Naturale Spotlight: Sydni
Meet 22 year old Sydni, a Temple University graduate, and 3 year natural:
Do you remember how old you were when you got your first relaxer?
Looking back, getting my relaxer was one of the biggest mistakes of my life. I was 13 years old and I did it because I was tired of all the kids in my middle school making fun of my hair. They said I looked like Oprah. Being 13 and ridiculed over your hair, something that you're born with and can't change is hard especially at that age. You're starting puberty and into boys and all you want to be is accepted.
How long have you been natural and what made you decide to go natural?
I've been natural for 3 years. I decided to go natural because my friend Kassandra told me I should do it. Her hair was full, bouncy and beautiful and I decided to give the natural thing a try. Plus, I was sick and tired of my hair breaking off. Another reason I decided to go natural is that I live in Philadelphia and being in an area where you see so many black women rocking their natural tresses is a beautiful thing. I grew up in a predominately white neighborhood outside of Pittsburgh and finding a girl with natural hair was far and few between. But living in a city where nappy hair was viewed as beautiful sparked an epiphany for me that I could do it too.
How do u like being natural?
I don't regret it at all. I've learned to love myself in new ways. Having my natural hair made me feel free. I won't lie, sometimes I get frustrated because I feel like my hair has a mind of its own by changing and looking different everyday. But no matter how frustrated I become, I never want to go back. I love being natural.
It makes me feel beautiful.
Do you have a specific hair regimen? If so, what is it?
I put Blue magic hair grease on my scalp every night, wet each strand and then twist my hair and put curlers on the end.
The grease gives my hair sheen and when I take the twists, my afro is a combination fo curly and wavy.
Ingredient Bust #1: Cetearyl Alcohol
Morning Divas,This ingredient is used in many hair products, being that it contains the word alcohol sometimes it worries people as to what it is doing in the product. So lets learn a little more about it and see what exactly it does.
Cetearyl alcohol is derived naturally. This alcohol happens to be what is called a "fatty alcohol." It is a combination of Cetyl Alcohol and Stearyl Alcohol, both of which are also "fatty alcohols"
So what does it do in cosmetics??
Well, CETEARYL ALCOHOL is classified as:
EMOLLIENT, EMULSIFYING, EMULSION STABILIZING, FOAM BOOSTING, OPACIFYING, SURFACTANT, VISCOSITY CONTROLLING
Wow! What a resume, talk about multi-tasking! Well to put it in a more functioning hair language...
Emollients soften and smooth skin and hair.
Emulsifying agents help ingredients interact pleasantly with the water in their formulas so they stay creamy rather than separating out into their different parts. (i.e. oils and water do not mix, but emulsifying agents help the two mix together by reducing the tension between them so as to make a creamy mixture)
Emulsion stabilizing means that it helps with the process of emulsification^^ and with that helps keep formulas stable, which improves and lengthens their shelf-life. This is great because you get a longer life out of your products so that you are given the opportunity to use it all up!
Foam boosting is one of the more obvious functions. It helps products produce more foam by increasing its volume.
Opacifying this is a more superficial function, it just helps the 'coloring' of the product seem more opaque or less translucent/clear. It gives it a more cream or off-white type of coloring. This is done because people associate creaminess with opacity.
Surfactants help a product spread more easily by reducing surface tension between the ingredients in its formula.
Viscosity controlling means this product can be used to help a product maintain a certain level of viscosity. Viscosity is a measure of the ease with which a product will run. For instance, Molasses has a very HIGH viscosity because it is extremely thick and very slow moving when poured, where as water has a very LOW viscosity because it more quickly and is not thick at all.
This is important to us as consumers because we are trained to believe that the feel of a product can heavily determine how effective it is. Most of these expectations have been fed to us by the cosmetic industry through various avenues including advertisements and other marketing tactics.
Clearly this product has some very useful properties. So when you are reading your ingredient lists on products, remember this product is your friend!
Sources:
http://www.cosmeticsinfo.org/ingredient_details.php?ingredient_id=481
http://www.cosmeticsdatabase.com/ingredient/701236/CETEARYL_ALCOHOL/
http://www.specialchem4cosmetics.com/services/inci/ingredient.aspx?id=2464
thanx a bunch loves!
![www [dot] ceceUNedited [dot] com](http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_IgQvEFKlW2Y/S8u_r1RFJsI/AAAAAAAAAK8/KG92BKUQw-Q/s320/chelsea+signature+REAL.png)
Goody Spin Pins
Hey Ladies!
So I recently saw these really cool looking spin pins the other day in the store. I thought it was some blasphemous mess but I soon came to find out that in actually works and a number of other naturals have used it.
I look forward to trying it. My hair is fairly short so I wouldn't be able to do too much with it in terms of buns, but i will try using it to secure big rolled twists. I am hoping that these will not make my scalp itch since I'm allergic to nickel and aluminum which is in most alloys for lower grade metallic materials.
I will be checking these out tomorrow or Saturday.
Hey Ladies!
Though they have said on their Facebook fan page that there has been no change in the ingredients for the Target version of MJ's products, there has. Additionally, other vendors are receiving some of both versions. Read the ingredients, if Mineral Oil is like the 2-4th ingredient or even present period, it is the new watered down version. I spoke with an African Shop owner in Greensboro, NC, who also carries the product line along with various other natural products such as shea butter and she said that all the product lines that are present in mass market stores end up having to water down their line in order to stay ahead.
Even Jane Carter (JC) and Curls had to do the same thing, however, JC and Curls are honest about it. The Curls products in Target are marketed as Curls For Target, specifically. In order to get the original Curls Products you must read the design on the front of the bottle. It is in plain sight as long as you know to read for it and what it means.
Another piece of information I learned from here was that MJ and JC will only be in Target if they meet a certain sales quota in the first quarter of their release or so. So I guess if you want it to stay there you must buy it, however it will continue to be the same watered down version. I have pictures of the ingredient list from Curly Meringue which I will post so you can see the difference first hand.
Just be aware of these facts as you all go out to find the products you wish to try!
love, love,
TIGI Catwalk Curls Rock Curl Amplifier
Hello everyone, and welcome to my reviews!
Let me define the pros and the cons:
Pros:
- It has a very neutral smell, which I think is a good thing because I dislike when hair products have an overpowering smell.
- It defines the curls when the hair is short.
- The ingredients are decent.
- The price for the size.
- As hair gets longer, the product works less and less. As a matter of fact, the hair on the back of my head is longer (bad haircut), and even though I put more product back there than in the front, the longer the hair, the lesser the hold.
- The product is very sticky on the hands, and once you put it on the hair just ends up crunchy, just like with gel.
Water, VP/DMAPA Acrylates Copolymer, Cyclomethicone, Polyquaternium 11, Polyquaternium 37, Styrene/Butadiene Copolymer, Perfume, Polysorbate 60, Simmondsia Chinensis Seed Oil (Jojoba), Propylene Glycol Dicaprylate/Dicaprate, Cetearyl Alcohol, PPG 1 Trideceth 6, C12 15 Alkyl Benzoate, Helianthus Annuus Oil (Hybrid Sunflower), Panthenol (ProVitamin B5), Bacopa Leaf (Bacopa Monnieri ) Extract, PVP/Dimethylaminoethylmethacrylate Copolymer, Cinnamidopropyl Trimethyl Ammonium Chloride, Chitosan,
Butylene Glycol, Helianthus Annuus Seed Acid (Sunflower), Methylisothiazolinone, Methylchloroisothiazolinone
College Curlies: Miss Jessie's Pulls a Fast One
You need to check out this posting by my college mate Jamila R. I haven't started using Miss Jessies Buttercreme yet, but I have been lemming it. It isn't in the Target near me, but I am also in NY so I can just go straight to the salon they have in Bk and get it directly from the source. However, those of you who cannot, please beware. Read Jamila's posting, I think all naturals need to know about this.
College Curlies: Miss Jessie's Pulls a Fast One
love, love
♥ ♥ April Favorites ♥ ♥
Hey Ladies!
Here are my April Favorites!!
1. Burt's Bees Lemon Cuticle Butter
This cuticle butter is the best! I've been using it for my last few personal manicures. It is great it absorbs so quickly and its small and easy to carry around. I will be doing a review on it in a few days. I apply it twice a day when I can remember, day and night. It's an HG (holy grail) product for me.
2. Blended Cuties Down & Out Styles
This hair styling cream is the exact same formula as the Blendedy Beauty Happy Nappy Styles, I purchased this one because it was on sale on NaturallyCurly.com's website, while Happy Nappy Styles was not. The cream looks like the color and consistency of Duncan Hines Yellow Cake batter. It smells good to me, it isn't an overwhelming scent at all and I don't believe you'll smell it on your hair later. I used it to do a half coil. This means I didn't do full on coils, I used smaller sections of hair. People seemed to love this half coil I did. This cream may end up being a staple. I will try it a few more times and if it is versatile enough.
3. Kinky Curly Curling Custard
So this curling custard gave me the most defined curls I've ever had, even when my hair is wet it isn't this defined and curled. This custard is the bomb and I plan on trying Kinky Curly Knot Today under it to get a softer hold and curl. I love this stuff!!
4. Paul Mitchell: The Conditioner
This conditioner is the greatest. I love the slip it provides on my hair. I use it in my twists along with Miss Jessie's Curly Pudding and Frederic Fekkai Glossing Cream. It has a great feel on my hair and along with those other products, it provides amazing shine and moisture to my hair.
5. Nail Tek Foundation II
This foundation does wonders in filling ridges and in making a smoother surface for nail polish to be applied over. It would seem many people agree, I've seen loads of Youtube Vids with this as a favorite or being used.
6. Seche Vite Top Coat
This is the best, fastest drying top coat. One thing to be careful of is the fact that the top will dry quickly, but that doesn't mean the undercoats are dry. You can still do minor things, but try not to bump it around too much. After roughly 10-15 minutes it will be 'safe for wear.'
7. Alba Botanica: Coconut Cream/ Alba Botanica: Passion Fruit
This lip balm is amazing. It is all organic and it works wonders on moisturizing your lips. I have both formulas, they both smell great. Its not too waxy or too oily. I've been using it for months! I love it.
8. Bio Oil
This oil is great it has actually visibly lightened this horrible scar I have on my forehead from curling my bangs back during last summer when I still used my heat styling tools. I didn't even use it for too many days, I forgot after a few but I've noticed to lightening.
9. New York Sport Club Membership :)
Yeah... a little off from my other favorites, but it is one of my favorites! I love this gym its the bomb! I just got my membership a few days ago actually, but I love it already.
10. My New Phone Cover!! :)
Can I just say... CUTTTTEEEE!!!!! Its so colorful and pretty and girly. I love it its super, uber cute! Just look at it! :)
Labels:
April,
Conditioner,
Monthly Favorites,
nail polish,
paul mitchell,
Product Review,
products,
thoughts
|
0
comments
