Quest for the Perfect Curl

I’ve been doing my Rosemary Challenge for the past three weeks, and I must say…easiest challenge evAr! Since I seal my hair every time I wet style it anyway, it’s been simple to use oils/moisturizers with rosemary. The main products I have been using are:

• Carol’s Daughter Healthy Hair Butter (I also did a nice set of twists with this – see below)
• Tropical Traditions Rosemary Organic Coconut Hair Oil
• Ingredients to Die For VegeMink Mix
• Knotty Girl Vanilla Cupcake Leave-In (I’m all out of this – sadness)
• HerbNLife Head Sprung (I actually had to put this away because the WEN was getting NO PLAY, I <3 Head Sprung)

Now, I honestly can’t say I have seen a huge difference in my hair, but it seems like I am retaining length well, and I rarely see a single strand knot (SSK). I also bought some rosemary EO and added more to my VegeMink oil mix (it was only $5!!), and sometimes I put the  mix on my temples because I love the tingle and it relaxes me.

Last week, I also did a set of twists with the Health Hair Butter (well, I used other stuff too b/c I was comparing, but the HHB was used on the majority of my hair) that I really liked. I was scared that my hair wouldn’t be conditioned enough because the main ingredients are water, butters, and oils, but I think the moisture was locked it well and my hair didn’t feel dry four days later. My hair was also smooth and shinier than usual (my hair is not silky and does not have a lot of natural shine). Check out the result!

For now, I am enjoying this challenge and will definitely continue. If you joined me, how you doin’? *Wendy Williams voice*

xoxo

Tags: challenge, Hair, length, natural hair, retention, rosemary

Hey guys! First, I just wanted to say thank you to everyone who participated in NNHMD this weekend, and especially to all the ladies who came out to the LA Curly Girls event. I had so much fun and it was such a joy to meet and interact with people – everyone was SO NICE it was impossible to be funky, lol! Sometimes people can be so nasty on the internet that it’s easy to forget how cool MOST people are. So thank you for reminding me and I truly appreciate you!

Now – to my actual post, lol. So I’m bored with my regimen, but I love it, right? My hair is doing well with dc’ing weekly and keeping up my low manipulation and sealing routine. My SSKs are currently under control and my ends seem healthier since sealing (when I straightened in November vs straightening in May). Last time I straightened, I didn’t even feel the need to trim my hair and my ends are more even. So how do I keep the boredom at bay without going crazy with heat styles (which I’m not going to do in spring summer anyway because my hair would just go cray)? Well…with a challenge, of course!

I was looking at my oils and I realized a lot of them have rosemary EO (which has always been an intriguing ingredient to me).

What’s rosemary?

Rosemary, Rosmarinus officinalis, is a woody, perennial herb with fragrant, evergreen, needle-like leaves and white, pink, purple or blue flowers, native to the Mediterranean region. It is used in cooking and often used in folklore as a medicinal treatment.

Rosemary and Hair

I have read in several places that rosemary helps improve the condition of your hair and scalp. It contains sulfur and silicon, which are said to help strengthen hair (pay attention to your ends, remember?!?!) and promote growth, and it can help relieve scalp conditions such as eczema (source: http://www.livestrong.com/article/244860-rosemary-hair-treatment/). Because length RETENTION is currently my main goal for my hair, I am interested to see if rosemary can help me preserve my ends and minimize breakage. Yes, I get breakage – it’s not excessive, but I think that everyone gets some breakage. Mine is mainly physical though – meaning, it’s my fault because sometimes I handle my hair like a WWE wrestler (which I am TRYING to get better at). But it would be interesting to see if rosemary can help “not let me get me.”

The Challenge

For this challenge, I am going to leave a product in my hair with rosemary at least four times a week. This will mainly consist of oils, but I do also have some conditioners that contain rosemary. While rosemary is also good for the scalp, I am not going to directly concentrate on mine, moreso my ends or length if it’s a leave-in. I think I’m going to do this until…Labor Day.

Goals

• Reduce breakage
• Increase retention
• Minimize split ends
• Strengthen ends

Products

I have the following products that contain rosemary essential oil or extract:

• Carol’s Daughter Lisa’s Hair Elixir*
• Tropical Traditions Organic Coconut Hair Oil*
• Emtage Silktage Styling Serum*
• Ingredients to Die For VegeMink
• Hairobics Detangler Oil*
• Carol’s Daughter Healthy Hair Butter*
• Spiral Solutions Deeply Decadent Moisturizing Treatment (which I can use as a leave-in)
• HerbNLife Coconut Hemp Pomade*
• HerbNLife Head Sprung*
• Karen’s Body Beautiful Super Silky
• WEN Fig Replenishing Treatment Mist
• Knotty Girl Vanilla Cupcake Leave-In (Yay!)
• AG Re: Coil
• Bee Mine Bee Hold Curly Butter
• Coco Curls

Tags: challenge, Hair, length, natural hair, retention, rosemary