New Purchases!

So I said that there would be an end to stash hauls, but I will update on new purchases! Here are the products I've purchased recently:

In addition to that, I just bought the Shea Moisture Organic Yucca & Baobab Volumizing Conditioner from Target. It should be here soon :-) Anywho, here are the other products!

1. Yes to Cucumbers Color Protection Shampoo

Ingredients: Water (Aqua), Disodium Cocoamphodiacetate, Cocamidopropyl Betaine, Cucumis Sativus (Cucumber) Fruit Extract*, Aloe Barbadensis Leaf Juice, Vitis Vinifera (Grape) Seed Extract, Rosa Canina Fruit Extract, Salix Alba (Willow) Bark Extract, Salvia Officinalis (Sage) Leaf Extract, Simmondsia Chinensis (Jojoba) Seed Oil, Vitis Vinifera (Grape) Seed Oil, Persea Gratissima (Avocado) Oil, Carthamus Tinctorius (Safflower) Seed Oil, Glycine Soja (Soybean) Oil, Helianthus Annuus (Sunflower) Seed Oil, Chamomilla Recutita (Matricaria) Flower Extract, Rosmarinus Officinalis (Rosemary) Leaf Extract, Sea Water, Chlorella Vulgaris Extract, Spirulina Maxima Extract, Hydrolyzed Algin, Guar Hydroxypropyltrimonium Chloride, Xanthan Gum, Glycerin, Fragrance (Parfum), Sodium Benzoate, Citric Acid, Potassium Sorbate, Phenoxyethanol. * Certified Organic Ingredient

I used this on my last wash day. Oh my goodness gracious, this stuff is a miracle worker! How does one create a shampoo that lathers gently, doesn't contain sulphates or harsh cleansers, cleans, yet moisturizes? There is gold in that bottle! Lol. I look forward to using it again; I may begin to look forward to wash days now. Heh heh heh.

Price: $7.99
Size: 11.5 oz/340 mL

2. Nature's Gate Aloe Vera Moisturizing Shampoo

Ingredients: Water, cocamidopropyl hydroxysultaine (coconut derived), sodium cocoyl isethionate (coconut derived), disodium cocoamphodiacetate (coconut derived), glycerin (vegetable derived), aloe barbadensis leaf juice, panthenol, hydrolyzed soy protein, hydrolyzed vegetable protein, simmondsia chinensis (jojoba) seed oil, borago officinalis (borage) seed oil, tocopherol (vitamin E), ascorbic acid (vitamin C), hordeum vulgare (barley) extract, urtica dioica (nettle) extract, persea gratissima (avocado) fruit extract, viola tricolor (pansy) extract, ascorbyl palmitate (vitamin C), sorbitan sesquicaprylate (coconut and corn derived), polysorbate 20 (vegetable derived), hydroxypropyl methylcellulos (plant derived), sodium hydroxide, glyceryl undecylenate (vegetable derived), phenoxyethanol, fragrance*. 
*Phthalate free.

I haven't tried this yet, but it smells exactly like its matching conditioner (like bubble gum), and the ingredients look divine! It'll be a while before I try this, though; I want to finish my other shampoo and a cowash mix before starting this one.

Price: $4.39 (on Vitacost.com)
Size: 18 oz/532 mL

3. Nubian Heritage EVOO & Moringa Repair & Extend Conditioner with Quinoa, Fennel & Henna

Ingredients: Deionized Water , Olea Europaea Fruit Oil (Olive) , Cocos Nucifera Oil (Coconut) , Butyrospermum Parkii (Shea Butter) , Sorbitol Esters , Mangifera Indica (Mango) Seed Butter , Persea Gratissima Oil (Avocado) , Vegetable Protein , Glycine Soja (Soybean) Oil , Moringa Oleifera Seed Oil , Lawsonia Inermis Leaf Powder (Henna) , Panthenol (Pro-Vitamin B-5) , Proprietary Essential Oil Blend , Behentrimonium Chloride , Chenopodium Quinoa Extract , Foeniculum Vulgare Extract (Fennel) , Aloe Barbadensis Leaf Extract , Rosemary Extract , Bamboo Extract, Lonicera Caprifolium (Honeysuckle) Flower (and) Lonicera Japonica (Japanese Honeysuckle) Flower Extract.

I know that it's a RO condish, but I'm going to use this as a sort of protein DT...but mix it into my carrot DC (more info on that a bit later) so that I can get both softness and strength (and color). I should be using it during my next wash day, so I'll have preliminary thoughts for you by then.

Price: $11.99
Size: 12 oz/355 mL

4. Taliah Waajid Protective Mist Bodifier

Ingredients: Deionized Water (Aqua), Wheat Germ Extract (Triticum vulgare), Aloe Vera (Aloe barbadensis) Leaf, Cetrimonium Bromide, Cetyl Alcohol, DMDM Hydantoin, Olive Oil (Olea europaena), Glycerol (Vegetable Derived), Silk Amino Acids, Bay Laurel Extract (Lauris nobilis), Fragrance (Parfum).

I think that I'm going to like this stuff! Even after being charmed by Oyin Juices & Berries, I knew that I still needed to find a good, inexpensive ($10 or less) liquid leave in that I could find on the ground. If I ran out, I could still run to Target or Wal Mart with $10 and be able to purchase it. I was perusing The Forgotten Natural the other day, and saw that Ravenpriestess (the author) uses it as part of her LOC method. So, I decided to give it a try. I found it at Target, copped it, and gave it the palm test with my other products in my hand to see how they'd mix. It's very well tempered, methinks. I won't be using it for a while, though; I'm still finishing up my Oyin Juices & Berries and Carol's Daughter Tui as my Ls. So there might be a review for this in March or April *sniffles*

Price: $6.99 (Target; it costs more at Wal Mart)
Size: 8 oz/237 mL

5. Shea Moisture Organic Yucca & Baobab Volumizing Conditioner with Biotin & Bamboo Extract

Ingredients: De-ionized water, Cocos Nucifera (coconut) oil*, Butyrospermum Parkii (Shea butter)*, Sorbitol Esters, Mangifera Indica (mango) seed butter, Persea Gratissima (avocado) oil, Aloe Barbadenis leaf extract, Yucca Filamentosa extract, vegetable protein, Glycine Soja (soybean) oil, Adansonia digitata (Baobab) extract, biotin, rosemary extract, bamboo extract, Lonicera Caprifolium (honeysuckle) flower and Lonicera Japonica (Japanese honeysuckle) flower extract. 
*Certified organic ingredients.

This was another product that I heard about through The Forgotten Natural, and another YTer, Katie Douglass. Both are Shea Moisture and/or Nubian Heritage Queens, so I purchased it from Target.com (outrageous shipping, but I didn't want to wait! :-/ ) and it should be here this week or next. Again, no reviews on it for a good bit because I have a wee bit of my Nature's Gate Aloe Vera condish to get through, the Nubian Heritage condish, and another Nature's Gate conditioner before trying this. So it'll be probably around April or even May when this product is reviewed. Lo siento :-(

Price: $9.99
Size: 12 oz/355 mL

Have you purchased anything (doesn't have to be hair related) new lately?

Stash Haul #1: DCs + Blogger Shoutout

Shout out to Valerie of Curls2Envy for featuring me on her blog!  It was so fun putting all that together, and I really appreciate her blog and for letting me be a guest for the day :-)

So, I've decided to do a bit of a stash haul. I always feel like I have so many products, and then when I compare what I have to the serious PJs...I have nothing lol. At any rate, I love doing inventories, so here's a bit of a peek into my hair box :-D First up, the all important DC (deep conditioner). This can make or break your regimen. Whether comprised of yummy produce found in your kitchen (avocados and whatnot), or with a myriad of conditioners in your arsenal, this all important deep moisturising treatment adds much needed moisture to your hair strands. Especially during the colder, drier months of autumn and winter, moisturising treatments help to replenish the moisture that your hair has lost being exposed to the dry air and elements in it; keeping your hair bouncy, shiny and healthy.

I'm not very picky when it comes to doing DCs. I do them on damp dirty hair, and leave mine on overnight, so I just prefer products that won't irritate my skin in that amount of time. I've used lots of different products, from ones marketed for deep treatments, to regular conditioners cocktailed with additional ingredients, to vegetables I find and puree. The possibilities are endless!

Side note: If you have fine strands of hair, you'll want to incorporate light proteins into your deep moisture treatments. This will ensure that we finely stranded curlies don't neglect the building block of our hair whilst also restoring high levels of moisture. If you're purchasing a DC/DT, look for ones with hydrolysed proteins: keratin, collagen, silk amino acids, silk protein, wheat protein, gelatin, coconut oil, etc. If you're a mixtress, add some mayo (for overnighters), eggs (for those of you who like to only leave a DT in for a few hours), or coconut oil.

Okay, so, finally, here are the DCs I have! Heh heh heh. My cocktailed concoctions go first:

VO5 Silky Experiences Shea Cashmere Moisturising Conditioner + Nuance Raw Honey Color Protect Conditioner + Taliah Wajid The Great Detangler + Nubian Heritage EVOO & Moringa Treatment Masque + EVOO + EVCO + GSO + honey

There are waay too many ingredients to list! Lol. This is obviously a cocktailed DC - one of my favorite types to use. I haven't yet utilised it, since I was trying to be strict CG. I may try it next week, though. No harm in splurging a bit...

Suave Naturals Tropical Coconut Conditioner + Nubian Heritage EVOO & Moringa Treatment Masque + VO5 Pomegranate & Grapeseed Extract Strengthening Conditioner + EVOO + EVCO + GSO + honey

Again...crazy long list of ingredients because this is a cocktailed treatment. But, I tried this on my hair last night. It was just okay. I was so wary to use it because Suave Naturals has potassium chloride in it (a salt), and as high as it is on the list, I was loathe to try it on my curls. I did it anyway though. My hair felt kind of weird. I don't think I'll be trying that again lol...

Suave Naturals Juicy Green Apple Conditioner+ Nubian Heritage EVOO & Moringa Treatment Masque + VO5 Pomegranate & Grapeseed Extract Strengthening Conditioner + EVOO + EVCO + GSO + honey

Okay, again with the ridiculously long lists. This is the only downside to cocktailing so many products. If I take 1/2 cup of this, add 2 pureed avocados, 1/4 cup of mayonnaise, and more honey, EVOO, EVCO and GSO, this would probably be a great DC.

And now, my homemade DCs: 

Avocado Masque

2 pureed overripe avocados

1/3 c. honey

1/4 c. EVOO

1/8 vegetable oil

1/4 c. mayonnaise

This is one of my absolute most favorite DCs! Even more so than my cocktailed concoctions. It's uber moisturising, and the mayo adds some protein. I might add some EVCO the next time for even more protein the next time. Side note: This mix can be runny, so be prepared! I keep my twists away from my forehead, and cover it with a plastic bag and my shower cap to keep the oils from running into my eyes (and me from running into the bathroom screaming in pain). It rinses easily, which I love.

Banana Masque

1 pureed overripe banana

1 pureed overripe avocado (optional)

1/3 c. honey

1/4 c. EVOO

1/8 vegetable oil

1/4 c. mayonnaise

This is another super rich homemade DC. I absolutely abhor the smell of bananas, so I like to add that avocado in to keep the smell away for the most part. It's optional, but with my mental banana allergy, I can't be too careful ;-D

Also, taking either of those above homemade recipes and adding your favorite DC to it is another great option. Taking any conditioner and adding oils and honey can turn it into a miracle-working deep treatment :-)

Goodness, that was a long post lol.

So, curlies, what are your favorite DCs or DC recipes? What's your typical DC approach? Is it necessary for you? How often do you do it?

Semester's End + Swap Haul + New Regimen

Ciao, bellas!

This semester has been craaaazy beyond belief. Finals week is quickly approaching (*gulps*), and I have so many things to read and study beforehand. I'm trying to get all As this semester, so I really need to slam into the books as hard as I can. Ooh, kind of random: The best thing about this semester has been the Bible study that some other believers started on the Germantown campus. It's really nice to go there and fellowship and talk about God's Word and pray with other Christians after a long day of being surrounded by insanity and profanity. It's so refreshing for my spirit, and I always leave feeling energised.

I don't know if I ever told y'all, but on the CN forums, I purchased some products from another curly, Breezie24, on the swap boards. Here's what I purchased from her:

Carol's Daughter Healthy Hair Butter
Carol's Daugher Tui Moisturising Leave-In Conditioner
Oyin Handmade Juices & Berries
Darcy's Botanicals Vanilla Delight Leave-In Conditioner
Curls Curl Creme Brulee
Taliah Wajid The Great Detangler

All for $43, which is pretty good, considering the lines I purchased. First off, Breezie was great to work with; everything came taped down, in great condition, and quickly. It was a pleasure ordering from her, and I'd do it again in a heartbeat :-) Second, why the heck didn't anybody tell me how NASTY that CD butter smelled?! I almost vomited when I sniffed it! My sister, who usually likes fragrances that I don't like, wrinkled her nose at it. And my brother, who is just crazy, said that it smelled like our baby cousin's diapers o_O I haven't used it and don't plan to. I just need to figure out something to do with it other than throw it out. Ugh. More on the other products in my stash post :D

I've figured something out about myself: I cannot, for the life of me, stick to one set regimen for months at a time. My techniques (styling, detangling and whatnot), yes, but products? Forget about it! I'll use something for 3 weeks, and then I move on to something else because I get bored. I like the idea of having one regimen with one way of doing things, but I can never actually do it. There are so many ways to do things, different ways to use the same product, and ways to mix things up (literally) that I never get around to sticking to anything. I'm not ashamed of it, but it's just something interesting that I've noticed about myself. At any rate, I washed my hair today. Here's what I did:

1. DCed hair last night in 4 sections (Suave Naturals Tropical Coconut + Nubian Heritage EVOO & Moringa Repair & Extend Treatment Masque + honey + EVOO + EVCO + GSO + VO5 Pomegranate & Grapeseed Extract Strengthening Conditioner).

2. Cleansed scalp with my creamy chamomile conditioning cleanser (I added about 3/4-1 tbsp of my sulphate poo; it increased the cleansing power x 10, but it was still conditioning, and it didn't foam up like shampoo).

3. Conditioned hair with TRESemme Naturals Nourishing Moisture Conditioner (the old formula; it smells like nail polish remover, and I HATE it! I need to stop by Weis and get the new formula kind).

4. Detangled one section with Darcy's Botanicals Vanilla Delight Leave-In Conditioner; tried adding gel, rinsed, and added Pantene Curly Moisture Renewal Conditioner instead; sealed with GSO.

5. Finished rest of hair with Pantene Curly, sealed with GSO, and put hair into 8 big twists, and pulled them back into a little bun.

So, contrary to my palm test, the DB doesn't mix well with my HG gel :-( I was so disappointed. It balled the conditioner up in my hair, so I quickly used the remaining portions of my cleanser to wash it out. And, let me say, that the Pantene Curly was another FAIL. I haven't been doing CG for very long, and still, my hair is just rejecting any and all silicones. I'm so sad *sniffles* I didn't feel like doing my hair during the week, so into 8 chunky twists it went, and I was able to snatch them all up into a little bun thing. No maintenance during the week, at least! This will probably be my finals style, too lol.


OAN: Forgive the image-less state of my blog. My phone is acting a fool and won't send the pics; my camera is void of both batteries and a memory card. Foo. I shall provide images, shortly, though, my fellow curlies! I know how boring this must be without images...

Vintage Posts from the CN Forums - Part 4

19-08-2012
I've decided that I just can't take it! I can't finish these mini twists! Maybe when my hair is longer, I have more patience....I don't know. But this just isn't the business! I'm going to take out my twists, do something to my hair for the night, and will likely co-wash (my first in a loong time) with Herbal Essences Honey, I'm Strong, clarify with ACV, and then detangle and twist with the Nubian Heritage EVOO & Moringa. Back to my good old 2 strand twists! *sighs with relief*

I just finished trimming a few of the ends in the front that were raggedy from my BC (I used blunt scissors to BC *hangs head in shame*), and they're finally curling the right way!

And, like I posted in the random thoughts thread, I'm thinking of making Nubian Heritage my fall/winter line because of all the oils (and how much mi pelo loves them ), and doing TRESemme, Aussie, and heavy silicones during the spring/summer because of the humidity. Hmm. Still thinking about it. But I might do it.



20-08-2012
I'm ready to give my first impressions of my Herbal Essences conditioner! Last night, I took out all the mini twists (sprayed with water, slathered with TRESemme Vitamin E Moisture Rich conditioner, and gently untwisted each one) and deep conditioned on dirty hair with TRESemme Moisture Rich Conditioner. I just got out of the shower, and I cleansed my scalp with Creme of Nature Sunflower & Coconut Detangling & Conditioning Shampoo. I don't think I've ever posted the ingredients for this shampoo, so here they are:
Aqua (Water, Eau), Sodium Laureth Sulfate [more gentle than sodium lauryl sulfate], Cocamidopropyl Betaine, Polyquaternium-7, Glycol Stearate, Polyquaternium-10, Cocamide DEA, Amodimethicone, Polysorbate 20, Isotearyl Ethylimidazoliniumethosulfate, Citric Acid, Tetrasodium EDTA, Cocos Nucifera (Coconut) Oil, Helianthus Annus (Sunflower) Seed Oil, Mentha Piperita (Peppermint) Leaf Oil, Ocimum Basilicum (Basil) Extract, Polygala Senega Root Extract, Nasturtium Officinale (Watercress) Extract, Salvia Officinalis (Sage) Leaf Extract, Thymus Vulgaris (Thyme) Extract, Rosmarinus Officinalis (Rosemary) Leaf Extract, Citrus Grandis (Grapefruit) Seed Extract, Parfum (Fragrance), Hexyl Cinnamal, Limonene, Linalool, Methylparaben, Propylparaben, Methylchloroisothiazolinone, Methylisothiazolinone, CI 14700 (Red 4), CI 19140 (Yellow 5), CI 17200 (Red 33), CI 42090 (Blue 1). 

It's chock full of stuff! But I didn't realize that it had parabens in it. Meh. Anywho, this is the least drying shampoo I've used before. But, because of the peppermint, basil, sage, rosemary and thyme, my scalp gets irritated. And now the parabens have surfaced. TRESemme has much less ingredients, no parabens, no dyes, minimal fragrance, and my scalp doesn't tingle after washing and it's much cleaner (I'm finding more white gunk on my scalp after using CON ). So maybe Creme of Nature is out for me now. Anyway, this is a pretty great shampoo! If you like more natural ingredients in your shampoos and don't mind sodium laureth sulfate and amodimethicone, and your skin doesn't easily react to herbal extracts, this would be great. 

After rinsing that out, I undid each twist and slathered a generous amount of Herbal Essences Honey, I'm Strong Strengthening Conditioner into each twist, and then twisted back up. I lathered up the rest of my body, rinsed off the soap, and then used cool/cold water to untwist and lightly finger detangle. Oh. My. Goodness. I squeezed this stuff out, and it was a light yellow/orange shade, which I thought was cool. It was thick, but not as creamy as other HE conditioners - because of the honey, I assume. When I finger detangled in the shower, I was amazed at the slip! And I didn't lose as many fine hairs as I usually do. I'm really liking this conditioner right now! Here are the ingredients, in case you're interested:

Water/Eau, Stearyl Alcohol, Behentrimonium Chloride, Cetyl Alcohol, Bis-Aminopropyl Dimethicone, Honey/Miel, Prunus Armeniaca (Apricot) Fruit Extract, Fragrance/Parfum, Benzyl Alcohol, Disodium EDTA, Sodium Hydroxide, Methylchloroisothiazolinone, Methylisothiazolinone, Blue 1, Yellow 5, Red 33

I love, love, love, love this conditioner! Herbal Essences did a GREAT job! I think VO5 has finally been kicked out of conditioner status! Hello, HE! I have coupons for $3 off 2 bottles of Aussie or HE products too, so that will be put to very good use  I'm about to finger detangle with my Nubian Heritage EVOO & Moringa leave in conditioner. I'll report back later! 



22-08-2012
I detangled my entire head with the Nubian Heritage leave in conditioner, and it went pretty easily. My "do not pass go" area in the back was still pretty stubborn. But all of my twists look super shiny and moisturised. I've baggied for the past couple nights, so my twists look nice and juicy. That's it for today so far :)

Vintage Posts from the CN Forums - Part 3

17-08-2012
Hair Regimen Update
I finally started my mini twists today! My hair looked so shiny and defined after taking out the twists this morning, I considered doing a twist out. But, I need this protective style, so I stuck to my plan.
Whoever said that Naptural85 makes mini twists look easy was right! I watched her mini twists tutorial at least 5 times before I started to make sure I did everything correctly. But I didn't have a wide tooth comb (my sister lost both of them -_-) or flaxseed gel. And my hair wasn't as strechted as hers is in the video, so my twists look kind of weird. I did make even rows, though! But my parts are strange, and the sides of the twists end up uneven, so I trimmed a few ends (first time scissors have touched non-SSKs since my BC!) to make them match up. And even though I'm twisting tight enough on most of them, the twists look nothing like hers. Maybe I'm making them too small or too big? Ugh. It's a good thing I decided to do practice twists this week. I doubt these twists will last more than 3 weeks, but I'll try again and do it better the next time. Ooh! I'll write which products I used for this (including my pre-installation) below:

Pre-installation:
Pompeian Grapeseed Oil (pre-poo)
TRESemme Climate Control Shampoo (poo)
VO5 Moisture Milks Strawberries & Cream with Soy Milk Protein/Herbal Escapes Anti-Oxidant Rich Pomegrante & Grapeseed (conditioner)
TRESemme Vitamin H & Silk Protein Smooth & Silky/Vitamin E Moisture Rich, Pompeian Grapeseed Oil (DC)
ACV:H2O (2:1 ratio; scalp clarifier)
Spectrum USDA Certified Organic Expeller-Pressed Coconut Oil (leave in)


Installation:
Fresh Elements Captivatin' Color conditioner (leave in, detangler)
Fantasia IC Polisher Gel (hold)
Fantasia Olive Moisturizing Shine Serum (moisture)

I don't like the Fantasia serum much, but the gel left my hair so dry that I had to do something. But I noticed that the twists without the serum are holding up much better than the ones with it. Hmm. Guess I'll leave the serum out.



18-08-2012
Randomness: I started listening to some Kpop on my iTunes account, and it didn't click in my mind that the song was in Korean until the song ended. I thought it was in English! *shakes head* This has happened to me a few other times too, and it's so bizarre. I don't know Korean! I've got a weird brain.

Mi pelo
I went to a birthday party today, so I pulled the back section of my hair into a puff, and pinned the front sections back. I've kind of got a little pompadour thingy going on in the front. It'll hopefully make my hair stretch a bit more; I was so sick of it curling while I tried to twist yesterday! I may or may not work on my twists more tonight; I need to sleep and get up for church tomorrow morning.



19-08-2012
I ended up not doing any more mini twists last night, but I did some today after church. The going is VERY slow; I'm just finishing up the section on the left side of my head! But I'm trying to make sure I do them right. As painstakingly as I'm doing these twists though, most of them don't look right. Even if I take 5 minutes to tightly twist, they start to unravel the second I let them go *frustrated sigh* And I keep catching little stray hairs in the twists, end up twisting them in, and then have a painful time trying to pin the twists back because they're attached to 1 or 2 thin hairs at the front of my head. 
Also, I wasn't liking the way the Fresh Elements conditioner was working with the Fantasia gel. It's like my hair was too moisturised and slippery (darned dimethicone!  ) and it messed up the twists. 

Soo, I got the money from my babysitting paycheck (money!! Finally!) and hit Target today after church. I spent more than 20 minutes bouncing between the Salon Hair Care aisle (cried over the prices there), the "normal" hair care stuff (lamented over the sodium hydroxide and drying alcohols), and the Ethnic Hair Care aisle (boohooed over the prices and tiny sizes of bottles, and looked skeptically at the "all natural" ingredients). I looked at Shea Moisture, Jane Carter, Cantu, Motions, Creme of Nature, Nubian Heritage (side note: Raven, you were totally right about the Nubian Heritage heat line! I didn't expect to see such high amounts of keratin in the shampoo and conditioner [usually when products claim to have protein, it's 10th on the list and won't do much]! Not to mention the label color was gorgeous  I'll have to try that sometime!), Mixed Chicks, Curls, Curly Qs, Hair Rules, Fekkai, Rusk....on and on and on. I wanted to cry! All I was looking for was a leave in that had shea butter in it (I would use Shea Moisture's Curl Enhancing Smoothie, but it has ammonium salts in it. As little as is in there and as much as that drying effect is likely "cancelled out" by the super moisturising ingredients, I'm not a huge fan of salts in my leave ins) but that wasn't out of my price range. Every "ethnic" product claimed to be natural, but when I checked the ingredients label, all I saw was sulfates, silicones, alcohols (fatty or otherwise), and everything I could find in a bottle of Aussie Moist -_- But, thanks be to God, I finally found something!! It's from the Nubian Heritage line, and I really like it so far! It is *trumpets blare*

EVOO & Moringa Repair & Extend Detangling Leave-In Conditioner with Quinoa, Fennel & Henna

I didn't expect too good of a detangling job but this product has surprised me. I can easily finger detangle a handful of damp hair with a nickel sized amount of this conditioner. There's lots of EVOO, shea butter, coconut oil, mango butter and avocado oil in this! I love it. It's the first "mostly natural" product that has ingredients that I like and works well for my hair. It was only an 8 oz bottle for $11.99 (), but I think it'll last me for a while because much isn't needed for detangling. And, I tried this on my hair while putting in more twists, and it worked like a dream! It's cooperating with the gel much better than Fresh Elements. I'm very happy with this product so far 

I bought another conditioner, too! It's a relatively new line from Herbal Essences. It's called: Honey, I'm Strong and it's supposed to be strengthening. I know that honey is a humectant, but I don't understand how it strengthens. Moisture = Strength? Not in the curly world, at least. I bought it just to try it out (it was on sale! 23.7 oz for only $4.99!), and I LOVE the smell. That's no small feat, seeing as how I detest the smell of most of Herbal Essences' conditioners. It does have sodium hydroxide in it, which, again, I don't like having in my leave ins. So I'll use it as a rinse out. I'm excited to see how it works!

Anywho, I'm still very frustrated with this whole mini twists situation. I'm not giving up yet; I want to try it at least 1 more time before throwing in the towel and calling it quits (I really don't want to try it again, but I'm determined to finish at least this set of twists). But, if it doesn't work out, I can always go back to regular 2 strand twists. Those are plumper (you can include more hair), easier, quicker to do, and my hair suffers no breakage from putting those in. I'll probably twist for 2-3+ hours tomorrow, and update on how that goes.

Any experienced mini twisters here? What do you do to make twisting easier? How do you know that you're twisting the right amount of hair?