. The comb actually slid effortlessly through each section. And as you can see from the tiny amount of shed hair in the comb above the product has a great deal of slip.  When I had finished applying the product I removed the clips and placed a plastic shower cap on my hair and then put my silk scarf on top of that. I let the product sit on my hair for just under two hours.  When I removed the shower cap and unraveled my twists I was in shock, my fingers slid through my hair with ease. I had not been able to run my fingers through my hair like that with absolutely no resistance since my hair was relaxed. I just kept doing it and thinking how in the world did this product make my hair feel so good and keep it de-tangled.  I got into the shower to wash it out and I really did not want to so I just stood there and played with my hair some more.  It felt like each strand had been wrapped and a cocoon of sweet ooey gooey honey decadence. Then I began to stroke my hair upwards and before I knew it I had all my hair gathered into one ponytail!!! Ok please look at my pics again my hair is still short and very very thick and I had it in one ponytail!!! I was in such awe I actually got out of the shower and looked in the mirror because I needed visual poof for myself.  After a little more hair fondling I went ahead and rinsed the YAM Nectar out and to my delight my hair remained super soft, moisturized and best of all super de-tangled.  This is my new #1 turning my nose up at anything else deep conditioning treatment.  I can say that by far I have never used anything quite like this product, it more than exceeded my expectations. A++++ for this one. I will definitely buy this over and over and over. 

May CurlKit Reveal

My May CurlKit

Available at http://www.curlkit.com

$20 per month superscription service

What I saw when I opened the CurlKit

All my May Goodies

MORE FULL SIZE PRODUCTS!!!!!!!

What Was in My CurlKit
- Sofn'Free Nothing But Curl Sealer -FULL SIZE
- Sofn'Free Nothing But Curl Wake Up Spray - FULL SIZE
-  Curly Canadians Hair Love (butter) - Deluxe Sample
- Bee Mine Juicy (spray)- Deluxe Sample
- Curl Prep Sweet Buttah  - Deluxe Sample
- Curly Hair Solutions Curl Keeper- sample packet
- KYNX I am Fierce Refreshing Leave In Conditioner- 2 sample packets
- 1 and Only Argan Oil Moisture Repair Conditioner- Sample Packet

If you have been following my blog then you know I have gotten some great "samples" this month from all of my subscription services.  And not to be outdone by the others CurlKit certainly delivered some surprises of their own this month.  This is my second month as a subscriber with CurlKit and the May kit knocked the April kit out of the water. The Theme for this CurlKit was Curls Run the World: International Edition.  Products from United States, Canada and the United Kingdom were included in this months selection. I got not one but two full size products, three deluxe samples and four sample packets.  I was soooo excited to get this CurlKit. As usual it was packaged in a beautiful sivler box with pretty pink tissue paper inside and a card describing all the goodies.  I also got some coupons to save money on the featured products.  You know I am a sucker for a good deal.  I absolutely love CurlKit and I think they do a great job giving you well known products and introducing you to new products to try.  The samples are very generous and give you the opportunity to really see if a product will work for you before you sink your hard earned dollars into products.  I can not say enough good things about CurlKit.  Now I need to get busy experimenting with these products so I can get some reviews posted for you all.  Please be sure to subscribe to my blog by putting your email in on the right side where is says "follow by email". Thanks yall !!!!!!!

May CurlBox Birthday Edition Reveal

CurlBox $20 per month subscription service

available at http://www.curlbox.com

What I saw when I opened the box

OMG!!!!! Look at all those full sized products!!!!!!

What was in my May CurlBox

-  Elasta QP Mango Moisturizer- FULL SIZE

-  Design Essentials Natural Daily Moisturizing Lotion- FULL SIZE

-  Kynx Softening Cream Cleanser- FULL SIZE

-  Habbi Vanilla& Rose Body Balm (pretty good size)

-  Luster's Renutrients Slick Stick

-  Organic Root Stimulator Olive Oil Hair Masque packet

-  Organic Root Stimulator Olive Oil packet

-  Organic Root Stimulator Hair Repair Anti-Breakage Creme packet

-  Organic Root Stimulator Shea Butter Hair & Scalp Lotion packet

-  Love the Journey Journal <~~~~ Super Cute I cant wait to write in it.

This months CurlBox is unbelievable! I mean look at this picture!!! Ok before I get into what is in the box let me tell you how I came to be a subscriber.  I first heard about CurlBox back around the holidays, December or January.  It sounded pretty cool but I was really on the fence about joining. I was just unsure about getting 5-7 sample sized products for $20 per month. Afterall I have very thick hair and how big would these samples be?  So I decided to hold off and wait to see some reviews of what people got in their first box. I believe the first shipments came out  in February and I was so jealous of what I saw on the video reviews.  I knew I wanted to be a subscriber and I was kicking myself for not subscribing when I had the chance. I tried to sign up but the list was sold out. I was on the mailing list so each month when the list opened up I would try to sign up and I missed it every time. According to the CurlBox twitter memberships were selling out each month within 30-40 minutes.  Fast forward to April.  Myleik, the owner of CurlBox, tweeted that the May CurlBox membership would be opening on the weekend and that it would be the biggest CurlBox yet. I knew I wanted one bad and that not only would I be on vacation when the CurlBox membership opened according to the email I received later but that I would be in a different time zone.  I knew I had to have a strategy to get on the list.  Yes it is that serious people.  The memberships opened up at 11 am EST April 7. I was in Hawaii at the time and they  are 6 hours behind EST.  No problem folks I set two different alarms to get up at 5am. It worked!!!!! I was able to secure a membership and wow just in time for the BIGGEST CURLBOX YET!!!!!!! This is Myleik's birth month so to celebrate she sent out the biggest best curlbox yet complete with gold confetti.  I felt like a little kid at a birthday party going home with the best goodie bag ever!! If there was ever any doubt about the value of subscription services the 3 full sized products alone show that this box is well worth the $20 per month.  I am so happy I finally got my CurlBox membership and I cant wait to try all these products and for all the future boxes that are to come.  You know each month I will post pics and information about the boxes and reviews of the products as I use them. Ok I have to go  play with these products. Stay tuned for other subscription box reviews for May. I still have 2 that I have not received yet : D. But I think this is my favorite. 

May Birch Box Reveal

May Birch Box: GossipGirl Theme

$10per month www.birchbox.com

What's inside

-  Arquiste perfume sample

- Caudalie hand and nail cream

- Fusion Beauty LipFusion Balm

- Ojon Damage Reverse Restorative Conditioner

-  Birch Box Extra Pink Note Card and Envelope

I LOVE My Birch Box Subscription!!!! Out of all my subscription services (5 in total) this is one of my favorites. I love beauty products as much as I love hair products and Birch Box always has great items.  I really like that each month they have a different theme.  This month was a Gossip Girl theme and while I don't watch the tv show I really like the box.  I was really excited about the Ojon damage reverse conditioner. I have been wanting to try Ojon products for a long time but they are very expensive and I just never took the plunge. So I can not wait to use it.  You know I will post a review once I do. Yay hair products!! ; D The hand cream smells great so that is going straight in my purse.   The perfume smells really good too. The lip balm.. Meh, you know I'm a lip gloss girl so we will see.  I love the note card too  hmm might have to send a special someone a little note.   All in all I really like this months box.  I still have 3 more subscription boxes I am waiting on for May so satay tuned for those. 

May My Shade Of Brown Reveal

My Shade Of Brown Pillow Box

$10 per month subscription service

available at www.myshadeofbrown.com

The contents of my May My Shade of Brown Pillow Box

-  Nourishea  Mango Body Wash

-  Nourishea  Tea Tree Oil Shampoo

-  High Quality Organics  Premium Body Oil

-  Komplexx Blends Cosmetics Eye Light in Bronze

My Shade Of Brown is a monthly beauty subscription service geared toward women of color.  For a $10 per month fee they mail you 4-6 deluxe samples of beauty products to try before you buy.  If you like an item you can go to their web site and purchase the item usually at a discounted price or with free shipping. There are many services like this one (as you know I am currently signed up for 5 subscription services.) but what drew me to this one is it is for women of color so I expected to get things more suited to my coloring and that would look good on me.  There was only one color item in this shipment which was the eye shadow and it is in bronze, which does look really good on me.  This past month they were running a special for only $5 for your first shipment so this kit only cost me half of what I will normally pay.  The problem for me is I do get other subscription kits and so I have something to compare this to. I get much bigger samples from major name brand companies from my Birch Box.  Soooo I have to say I am not really impressed so far. I think I will give them one more month and see how the next shipment is before I cancel but if the next one is not better I will be cancelling this one.  Stay tuned to see what I get in my other subscription boxes for May. I have received shipment confirmations so I should be getting them in the next few days and I will do blog posts the day after I get them. If you want to make sure you don't miss any updates please subscribe to my blog on the right hand side and you will get an email every time I update it. 

Curl Mart Order

http://www.Curlmart.com

We all know by now I am a product junkie so I won't get into that right now.  Before I left to go to the Natural Hair Show in Atlanta on April 28-29, 2012 Curl Mart sent me an email about a 20% off sale on select products.  One of those select products happened to be Curl Junkie and you guys know I LOVE LOVE LOVE Curl Junkie conditioner. So even though I knew I would be buying lots of products in Atlanta I had to jump on 20% off AND FREE SHIPPING AND TWO FREE SAMPLES!!!!!!  I placed my order on April 27, 2012 and received my order on my door step May 4, 2012.  The pic above shows how my products were packaged.  I love that one of my free "samples" is a full sized oil. I cant wait to try it, I may use if for a hot oil treatment.  At any rate Curl Mart runs sales all the time and you can get free shipping by spending $60 or more and they always include at least 2 free samples and sometimes more. One time I got 5 free samples!!!! So if you are in the market for hair products that you can't get at stores in your area check out http://www.curlmart.com. Be sure to go to their site and sign up for the mailing list so you can get sale notifications. Happy shopping :) 

April CurlKit

My April CurlKit 

 $20 Monthly Subscription Service 

available at www.curlkit.com

What was in My April CurlKit

-  Pookka Pure and Simple mango body butter

- Pooka Pure and Simple Hair butter

- Jane Carter Nourish and Shine

- Jane Carter Nutrient Replenishing Conditioner

- Jane Carter Revitalizing Leave-in Conditioner

- Jane Carter "Love Your Hair" pin

- Sofn' free Nothing But Cleansing Conditioner

- Sofn' Free Nothing but Curly Pudding

- Optimum Care Deep Conditioner

- Wide tooth Comb infused with Olive Oil

You guys know I love me some products.  I also love to try new products and getting surprises delivered to my door is one of my favorite things.  So when I heard about CurlKit I was very interested to say the least.  I also already get Birchbox, a monthly beauty subscription box ($10 per month www.birchbox.com) So I was familiar with how the subscription would work.  April was my first CurlKit delivery and it is full of things for me to try, it came in a silver box and it was all wrapped in pink tissue paper. Inside were hair items from well known companies like Jane Carter Solutions and Optimum. There were also items from companies I had not heard of like Pooka Pure and Simple.  These items were delivered just a few days before my Spring Break trip to Hawaii so I was very excited because I could take the sample sizes with me on vacation and try them all.  And that is exactly what I did.  I had tried the Jane Carter Solutions Conditioner before but not her other products.  I fell in love with both the leave-in conditioner and the nourish and shine. So much so in fact that when I went to the World Natural Hair Show in Atlanta this past weekend I made sure to buy them in the full sizes. I tried the Sofn' free Nothing But products in my daughter, KK's hair and it worked great.  So when I saw them at the World Natural Hair Show I purchased those items in full size as well. I really enjoy the whole "try before you buy" idea of the various subscription boxes.  I'll be the first to admit that being a product junkie has caused me to buy many products that I ended up not liking and either giving away at a product swap or just to friends.  With CurlKit and other services like it you can try the sample sizes of products and see if you like them before you invest in the full size.  The fees for these services are pretty good as well.  For example CurlKit is only $20 and many times there are also full sized products included in the kit so the value is usually much higher than the price you actually pay.  I was so happy with both my Birchbox subscription and my CurlKit subscription I have since added 3 new subscription services for May (see below for my new subscriptions) . As soon as I get them I will post pictures and reviews.  I am so excited to see all the goodies I get.  

So for May I will be getting 5 subscription boxes!!!

1.  Birchbox - beauty subscription $10per month  www.birchbox.com

2. CurlKit- natural hair subscription $20 per month www.curlkit.com

3.Curlbox- natural hair subscription $20 per month www.curlbox.com

4. My Shade of  Brown- beauty subscription for women of color $10 per month www.myshadeofbrown.com

5. The Look Bag- beauty subscription $10 per month www.thelookstore.com

Review: Shea Moisture Lemongrass & Ginger Dead Sea Soak

I purchased at the World Natural Hair Show 3 for $20

Regular Price $9.99 may be at select Targets and Walgreens (not on either website)

I love taking long relaxing baths after a hard workout, so when I saw this at the WNHS I thought hey this would be perfect because it says it helps to relieve sore muscles. It also claims to soften the water and skin so bonuses all around.  Yesterday my personal trainer decided to punish me extra hard for eating "bad food" while I was in Atlanta for the hair show so when I got home I could barely walk. And then it hit me, it would be a perfect time to try my new bath salt.  I drug myself up the stairs lit my candle in the bathroom and started to run the water.  When I opened the bath salt I knew we had a winner based on the smell alone.  It smells of lemons and oranges and other citrus smells but with a spa type of citrus not like a lemonade or cut lemon smell. It smelled so good both of my daughters came into the bathroom wondering what was smelling so good and then asked if they could use it too. I was tempted to say "No, You got to get your own my brother" but I agreed to let them use a little. Needless to say it was a very pleasurable bath experience. I soaked for about 30-40 minutes and let the wonderful fragrance transport me to a place where personal trainers had out cupcakes that make you skinny instead of grueling workouts :).  When all was said and done I felt very relaxed and much less sore than before my bath.  I slept like a rock and this morning I don't feel sore at all.  I have used the Shea Moisture hair products many times and liked them but this was my first time  using anything from their bath line and I am officially hooked.  I will be repurchasing this item and trying the other bath products.