DIY “Natural” vs Store Bought “Chemical” Conditioners

We often faced with a plethora of “right” choices for almost everything, so I understand the difficulty with choosing the right conditioner. When I started this blog in 2014, I raved about DIY natural mixtures for my hair and skin care. For my skin, I still use plant oils and black soap, and black soap is still my shampoo. DIY is great but it involves a lot of research and work. Also, DIY doesn’t always mean safe or natural or organic.

Proper Way To Wash Hair

Most people wash their hair the wrong way, so I decided to write about the best way to wash natural hair or African hair because I got it wrong previously. Washing your natural hair correctly is important because clean hair and scalp aid hair growth. First, you need a gentle shampoo, a moisturizing/protein deep conditioner, leave-in conditioner, a wide-tooth comb, and a smooth towel.

My Growth Retention Hair Care Regimen as a Busy Professional

Yay! Hope you enjoyed refreshing old posts with me for May. I’m going to be posting my updated hair care regimen. I cut my hair (before picture at the end) because it was hard to manage as I got very busy, however, I managed to grow about 5 inches from January to June. This regimen is subject to change but this is what works for me currently as a busy professional in the Nigerian (Lagos) climate, with 4b/4c hair, high-porosity and high-density hair trying to retain length. So stick around if you are a busy naturalista.

Benefits Of Moringa

Moringa powder is gotten from the dried leaves of the moringa plant. It’s necessary to differentiate between the benefits of the leaves, seeds, flowers and powder. Although from the same tree, they have their uses. The leaves, which the powder comes from is the most nutritious part of the plant.

Moringa powder is a rich source of many nutrients like Vitamin A, Vitamin B, Vitamin C, Vitamin D and Vitamin E. In fact, they have many more vitamins than the richest sources such as carrots, oranges and milk.

Body Hair Shaming

The socks were too comfy to be removed

I used to think little of body hair, I never thought of it. It was just something I am accustomed to as being part of me without having to question it. I also appreciated whenever it’s cold because according to my Biology teacher in secondary school, body hair protects you from the cold by helping to retain heat. For some reason, most Igbo people are very hairy so people look at my legs or hands and say “You are Igbo, right?”. It’s like my Igbo trademark.

Africanism Today – Maiden Edition

For a while now, I have been extra busy planning Africanism Today a yearly event that is intended to promote African arts and culture. It will focus on, promote and celebrate different aspects of African culture.

The maiden edition held yesterday 29th July 2016. There were five invited speakers and I who introduced what Africanism Today is about. There were also giveaways and African art exhibition.

Some speakers at the event

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Some winners at the event

A Professional Look With Natural Hair

You know the old argument, how unkempt looking the natural hair is, how unprofessional, how it should not be rocked to the working place in its full glory. So I and my friend decided to put this little theory to test.

NITC 15 (Natural Hair MeetUp)

I went for a natural hair meet up on Saturday, NITC (Naturals In The City) 15. Although we started late and I could not get beeswax, it was lovely. We had three wonderful women as speakers.

The Beauty Of African Threading For Hair Growth

African threading is an ancient West African hairstyle. It has been used for years by West African women as a means of protecting and beautifying the hair. Recently especially in the last two decades, the use of African threading has declined, as more foreign hairdos have been introduced. If done correctly, African threading offers many benefits.

Benefits of African Black Soap

Image via Import Africa

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I remember my first encounter with African black soap, the local unpackaged kind. I was a bit repulsed and at that time felt a little superior for using dove. How little did I know at that time. Now African black soap is one of the best things that has happened to me.

African black soap typically contains – Plantain skin ash which is the main ingredient is a natural source of vitamin A, vitamin E, and iron. Cocoa pod ash, palm kernel oil. Some people add extra ingredients like the one I use also contains honey, shea butter, osun (Camwood), Aloe Vera, and Lime. It is made mostly by Nigerians and Ghanaians. It is important to note that African black soap is actually brown not black. If it is black, it is fake.