What a Difference a Year Makes

If you have been following my blog or my YouTube channel - Nurekad then you know I am awful at twist outs!!!! Or so I thought before last weekend.  Ever since my Big Chop in August of 2011 I have been wearing my hair in WnG styles because every time I try a Twist out I end up with a frizzy fuzzy mess. Now to be fair I have only tried twists about 5 times in the last year because they end up looking so bad.  I'm not exactly sure what made me want to try again last weekend, other than I hate feeling like I can't do something and it was a 3 day weekend from work.  So late Friday night, actually very late it was about midnight I co-washed my hair and started into my twisting journey yet again.  I'll be honest I did not have high hopes that my hair would look good.  I was just hoping it would not look bad. I used the same steps I had used in the past. I applied leave in then styler and twisted.  This time I used CoCo Curls as my styler.  After I was done twisting I was shocked at how much my hair has grown in the last year.  My twists actually looked good enough to wear out without hiding them under a hair or hair accessory. Now that is progress. I wore the twists for 2 full days and then on Monday (Labor Day) the true test came.  Would I be able to wear a twist out or would my hair be a frizzy fuzzy mess????  I oiled my hands with Ampro Vitamin E oil and started untwisting. I did NOT separate the twists into smaller sections as  suspected this was what had caused my frizziness before. When all was said and done I was shocked at how good my hair actually looked and at how long my hair has gotten.  Although I will no doubt still wear WnG styles most often it is great to see how much progress my hair has made over the past year.  Now I have another style I can add to my bag of tricks.

Front view of my twists

Twist Out Results Yayyyyy!!!!

CoCO Curls

Below are previous twists and twist outs attempted over the past year

The All Stars

Next week on August 2 I will be celebrating 1 year of being 100% natural.  As I look back over the last year I can tell you I have learned so much about my hair and about myself.  Like so many others what started out as a journey toward longer healthy hair has turned into a journey of self discovery. I have gained so much more self confidence and pride in who and what I am. I have learned to truly love my hair even on the bad hair days. I could never say that about my relaxed hair. And beyond that gone are the beliefs that I need to look like another race to be beautiful or attractive.  Along this journey I have met some of the most amazing women.  I think that is what has made this journey even more fulfilling are the random conversations I have had with people on blogs, YouTube, at natural hair events or even in the grocery store. It is like when other naturals come into contact with each other that we have a special sisterly bond immediately.  That never happened when I was relaxed. No one came up to me asking what product I used or how I got my hair to do a certain thing. But that happens almost daily as a natural. So after a year I am in reflection mode as you can see.  I wanted to do a post listing my favorite products, companies and websites for ordering. (this is a question I get alllll the time ;D)  enjoy

My Favorite Natural Hair Products (things that are always on my shelf)

The Kinky Curly Line will probably always be my favorite line. As a WnG girl nothing but nothing can do what Kinky Curly does for my hair and that is give me banging hair for 7 days!!!! I just did two videos on my YouTube channel (NurekaD) about the Kinky Curly line check it out.

I LOVE LOVE LOVE this hair/body oil. I never use it on my body but I do use it on my hair EVERY SINGLE DAY!!!!  I know I talk about the Darcy's Botanical Plum Kernel Nectar all the time but I am telling you I love it. I use this between my leave-in and gel when I do WnGs and each day their after to refresh my WnG. It is great and smells amazing. They do have other oils on the Darcy's web site but this is my favorite.

Curls Coconut Sublime Conditioner is my favorite go to conditioner. It smells great, has great slip and is a great value. Really what more could you ask for. This was actually one of the first natural hair products I tried when I was transitioning.  I purchase it at www.curls.biz and it is only $30 for 32oz!!!! Plus if you spend over $50 you get free shipping, so I always order 2. I love this stuff and I am never without a bottle of it. 

BASK YAM Nectar is allllll that. I did a full review on a post a couple of months ago. This is by far the best deep conditioner I have ever used hands down. My hair was super soft and stayed de-tangled for days. How is that even possible?  My fingers were gliding through my hair. My only regret is I did not buy more when I was at the Natural Hair Show. Trust me when my no buy is over I will be stocking up on this stuff.

Oyin Handmade Burnt Sugar Pomade.  I freaking love this stuff. For starters it smells like hot caramel popcorn in the mall, like exactly like that.  Secondly it liquefies in your hands and is more like an oil. My hair loves it so much.  Whenever I pull my hair back in a puff I use this to slick back my hair and it does a great job and does not interfere with any of my stylers including Kinky Curly. This is another product you will always find on my shelf. 

My Favorite Natural Hair Companies

Kinky Curly -

Really do I even need to say why.

Curls-

They have a comprehensive line of natural hair products.  I have loved every single product I have used from this company. I love that they have a salon line ans a retail line so everyone is able to get their products. Great great customer service also.

Darcy's Botanicals-

Everything just smells so dang good from this company.  I love the Plum Kernel Nectar of course and the Pumpkin seed conditioner is off the chain!!!! I love most of the products I have tried from Darcy's.

Oyin Handmade-

Great customer service and super awesome products.  their website is super cute and I have loved everything I have tried. I keep Oyin products in my rotation.

BASK-

I have just within the last few months started to use BASK products but everything I try makes me want to do a huge order with them to buy more. Great ingredients and they sell out all the time so that should tell you something. 

My Favorite Websites to order from

Other than ordering directly from the company I have found the following to be great sites for their deals, customer service and for getting your order to you quickly.

www.iherb.com

this is the best place to buy Kinky Curly because of the price, free shipping and no sales tax, plus if you spend over $80 you get 5% off!!! And you get your order super fast.

www.aveyou.com

They have sales all the time, great deals on shipping and they have a wide range of products

www.curlmart.com

SALES ALLLLLL the time great deals on shipping and free samples with every purchase

www.sagenaturalceuticals.com 

Absolutely awesome customer service. They are very quick to get your order to you and they have a huge variety of products.

www.nounouboutique.com

Very personal customer service and super fast delivery with samples. 

WnG Girl Tries 2 Strand Twists

You can tell by the look on my face I'm not really feeling the twists

I sectioned my hair into 6 sections and started twisting from the back

Side view of pinned back twists

Showing the shrinkage 

The summer has come and with it my opportunity to try new hair styles.  As promised I am bringing it all to you as it happens.  I decided my first adventure beyond my regular and now perfected wash and go (WnG) style would be the ever popular 2 strand twist.  Now in the 10 months since my big chop I have tried this style 2 other times.  Both times I was disappointed.  The first time was back in November and my hair just seemed too short and when I took the twists out my hair was very frizzy. I did not like it at all. Fast forward to February and I tried them again with much of the same frizz. Now that my hair is much longer I wanted to try again.  I started by co-washing my hair then adding Curls Cream Brulee as my leave-in conditioner, CoCo Curls as my styler and I sealed my ends with Pura Body Naturals Cupuacu Butter. I will say the process with alot faster than the other times I tried. It took me and hour and a half from beginning to end.  When I finally finished I can say it was strange to see myself in the mirror and see my hair in twists because I am so used to my WnG big fluffy curls.  I don't hate the way it looks but it is very different than what I am used to.  My hair feels really good, it is soft and the twists feel very smooth. It is fun to pull on them and see the length of my hair.  I have no idea how it will look in a twist out. I hope it will not be the frizzy mess that I had when I tried the twists before. We will see. I really don't have alot going on this week so I think I will leave the twists in for about 4 days and then I will try a twist out style. I will post pics and info on how I style my hair.  And be on the look out for lots of other hair adventures while I am off on vacation from work. 

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+++++++++.