EVENT ALERT: WITJ SHOW 2014

Just a quick one!
Woman in the Jungle is geared up to to bring another WITJ Natural Hair & Beauty Show to London in 2014. All the deets are on the flyer below.

If you missed it this year, check out my recap of the day >here<.

Remember to check out The Natural Hair Events Page >here< to find out what hair events are coming up. If you know of a natural hair events coming up, contact me (email/twitter) to get it listed (it's free!).

SEASONAL PRODUCT SHOPPING

A couple of weeks ago I decided it was time to start getting a Winter hair care routine going.
It just so happens that this is also a perfect excuse to go shopping and satisfy my inner product junkie. I already had a clear idea of what I wanted and managed to tick-off everything on the list.

I often get asked where to buy natural hair products in London, so I've included some info about what I bought and where I bought it from. I hope it helps. You can watch the video or just check out the boards below.

                  

PRODUCTS:
What, Where From, & How Much?
I love JBCO for a number of reasons: It's the best thing ever for sealing my ends and reducing breakage, it makes my hair really soft and shiny, and it keeps my scalp in great condition. I've tried a  regular castor oil before but the results weren't as good as the Jamaican Black.

Rosemary essential oil is said to stimulate circulation and help promote hair growth, and during last year's KCCM Castor Oil Challenge >here<, I was pretty pleased at how my hair responded when I added a few drops to my JBCO before applying it at night.

I forgot to mention the Cling film in the vid, but I bought it as an alternative to regular conditioning caps. It's just a little money saver, as a roll of film lasts a lot longer than single use caps. 

I'm always curious about Shea Moisture products, so I picked up a couple of cute samples. I want to try these before I go spending £15 on the full-sized products. Personally I think the price of Shea Moisture in the UK is a bit steep.

Giovanni Smooth As Silk range is one of my favourites. The shampoo has a lot of slip, which helps minimize the tangles on wash day, and so does the the conditioner which is also one of my favourite deep conditioners. Although they're only travel-size, I know the shampoo will last me for 4-6 weeks, because a little goes a long way. However I'll be buying a full-size bottle of the conditioner asap.

Butterfly clamps are the unsung heroes of my haircare routine. They help me handle my hair in sections which actually makes washing and styling a lot quicker and less complicated.

Where do you buy your hair products from?

3 CONDITIONERS WITH GREAT SLIP

Knots and tangles are my main hurdle on hair wash day, but there are two main methods I use to keep them to a minimum:

1.
Pre-poo hair.
If you dont know what a "Pre-poo" is check out >this post< which includes a simple recipe I use.

2.
Use a good conditioner!

My favourite conditioners are the ones that not only restore moisture to my hair and leave it feeling soft, but the ones that provide a lot of slip and therefore make detangling an easy process.

WHAT IS SLIP?

"Slip" basically means how "slippery" a product (in this case conditioner) is.

It's an important quality because more slip means less friction between hair strands. It allows them to slide past each other easily which minimises tangles, while hair that is knotted slips apart with ease.

SIDE NOTE: 

I also prefer conditioners that are not too expensive. Purely because having coily hair means I get through a lot of conditioner so I prefer  the ones that aren't too expensive to re-purchase regularly. All the conditioners listed below are available in shops or online for under £10.

CONDITIONERS WITH GREAT SLIP

At the moment my favourite 3 conditioners for great slip are:

3. Giovanni Smooth As Silk Deeper Moisture

I love this conditioner because unlike the other the other two, I know I can use it as a deep conditioner too. I think the formula has improved over the last few year because it seems to have much better slip than I first remember.
You can find it in Whole Foods, Zara (the hair shop on Walworth rd), and some Holland & Barratts.

2. Jane Carter Nutrient Replenishing Conditioner

 This is a lovely rinse out conditioner. It smells really Summery and and as soon as I apply it, my fingers slide through my hair with ease. I was especially impressed because the texture is deceptively runny, but somehow my strands just submit to it's will.
You can find it online at Gidore.com, or in some of the black hair shops in Brixton.

 1. And of course, my number one favourite...
Tresemme Naturals Vibrantly Smooth Conditioner

This one is brilliant for a number of reasons: Firstly, it's easily available on the high street and it's on special offer quite regularly. Plus, as well as having excellent slip, the Vibrantly Smooth is one of the most affective rinse out conditioners I've tried. If I dont have time to use a deep conditioner then this is an excellent short term alternative, as my hair still feels well conditioned after I've rinsed it out. It's also my favourite product for co-washing my hair, as the bottle is pretty big so I dont have to worry about rinsing and repeating. Also considering it's the cheapest and largest conditioner of the three, it's excellent value for money.

Whats conditioner do you recommend for great slip?

CURLFORMERS AVAILABLE IN UK SHOPS

Just a quick post that I meant to share earlier. 

I could be late to discover this but, Curlformers are available in the UK!

I had no idea until last month when I went shopping with my mum in the Streatham Hill branch of Sally's. They come in different sizes so you can create wide or narrow curls, and cost £8.95 per pack.

It doesn't look like you get much more than about 8 in a pack which is a shame as that wouldn't be anywhere near enough for my hair. However I'm still tempted as I've seen so many Youtubers using Curlformers to create gorgeous styles on natural hair, that I really want to try them for myself.
Check out the vid below by +Jouelzy B for an example.

               

Did you know Curlformers were available in UK shops?

If you've tried them what did you think?

MESSY BUT SOOO WORTH IT!

Deep Conditioning with Anita Grant Banana Heart Rhassoul Mud

After my week of blowdried hair, I was more than ready to bring the curls back. I think it'd actually been just over a week so I needed a really good deep condition.

To my own annoyance, I am that person who waits so long for the right time to use certain products that sometimes I never actually get around to it. It's usually the products that's I'm most excited about, because I don't want to waste them by using them in a rush, and I nearly made the same mistake with Anita Grant's Banana Heart Rhassoul Mud Deep Condish.

I was so excited about buying my very first Anita Grant product for £6.95, from the Naturally Nourishing stall at the Curlvolution event, earlier this year. The conditioner comes in a block and looks like a chocolate from a selection box. I was expecting it to smell like chocolate or banana but I couldn't smell much of anything.

Despite the instructions that came with it, I've never been great in the kitchen, so I think I messed up by not adding enough liquid to the mix. The leaflet suggests adding water or coconut milk. I added a small can (165ml) of coconut milk, which I heated up first, as well as a little bit of water. I completely underestimated how the mixture would thicken up into a milkshake-like consistency.

I think if I'd left it to cool down a bit more, it would have been less runny and easier to apply. As it stands, the mixture did thicken up, and was no where near as runny as I'd expected, but the application was still a messy and awkward experience, that I found pretty frustrating, as you can hear in my video. However, one very important thing that took the edge off of my frustration, was how effective it was at detangling my hair. That was more than a pleasant surprise. I covered my hair with plastic for the deep conditioning, and left it for about an hour, but I didnt apply any heat.

                

When it came to rinsing out the mix....OH MY WORD!

I could not believe how fantastic my hair felt. My curls were back with a bang! It's been ages since my coils have felt so defined and strong yet soft. It was one of those moments where I kicked myself for not using this sooner.

Amazing, amazing, amazing! I was so impressed with the results. As you'll see in the video, I couldn't stop inspecting my hair, because I was not expecting such a great outcome from such an awkward experience.

              

I am 100% definitely going to do this again, but hopefully I'll do it better next time. I definitely made enough mistakes to learn from. If you have any tips please share them with me in the comments box below; it'd be great to know your routines and ratios for using rhassoul.