Aspirin Mask Anyone?

Yes yes yawl it's that time again! The time of year that my skin grows immune to what ever creams and cleansers currently in use. SOOOO Back to the drawing board with the same issues just a lil better! Ok so I got this ginourmous nose pimple! Yes people a nose pimple! I felt it under the skin and had to take some action before it came to a head. This time around I went for the aspirin mask this time. Here is the recipe that stopped my nose pimple in it's tracks!

One clean glass shot glass
One aspirin
Three drops of tea tree oil
one drop of rubbing alcohol
one tooth pic

Put all of the above in a shot glass and stir with the tooth pic until the pill is dissolved. Then with a clean finger apply the mix to your pimple and let it dry. Leave it on for 10 min, do this twice a day until you feel like the pimple is no longer under the skin. Hopefully it wont come to a head.

Enjoy!

Another Review Ladies!

As you ladies already know I am obsessed with my clogged PORES! I hate looking at my nose up close because my pores are so clogged and full of gunk and to be honest...Sometimes I just get tired of extracting them with my knuckles because 1 it can't be sanitary and 2 It hurts!!!! So I picked up some Biore Ultra Deep Cleansing Pore Strips at my Local Walgreens. Of course we've all tried them in the past and had various results but I decided to give it another go for the sake of my pore nose.

I half way expected them to not work but to my surprise they worked really well!. The trick it to make sure your nose is wet enough. The first time only the blackheads on one side of my nose came out because the other wasn't wet enough. The trick is to make sure your nose is wet and even sprinkle a little water on the strip itself to make sure the *glue* gets saturated enough to adhere to what ever surface you're trying to rid of gunk.

I do have pictures but my camera SUCKS so it wouldn't pick up the clogged pores on my nose so I'll just post picks of the strips.

Tips!

* Make sure the strip dries completely or it wont remove ANY blackheads.
* Make sure you don't just rip it off like some type of crazy person. Gently and slowly peel the strip off while holding the surrounding skin taut.
* Don't put toooo much water or all the glue will be left on your face and these things are too hot damn expensive to waste making dump mistakes! like i did shhhhhh! Don't tell NOBODY!

AcneFree Terminator 10

Here is the long awaited review on product from the newest OTC acne treatment line called AcneFree. You can find the whole AcneFree line at your local CVS drug store. I recently had a mild hormonal break out, and though it was mild I was hormonal and those three pimples straight pissed me off. Sent me waaaaaay over the edge to the point where I was willing to use battery acid as a spot treatment, as long as it was guaranteed to WORK! Soooooo instead of cracking the hood of my bf's car I went down to my local CVS cruising for the cure to these ugle ass pimple that made their home on my tiny face.

Walking down the acne treatment isle I grew increasingly agitated at the lack of product variety, just the usual big brands that don't work for me..........Until I spotted the bright orange boxes out of the corner of my eye....There it was....THE only spot treatment in the isle PERIOD... AcneFree Terminator 10 medicated spot treatment! I snatched it up and went on my way. The box read that it contained 10% benzyl peroxide that was time released throughout the day.

I followed the directions on the box and three days later the pimples were dried out. Not really my idea of a supercalafragalistic spot treatment but it worked well enough on those pimple that had already sprouted up fully before starting the treatment. It worked in two days on some bumps I felt under the skin which was a big plus...Over all I give this cream a 4.5 out of 5!

Essence of Beauty Gentle Brush Cleaner!

After over a year I finally stopped being lazy and bought some "Official" Makeup brush cleaner. Before I was using Johnsons Baby soap to clean my brushes and it worked well for the time I've used it. A few weeks ago I was in CVS and peeped the Essence of Beauty Line in the makeup isle and saw the brush cleaner. Of course the price was right so I got it. When I got home I cleaned my brushed according the the directions on the bottle. I sprayed each brush with the cleaner and then ran warm water over them until the water ran clean. I then wiped them gently with a paper towel to make sure that the makeup was completely washed away from each brush. I then set them to dry.

The brushes came out soft and clean, My brush hairs very from badger hair, squirrel hair " odd right?", to synthetic fibers and they all came out soft and clean with no shedded hairs which was good. If you're looking for inexpensive brushes and brush cleaner Go to your local CVS or visit www.CVS.com and check out their Essence of Beauty line, I can assure you you wont be disappointed!

Another review!!!!! ROCCCCC!

Here for another skin care review ladies!!!! This time I am experimenting with home microdermabrasion kits. I wanted to do something about all my acne scars and clogged pores that was a bit more potent that bleaching creams but more suttle than a full fledged chemical peel or professional microdermabrasion. I began searching the net for the most gentle yet effective kit, while I came across what seemed to be very effective home kits; I was still skeptical because there were no reviews about those products effectiveness on African skin. I searched high and low until I can across a review on Makeupalley, most of the reviews were from women of color which gave me instant comfort. It didn't hurt that the price was very right, at $10.00 per pack of 24 dual sided pads, Roc Microderm Cleansing Pads began to sound better and better by the second.

The pads are about 2 1/2 to three inches across and six inches in circumference, the pad has a pocket that you slip your index and middle finger into. One side has the microdermabrasion crystals on it and the other side has a diamond conditioning side. The conditioning side is soft and when wet feels like it's soaked in lotion. What you do is rise your face with warm water, slip your fingers into the pocket and massage the crystallized side into your face and neck first then flip the pad over and wet the diamond conditioning side and smooth into face and neck. Rinse and toss the pad in the trash, simple and easy.


The container says the pads are clinicaly proven to reduce fine lines and wrinkles but what impressed me is their ability to soften my acne scars in a matter of weeks which is what I was looking for. While these pasds didn't do much for my clogged pores it got me off to a good start. These pads will leave your skin glowing and vibrant, they also softened my little wrinkles I had on my forehead from frowning often. All in all I will say that Roc Daily Microdermabrasion CLEASING DISK are well worth the money.

Next I will be trying out Oil of Olay's Microdermabrasion & Peel System.

Edge uptade

Emu Oil for stretch marks.

So if you ladies read my long post about emu oil and it's benefits then you would know that I did promise you guys that I would document my journey. So here is the first picture of my stretch marks. Well some of them anyway. I will come back and add some pics of my scars that I'm trying to fade as well. My regimen with Emu oil will simply be to apply it to the scars and stretch marks for 12 months. I did promise weekly updates in my last post but I'm changing that to monthly because I don't want to become obsessive . So today will be my official starting date June 26,2009.

These are some stretch marks from my thigh.

This is a burn mark from the back of my left leg that I got when I was younger it has definitely gotten smaller and has faded a bit but it's still here and I don't like it.

This one is a burn scar from like the 5th grade that has gotten smaller and lighter but I want it GONE!!!

So these are the three main things that I want to fade with the emu oil and have been trying like hell to fade with bleaching creams like Palmers Skin Success and Nadinola extra strength. While these have worked well in aiding in the fading process. I am leery about the chemicals that are in those products. After finding out that your skin absorbs 60% of what you put on it I was really ready for a natural alternitive. Lets hope emu oil does the trick!

More info on emu oil

My Hair Logg

Most of you are just finding out about my hair dilemmas. One issue in particular that touched me very deep with in my heart was my thinning hair line. Over the course of about eight years I have endured an extreme amount of stress coupled with a poor diet. Due to my stress levels and my eating habits my hair line had began to fall out. It got so bad to the point where my friends who knew me when my hair was full were speechless and that's saying A LOT for my close friends. I felt so ugly because I was so used to having beautiful hair that I never had to worry about. I spent many years wearing my hair with a part down the middle because I was so ashamed of the condition of my hairline.

It wasn't until I turned 21 that I decided to do something about it. I searched the net for black hair growth and came to a wonderful site that I will forever be a member of and that site is Black Hair Media. I was a lurker for a very long time, then I finally joined in November of "08". That marked a new era in personal hair care for me. Even though I have been perm free for many many years, I still had it in my mind that my natural texture was not so good. This site has opened my eyes to a world where the black women loves her natural hair.

This was big for me because I had always did things to my hair to make it more "manageable" when what I was really doing was murdering my poor hair. I am so happy to say that I know better now. On BHM I was introduced to a slew of growth aids that people have had success with but it still was a bit new to me. It was a bit overwhelming for me to see that people were using horse products to grow their hair. To be honest, I steered clear of them for a very long time, almost turning my nose up @ them. I could kick my own ass right now for not trying them sooner!



I started out with boundless tresses which is a sulfur based oil that I loved! It's ability to soften my natural texture and new growth was amazing . When I am able to afford to buy this regularly it will definitely be a staple in my hair care arsenal. However this was not the growth aid to nurse my edges back to health. The growth I achieved with this oil was minimal compared to some of the results I saw with Mega Tek and MTG. Below are pictures of my trial with Boundless Tresses.







My Next growth aid was the holy grail of growth aids to some including myself! Good ole Mega Tek, I can honestly say that this is the best growth aid that a girl could ask for! Mega Tek is a protein product that is said to rebuild cells under the surface of the scalp to regrow hair! Yeah Yeah I know it's for horses but it was originally made for humans who were suffering from chemical burns and baldness due to bad relaxers. Some where along the line the company began marketing it for horses and pets.

Many women have experienced shedding and breakage due to using Mega Tek. Why you ask? Mega Tek is a protein based product and when the hair is overwhelmed with protein it begins to shed and brake. I can honestly say that I have never experienced the shedding or the breakage because I mix my Mega Tek with Jamaican Black Castor Oil which is the best oil for black hair IMHO. As thick as JBCO is it provides the perfect balance of protein and protection, JBCO seems to form a protective coat around the hair that is already there not allowing the protein to overload the hair which results in breakage.



I never noticed the importance of JBCO in my MT mix until I ran out. My mix was not the same, my hair began to brake!!! I will be ordering some more JBCO soon but until then I mix my MT with some Boundless Tresses, Olive Oil, and Emu oil. This mix is on the thinner side but worked just as well as far as growth which is not a bad thing considering the state of the economy. Below are my results. ENJOY!

Back to the Murad

Yes I know what I said about Murad but just looking at it sitting in my closet taking up space made me want to give it another try. It did clear my skin last time but I broke out in a rash on my chin and jaw line. I don't know if it was the Murad and didn't pay attention to my skin after I fired it as my Official skin protector so I can't really say it was the Murad. I also can't say it wasn't so with me luck people. I also noticed since I cut out a lot of the fried food that my oiliness has gone down a lot.

Although I don't eat as much fruit as I should because it all seems to go into some wild concoction for my hair! My over all skin condition has improved about 10% from that last time I reported which is huge for me. I'm still plagued by these God awful CLOGGED PORES! It seems like these suckers are just getting worse! I've head all over the place about the chemical peels at Makeupartistchoice.com and I must say I have been tempted to try one BUT; there is the small chance that I could fu*k it all up and burn my skin to the white meat!

So I guess it's Murad AGAIN for now, I'll post before and after pics when I stop being a chicken shit and buy the damn peel!

Future Biotics Update.

I've been taking Future Biotics Skin, Hair, and nail pills along with Silica and vitamin C, and I must say. I really believe that they are working! My skin has a beautiful glow to it, even though I had a mild break out but nothing compared to what I've experienced with topical skin treatments ( go farther back in my blog to read about my horrific relationship with proactive). Back to the glow! This stuff gives my SKIN! It's amazing, I've always been the one to get the glowing skin compliment even in winter but I never saw it. Now I definitely see the glow. As for my nails, they're doing great. I recently took off some acrylics and it's like I never had them on...Well not like never; but it's not the usual soft and painful mess they usually are when I remove acrylics.

My hair seems to be growing well with these vitamins, I woke up yesterday and put my fingers into the middle of my scalp and oh boy was I surprised. I had a ton of new growth. I had been flat ironing every week for about 5 weeks and the heat really did a number on my natural texture. So much to the point where I honestly didn't remember what my texture felt like and I must say that I'm completely in love! I would post a pic of my new growth but I am participating in a challenge on BHM that requires us not to length check until the challenge ends so you'll be getting a picture update in about three weeks.

Dollar Store Haul

So lately my pj-ism has been flaring BAD! Everything I see I want to try. Even though my regimen is working well for me I still have a twinkle in my eyes every time I see something new. But there is an even bigger problem than my pj-ism and that's the fact that even tho some people see me as a person who's knowledge of hair and and skin care is extensive; I am still fairly new to this hair and skin care thing. So today I decide to open my cabinets and see what I have that is relevant to the path of hair care I'm taking right now which is natural.... I am shocked and a bit ashamed to say that my collection of what some would call essential tools to my natural journey was seriously lacking.

What could one need in order to take care of their natural hair? some might ask, but what a lot of newbies don't understand is that natural hair is harder to maintain than relaxed. It takes a whole lot of time, products, and knowledge to find out what works for your natural hair. ESPECIALLY if you're trying to eliminate chemically based products from your regimen like I am. So what exactly was I missing? A LOT of things I know I'll need and others that will present themselves later in my natural hair endeavors. If you are a regular reader of my blog then you will know that I am what you would call frugal...So walking through my local drug store's and BSS looking at the prices would discourage some; but for me it was a challenge to find tools of equal quality for more than half the price.

Here are some pics of stuff I got from my local dollar store.... ENJOY!

Spray bottle's .99 each and a wonderful buy. I don't know if it's just me but I don't really like regular spray bottles. I always wanted something different and exclusive looking when it comes to the containers housing my home made concoctions!

From left to right:

• A six pack of shower caps.

Shower caps for DC'ing and treatments.

• A two pack of small spritz bottles

Small spritz bottles for moisturizing on the go.
I figre I can drop one of these in my bag on the way
out to make sure I keep my hair moisturized
through out the day!

• The incredible Hair Twist Towel.

I just decided to give this towel a try since
I've been seeing it on infomercials for YEARS.
It's the dollar store version so I don't expect anything spectacualr.
Just wanted to try this one out before I buy the real thing.

3pack of plastic bowls and two tiny wire whisks. I got these so I wont have to use utensils that are for food to mix up my hair concoctions. Even though so far, everything has been 100% edible I still want to keep things separate.

From Left to right:

• A six pack of black and white thread covered elastic head bands.
• A six pack of multicolored thread covered elastic head bands .

I was inspired to buy these by a wonderful YouTuber that goes by the name of Nunaa. Her vids are amazing and she is a very beautiful soul. Check out her vids here http://www.youtube.com/user/nunaavane

• Top right are a two pack of combs.
• 120 pack of bobby pins .
  
• One pair of chop sticks.
  

• A hand Mirror

This is one of the only items that was over .99. It was $1.29
This is my first hand mirror that I've EVER had. I'm more than sure I'll spend all day looking into it probably picking my
face apart...LOL

This concludes the hair tool Dollar store haul. I hope these great finds will inspire more of you ladies to check out the dollar store. You never know what you'll find. Frankly in these times I'm all for saving while still being able to do the things I want to do. Even tho it's only a few dollars I felt like I bought myself an Armani suit!

Banana Deep Conditioner

Today I Did my first banana deep condition and I must say it was THE BOMB. It made my hair so so soft! Even tho the mixture was a bit runny it was well worth it and it cost a little over a dollar to make!

What you'll need:

Two Large Bananas



Olive Oil 1/4 cup

1/8 cup H2O

A splash of ACV

I tossed all of the above in a blender and hit liquefy, I then strained the mix and added it to my hair with a dye brush. I left it on for 45 min while I cleaned up the mess I made applying the mix. I rinsed it out with warm water followed by a light AVC rinse and I must tell you that you will not be disappointed with this wonderful, inexpensive, and organic mix. It's honestly everything I could want in a conditioner period. I do hope you try this one out because it's a winner!

My new wonder oil!

As you know I just purchased some Emu Oil yesterday and boy am I thrilled!!! This oil is said to be a wonder oil for all kinds of different ailments and skin conditions. It is a bit expensive at a wapping $15-$25 price tag for only 4oz, but if it does what it says it does then it's a steal!

You wanna know more about Emi Oil? Wanna hear it? HERE IT GO.

Emu oil is derived from the Fat of a what???? You guessed it! The emu bird, the people of Australia have been using this stuff for God knows how long to treat burns,scars, wounds, and joint pain. You name it, I'm sure this oil cures it. Emu oil has some serious anti-inflammatory properties which is why it heals burns and wounds so darn good. It also has the ability to penetrate through several layers of skin which is why you should watch what you put on after it because most chemicals can cause serious harm to your health if they make it into the blood stream and internal organs.

What can Emu Oil do for you?

Fades scars.
Helps reduce and prevent stretch marks.
Helps reduce cracked and scaly skin on your body as well as your feet.
Helps heal Burns and dramatically reduces the size and severity of scaring.
Helps reduce the visibility of scars after surgery.
Helps heal skin form sunburn.
Helps heal sores that develop as a result to diabetic conditions.
Helps stop hair loss and re-grow hair.
Helps to reduce wrinkles and fine lines.
Hastens healing.
Helps relieve joint pain and stiffness caused by arthritis.
Rehydrate broken cracked skin.
Helps to rid nails and feet of fungus/athletes foot.
Help alleviate eczema .
Natural anti-inflammatory, anti-bacterial, and anti-fungal properties
Will not clog your pores. "Non-Comedogenic "
Emu oil is said to be a "skin nutrient" that feeds the skin helping it become healthy.

What Can Emu Oil Do For My Hair?

Emu Oil's ability to penetrate through to the dermis and actually get to the follicle and block DHT which is a chemical naturally produced by your body when it produces too much testosterone. Yes ladies, we produce the man mojo too! When their is an excess of testosterone in our systems it gets converted into DHT by an enzyme called 5-alpha reductase which is produces by the scalp and the prostate DHT latches itself onto the hair follicle and commits murder!!!!!!!! The follicle is still alive but the DHT hinders the follicles ability to perform dramatically which leaves us with excessive shedding and the regrowth of peachfuzz or worse... No hair at all.

Emu oil feeds the follicle while blocking the DHT, health experts refer to this process and waking follicles that are asleep. Resulting in the regeneration and healing of follicles which results in growth! Even tho the net is chock full of essays and information on emu oils ability to "Heal" There aren't many pictures to support these claims. How will we know this is true? That is where I come in! I have thin edges, old scars, dry skin, and dry feet and hands. So I will starting maybe tonight take weekly pictures of my progress with the "Wonder Oil"

Vitamin World Booty!

So I went to the mall today with my best bud in the whole wide world and we go into the Vitamin World. Now any and everyone who knows us knows that you just don't let our health happy asses losse in a vitamin store because we will buy one of everything! BUT! Today we exorcised a small ounce of restraint and decided to concentrate on our hair health from the inside out. In the neighborhood we were in they only had a small hair growth section with two brands of hair pills. The store brand and Futurebiotics. Knowing me I would usually wait till I can get some type of review on both products before I spend my little two dollas on it.

So I whipped out my handy dandy G1 and searched for reviews and found a lot of good ones. For the price including my members discount I couldn't beat it with two sticks. I also got some silica because it said it was good for hair,bones,and nails and it was only five a dem thangs. I also purchased some emu oil for my skin and scalp. So today June 10, 2009 marks the first day of the rest of my hairs life. I've decided to dedicate three months to these pills to really see if they work. I will be documenting my progress monthly so stay tuned!

Here are some links to some reviews on this product.

http://reviews.vitacost.com/4595/16938/reviews.htm

Flax seed Gel

For the natural slickin!!!!!!

3 tea whole flax seeds
1 1/4 cups water
8 ounces Aloe Vera gel
a pinch of cetric acid if you want it to last longer

bring water to a boil and add flax seeds and boil for 10 minutes. Strain mixture and mix in pinch of cetric acid it you want it to last more than three weeks, let cool and fold in aloe vera gel and store in fridge. ENJOY!!!!

Molasses Hair Care

Who ever knew that something as underutilized as molasses could be so good for your hair??? Molasses is said to strengthen, stop the loss of and regrow hair. With continuous use Black Strap Molasses is also said to darken gray hairs over a period of time. WHO KNEW??? Here are some recipes I've tried and LOVE!

As a pre poo: Apply 1/2 cup of pure Black Strap Molasses to damp hair and let sit for 30 minutes at the least. ( You could leave it on over night if you like) Rinse and shampoo and condition as usual. I found that my hair was super soft and felt stronger!

As a conditioner:1/2 cup molasses with 1/2 cup Jamaican black castor oil. Wrap with plastic wrap and sit under med heat dryer for 30 min to one hour. Rinse and oh man! My hair felt soft yet thick and had a shine that wouldn't quit!