2020 Ain't It Funny

     In my best Martin voice, what's up, WHAT'S UP, WAZZZZZUUUPPPPPPPP! Corona got all of us popping back out of the wood works aye? LMAO. How you doing? How the baby doing? How ya mama doing? I'm just checking in people. I have came a long way from the 400lb college freshman that started this lovely gem years ago. I am now an almost 30 year old plant-based/vegan dread loc babe who loves culture, art, travel and the essence of life. I am beyond blessed for my evolution over time and I am sure you are happy with your progress too.

    During these times I just want to say, ground yourself. Literally put your BARE feet in the grass and pray. Sit outside, catch some sun and meditate. Thank your god, the universe and life for being so divine in these turbulent times. You still deserve peace and happiness through this. I hope you use this time wisely. Whether you are catching up on sleep, starting a new craft, becoming closer to yourself/family, I wish you the best. I personally have taken some of the time to evolve my business and self. People have asked me for more jewelry, art, and even A COOK BOOK. Whew, a bit overwhelming of an endeavor but one to be executed none the less.

     Weight-loss... Well well, over the last few years I have been yo-yo-ing with my weight, going trough points of splurging too much. I don't eat because I'm sad, nothing triggers it actually, I eat to eat. Food be BANGING lmao. I love the flavors, textures, smells. It is an EXPERIENCE! Anyway after eating all the unhealthy food that I could, I made some discoveries. I eat a lot of low nutrient, high calorie meals. (LMAO so I now y'all think I'm about to sell you something or it is a speech but nah lmao I'm just explaining some ish.) I also realized no matter how hard I start working out or how "dedicated" I was I would always stop. What could I do to allow me to lose weight and smash as much food as I want when I want... Going plant based! (vegan if you nasty) I am very proud to be 5 months in and I love it. My energy levels are wonderful, I sleep well, and I lose 1-2 healthy pounds a week without exercise. I eat lots of raw fruits and veggies. I feel amazing and wish I knew about this lifestyle sooner.

     Yes I am still slanging butter with a few tweaks to the old recipe as well as playing around with natural remedies. NO I AIN'T THAT HITTER WITH THE SEA MOSS YET!! LMAO Sea moss has flooded the health market. I have yet to fully experience the use of all of it. I have not been using too many products on my hair because I have locs and I do not want to increase dirt and product buildup. I don't have many to review. I only retwist once or twice a year. I dip my locs in ocean water every chance I get. I do use Jolie My Gel on my hair to retwist and of course my NaturalGMonet's Shea Butter. You know! Drop a line tel me how you are doing.

      Well that's all I wanted to say. I hope you have a wonderful day! If you have time check out Naturalgmonets! 

My 3 Year Loc Transition

Hey Guys & Gals! I haven't posted to YouTube in forever but I decided to make a Loc Journey video showing my locs from Dec 1, 2013 to it's 3 Year anniversary this Friday Dec 1, 2016. If you are interested check it out! Please share.

Curls: Pipe Cleaner Curls on Locs

       Pipe Cleaner Curls on locs are an awesome hair style. I was able to achieve this look with locs that were short, and my more smedium length locs now. NOTE::: I don't use mousse, curl spray,  curl holding, enhancing, or helping products. My curls are achieved on wet locs only. These results are based on water only applications. Of course using products can help you hold a curl longer, however the issues locs can have from using products is something I am not fond of. 

      
       Take a long pipe cleaner and I bent it in half. About 1/2 inch down on both ends I slightly bent the pipe cleaner to look like the picture on the left.  The softer rounded edge is what is going to be secured at the root of your loc. Pinch the root of your loc with that end and twist your loc down the pipe cleaner like flexi rods. Use the other bent end of the pipe cleaner to secure the ends of the loc to the pipe cleaner. The pipe cleaners would be sticking from my head so I curl them to my head in a c shape. This will give you a nice vintage and short look! After wearing this style for a week I took them out.
   
    
   I noticed two things from doing this style at two lengths in my loc life. For the shorter locs (4" to 6") you can cut the pipe cleaner in half and make a loop at the top of the pipe cleaner and use that to secure the pipe cleaner to your root. If you want to have tight curls try to keep the loc close together as you curl it around & down the pipe cleaner, This will give it a shorter look while elongating the wrap will give you more of dropped straw curls. The two pictures on the side shows how you can wear the style with shorter locs.




         This is a picture of my locs after I took them out. I learned that by not curling my locs tight they created elongated curls. I twisted my hair down the pipe cleaner instead of tightly curling it around my pipe cleaners. I love the look however I was more prepared the next go round of my pipe cleaner install. After wearing this style for two weeks I put some braids over my locs which I will discuss in another post to come. 



        Here is a pic of me this year, about a year later, with this same style. As you can see from the pictures the pipe cleaners were fuller and gave that "finger wave", "flapper", "1950's" look as planned. I really enjoyed how cute and retro this style was. I was able to wear a lot of bold lip colors and popping jewelry. This hairstyle also personally made me appreciate all of the loc growth I've had. (9"-11")



     These were my results! My locs at this point are 2x the size that they were on my first time installing them. These pictures were taken right after I took them out. I moisturized my hair once they were out and I shook them out. They are way tighter and not as bent as my first instillation. The curl in these will last for weeks if you properly care for them. At night I put on my Loc Soc which is made from a satin like material. They keep the curled locs tight to my hair and they also don't take moisture from my hair. In the morning I simply shake my locs loose and GO! Below are my curls after 3 days. 

Thank You for Reading! 

Curls: Bantu Knots On Locs

Bantu Knots are so clutch! They give you that unique ethereal look you were going for while also curling your tresses. 


Curls for the girls! I love curls & I love bantu knots so this is kind of a dual style! Recently I tried two types of curls on my locs. I have 67 locs. After washing and moisturizing my hair I give myself a light rewist as I go. I put three locs in a knot at a time. If your locs cannot stay in a knot then use black rubber bands or bobby pins to hold the ends down. I wore my bantu knots for two - three days. If the bantu knots are worn and heavily slept on for more than a few days your curls will have bends in them and less curls. After I took the knots out I lightly moisturized my hair.  

These are my results. If you bantu knots your hair in smaller knots the curls will be tighter. The larger the knots the looser the curls. 

For Loc Jewelry by me check out: NaturalGMonet.tictail.com

It has been a while since I have made a blog post. So much has been happening and yet not enough. I recently decided to pursue my dreams of going to business for myself using my may talents. I wanted to let you all know of my most recent en-devours. I am currently selling jewelry! Not just any jewelry but beautiful jewelry handmade by myself. You can check out this jewelry at Naturalgmonets.com Here is a a peak at some of my items! I make the following:

• Waistbeads 
• Bracelets
• Necklaces
• Healing Stone Jewelry 
• Rings Loc Jewelry 
• Anklets 

Product Review: Sofn'free GroHealthy Nothing But Intense Healing Mask

          Over they years I have strayed away from different products that are not as natural as others. I like to purchase as clean clear products as possible. I thought it was very odd when I came across a product that claimed to contain no petrolatum, mineral oil, sulfates, parabens, colorants, or phthalates. Those are a lot of agents that can cause different issues for some natural hair growth. With locs I don't want certain chemicals in my hair attaching to my locs. Chertian particles attract dirt. If you do not get perms, relaxers, texurizers or permanently dye your hair frequently, then your hair will not be around too many major chemicals anyway. 
           To be certain about the chemicals in this product I looked it up n the EWG's Skin Deep Cosmetics Database. The product rates moderate in its hazard like some products due to its content. The worst ingredient in this is the high amount of fragrance or "parfum". What this ingredient is is not discussed. It does rate 8 meaning it does that the potential to cause allergies in some. Majority of the product has a low to moderate hazard. The product isn't literally hazard, but does contain other chemicals that may cause allergies in some people. Its cancer rating is low. 

Cost: $10.00
Smell: Low Mint Smell to No Smell (ddd for the amount of fragrance in the product)
Texture: Creamy, Thick
Rating: 7/10

    I rate this 7/10 due to the odd amount of fragrance. Other than that I love the way it makes my hair look and feel, It also mixes well with other oils as well as hair products because it is so basic. I can almost instantly feel it coat my hair with its version of nourishment. It also washes out well.



For Locs:

        I do not put this directly in my locs. What you see in the picture is the product diluted in water. I then pour that mixture over my locs. I then put on a shower cap as i would for a dep condition. I leave that in for 20 minutes and then I rinse it out of my locs. I will explain about this process more in a later most. 

About My Locs Pt2

Growing Back My Hair

The front of my hair was shot to hell. But how did I go from damaged broken hair to thick locs? How did I go from no hair to hair? A hair care regimen of course. There are several key things I did things that aided in my hair growth. 

As you can see on the left the hair on the top of my head was
 very thin. Hair that usually went to my hair line is gone.
My locs were short as well as choppy and thin. On the
right you can see my hair is fuller and has grown back.

1. Leave My Hair Alone: That is one of the number one things that you can do to your hair. The way that I leave my hair alone is by putting my locs in braids. I braided my locs for the first 5 months of my loc journey. Manipulating thin or damaged hair will only cause the hair to break. When hair is very traumatized, sometimes the follicles release the hair strands. 
2. Wash Your Hair: Hair needs to be washed frequently, especially black hair. When your hair is unwashed the pores have the potential to be clogged. That can slow hair growth. Washing hair also circulates blood. Blood circulating is how hair grows, more blood to the area, more hair growth, 
3. Moisturize Your Hair: I apply my shea butter mixture to my hair which is full of essential oils to aid in hair growth. 

     These are the only things that I did. Hair grows at 6 inches per year on average, On your hair journey you are trying to hold on to that obtained length. Locs are a unique style that allows you to lot only keep all of the hair you are growing, but also the hair that you would lose in shedding. Locs also flourish when they are left alone.This made it easier for me to grow my hair back.  

Loc Washing 101

          After I got my locs installed I put braids over them for the first 3 months. After I took out the braids I washed my hair at least 3-4 times a week without retwisting, I did this for a month. Then I put my locs back into braids. After another 2 months I took my locs out and I continued to wash my locs 3-4 times a week. If I did not fully shampoo them I would rinse them or cowash them. My locs got wet almost EVERYDAY. In the beginning it is very important for you to wash your hair. When you wet your hair your break the hydrogen bonds apart. When your hair is dry, they reform. In the first months of locing you want to break and reform those bonds. That way the hairs can manipulate and loc around each other. In my loc journey I learned several things about washing my locs.

1. DUST YOUR LOCS: Dusting your locs is literally that, getting dust out of your locs. You can use a mirror for the larger pieces. But take your hand and brush it back and forth over your locs while your head is tilted over. You will notice, skin, dust and dirt particles falling from your locs. All of these things is what makes locs ashy, smelly, and full of lint and dirt. If you wash your hair without dusting it, the dirt can potentially get trapped in the locs. 

2.  POP YOUR LOCS: If you are free forming, or semi free forming this is more important for you. When your hair is untwisted the roots will start to loc together. You must go through your head and pop your locs, which is pull them apart. Wet your hair at the root after you dust it, and pull your locs apart. You may hear the hairs, POP. :)

3. DO NOT PUT SHAMPOO DIRECTLY IN YOUR HAIR: Locs are packed hairs that are hard to penetrate. Thick shampoo will not glide easily in and out of your locs. Some of the shampoo may get caught in your locs. Diluting your shampoo in a spray bottle and spraying it in your hair will make a nice thin solution that can move in and out of your locs easily grabbing dirt on the way out.

4. DO NOT USE COLORED OR LOADED SHAMPOO: Shampoo like leave in conditioner as well as other products leave stuff behind in your hair. If you notice moisturizing shampoos are thicker and make your hair "feel" different after use. That "feel goo" is particles being left behind. These are particles you do not want left behind in your locs because this can add to buildup. 

5. DILUTE EVERYTHING:After I shampoo my hair, I mix my favorite deep conditioner in water and I pour it over my locs. I let it sit for 15 min under a shower cap and I rinse. Again, putting thick products in your locs can lead to buildup. 

6. RINSE: This is thee most important factor of them all. Water is very pure and lifting. It can break down and dilute a vast amount of chemicals. Make sure you rinse and squeeze your locs empty. I like to taste the water running out of my locs. If it tastes like pure water then I know my locs are fully rinsed. 

Yarn Braid Do's & Don'ts

      When I was natural I was looking for another style. I was tired of twist outs, fros, mowhawks, all of that. I wanted something fun and different, One thing I did know is that I wanted to loc my hair. I wasn't quite ready to loc my hair so I searched for a style to imitate locs. I came across this photo of yarn locs. They were tiny and beautiful, There were so many of them and her hair was very full. I at the time wanted small locs so I thought this was perfect.

There was general information that I did discover in my search. One of the most important bits of information was... ACRYLIC YARN ONLY. Cotton and wool yarn were once alive, so it will crave moisture and the intricate fibers will loc to your hair.

    Ok, so don't used sheep back or tree poop, got it. I rushed to Micheal's and purchased two 1lb bundles of black yarn and for three days, I went to work. OMG! It was so worth it. 

       Yassss. I gave life in these braids. I felt like I lived through them in a sense. I had gotten a million compliments on the style and the older it got the better it looked. I was in love. So in love that I had these braids in for 6 months. In the six months I discovered several things:

Do Not Let A Style Go To Your Head- That is number one. I knew it looked really good but I should have taken them out. I advised others on how to properly take care of theirs, but I really had a yolo moment. 

IF You Go Swimming Rinse & Condition First- I was working out with this hair in and at times I had to get in the pool. Whether you have permed, natural, locs, weave, whatever, rinse your hair for 5 minutes with pure water first. Then if you can rub a little conditioner in your hair. Chlorine is very damaging. The molecules int he chemical will want to enter your hair shaft, but because your strands are now swollen with water and protected with conditioner, the chlorine will be less penetrating. You will notice a nice condtioning when you get out of the pool. The chlorine's ph would open your hair cuticle and the conditioner would adsorb nicely and before any chlorine. 

Do Not Wet Your Hair Frequently- When you wet your hair frequently the bonds in your hair break and your hair is limp and pliable. When your hair  dries the bonds reform. If you have in yarn braids, you will constantly be breaking and forming bonds around these very fibrous pieces of yarn making it easier for your hair to "loc" around the yarn.

Do Not Use Small Amounts of Hair- Do not install to many. They smaller the braid the less strands their are to support the weight of the yarn as well as the build up. Yarn can be rough to some hair types and can cause breaking over long time wear. 

Moisturize Your Hair Nicely as You Install- The acrylic yarn will not absorb the moisture and it also makes they yarn more slippery and less damaging to your hair, This will keep your hair moisturized for a good 3 weeks into your style. 

Moisturize with Spritz and Minimally- Due to build up at the root as well as they fact that you have a blanket on your head you do not want too much product in your hair it will cause the yarn to mush together with the build up at the base of the braid. 

AND THIS REALLY APPLIES IF YOU HAVE THIN OR WEAK HAIR. This style needs a good amount of strands per braid. I suggest if for people with average hair thickness. Thin hair takes more surface area per braid, so they style may come out thin, if the hair is not strong. You can have thin hair with very strong strand and this style will work for you, however if your hair is weak in anyway this style is not for you. 

Soooooo I have average hair with veeerryyy thin temples. They are my stress points and my father is some sort of caveman with that c thing going around his hairline. After keeping these braids in for 6 MONTHS a lot of them had loced together at the root. It was so tedious and tiring to take them out that in some areas that were the worst, I ripped them out. The ending result was horrifying as you can see. I completely ripped my head to shreads. So I ran to the salon and demanded locs. No more playing around in loose natural hair. It is very delicate and sensitive, quite frankly, I don't have time for that. This is the second time since I've went natural that I had to start over. All I want is long black hair. This was the tipping point for my journey. 

About My Locs pt1

Starter Locs on Average 4b/4c

My main and solo aim is to have long black healthy hair by any means necessary. In June of 2013 I gave myself very small yarn locs. I did not take care of my hair while it was in this style. As someone that does hair as well as knows it down to a science, I often neglect my own hair due to personal laziness. I ended up keeping the tiny braids in for 5 months! Never do that. Some hair types can keep them in that long, but my hair type was definitely not one for it. These braids took huge clumps of hair out of my head and a lot of the natural growth, which I now cannot remember. Lol. I always knew I wanted locs but I wanted to see how large I could get my fro. After I took those braids out, swerve, I went straight to the loctician.  I started my locs in December 2013 with comb coils. I had about 150 locs.

Honestly...

           I did not like my locs what so ever. I thought they were disgusting little worms. On top of the fact that while I was taking out my braids I got annoyed and I literally started ripping the braids out. From me doing that it caused my hair to be thin at the top of my head, I kinda look like I am balding. I did not want to go through the “ugly & bald” stage so I decided to braid my over my starter locs. Braiding my started locs helped me in several ways:

Emotionally
Mentally
Physically (lol)

The braids helped but however at this stage in my loc process They may have paused my loc development. When my locs were in the braids they stayed together and they also tightened up. The braids also gave my hair time to grow back where I had ripped them out. The braids did not allow for my locs to naturally swell and shrink as they would have if they were free.

               

     For the 6 months of my locs I wore braids. 

Natural Hair Style: Revisiting Kinky Curly

Quite some time ago I tried Kinky Curly Curling Custard. I liked this product a lot however when used with its companion the leave in I thought my hair was still dry and lacking moisture. I wanted to give this a try using my own first step moisturizer. The custard does not allow hair to dry in a timely manner either. None the less I tried the product again. To my surprise it was quite a sucess and I came up with two styles using the product.

Products I Used:
Water: I cannot stress this enough. If you have a very tightly coiled curl pattern you need lots of water. Your hair must be soaking wet to achieve the best results... In my opinion.
Cantu Shea Butter Coconut Curling Cream: OMG! I'll tell you about this bad boy in a lovely review.
Kinky Curly Curling Custard

Step 1: Wash Then Section & Condition
This is my hair washed with conditioner on it. This photo is like a slight update as to what my hair looks like and the length that I have gotten. You can see how I can put it in chunky medium plats around my head.

Step 2: Apply Curling Cream & Curling Custard & BRUSH!

In each of my chunky sections I only used about a quarter sized amount of the Curling Cream. That mixed with the water in my hair will provide a nice coat of moisture. After the quarter sized amount of the custard is added add copious amounts of that Curling Custard. The more kinky, curly, and coarse your hair is the more you need. BUT WAIT! If you are trying to do a wet curly jeri curl type thing then yes continue... BUT if not then use the regular amount that you would use with any other product for a twist out. The trick is brushing this product through your hair as about twenty times from root to tip. You want this product to cover your hair.

This pic is also another slight update of my hair growth this far!

And Walah! My Two Styles!

First Day Hair

This was the final product and first day hair. It came out really cute and kind of the way I wanted it. This style still took for ever to dry tho. I thoroughly brushed my hair in the direction I wanted it to go and and I let it dry.

Second Day & Beyond

That night I twisted my hair up for bed. I did about 12 plaits over my entire head. In the morning my hair was dry and the twists had set. I really didn't like what my hair became in the morning so I tucked and rolled my hair in to a back roll. The front I simply plucked out and pulled to the side.

Product Review: A Bit of the Curls Line

I have seen this product in stores quite a few times. I even tried one of their coconut shampoos about two or three years ago. This was my first time trying the product. Overall the line is great. The smells all the way down to the texture of the product itself is wonderful. The presentation of the product aesthetically is pretty and makes you want to give it a try.

Curlicious Curls Cleansing Cream
Cost: $15.00
Smell: Pleasant, Light & Airy
Texture: Creamy
Rating: 7/10

This product is great. I love the way it smells. It's as if while using it I am taken to a different place. It cleans hair very gently and that is good if that is what you are looking for. It does not bubble up and that was the only issue I had with it but it was a major issue. I felt like I did not know how much to use. Though suds and bubbles are just additives to fool consumers, I am the consumer that likes being fooled. Bubbles help me see if I distributed the shampoo fully through out my hair. With this product I simply could not tell and when I was finished I could not tell if my hair was clean or not. I knew it was clean because the water ran clean but past that I didn't get the feeling and for some that's the half of it. I knew my hair was clean however because my hair curled up beautifully and I could tell it was properly balanced ph wise. I loved that the most about this product.



Coconut Sublime Conditioner
Cost: $16.00
Smell: Sweet & Coco-Nutty
Texture: Slippery Yet Creamy
Rating: 9/10

This product was my favorite one of all three of them. I LOVE the slip that is has. Using this product is amazing while hair is still wet after freshly washing it. It takes no time at all to detangle using this product and it doesn't take much. In fact I used the product twice in the picture. It feels so good and leaves your hair very soft and moisturized. I also like to mix this product with some of my other conditioners to make the perfect moisturizing slip worthy mixture. This is one that I will defiantly continue to use and buy.



Cashmere Curl Jelly
Cost: $25.00
Smell: Mango & Inner Pumpkiny
Texture: Slippery
Rating: 8/10

The Cashmere Curl Jelly is a very interesting product. I love that fact that it is not sticky like Kinky Curly Curling Custard. And unlike Kinky Curly it dries evenly and quicker. I like using this product because it has a lot of slip and dries supporting twist outs, braid outs, and gel based styles. I used it to French Roll my hair and it kept my hair stretched and pliable. I loved how I could comb through my hair and not have the brush caught because it has that much slip. The only issue with this product if it is even an issue is that once you break the hair apart out of a twist out it still goes crazy. It does hold enough FOR MY HAIR TYPE. BUT for some that is great because it is easier for looser hair types to mold with a product like this. For my more course style I need something that would hold a little harder. Other that that this product is amazing awesome shine, slip and a great styling aid. And yes, I would get it again, for my more unstructured styles. :)

It's Back!!! And So Am I!

Stay Tuned for Pictures! Updates! & More!!!!!

I Am Presenting!

OOTD: Nubian-like

All that hair up there! 

This lovely and quick style was done on pre-streached hair. All I did was take big sections of the hair and pinned it in the middle. I then took a scarf and wrapped it around my head and WAH-LAH! Magic!

Earrings: Flea Market $1.50

Necklace: Forever 21: $5

Vest: Taken from Bestfriend

Button: Hottopic $3

Braclets: Beauty Supply 2 for $3

Shirt: Hanes Pack (lol)

Skirt: H&M $5