SWIRL HAIR: THANK YOU DRY BAR

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DryBar Plano, TX to be specific...

I’m sure I’ve mentioned DryBar in previous post. DryBar, oh how I love thee!  Let me count the ways:

My stylist Deandra! 

1.       Décor (beadboard, grey/white/yellow color scheme, tufting, vintage photos of glamorous women)

2.       Girly movies always on cue (Bridesmaids, Mean Girls, Breakfast at Tiffany’s, etc.)

3.       You open at 7 a.m. (I can get a blowout before work)

4.       Champagne, tea, water, and other refreshments on tap

5.       The scalp massage

6.       Efficiency

7.       The cost is worth it (Your time and sanity will be sooooo appreciative)

8.       My girl, Deandra…

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My hair in its natural state...

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Below are some tips and tricks for blowing out highly textured (fancy for nappy) hair.

Stylist/Miracle Worker: Deandra

·       Separate hair into sections

·       Comb out sections before you go in with brush

·       Start with front, work your way back

·       Make sure you work product evenly through hair, her favorites include Velvet Hammer Smoothing Cream and 100 Proof Treatment Oil (she mixes them together) with a wet brush

·       After working product through, twist each section to hold the moisture

·       Use a boar-bristle brush when blowing out the hair

·       Get the hair as straight as possible with the dryer

·       Smooth, curl, and add shine with a flatiron

The finished product...

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SWIRL HAIR: CURL CONTROL

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My hair is weird. I used to have long straight hair as a child. Then it decided to start waving up and frizzing. Now it's a cross between a loose curl and wave. WTF, is that even? Can we all say #HapaProblems?  Luckily, there are hair products to help. Hallelujah. 

I'm big on Deva Curl and Miss Jessie's. Both products are 100% no sulfate, parables, and no animal testing. 

What's the difference you might ask? Deva Curl is much more of a process and can take longer to style your hair. The results are worth it. However, with Miss Jessie's you can throw the product in and go. I love Miss Jessie's during the summertime when I don't want to use a diffuser. Either product is a great choice, and they both offer a variety of products for your specific curl type! 

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SWIRL HAIR: Coconut Oil Hair Mask

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The coconut. The magical fruit with multiple health and beauty benefits seems to be everywhere and in everything.  Whether as a beverage, used for cooking or moisturizing, it really is a unique fruit.

One of the many uses of the coconut is to use coconut oil as a hair mask. Coconut oil is extremely nourishing and moisturizing, and due to its chemical structure, it effectively penetrates the hair shaft to improve hair strength and reduce breakage and split ends.  The result is lustrous shine and soft, manageable hair.

•Start with organic, extra-virgin coconut oil, which has not been refined or hydrogenated.
•Apply before going to bed, (do not apply above the earlobe) cover with a shower cap to allow it to soak into your hair overnight.
•In the morning, when you are ready to shower, apply shampoo to your oil-slicked hair before wetting it (if you apply the shampoo after your hair is wet, it will remain greasy and difficult to remove.)  Follow up with a dollop of your regular conditioner and rinse thoroughly.
•Style as desired.
 

You will fall in love with the results and swing your hair around like a model.  As you should!
 

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xoxo Jenn

SWIRL HAIR: CLIP IN BANGS TUTORIAL

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Sometimes I don’t like combing my hair – it’s nappy; however, I like to look like I combed my hair. I made clip-in bangs because I had leftover hair from making clip-in weave (tutorial later).  

I sometimes wear this look if my hair is wet and in a twist-out (as pictured above), and well, mamma has places to be and things to do. Mamma is also too lazy to wake up two hours earlier than needed to do something with her hair. Sleep is a precious commodity in my world.

Supplies needed:

Hair (matched as close to your hair color and texture as possible)

Wig Clips

Hot Glue Gun

Scissors

Mirror

Scarf or Headband

Step 1:  Measure weft of hair to the desired width against your upper forehead/hairline. I double-up on the weft (fold in half), hot glue where hair is folded.

Step 2: Lay out two wig clips. Make sure the curved side is facing down/matching the curvature of your head.

Step 3: Hot glue hair to top of wig clips. Wig clips should be on each end.

Step 4: Clip hair in where desired

Step 5: Cut – I did a fringe

Step 6: Cover your whole head in a scarf with bangs peeking out, or use headband to cover where the bangs are clipped in

Step 7: Own it

If you mess up, just try again.  It’s not your real hair…

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xoxo Amal

SWIRL HAIR: INDIAN OILS

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I was wearing weaves in the early 90’s. Looooong weaves that looked somewhat natural. Then I went REALLY natural for over 10 years and loved it. But childbirth and age prompted me to throw in the occasional extension. When I moved to LA in 2008, I found a weave genius and wore a beautiful full head for two years while my hair fully repaired. I took out my weave for good after losing one of my best friends to ovarian cancer in 2010. I’d throw in the occasional clip-in hair but I was finished with sewing in.

Photo from www.myhenna.us

During a visit to India in 2013, I picked up three different oils to promote hair growth. That is when the obsession began. I now have about 10 hair oils, masks, etc from India and they are far less expensive than anything else. Oh, and they work. I just applied Vatika Naturals Garlic Hair Oil as a pre-wash conditioner while I write this but I don’t smell like garlic at all. It contains Garlic, Lemon and Rosemary and some chemicals that may be not so healthy but I do so many healthy things, I’m not going to worry.

The oils penetrate great and define my curls. My hair has pretty much stopped breaking which a a big deal for a woman over 40. The nearly 7 oz. bottle was $3.99. I’ll shampoo and condition and then massage homemade Triphala oil with Bhringraj  into my scalp. The “Triphala Plus” doesn’t smell so great (fried something!) but it keeps my hair crazy soft and again--no breakage!

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SWIRL HAIR: Renpure's Coconut Creme

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This week we are all are sharing hair products we are currently Obsessed with. 

Of the four of us I would say I am least qualified in the hair department because I am pretty low-maintenance (at least when it comes to hair;). For one I dye my own hair- which I know my hair stylist friends hate, but $13 every 6 weeks is just so hard to beat! Second, I am lucky enough to get my trims in my own house (and sometimes in my work parking lot) by my friend Alex who now works with me, but used to be a hair stylist at my friend Jamie's salon in Colorado. 

Beyond that my routine consists of washing my hair about twice a week and then just conditioning it each night before bed. Then I twist my hair on top of my head with bobbypins, go to bed, and shake it out the next morning and hope it looks 1/2 way decent. Once a week I also use Olaplex No. 3 on my hair overnight (I will talk about in another post because it is amazing!). 

So let's talk about Shampoo and Conditioner. A few months ago I came across Renpure hair products while I was perusing the Target section on Google Express. I was intrigued for 3 reasons:

1. I am obsessed with Coconut Oil (Like majorly obsessed. I use it for everything! Barlean's Organic Virgin Coconut Oil in Island Fresh is my absolute favorite.)

2. It is free from all harmful chemicals

3. The price was super low! $5.99 a bottle at Target!

So I purchased the Coconut Creme Shampoo and Conditioner for both my daughter and I to use. Before this we had been using Carol's Daughter which I still like, I just like to switch back and forth between quite a few products. Product ADD I guess you could say! 

Coconut Creme Shampoo and Conditioner

The Coconut Creme is great for dry and damaged hair which I definitely have. If you have seen my picture then you can see that my hair is a level of blonde that is basically glow in the dark and that doesn’t come without some damage! I have used expensive products in the past (Kerastase, Aveda, etc…) but for the last couple years I have just felt silly spending that much. But I have to say I am pretty impressed with the Renpure products! I like that they are free of sulfates, parabens and synthetic colors (they are Gluten Free also). I also love that the bottle says they test on the Redmond family members, never on animals!

My daughter has wavy hair that gets curlier towards the nape of her neck. I love her curls so much, I call the ones by her neck her “curly fries” they are the cutest! The top of her hair is much looser waves. I have actually only cut her hair once in her whole life because the ends are healthy and it doesn't grow very quickly- plus she has amazing blonde ends on her hair and I don’t want to cut those off:) In the summer she also gets gorgeous natural red/copper highlights. 

Even though we never use heat on her hair, it is a little dry and our beach lifestyle doesn’t help- we spend A LOT of time in the sun, ocean and chlorine. The Coconut Creme product keeps it well moisturized and her curls look great.

In addition we both use a mixture of Carol's Daughter products to style our hair. Oddly enough, while we have very different hair but my hair responds really well to heavier product that also works on her hair. So I put a small amount (like a nickel) of Carol's Daughter Marguerite's Magic and mix it with a small amount of CD Hair Balm in my hands and then run it through both of our hair. I buy this product at Target also. 

So that is our routine! Easy and inexpensive! Let me know if you have used any of these products and if so what you think of them! 

Here is a review from beauty blogger Tracy Timberlake on some other Renpure products that she recommends for multiethnic hair. I have not tried this particular line, but the video gives a lot of great information. 

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