No Styling Gel -Use Aloe!!!

Hello all,
I have been away from blog spot for two weeks...dang! I have already started. I did intend to blog on something natural last week but life got in the way and I was unable to do so.

Anyways, it is kinda old news that I am a user of natural beauty, skin care and hair care products. I have carried my hair in some form of natural state for about 9 (nine) or more years now. The other day, for some reason, I started looking at the products in the styling gels used by naturals and it got me thinking - could there be a more natural product that will give the same kind of hold that these products have. I guess, I just let it out that many naturals use some form of styling gel from Ecostyler gels, Fantasia, curly pudding etc. Some of these products run from 2 dollars - 40 dollars or more. Yes, naturals can get a bit obsessed about their hair care. In fact, if you go on youtube, you will see a lot of natural heads are product junkies....ehm, I just had to put that all there...

Anyways, as I was thinking about that - I came across my aloe vera gel. Yes, aloe is a must have in any natural's bathroom. I realised that this aloe vera has the same consistency as my ecostyler gel, and the kind of aloe vera gel I use does not use any form of alcohol. I mixed some other stuff in it and put it in my hair and it feels good or maybe it feels great because I know everything that is in it and the effect that these things have on my hair. :-)

For many non naturals, who have questions about aloe vera. Aloe vera, also known as the medicinal aloe, is a species of succulent plant. Aloe vera grows in arid climates and is widely distributed in Africa, India and other arid areas. The species is frequently cited as being used in herbal medicine. Aloe vera extracts may be useful in the treatment of wound and burn healing, diabetes and elevated blood lipids in humans. These positive effects are thought to be due to the presence of compounds such as polysaccharides, mannans, anthraquinones and lectins.

There has been conflicting research on the use of aloe vera on the natural haired individual...But some of the positives, I have read is that it cuts down hair loss, it aids circulation and also it has antiinflamatory properties and if you have frizzy hair, using aloe vera can also help control the frizz...That's what they say.

My Aloe Vera Styling gel mixture
1) aloe vera with no alcohol. (1 cup)
2) glycerin (always) (1/10 of cup)
3) coconut oil/olive oil or castor oil or whatever oil I am feeling at the moment....(1/10 of cup)
4)essential oil - I used sweet orange. (5 drops of oil).
mix it together and use it on your freshly washed hair, shake your head from side to side and then let it air dry. It worked for my hair. I don't know what kind of hair you have but if your hair has lots of crinkles and curls while wet - this should work for you. If your hair doesn't, consider using this mix to twist, air dry and take out the twists.

I think I am sticking to this - it is cheaper and most importantly, I know exactly what's going in and the end result. Also, let me add this, when you wash the hair gel off in a couple of days time, your hair will be so detangled that you won't have to use any conditioner or any form of detangler to get rid of the tangles...

Till next week, that has been my natural care tip for the week.

Pammy

Natural Face Care!

For those that have met me in real life, one of the things that hits you is how smooth and clear my skin is. Many who have been lucky enough to see my pictures (I have been pulling them down for sometime) will comment on my face, asking what kind of powders or is the word pancake I use?

Well, I come from a family (mother's side) where pancake wearing is definitely not the norm. Till today, my mother wears only lipstick or lipgloss when she remembers and calls it a day. My grandmother (who was running a male dominated business in the Eastern part of Nigeria) never bothered with lipstick. My great grandmother didn't even bother! So, in a way, some can say that I am blessed with getting this great skin from them, well, let me be honest, I do get pimples at that time of the month.

As I mentioned, my mother's part of the family seem to have extremely clear and smooth skin and growing up I often wondered why? Things I noticed that they all seem to have used or use in their skin care regime are
a)Oil of Olay - the really old one
b) Coconut and Olive oil. - I come from a family background that has always been involved in the church. When you look at the historical almanac of one of the major churches in Africa, you will come across my great grandmother's name . Why did I decide to share this? Well, holy oil that is used for praying in that church was and is made from Olive oil / coconut oil. They tended to rub these oils on their face. I will write on the uses of Olive and Coconut oil for natural beauty uses at a later time. That article will be written from a non religious perspective for everyone. I use coconut oil and Olive oil but not on my face.


Well, that seems to have worked for them. I think I will add my own beauty care regime to theirs.

1) I clean my face once or twice a day (if I remember) with my own toner astringent made from witch hazel and rosewater. I get these from a natural store in canada. One part witch hazel to one part rose water. I squirt this onto a cotton pad and clean my face with that. To read up more on this, please click links on the words.

2) Jojoba oil: I love this. It works so great on my face. At first it is oily then it absorbs and is simply great! I decided to add one part glycerin to my bottle of Jojoba oil, so I will let you know in about a week, what happens.

3) I love lip gloss and eyeshadow (LOVES IT!!!) but when I use this (eyeshadow), I make sure I clean my face before going to bed.

That's it. That's my beauty regime...I try to keep things very simple....