Hair Pomade and Other Product Reviews

Bored with my twists this winter, I jumped the gun and straightened my hair last night with a blow dryer and flat iron. Unlike last year's attempt, this time around yielded much better results due to my Denman brush. So, bye bye round brush!

I'm also remiss in mentioning that I've been trying As I Am Naturally products over the last few months. I got a ton of samples, one each of their numerous products, last year and have used every single one. I must say, their products are far superior than any other commercially-made product I've ever tried and my hair is very picky about what it likes and doesn't like. 

I often switch up shampoos after a few months and had forgotten that I had an unused sample of Curl Clarity Shampoo. After wearing my hair in twists most of the winter, I knew I had some unaddressed build-up and Curl Clarity took care of my build-up problem without stripping my hair. It's light, has a refreshingly pleasant smell and bubbles galore. This product and As I Am as a whole get two coils up!

After straightening my hair, I decided to try another product sample in conjunction with Aveda Brilliant Anti-Humectant pomade (love this stuff!). 

I've been eyeballing Brown Butter Beauty's Mixed Greens pomade for at least a year, but just couldn't get myself to try it. I'm not crazy about the price and my scalp usually freaks out if I put anything on it. But, being that it's winter, my scalp's been mega dry and I knew it needed something because the JBCO just wasn't cutting it. 

I applied this to my scalp as a finishing product, tied on my satin scarf and went to sleep. This morning, I am pleased to announce that I have no flakes and no itchiness! My scalp has been cured! Mixed Greens might be pricey, but it's worth it and a little goes a long way. It has nettles (anti-itch fighter), horsetail and tons of other herbs and oils. And, I love the product name, the color and the pleasing scent. Mixed Greens is a keeper and gets two coils up.

With spring right around the corner, you too might want to re-evaluate the hair products and techniques you're using and do a little tweaking. What are your spring/summer hair plans?

Dyeing, Detangling and Conditioning Product Reviews

We're past winter's halfway mark, and I can almost feel the spring and summer air nipping at my curls. Entrenched in my twists for quite a while now, I'm growing antsy for my twist- and blow-outs. So, here are a few products I'm trying out to see if they make the cut for my spring regimen!

I've been dyeing my hair for a little while now, but the store-bought dyes just ain't cuttin' it. Quite by accident, I stumbled upon eSalon, a mail-order hair dye subscription service.

After answering a series of questions, including a few about my hair type and length, I ordered and received my blue black hair dye and accessories kits. First, I will say that the shipping is super fast! While the company doesn't have wild crazy colors like pink or green, eSalon does have a wide array of natural colors, including black with a blue or violet hue.

My dye kit contained instructions and two sets of dye and developer. It also contained two pairs of rubber gloves, stain blocker, stain remover, conditioner and four of those mondo alligator clips used in salons. The accessories kit came with a handled mixing bowl, applicator brush, and a timer w/battery.

I love that my coloring kit came with separate bottles of dye and developer. The first one was for my roots and the second was a gloss for my hair. Let me just say that the quantities are so generous, I didn't even use the dye/developer for my hair. The roots bottle contained enough product to dye all of my hair. 

When all was said done, the color is deep, rich and downright gorgeous! And ALL of my grey is gone. I've never gotten such amazing results from a box...not that I'd expect to. And, the conditioner eSalon provides is the bomb! I didn't think that tiny pouch would saturate my hair, but it did and left my hair softer than any other conditioner I've ever used!

I also am still hunting for a really good detangler. I've tried Kinky Curly Knot Today, et al, but lotion-type detanglers are way too heavy for my hair. I've tried Aussie Hair Insurance, Mane 'n Tail, et all, but they don't work well enough to buy again. So, I tried this!

Pantene's Medium-Thick Hair Solutions' Detangler isn't bad, but it's not the greatest either. It definitely detangles, but it also makes my hair feel squeaky. I'll probably finish this out, but won't buy again.

I also gave Shescentit's Okra Hair Repair Reconstructor a try. Through a contest I won, I was allowed to pick any product of my choice to try. Granted they have quite a few things I'd love to try, this one grabbed me first because LUSH has an okra conditioner I've been too cheap to buy. 

This stuff smells absolutely amazing and has a nice, gelatinous texture. As with any deep conditioning product, I slapped this in my head and headed straight for my steamer. Sadly, my hair didn't feel any different, but it's not damaged either so maybe I shouldn't have expected any tangible results. Nice product, but probably wouldn't buy it...but, I will be trying their other products in the near future.