ORS Nourishing Conditioner in a bottle?? (and other musings)

On Saturday I visited my local Pennywise beauty supply store with no definite intention of buying products; window shopping was the aim of the day.

That is, until my eyes fell casually on the Organic Root Stimulator Nourishing Conditioner............in a bottle!

IN A BOTTLE!!!

It will suffice to say that I snatched that bottle up, baby!

(Okay, I may be a little late on the scene...but I've only ever seen this conditioner in the sample packets, so excuse my enthusiasm!)

When my hair was relaxed this product was my favourite conditioner; it provided so much slip and softness to my hair! It continued to deliver when I began transitioning to natural hair, and although I've only used it a handful of times since being fully natural, I expect that it will still be a wunder-product for my kinks and coils.

The second product I bought was the Vo5 Tea Therapy Revitalizing Shampoo. I remember reading a favourable review of this product by a hair blogger months ago, so I decided to try it. I've used it once so far and it was gentle on my hair. 

Thirdly, I purchased some shea butter by Ashanti Naturals. The first time I bought 100% natural shea butter it was by "Okay African Shea Butter". I never used that shea butter on my hair because I felt it was waay too sticky and I hate it when my hair feels like glue. I'll be uploading a separate post soon with how I plan to make a homemade shea butter mix for my hair.

And finally, every black woman's staple: bobby pins!

And my new side-kick: hair shears. I loved my first pair but whilst I was travelling it was taken from me in the airport (silent tears may have been shed).

"I don't need these products! I have too many already!!" - said no hair junkie ever.


Love,

~Hatter

My current products 2013

 

This past summer I updated my product stash, adding a few new products which have since become my staples.

 

Firstly, for the oldies:

 

 

I've had the Creme of Nature Argan Oil Intensive Conditioning Treatment for quite a while now, and I occasionly use it to deep condition my braids. The ORS HAIRepair Nourishing Conditioner will probably always be in my product list since it is very effective at softening and smoothing my hair.

 

Since putting in my current set of braids, I haven't deep conditioned as yet. Instead, I've been using my new Cantu Shea Butter for Natural Hair Deep Treatment Masque.

 

 

 

This conditioner is definitely my current favourite! It contains less synthetic materials than mainstream conditioners and can be used as both a deep conditioner and a leave-in treatment. When I wore my transitioning fro some weeks ago, I used this treatment as a deep conditioner and it left my hair very soft and easy to detangle. Now that I'm wearing braids I use it as a leave-in treatment. Need another pro? It smells like pina colada! I fell completely in love the first time I got a sweet whiff from the jar.

 

Also new to my product list are the V05 Moisture Milks Moisturizing Shampoo and Conditioner in Passion Fruit Smoothie.

 

 

 

I do like the shampoo since I find it to be relatively gentle on my scalp. Unfortunately, it has a very thin consistency which I am not used to. I don't like runny shampoos- they are too messy to deal with for my taste. The conditioner is exactly like the V05 Strawberries and Cream in texture, but I definitely prefer the Strawberries and Cream scent.

 

 



 

 

Finally, I purchased My Honey Child Type 4 Hair Creme from amazon.com, after watching a review by jouelzy on youtube. She got very decent results with hold and moisture when styling her hair, so I decided to try it. When using it to create my transitioning fro I did notice that I get stronger, more moist curls the more product I apply. Since it is an oil and butter based product it has a thick, rich and very sticky texture.

 

 

Besides my trusty jojoba oil, that's my entire product stash! Quite minimalistic, don't you think?

 

Happy hair journey!

~Hatter 

Wash day @ 7 weeks post relaxer

On Monday I washed my hair at 7 weeks, 3 days post relaxer.

What I did:

1. Sectioned my hair into 8-9 parts, spraying diluted moisturizer on my roots to soften them and help with the parting. Finger de-tangled, applied ORS Vital Oils and braided each section. 
2. Pre-pooed for about an hour under my heating cap. 
3. Shampooed with ORS Neutralizing Shampoo.
4. T-shirt dried my hair for about 2 minutes, then applied ORS HAIRepair Nourishing Conditioner, using 1 & 1/3 packs. Sat with heating cap for about 1 & 1/2 hours.
5. Rinsed my hair and T-shirt dried for about 5 minutes.
6. While hair was still damp, I sprayed diluted moisturizer on my hair, focusing on the roots. Applied Herbal Essences Split-End Protector and de-tangled. 
7. Blow-dried lightly, using tension by pulling down on my hair while blow-drying to stretch my roots.
8. Sealed with ORS Vital Oils.
9. Cross-wrapped my hair for bed and done!

~~~

source

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The next morning I bunned for the first time in a looong time. After doing my hair it felt very soft and manageable. I definitely attribute it to the ORS HAIRepair Nourishing Conditioner. It always make my new growth a breeze to de-tangle!

Unfortunately, the breakage is still occurring but I've almost accepted that as normal (sad isn't it??) so I ignored it and styled. I'll be dealing with this issue in a later post.

I planned to wear the bun for the whole day but...5 minutes after going outside it collapsed!
I didn't secure the ends well so when I charged into the wind...let's just say it was hair blowing left, right and centre =P After that I took out the bobby pins and just wore a simple ponytail.

Hair fails... they're inevitable!


Have a great weekend =)
~Hatter

Mini hair haul

Last Friday I went hair shopping, and although I had a long list of items to buy, these are all I ended up purchasing:

 

Can't wait to use my ORS Nourishing Conditioner! This is fantastic on my new growth, so I hope that it'll help to make my hair softer and decrease my manipulation issues.

I also bought a moisturizer from the new Shea Butter Miracle line from African Pride. I already use the original moisturizer I described here, but I took this one just to see if it'll be any different on my new growth.

New bobby pins! I'm sure every girl knows what it's like to have these disappear right under our nose! I shouldn't lose all 120 any time soon :)


Love

~Hatter

Wash day @ 7 weeks post + ORS Nourishing Conditioner

Today's wash and deep condition was relatively easy for 7 weeks worth of new growth.

First, I deep conditioned on dry hair using Organic Root Stimulator Nourishing Conditioner.

After leaving it on for an hour with my heat cap, I rinsed it out and shampooed.

Then I air-dried my hair with a t-shirt for about 15 minutes, and applied some Herbal Essences Touchably Smooth Split End Protector. Even before applying the moisturizer, my hair felt very soft and smooth.

Today my comb was able to glide easily through my hair, and at seven weeks post that is something to rejoice about!

Usually at this time I would already be experiencing major tangles and friction when de-tangling after deep conditioning. Today I experienced none of those problems.

Firstly, I attribute my results to the ORS Nourishing Conditioner. This is the second time I've used it, and both times it left my hair very soft and smooth...even my thick 4c new growth! It did a marvellous job in increasing slip and leaving my hair well conditioned.

For my hair, it seems to be a light/medium protein. I actually like it better than the ORS Replenishing Conditioner, which was my main staple. The Nourishing Conditioner is less sticky, absorbs into my hair easier and makes my hair a bit smoother.

*Beware! Some may find that the ORS Nourishing Conditioner has a peculiar smell...the first time I used it I hated it! In my opinion it smells like play dough and faintly of bananas...today however, it wasn't that bad since I am a little used to it. My results outweigh the odour so I'll continue to buy this conditioner.

Secondly, I think deep conditioning on dry hair has also helped to reduce tangles and friction between my strands. Like a pre-poo, DCing on dry hair added strength and slip even before shampooing, allowing my hair strands to glide past each other with relative ease.


However, even after using the conditioner I still experienced noticeable, short strand breakage when de-tangling. It was no where along the lines of my previous stretches, but still unusual! My ends are thinning too. Before DCing, I dusted my ends in the hope that it would reduce breakage but it looks like I need a proper trim...and I thought I was protecting my ends well! I guess not...

Guuuurl look at those ends.

Honestly, I'm a bit discouraged because when I did my self-trim 7 weeks ago I thought it was thorough...and now it seems that my hair has gotten damaged since then. So I'm really not sure why I'm experiencing breakage. Is it moisture/protein levels, manipulation or something else?? My ends aren't horrible, but if I don't take care of them as soon as possible I might have to trim more than I'm comfortable with when I relax my hair.


But in all things, I give thanks. I'm trying to stay optimistic and I'm determined to regain thick, healthy ends as one of my 2013 hair goals.


How have you been caring for your hair recently? If you're busy busy like me you know its not always easy!

Love,
~Hatter

Small Hair Haul

Yesterday I went to one of my local beauty supply stores and bought two deep conditioners that I've been wanting to try for a while now:


1.

Organic Root Stimulator HAIRepair Nourishing Conditioner

Since the release of the ORS HAIRepair line I've been eager to try all of its products. I used the Vital Oils and the Moisture Creme and I liked them both, so I was glad to find samples of the Nourishing Conditioner. 

I first saw this product reviewed by my favourite youtube guru, ulovemegz:

There are many more reviews by other women with relaxed hair. Some women thought it was mild/heavy protein treatment while for others it was more of a moisture treatment. What's interesting is that they all agree that this product made their hair soft but strong, and some said that it might not be ideal for weekly use. If my hair responds the same way, this conditioner might be good for my first wash day after getting a relaxer to really strengthen my hair after being striped of protein bonds and moisture. 

2.

Creme of Nature Professional with Argan Oil  Intensive Conditioning Treatment

I'm sincerely hoping that this product is the same as the ones pictured below. The only difference I see from the packaging is that my bottle is all red, says "Professional" and the bottle holds 20 oz. I'm assuming that the formula is the same but the packaging is a little different because the size is bigger than the standard packaging. 

cremeofnature.com

I'm excited to try both products and post a review in the new year. (That's 2 days away!! haha)

This has been my last hair haul for 2012! I wonder how many more products I'll try next year...hopefully I won't become a product junkie x.x

What were some of your favourite hair buys this year?

Love!

~Hatter

My Stretching issues 8-9 weeks post relaxer

*disclaimer: this is a lengthy Hatter post!*

Okay, now that you're prepared, read on valiant reader!

On my last relaxer stretch I successfully made it to 9 weeks post. *woop woop!*

Ironically, the only other time I successfully stretched that long was earlier this year on my very first relaxer stretch of my hair journey. Since then I've only been able to manage my new growth for about 7-8 weeks before getting fed up and going to the hairdresser.

As I've mentioned before, by the 7-8 week post relaxer mark I usually encounter these issues:

1. by eight weeks post my hair does not feel "slippery" or smooth and lubricated after deep conditioning. 
2. detangling after washing and deep conditioning becomes almost a nightmare as breakage, tangling, matting (and tears) increase and rollersets become increasingly difficult.

Although I adapted my regimen slightly during my last stretch to try to deal with these issues, I still encountered similar problems. =(

Some things I thought would have helped:

•  using diluted moisturizer to hydrate and soften my new growth. (This actually did work! My new growth was as tame as a lamb lol.)

• more low manipulation and protective styles during the week such as buns and braidouts.

• I also stopped using combs everyday and decided to finger comb more often. I do think that this contributed to less breakage than I usually experience around 8 weeks post relaxer.

• I focused on keeping my ends moisturized by generously apply deep conditioner from tip to root, as well as coating my ends with oil at night.

• I used a heavier protein treatment to deep condition with. 

On my last wash before my relaxer I used the Organic Root Stimulator Hair Mayonnaise after pre-pooing with the Optimum Care Fortifying Conditioner. I realized that I gave my hair a double shot of protein! That might explain why I still experienced significant breakage on my last wash day. My hair might have gotten too much protein, causing it to snap and break off. 

This is actually ironic as my hair usually loves protein. I guess I messed up my moisture/protein balance that time.

It also didn't help that at 7 weeks post, I failed to detangle properly and as my hair air-dried I got some wicked dreadlocks forming at my roots. (For realz)

I can't understand why my hair gets so tangly and rough after 7 weeks post. Is it that my cuticles remain raised? If so a product like Roux Porosity Control or even an apple cidar vinegar rinse may help to close my cuticles and make my hair smoother and easier to manage.

Or maybe 8-9 weeks post just isn't a viable option for me. I know that the longer I stretch, the healthier my scalp becomes between relaxers, but I really don't want to sacrifice the health of my hair. My hairdresser claimed that the texture of my hair makes it difficult to stretch longer than 8 weeks. Honestly, I think I agree with her. I have a tight curl pattern...picture the thickest,  most dense afro you can imagine...

...yup! That resembles my 4c hair texture.

Can that texture and relaxed hair realistically coexist for an extended period of time? My experiences seem to be telling me no =(

I hate the relaxer process and I really want as few trips to the salon as possible in a year, but the cons have been outweighing the pros of stretching 8 weeks and beyond. The breakage (and tangling in particular!) I experience at 8 weeks post have to stop as I really can't bear to continue dealing with them in the near future.

I'm honestly not looking forward to stretching beyond 8 weeks again, so I think that on my current stretch, my last wash day will be at seven weeks post, then a couple days after that its relaxer time.


Any advice?

~Hatter

Relaxer Update

On Saturday 3rd November 2012 I had my hair relaxed at the salon at nine weeks post.

The hairdresser used Ultra Precise Relaxer in Mild formula, and again, my results were excellent.

Ultra Precise relaxer in mild strength.

This time the hairdresser didn't base my scalp (eek!) but, gloriously, my scalp hardly got burned by the relaxer (yay!) It's either due to the mild relaxer strength or the fact that my scalp hasn't been very sensitive lately. In fact, I haven't had a flare up of seborrhoeic dermatitis for over a month =)

I'm quite impressed by this relaxer. Compared to the Organic Root Stimulator Olive Oil Relaxer in normal strength, the Precise does not irritate my scalp nearly as much and it gets my hair much straighter. (Maybe this is because I can leave the Precise relaxer in my hair for a longer time? Either way I'm loving it!)

On to the results! Wait! Before you look, can you guess how much length I've retained? =D

~~~~~~~

              

September relaxer results.

My November relaxer results: I'm almost armpit length!!

I'm almost armpit length!! Woooot! APL is my goal for December and I might have one last touch up for the year in late December or I might stretch to early January. Either way it feels thrilling to get closer and closer to the first length goal of my hair journey :)

As I'm sure you can tell, I need a good trim! I tried to trim my hair and it was a failure but I'm determined not to let my hairdresser come near me with scissors. Hopefully doing a thorough dusting of my ends again within the next few weeks will even out their appearance.

    

Celebrations aside, I lost a lot of hair during the relaxer process! On my last wash before relaxer day, I literally just left my hair alone with all its tangles and knots. Consequently, on relaxer day, the dreadlocks that formed at my roots were broken down by the relaxer and combed out:

Hair I lost from matts and tangles being combed out after my relaxer.

My hair doesn't feel much thinner but I can definitely tell that I've had quite some breakage throughout my hair.

Anywhooos, I'm now two weeks post and I had a very good wash day today. I'm glad that, after the hair drama I experienced these past few weeks, my hair still looks modestly healthy.

I can't wait to regain the full health and thickness of my hair! Don't you hate feeling that just when you make progress something happens that puts you two steps back again?

I'm seriously doubting that I'll be stretching to nine weeks again in the near future. My last experience just took too much of a toll on my hair. 

Has anyone had a similar experience? How did you overcome your hair health setbacks?

Much love from

~Hatter

(Super late) Relaxer Update!

I apologize for this super late relaxer update! I originally didn't want to post this picture  but I never got around to taking a better one. So...read and enjoy!

On Wednesday 29th September I had my hair relaxed by my sister's hairdresser here in Trinidad.

From the photo above I can see that I'm coming close to armpit length!! *dances crazily*

However, the lady trimmed my hair...and we all know what a "trim" is like by the hairdresser >.>

I had a feeling she took off too much so the next time I go for a relaxer she is definitely not coming near my hair with scissors!!

Besides the trim, the only other thing that irked me about my touch is up is that the hairdresser got relaxer all over my hair >.< Ughh. I have to ask her next time to be careful about just applying to the new growth. I should definitely coat my relaxed hair with oil/conditioner before I go to the salon too.

This time my hair was relaxed using Precise relaxer in mild formula as the hairdresser didn't carry my beloved Organic Root Stimulator Relaxer.

No complaints there! My scalp didn't burn as much with the Precise and my roots got processed pretty well.

Comparison from my June relaxer (left) and August relaxer (right).

  

From the comparison photos it doesn't seem that I've gained much length in the last two months *thanks to my "trim"*, but I still hope to reach armpit length by my last touch up for the year in December.

I'm currently 5 weeks post and handling my new growth nicely. I'm devising some strategies to deal with the mini-afro that grows in at the 8 week mark.

Happy hurrr day!

~Hatter

Wash day & air-dried hair

Yesterday I did a pre-shampoo treatment, (pre-poo), shampooed and deep conditioned my hair.

The products I used include:

Pre-poo

ORS HAIRepair Vital Oils, Herbal Essences Hello Hydration Moisturising Conditioner, Applicator bottle with the ORS, olive oil and eucalyptus oil.

Pre-pooing with the Herbal Essences was definitely a good idea. When I rinsed it out my hair already felt soft, smooth and conditioned. =)

Shampoo and Deep Conditioner

Motions Professional Lavish Conditioning Shampoo,  ORS Hair Mayonnaise

Today I tried (read: tried) to strand test my hair to see if it needed more moisture or protein. My hair did feel a bit stretchy, and since I relaxed my hair five days ago, I went with protein. (ORS Hair Mayonnaise)

After lightly towel-drying my hair, I applied some Neutragena Triple Moisture Silk Touch Leave in Cream and sealed with ORS HAIRepair Vital Oils (I will never get enough of this product!) Then I air-dried my hair in the four sections I washed it in. When it was about 40% dry I detangled. Detangling was muchhh easier than the last time when I air-dried my hair. I think its because I let my hair dry a bit before using a comb. When I detangle on soaking wet hair, it just clumps together again and causes more tangles loool. 


I was thinking of doing a flexirod set, but my hair was so soft and straight that I'll wait until the weekend when I have an event to go to. =)




Happy huurrrday!
~Hatter

Relaxer Update

On Saturday June 30th I relaxed my hair at 8 weeks, 4 days post! I could have stretched to the full 9 weeks but I was craving straight, silky roots.
This time my mom relaxed my hair at home using my regular relaxer: Organic Root Stimulator No-Lye Relaxer in "Normal".

  

My relaxer results:

The results!

The Positive: my roots mostly relaxed verrrry straight. So much better than when my hairdresser does it!

The Negative: despite my mother's prowess at relaxing, the hair at my widow's peak got texlaxed! LOL. It was because there wasn't enough relaxer in the tub to saturate the area. NB: next time, 2 boxes of relaxer will definitely be needed!

Overall, I'm happy with my results!

Comparison pics: 

January

March

   

June

I admit these pictures aren't very good for comparing my length progress! The last picture is the clearest. Taking better pictures is definitely something I need to work on... However, I can see the length I've gained since January. The real issue is...can I reach armpit length by December? We'll see!

Oh the elusive armpit length! I shall conquer theee

Happy hair day!

~Hatter

ORS HAIRepair Vital Oils: My Review

LOVEE love love love! Those are the best words I can use to describe my feelings towards this product.

The Vital Oils is a blend of oils including: grape seed, soybean, sweet almond and corn oils. Other ingredients include horsetail extract (weird, I know!), awapuhi, nettle and rosemary extracts. The product is geared towards dry hair and scalp, which is exactly what I need!

One of the best features of this oil is that it's verrry light. I can apply this twice a day without my hair feeling weighed down. It's probably because the oil is so light that I have to use more than I would with a heavier product! I've had it for about a month and the bottle is half empty. lool. I use it for hot oil treatments (my hair feels so soft afterwards!) as well as to oil my scalp and seal my hair.

The major benefit of this oil is that when I use it consistently twice or more a week, I experience less dry scalp and flaking. This is a big relief for me because my seborrhoeic dermatitis  leaves my scalp itchy, dry and with ugly dandruff.

How can I forget? All of the HAIRepair products, in my opinion, have a very appealing, sweet smell that I can't get enough of.

Once again, Organic Root Stimulator has produced what I call a bombshell product. Love it!

Bought any of the HAIRepair products? What do you think about them?

Love live ORS!
~Hatter

Summer!

The summer hols are here! They make me want to re-read the Famous Five series! :P haha!
Today I went to the beach with my mom and sister.

I tried to protect my hair from the salt water using a swim cap but unfortunately....didn't work! -.-
Actually, only my nape got wet. When I got home I quickly rinsed with cold water, used my Vo5 and did a final rinse. I guess you could say I co-washed! I'm now airdrying with a little bit of ORS HAIRepair moisture creme.
My hair is drying a bit frizzy and dull because it hardly has any product in it. Doesn't bother me much! It's the weekend and I'm going to relaaaaaax.
Take a break, hair! You've worked hair during the semester. While you're at it, take a view of the beauty outside!

How are you enjoying your summer?

Cheers!
~Hatter

Organic Root Stimulator HAIRepair products

I was attracted to the ORS HAIRepair line because recently my favourite youtuber ulovemegz used this line and received some free products from Namaste. She orginally posted about the Nourishing Conditioner (see below) which she loooooooves.

Unfortunately, my beauty supply store didn't have this, but I did get the Intense Moisture Creme and the Vital Oils for Hair & Scalp:

I'm super excited to use these! The first thing I noticed is that they smell amazing, lol. Recently my hair has been very bleeh: kind of heavy, dense and a bit sticky...not the usual soft and silky feeling =( Honestly, I realized whenever I pincurl my hair or wear braidouts too long my hair gets like this. I also think that using the Neutragena Triple Moisture Silk Leave-In Cream too often makes my hair sticky.

For my next wash, I'm going to try the saran wrap/silk method to straighten out my hair, then Ima use my HAIRepair products!

See the video below for ulovemegz's review of the Nourishing Conditioner:



Have you ever used the HAIRepair products? What are your thoughts??

Cheers!

~Hatter

Is this what you call a hair "haul"?

ORS Olive Oil Replenishing Conditioner, wide tooth comb, Garnier Fructis Fortifying Cream Conditioner "Moisture Works", grey head band =)

This past week I bought a couple of new hair products...to the dismay of my momma. lool!

The ORS is new in that I've never bought the Replenishing Conditioner in the bottle. I always used the Replenishing Paks. Now that I know that they are one and the same, I'll be buying the 12fl oz from now on, thank you very much =)

Second, I bought a (relatively) wide tooth comb. Its not seamless though. I've been having quite a hard time finding seamless combs!

Third! Garnier Fructis Fortifying Cream Conditioner for dry or damaged hair. This was a spontaneous purchase, and I had to endure my sister's rant on the evils of hair products for caucasian hair before I could buy it. Yeah...it had no impact on me, lool =P. I bought this in the hope that it'll really moisturize my poor, dry hair. It better work for me!

Lastly...a cute grey headband...that's about it =)

Everything but the Garnier was bought at beauty supply stores-the supermarket supplied the Garnier Fructis. Can't wait to use it soon!

Hatter~

March hair product reviews

Besides the fact that I'm late to the party, I must still express how much I lurrrvv these two products.

Vo5 Moisture Milks Strawberry and Cream

Vo5: It smoothes my hair and I experience less frizz when airdrying. Now to the important part...it SMELLS SO GOOOOOD. It actually reminds me of strawberries and cream candy. Haha! I need to stop sniffing the bottle =) I've co-washed with it once, and I'll definately continue. *Note, I've used this twice and the bottle is half empty! Good thing its so affordable (read= *cheap*)The only issue is that my shedding seems to have increased, so I don't want to wash too often. Can't stand to see my hair coming out in balls!



Organic Root Stimulator Hair Mayonnaise

 ORS Hair Mayonnaise: Despite my initial fear, this product did not give my hair protein overload. I remember using it years ago, but for the life of me, I can't imagine why I stopped. My hair feels quite soft and silky, and although the smell isn't sweet and delicious, it really is an effective deep conditioner for my hair.

Next: Neutragena Triple Moisture Leave-In. I've been using this for a few weeks, so far its quite moisturizing. I'd like to use it for a bit longer to see if it helps my slight breakage.

P.S. I deep conditioned, washed, detangled and air dryed my hair all by myself this week! Hahaa I sound like such a proud two-year old. =) Seriously, two months ago, I would end up with a ball of hair the size of my palm if I tried to detangle. Thank God for good products and hair blogs!

Ciao!
~Hatter