:: GIVEAWAY :: NATURAL NIGERIAN MOISTURE AND SHINE DETANGLING LEAVE - IN CONDITIONER

Hello everyone! I am very excited to be doing this giveaway, supper excited! So in my previous post I promised you guys that something fun was coming up and this is it people!! So here's a chance to win this awesome awesome leave-in conditioner. To qualify, bellow are a few things you'll need to do:

1. You must make a comment on this post stating what you like about my blog and what you think I should do to improve

2. You must be a member on this blog

3. You must like my facebook page

4. You must follow me on twitter

5. You must subscribe to my YouTube channel

So the fun begins! Let's get into it!! Good luck!!!

P.s This is only open to Nigerian residents, that includes all thirty six states in Nigeria. 

THE GREAT KINKY HAIR CHRISTMAS AFFAIR !!

Hello there! So The Kinky Apothecary presents this hair event this weekend. I have never gone for an event by Kinky Apothecary so this will be my first. Hope to see you out there. Cheers

PRODUCT REVIEW: NATURAL NIGERIAN Moisture and Shine Detangling Leave in Conditioner

Yaaayy!! I am so excited to be doing a product review on the Natural Nigerian (NN) Moisture and Shine Detangling Leave in Conditioner. I've been looking forward to doing a review on this product because I love it so so so so MUCH! I've been natural for like seven months and I have tried a whole lot of products and this is my best leave in conditioner so far. Every thing about this leave in is just da BOMB!! I will be reviewing this product under the following categories: My Experience, Ingredients, Fragrance and Colour, Consistency, and finally discus some cons. So let's get into it, shall we?

My Experience

First of all I would like to say that this product was made by a Nigerian and for Nigerians, no one can debate that fact, SIMPLES!!. I have used about three different leave in conditioners prior to trying this one and I am glad to say that this product is ON POINT BABY!!. I love love love this product, I can not say it enough. It has everything in the right proportion, meehn!! It's light weight and not too greasy. It also leaves my hair feeling moisturized and shiny, I no lie you at at all!! Chaii this leave is da BOMB y'all, lol. I use it for twists, I put it  in my daily spritz and sometimes I just rub it all over my hair after applying my oils (I use the LOC method). It also works well with my other products and I like that about it. 

Ingredients

The major ingredients in this product, that my hair loves are Aloe Barbadensis Leaf Extract (Aloe Vera), coconut oil (my hair and coconut oil are BFFs, lol) and glycerin. My hair loves these three ingredients and they are at the top of the list of ingredients,awesome!. So since my hair loves this product, I am guessing it agrees with the rest of the ingredients even the ones I can't pronounce, ha ha.

Fragrance and Color

The NN leave in conditioner has a very lovely mild citrus fragrance and I love it. The color is creamy yellow.

Consistency

This product is very light, it has the consistency of Farm Fresh Yogurt or say watery custard/pap (y'all know what I mean, right?). Anyway, my hair loves light products and it sure agrees with the consistency of this product.

Other

Now let's talk price. I have seen a review on this product saying it is pricey and I totally disagree. Now this is my opinion, okay? I really believe that for the value I get for a 236 ml/ 8 fl oz product, N2, 500 is not so bad. I have spent more buying foreign brands that never ever worked for my hair. The packaging alone is on point and it looks really classy. So for me, the product is not too expensive. 

Some Cons

One thing am not very comfortable with is the name Moisture and Shine Detangling Leave in Conditioner, mehn that's a mouth full of words for a leave in conditioner. I can't count how many times I had to look at the product just to get the right name while writing this post. Apart from that, meehn this product it GOOD TO GO!!

Just a hint, something fun is coming up for this Christmas on my blog, so stay tuned. Peace!

HOW TO COMBAT DANDRUFF AND ITCHY SCALP

Before I started taking better care of my hair, I had serious dandruff issues, it was embarrassing. So dealing with these was one of the major things I focused on when I started my hair journey. So starting from the basics, dandruff is small dead skin cells in a person's hair. It could result from several causes such as dry skin, oily skin, irritated skin or just not shampooing enough. In my case I think it was due to dry skin and using the wrong products for my scalp. Itchy scalp is another result of excessive dandruff and it is possible not to have dandruff but have itchy scalp. Here are a few easy steps to deal with dandruff and itchy scalp:

Wash your hair regularly

You should wash your hair at least once a week. Some people might say everyday or twice a week. Whatever the case just ensure you have a regimen for keeping your scalp nice and clean.

Incorporate Peppermint Oil and Tea Tree Oil in your regimen

These are essential oils that are very good for dealing with dandruff and itchy scalp. When I first started treating my dandruff, I was told to get the peppermint oil. The dandruff went away but the itching continued. So I was advised by Natural Nigerian to also get the Tea Tree Oil. The Tea Tree oil is an anti-fungal oil that helps to keep hair clean. It is also used for treating lice infection in the hair. I noticed that my hair stopped itching me when I started using the tea tree oil.
It is important to note that these are essential oils and should be used in drops. For example, if I had a glass of water filled with Coconut oil and water, I would add just five drops (or less) of peppermint and tea tree oil in it. I put some drops in my shampoo when I wash my hair

and I also add some into my daily moisturizing spritz. 

To purchase these oils visit www.naturalnigerian.com, www.vanityoils.com or http://thekinkyapothecary.blogspot.com

So these are just the 2 easy steps I would recommend for dealing with dandruff and itchy scalp. Till next time, take care!

LET'S TALK SHRINKAGE!

Shrinkage is one of the major characteristics of natural coily hair. It is the  ability of coily hair to reduce to about 70% it's original length when it comes in contact with moisture. Some people's hair (like mine) might be 6 inches long but when wet/moist, with no restriction, could shrink to 2 inches. While some people fight this all the time, others have learnt to embrace it. It is important to note that shrinkage is an indication that your curls/coils are in good shape. If your hair springs back without breaking then your natural hair is healthy. On other hand, shrinkage comes with its own issues. Complex knots and tangles could result when several strands coil up and interlock with each other. These can be difficult to undo and may need to be cut off hence impeding hair growth. So although we might not want to fight with our kinky hair forcing it to be what it's not, we might still have to find ways to reduce shrinkage and prevent these complex knots and tangles from occuring. In another post we will look at the various ways to reduce shrinkage and it's effects, so stay tunned, lol!!

HOW DO I KNOW MY HAIR TYPE?

Hello beautiful people, so today we would be looking at the hair typing system and what it's all about. The hair typing system is just a way various hair textures are grouped based on their curl patterns. Curl patterns range from very straight to tight kinky coily/zigzag and range in scale from type 1 for the straight hair to type 4C for kinky hair. Every hair type require certain care regimen and products.

Natural kinky hair ranges from type 3A to 4C and most women from this part of the world (West Africa) tend to have hair within this category. I have 4C hair and most ladies I have seen in Nigeria have this type of hair texture. The 4C hair texture has strands of tightly kinked up coils that shrink about 70% it's original length when in contact with any form of moisture.

I can hardly say that there are specific natural hair products for specific hair types. The reason is because I have found that although I may seem to have the same hair texture with someone, some of the products that work for them may not work for me. For instance, it's been said that raw Shea Butter is good for kinky hair and that it softens natural kinky hair. Well for me that does not work, raw Shea Butter makes my hair feel like hay, lol. My hair hates it in any form, raw, whipped or processed. At first I thought I was buying adulterated versions but my last attempt proved to me that my hair does not just like it. Every head of hair is different from the next, there might be similarities but one needs to study their own head of hair to determine what ways are best for caring for their hair.