[review] mega care olive oil

mega care olive oil

olive oil, soybean oil, sunflower oil, castor oil, safflower oil, cotton seed oil, wheat germ oil, macadamia nut oil, tocopherol, fragrance.

i've used this when i was relaxed and have no recollection at all of what it did for me, but i do remember that i used it to moisturize every other day when i was in a weave. i wanted to use it up and the little nozzle opening made it very easy to get past the netting. when it was time to take the weave out, my hair was not dry at all, probably because of this and the bee mine.

so i decided to revisit it now that i'm natural and i'm not exactly amazed. it's got good ingredients in it, but if it did anything, i couldn't tell. i got a comment on the scent (a very strong "what is that?") and it wasn't good. the smell is a little musky, doesn't stink, but it's a far shot from fragrant. smells just like the ingredients would have you think.

the oil had little absorption, and i could feel the rest sitting on my hair, but i'm also very heavyhanded so take that with a grain of salt. i'll use it up as a pre-poo maybe and try lighter applications, since i can't walk around in public with it on my head without offending. left my hair soft, but not as soft as castor oil, but my hair didn't feel too dry by the afternoon.


verdict: i will not repurchase.

[review] gudonya "salty dawg" creme shampoo

gudonya "salty dawg" creme shampoo

distilled water, sodium chloride, glycerine, sodium cocoyl isethionate, sorbitol, disodium lauryl sulfosuccinate, stearic acid, bentonite, panthenol, hydrolyzed wheat protein and starch, fragrance, lemon essential oil, grapefruit essential oil, pentasodium penetrate, tetrasodium etidronate, preservative, color.

so, for some reason, i like anything with salt. especially dead sea salt. i've tried the kiya fizzle when i was relaxed and absolutely loved it; cut right through my new growth and left the relaxed parts softened. i haven't tried it since i've BC'ed, but instead, i found this product on etsy (link). it sounded good: sexy tahitian vanilla scent, dead sea salt, rich lather, etc. etc., so why not?

first off: it doesn't smell a thing like tahitian vanilla. or any vanilla, for that matter. it's more of a cloying, sugar-sweet, pseudo-tropical-berry twist bubble gum and not necessarily in a good way. it doesn't stink, by any means, but it ain't vanilla and that's what i wanted my hair to smell like. the scent has grown on me, though. i do like sweet things.

it comes in a very sturdy plastic jar that i thought was glass at first. and you get a good sized amount (4 oz) for only $6.50, and they stuff the jar full of it, so not bad at all. i suspect the jar will last me at least a year, at the rate i wash my hair, if i decide to use it all up (and i will try).

i only used about a quarter sized amount and the lather was lacking. not soapy, creamy, nothin'. not bad, but the way it was advertised, i expected the stuff to just explode into bubbles as soon as the water hit it. massaged it in, la di da. and as soon as i began rinsing, my hair felt dry, almost as if my hair was raw, no nothing on it. so i'm suspecting i'll only use this when i really need to actually clean my hair. it was after this shampoo that i began to notice the shedding/breaking hairs too, but i'm not sure if the harshness of the shampoo was the reason.

overall, it's nothing amazing and the scent and lack of bubbles can't make up for it. on the upside, it was a great price and customer service was smooth and shipping fast. they even sent me a sample of another shampoo (and this one actually smells like it says). i'll keep trying with this, maybe doctor it up with a bit of oil, and report back.


verdict: i won't be repurchasing.

[regimen] currently...

since the bc, i've more or less been following an incredibly simple regimen. can't really tell how it's been working out, but it's been two weeks and i'm not bald so far, so i think i'm okay.

• co-wash daily (tj nourish spa, organix, vs so sexy)
• dc arbitrarily, 1-2x week (pantene r&n, lustrasilk cholesterol)
• shampoo 1x month
• moisturize daily (shea butter, elasta qp mango butter, random oils)
• no heat
  

note: noticing a few more hairs this week than last week. might try a tiny bit of protein. ends are feeling a little rough around afternoon.

i don't really care too much about the products i'm using currently. it's basic stuff. just using it up so i can buy slightly more awesome crap, y'know? just keeping a record so i know what to tweak as i go along.

the bc --timeline--

just a few pictures from the night of the big chop (maybe even the day after, i'ono).

album: click here

pass: (curlyque)

the mandatory backstory;;

just figured i'd do well to offer any (potential) readers a brief backstory. juuuuust so you know what i'm working with.

• i've had relaxed hair for so long, i don't even remember what age i began to get them.
• i only found online forums two years ago, and still wasn't up on the whole hair care game, a year later.
• i tried to stretch twice; first time i had horrible breakage, but the second time went much smoother.
• my official decision to transition lasted all of two-three months. clearly, it was not going to work that way.
• i self-BC'ed on July 11, 2009. i went to the barbershop the day after to have it evened.
• i do not know my hair type and my ultimate goal is BSL (bra-strap length) unstretched (this may change as i go along).

and there you have the history of my noodle in a nutshell. :)