Beauty Byte | 3 Must Have Oils

Hello loves! As I’m getting better acquainted with my natural hair, I find myself falling in love with an ever growing list of favorite products. It’s a tough life being addicted to products. It is. Although I can indulge deeper than the best of them when it comes to new products, nothing tops finding an au naturale alternative that works just as good (if not better) than the most expensive beauty items. What am I speaking of? Essential oils! And there are 3 that you NEED in your life. Yes NEED. So let’s get familiar with them :).

1. Olive Oil ~ I have been a fan of olive oil since the beginning of my life. Lol okay that was extreme but I’m for real. Before this natural thing was cool I promise you I was using olive oil faithfully in my life. It is the perfect natural oil that you can use for everything. I’m talking sealant for you hair, moisturizing your cuticles, removing your makeup, creating lip scrubs and skin creams, and the list goes on. AND it’s full of Vitamin A & E sooo I’d say that’s a win 🙂

2. Coconut Oil ~ Another oil that I’m very familiar with is coconut oil.  There’s literally like a hundred ways to use this oil for hair, skin, and beyond. You’ll most likely find it in many natural beauty products because…well…I mean it smells amazing but it’s also a great moisturizer and can penetrate hair better than other common oils. You can use coconut oil as a deep conditioner, makeup remover, prepoo, or skin moisturizer. And did I mention it smells good??

3. Argan Oil ~ My most recent discovery! I first heard the buzz surrounding argan oil back when I was in my curious phase on my hair journey. I was gathering as much info as I could and this particular oil kept coming up so I did my research on it. Argan oil is full of vitamins and antioxidants and you’re most likely to see it in hair products like serums. It helps with shine and to reduce frizz. You can also add argan oil to your skin care regimen for a boost of hydration.

These are just a few of my favorites but there are tons of essential oils and natural products that us beauties can benefit from! Sometimes the best in beauty isn’t found in your favorite department store ;).

Peace, Love, & Blessings

~

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My Curly Transition: 3 Months In!

As promised here is my complete update on my transition. I gave you guys my  quick 10 random things about my journey so far. If you haven’t read it make sure you check it out here. So now let’s get down to the nitty gritty. What’s life been like for THIS brown queen now that I’m transitioning. Let’s sum it in one word and say: Tough. Because Queens…it ain’t easy. But I’m getting there. With the summer upon us and the first heat wave in full effect here I’ve been keeping it simple, straight forward, and to the point.

What I’m Doing: I co wash weekly. That’s a given. Every other week I use shampoo. I needs shampoo. My hair just doesn’t act right without a cleanse. When I shampoo I make certain to prepoo for an hour and deep condition for at least an hour. Once a month or as needed I do a protein treatment. I don’t use ANY heat. At all. I stretch using my bun method and allow my hair a full 24 hours to dry. I’ve been rocking twist outs daily. Because I’m a rookie, I retwist every night. My hair just does not cooperate if it’s not retwisted each night. It’s fine though. I’ve gotten really quick with it. I moisturize EVERY DAY. This is a requirement. I’ve also been doing a personal castor oil challenge where I seal and apply castor oil to my edges every other day.

What I’m Using: If it weren’t for the fact that I’m on a strict budget I’d be a product junkie. And it would be bad. But I am, so I’m not. Thank God. So I’m pretty much using the same products I started off with. I use Tresemme Naturals Vibrantly Smooth Conditioner for co-washes and to detangle. For my deep condition I use Pantene Truly Natural Deep Conditioner. When I wash I use Tresemme Naturals Vibrantly Smooth (low sulfate) Shampoo, or depending on the state of my hair Pantene Truly Natural Clarifying Shampoo. I use ORS replenishing pack for my protein treatment. As for stylers…eh I could use some help. They just don’t seem to do it for me. So I don’t really use anything except the Motions Define My Curl Creme. It does the job and helps my edges smooth down. Win win. Prepoos are a simple honey and coconut oil mixture. My moisturizer is WATER. I seal with JBCO or EVOO. Dassit!

My Thoughts: JBCO works. I’m serious. If you haven’t tried it you should. My edges fell out something serious after I gave birth to my prince and the JBCO brought them back to life! I love it.

For ME, less is more. I can’t tell you how many YouTube videos I’ve watched with like a hundred million steps and their hair comes out looking flawless and then I try it and my hair comes out looking…messed up. Less steps, less products, less doing equals better results for me.

I’m having an increasingly difficult time dealing with my new, new, and more new growth and the difference it is between my relaxed ends. I’m determined to go at least a year transitioning but it is NO. JOKE.

So that’s where I’m at now. I’m about to get my Poetic Justice on and get box braids for a few weeks to give me and her a much needed break. I’ll post pics when they’re done (yes I’m doing them myself duh…you can everything with YouTube 😉 )

So that’s 3 down, 9 to go! I hope ya’ll enjoying my journey so. As always PLEASE don’t be anti social and let me know if you have any tips, tricks, or advice! It’s much appreciated!

Peace, Love, & Blessings

~

Tyshia Shante
Founder & Editor of This Brown Queen

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Curly Queen Transition: 1 Month Recap

I’m officially into my second month on my natural hair journey and I am in L.O.V.E. Not only or exactly with my hair but with my decision to go natural. Or, should I say as I have seen, to RETURN to natural. This journey isn’t just about your hairstyle. It’s about so so so much more. I feel like the movement resonates so wonderfully with what This Brown Queen stands for. I’m only a month in and although I am still learning and growing tremendously I am in awe of all the knowledge I’ve gained thus far. AND I’ve discovered so many beautiful natural bloggers and vloggers along the way. All so truly inspiring and beautiful in their own ways and I can only hope to meet some of these Queens one day or connect across this blogosphere :). Ok so before I get any more emotional than I already did, let’s move along to the recap!

What I’m Doing:

My Regimen is simple. I’ve learned years ago that with my hair, low manipulation is key. It doesn’t really like too much going on all day everyday so I don’t do too much. I wash with a low sulfate shampoo once a week. I also condition, detangle, and deep condition once a week as well. Once a month I do a protein treatment. I don’t use any heat. At all at all. To dry my hair I generally use the bun method and allow a full 24 hours to completely dry before styling. To maintain moisture during the week, I simply use water and an oil. Sometimes I’ll use a leave in depending upon the style and state.

What I’m Using:

Tresemme Naturals Vibrantly Smooth with Coconut Oil and Jojoba Extracts Shampoo and Conditioner. Use theses once a week as my low sulfate shampoo and regular conditioner. Also if I need to do a mid week cowash I use this conditioner as well. Pantene Truly Natural Deep Conditioner as my weekly deep conditioner mixed with EVOO. Cantu Shea Butter Leave In Repairing Conditioner as my leave in. African Royale Hot Six Oil as my sealant. Cantu Shea Butter Coconut Curling Cream and Eco Styler gel as my stylers. Cantu Shea Butter Daily Oil Moisturizer as a moisturizer if/when needed. EVOO & Honey as a prepoo.

My Styles:

Two strand twist is still my go to. I just love the way these look. A very pretty natural style that I feel works very well for transitioning hair. I do have a love/hate relationship with them lately as all this good hair business has my edges (that haul azzed outta here after I had King Jr) growing back and sometimes they can get out of of control. I LOVE twist outs, but I don’t always get them perfect. When they’re right, they’re right. And when they’re wrong -_-…….I would love to start experimenting more with styles but until I get these ends under control, I’m limited :(. And of course there is always my signature bun. Which is looking much fuller and healthier. Go me!

My husband has finally seen it in person. Still in love with it! However, explaining to him the upkeep has been…difficult. He doesn’t get it!

~

This Brown Queen

Curly Haul!!!

This is going to be a problem. I’m in love with natural products already! This is bad! I’m already on a makeup budget but now I have to create a hair budget. Or else I will lose it all Queens ;).

This is a mini haul of natural hair products I picked up to help with my beginning journey. I’m still in the very early stages of transitioning and actually getting to know my hair so I mean, it’s only right I go through a couple products. I’m learning my hair right? That’s my reasoning and I’m sticking to it! I actually did good though because I only bought what I actually needed and I am happy! I didn’t even leave with that sad “Yup, did it again feeling.” I love non guilty product indulging!!

My goodies, my goodies, my goodies:

1. Tresemme Naturals Vibrantly Smooth Shampoo (Low Sulfates) with Coconut Oil and Jojoba Extract. I was looking for a mild shampoo and I’ve heard good things about the Tresemme Naturals line. Most people speak about their Nourishing Moisture products but I wanted to give this a try. It says it helps with frizz…and I need help with frizz!

2. Tresemme Naturals Vibrantly Smooth Conditioner with Coconut Oil and Jojoba Extract. I needed a conditioner other than my deep conditioner. I thought about the Aussie Moist but decided to go with this…it was on sale if I bought the shampoo and I did.

3. Jamaican Black Castor OIl. Don’t really know what I’m going to do with this. I don’t really have any intentions on using it right now. I’ve heard nothing but good things about it though since transitioning and before! I’ve seen a lot of my favorite bloggers using it for some type of challenge. I’ll do more research and see how I want to incorporate this.

4. Cantu Shea Butter Coconut Curling Cream. I had the Motions Define My Curl Cream but I didn’t like it. Okay I can’t say that because I only used it once but I just did not like the consistency. It was a cream but was wasn’t creamy. I like my other Cantu products and the reviews on this were awesome so we’ll see!

5. Eco Styler Gel. Everyone needs a styling gel. I like it! Pretty much cut and dry for me there.

6. African Royale Hot Six Oil. I used to use this oil a few years ago when I was relaxed. I loved it. Don’t know what made me stop using it but I was not feeling my Olive Oil that I had. I have straight EVOO but I wanted some kind of oil blend and so I got this again. Still love it!

I have tried some of these, but I’ll have reviews coming in the future. I want to really get a feel of how I like the product.

I LOVE HAULS!!!

~

This Brown Queen

My Curly Queen Transition: Week 2

Better!!! That’s all I have to say. I could really end the post here but what fun would that be?! So instead I’m going to tell you Queens all about my 2nd week of transitioning. I’ll break it down in sections because if I don’t, this will become one long rambling mess and no one needs that 😉

Products I used:

1.) Pantene Truly Natural Co-Wash

2.) Cantu Shea Butter Leave-In Repair Cream

3.) African Pride Olive Miracle Growth Oil.

What I did:

On wash day I didn’t use a shampoo. I decided to cowash and used the Pantene Truly Natural Co-Wash. I detangled with that in my hair and rinsed completely out. I didn’t use another conditioner…I think that was a bad idea :-/. I then used the Cantu Shea Butter Leave in. I am not using heat right now so I did my bun method to stretch and dry. On day 1 I wore my bun. On day 2 I did my epic failed flat twist. On day 3 I did two strand twists. I was pleasantly surprised with how it turned out. I liked it so much that I actually took it out and did it “the right way”. I hate to admit this but I half-axxed my first attempt. But I liked the results so much that I did them over and wore them the remainder of the week. LOVED THEM! I think it’s safe to say that I’ve found my go to transitioning style for now.

How I did my twists:

I sectioned my hair in 6…yes 6 sections. My hair is one hundred thousand million different textures and lengths right now. I sectioned my hair based on that and the way that I wanted my twists to lay. In each section I would part my hair, dampen that parted section, apply my cantu leave in, seal with the african pride olive oil, do a few twists for each parted section, and move on. After I was done I used those soft twist rollers on the ends to help keep them in and make sure they laid right. I used about 6.

My thoughts:

I am loving my two strand twists. They take forever to do but once done I’m in love! I don’t wear them down yet, they have to be styled, pinned up or back, bunned etc. My hair is thin right now due to losing hair after my prince and I still have a head full of super crazy relaxed hair. I like my cantu leave in so that will remain in my regimen for now. I have no desire to use the Pantene Co-Wash again.

What I Need:

1.) A mild shampoo. I don’t think I’m a fan of cowashing. I won’t rule it out as I know it is something my natural queens live by. At this time though I think on a weekly basis I need to shampoo. If I cowash I would only prefer to do midweek or between washes.

2.) A conditioner. I only have the Pantene Deep Conditioner but I need a conditioner to use regularly, after shampoo washes, for cowashes, or just as an added conditioner.

3.) A sealing oil. I’m not really a fan of the African Pride. I don’t hate it…I’m just sure there is another oil I’d like better.

4.) A styling gel. I don’t think wash n go’s are in my immediate future but I would like to have one on hand.

I’m feeling more comfortable. I’m still embracing the fact that I’m awesome at finding out what my hair doesn’t like ;).

The journey continues…

~

This Brown Queen

Transitioning: The First Week

This week was the official start to my natural hair journey. I had decided a week or so ago that I was going to go natural but I hadn’t taken any steps. I have a hundred thousand billion things to do on a daily basis and I just hadn’t gotten a chance to research some products or regimens or anything yet. So I’m in the store Monday picking up some household items and I came across Pantene’s new Truly Natural line. I figured…I gotta start somewhere! I picked up a few things and started that night! I’m VERY new to this. I have no idea what I’m doing. But I think that’s the beauty of it! So now I’m going to share with Queens what I did for week 1 so far. My products, my thoughts, and my plan for week two. I’m not going to review any items I used yet because I simply do not have enough info. I will give my intial thoughts though just in case ya wondering :).

Week 1:
1.) I used Pantene’s Truly Natural Clarifying Shampoo. Lathered twice because I hadn’t washed my hair in awhile.

2.) I conditioned with Pantene’s Truly Natural Deep Conditioner. I didn’t actually deep condition. I more of conditioned then left it on in the shower for about 15 minutes and rinsed. I detangled after I rinsed out.

3.) I moisturized my hair with Cantu Shea Butter Daily Oil Moisturizer. Parted my hair in four sections and applied liberally to each section.

4.) I sealed my hair with African Pride Olive Miracle Growth Oil.

5.) I did not blow dry. I am hoping to go at least 1 month without heat (that is my first goal. I set my goals low. I’m new at this!). This is a BIG DEAL for me as I have tried no heat before and I absolutely HATE my hair with out heat. It’s very difficult and dry and sucks moisture like nobody’s business. Instead I put my hair in a high ponytail, not to tight because my edges are weak like super weak, and kinda wrapped my hair around and pinned it down (think one bantu knot).

6.) I used Palmer’s Oilve Oil Gro Therapy on my edges and to help “slick” my hair into the ponytail. I don’t know I now know alot of natural Queens are against products with Petrolatum in it, and I believe this is one of the top ingredients in this…but I liked it…so…yea…

7.) Used a satin scarf to tie my hair down and went to sleep.

For this whole week I wore a bun. If you visit my Daily Face post you can see my hair. That’s how I’ve worn it all week. I am pleasantly surprised with the results so far. My hair is not dry. It retained the moisturizer quite well. Doesn’t look brittle and is actually cute! I moisturize and seal every other day and if it needs a little boost in the monring I used one of my Olive Oil products. What I don’t like are my ends. I hate them. They are so weak and brittle. I anticipated transitioning but I can’t help but toy with the idea of just cutting it all off! That’s how much I hate my ends!

For week 2 I plan on Co Washing and trimming…ok more like cutting a lot of my dead ends off. I’m not sure if I’ll change the products any. I think I’ll stick with this for now with the exception of adding a conditioner for the co wash. For styling…I’d like to attempt two strand twist on Saturday. We’ll see. Don’t be a quiet Queen! If you have any advice or tips or need to warn me that I’m using something that’s gonna set me back pleaseeeeee comment! Much appreciated!

Until next week Queens!

~
This Brown Queen