I'm seeing curls and waves

I have applied the Baka Natural Laxer to my hair for three months now (once a month) and this last time (Saturday, October 15) I saw curly Qs. I am so excited about my natural hair.

Africa's Best, Rod Rollers, African Pride, Natural Laxer, Shea Moisture Product Line

So I got some new hair products. The only thing that I will continue to use from the NuGro line is the spray moisturizer. I have switched to a new shampoo and conditioner. I now use Shea Moisture all natural products. Each Shea Moisture product was $9.99 plus tax at Target. I purchased mine in store, however it is available online. I like the Shea Moisture product line because they do not contain "-ates", "cones", parabens, etcetera and they are affordably priced.

The shampoo has a good lather and left my hair clean/soft and detangled.

The reconstructive elixir smells delicious and I use it daily. Love this combination of oils.

The conditioner smells good and left my hair soft and manageable. The directions say you can leave it in or rinse it out.

I have not yet tried the hair masque. The directions say you can leave it in or rinse it out.

  

I will continue to use the Natural laxer and am pleased with the softness and manageability of my hair. I can actually comb through it after rinsing out the product. The effects are cumulative. See older posts OR Google for more information on Baka Natural Laxer. I paid $14.99 per jar through Treasured Locks online. It is chemical free, all natural and is not permanent. This product does not straighten the hair, it makes it more manageable. The second time I used this I used filtered water from my fridge, I did not order the rose water (even though it smells divine). I also just sat under the hair dryer with a plastic shower/conditioning cap (I did not use the heat cap as suggested). I sat under the dryer for about 30-45 minutes (I am still transitioning).

I use the Baka Natural Laxer once a month. The effects are cumulative.

When I roll my hair with my curl formers (see older posts or Google search) I utilize Lottabody setting lotion.The curlers work really well and I only have to sit under the dryer for 30-45 minutes.

Just add water.

My spray bottle oil mix.

Since I have began transitioning I have noticed that my scalp has been itchy. I know it has been said that certain oils like petrolatum and mineral oil are not good for hair. I do use natural oils (which I place in a spray bottle and massage into my scalp and apply to my hair which contains olive oil, Africa's Best oil mix, castor oil, and safflower oil, however I still find times when my scalp is really dry and itchy.I purchased all of the Africa's Best oil and African pride products from Wal-Mart. All affordably priced.

This is the oil.

This smells delicious, I use it to do my twist outs at night and as a daily moisturizer.

This works really well for moisturizing and shine.

This is best used after you wash your hair although the directions say that it can be used as a daily leave-in. I found that this needed a lot of time to dry and when I used it for a twist out at night the next morning some of my curls were still damp.  I use this on my baby's curly/coily hair and it helps with detangling and his hair has a shine all day.

 

So I purchased some hair grease and I use it sparingly for those times when my scalp feels dry and itchy.

The ingredients aren't perfect but it works.

Petrolatum, Cocos Nucifera (Coconut) Oil, Lanolin, Butyrospermum Park ii (Shea Butter), Buxus Chinensis (Jojoba) Seed Oil, Camellia Sinensis Leaves (Japanese Green Tea), Tocopheryl Acetate, Apocynum Cannabinum Root Extract, Carthamus Tinctorius (Safflower) Seed Oil, Propylene Glycol, Aloe Barbadensis Leaf Extract, Eugenia Caryophyllus (Clove) Flower Extract, Cocos Nucifera (Coconut) Extract, Echinacea Angustifolia Extract, Trigonella Foenum-Graecum Seed Extract, Cola Acuminata Seed Extract, Lawsonia Inermis (Henna) Extract, Fragrance

When I do a twist out I do two strand twists and then I twist them into bantu knots and pin them with a bobby pin. Recently I tried something new...rod rollers!

A little gel to set it.

Rod Rollers from Sallys

Wrapped in end paper, three sizes.

 

I wrapped the rollers in end papers to protect my hair.

 So far I've used the rod rollers twice using a little gel and the African Pride moisturize lotion. I twist a section of hair and I roll it ALONG the roller then give it a little twist and connect the roller cap to the end of the rod. I have learned that if I roll the hair along the roller rather than on top of itself I get a more coily curl and my hair is not damp the next morning. I slept without a head covering on a satin pillowcase so that my hair could get air to dry.

Right after I removed the rollers.

A twist on the rod roller.

Back- I love the curls but I need to work on the spacing and putting more rollers in the back. It is difficult to twist my hair in the back so I end up pulling it to the side and then after it sets the curls are still to the side so the  curls on/near the side are more curly and the hair in the back between the side curls is more straight. I blend it as best that I can.

Side-I love the curls but I need to work on my spacing so I won't see my scalp.

Top-Just look at those waves and curls.

Now that I use a bit of gel a twist out usually lasts me about two days and then I have to retwist. Remember I am still transitioning so I still have some relaxed ends. Perhaps when my hair is all natural a twist out will last a week.

Baka Natural Laxer and Curlformers

My hair had just been done in a three strand twist out on Saturday, August 20, 2011. They were very defined and I had a little Afro. I used an olive oil/Castor oil mix to smooth out and detangle my hair. I left it on overnight with a conditioning cap (plastic shower cap). The next morning I sat under the dryer for about 15 minutes for a makeshift hot oil treatment.

The following is the regimen that I used to do my hair:

1st   Hot Oil Treatment Overnight   No pH

2nd Wash with NuGro Shampoo    pH 5                     (rinse)

3rd  Baka NaturalLaxer Mix           pH 7 neutral        

4th  Dryer highheat / 45 minutes                                  (rinse)

5th  Wash with NuGro Shampoo    pH 5                     (rinse)

6th  Baking Soda Mix                     pH 8           DO NOT RINSE

7th Palmer's Deep Conditioner        pH 4    Dryer high heat/conditioning (plastic shower cap / 15 min)  (rinse)

8th Apple Cider Vinegar Mix          pH 3     DO NOT RINSE

9th Allways Leave-in Conditioner/Setting lotion

10th Hair Dryer 1 hour, curlformers

5  + 5 + 8 + 4 + 3 = 25

25 divided by 5 = 5 perfect hair :-D

(total pH of all products used divided by the total number of products used)

Baka Natural Laxer

This link will take you to Treasured Locks which is where I ordered my Baka Natural Laxer. I ordered one mix and one rose water. My order was 19.98 + 5.95 shipping for a total of $25.93. It did not take long for my order to reach me. I only had one complaint. Whoever packed my order did not close the bottle of the rose water tightly so a little leaked out. The whole package has a nice rosy scent.

Baka Natural Laxer Mix

Here is what it looks like, it also came with a directions pamphlet.

 I followed the directions to the letter with the exception of the heat cap. It wasn't hard to mix.

Nice and creamy.

I used a butter knife to mix in the rose water.

The mix was quite fragrant and I loved the way the rose water smelled. I added a little filtered water from my fridge to be sure that the mix was creamy enough because the directions said to mix it to a thin paste.

I applied the mix to my hair with my fingertips starting from the back. I parted it and used hair clips to hold my hair back. It applied easily. I began with the hair closest to my roots smoothing in a downward motion.  When I finished my whole head I still had plenty of mix left over so I applied it to my hair.

The mix does dry as you work with it so it makes sense that the directions say to begin in the back. You cannot comb through this stuff, use your fingertips to apply.

There was a bit of grit from the dried natural laxer on my neck and counter.

I sat under my hooded dryer with high heat for 45 minutes with a plastic (shower) conditioning cap on my head. Afterward I rinsed my hair with lukewarm water. My hair was really soft and the natural laxer rinsed from my hair quite easily. I shampooed with the NuGro Shampoo once more and rinsed with lukewarm water. I applied my baking soda mix to my hair and scalp, then the Palmer's Deep Conditioner.

This stuff smells wonderful and it left my hair feeling silky smooth.

  I sat under the dryer, high heat, 15 minutes with a plastic conditioning (shower cap) and then rinsed it out with lukewarm water. I applied my Apple cider vinegar mix to my hair and rung out the excess gently. I blotted my hair with my towel and applied my Allways leave-in cream conditioner and setting lotion and proceeded to roll my hair with my curlformers. I sat under the dryer for an hour and then removed the curlformers.

I used a lot more rollers this time.

This is how it looked when I first pulled out the rollers.

This is how it looked once I applied my olive/castor oil mix and pulled the curls apart.

Once the process was complete my hair was smooth, my scalp clean and my hair was easy to comb through as I rolled my hair. My hair was more manageable. The hair at my scalp was not straight, but I can get a comb through it now without all the pop, pop. pop. My curls were bouncy, soft and shiny. I give natural laxer two thumbs up and I will be using it again. Click here to check out their site. It is an all natural product and it is not permanent, rather its effects are cumulative. I will be purchasing a heat cap to use for the next application (which I will do once a month while I am transitioning and afterward once I'm completely natural) so that I won't have to sit so long. The time for a hooded dryer is a lot longer than the recommended time for the conditioning cap.