I found this lovely recipe via Savvy Brown Blog {see here} that I assume would work for acne as well as to tone and keep skin fresh and flawless.

Homemade Oatmeal Mask for Acne

• Boil about 1/4 cup of oatmeal (organic can be used) in water
• Add in about 2 tablespoon of lemon juice and 2 tablespoon of aloe vera gel.
• Let cool to room temp.
• Apply to clean skin let mask dry on face
• Next wash with lukewarm water.

Your skin should be soft and smooth  and pores noticeably smaller. Hope this can help someone.

By the way just so you know:

• Lemon juice: lightens spots
• Aloe vera: healing of inflamation
• Oatmeal: Soothe soreness plus exfoliate dead cells

Tried this before? What’s your take on it?

I love SEPHORA!! I think that place is so great, for all the stuff you can try before you buy, the customer service, just everything. The qaulity of the stuff. Well here’s a nice Sephora Find:

1. Dylan’s Candy Bar Coconut Bon Bon Collection $22
2. Tarte TEN Limited Edition Collector’s Palette $44

Kevin Williams or as he is better known, WAK creates art pieces that epitomizes the Black Culture. His pieces are beautiful and one of a kind and are so filled with emotions. His goal is to give African-Americans a way to appreciate their culture and heritage. See more of his works here: Wak-Art.com

Never before, and soon to be launched, CURLS is giving you the readers of Afroniquely You a chance to pick up a new product, the Curls Passion Fruit Curl Control Paste.

Geared to” “Smooth out and slick down unruly edges, tame frizzy, out of control curls, and add amazing sheen all in one step!”

Want it? Then enter below and be sure to follow the rules.

HOW TO ENTER

1. You must be 18 years or older to enter and participate in this contest, if you are under 18 find a parent/guardian willing to enter for you.
2. You must be a Honorary Member (aka a Google Follower)
3. Must be a Facebook Fan, fan page: http://facebook.com/afroniquelyyou and a Youtube Subscriber: http://youtube.com/afroqueenshae
4. YOU MUST come back here to this post and leave your Name and Email/or way of contact (leave email addy under the following format to avoid spammers getting it: youremail[at]theaddress[dot]com
5. Extra Entries include Tweeting or blogging about it. If you tweet you must include: @afroniquely in the tweet and if you blog, be sure to link back so I know you blogged it.
6. This giveaway ends: August 1st 2010. Winner will be announced on August 3rd, and you must come back to the blog to find out if you have won
7. Once the winner is chosen, you have a week in which to reply to the winner post with your information so that your gift can be given, failure to do so, will automatically given the second chosen winner the gift.

Alright have fun, and by the way, this is just one of many CURLS giveaway to come.

After you do the bc, it’s likely you are unsure what to use or even how to get the most out of it. A quick and simple tip:

1. Co-wash the hair, often, and do a clarify wash with a sulfate free shampoo each week to remove buildup
2. Deep conditioning is your biggest friend
3. And so is moisturizing. Moisturize at least 3 times per week. Our hair needs moisture, but don’t over do it
4. Always tie your hair down, even at that length you can start creating splits
5. Take vitamins if you aren’t already, healthy hair needs a healthy body to grow from.
6. Eat healthier and also get adequate sleep.
7. Have fun, enjoy the days of washing and going and brushing and going.

Hope that helps.

By the way, these are just my suggestions. Please tweak to meet your needs. Co-washing my not be for everyone and especially that often. Some may want it less often, others maybe more. But co-washing is beneficial when not over done per your hair type, and also when clarified to keep the scalp clean and buildup free.

Via calendar that is. I peeped this Calendar that Obvious Magazine is selling, which also supports the Helping Hands Celebrity Weekend charity. It costs $25 and that includes shipping and Brian White is yours, via calendar of-course to grace your walls.

Thanks to the fabulous Patrice of afrobella.com, whom was recently featured here on the blog, I found this article that hair braiders are sure to rejoice over. It gives starting next year, hair braiders the chance to breathe and relax while doing their trade, without worrying about the big man honing them down. See the article here

Just a few of the beautiful pieces that can be found at Peace Images Jewelry esty shop. They offer unique and mostly African Inspired pieces, sure to be an accent to any attire.

Quick  Info:

How  long have you been  natural? As of May 2010, I’ve been natural 5 years.

Haven’t  been natural your whole  life? What caused/prompted  the change? I had medical issues that caused my hair to break off at the root.  It was suggested that I stop relaxing my hair.

What  was the experience like? I loved my BC, I actually BC’d a year or so after my initial one because I liked the cut so much. I’ve always experimented with my hair….color, length, style, etc., so it wasn’t traumatic.

The  Journey:

What  has the natural journey  been like so far? I wasn’t raised with the “good/bad hair” nonsense, so I never had any issues with my natural hair texture, I just needed to learn how to care for it.  Believe it or not, I also just learned of the on-line natural hair communities about a year ago, so all my research was on my own, the hard way!  I’ve also realized that so many women of African descent have issues with their hair tectures and/or just have no idea how to properly care for it.  So many don’t realize what they do and the products they use either cause or exacerbate their hair problems.

Has  anything changed in  your life since you  became all natural? I would say the main thing is me and the weather.  I have an extremely strong curl pattern, and the slightest bit of humidity would start it curling up, relaxers could never get it completely straight.  Now I don’t have to concern myself with rain or humidity…thank goodness!

More  About Hair:

How  would you describe your  hair? My hair is very attitudinal!  It will only do what it wants to do, which is why I only wear wash and gos.  It is a 3b/2b mix, with some 3c on the ends.  I don’t have any volume whatsoever, so I often comb through for “controlled frizz” for some volume.

What  are your favorite hair  care products and tools? I am a PJ, so I do use a bazillion products and lines, but I have my faves.  The CURLS and My Honey Child lines are my all time favorites.  The Coconut Sublime Conditioner from CURLS is the best in the world!   I have sooo many favorites with MHC, but I’d have to say the Type 2 hair hair creme, Sophia’s Rizado & Ondulado light hydration and moisture, and the Afrilolo Silky Hair Lotion. & Organic Shea Deep Conditioner from MHC are my big loves now.  I also make my own hair moisturizer.  I did my research and made of mix of what I wanted for my hair.

My all time love for styling is Elasta QP Feels Like Silk Liguid Stying Gel.  Depending on what my hair wants, I’ll vary what I put in it with the FLS, but I always use it as a base styler.  It’s the only product that hydrates, controls frizz and shrinkage.

My beloved tools are my Ouidad double detangler, I own about 7 or 8 different Denman’s (and use them all!) and my Kakakiki KombBrush.  I wear updos often, and use hair sticks, old fashioned chigon pins, or Good Hair Days Magic plastic hair pins.

What’s  your hair routine? I don’t use heat, silicones, mineral oil, or petrolatum, for me, they are the devil’s lapdog!  I overnight deep condition anywhere from 1-4x a month.  I use a protein DC once a month and non-protein the rest. I very rarely use heat with my DCs, mainly because I don’t have the patience to sit under a dryer anymore :), and I’ve found overnight DCs are better for me anyway.  I always add raw honey, vitamin E, jojoba, organic cococut oil and milk to the mixture.  The next day I only rinse with cool water. I moisturize and seal morning and night as well as wear a bonnet each night. I have excema, so I do have to moisturize my scalp occasionally, but NEVER with any mineral oil or petrolatum products.  I also use non-protein DCs as a leave in, m hair loves it.  The DCs from My Honey Child are my favorite leave ins.  A stylist once told me use products for severely damaged hair, and to treat it as if it’s on it’s last leg to keep it healthy.  It’s a trick that has really worked for me. I use quality products and stick to my routine, and my hair has thrived!

Advice  and Tips:

Tips  for longer, healthy  hair - Stay away from heat, find out what your hair does and doesn’t like, baby your ends, use quality products, & protect your hair at night.

Advice  for those wanting to  go natural Just do it!  Your hair will never be as healthy and strong.

Misc.:

Is  natural hair professional?  Why or why not? I think the question is actually hairstyles that are or are not professional.  While a 3 foot purple afro with glitter may not exactly be professional, a TWA definitely is.

What do you think about others wanting to touch and or play in your hair (especially without permission)? If I know the person, I don’t mind; it’s happened a few times since I’ve been natural.  When I was relaxed, strangers would try that saying they couldn’t believe it wasn’t a weave.  And no, their hands never got to my head!

what do you guys think?

I was asked to make a post about what I use for my twists and twist-outs/braid outs and suggestions I have. Alrighty, here goes. First and foremost I don’t stick to any one thing. I like whatever I happen to have that works. With that being said here’s a list of some of the products I found really worked for me, I will also list according to style trying to be achieved.

Twists only (loose twists and/or small twists to be kept in for more than a week):

1. Afroveda Ginger Almond Butter
2. SheaAloe butter
3. Karen’s Body Beautiful Hair Butter

Twists only (loose, mean’t only for a few days):

1. Blended Beauty Happy Nappy Styles
2. Organic Roots Stimulator Twist and Lock Gel
3. Hamadi Shea Creme

Twists to become twist outs:

1. Blended Beauty Happy Nappy Styles plus one of the following:
2. ORS TnL Gel
3. ShineTime gel
4. Eco Styler Gel

Braid outs:

1. Karen’s Body Beautiful Hair Milk and Hair Butter used together
2. Eco styler gel added to hair sealed with shealoe butter
3. Any type of butter and then a gel of choice

Those are usually the products I play around with, my top fave being the Blended Beauty Happy Nappy and the Shealoe Butter and use of any good gel (preferebly natural like the Shine time gel).

Hope this helps. What do you usually use to get a nice twist, twist out or braid out style?

It’s been a while since I did twists or even tried anything fancy with a twisted style, so after doing my Kalpi Tone wash, I really wanted to try a nice rod twist set.

First I had my hair in these plaits a la deep conditioner:

Afterwards, I rinsed the deep conditioner out of my hair while still in the plaits. Then I got my plastic cap, my flexi-rods and went to work:

1. Each section take, small amounts of hair and two strand twist it.
2. I had about 3-5 twists per section/plait taken down.
3. Once a section is complete, rod set the entire section on a roller, or if too many, rod set about 2 or 3 to a rod.

I slept with it overnight and then took the rods out the next morning for this result:

You can apply at this time, coconut oil or anything to give extra shine. I didn’t add anything because my hair held all the sheen from the night before.

After that, I unravelled the twists and had a great twist out experience:

You can wear the hair just like you see above, for a great twist out, or if you like you can proceed with the below:

(Unfortunately that rain-thunderstorm weather continued) so humidity got to my hair and thus I decided to pin it up and I got this:

Products used to twist/set:

1. Blended Beauty Happy Nappy Styles
2. Shine Time Bath and Body gel

That’s it! I have to say I love how soft and fluffy it was and the curls came out cute too. :) Have you tried this style before? How did you like it?

Ayurvedics have long been my friend, I even stopped using it and have now proven, I love it even more. I tried KalpiTone for the first time and have to say it’s been a good try.

Preparation:

The box says to simply mix the powder with water to activate it’s amazing properties. However, I mixed it with warm water and then added some conditioner to the mix to get it to be moisturizing and easier to apply. Adding conditioners is optional and in no way required to make this successful.

I used about half the pack of 1 box, and as for the water, used enough till the mix was a smooth consistency paste.

Application and Removal:

1. To apply, I separated my hair in small sections starting from the back, forward.
2. Ideally braid each section, I didn’t this time around, but it helps to prevent the hair from tangling.
3. I applied the Kalpi Tone to each section and ensured it was covering the hair from root to tip.
4. After application, it is suggested to let it sit for about an hour, I ended up with mine in for about 2 hours or so, having ran errands. Just make sure that it dries to a nice almost dirt like feel.

Removal of the kalpi tone:

The rinsing is the most tedious, you will have to rinse it completely off to make sure that it doesn’t leave residue on the scalp/hair that can cause it to be dry in the long run.

1. I stood in the shower and did a rinse for about 2-3 minutes, then I went ahead and divided the hair into sections again, starting from the back.
2. I added a cheap conditioner (Suave Tropical Coconut) so that I could use it to get the excess paste off the hair and scalp. After I did the conditioner application, I did a warm rinse, then a cold rinse under the running water.
3. All in all, I made sure all the paste and powder remnants were completely off my scalp

Deep Condition:

1. I followed up with a deep conditioner to make sure my hair wasn’t going to be dried out or anything.
2. Deep conditioned for about 30 minutes to 1 hour. Mine ended up being left on for 3 hours, because I had to go run errands and got caught out in rain/thunder storm.
3. After the deep conditioner time is done, rinse with cool-cold water to close the cuticles
4. I then placed my hair back into sections of plaits.

Benefits of using kalpi tone:

Kalpi tone is a well known and used Ayurvedic powder, that offers the benefits of a clean and fresh scalp, stronger roots and hair, less breakage and shedding and overall lusturous hair. The powder is a unique blend of existing ayurvedic powders like Amla, Brahmi, and many more.

My review:

Absolutely loved it!! At first when I opened the box, it smelt almost like curry seasonings, that was interesting. But after making the paste, it was just a lighter spicy smell. Either way I didn’t mind it at all. The paste, I have to say gets messy and also seems to stain. My fingers were tinted in the crevices of my nails for a bit. Besides that, the application was easy, the paste adhere to my hair, the paste once dried became like dirt, all brown in color and just muddy looking. Rinsing it wasn’t too bad either. I enjoyed being able to get it out of my easily with rinsing and using the co-wash method after. Overall, my hair did feel stronger. I know this for fact, as the day before (that being the Thursday) I had washed my hair and sooo much shedding and breakage, mind you I did have my hair in tiny plaits for 4 weeks, but still the shedding to me was just too much and my hair didn’t feel alive. So the Friday I washed it with the Kalpi Tone, and needless to say, it solved that issue and even added moisture. I say, go get you some!!

Rating:

Clutch Mag launched their new sister site and so far, it’s amazing!! Coco & Creme

~*CocoaSublime*~ a site where I blog my poetry and writings, and just the randoms. Check it out, I’m sure you’ll enjoy.

How-to Bow Headbands by Mae of Natural Chica, who just celebrated a year being natural!! Congrats Mae! And I love this video!

Alrighty folks, stay blessed and stay Afroniquely You! Enjoy the rest of the weekend, any thoughts on the links shared?

After her BC :)

Enjoying the natural journey

Aisha is a Hairstylist of 17 years & loves her Fro-A-licious look! The picture is now-a-days, the right product combo makes a huge difference. She has even put a throwback circa 1977 “Afro-Puffs” pic of herself. The bottom left picture is of her “big blow-out” right after she took her Braidlocz out.

Kim and that  absolutely adorable bow headband

Ms. Locxurious Locs rocking her beautiful locs and that fabulous color to them

Mz.O rocking her natural at work

Nia’s journey from BC to Locs and adds “I went natural in April 2008 started my locks on November 2008. Cut them off in June 2010. Now rocking an intensive Red fro. Natural is so versatile. Iove it!”

Gorgeous head of hair

Naptural Living with Naturi Beauty

Ms. Shelley Chapman

Welcome beautiful! We’re so excited to launch this segment of the Afroniquely You Blog.  As always we love bringing you to the forum, up close and personal.  So myself, Shelley of Naturi Beauty and Sasha-Shae of Afroniquely You are partnering in our life-style series where you ask the questions and I share tips and tricks on not just natural beauty, but cooking and living too.  Some of you may already know that I’m a creative personal cheffin’, kitchen chemist beauty product makin’, bloggin’, lifestyle leader on all things beautiful, yummy and green. I’m always doing my part to keep this wondrous Universe up to par, Naturi Beauty style.  And I want to hear from you.  Every month, I’ll be answering questions on natural beauty and hair care, culinary how-tos and overall green living.  We’ll explore everything from what ingredients can stunt double as a dessert and a skin moisturizer to which every day household cleaning products can be replaced with baking soda and vinegar!  Yep, we’ll have you looking at ingredients in an entirely different way. E-mail me schapman@naturibeauty.com and let’s live napturally.

“I seem to suffer from dry hair no matter what season, do you have any suggestions to help moisturize natural hair during the summer?” –Atlanta, GA

I understand!  Typically, most people use the same hair products throughout the year and wonder why their hair does not perform the same.  Different climates, temperatures, hair-types and seasons call for different products. Period.  There are a few lucky sistahs that I know who can get away with it, but most of us (myself included) have to switch it up from time to time.  During the summer, a lot of us are very active hopping around from swimming pools, to outdoor workouts to cookouts to sun bathing to home and back out again.  We’re constantly exposing our hair to the likes of sweat, chlorine and the elements.  Just imagine all of the changes our beautiful locks are going through.  So to put our tresses at ease and make sure that through it all, she’s still shining and beaming like she was born to do, it’s important to take extra care using some of the following tips

1. Going to the pool?  Bring your favorite leave-in conditioner and let her marinate in your hair before you hop in! She’ll give you a sweet little barrier between toxin and tress.
2. A lil loco for coco? I am.  Coconut oil-She’s my mainstay during the summer and she loves to hang out on my ends, I’m sure she’ll love yours too.
3. Invest in a steamer.  Not the kind for sticky rice, those are great too. But you know the ol’ school lookin’ hooded bonnet type, that lets out hot steam instead of hot air! It’s the business and I hang out under there at least 30 minutes every weekend.
4. Smash Avocadoes! That’s right, one avocado (nice and fatty), a dollop of honey (attracts more moisture) and a blender.  Apply this paste to hair as a conditioner and smile when your hair shines.
5. Drink up.  Water. Water. More Water.

We hope you will all enjoy this new series as it is geared to bring information to the fore-front. What foods to eat, recipes to try, beauty tips and more that are natural, safe and healthy. And a big thank you to Shelley for doing this with me! Feel free to email Shelley any topics you have for this section at: schapman@naturibeauty.com or email me at afroniquely@gmail.com and we will be sure to address your questions.

What do you think about the new series?

Stay blessed and Afroniquely You!

1.  Aldo Schaul $15 Aldo.com, 2. Rose Stretch Bangle $25, TopShop.com, 3. ZC Vintage Newbury Cuff $170, Max&Chloe, 4. Asos Statement Bangle $22 , Asos.com, 5. Asos Engraved Cuff with Lace Ribbon $22, Asos.com, 6. White Wood Bangle $9, IvolveBeauty.com

Feeling light and carefree? Check this vintage inspired look. Dress up a tube-top dress with beads, an adorable belt, and a beautiful flair hat, for instant vintage appeal!

Inspired? Would you rock this look?

That’s right folks! Curl Harmony Celebrates 2 Fabulous years today, and in their kindness is offering everyone 20% including shipping and handling!! So jump on over to Curl Harmony today and don’t forget to enter coupon code: CH20 to save save save!

Stay blessed and Afroniquely You!

Hello one and all! I’m so excited to say that I was recently nominated for an AfroGlitz award, please help support through your votes.

Nominate for the following: Best Hair Blog, Most Influential, Best Site/Web Design

Also please continue to vote for Afroniquely You in the Black Weblog Awards here: Link

Vote for us in the following categories please:

Best Blog, Blog of the Year, Blog to Watch, Fashion and Beauty Blog, Best New Blog,

Thank you all for your support and please continue to vote!