kinky hair | #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 .

My Little Pony

Posted on June 30, 2015 by A Plus Recommends

Yep! You read that right. I am happy to announce that just before my 8-month big chop anniversary that I am able to comb my hair back into a tiny little ponytail. Take a look:

My little pony.

Not a glamorous shot, I know, but it was important enough for me to take the picture in that moment. This is the first time my hair has been long enough to snatch back for a style other than my trusty wash-and-go. Now, recognizing milestones are one thing. Wearing a new style is, indeed, another.

My hair isn’t quite long enough to rock my little pony in public and look presentable, which brings me to another challenge. I would love to wear a topknot, which is my favorite lazy hair day style to rock. That means I need to find some extra hair. But where to go? What to do?

I’m kinda lost in the extension world because it’s not something I was really into when my hair was straightened. Even if I had been though, strides have been made in providing kinky curly options with clip-in attachments for added length and volume. I learned this the hard way when I was convinced this past weekend to spend a few dollars on some marley hair, some clip-ins and a needle and thread to make my own. I asked the proprietor if the needle would fit through the clip-in hole, to which I was assured it would. To my dismay, once I got home and attempted this ill-fated project, it did not. I should have known better than to go anywhere other than Hair and Beauty Mart in Cityplace for my in-store hair care needs. Lesson learned.

This extension hair issue has me really psyched for this week’s New Orleans Natural Hair Expo on July 4th and 5th. They will have no less than three natural hair extension companies vending at the expo including Kinky, Curly, Yaki, a brand based in Toronto. I first discovered this brand when I attended the awesome Living No Lye Tour stop in Dallas in late May. (Click here for their NYC tour stop, Curls and the City on July 25th). The look and feel of the Kinky, Curly, Yaki hair is just amazing. I hope that I can find a match and pick up some to make my topknot fantasy a reality!

The NONHE starts Saturday, July 4th at 10 a.m.

Do you make your own extension pieces? What hair do you use and how to you attached it to your hair; clip-in or bobby pins? I need your advice.

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?

Product Review: I Can’t Believe It’s Hair Butter!

Posted on May 3, 2015 by A Plus Recommends

Last week was a whirlwind of activities, most of which was putting out fires. I’m in the planning mode of a new natural hair project that I will share here first when it moves into the marketing phase. So stay tuned for that in the next few weeks. Despite how tired, frazzled and frustrated I may get, it’s a relief to know my hair doesn’t reflect how I feel. If you’ve been keeping up with #hairbeautybuzz, you know that I’m trying out Nyambi Naturals from this blog I wrote not too long ago.

One of the first things I tried out of my goodie box was the Hair and Body Butter. Now, I will tell you from the outset, I’m skeptical of products that have dual purposes in such vastly different applications, so while I expected it to be great for the heels of my feet and my elbows, I didn’t expect that it would be great for my hair.

This is what my hair looked like after that first use:

My first attempt using Nyambi Naturals’ Hair Butter.

I took a gamble because I was in a natural hair photo shoot the same day I used it for the first time, which you are never supposed to do, but I was happy with the results. In the picture, my hair is still wet. I used too much product because I realized it clumped my hair. It clumped my hair! I will say it again: IT. CLUMPED. MY. HAIR. Did you get that? OK. I’m not one of those naturals whose hair clumps with water. I have to use Ms. Kendra K’s “Shingle, Rake & Shake” after applying my favorite gel, Ecostyler by Ecoco Beauty, which I buy from Hair and Beauty Mart in Dallas by the 5-lb. bucket.<— More on that later. I could have used just Nyambi Naturals’ Hair Butter for a softer set, and if I did, I would still have curls. Alas, I’m addicted to high curl definition, so I layered my Olive Oil Ecostyler over it. To my glee, the products worked well together. After getting over my obsession with clumping, for my next experiment with the product, I just used Nyambi Naturals’ Hair Butter to seal. Here are my results from that session, which was last Sunday:

I used Nyambi Naturals’ Hair Butter to seal in my LOC method.

As you can see, my high definition is in full curl effect! My hair was much lighter too since I didn’t use much. Today, I used it in the same way with similar results. See below:

My results from my third use of Nyambi Naturals’ Hair Butter.

So here’s my assessment of the Nyambi Naturals’ Hair Butter: It smells fabulous and it will make your hair smell fabulous too. It clumps even my 4a patch of hair, which is something previously only Ecostyler gel could claim to do on my hair. It has multiple applications, such as styling aid, sealer and as a possible additive to your conditioning treatments. It’s economical. A little goes a long way. So, I love it and give it 5 out of 5 Stars! Really terrific hair product.

The one thing I would like to see, and am told will be added to the line soon, is a whipped version of this awesome product. In the Dallas heat, I can see the thicker consistency being an issue in the summer months, but a lighter version would work beautifully. I’m looking forward to getting my hands on that because it would be great to use a whipped version in the summer, and the original in the winter to protect my strands during the colder weather.

Perhaps, I’ll get to try it at this month’s Mix, Match and Massage at the Brooklyn Nights Bar in Brooklyn, NY on May 17th. This event looks like a lot of fun where you get to choose two of your favorite products for one low price, get a free chair massage, make-up retouch and studio pics with Summer Wayans all for no extra charge! By the way, we are all invited!

Nyambi Naturals Mix, Match & Massage at Brooklyn Nights Bar, 497 Dekalb Ave., on May 17th.

Want to try Nyambi Naturals? Click here.

What products have you tried recently? Share in the comments, you might help another reader.

Gotta Have Curlfriends

Posted on April 24, 2015 by A Plus Recommends

Terresa Harris gathered six different women, and two girls, for a photo shoot of different types of natural hair. Click image to enlarge. Photo Credit: Pink Images

Last week I forayed into the Dallas suburb of Irving, something I don’t do often as I find the suburbs to be not my metropolis-centric cup of tea. This adventure off my well-beaten Uptown track was for a good reason and well worth it. A fellow Instagrammer, @ProjectNaptural, had invited me to take part in a photo shoot that would be part of a socio-cultural project that may result in an application for members of Team Natural everywhere. This project is part of her Master’s thesis at the University of North Texas, a different location from the campus where the shoot took place. I have modeled before and still jump at the chance when the opportunity presents itself as it tends to do every now and again. The difference this time was my hair was no longer straight and its curliness would be the focal point of the shoot. Was I ready?

I’m proud to report, the hardest part of the shoot was the required attire. A few months ago, you couldn’t pay me to take a picture for public consumption. Now, I was confident, free and ready to show off my kinks, curls, and coils. I didn’t know any of the women before arriving, not even the organizer, Terresa, who invited me. We exchanged emails and thoughts prior to the shoot and liked each other’s pictures on Instagram, but that was about the extent of it. When I arrived, all the ladies glowed in their all-white attire, which I believe, is written somewhere as a Texas residency requirement.

It really didn’t matter that I knew no one because the reason why we were there is what bonded us together. I was immediately part of this exclusive club of women who have gone through the trials and tribulations of finding the right pre-poo, failed twist-outs and wash and gos that take hours to actually wash and go before getting the hang of it. Through our shared experiences of navigating the natural hair landscape, without words, without meeting, we bonded in the knowledge that we have all traveled a similar path that led us to that day even with vastly different natural hairstyles.

We are all #TeamNatural, but we don’t look the same. Click image to enlarge. Photo Credits: Pink Images & Project Naptural

What being around my new community of local curlfriends showed me is that unlike straight hairstyles, our natural hair has its own identity. No two heads of hair is exactly the same. I don’t have to do anything to my natural hair to make it stand out from theirs because my combination of kinks, coils and curls is as unique to me as theirs is to them. That’s the beauty of it. While straight hair was a weekly, or even daily, attempt to fit in and conform, which I’ve talked about before, now I’m part of a growing group of women who understand and embrace acceptance and self-love. That’s a pretty cool group of which to be a part.

My very first editor once told me, “You can’t be successful writing in a vacuum.” What he meant was that while writing is a solitary exercise, good writing takes the critique and perspectives of others. This idea holds true when it comes to appreciating your natural hair too. You will not be able to clearly see how special it is until you join others in the celebration of it. Through the knowledge of others, many of us find better solutions, better products, and better routines. Whether it’s a meetup group, a private online community, a picture with a familiar hashtag on The Gram or this here blog, you gotta have curlfriends.

Click image to enlarge. The entire Project Naptural Photo Shoot crew. Photo Credit: Pink Images

Tag your curlfriends in the comments. If you need a curlfriend, connect with me on Instagram.

The Growth that Matters

Posted on April 9, 2015 by A Plus Recommends

Earlier this week, I mentioned my natural hair journey’s 5-month anniversary, when writing about how much my hair has changed. That got me thinking: What else has changed?

Clockwise from top, months 1 through 5 in the middle.

When I looked at this picture, I was fascinated about how far my hair has come in a very short period of time. But then, I couldn’t stop staring at it. I mean really staring at it. At first, I was admiring the growth, which is what’s most noticeable. I stared and stared until it dawned on me.

My face.

My face tells the story here, not my hair. Sure, my hair goes from undefined to defined. My hair goes from short to less short, but as they say in the news business, that’s not the story. My face and its expression, which isn’t fit for a friendly game of poker, tells the undeniable truth that big chopping wasn’t easy for me. I have worn my hair short before, but I was in my 20s the last time I did that, and I wasn’t natural.

When I big chopped, I honestly can say now, my hair was not what I expected. It didn’t curl when wet. It didn’t curl when gelled. It didn’t curl, at all. I had cut inches and inches of straightened hair that while, not perfect, was familiar. I was ready to rock a curly TWA because it had some edge. But my TWA was in fact just a teeny weenie Afro.

I hunkered down for two weeks, TWO WEEKS, in my flat trying to figure out how I was ever going out in public again. The Month One pic was taken around the two-week mark, when I absolutely, unequivocally had to go outside, which I did after taking the image. In the days since that one where the misery splayed across my face, I notice that my expression changed.

By the Month 3 image, I’m slightly amused by all this natural hair talk. I remember it well. That picture became my “outed” avatar on Facebook. That’s right. I only told two people about my big chop. No one else knew. By then, I was slowly coming into my own and thought how silly I had been for ever being ashamed of my hair. By Month’s 4 & 5, you can see my confidence is back. I feel pretty, I feel like me but improved. I’m not hiding, I’m not covering up. As a friend likes to describe it, I feel free.

Not only free from the crippling weekly appointments that emptied my pockets at $65 per visit for a wash and set, ruined many Saturdays or subjected many to stylists who don’t know what they were doing, but free from the mental constraints that come along with the burden of altering your natural look in order to assimilate to society’s standards of beauty.

The middle picture is the only one where my hair is straightened without using a relaxer.

That’s what relaxers are. They are assimilation. The nonconformist in me is stunned that I hadn’t realized it sooner. My straightened hair was nothing but an outwardly desire to fit in to an Anglo culture’s definition of what I should be. But I forgive myself of this, since I received my first relaxer at five because my hair was too much for my mother, who didn’t know how to cornbraid. Now, when I look at my pictures that I’ve taken along my natural hair journey, I don’t just see longer locks. I see a change in my perspective about self love and acceptance. I see how my thought process has evolved. I see the growth that really matters.

How has your perspective changed since you big chopped? Tell me in the comments.

So it Grows, I Ching, Adapt

Posted on April 5, 2015 by A Plus Recommends

If you’ve been natural for any length of time, you know that wash day is the most unpredictable in your routine. Since I big chopped on Nov. 5, 2014, I had established a routine that was working for me — until it wasn’t.

What to do when you’re hair changes up on you without cause? If you’re like me, you consult your hair buddy in the natural hair community that you’ve built around yourself since the shock of cutting of inches upon inches of relaxed and otherwise healthy hair. After backtracking through my routine with my hair buddy, who happens to be my cousin and the person who planted the transitioning seed in the back of my mind, we figured out which step had caused the hiccup.

I have suffered from dry scalp since childhood (I wonder if getting my first relaxer at five-years-old had anything to do with that, but I digress), so early in my natural hair journey, I discovered oil rinsing and incorporated it into my routine. In one session, it transformed my hair from hard and excessively dry to moisturized and pillowy. Alas, its days had come to an end for it worked too well. My hair is now normal, as opposed to dry, and thus, the extra oil was leaving my hair, well, oily to the touch. Oil trickling down your forehead and neck just isn’t cute. Yuck.

Just when I thought I had it figured out, my hair was like: “Girl, naw.”

After identifying the cause, I quickly omitted the culprit, and my hair is back to what I would describe as fabulously fly. In the five months that I’ve been on the long and winding road, my biggest lesson is: I ching, adapt because your hair will change whether you want it to or not.

I may have to return to oil rinsing when the temperatures drop again, and that’s ok too. My hair reserves its right to do what the hell it wants, and I respect that. So, if you’ve big chopped, and you’re trying to find your footing, just know every (wash) day is a learning one. If I can get this far, so can you.

If you’re curious, here’s some pics showing you my growth stages from BC to today (Five months post BC):

I was not happy during those first two weeks. Uh, no.

Five-month Hairversary:

I’m feeling it, are you?

Natural Hair Tip: I ching, adapt.

What are your natural hair tips that you’ve learned along the way? Comment with your response and help a newbie, or even a vet.

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