DIY Hair Treatment for Shine and Strength

Sometimes we do not have access to store bought products to use as protein treatments. In those times, here is a kid-friendly do it yourself (DIY) hair treatment I like:

1/2 cup of Mayonnaise (strengthens hair)
1/4 cup of Extra Virgin Olive Oil (anti-inflammatory, emollient, rich in fatty acids)
1 banana (soften hair, improves elasticity, strengthens, promote shine)
1 tablespoon Raw Honey (humectant , smoothens cuticles)

Mix well and apply to freshly washed hair. Leave on for 30 mins and Rinse.


Stay beautiful! 💖 

If you like this blog post written by Sola of DiscoveringNatural, you can find her on her Youtube channel, DiscoveringNatural,  for more natural hair tips. Click here to visit her channel.

The Proper Way To Treat Your Natural Hair After A Protective Style

I recently took down my protective style - box braids - which I had on for about five weeks. As usual, it was getting really frizzy and I realized that it was time to take it down. Of course, the heat wasn't helping matters either.

During take down, I made up my mind that I was going to do it properly. Yes, there's a proper way to take down protective styles. In fact, the manner in which you do it determines how much length you would be able to retain. That's why a lot of people complain that their hair isn't growing meanwhile they are not retaining enough length. But that's another discussion for another day.

Say you have a weekly regimen like me that requires you to wash your hair every week. A five - week long protective style means that you haven't washed your hair in FIVE WEEKS!. There's no way you're going to retain length if you don't take your time to patiently take down your protective style and treat your hair afterward. You'll just be experiencing breakage and excessive shedding which you won't be able to control if yu are not careful.

So, how to do treat your natural hair after a protective style such that you reap its full benefits?

• Detangle

Depending on the style you did, you will need to detangle. This can be minimal in the case of crochet braids for instance or extensive, for box braids. Whatever you do, make sure you are detangling along to reduce breakage. Plus, you also saving time.

• Pre-poo/Hot oil treatment

As much as I'm not so much of a fan of pre-poo, it is very necessary to nurse your hair back to health after a protective style. Whatever you use for pre-poo, make sure you leave for an extensive time. Usually, overnight.

• Clarify

After pre-poo, you will need to clarify your hair of the weeks of junk and product buildup that has settled in your scalp.

• Do a protein treatment

I previously used to underrate the importance of protein treatments but recently I've begun to have a change of heart. Protein treatments strengthen your hair and repair any damage the protective style might have done to your hair.

• Finish up with a moisture - intensive deep conditioner with heat.

After a protein treatment, it's only right to finish up with a moisturizing deep conditioning treatment to balance things out. Heat - direct with steaming cap or indirect with shower cap and body heat - is necessary to improve penetration of the deep conditioner into your strands.

• Moisturize, Lock and Seal

Moisturize with your leave-in conditioner, lock in the moisture with your favorite oil and seal with a heavy butter.

With these steps, your natural hair should be back to normal in no time.

Does anyone go through these steps after taking down a protective style?

Three Signs To Know Your Hair Needs Protein

Hey Naturalistas,

Protein, also called keratin helps to make up the hair strand.  

Depending on your hair care regimen, diet, and lifestyle, lack of protein can translate to your strands.  Healthy hair is ultimately a combination of great protein and moisture balance.

Too much moisture can result in weak, limp hair that is prone to breakage. Too much protein, also known as protein overload, can cause your hair to snap and break as well.

Most of the time, we have no idea if we are using a protein conditioner or a moisturizing conditioner. 

Conditioners with protein will have the following keywords in the title of the product. 

• Repair/Repairing Cream
• Reconstructor
• Balancing Conditioner
• Deep Repair Mask

Conditioners with protein will also have a few of these common ingredients

• Hydrolyzed wheat protein
• Hydrolyzed keratin
• Hydrolyzed silk protein
• Hydrolyzed Oat Flour
• Keratin
• Variations of hydrolyzed collagen
• Variations of hydrolyzed soy protein

However, here are signs your hair might need a protein treatment.

1. Limp curls or weak hair:

Are your curls just not “popping” like they used to and you can’t figure out why? A lot of naturals go through a period where their hair starts acting weird.  Moisture gets pushed down our throats at all time (which is great) but take one weekend to deep condition with some protein and watch your curls snap back. 

2. Consistent shedding/breakage:

Shedding is also a sign your hair needs protein. While lack of protein is not the only reason your hair could be shedding, it could be that your hair is slowly breaking off because it’s not strong. A light balancing protein conditioner will be ideal to whip your hair back into shape.  African Naturalistas deep conditioning mayonnaise is a good one to try.  

3. Long term use of heat:  

Heat damage occurs when the protein bonds in the hair are continually broken down due to extreme heat resulting in the permanent change of the hair follicle. In short, the hair is now permanently straight. In this case, you have no choice but to cut if off and start over.  However, if you haven’t reached the peak of heat damage where the damage is irreversible, a protein treatment should help.

 

Source

Enjoy the rest of the week darlings.

Deep Conditioning using ORS Hair Mayonnaise.

  Happy Tuesday Ladies! Deep Conditioning is a vital part of our Natural Hair Journey. When you feel like your hair has really gone through it, it is nice to give it a little pick me up by way of a nourishing Deep Conditioning Treatment.

  I use the ORS Hair Mayonnaise as my Protein Treatment every six weeks. You have to be careful with Protein Treatments as an overload can leave you with brittle breaking hair. Protein fortifies the hair strands by binding to any existing gaps or crevices in the strand, and thus forming a temporary block to fill in damaged spaces in the strand.That is why after a Protein Treatment, your hair may feel a little rough and straw like.

 





 

 Today I share with you in my video, how I administer my Protein Treatment for stronger healthier hair.





 

  Enjoy the video Ladies!

 





How to Balance Protein and Moisture Wash Days: A Practical Guide

Hey Ladies!

We are often told to balance our protein and moisture, and to do a hard protein treatment once per month or every six weeks.However the truth of the matter is that achieving that balance practically is still quite hard for some. Here is a realistic breakdown of how and when to use your different types of conditioners.

From left to right: moisturising conditioner, balanced conditioner, hard protein conditioner

How to Do Protein Treatment on Kids' Natural Hair

Protein Treatment is beneficial for natural hair because it helps to strengthen the hair. This keeps it from breaking.
Watch (or click here) as I show you how to do a protein treatment on your child's hair.

AN Natural Hair Bride: Akibo Tommie

I don't know if you know this, but one of our Team members, Akibo Tommie got married a few months ago. Of course, she was a Natural Hair Bride, and who better to share her bridal hair story with, than us? Happy reading!

I had always known I was going to style my natural hair for my wedding but I didn’t have any details just a bunch of inspirational pictures that I must have shared on this platform too. My opportunity came when I met Omozo of O’Naturals (she also styled Berry's hair for her wedding) when she styled my sister’s hair for her wedding December last year. I quickly ‘booked’ down in advance. At the time I didn’t even know when I was getting married, but by the beginning of this year we had fixed a date for introduction in March and things were beginning to firm up.

After we had chosen a date for the wedding in March I had about 3-4 Months to prepare in advance. I already knew who would make my hair, got her number and called her up to fix our first appointment. This first appointment, I was to bring with me ideas I had in mind and we would discuss how they run their bridal package and price. In the bridal package you are entitled to 3 appointments, one for a protein treatment, another deep conditioning treatment and the last one hair trial. We discussed all the details which also required you to make a quarter of the total payment to secure your booking after which we fixed a date for my first appointment.

I had about 3 months before the wedding and that was enough time in between each appointment, She rang it into my ears well to take care of my hair well because there is so much ‘care’ they can give me in those 3 appointments if I went home and treated my hair anyhow.

First Treatment; Prior to this time, I had never done a protein treatment on my hair, I had only seen the placenta treatment being done in salons on relaxed hair, I don’t even know if they are the same. I complained to Omozo about my hair loss after washing and after we went through the treatment - which required you to sit under the dryer till your hair is rock solid (no kidding), then it is washed off, it was like magic. There was little or no hair pulling out as she pulled the wet hair. I was so excited. She warned that my hair may be harder after the treatment but after a deep condition I would be fine and I didn’t even experience the hardness. I was excited about it strengthening my hair.

Hair Trial; With the styles I showed Omozo as my inspiration she already knew I was a fan of texture, twists and puff. She had a looot of pictures I could choose from which made me spoilt for choice. I had the chance of trying out 3 hair styles and would make a choice from those and although she had warned me to cancel my other appointments for the day so we could try all 3 but I didn’t, we could try just one style that day. For the first look we did a puffy thread with a side part. 

I was happy with this honestly but she convinced me that we should try more styles when I came in for the last appointment which was about a week to the wedding. I had my pre-wedding shoot the next day after this appointment, coincidentally, She decided to glam my hair up for me too at zero cost!!!! I had to sleep in head-awkward positions so I would not mess it up before the shoot because it was a pin-updo.

Choosing the final style; Seeing as I am a big fan of texture and twists, I was very fine with the texture the puffy threads gave me but I wasn’t quite sure of the front. I kept looking at other styles till I stumbled on one which had twists in the front. I suggested we try the puffy thread style again but this time with twists in front and as I looked in the mirror, I knew I had found the style there wasn’t even any need to try the last one. I was happy!!

The night before the wedding, we washed and steamed the hair for 30 mins and they proceeded to put in the kinky extensions so we wouldn’t have to waste time on the morning of the wedding. All that was left on the morning of the wedding was the puffy threads and pinning the twists up in place.

I absolutely loved my look and most especially loved working with Omozo, anyone that has met her will testify that she is fun to work with. Plenty gist and laughter. This journey helped me take better care of my natural hair, know the importance of a consultation once in a while and discover protein treatments!

Awwwwwwwwwwwwww, wasn't that sweet? CONGRATULATIONS TOMI! Now I want to get married again :-|

Berry Dakara.

P.S. If you were or are an upcoming natural hair bride and don't mind sharing your story and photos, email me at berrydakara@gmail.com. 

Cornrow Tricks and Tips

By DiscoveringNatural

 In this video, I give you several tips on cornrowing hair. These tips include how to make parts in the hair, what type of combs to use, what tools to use in cornrowing the hair, and how to accessorize the hair.
Natural Hair is beautiful and you can be very creative with it.

Easy DIY Protein Treatments: My Experience with Mayonnaise

Is your hair breaking, snapping, cutting or damaged? Chances are that your hair needs a protein treatment to help strengthen your strands. Protein treatments are a big part of a lot of natural hair regimens, as long as they're done carefully and once a month, at most. If they are done too often, you risk drying out your hair, causing it to be hard, and then breaking off - which is what you were trying to combat in the first place, right? Be sure to follow a protein treatment with a moisturizing treatment (such as a Deep Conditioner), so that your hair has a good balance.

Some easy ingredients you can use for a DIY Protein Treatment at Home

1. Mayonnaise
2. Eggs
3. Avocado

I decided to go with the easiest home protein treatment - Mayonnaise. I chose it because I don't think I can manage putting eggs in my hair. The avocados I bought were not ready for mashing purposes. And since my husband likes using my hair products, I decided to use his favorite salad dressing. 

I mixed a cup of mayonnaise with a teaspoon each of African Naturalistas Coconut Oil and Jojoba Oil. 

Then I slathered the mixture in sections all over my strands. I can't remember if I covered it with a plastic cap or not, but I left the mix in my hair for about 30 minutes.

RESULTS

Well, first of all, I have to admit that the smell made me nauseous. My hair literally smelled like a large bowl of salad, and I couldn't wait to wash it off. 

I followed it with a DC, which made my hair feel lush and happy.

What about the breaking and shedding? Well, it's here and there. The hair is still breaking a week later, but nowhere near as much as it was breaking last week. So I guess there's some improvement. But I would rather go for a store-bought option next time. 

Would I do a DIY treatment again? Chances are a BIG FAT NO! We can't all be mixtresses can we?

Have you done any DIY treatments? What did you do, and what were your results? Let's share the love, especially since it's Valentine weekend :)

Berry Dakara. 

My Aphogee 2-Step Protein Treatment Experience

While visiting my sister a couple of weeks ago, I ventured into her hair products closet as she is a big product junkie! She's very well versed in all the hair lingo, is regular with her hair care regimen, etc. All this with me not knowing whether she's transitioning or stretching her relaxer. Whatever it is, the point is that she's serious about healthy hair. As I'm not anywhere near being a product junkie, it was refreshing to see different products that I would not normally have tried out. Because my hair's been breaking a little bit, we decided that I should do a protein treatment, using the Aphogee 2-step products.

My hair was in big cornrows prior to starting the treatment.

 Which were promptly loosened...

Natural Hair Forest :p

And then detangled and washed...

Afterwards, I saturated my hair with the 2-step protein treatment. The smell is a little weird, but it wasn't too bad. I left it in the hair for about 30 minutes, during which the hair dried and hardened. It's recommended that you don't manipulate the hair during this phase, as the hair can easily break off.

Afterwards, I rinsed off the treatment very carefully and completely, and then applied Aphogee Balancing Moisturizer. You need to apply moisturizing products after a protein treatment, because that much protein hardens your hair and causes it to lose moisture. After 5 minutes, I rinsed off the Moisturizer and proceeded to deep condition the hair for about 15 minutes (forgot to take pictures). Finally, I rinsed the DC out, and put my hair back in twists.

My hair immediately felt stronger after the treatment. I haven't noticed as much breakage or shedding as I did prior to the treatment. But then again, I've mostly kept my hair in twists and hidden under a wig. I have washed the hair once  though, and I barely remember any hair falling in the shower.

I think I may incorporate this into my regimen every other month. Have any of you tried this protein treatment on your natural hair, and what were your results?

Berry Dakara.