My Dream Hair Shopping List

Just thought I would jot down my dream hair shopping list, the stuff I would buy all the

time if I could *sigh* I suppose a girl can dream:

All I want for Christmas!!!

Pre Shampoo

Jamaican Black Castor Oil - £10 - £15 

PhytoNectar Oil Pre-Shampoo - £13.00

Shampoo

Phytospecific Vital Force Shampoo - £14.00

Deep Conditioners

Phytospecific Intense Nutrition Mask - £19.00

Phytospecific Vital Force Creme Bath - £17.99

Moisturising Conditioners

PhytoJojoba Intense Hydrating Mask - £16.50

Joico K-Pak Intense Hydrator - £12.99

Serum and Reconstuctor

Joico K-Pak Deep Penetrating Reconstructor - £14.95

Elasta QP Breakage Control Serum - £5.99

Daily Moisturisers

Elasta QP Mango Butter Moisturiser - £4.99

Mixed Chicks Leave in Conditioner - £12.99

Anita Grant's Whipped Butter - £5.75

Hair Tools

Hooded Hair Dryer - £35.00

Toni and Guy Ionic Moisture Lock Afro Dryer - £38.99

Toni and Guy Moisture Lock Afro Straightener - £58.69

Relaxer

Phyto Specific Phytorelaxer Index 1 - £32.50

* If you have the option to choose an Amazon Seller my preferred Seller is Bath&Unwind - see my favourite sellers list in Sites I Recommend

*MustHaveDirect.com is the place I like to go to when I need to treat myself, they are quite expensive, but actually have a section for 'afrocaribbean' hair and the majority of the products I need for a good price.

*AfroTherapy is my favourit online hair store with a hair advisor.

Is there anything you would have added, or something you think works better for you

Let us know!

Embrace Your Inner AfroDeity!

Leilu

Following on from my original post on protective styles here are some more styles that I am loving:

Twisted canerows another alternative look for those who love canerows- other similar looks on Essence Magazine's website

Alicia Keys here rocking a beautiful single canerow, tips on how to do this style here

This is not really a protective style but I thought a similar look could be achieved with a braid out.

* A Braid out can be achieved by undoing canerows carefully and leaving loose*

Hope you like these as much as I do

Embrace Your Inner AfroDeity

Leilu

At present as my hair is quite short(shoulder length) I keep it twisted up at the back so that I don't get breakage from my ends rubbing on the cotton collar of any of my shirts. Having it up also means that the moisture is kept in for a little longer and any environmental damage is less.

Unfortunately, having the same hair style everyday, can get a little boring, so I have been reseasrching simple protective styles, that dont require alot of work or maintenance

I am absolutely loving this style and will be trying it in the morning, if it works out, I will post pics. Seems like th kind of style you could keep in for a few days as long as it was covered up overnight. Have you tried this and want to share your pics? Let me know!

The headband is now in fashion, and I try different styles and colours to stop feeling bored with my hair. It is simple and doesnt require lots of styling in the morning and you can change the way you wear the hair behind the headband to suit you.

Not mt favourite thing in the world, but some swear by what are called half wigs. I can understand why some would use these due in part to the ease of addition and removal. They are attached by combs or clips and sit on top of your hair. They are easily removable on a daily basis and are probably good when you are having that 'bad hair day'! Althought they do protect your hair, they are extensions so it is up to the wearer to decide if they are comfortable with this style.

My favourite canerows. Although they initially do take up a lot of time, they can stay in for up to 2 weeks if done correctly, What I love about canerows is that you don't have to do the whole head and they are versatile. Once done they keep the moisture in and a light moisturising spray every so often should keep the hair supple.

Look out for part two of this post

Embrace Your Inner AfroDeity!

Leilu

Still looking for your JBCO fix in the UK
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Can't wait for the UK release? Win Tickets to See Chris Rocks 'Good Hair'

Catch a Vibe is celebrating their collaboration with the bfm Film Festival (6-10 Nov), and are offering one pair of tickets to the sold-out screening of:

Good Hair @ BFI Southbank, Fri 6 Nov, 8.45pm. Followed by a Q&A and a DJ night.

To win, answer that simple question: who is the guest at the Q&A session?
Check the festival website for more info: http://www.bfmmedia.com/festival/good-hair.html

Send your answer to: competitions@catchavibe.co.uk with Good Hair in the subject of the email

Competition ends Monday 2 November, 7pm

Click Here for Info

And for those of you who don't think that black hair is a laughing matter and want a serious documentary, check out My Nappy Roots for a more seroius take on this very much debated topic.

Embrace Your Inner AfroDeity!

Leilu

Elasta QP mango Butter

Moisturising Butters of Mango and Cocoa produce this intensely rich thermal protecting treatment. Olive and coconut oils target dry ends and help prevent damage.

Ingredients: Aqua(purified water), squalane(olive oil derived), caprylic/capric triglyceride(coconut oil derived), peg-75 lanolin, behntrimonium methosulfate, hexadecanol, cetearyl alcohol, ceterareth-20, dimethicone, phenyl trimethicone, mangifera indica (MANG0) seed butter, theobroma cacao (COCOA) seed butter, hydrolyzed silk, serica, methylparaben, propylparaben, butylparaben, fragrance, fd&c yellow no.5 (CI 19140)

Elasta QP - DPR 11

11 Plant extracts, essential oils and vitamins penetrate hair. Moisturizing emollients renew moisture depleted hair, giving strength and elasticity. Peach Blossom Oil and Vitamin E soothe the scalp.

Ingredients: Chamomilla Recutita (Matricaria) Extract, Urtica Dioica (Nettle) Extract, Melissa Officinalis (Balm Mint) Leaf Oil, Tussilago Farfara (Coltsfoot) Flower Extract, Equisetum Arvense Extract, Aesculus Hippocasyanum (Horse Chestnut) Extract, Rosemarinus Officinalis (Rosemary) Leaf Extract, Salvia Officinalis (Sage) Leaf Extract in Purified Water/Aqua, PetrolatumCetyle Alcohol, Centrimonium Chloride, Dimethicone, Tocopheryl Acetate, Hydroxypropyl trimonium Chloride, Laurus Nobblis Oil, Citrus Aurantium Dulcis (Orange) Oil, Neroli Oil, Ribes Nigrum (Black Currant)

Verdict:

I am loving both of these and have incorporated them both into my regime, especially now in the winter where my ends feel so dry, the Mango Butter is so light and non greasy. The DPR 11 give my hair the moisture that it needs. I use the Mango Butter twice daily to moisturise and the DPR 11 once a week as my moisture condition, however as I still am not using heat, I put on my 'plastic cap' and leave on for an hour or so.

Price:

Not an expensive range either, but I did find it difficult to source these.

Mango Butter:£4.99

DPR-11:£5.99

Where to Buy:

try Roots and Sculpture

Let me know if you have tried these and if your experience is similar.

Embrace Your Inner AfroDeity!

Leilu

After years of only having a very very small proportion of its hair straighteners and blow dryers aimed at those of us who are 'women of colour'. This year Argos catalogue has released a bumper list of products that will work with our type of hair.

All the products have 'ionic technology' which helps lock moisture into the hair. The specifically named Toni and Guy Ionic moisture Lock Afro Dryer was the first to catch my eye, as it comes with 'wide tooth pik' attachment.

After years of having to go to specialist stores to get these type of items and as the last five years having the Wahl Power Pik as the only item you can get from Argos, you can now feast your eyes on whole new range of products especially designed for dry, curly and afro hair.

All I an say is YAY!!!!!, I just have to pop down to my high street and purchase all I need, no more trips to London, Milton Keynes or Birmingham.

What can you get :

• Shine Therapy 2000W Hair Dryer (£48.75) and 230 degree straightener(£68.49) Ionic and infused with Vitamins A,D,E and avocado oil - page 1045
• Toni and Guy Ionic Moisturise Lock Afro Dryer- with pik (£38.90) and Straightener(£58.69) - page 1053
• Sassoon Solutions dryer with pik (£43.99) Ionic and Straightener (£68.99) with setteings for thick/curly hair and setting for Damaged and syntheic hair - page 1055
• Carmen Hair Straight and Hydrate Ionic LED Straightener(£21.49), Ceramic Ionic Dryer (£16.59) and Carmen Thermal Rollers (£34.25) - page 1055
• Wahl Power Pik(£24.45) with hood attachment with dryer - page 1057

Also dryers and straighteners on page 1051 from Collinge and Nutriheat which look promising.

I am surely looking forward to see what next years selection from Argos brings, but it seems that even big high street stores like Argos and hairdressers like Toni and Guy can no longer ignore our existence.

So what do you think to that ? Let us know!

Embrace Your Inner AfroDeity!

Leilu

The European Premiere of Chris Rock's 'Good Hair' at the BFM International Film Festival

in London. The date has been set for the 6th of November 2009 at 8:45.

Tickets for the premiere are already sold out, Not sure how many of you will be going to

cinema to see this, but I will be calmly awaiting the DVD.

I will be posting screenings and available dates here.

As soon as I know them you'll know them. No cinema release date for the UK yet as far as

I know

Film Summary:

Produced and narrated by Chris Rock, the award-winning documentary 'Good Hair' is an attempt by the world-famous comedian to answer a seemingly innocent question asked by his 4-year-old daughter: 'How come I don't have good hair?' Good hair being 'white hair', long, shiny and straight, as opposed to natural African hair, which is coarse and allegedly impossible to manage.

Trailer:

Links:

Visit London

Chris Rock's Good Hair Trailer

Info on Movie and Release Dates

I'm sure you've all heard it before, comments from friends and family that start something like this:

'Black people hair can't grow'

'Oh, she's probably mixed race that's why her hair so long'

'That's a weave, I'm sure'

I'd like to tell you that every black woman you see with long hair, spent lots of time and effort growing her hair. Perhaps not, but that doesn't mean it cant be done, that doesn't mean that you too cannot have hair that you are proud of. I don't only mean those of us with relaxed hair, but whether it be dreads, braids, relaxed or natural , you too can have hair that is manageable and that you love.

The most important thing is educating yourself on what is good for your type of hair. There are many ways of going about this from getting a full hair health report from some companies that will take a strand of your hair and examine it under a microscope to getting your info from the internet. The internet is a wonderful tool, but as well as a lot of information, there is also a lot of misinformation, so be careful of your sources.

Others whose journeys I've followed and found inspiration to carry on when I too thought that it could be done:

Sunshyne @ Hairliciousinc.com

K.I.S.S.

The Anti Hair Slave

Rantings of a Creole Princess

Who are your hair icons?? Do you think it can't be done? or have you done it?

Let us know your thoughts here

Embrace your Inner AfroDeity!

Leilu