Hiya Ladies,
Today is my birthday!!! and I am 30 years old!!! 30?!! When did I grow up?!! Oh how humbled I am to be celebrating this age!!! I know many who lost their lives before this age or are alive but having nothing much to live for!!! I am humbled that I am here today!!! I couldn't sleep last night, I restlessly waited till the clock turned 12 midnight and I got so emotional and began to cry!! All I could think of is how grateful I am to be alive and have all that I have and all the things God has seen me through!! God is good you all!!!



Since I'm now an old lady (ahem), let me take the time out to share some 30 valuable lessons and conclusions I have come up to from experiences in my twenties!! Sit back and enjoy!!



Lessons on Faith & Marriage...

1.The word of God is powerful- Have you ever been going through a tough time and just decided to open the bible to read a verse and the verse your eyes drift to speaks directly to the issue you are facing and brings you closure like never before!! The word of God is dependable and it only takes faith for you see it's powerful effects in your life!!



 15.Dream big early- a dream is not your reality, so you can make it as huge and as seemingly unattainable as you want. Do this early in life and you will find that as you grow older, you will have time to reshape your dreams and build on them. Don't live in regret because you failed to dream big enough!!


16. A smile works wonders- When you meet people and the first thing you do is smile, you pull down any walls they might have up and even if they don't smile back, best believe that joy is infectious and you have left them feeling better than before, even slightly.

17. Learning never stops- never ever!! There's an opportunity to learn something every day of your life!!

MY ROOTS AFTER TEXLAX

Before Trim

Hiya,
So it's been a while since I shared a funny story here and I was reminded of this particular incident while browsing Instagram and seeing ladies with pierced noses.

source

So yeah there was a time I wore a nose ring...I was in Uni and my sister and I had just come back from summer holiday in the UK, while on holiday we were completely mesmerized by all the Indian girls spotting tiny nose rings with cute little shinny stones, we'd see a group of them on the tube and just be staring in admiration. We made the decision that when we got back to school in Ghana we had to get nose piercings and we were going to make it our things as sisters, after all we both wore the same gold rings my Mum had given us on each of our convocations, so this will be just that added sisterly thing we do!

My sister went first, she called and told me she was at a salon while I was in class and by evening she had come back to the dorm with a pink little stoned nose ring in her nose, feeling super fly!! I was so excited! I couldn't wait to get mine done the next day. 

Off we went the next day! Got to the salon, they took us to the back cordoned off by a curtain and out came an earring gun!! 'Don't tell me that's what you are using to pierce the hole in my nose!' I screamed! My sister was like Oju relax!! So I did and closed my eyes. 



*Prick*- I screamed! My nose had been pierced and I had tears running down my eyes from the shocking pain though I wasn't crying! My sister was grinning from ear to ear then handed me a mirror to look at my nose, I looked at it and my face dropped! 

Why is there a massive gold stud on my nose?! You know the ones used to open baby's ears!! It was then my sister deemed fit to tell me that they will need to change the gold stud right away to the smaller dainty one she had on, issue was my nose was throbbing in pain and there was no way I was going to let anyone touch it!!

So I came up with the smart idea of taking the small dainty nose ring to the dorm so I could exchange it later on by myself! Got to the dorm which was mixed gendered so there were guys and girls everywhere at the entrance, on the hallways, everywhere!! I was not about to pass them with a massive gold stud on my nose, so I went into incognito mode, used my hair to cover my face, bowed my head down and walked awkwardly as fast as I could to our room! Once I got there, the struggle began! 




Taking out the gold massive stud was easy, like my nose was thanking me for releasing it, however putting the tiny stud was hell. I tried everything I could to put this tiny stud in without causing more pain, no way! The hole was bleeding, I was in pain as the stud was refusing to completely go through the hole, kept trying no way! 

Finally I was able to stick that little stud in enough so at least the tip could pass through the inside of my nose and then I went to bed quite depressed actually, filled with frustration to the amusement of my sister and room mates! All this pain just for a nose ring! 

Ladies guess what happened the next morning?! I woke up and felt my face, my nose to be exact! The nose ring was no where to be found!!  Don't know how I slept, maybe I was tossing around in my sleep from all the self inflicted pain! Anyways, I couldn't believe that after all I had put myself through the day before there was no ring in sight!!!

I checked everywhere, under my bed, my closet area, study table, bed sheets, pillow...that nose ring had disappeared!! So there I was with a hole in my nose(not too noticeable, thankfully but still!!) and the only option was going through that torture of putting another nose ring into the hole and reliving that awful experience from the day before! After mind processing all of that, I decided nope, no way!! No nose ring for Dabs!! The hole will have to heal and close up on its own!! 'Dabs just forget this incident ever happened!'.

And I did until one random day weeks later, I was sweeping my room and I look at the gathered dirt and what do I find glistening in it, the pink studded nose ring I looked everywhere for!! I picked it up and proceeded to give it the longest hisssss ever, threw it back in the dirt and trashed it!

As for my sister, she went on to wear her nose ring off and on for about a year and randomly stopped wearing it all together!! 

Well that's just a little story from my youthful exuberant years, we all went through that phase, when you at least had to try out some type of trend, this story and the time I tried colored contacts stick out the most when I think back on those times but don't ask me to tell you about the contacts story! Too painful to relive! LOL

Have a great week ladies!  I made another hair tutorial, this one is on how to make Goddess Faux Locs!!


Xxx
Dabs

Hiya,
As per usual post schedule I'm back with another post!! I'm also back in naija for those that follow me on Instagram  you know this because on Friday, I showed up unannounced and snuck up on my staff and recorded them  welcoming me like a stranger because I had a blonde wig on....They were taking two appointments, one I was aware of, thanks so much for the continued patronage Asma'u, the other was a referral ironically from another salon. I also met the new intern training with us in full traditional regalia like she was going for a wedding and was wearing their aseobi...where is your uniform I asked,  my manager proceeded to tell me that the lady said she was too hot to wear the uniform over her 'aseobi'....hmmmm duhhh!! and that she didn't bring trousers to pair with the uniform....my manager who I was addressing had her baby snug on her back with a wrapper....this is after clear instructions to find a day care ASAP just before I left and in the interim have a baby mobile at the spare room of the salon for the baby to stay instead of on the salon floor....

To the average stylist, this type of behavior is absolutely normal, 'Afterall the customer came to do hair not to look at what I'm wearing'...but you my customers, I know you expect what I expect and that is professionalism at its highest standard...therein lies my battle...Leaving my salon in the care of these ladies for two months I was away was honestly one of the hardest decisions I had to make before I left,  the most I had left them for was two weeks in the past and every day at all times I was calling and keeping tabs....this time with two active boys and a new born on the way things would be a lot different, on several occasions I considered closing down till I returned but then this would be the ultimate test,a business that cannot run on it's own without the owner there all the time cannot thrive and be successful, so with all the social media,BBM, whatsapp links set up for easy communication with my staff, I set off on my journey.


One month in, there were different hiccups here and there that I know would have been handled better with me around, the figures were showing that we were slacking, we weren't hearing as much from our loyal clients and I was discouraged....maybe I should have gone with my gut feeling and closed down the hub till my return...by month two I was hatching various plans, sent a few spies(close pals) to check on the hub and the impression I was left with was 'They are just getting by'.

As I'm very passionate about Haircare/natural beauty remedies as a whole that my ideas consume me sometimes and get me giddy with excitement, I refuse to be discouraged, I've had over two months to brood, re-strategize and reprogram and it's about to go down!! After the meeting with my staff, I can already tell who will survive and who needs to exit and I'm watching closely because whether they like it or not, we are getting all the customers they chased BACK?!!

Have you come by the hub and left less than satisfied? Ever? Please give us one more shot in the coming months, you can trust I'm pulling out all the stops, our gen situation has been fixed so no more heat moving forward(palm in face), that bathroom we converted to a shampoo room is getting a complete overhaul this week(other palm in face),the menu has been redone and will be visible for customers to read and enjoy, we are expanding our treatment offerings at the hair steam bar- think coffee grinds and fresh fruits...and I'm introducing a spanking new service area to the hub in the way of a natural nails and feet spa(now this I'm super excited about)....After I am done at the hub I know you who dumped us will reconsider...truth is my customer base is largely from here...didn't grow up or school in Lagos, I'm no social butterfly who knows this or that person with social clout, my target is not celebrities even though they are always welcome, you my readers who began this journey with me, who preach this Naija Hair Can Grow message will always be my target and it is my humble plea that you come back to us and we will surely treat you right...so what you say?!!

Please follow us on Facebook/Instagram @savvychichairbeautyhub, Twitter- @hairbeautyhub to keep tabs with all that we have to offer...Right now we are giving out 50% discounts to loyal customers who refer a friend to the hub...redeemable after the friend's visit and we have a very actively rewarding loyalty program that some of you will attest to and have benefitted from. 

Still on topic, business owners out there, any ideas on how I can keep my staff constantly motivated? So they buy into my vision...(they are skillful and I don't have a problem with them when it's time to gist or share chops, I have a great rapport with them but it's the professionalism that is largely lacking) please share any tips below.

For you thinking nawah oh, see how Dabs dey plead! LOL, well my sister there is no pride in business oh and I'm not too big to admit flaws...most importantly, I'm committed to fixing them.

Have a blessed week...

Thanks for stopping by,
Dabs

Hiya,
As promised, I'm back with my Sunday post even though where I am at it's barely ten minutes to go before Monday, at least I kept my promise :)

Anyways,  I went to the hair shop I talked about...yay!! Whipped out google maps and found my way there-




To my dismay, the one product that took me there i.e The caramel hair treatment by Etae (thank Instagram for feeding my product junkie appetite) was out of stock!! So I just looked through the shelves....




I fell in love with the salon space!! Clean. White. Crisp!! 





Salon goals right there if my staff will let me be great...speaking of staff...the receptionist at Tendrils was so well put together, look at her hairstyle...





One look at her and you will know she works in the hair industry or at least cares for her hair!

We got talking and I asked her about her colored hair, wanted to know how she maintains it and then she pointed to Olaplex...she said it's a three step treatment used to protect from breakage after chemical processes, she said she colors her hair and has been doing so for ages but thanks to the Olaplex treatment it stays healthy....the step three which was right there was the home care treatment to be used once a week, you know I was not about to walk out of that store without Olaplex after hearing such a review from someone with full gorgeous hair who has been natural for nine years and works at a natural hair care company?!! Dropped the Camille rose coconut water moisturizer I was settling for and swapped with Olaplex, got home, went online to read reviews and was pleased to see people giving this stuff five stars, saying all these wonderful things...



I'll give it till my next touch up and the verdict will be in about whether a or not this stuff works because...1. I have never spent $31 on just one product ever-she called the price after selling me the dream Kai!! 2. My hair is SHEDDING- POST PARTUM shedding!!!(yes I am screaming!!) so I need all the help I can get!


If you have been pregnant you can relate to how uneasy it is to see long strands of your hair falling off and leaving with your comb after baby came...since it's my third time around I'm trying to stay calm and just stick to my regimen- help me Lord....but hey the hair you will be loosing is LONG and from the roots not short broken hair....that my friend is not pregnancy or post partum's fault!!

Finally, let's Get Skintimate, courtesy my Sister Mina's new blog....loving her first post Titled Give your skin some TLC this Valentine's Day....read, enjoy and if you need help in the skin care dept....my Sister Doc is dedicating time from her busy schedule to share skin care tips so follow the blog....here's an excerpt.....


Continue Here...GETTINGSKINTIMATE.COM


Till next time thanks as always for stopping by!

Xxx
Dabs