beauty | #hairbeautybuzz

#hairbeautybuzz Season 2 Coming This Summer

Posted on May 2, 2016 by A Plus Recommends

ATLANTA — #hairbeautybuzz, the natural hair and lifestyle show, is returning this summer featured on a new medium and network. The series premiered on Dallas radio and completed a successful season highlighting many of the great voices, products, and tools used by naturalistas to perfect their coifs.

The new season will be broadcast to a global audience on the Universe Atlanta channel of the Universe Network, a streaming service headquartered in Miami. The network boasts more than 10M views in 2014 and 2105. This year is expected to show significant growth with the addition of a dedicated channel on Roku, which currently is in 10M households nationwide. Viewers don’t need a subscription service to get UNTV content. All they have to do is log on to: www.universenetwork.tv and search for their city’s channel or specific content.

Season 1 flyer featuring Naturally Tash of Houston, Texas.

While Season 2 remains under development, the season premiere will feature the live coverage of the New Orleans Natural Hair Expo plus new segments that are sure to add value and quality to those living their best natural hair lifestyles.

The New Orleans Natural Hair Expo that will be featured in the season opener, is presented by EDEN BodyWorks, is back for its third year. At this year’s expo attendees will be able to enjoy an exclusive CurlMix party sponsored by the up and coming “DIY Subscription Box for Curly Hair!” The expo will also feature a pop-up dry styling salon sponsored by Design Essentials. Attendees will be able to have their hair dry styled and receive a consultation regarding their natural hair, the founder Monique Herbert said.

“I wanted to reach a broader audience with our show’s content,” says show creator and host, Ailene Torres, Chief Strategist at Upmarket Media Group. “We have found that home in Atlanta and are excited to expose more people to the personalities and products that call the Peach City home.”

#hairbeautybuzz will kick off its second season at the NONHE on July 2.

#hairbeautybuzz was invited to return to the New Orleans Natural Hair Expo, after a successful broadcast during the 2015 event. This year, the show is bringing a full production crew to connect those who cannot attend visually to some of what they are missing.

“We are excited to have #hairbeautybuzz return as the official broadcast media partner! The on-air presence presented by #hairbeautybuzz provided others across the United States the opportunity to be a part of the #NONHE 2015! We are extremely excited to have them return, and we hope others will join us via the broadcast to see exactly what takes place during the #NONHE,” Herbert said.

Season 2 is scheduled to air live on July 2 from the Contemporary Arts Center of New Orleans and is presented by EDEN Bodyworks with additional support from CURLS, Uncle Funky’s Daughter, Tropic Isle Living and many more.

Something New

Posted on April 30, 2016 by A Plus Recommends

You ever have one of those wash days where everything just goes better than if planned? As a naturalista, I’m sure you know what I mean. The kind of wash day where there are no single-strand knots to cut out? Then there’s kind where very little hair sheds. And, the best one being the kind where everything goes so perfectly that it results in a best-ever style that will last through the week. That kind of wash day. Yes, I’m having one right now and I would like as many as I can stand.

Recently, so much changed in my process due to uncontrollable circumstances, and I felt it was resulting in a less than perfect style. My roots have been fuller but frizzy and the level-eight control gel didn’t hold like in the past. In many cases it’s not about lack of definition or hold, though. Frizzier hair converts better to an afro puff, so a subpar wash-n-go will result in a bombed out puff. When that happen though, the countdown is on for the next wash day.

Wash-n-gos that don’t turn out perfectly, convert into a high afro puff sooner than Day 7 or 8, which is the normal rate of conversion on a two-week wash cycle. The sooner the hair converts to an afro puff, the shorter the life cycle for the overall style.

I wasn’t looking forward to another long cycle with a lackluster outcome, so I delayed my wash a week and decided to try something new. And today, much of my displeasure changed! My hair has nice plump curls from root to tip and the frizz factor isn’t factoring in at all. I co-washed with EDEN Bodyworks Coconut Co-Wash, deep conditioned overnight with SheaMoisture’s Strengthen, Grow & Restore Treatment Masque as per my usual routine. Then, I followed with an additional deep conditioner, Aussie’s 3-Minute Miracle Moist.

Not only have I never double, deep condished like that, but this was also my first time using this oft-praised product. After I combed it through and rinsed it out, I used the rinse-out counterpart from Aussie’s line, Moist for my final condition. My hair didn’t feel any softer to the touch than usual, but when I started to apply gel and curl cream I saw the difference. My strands stretched and smoothed with very little effort.

Lately, I’ve had to do my hair immediately before having to be somewhere, so I have employed the aid of a diffuser on a low setting. I think what happened is I sacrified frizz-free curls for a dried set. As I sit here writing, I’m letting my hair air dry. The curls are neatly defined and, so far, frizz free.

My curls are better defined from root to tip. Lately, my hair has stayed frizzy for the first inch or so then it would begin to clump to the tip.

Moral of the story? A change in routine and process doesn’t necessarily add up to hair success. It’s still cool to get out there and try something new with your hair every once in a while and, who knows? You might just discover something that works better.

As development for Season 2 of #hairbeautybuzz gets underway, the amount of blog posts will pick up to keep you up-to-date with all things natural hair and beauty-related plus the line-up for Season 2 .

It’s the Shingling Baby

Posted on June 22, 2015 by A Plus Recommends

Over the last seven months since I big chopped, I’ve gotten a lot of questions about my process. I wear a simple wash-and-go that I style with Ecostyler gel after I LOC.

After the oft-asked “What do you use?” query, the next most asked question is, “How do I use it?” My answer is succinct: I shingle. I am more surprised by the ‘What’s that?” that follows than by any other question I’m asked about my styling process. Shingling is the styling and application method to achieve defined curls and coils for a perfect wash-and-go. It is used in just about every wash-and-go YouTube video and it is really easy to emulate and add to your styling routine.

Here’s a quick primer: Section small portions of your freshly cleaned, conditioned and thoroughly wet hair. Apply a copious amount of gel to the section from root to tip. For thicker or coarser hair, comb through with a Denman brush. Otherwise, finger comb. MissKenK uses the shingle, rake and shake method that I find useful as well. I periodically shake my styled hair, so the gel from the shingled curls dries individually instead of together. Shaking your hair vigorously assists your clumps to dry as well.

Below you can catch a glimpse of me shingling my hair. If you have never tried this method, try it on your next wash-and-go and report back on how you liked it.

Queen of Temp Color Joins #hairbeautybuzz for Live Houston Show

Posted on June 16, 2015 by A Plus Recommends

HOUSTON — The Queen of Temporary Color, Naturally Tash, will sit down with #hairbeautybuzz on Saturday, June 20th beginning at Noon CT. Tash is the founder of IRockMyNatural and is the go-to YouTube authority on temporary, no-risk color for your hair. She knows it all from spray-ons to hair shadows and the tricks in-between.

Naturally Tash will join #hairbeautybuzz at Tendrils and Curls in Houston on June 20th starting at 12 p.m. CT.

Naturally Tash will join #hairbeautybuzz at Tendrils and Curls for its first live remote broadcast. Store owner, Dr. Paula Chrison will allow us to gatecrash her party and will host us for the two-hour show. She will also sit down with us and talk about growing a small business as a woman of color. While we are there, we will find out what her bestsellers are and her favorite product picks.

#hairbeautybuzz will broadcast from Tendrils and Curls and talk to owner, Dr. Paula Chrison on June 20th.

That’s not all. #hairbeautybuzz will introduce you to Kevinn Robinson, a 20-year Texas educator who is running for Justice of the Peace in Precinct 1, Position 1 of Harris County.

Kevinn Robinson is a JOP candidate in Precinct 1, Position 1 of Harris County.

As you can see we have a great show planned for you, so make sure you tune in using this link starting at noon central on Saturday. If you missed our show with TrialsNTresses, here’s another chance to catch up with the buzz.

Orange Will Never Be the New Black

Posted on June 14, 2015 by A Plus Recommends

Author’s Note: This topic was discussed live during #hairbeautybuzz radio show on Saturday, June 13th. It will re-air Wednesday, June 17th at 8 p.m. To tune in, click here.

Rachel, Rachel, Rachel.

All I can do is shake my head. Rachel Dolezal is fodder personified for social media, Black Twitter and Instagram in particular. If you have been out camping for the last four days, Rachel is a white woman who has been masquerading as a black woman while leading her local NAACP chapter and championing black causes including wearing natural hair. Then on Thursday, this happened:

Here’s my problem with Rachel. It’s not her lies. We have all told lies whether they were big or small, and if you are denying that fact after reading that passage, then you are now lying to yourself. My problem with her is that blackness is not something that you can spray on like the tan she perfected. Blackness is not something you can choose to be or wear because it suits your personal proclivities.

She is a woman who didn’t just spout rhetoric, she lived it. She wore faux locs that were a good portion of the length of her body. She wore headwraps and posed with Angela Davis, one of the pro-black sheros of contemporary times. Yes, y’all, she DID that. We cannot take that away from her. Rachel was instrumental in revitalizing the NAACP chapter she headed in Spokane, Washington, which I’m sure was no easy feat. I admire the fact that Rachel caped for black causes and even gave a stirring and empowering speech about the history of black hair and why we as African American women should wear our natural hair.

She owns these things, and as much as the lies are a part of her story, so are the victories. Herein lies the rub. Rachel doesn’t realize she could have done these same things in her own skin. She could have led the NAACP. She could have championed the embrace of natural hair in our culture. She could have continued to educate. Perhaps, not from a place of personal experience, but definitely from the sound foundation of education she received as a full-scholarship recipient at Howard University, the HBCU community’s Harvard. At some point I will have to deal with the complication that she received that full-ride based on her assumed identity, therefore, taking an actual person of color’s spot…but I digress.

Besides the lie, here’s what Rachel did that is the most egregious: she normalized cultural appropriation. At first, when it was just her secret, she normalized it as her way of life. Now, that she’s outed, she’s ushered in talk of “transracial” people, which is a unoffensive label for the disgusting normalization of cultural appropriation and I cannot stand for that.

Blackness is an existence you are born into. It is the knowledge that your people have a complicated history of enslavement, oppression, segregation, discrimination and inequality that perseveres today. That we know we come from the cradle of civilation, but don’t know which tribe and cannot trace our roots back the Motherland. It is the collective knowledge that we are judged as a monolith not by our personal merits and only when the subject is negative. That mainstream standards don’t include our experience, our beauty, our culture as a measure of perfection, or even a benchmark standard at all. Not to mention, that in a purely scientific manner, although I can take hormones to change my sex, I cannot ever take a pill to change my molecular makeup to read anything other than what it is, and neither can Rachel.

No, I must reject this idea that one can become black. Yes, you can personally adopt and relate to social experiences or the products of our culture like music, food and language. But, unless you are born black, you do not, cannot and will not ever have the intrinsic understanding that it is both a blessing and a curse to be born African American in the land of the free, the home of the brave because those words and laws weren’t meant for blacks. You can academically study our culture until you have an alphabet soup after your name, but you cannot put on black as if it were a jumpsuit uniform.

Rachel will speak out on Monday (tomorrow) for the first time since this scandal broke, and I’m unsure if what she says will help or hurt. She has done a lot of positive things to advance the causes of blacks, but for the decade-long, cultural appropriation that was her sham of a life, she owes several apologies and in return for her mea culpa, she can have several seats.

Eminem comes to mind as an example of a white person who understands black people in a personally relatable way but is careful not to cross that line into appropriation. Don’t believe me? Just #AskRachel.

Yes, it’s funny, but Rachel Dolezal has opened up a can of worms that seeks to normalize cultural appropriation.

Product Review: As I Am Coconut CoWash Cleansing Conditioner

Posted on June 10, 2015 by A Plus Recommends

I’m not even going to try and front. This product is my holy grail cleanser. Hands down. I’m not saying there aren’t equally wonderful cowashes out there. Not at all. What I am saying is: this is the second cowash I tried, and I stopped there. In the seven months I have been natural, I have found no need to continue to shop for a cowash because this product has everything I need.

As I Am Coconut CoWash Cleansing Conditioner

Full disclosure: I have never been comped this product, nor have I an endorsement by As I Am, or their parent company, Avlon. For those of us who used to relax, Avlon may be a familiar brand because it owns Affirm and KeraCare, which were my holy grail lines in terms of relaxer and relaxer maintenance. So it’s no surprise to me, that Avlon jumped into the natural hair fray and established a brand that caters to our curly, coily and kinky hair needs and it’s a choice product to boot.

From its website: “The As I Am® brand is a separate and distinct enterprise, which markets unique and exclusively-formulated products. “We want to give our customers, who primarily care for and style their own hair at home, the time and specialized attention they deserve. At the same time, our mission is to provide the very best products, education and customer service to each and every person who buys from us.”

When I was transitioning, so many brands were bandied about and talked about as holy grails. Let me help the uninitiated: holy grail is a product that you can’t live without in your routine.

I tried the main brand that is still everyone’s go-to, but despite their expensive price tag, they don’t do anything for my hair. I wasn’t impressed with their cowash or their curl enhancer and one of their sulfate-free shampoos that I tried stripped my hair so badly that it felt like straw.

I had to abandon the idea that what works for everyone will work for me too. I set out on my own natural hair path to find something that was cleansing but moisturizing. In my search, I wandered into a Sally’s and met a lovely customer service representative named, Jeanette. Her bleached natural looked soft and fluffy despite the color. When I told her what I was looking for she told me that As I Am is the only cowash she will ever use.

It’s been over six months since that day and thanks to Sally’s BOGO sales and customer rewards coupons, I am stocked jars deep on my Coconut CoWash Cleansing Conditioner. Here’s the good:

Smell: It has a light coconut and overall tropical scent without being too overpowering.
Consistency: It’s thick but not stiff. Its creamy texture spreads easily throughout your hair.
Slip: It has great slip, again allowing easy distribution in your thick tresses.
Price: I bought mine at a sale price, but even without a sale it’s less than $8 a jar.
Results: My hair always feels clean, but not weighed down, greasy, or worse, dry.

Here’s the bad:

That. Blasted. Jar.: The jar it comes in is not ideal for in-shower use for obvious reasons like spillage, water and unscrewing the jar in the shower with wet hands. Uh, yeah… that’s a NO. I would prefer a bottle like the one I transfer mine into, but if they must use a jar, please, please, by all means, provide a pump!

My one con is not enough for me to stop using it. As you see, I have a workaround for that to make my life easier, and if you purchase it, you will either accept it or find one too. Honestly, the value of the line is worth dealing with a packaging faux pas. I have recently tried their companion leave-in, but I am not ready to talk about it in terms of a review. Overall, the As I Am line is a high-quality, high-value line, and I expect nothing but good things because a company that has been providing quality products for black hair care since 1984 is expected to hit this one out of the park.

What’s your holy grail cowash? Do you cowash or still use shampoo? Tell us in the comments.

Melissa JB to Talk TrialsNTresses on #hairbeautybuzz + Get Our Newsletter

Posted on June 9, 2015 by A Plus Recommends

DALLAS, TEXAS — After a successful first air of #hairbeautybuzz featuring Chime Edwards, Joy Harrington and Nyambi Royster of Nyambi Naturals, the natural hair radio show will follow up with TrialsNTresses. This dynamic hair duo prides themselves on challenging the real issues that naturalistas face during their hair journeys. They tackle subjects beyond products reviews and techniques, but the social and personal politics that come into play when women decide to abandon the creamy crack. See for yourself. NOTE: Mature language.

Seriously though, these ladies use levity to deal with problems that everyday natural hair sisters are forced to confront. Their YouTube channel offers a lot of alternative and protective styling options for the natural that can’t be bothered with the laborious wash-and-go routine. We are curious what they will offer up during this Saturday’s interview on #hairbeautybuzz beginning at noon CT, but whatever it is, we know it will be entertaining.

Also joining will be artist Adu, who due to a scheduling conflict, had to move his interview to this week. Check out his exhibit African Amedia that is currently showing at the African American Museum of Dallas.

“Don’t touch me. I am a work of art.”

We will have another special in-studio guest who will shed light on the distribution side and wholesale side of the natural hair care economy.

We are preparing a great show for you and hope that you tune in by clicking here on Saturday. If you never want to miss an update and get our link delivered directly to you, sign up for our #hairbeautybuzz Newsletter published by our parent company, Upmarket Communications. By doing that, we will deliver our #hairbeautybuzz news, guests and giveaways to you. Sign up by filling out the form below:

#TEAMNATURAL IS LIVING NO LYE IN DALLAS FOR INHMD

Posted on May 27, 2015 by A Plus Recommends

DALLAS — In case you didn’t know it, every hashtag has a creator. There isn’t a machine or a committee that decides what particular tag will take hold. Take Twitter User and social activist Reign of April. Her natural reaction to this year’s Oscar nominations were an obvious fact: #OscarsSoWhite. The thing that wasn’t as obvious until it was, is that hashtag went viral and Reign of April appeared on the national scene.

Such was the stroke of luck for Constance Cash, a Dallas native, whose #TeamNatural tag not only went viral, but grew roots. The ubiquitous hashtag is used for every natural hair post across social media platforms and is tagged by 2.5m images on Instagram alone. This weekend, Cash’s Team Natural is celebrating International Natural Hair Meetup Day in Dallas with a weekend chock-full of education, edibles and entertainment.

Oh, wait. You don’t know what INHMD is? Let me be the one to tell you: Kinky-, curly- and coily-textured hair women in cities around the globe converge on one locale to talk tresses and meet other like-minded naturalistas in their area for one day. That one day in 2015 is May 30th. Yes, this is a thing. And, yes, you need to go.

Locally, first up is the Living No Lye Tour stop for the Dallas-Ft. Worth Metroplex. This is a fab expo with hair and beauty experts and bloggers who are keen to share what they know. Say what? Beautiful women are about to spill their secrets? I say again, you need to be there because it’s happening Saturday, May 30th. The lineup is pretty impressive for those in the know: noted author Audrey Davis-Sivasothy, the cosmetic chemist known as Sister Scientist, Erica Douglas, #TeamNatural founder, Constance Cash, and bloggers Sumetra Reed and Tiffany Nichols.

The Living No Lye Tour stops in the DFW on May 30th at 1010 Collins Event Center.

“The mission of Team Natural and the Living No Lye Tour is to educate and empower individuals embarking on natural hair journeys by focusing on natural hair care, beauty and overall health and wellness,” Cash said. “Team Natural aims to inspire women all over the globe to wear their natural hair with confidence.”

After you’ve received your personal edification, it’s time to shine with confidence in an all-white affair with celebrity hosts, the original #HairCrush Chime Edwards (who is coincidentally the very first celebrity guest on the new natural hair #hairbeautybuzz radio show starting June 6th) and Alyssa Forever at the Naturals Night Out All-White Party. This will be your opportunity to show off your natural mane in all its glammed-out glory.

Now, if that wasn’t enough, or you are committed on the 30th, catch the Curlfriends Bloggers Brunch on Sunday, May 31st. #TeamNatural has gone out of its way to corral more of the hottest bloggers from the region for you to sit down and sip with over a midday meal. Join @AskPRoy, @__Lipstickncurls__, @TheKGLifestyle. @JulianAddo, @VeePeeJay, @Alexandriawill, and @HausofSwag. These bonafide beauties are sure to drop beauty nuggets by the barrelful, so be there or forever miss out.

Sponsors and vendors of the event include but are not limited to: Curls, Obia Natural Hair, Cantu Beauty, Kinky, Curly, Yaki and others.

Where is this all going down, you might ask? Get all the deets (locations and start times) and purchase your tickets now on Team Natural’s website. You better hurry because I hear this event will sell-out before Saturday.

Tell us, are you going to an INHMD event on Saturday? If you’re in Dallas, hail me up because I will be there. Roll call. Shout out your city and event in the comments.

Big Chop to Frohawk in Six Months

Posted on May 12, 2015 by A Plus Recommends

Amid the chaos that has been event planning, last week’s Cinco de Mayo was my six-month Big Chop hairversary. In retrospect, the journey hasn’t been that long. After those first few days and weeks of raiding the shelves at Sally’s, Hair and Beauty Mart and Target, I settled into a routine that seems to be working for me. What do you think?

From upper left to right, lower left to right, then center left to right are images of my six-month natural hair journey.

As you can see, those first two pictures don’t show a woman who is completely thrilled with the results of her decision. Slowly but surely I came along, and as my mind did (read about that here), so did my hair. For the first time this weekend, I was able to pin the sides up to sport some frohawk realness! Alas, this juncture in my journey has created a new query: When do I trim?

When I was relaxed, there was no guessing. I trimmed every 6 to 8 weeks without fail. We all know why. Ends become dry and brittle and start to break. With my natural, however, that hasn’t happened. I take extra care and deep condition weekly, but I also only do heavy manipulation once weekly. Neither of which as helped me decide when to trim, so maybe you can.

Do I wait for my hair to have issues before I trim, or do I conduct a preemptive strike in my fight for healthy hair and trim now? What’s your natural hair trim schedule?

Let Me Clarify

Posted on May 11, 2015 by A Plus Recommends

After my last wash session, I knew I had gone too long without clarifying. My hair was curly, but something was just off. It felt dull, lifeless. To clarify, I don’t use anything fancy, but I still don’t use shampoo, which I feel, strips my hair beyond a quick repair. I had an event yesterday and had no room for a hair mishap.

Although, my clarifying routine consists of 2 oz. of my As I Am Coconut Cowash Cleansing Conditioner, two teaspoons of baking soda and water and aloe vera juice, I had been wanting to experiment with bentonite clay since I read about the Maximum Hydration Method. The MHM is not for everyone, me included. It consists of several steps repeated daily for a week. I don’t have that kind of time, but that doesn’t mean I couldn’t try bentonite clay at all. The trouble was getting my hands on it. I had been to countless beauty supply stores in Dallas, including my favorite, Hair and Beauty Supply in Uptown, but no one carried it. Of course, I could get it online, but I didn’t want to pay for shipping since I knew the clay was heavy.

Then I heard the Vitamin Shoppe carried it. On Friday, I excitedly drove over to the one on Lover’s Lane to pick up my first container. Alas, I was met with an empty shelf. The clerk said ever since it was mentioned on Dr. Oz, they can’t keep it in stock. Thanks, Doc! For those unfamiliar with the area, there is a health food store called, Central Market right across the street. CM is a local Texas version of Whole Foods, only slightly better by my standards.

Lo and behold! Central Market got the gold star on this one. Not only did they have the bentonite clay, but they had the 2-lb. jar for $10! After declaring lifelong loyalty to the chain and wondering why I didn’t start there, I ran home to begin my two-day clarifying process that starts with a prepoo. Take a look at my steps:

Prepoo overnight. This saturates my hair and scalp with emollients, protecting it from being stripped during the clarifying process.
Rinse out prepoo until water is clear. This is easy because I use cocoa powder in my prepoo, which is easy to see once it’s all out because the water runs clear.
Apply clarifying mixture that is described above using an applicator bottle. Bag and seal for 45 minutes to an hour.
Rinse, apply rinse-out conditioner, comb through and rinse.
Step out of the shower and apply bentonite clay. I mixed mine with apple cider vinegar, coconut milk and aloe vera juice, again purchased at Central Market. Application of the clay is similar to your styling process. You shingle and rake the clay through your hair. I found that the coconut milk gave the clay more slip, which I found incredibly helpful. In case it’s unclear, I used coconut milk because both the clay and the aloe have clarifying properties (aloe vera is an astringent), so the coconut milk adds moisture to prevent overdrying.
Bentonite Clay application before and after.
Let the clay sit in your hair for about an hour without drying. If your hair starts to dry, then wash it out despite the time. You can bag and seal if you want to keep it in for an extended period. I didn’t do that this time. After the alotted time, rinse out. Do not cleanse.
Apply deep conditioner. I bagged and sealed mine for an overnight intense deep conditioning with SheaMoisture’s Intense Hydration Hair Masque. This was my first time using the product and I was happy with the results.
Rinse out. Apply rinse-out conditioner and do the final cold rinse.
LOC or LCO, whichever is your preference and style as usual.

I am very happy with my final results. My hair was clumped after the rinsing out of the bentonite clay. It was soft, fluffy and well conditioned.

After the entire process, but pre-product. My hair clumped without product!

I didn’t experience any of the dryness that some have said was a problem for them after the clay application. Here is what I used:

I used everything in this picture except for the VO5.

My final result: My curls are back to feeling soft, fluffy but are also elongated and very defined. I was able to style my hair for the first time without using pins in the front. Yay for the small victories! Here’s how I looked for the event with first-day hair!

First-day hair after clarifying with baking soda and bentonite clay in a two-day process.

What is your clarifying process? What products do you use?

Share this:

Share this:

Share this:

Share this:

Share this:

Share this:

Share this:

Share this:

Share this:

Share this: