SCALP HEALTH
Hiya,
I have been meaning to put up a post focused on Scalp health for a while, I have finally gotten the chance to put my thoughts together so here goes;

The Scalp is like the soil of your hair, crops depend on how conducive the soil is before they can grow. Let me take you back to Agric class for a minute; from what I can recall, the best soil for growing most crops is Loamy soil because it contains more nutrients and hummus and can retain more water and manure compared to sandy or clay soil. Likewise the scalp is the foundation of your hair, healthy hair depends on the state of ones scalp.

Beneath the scalp are over 100,000 hair follicles which are responsible for distributing oils and nutrients from root to tip.  Failure to care for your scalp can result in the following; thinning hair, dry brittle strands, slow hair growth, scalp dryness, itching and dandruff!!

Most people that have any of the above conditions affecting their hair fail to blame their scalp health; to them it's  either the fault of a hair style, stylist or  hair product!

So how can you ensure your scalp is healthy;

Keep it CLEAN; Not SQUEAKY CLEAN though! The first foundation for a healthy scalp is cleanliness. A good shampoo preferably without sulfates should do the job. But washing your hair 5 times so it is squeaky clean is not necessary for a clean scalp, depending on how dirty your hair is all you should need is one wash concentrating on your scalp, leave the ends alone because shampoo can be drying. If your hair is piled on with a lot of product you might need a CLARIFYING shampoo, it will break down all that product build up.

OIL IT ; Don't  GREASE IT!  There is a difference, oiling your hair with light natural oils versus petroleum based oils allow your scalp breath and be infused with nutrients  rather than be clogged from manufactured petroleum oil! Clogging means your scalp cannot breathe and thus hair growth will be stunted.

PROMOTE CIRCULATION; your scalp needs proper blood circulation to thrive and the best way to stimulate circulation is giving it a good massage at least once a day preferably after oiling it. Massaging is not only good for your scalp,it's a great way to relax and put in a nice workout for your arms.

AVOID PUTTING STRESS on your scalp through hair styles that will pull hair out of it. Once Alopecia( nearly irreversible hair loss) takes place it's another battle altogether, so allowing your hair to be held so tightly till bumps show up is the worst idea ever. If you are already suffering of Alopecia and baldness in parts of your hair you might consider getting a scalp analysis from a trichologist.  The Gentle Touch Hair Institute has trained trichologists who can use their technology to find out what's going on with your scalp.

I have come to the end of this post. Hopefully with these tips you can put your scalp in check, remember you only have one scalp so take care of it. Thanks for stopping by and catch you in my next post.

Ciao,
Dabs

Hiya,
Can you believe it, the year is almost over!!!Welcome to Sweet November Y'all!! Wishing you all things sweet!!!Well I hope all my hair tips and tricks have been helpful to you my dear readers, I will keep coming back here as often as I can to let you in on simple hair secrets to keep your hair growing longer and stronger cuz believe it or not, Naija hair can grow o!!!

This time around I have come up with a post focused on getting the ends of your hair healthy and strong. As you all should know, the ends of your hair are the oldest part of your hair, if you have long hair your ends sometimes can be over three years old that is why you must look after them and prevent them from breaking off and getting limp and weak if you are to record any kind of hair growth progress. The BAGGING method is a great way to focus on your hair ends, infusing them with the needed oil and conditioning treatments they might be lacking due to their age. Look at your ends like you look at your grandma, if you are travelling with her and wanna get off the plane, do you shove right past her and leave her to wobble down the plane stairs not caring if she falls down or gets hurt? I'm guessing not, rather you would hold her hand and make sure you carefully usher her down the plane step by step, going at her own pace. That's the same way you should treat your ends! you should give them the most attention in whatever treatment you do to your hair. Work your way up gently till you get to your young and agile roots!!

Ok Ok enough rambling already, let me show you how to bag your ends!!
WHAT YOU WILL NEED;
A Cellophane Bag(Roll down the mouth)
AND  Your collection of hair oils and conditioner (optional);
Simply pour your oils and conditioner if you want in the cellophane bag;
Mix the oils in the bag or you could apply the oils directly to the ends of your hair which should be held in a ponytail. Bag your ends with the cellophane bag and its contents(if you choose to pour them in the bag) and MASSAGE your ends!!
Secure the Cellophane bag round the ponytail with a clip if you have to;
Leave your bagged up ends over night, this will allow your ends soak up all the oil and conditioner giving it the needed attention and strength to withstand breakage and split ends. This method will NOT mend split ends but if done regularly, it can prevent you from having more split ends!

Why the Cellophane bag? The cellophane bag serves the same purpose as your shower cap in hair treatments, it prevents air from getting into your ends and drying them out but rather creates heat at the ends of your hair thereby allowing your hair shaft to open up and absorb all the oils. You can Bag your ends as a Preepoo treatment Step and then Co-Wash after you take em out. Either way, your ends will thank you for bagging them!!

Hope this post is helpful!! I do not want to believe I and my sisters are the only Naija girls with growing hair oh!! so please if you have before and after pics of your hair since you started your hair journey please send them to the facebook page 'Naija hair can grow' and lets send a message to all those Naija gals who have given up on their natural hair abilities. I'm expecting your feed back. Thanks for stopping by!!


xoxo
Dabs!!

One of the oldest most common  but also most abused hair practices in Naija is getting a relaxer to relax your roots. Ive seen women from all walks of life use and abuse relaxers! From the woman selling bread that asked her friend to apply it on her head while she waits hours for someone to buy her bread to the mother of a new born baby nursing her child, relaxer on her hair and hands, selling credit! Even those who go to so called salons fall victim of this abuse especially with stylists that refuse to read the instructions on relaxer packs and go ahead and relax their client's hair to the tips or tug and pull the hair with the smallest comb ever or fail to time the relaxing process until lumps of hair fall out.

Most of us fail to realize that the relaxer is a chemical that irreversibly straightens the curl pattern of our hair by loosening the protein bonds of our hair, its an intrusive procedure that literally changes our hair texture for good and therefore should be done with great care. Unfortunately, a lot of  Naija babes don't see the relaxer for what it truly is; I for one before I started my hair journey, viewed the relaxer as my Hair Messiah. To me, my hair was only presentable if it was freshly relaxed and all the sides of my hair sleek, once I noticed those darn new grown tightly curled roots, I'd not hesitate to get my hair relaxed ASAP! As a result, I got a relaxer every month! that's 12 relaxer treatments in a year when our hair grows an average of 1/2 an inch every month; thus I put my hair through all that stress for just 1/2 an inch of it to get straightened while I inevitably overlapped the already relaxed strands  thereby weakening them further! Ridiculous!!

Oh well, I know better now and of course I'm gonna share with you how to relax Naija hair, 'Naija Hair Can Grow Style'.
First off, you must prepare your hair at least a week prior to your relaxer day for the harshness of the chemical process. How? Well I'll start by pointing out that one of the dire effects your hair suffers from relaxing it is dryness. The relaxer strips your hair of moisture as it breaks down those bonds to make it straight, so if your are a good student of mine, you'd know where I'm heading with this. Well a week before I relax my hair I do a Deep Conditioning protein treatment either with a ready made deep conditioner like Organics Cholesterol Tea Tree Oil below, Should not cost more than N1000.
   OR  I mix my own deep conditioning protein treatment with the following; An egg, Some conditioner, some oils and some mayonnaise(which is actually eggs and oil). See picture below


 I actually prefer making my own treatment because I have the luxury to put more conditioner to soften my hair if I choose. I apply either mixture on my hair like I would a relaxer though focusing on my ends and then pop on a plastic bag over my head and then a shower cap over the bag; (don't like using a shower cap directly because of the residue that is left on it). The next step is to stay under my hooded dryer below for at least 30mins; Got this dryer recently from Game at The Palms, Lekki for N13,000
OR before I had a dryer, Id go to a salon near by, shower cap on head covered with a scarf and stay under their hooded dryer for at least 30mins and get my hair washed out OR if I cannot be bothered to go any where, sometimes Id just go about my business at home for at least an hour giving it more time to condition since there is no heat involved. After the time is up, give your hair a wash(without shampoo if you don't mind, because shampoos especially those with sulphates will strip off your hair of the oil and moisture we are trying to preserve. When all that goo is off from your hair, then please 'air dry' your hair because blow drying will dry out your hair and again we are trying to prevent that.

Fast forward to Relaxer Day, the next decision you have to make is, What type of relaxer to use. There are two main type of relaxers. Those with 'Lye' and those without 'Lye'. Forget brands, all relaxers are the same! They either have Lye or they don't. What is Lye? Have you bothered to find out? Well According to www.skinbiology.com, Lye Relaxers contain Sodium Hydroxide which is the strongest principal chemical with the most lasting results for straightening hair; No Lye relaxers on the other hand are not necessarily chemical free, they contain Guanidine Hydroxide, another chemical with a lower PH level, used to straighten hair. Most Relaxers in Boxes containing an activator that is mixed into the relaxer are No Lye relaxers like the one below









While Lye Relaxers are most times without a box because there is nothing to mix to activate them like the Herba Rich Relaxer Below;They are also cheaper by a few box and can be used more than once. This relaxer went for N800, while the One above is about N1500









I'm sure you are wondering where I am going with all this, well hold your horses, I am going somewhere. You see these two types of relaxers have different effects on our hair. I personally can testify to the fact that Lye relaxers do not straighten the hair as well as No Lye relaxers, However while they are said to be harsher on your scalp during the relaxing process, they do not leave the mineral deposits that No Lye relaxers leave causing the hair to be dry, dull and brittle. So in the long run, Lye relaxers are said to be better for your hair. I would therefore recommend a Lye relaxer for hair that is limp and in need of some body. To me all relaxers itch after some time so the whole argument that No Lye relaxers are not harsh on the scalp and thus do not cause itching does not fly with me. I would therefore not use a No Lye relaxer solely based on that argument. However,  if I say I'm straightening my hair, I want it Straight! So if you have healthy hair please use the No Lye relaxer for straighter results, but if you want to just loosen your curl pattern use a Lye relaxer or use a No Lye relaxer with a reduced PH level i.e a mild relaxer instead of a normal or super relaxer. The dryness and dullness complained about from using a No Lye relaxer is taken care of below.

When you have made the decision as to the relaxer you want to use, the next step is to prep your ends. When you relax your hair you need your ends to be moisturized so that as you part and work your way through your roots, the ends do not get all tangled. I moisturize my ends with Hair Conditioner on relaxer day. Then I use some oil or petroleum jelly across my nape and temple and over my ears; you know the drill!! Then I put on a timer, stick to the time on the instruction sheet! trust me every time I have overstayed, I have regretted because of the long strands of my hair that fall out due to over processing.  After the relaxer has been applied to ONLY THE NEW GROWN ROOTS see pic below;











 The next MOST IMPORTANT final step as you go to get your hair washed out is to COAT YOUR ENDS WITH OIL. Why? The good students once again will know that the oil which does not dissolve will prevent the relaxer that is being washed out from penetrating the hair shaft and further processing your already relaxed ends.Wash with hot water first to get the relaxer out and then make sure to wash thoroughly with neutralizing shampoo and then condition, rinse out with luke warm water and finally splash some cold water on your hair if you can bear to, so you seal up the cuticles and give it some shine :)

If you follow these simple steps at least every 8weeks( please don't be like I was, relax your hair when you actually have roots to relax ), you will see an improvement in the quality of your relaxed hair. Also, at least a  week after you relax your hair, repeat the deep conditioning protein treatment to strengthen the hair. I know very few Naija babes relax their hair themselves, so for those of you who don't you can write these tips down or print them out and insist your stylist does the right thing, its your hair, you should have paramount say, do not let some stylist who doesn't care mess it up!!
And for all of you out there trying to get away from relaxers or 'creamy crack' as I've heard its called these days, I am going to guide you through transitioning to natural hair. Please do not think transitioning is the answer to your hair troubles, Get healthy hair first and then we will take it from there okay!! Hang in here with me, drop a message, comment and Ill gladly respond!!

Stop By soon!
Dabs

Hiya,
As you must know, in every society there must be a common language of communication that members of that society understand and can translate. Well its no different in the black hair society  and to care for your hair you must understand effectively the various terminologies out there concerning your hair! I also will be using these terms quite frequently in their abbreviated form and so you understand what I'm saying, its best I introduce these terms to you right away!

HAIR LENGTH
So your hair is relaxed but what is the length of your hair and what is your goal length?

Most Naija babes are at Chin length hair (CL) and with CL hair the most common look is a bob and it will look good if your ends are well trimmed ala Rihanna in the picture below

The next recognized hair length is Neck length (NL) or Shoulder length (SL). This is most Naija babes definition of 'Long hair'! To them, if you can feel your hair on your neck mehn that's long hair!lol! and to be honest if your hair can get to this length without u caring for it then you have the POTENTIAL for long hair!Below is a picture of me at NL/ SL!

 The next Hair Length which most Naija babes have resolved never to reach because of bad hair practices is, Arm Pit length (APL). This is when your hair can comfortably rest on your back up to your arm pit and if you bring your hair forward you can tuck a little of your hair under your arm pit. This is a realistic goal to have and let me tell you when u have hair that is healthy at that length, you don't need to go and buy 12inch or 14inch packs of hair when you have your very own growing from your scalp. As you can see in the picture below, this lady has her hair in a graduated hair cut and most of the ends of her hair are APL!

 Bra Strap Length (BSL) is next and as the name implies, its hair that reaches your bra strap! Its my present goal at the moment as I have already gotten to APL but for my trim which was graduated also and has set me back a few inches! I shall be BSL by December! Say Amen to that!!!! AMEN OHHHH! Below is a picture of a lady with BSL hair;


Now this  next length is for the Naija Babe who wants to look like an Indian babe!! Its the Waist Length ( WL)! Trust me if you have hair at this length in Naija don't be surprised if random people dig their fingers in your hair searching for weave tracks!lol, happens to me at APL!! and please don't be upset if you start hearing rumors that you have a marine spirit!! In all, if its your goal, trust me when I say it is achievable of course not as quickly as it is for you to get that 24inch Indian weave on your head! You'l need time and patience!

Below is Shima, she is African American and as you can see her hair was 'nappy' as a kid just like any kid from African descent, as she grew older in the second picture her hair is basic and should be about SL or APL but then she started her hair journey and aimed for WL hair and viola!! In doubt? visit her website; www.shimahair.com. She claims she used her specially formulated oils and methods to grow her hair from SL to WL in 10months!!! I strongly doubt that part of the gist sha but I do know its her hair for sure!Basic good hair practices and you too could be the next Shima!