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22 November 2009

[review] darcy's botanicals natural coils curling jelly


natural coils curling jelly
distilled water, organic aloe juice, vegetable glycerine, organic coconut cream, organic castor oil, sea moss extract, organic brown rice extract, hydrolyzed oats, xanthan gum, potassium sorbate, citric acid, and fragrance.


i got this little gem from a quaint meetup at least two months ago with chebaby and charzboss of lhcf. che was selling because she didn't like it, so we decided to meet up and swap. i'm glad it was free. i'd been eyeing darcy's botanicals (link) for a while now, but i couldn't quite get over the price and size, not that either were unreasonable. this cost $12 for 8 oz, which isn't too bad in regards to natural hair care products. still, 8 oz is actually a lot of product and i didn't want to commit to that size (and this was months ago when my twa was still very teeny) without knowing if i would like it or not. so i was more than happy to relieve che of her burden. :]

first off, i have to say that out of all the handmade products i've tried so far, darcy's botanicals is by far the most polished and professional. an extremely clean and simple site to navigate, with thorough information on each product. presentation is flawless and each product looks delectable. the product comes in a nicely sized jar, with a silver screw lid (which i really like; you might be able to see the details in the picture above). the light green label is a fresh, faint green, adding to the kind of muted, pastel summer day theme of the line.

the coils jelly is scented very richly... a juicy, summer peach scent is clean, light, and pretty much perfect - i have never had a product with such a crisp, candy scent like this one. the consistency is wiggly and jiggly, and much looser/thin than regular gel; you could pour this out of the jar. i was a little surprised at this, as i've never had a product with this consistency. i would compare it to kinky curly curling custard (which i have never used, but i've seen videos on youtube) but a tad bit looser.

so, the day i get home, i dampen my hair with my trusty spray bottle and decide to spread a little of this in my hurr. and that same day i put it in storage. it made my hands vaguely sticky and ain't define a thing and peaches aren't even my favorite fruit, so whatever. in retrospect, i realize that i did have about 2-3 products in my hair already and just running my hands through my hair never do a thing.

i decided to revisit friday because i was cleaning out my room (to make space for my new stash).i was going to pass it on to a newly natural friend, but i would give it another fair try first. from my first experience, i was fully prepared to hate it. so ready to toss it in my bag and hand it off. i was braced for my hair to be a frizzy, nothing-special bush.

and dammit if it didn't do the exact opposite.

i co-washed my hair friday morning so i could shingle on fresh, clean hair. this is also my first time shingling in earnest and it took me maybe 15-20 minutes, which i think is really good. i hopped right out the shower, and got to work. i put nothing on my hair but the coils jelly. i started from the back, parting small sections with my fingers and taking a generous glob of product and running it through my hair, smoothing my fingers over the section to combat frizz. i ended up using a lot of product because i am too heavy handed for my own good.

my hair was soft, moisturized, perfectly defined, fragrant... and pretty much perfection. i was floored. my hair dried not hard, but not soft either; medium. my curls weren't crunchy or stiff at all, but it's hard to describe. they were sculpted, i should say. majority of my hair dried with no residue, except the front, where i really globbed it on because i was rushing and didn't section properly. and even the front didn't dry into that embarrassingly obvious flaky residue. it just made my hair look wet. but apart from that, my entire head was sheeny, soft, and well defined.

and get this.

my fro was a perfect circle. this never happens. lately, my crown has just exploded into an uncurly mess - no pattern at all, it just all sticks straight up, and i really don't like it. and my halo is a looser curl than the rest of my head and the area right before my crown likes to curl up tightly, so my head looks so uneven and bumpy. not this time. it even got the thumbs up from my boyfriend, who is always telling me to pick it out.

funny how a product i was fully prepared to hate turns out to be the best product i've tried thus far. so would i repurchase? sigh. yes, yes, and yes.

18 November 2009

[inventory] updaaate ! (before)

i made an inventory post not long after i started this blog because i knew i had way too much stuff and would only keep buying more if i didn't get a hold on things. well, i am so happy to report than 95% of my previous inventory is gone! yes! more space to buy more things!

good thing, too, because i realize that my random purchases have more than replaced my old inventory and it doesn't help that i just spent a modest grip on online shopping... so doing another inventory for what i have now before my packages begin to arrive. i will not be buying any more hair products for a good few months, thank gawd.

[ shampoo ]
gudonya creme shampoo (rarely used)
ors aloe shampoo (rarely used)

[ conditioner ]
aussie moist conditioner
tj's tea tree tingle conditioner
tj's nourish spa conditioner (almost gone!)
HE hello hydration condish

pantene r&n mask
cantu shea butter leave-in

[ styling, etc ]
proclaim curl activator gel
ecostyler clear gel
afroveda curly custard (tiny bit from a friend)
afroveda totally twisted ginger butter (from a friend, again)
darcy's botanicals coils jelly (...another friend)
hairveda vatika frosting (x2)


i rarely use shampoo, so i know what i have will last me a long time and i'm grateful for that. i don't really like shampoos and when i run out, i won't be buying anymore. i also haven't included any styling tools or heat products because my styling tools are expected to last me for the better half of forever and i won't be heat styling for a lonnnng time. i need to buy another case to house my new make-up and what not, so time to rearrange my hair situation as well.

17 November 2009

being natural is expensive.

if you plan to be in the salon, that is. even more reason to become a DIYer (which i plan to do). i've been natural four months now and i finally got the urge to finally do something with this baby 'fro of mine. i realized that i'd been out of the salon for months now, and i realized just how much money and free time i was saving. still, i figured that now, when i went to the salon, it would be for my enjoyment, not because i was a slave to my stylist. i figured i could use a visit.


so, i've mentioned that my boyfriend's sister is natural. i remembered her gel twists and how good they looked and thought, "cool, i'll make myself an appointment." until i found out they cost sixty dollars. uhm. what?

it's okay, like i do for everything, price shop. i emailed a salon that got a lot of good reviews, only to find out that gel twists there were $75! obviously, these people have lost their minds, right?

i don't know why, but i thought for sure being natural would be cheap, and i was right... outside of the salon. natural hair is often thicker, requires more care and attention, and can be very time consuming. once i realized that, the price didn't seem any less steep, but i could understand it, but it just reinforced that i would be the one taking care of my hair. the salon would just have to be a rare luxury when i had the money, no problem.

but seriously... gel twists, though? seventy-five dollars, though? those take two hours TOPS (no more than any other hair style, if not quicker), and don't require nothing but some gel. and hell, if you want me to, i'll show up to the salon freshly washed, deep conditioned, and bring my own gel.

i could do gel twists myself, and even if i don't feel like it, i'll have one of my girlfriend's come over and do it for free while we have fun babbling. that's what i did this weekend. take that, unreasonable salon prices!

oh, and i bought the conair quick braid off of ebay. it's a little purple, handheld device you can use to twist your hair. i had one years ago and hated it because my twists would never stay, but now that i'm natural and my ends have new self-sealing action, i figured i would try it again. and i found one nice and cheap, then if it's a piece of crap, i can just give it away.

15 November 2009

four months natural...

:) :) :)


i have been four months natural now and i really don't have anything to say. i will start by saying that this will be a more thorough post than my last, lol. so, i have been natural for four months now and it as been nothing short of amazing. i haven't bought anything since my last few updates, thank goodness, but that'll be changing soon...i plan to get myself a hefty load, mwahaha...

anyway, my hair has really been growing and i have a few pictures i need to update my fotki with. gotta just suck it up and do it, maybe tonight. it is so exciting, washing my hair, because i can feel it hanging when i wash it and i know it is growing sooo long.

but uh, yeah. don't really have much to say... oh! just last week, right on the 11th (i hadn't even realized it was my four months on that day) i met a lovely young lady in the computer lab. i was there with a friend, who i inspired to transition and we were talking about hair. a girl using the computer next to me looked over and asked, "are you natural?" :) from there, we talked and talked and talked. we even shared links and exchanged facebooks and what not. it was so nice meeting her, it really made me smile and brightened my day! i love talking to other naturals and about hair in general!

oh! and i am learning to cornrow and that is way more exciting than it should be.

11 November 2009

DRIVEBYPOST FOURMONTHS AHHH

hiiii everyoneeeee. post while i wait for my boo to pick me up but i have been NATURAL FOR FOUR MONTHS NOWWWW

YESSSS