Reflecting on The Year 2012

The year 2012 was good to me. I fell in love with myself again. I embraced my naturalness and my womanhood. I learned a lot about myself and strived harder for improvement. I retained the few friends I have and I love and appreciate them dearly. I honestly believe I am a better person than I was in 2011. 

This year I fell in love with someone who is the most supportive, motivating and loving person I could have. Having this great support system have made my improvements much greater. In Sept 2012, I created the Glam Natural Life blog where I have the platform to share my experiences as it relates to natural hair care, skin care and natural living. I am grateful for all those who have visited and read my blog. It has grown faster than I expected and while I am proud of myself, I can't take all the credit. You the readers have helped it to grow by reading and commenting and inspiring me to more effort into it. For that, I thank you. 

It has been a good year and 2013 will be better. I will it to be. I am not big on New Years resolutions but I am going to try and make a few realistic enough to keep. Will tell you my list  later. Lol! One for  sure is to improve the site and provide my readers with info that is of interest to them. I hope I can help more people and be inspired more. 

Want to thank you all and wish you and your family a Happy and Prosperous New Year. May it bring more love and opportunity and wisdom into your life. 

Love!

Shelly (Glam Natural Life)

DIY Homemade Natural Hair Deep Conditioner

So I decided to give my hair some needed loving. I wanted to deep condition my hair but did not want to go out and buy a deep conditioner. So what do you do? You MAKE your own. Lol!

I haven't washed my hair in 2 weeks and have been using Gels and products with mineral oil so I needed a good hair and scalp cleaning. I shampooed with Shea Moisture Smooth and Repair shampoo and got my scalp clean and ready for conditioning.

I poured a generous amount of Tresseme Naturals Conditioner in a bowl. Then I added a generous amount of honey, about 2 tablespoon of Jamaican Black Castor oil and 2 drops of Tea Tree oil. I mixed it all up and applied it to my hair in sections and made sure the entire shaft was coated.

Massaging the mixture into my scalp felt so good. The tingling sensation from the Tea Tree Oil left my scalp feeling heavenly. I put a cap on and took a nap for an hour. When I rinsed my hair, it felt so soft. The honey gave the conditioner a moisturizing boost. It was so soft to the touch and my curls were springy and it was shiny.

I love the results so much it reminded me how important a deep conditioning session is. I saw more hair coming out than I wanted to see but that's my punishment for slacking on deep conditioning my hair. All shed hair and single strand knots were gone. This will definitely be a weekly ritual.

Do you create your own homemade hair mixtures? Please share!

~Glam Natural Life

Rest in Peace Sandy Hook Elementary victims!

It's been a sad couple of days since the senseless killing of those kids and teachers in Newtown Connecticut. Just want to remind you to have them and their families in your prayers - whatever your religion might be. 

Those children could have been doctors, lawyers and even president of the United States and great husbands, wives and parents. They will not be seeing those days. We try to make sense of what happened but impossible to think why someone would do such a thing to innocent children.

Can you imagine sending your kids to school only to never to see them again? I know that nobody want to think about that. Go home and hug your babies.

This world is crazy!

Kitchen Korner

Here are a few natural hair and skin care remedies I love to use! Enjoy!

http://www.glamnaturallife.com/p/kitchen-korner.html

Is Nappy Hair a Deal Breaker for Guys?

Today a group of friends and I were discussing experiences while dating men; now that I am natural. I figured I would share it with you guys.

It would be nice if I could say that it is uncommon for a guy to dismiss, cease communication or not go on a second date with a girl because she has natural (Nappy) hair. The hair she was born with – that is. But I cannot. It is more common than people think. I am fortunate to now be with a man who is very accepting of who I am and my ‘nappiness’ and encourages my natural journey. However the road there was a very bumpy one.

This is a very REAL issue within the black community. We are still not at the point of accepting our ‘blackness’ and loving black women like they are. We are so far away from that point that it is very hard to picture it. 

So here is the story: One day out of curiosity I asked a guy I went out with if he could tell me why we never went on a second date and I expressed that he can be very candid. He said ‘ok’ and began to explain. ‘I think you are a very bright and attractive girl but I don’t like the Nappy Hair you have and don’t think I will. But you’re a cool girl though’. Yes guys! That is what the guy said to me. I wasn’t mad but you have to stop and think and acknowledge that this is how lots of men think. The question is how are we going to correct this? And worse, can it even be corrected? 

While discussing this, we started reminiscing on the feed backs we were getting from guys. Asking us questions like ‘why is your hair not permed?’; ‘how do you comb your hair seeing that it is not straight?’ or “What is going on with your hair”. All while trying to ask nicely to make sure the date is not completely ruined. Yes people, these are comments that came from guys’ mouths. Disgusting! But true.

My best friend IslandEssence from YouTube wrote on her Facebook:

Girl: why did we only go on one date?
Guy: I cant deal with the nappy hair thing...
My Advice: Maybe u need a white girl...they come with straight hair, naturally

It created a positive buzz all day on her Facebook and twitter. We also realized that lots of men shared our views. "Very comforting".

We decided to go to Google and do some quick research. The results were astounding. It made us realize that this is not an isolated thing. This is something that happens to naturalsistas all the time. It is sad, but we are slowly learning to have thick skin and not be offended. A lot of attractive, educated and grounded women are being turned down and shunned by educated black men because they don’t have long flowing straight hair. Men are that shallow.

Kittikat24 from http://www.longhaircareforum.com left this post on the issue:
I was getting to know a guy and after communicating for a while he abruptly broke it off. Perplexed I found out from a friend that he couldn't be with a girl with 'nappy hair'. I guess he decided he'd have to "change me" to continue the relationship. That just hurts though, that out of EVRYTHING...the deal breaker's my hair?

Empressri also from http://www.longhaircareforum.com left this post on the issue:

I have been ps'ing in wigs lately but decided to wear my 'fro' a few days ago.

My mentor (an older man), looks at me and says, "What is going on with your hair?" I responded with 'this is the hair that God gave me, which promptly shut him up.

She couldn’t have said it better. And there are tons of comments on this topic in almost all hair forums I looked at. It is a shame to be honest. But it’s a real issue that lots of our black educated women face daily.

Have you had any negative comments directed at you by men because of how you choose to wear your hair?

Treating Eczema The Natural Way

Tackling Eczema Naturally

Eczema is not a rare skin disorder. Many of us suffer from it. Some experience mild eczema that look like very dry skin that a few applications of Cortizone 10 can fix. Then you have those that experience scaly skin with big flakes, patches, blisters and skin so dry it itches/burns. I am one of those people. Having to deal with eczema can be a hassle. I am always trying to hide the rashes with more covering clothing and makeup to hide the patches on my face (which eventually makes it worse). The most annoying thing, is when you have to explain to colleagues and coworkers that its not contagious (even though some patches are round like Ring Worm). Doctors prescribe topical steroids but they don't always work or work for a while then you get another prescription. Name it I have been prescribed it. All this by the way is not free. Lol!

I decided to go on Natural Eczema Treatment experiment. I mean, what can I lose? Haven't I tried everything else? So here goes. Lol!


I am by no means an expert or a medical professional but I have researched a lot of oils, butters, plant extracts that claim to have benefits for the skin and hair. I have narrowed it down to Coconut oil, Shea Butter and Aloe Vera Juice/Gel that I chose to use on this journey.

Coconut Oil

 

Coconut acts as an effective moisturizer on all types of skins including severely dry skin. It naturally moisturizes skin and hair and penetrates the skin and hair shaft better than most oils. Lots of naturalsistas use coconut oil religiously in their hair but its just as effective on the skin.

Shea Butter

 

Shea butter seals in moisture without clogging pores. It moisturizes the skin and is often used to even skin tone

Aloe Vera Juice/Gel

 

Aloe Vera is very moisturizing (whether you use the commercially sold juice or gel or if you extract it from the Aloe leaf yourself). It leaves your skin hydrated and soothes the rashes and blisters.

Independently  they are good skin care  ingredients. However my skin situation need ALL THREE.  I mix them together into a creamy paste. I make small amounts at a time.

Below is my potion:
4 tablespoon of Shea butter
2 teaspoon of Coconut oil
2 teaspoon of Aloe Vera gel


Mix until it is creamy and the Shea Butter is no longer hard. I rub it into my skin on the affected areas 3 times per day. Morning, Midday (yes I have it in my purse. Lol!)


The key to treating or minimizing the appearance of eczema or any other dry skin disorder is to keep your skin moisturized. That is my challenge. Wish me luck?

ABC’s of Kinky/Curly Hair

Saw this cool chart and thought I would share it with you lovelies!

Hope you like!


NaturallyCurly

Why is going natural so expensive?

It's often said that to go natural is too expensive. You have to buy this product and  that product and so on and so on. But is it really expensive to rock the hair your born with? Do you REALLY need all those products?

Lets talk about this!

It's sad to say that going natural have only been 'cool' for the last few years. But it is true. When we were little girls the vast amount of information available to us now was not there then. Even if you don't admit it, we bought hair products that had a pretty permed hair girl on the front or stuff you saw your mom or sister used. NONE of us looked at the ingredients. And why would we? We did not understand anything but what the marketers said it will or won't do for our hair. 

 We trusted the hair dressers - who are mostly not highly educated - with the hair chemicals and products more than ourselves - who actually hold degrees. Whatever they said was law. But most of us who had perms have experienced hair breakage or growth to our shoulders then that's it. We were never really taught how to understand what we put in our hair and what it does. Well other than the hair dresser saying "buy this, it's good for your hair". 

To be totally honest, as a natural, your weekly/monthly hair care regimen should not break your pocket. All you need is a good cleanser, conditioner, leave in or moisturizer and an oil. That's It! My Shea moisture shampoo is natural and cost me no more than $10 and last me months, my conditioners are cheap (mostly herbal essences) which cost me around $6 for a huge bottle and my Shea Moisture smoothie is $10. Right there you see it's cheap. So does it cost a lot to be a natural? NO!

Ok, so you might say "but those are not the prices I see in the natural hair aisles". And I agree. Lots of hair products company shoot their prices up because going natural have become a new 'niche'. Seriously, there is no real reason why those products should be $30 and more a piece. When I look at the ingredients they are things I can get myself and a mixer. Why am I paying $30 a pop for something clearly not worth my money. And do I really need to?

Now don't get me wrong, I buy all sorts of products. I have tons of products at my house and my boyfriend's house. But that is my little product junkie habit. I don't HAVE to buy tons of products. I just want to. So there you have it. Going Natural does not have to be expensive unless you want it to. You don't need a lot. You can make your own spritz and Shea butter mixes if you like. To be honest I am yet to find a hair mist better than my aloe vera mix I have in my spray bottle. Being natural is fun. Don't let it seem complicated and don't buy a product because other people are using it. Find what work for you and stick with it. I suggest trying the Shea Moisture line. There is something for everyone and at a good price. 

Do you spend tons on hair products?

My Love for Braid Outs on Natural Hair

While I love and appreciate my hair’s vibe in it shrunken state, I also like to play with my ‘real’ length. If you are a woman with natural curly/kinky hair, then you know shrinkage is a part of life. However we can combat shrinkage in many ways (twist-outs, braid-outs, blow-outs, etc). My go to combat method is braid outs. I love the fact that as the days go on the style looks bigger and better.

I braid my hair at night because if I go to bed. Without doing something I wake up with a shrunken fro. If I am going for that look then its fine.

The picture on the left is the first day of the braid-out and the second picture is the second day. I prefer the second day because it looked fuller and shows more length.

My Braid-Out Routine

How I did it:

• After hair is cleaned I section my hair (2 in the front, one in the middle, and 2 to the back). I make sure to part the front of my hair how I the hair to fall.

• To each section I spray my spritz. See My Winter Hair Care post for ingredients.

• Add oil of choice and then Moisturize with Shea Moisture Smoothie

• Make 2 braids out of each section. I add a small amount of Organic Aloe Vera Gel to the section and then braid tightly.

• When I have about an inch of hair left I do two strand twists to the end. This makes it curly and nice when they are unraveled. Repeat until head is done.

• Put satin scarf on and head to bed.

• Next day I put oil in my hands and begin unraveling the braids carefully.

• Separate carefully to not cause frizz and you’re DONE!

How I maintain it:

• At night I re-braid but larger this time around. If it feels dry then I spray spritz and moisturize with smoothie. If not I just braid and twist the end of my hair and put satin cap on.

• Unravel and style in the morning.

Below are some pics

pic with braids. Yes I do look crazy. lol

3rd day day braid-out

4th day hair (in car waiting) lol

Another pic of 4th day braid-out

How do you stretch your hair?


Love Shelly
Glam Natural~

Darker Than Brown: Washing Natural Hair In Sections

Darker Than Brown: Washing Natural Hair In Sections

Winter Natural Hair Care

The winter is HERE! 

I hate the winter months. Sorry, I am Jamaican. Lol! It needs to be over 70 degrees everyday for me to love the weather. But hey you can’t change it so you ADAPT!

The winter weather can be very mean and vicious to your hair; whether you’re natural, relaxed or texturized. The air is dry and for most of us it makes your hair dry. The scarves and hats that we HAVE TO WEAR so as to not get sick, can damage our hair. They can pull on our strands and cause friction. So we have to find ways to work around them by wearing our hair up if we can and by lining the hats with satin or just wearing a satin scarf under the hat.

In these coming months, the weather will get worse/colder, so now is the perfect time to change my current regimen and the styles I normally wear. Moisture has to be on the DOUBLE this winter. Below is what my winter regimen will be. (I might alter it depending on how my hair response when it gets much colder)

Disclaimer: I am by no means an expert on winter hair care as this is only my second winter being natural and my first with hair touching my neck. I did the big chop in August 2011. This is what I will be doing this winter. You can follow but it is not chronicles from the hair bible (if you get what I mean).

The Winter Natural Hair Regimen

Shampooing:

I don’t think I will be sweating that much in the winter and I don’t use products that cause lots of buildup so I will be limiting my shampooing to once a month. I am still using Shea Moisture Organic Shea Butter Curl & Shine Shampoo with Coconut & Hibiscus. I have a bottle and half left and pledged to not buy any new product until 2013 so I will be sticking to this shampoo. Lol!

Pre-pooing:

I am going to try to do this every wash day (hopefully I stick to it).
I like my mix of honey, coconut oil, Ojon oil, and some hair mayo or cheapie conditioner (for slip). This I do in 4 sections and make sure all of the hair is coated. I leave it in for 30mins while I do house work then put heated cap on for 10mins. Then rinse with warm water and move on to cowashing.

Cowashing:

I am only washing my hair once a week. This weather is too cold to be walking around with wet/damp hair. Every weekend I will cowash with one of my many conditioners. (I literally have more than I think I should admit to. Yes a Product Junkie I am). I work with 4 sections and make sure each section is fully saturated with conditioner. So far, I am loving Tresemme Naturals and Herbal Essence (honey/totally twisted. I have a jar of As I Am Cowash that i am dying to try. I will try it next week or so.

Detangling:

I divide each of my 4 sections into 2 and start finger detangling from the ends up to the roots. I feel for knots and tangles and unravel with my first then when it feels smooth enough I use the wide tooth comb and further detangle. (Sometimes I follow with the Denman brush). Continue onto the other sections.

Deep Conditioning:

Currently I am using Garnier Frutis 3minute Treatment. It's quick and it works. I am not really fond of deep conditioning for hours on end all the time then hop in the shower again.  However I will do it once in a while.

The spritz of my life:

Aloe Vera juice
Honey
Coconut oil
Castor oil
Tea tree oil
(Shake that up and you got the goodness)

Moisturizers I am in love with:

• Garnier Frutis leave in Conditioner Cream. I just love this stuff. Its light weight and my hair is left so moisturized. I graduated from Giovanni leave in conditioner. One day I will go back to it. (I use on dry and wet hair)

• Shea moisture curl enhancing smoothie. I love this stuff. I am always stocking up.

• Carols Daughter health hair butter. I love this stuff but not sure I will repurchase. The price is not in my budget.

• My coconut and Shea butter mix

(I am sure I will be using more moisturizer than in the summer months. Everyday I will make my hair feels moisturized before going to bed)

Gels/styles:

I am staying away from gels that are rock hard like the white Eco styler gel. Anything with high levels of glycerin in the ingredients is also a no no for the winter. So my Shea moisture soufflé will be taking a rest until spring or summer. I will be using Aloe Vera gel mostly and softer holding gels

Styles:

It's been preached that you should do protective styling like mini twist and braids for the winter. But I think it's not for me. Too many failures. After a day or two my twists look a mess. I am so over it. I will stick to buns and big flat twist that will be quick and really only last a day anyway.

I love my twist outs and braid outs but I will judge if wearing my hair out in fros will be bad for my hair. I am also loving Flat Twist updos. Click here for post on Flat Twists.

What will you be changing in your regimen?


Love Shelly
Glam Natural Life

Words of Encouragement

Hey Loves!

A few days ago I was very down on myself and needed some encouragement. My boyfriend sent me the following words to uplift my spirits and it did.  I feel like it will help some one too so please read below.

Me: God can I ask you a question?
God: Sure
Me: Promise u won't get mad

God: I promise
Me: Why did u let so much stuff happen to me today?
God: What do u mean?
Me: Well, I woke up late,
God: Yes
Me: My car took forever to start,
God: Okay
Me: at lunch they made my sandwich wrong & I had to wait,
God:Huummmm...
Me: On the way home, my phone went DEAD, just as I picked up a call.....
God: All right
Me: And to top it all off, when I got home ~I just wanted to soak my feet in my new foot massage & relax. BUT it wouldn't work!!! Nothing went right today! Why did you do that?

God: Let me see, the Death Angel was at your bed this morning & I had to send one of the other angels to battle him for your life. I let you sleep through that.
Me (humbled): OH
GOD: I didn't let your car start because there was a drunk driver on your route that would have hit you if you were on the road.
Me (ashamed).........
God: The first person who made your sandwich today was sick & I didn't want you to catch what they have, I knew you couldn't afford to miss work.
Me (embarrasses):Ok
God: Your phone went dead bcuz the person that was calling was going to give false witness about what you said on that call, I didn't even let you talk to them so you would be covered. 
Me (softly): I see God
God: Oh and that foot massage, it had a shortage that was going to throw out all of the power in your house tonight. I didn't think you wanted to be in the dark.
Me: I'm sorry God
God: Don't be sorry, just learn to trust me.....in all things, the good & the bad.
Me: I will trust you
God: And don't doubt that my plan for your day is always better than your plan.
Me: I won't God. And let me just tell you God, thank you for everything today.
God: You're welcome child. It was just another day being your God and I love looking after my children.

7 Myths About Natural Black Hair

7 Myths About Black Women & Their Natural Black Hair.

There a few things that are easily said or thought of regarding black women and their natural black hair. I am here to detest 7 of them. So here we go....

1. Natural hair is "hard to manage".

This is not true. The problem is that we weren't raised to care for our natural hair and detangling and combing our natural hair with 'ease' was only a dream. This is because we didn't know exactly how to care for natural black hair. I am sure most of us remember sitting and breaking one comb after another as our Moms or sister(s) try to comb our natural hair. We had never heard of a natural hair regimen.

Natural Hair Regimen

Hair Regimen

Hey Loves! Lets talk hair.

Having a good hair regimen and "sticking to it" is very important for the health of your hair. Regardless if your hair is natural or chemically treated; every one needs one. It should be noted that everybody's hair is different and so what might work for one person might not work for the other in the same way. With that said, I encourage you to try different techniques and products. This is my regimen (what Shelly does) so it might work for you or not. Ok ok ok let's get to it. lol!

There is 4 parts to my regimen: Prepoo-Cleanse - Condition-Moisturize-Style

Prepoo:

I mix coconut oil, Ojon oil, honey, few drops of tea tree oil in a small bowl or cup and place in microwave for 10 - 15 seconds. Divide hair into 4 sections and apply  mixture to each section root to tip ensuring ever strand is getting some of this goodness. Lol!
Massage for a few minutes and move on to the next section. Put on plastic cap and my steam cap over it for 20mins.

*massaging scalp help with blood circulation and stimulates hair growth.
*sometime I do this the night before wash day so it stays longer in my hair.


Cleansing:

I love a good clean scalp. I shampoo with Shea Moisture Shampoo or I cowash using one of my many conditioners (and I got lots. Lol!). I shampoo each section putting most of the focus on my scalp. The hair will get cleansed as the shampoo runs down the shaft during the rinse process. I ensure that All the product is rinsed out before continuing.


Conditioning:

I only detangle when my hair is thoroughly plastered with conditioner.  I don't have a favorite, it's just what I feel like grabbing or what's closest to me. All my conditioners provides great slip so any one I grab is good.

Again I am working with the same 4 sections. Now I divide each of those sections into 4 smaller sections and detange from the ends up to the root first with my finger, then wide tooth comb then my denman brush to remove shed hairs. I twist each of these sections when I am done. So now I have lots of twist in my hair. I rinse with the twists in; trying to not get them unraveled. I dry with a tee shirt or a microfiber hair turban.

Moisturizing:

After squeezing out as much water as possible from my twists I add my leave-in conditioner. At the moment I am digging Garnier Fructis sleek and shine leave in conditioning cream. it leaves my hair feeling really soft. I unravel a twist, add leave-in, seal with coconut oil or my Shea butter mix and retwist tighter than they were before.

Style:

I either let my twist air dry and rock a twist out or I blow dry using the tension method and do a braid out. My favorite styles are braid out, flat twist outs or cornrows braid outs. I find that these methods leave me with stretched define hair.


I am my no means a pro, but I find that this works well for me. What is your current regimen?

Going Natural - My Natural Hair Story

My Natural Hair Story!

Shelly Ann Cameron

 Why did I go natural?

I had been getting my hair relaxed/permed since I was 8yrs old. As long as I can remember, I have never had bouncing hair that I was madly in love with without the aid of weaves/extensions. My naked permed hair was so damaged you could see right through it and 'limp' was the best word to describe it. I did what I was told with no great results. Washed every two weeks, deep condition, wrap at night and made sure to not touch up frequently. However 'limp' was still the nickname until I got a good Remi installation. Then I was the Bomb.com (if u know what I mean. lol!)

My best friend went natural 2 yrs before I did. I still remember her trying to persuade me to chop my 'limpness' off and go natural. I gave every excuse you can think of as to why I cant do it: "my hair not soft like yours so it wont be able to comb", "natural hair is not for me" and the biggest one 'I wont look good with nappy hair'. How people were going to perceive me was a big thing that I had to get over. Well on Aug 6th, 2011, after trying to de-tangle two textures for hours I realize I was 'DONE'.  I grabbed a scissors and chopped off my permed hair and been natural since then. Now I have really strong healthy hair.

Signature Braid Out!

Am I happy I made the move to being Natural?

Extremely! Taking a scissors and chopping my limpness off seem like a small thing to some people but to me it was huge. Having an inch of hair was shocking to me because I was a ponytail girl. What was even more shocking was how I got to see my beauty beyond the hair. I fell in love with myself again. I was terrified to go to work the next day because for 5yrs working there this new 'do' was way outside Shelly's box. The compliments were coming left, right and center. I was amazed. I posted pics on Facebook and the response was the same. None of my hair extension installations received that much praise. My best friend was far above the moon when she saw what I did. I believe these are the things that kept me going.

Natural Hair is so versatile. The braidouts and twist outs and bantu knots and the good ole' wash n'go all excited me and still does. Mr Bobby pins and I created a great friendship and he has been keeping my hair styles flawless since then. Lol! I am glued to YouTube and the excitement to try a new style or product is still alive and kicking. Lol! I love being natural.

Has the transition changed you and how?

Yes, it has changed me. My outlook on life has changed. I know this is crazy that going back to how you were born and wearing the hair that grow from your scalp in its natural state should not be a big deal but it is. Growing up, kids who never had permed hair was teased and not seen as beautiful. There were no black nappy hair barbie in every toy store. Being natural was not something you do. Sounds crazy but we know its true.

I can honestly say I love myself more. Not that i never loved myself before, but I appreciate my raw beauty more (if that makes sense). Playing in my hair, researching new techniques and natural products is so much fun to me it makes me wonder who this new person is. Lol! But I wouldn't want it any other way. I will never have a perm again. If I feel the need for straight hair there is always a flat iron. Lol!

What is your basic hair care regimen! 

Weekly:

• I shampoo with a moisturizing shampoo like Shea Moisture Curl&Shine Shampoo.
•  Deep condition with my DIY deep conditioner mix (Click here for recipe).
• Air dry 60% then I moisturize using the LOC method and then braid my hair. (I wear braidouts more than any other style)

Nightly:

Spray with my DIY hair mist and rebraid my hair.

What is your Story?

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