Hi beautiful people...
Hope you are enjoying the winter or harmattan breeze??
Guess what guys, this is my 50th post, yippee. Its been so much fun blogging and interacting with you beautiful people. Thanks so much for taking out time to read, share and comment on my posts. You know I love y'all so much. Cheers to my next 50 posts. Stay tuned guys...

My look - I love maxi skirts and gowns, they are so comfy

On Saturday, I attended the Naturals in the CITY meetup and this was the 13th edition. I can't believe I missed 12 editions of this awesome event, like where have I been seriously. Anyways its better late than never right, lol. I had fun meeting and networking with fellow bloggers, I finally met Oyime, Ekene of The kink and I and Ebun. I got there quite early with my friend and namesake, Chimnomso.

Chimnomso and her curly puff

Oyime and I

Ms. Nkechi of Real hair republic. She's super nice and friendly. We had a good laugh together. I bought a 32oz jar of organic castor oil from her at an incredibly affordable price, I was super excited.

The theme of the meetup was 'Going Organic'. I'd be sharing a bit of what I learnt from the speakers.

Mr Ezenwa Onwegbenu of Creative Juices

He spoke on Nutrition and fertiity. We are a product of what we ingest. Eating food with little or no nutrients such as industrialized, canned food and junks would produce weak organs which would be susceptible to infections. We can clean our system by drinking lime water, fresh fruits and vegetable juices. Avoid refined sugar cause it contributes to Candida infections and can add fat to our organs which is dangerous. Recommended oil for cooking are palm oil and coconut oil amongst few others.

Mrs Vanessa Banigo. She is so pretty and her hair looked really healthy and full.

She talked about her hair journey and regimen. She's 3 years natural and she decided to go natural because the routine of relaxing and maintainance became a burden to her. Her hair never grew past her shoulders and it was always breaking. She faced lot of critics and funny looks at the beginning but now she has inspired many others to go natural. Her hair is around bra strap length now and her weekly regimen is rather simple. She prepoos with coconut oil, wash with sulphate free shampoo, section hair in twists to prevent tangles and deep conditions. Then she uses Apple cider vinegar(ACV)  to rinse off the deep conditioner and finally rinse out with cold water.

Sisimi blog of Ope farms.

She spoke about Organic farming. She left an oil and gas field to start her farm. She spent over a year learning how to farm from other farmers. Are you aware that most of the farm products sold in the market are filled with toxic chemicals in form of pesticides and they are toxic to our health?? We can not keep depending on what we buy to stay healthy. We need to learn how to farm, plant something. If we don't find time to check what we eat now, we would find time later on our sick beds. Prevention is better than cure.

The next and last speaker was Ade of Loctitude and she spoke about Organic Locs. I was not in the hall during this session, I stepped out to shop.
Ms. Uzoma of Don't touch the hair live tweeted the event, so check her blog for details of the event. 
I was gifted with a facial mask by my friend Mobola, I might do a review on it and some other products I got later.
That's all guys. Enjoy the rest of your week and stay safe.

P.S. I watched the WAR ROOM movie yesterday and trust me its a MUST WATCH. Its showing in most cinemas in Lagos presently.

Thanks for reading.

In this post, I promised to give you details about the natural hair meetup happening in Lagos on the 12th of December 2015, here it is. Hope to see y'all there.
Originally posted here
This Saturday is NITC13. We have quite the line up for you. This is an important time of year as it is the time before we start making all our resolutions. I want to share mine with you because Yes! there is a step above going natural and I have started taking baby steps to embark on it. Interested? Join me on Saturday where all will not only be revealed, you will be given a blueprint of how to start on this next step if you haven't already.
🌳 There will be organic (yes organic), wheat free, sugar free desserts by @organicdorothy. Come by and taste them and you can even book Christmas cakes.
🌳 There will be food by @kitchenbutterfly. My people, no be small thing. Now that Agbalumo/Udala is in season, I fully expect that we will even see things like Agablumo/Udala ice cream on the Menu. I will share a full menu soon.
🌳 Certified Health coach, @eze.onwugbenu of Creative Juices will be selling his probiotic drinks as well as giving a talk on a topic of your choice. Look out for my next few posts for a chance to choose. He used to write for my blog and wrote several posts including Lime For Fertility and the Dangers of Vegetable Oil. This is a session you want to be there for.
🌳 @sisimiblog will talk about her passion - Organic farming/eating. I don't want to say too much about her part because I don't want to let too much out of the bag. But this is very very important so please be there. 🌳 Crafties will be there! Bring the kids and leave them at the crafties stand to pick up a craft or two while you enjoy the show!
🌳 so much more to enjoy.... will write more soon. #nitc #lagos #naturalhair #naturalnigerian #events

Venue: Cafe Neo, 6 Agoro Odiyan street. Off Adeola odeku, Victoria Island. Lagos.
Date: December 12th 2015.
Time: 1:00pm - 6:00pm
Gate fee: N1,000

Follow @naturalnigerian for more details.

Hurray!!!
Exactly 365 days ago in a 6 man room in the prestigious Moremi hall of the University of First Choice and the nation’s pride (University of Lagos of course); a final year microbiology female student had her big chop. Whoop Whoop!!!
Yeah I know I’ve been natural all my life, so you might be wondering why I am super duper excited; I'd  tell you. Having natural hair is very different from having healthy natural hair. I big chopped because my hair was not growing or maybe it was growing and I was not retaining length, my hair was natural but twas not healthy. So on that fateful day, I embarked on a journey to grow healthy natural hair. I’m on a mission to grow my hair healthy, beautiful and very long to my waist, yes I said that TO MY WAIST; and I’m gonna get there in the next 4 to 5 years by God’s grace. I’ve always loved long hair and I believe as a woman my hair is my crown and glory, it’s a very special gift from God to me; so I must love it no matter how difficult and unmanageable it may seem cause trust me my 4c kinks can be very annoying sometimes and just refuse to cooperate but I’ve learnt to love it just the way it is cause that’s what God did for us, He loved us in our filth and stubbornness.
So today, I’d be sharing lessons I’ve learnt in my one year journey, my setbacks, staple products and my goals for the next one year.

Lessons I’ve learnt
1. Patience: My hair has taught me to take things poco a poco (little by little). Our hair grows at different pace so there is really no need to rush. Just enjoy your length at it different stages and give it time, it will grow. After all a mango tree does not mature fully in a month, it takes weeks and months of nurturing before it blossoms and start bearing fruits.
2.  No comparisons:  Even the bible says that he that compares himself with another is not wise. Don’t compare your growth process with another person. No two individuals are the same, so your growth rate can never be the same. Do what you need to do and leave your hair to grow at its own pace.
3.  Love and listen to your hair: For 4C kink bearers like me, our hair can be so annoying sometimes, having a mind of its own and doing whatsoever it pleases. You push it to the left and it bounces right back, sometimes bobby pins can’t even help. I totally understand but my dear you still need to love it. Know what your hair wants at each time, listen to it. Sometimes you know your hair is dry and it needs water or moisture but you also know that adding water would make it shrink and ruin your hairstyle for the day. Don’t forget that dry hair leads to breakage which leads to lack of length retention. Embrace your shrinkage dear and moisturize your hair when needed.
4. Accept your flaws: Since I started growing my hair, I noticed that I don’t have full edges due to the shape of my hairline. No matter what I do, it can’t be as full as some of my natural haired friends. Now that’s a fact I need to accept and move on.
5. Don’t follow the multitude: Don’t use a product or hair tool because everyone is using it. If your hair doesn’t feel good with it,  drop it.

Set backs
1. Shedding and breakage
2. Length retention (split ends)
3. Itching and dandruff

My staple products
75% of the products I used were made by me in my kitchen or bedroom. You can check this post for some of them. They include my DIY shea mix, shampoo, hair oil and deep conditioner.

Hair goals and plans
My major goals are to get to mid back length by this time next year, get rid of dandruffs and retain as much length as possible. To achieve this, I’d be doing the following:
1. My normal hair routine or regimen
2. Reduce hair manipulation
3. Do more protective styles
4. Improve on my eating habits. Take more veggies, fruits and water.
5. Use hair growth supplements
6. Exercise more.
7. Carry out an intensive 6 month hair growth challenge (id notify you when its time)

So guys, that’s all for now. I'm so excited about my hair journey and if you are contemplating on starting yours, what are you waiting for? Start now.

See y'all in my next post.

Happy child, stay happy always

Hi guys, hope y'all are having a great weekend. For natural haired ladies, wash days are usually on weekends. Yesterday was mine and so I'd be sharing with you how it went and how a typical wash day should be generally. I was on a protective style(P.S)  for 2 weeks and 5 days, I made the well known African threading and yeah I made it myself (I'm a DIY lover for those who don't know)

Protective style: African threading

When I took off the P.S, my hair was quite soft and moisturised cause when it was on, I moisturised my hair when ever it felt dry. Protective styles are great but if you don't care and moisturise your hair when it's on, your hair would dry out and that can lead to hair breakage and loss.

Straight Outta Protective style.

It's been 10 months since I had my big chop and my hair has been growing well. I'd do a length check soon.

Steps to a successful wash day
1. Prepoo: This is done to protect the hair strands during the shampooing process. I mixed coconut oil, castor oil and vegetable oil, then I divided my hair into four sections, sprinkled water on in and applied the oil from my roots to the tips till my hair was saturated with the oil. I weaved each section, wrapped my hair into a shower cap and allowed it to stay in for an hour.
2. Shampooing and detangling: I rinsed out the oil from my hair and washed it in sections concentrating on my scalp. Then I used my wide tooth comb to detangle each section from tip to root.
3. Deep condition: This step is done to restore lost nutrients, oils, shine and strength to the hair. I applied the deep conditioner concentrating on my tips because they are the oldest part of the hair and they are more prone to breakage. After applying the deep conditioner, I braided my hair in sections again, I wore a shower cap and wrapped my hair with a towel(to help generate some form of heat). This should be left in for an hour at most before rinsing out but I left mine for more than an hour cause I was quite busy.
After rinsing, I allowed my hair to dry a bit, then I applied my hair oil and sealed with my shea butter mix. Viola!!! It took a while but twas worth it cause at the end my hair was clean, shiny, moistured and ready for another protective style.
How was your wash day? Share with us in the comment box below.
Have an amazing week ahead, remember to always stay happy and take charge of what ever life throws at you, quit fear, have faith and put all your trust in God. You'd be just fine.

I was with some friends over the weekend and they were admiring my hair, it's texture, length and how I styled it. One of them asked me to style hers and I humbly styled it free for her (friend benefits, lol).  Then they started complaining about their hair, one said she had dandruff, another said her hair was breaking and another was complaining about her edges (they have turned me to a hair doctor), I told them a few things they could do and that was what inspired this post, so I'd be sharing in details how to deal with natural hair challenges.
Most of the hair challenges we face today are due to improper hair care which can eventually lead to hair infection. When you don't wash your hair regularly, there would be build up from products and germs which can cause the scalp to start itching.

Itchy scalp: I had this challenge earlier this year and I think mine was as a result of dry hair, I wasn't moisturizing my hair as I should. Itchy scalp can be very embarrassing, it does not know time or place. Your hair can start itching anywhere and anytime even when you are in the middle of a presentation and it can be quite frustrating too.

Source

Some causes of itchy scalp are: dandruff, dry scalp, dirts, product buildup, hair infection, not drying your hair properly after washing and poor diet as seen in this post. You can get rid of itchy scalp by using the following

• Lemon juice: Lemons are citrus fruits with acidic pH, this makes them antiseptic. They can be applied directly by extracting it's juice and rubbing it on the scalp, leave for 5 minutes and wash off with a mild shampoo. The juice can also be mixed with coconut oil before applying to the hair. 
• Apple cider vinegar: It helps to kill the yeast and virus that might be responsible for the itching, it also helps to balance the pH level of the scalp which may help to reduce itching and dryness. Rinse your hair and scalp with water, mix equal amounts of apple cider vinegar and water, apply this mixture directly onto your scalp with the help of cotton balls, leave for few minutes and wash with shampoo and water. Do this once or twice a week.
• Aloe vera gel: It contains moisturizing properties which may relieve excessive dryness and itching. Apply aloe vera gel on scalp using fingers, allow it to sit for 10 to 15 minutes then wash hair with a mild shampoo.

Dandruff: This is the shedding of dead skin cells from the scalp. It's cause is usually due to scalp dryness and infection. The remedies above for itchy scalp can be used to get rid of dandruff also.

Receding hair line: This is also called frontal fibrosis alopecia. It is when the temple or frontal hair begins to thin and break. There are several causes of receding hair line such as improper hair care, dry scalp, tight hairdo that pull the edges, hormonal imbalance, poor diet, etc. No matter the cause, receding hair line can be cured and stopped by doing the following; sleep with a satin bonnet or with a satin pillow case, massage your hair line with oils like castor oil to enhance blood flow which leads to increase growth rate, avoid tight hairdos that pull your edges, moisturize your edges daily, take fruits, vegetables, water and vitamins supplements.

Hair thinning and breakage: Just like our body needs food to be healthy, our hair also needs food. Deep conditioning, protein treatments and moisturizing helps to make hair thicker and healthier. Check this post for some deep conditioning recipes.

I hope this helps. See you later.

As I promised in this post, I’d be teaching you how to make some natural hair products yourself in your kitchen, bedroom or wherever you want. Since my big chop in November 2014, I can almost count the number of times I’ve used commercial shampoos, deep conditioners and hair cream. I call myself Mz DIY because I love doing everything myself, so in the past 9 months I’ve been making my hair products myself and it has been fun. As a naturalista, the basic products you’d need for healthy hair are sulphate free shampoo, deep conditioners, moisturizing hair cream, daily hair spritz and essential oils. Your natural hair is like a tree which should naturally grow when supplied with enough air, water and nutrients so before you apply any product on your hair, check the product description to know what you are feeding your hair with cause some products can actually be poisonous to your hair and the result of using such products would be hair breakage and thinning. With that said, let’s get to the business of the day, natural hair products.

1. Hair shampoo: The purpose for shampooing your hair is to take off dirt, buildups from products used, excess oil and dusts from your scalp basically and to also add moisture to your hair. Most commercial shampoos contain sulphates which help to cleanse the hair but also strip your hair of its natural oils leaving it dry and prone to breakage. A good shampoo should be able to cleanse the hair and leave it moisturized too.
Materials needed: Black soap (dudu osun), glycerin, honey, aloe vera gel, essential oils (coconut oil, olive oil, amla oil), vitamin E oil and a container (empty shampoo bottle)
Preparation: Cut the black soap into small bits, put in a bowl and add hot water to it for the soap to melt. Allow it to stay for 20 – 30 minutes; the clear water would have turned brownish black by then. Carefully pour out the liquid into your container about ¾ full. Add 1 tsp of glycerin, 2½ tsp of honey, 1 tsp of each essential oil and 3 tsp of aloe vera gel, shake well. Your shampoo is ready.

2. Deep conditioners: After washing your hair, it’s necessary to deep condition so that you can replace the oils and nutrients lost in the cleansing process. Deep conditioning is the key to healthy and longer hair. It’s advisable to apply heat when deep conditioning so that the nutrients can penetrate into the hair properly. You can order for good affordable deep conditioning cap here.

Deep conditioning cap.

*Over ripe banana, 2 tsp mayonnaise, 1 raw egg, 2 tsp honey and 1 tsp each of essential oils.
Blend till very smooth, sieve properly to avoid particles sticking to your hair, part your hair into about 4 parts and apply the smooth paste from root to tips concentrating on your tips because they are the oldest part of your hair. Cover with a plastic or shower cap and allow to sit in or 30 to 45 mins. Rinse with cold water.
*1 over ripe avocado pear, 1 over ripe banana, 1 cup of coconut milk, 1 tsp honey and 1 tsp each of essential oil.
Same procedure as above.
*2 eggs, 2 bananas, 1 avocado, mayonnaise, 1 cup of almond milk and essential oils.
Same procedure as above

3. Whipped Shea butter hair cream: This is used to seal or lock in moisture so that your hair can remain moisturized for a long period of time.

Source: Unknown

Materials needed: Shea butter, essential oils, aloe vera gel, glycerin and honey (optional).
Preparation:
#Melt the Shea butter by putting it in a bowl and placing the bowl in a bigger bowl that contains hot water. Add the essential oils, aloe vera gel, glycerin and honey, mix properly and pour into a container with air tight cover. Place in the refrigerator for 10 – 20 to solidify, your hair cream is ready.
#Put the Shea butter, essential oils, aloe vera gel, glycerin and honey in a mixer (cake mixer). Mix properly into a smooth paste. Pour into a container with air tight cover. You can watch this video.
4. Daily hair spritz: When your hair is dry, the tendency for it to break is high. Hair spritz is used to keep your hair moisturized at all times. Whenever you feel your hair is dry, just spritz.

Source

Procedure: Mix 70% water, 15% essential oils and 15% aloe vera gel, honey or glycerin. Shake properly and apply to your hair and edges.
So ladies, it’s time to use our hands. Try any of these products and let me know in the comment box. Thanks for reading.

                         Hi ladies,
How are you feeling today? (write the answer to this question in the comment box… lol). If you have not read my first few posts here, here and here please do and don’t forget to drop a comment, cause that’s what keeps me going. Today I'd be talking about my natural hair journey, my setbacks, breakthroughs and my staple natural hair products.
Actually, I've been natural allllllllllllll my life (emphasis on the all, lol) and I've spent twenty something years on earth already, that’s huge right? I am sure someone is wondering how I coped through the years, don’t worry I'd tell you. I never relaxed my hair because my mum didn’t relax any of her daughter's hair when we were kids and when I became of age I realised I didn’t need relaxers so I stayed natural. My mum cut my hair when I was about 6 or 7 years because my hair was so thick, coarse, tough, very difficult to manage and quite full, plus I was always crying whenever I had to visit the hairdresser. So my lovely mum helped me end my pains and headache by cutting it. Then I attended a miliitary secondary or high school where girls were not permitted to make their hair, so I was on low cut or tweeny weeny afro as its called today for about 10 years. I graduated from high school in 2009 and that was when my real hair journey started. Then, there was little or no interest for natural hair, every girl relaxed her hair,it was quite abnormal and strange to have natural hair, even babies that were not up to 5 years old had their hair relaxed, twas that bad. Each time I went to the salon I was reminded that my hair was trouble to them, the hairdressers kept advicing me to relax my hair. I had a funny friend in the university that said she would buy the relaxer for me if that was the problem, but I told her I wasn’t interested, then she threatened to to buy the relaxer and relax my hair when I was sleeping, lol, she was obviously joking but the struggle then was hard. There were no good hair products, no proper knowledge on how to care for my hair and unfriendly stylist that would almost pull out my head from my neck when combing the hair and if I complain they would tell me to relax my hair. Suprisingly, my hair was able to thrive in those harsh conditions as you can see here.

My hair was  2 years and some months here

In 2013, my hair stopped growing or it was growing and breaking due to use of hair products that had sulphates, silicones, petroleum and other harmul stuff,  improper hair care and exposure to heat from continous use of hair straightners. My hair was heat damaged, lifeless, breaking and getting scanty as seen below.

Heat damaged hair

I eventually stumbled on some hair care materials and started taking proper care of my hair but the damage had already been done. Normally when I straighten my hair, it reverts back to its natural, shrunken form before the next 24 hours or immediately water touches it, but at this point it was so damaged that it refused to revert. I continued managing the hair till November 2014 when I decided to have a big chop after trimming it once.

Big chop, November 2014

I was in my final semester in the university then and had lot of things on my mind, my hair was the least in my priority list so that was the best time to cut it. I had the knowledge of how to take care of my hair but the natural products available were expensive and as a student I didn’t have much to spend on hair products. Fortunately, a friend rescued me by introducing me to a natural hair page on Facebook Natural hair babe's (you should check them out). They share procedure and recipes used to make natural hair products,  so I followed their steps and started producing my own shampoo, deep conditioners and hair cream. My hair is 9 months old now, and its been really growing though I'm experiencing some setbacks at the moment. My major aim is to retain length, reduce breakage and shedding to the minimal and keep my hair moisturized always.

Length check. April 2015.

So that is all about my hair jouirney, its been a long journey indeed but it is really fun when you understand your hair. In my next hair post, I'd be sharing recipes and procedures for making natural hair products yourself. Stay tuned, don’t touch that dail (lol, I know it's not a radio station). Thanks for reading and keep living virtuously.