Blended Cutie Butter Me Up

So I was given the opportunity to review Blended Cutie Butter Me Up, I have never used this product line before. However it was on my list of products to try in the future. The consistency of this product is wet or damp; it’s very rich in my opinion for a leave in. I not only used this product on my hair but also my daughter’s hair. We have two different textures of hair, she is 3 range and I am 4 range. I used Butter Me up on her hair on several occasions first time was to remoisturize her hair. It worked well, the next time I used it was to do a specific braided up style. That came out good as well, but I experienced some frizz not sure why; not going say it was the product it self. I will include pictures below of what the style looked like. Now for myself I used it underneath a protective style, I was able to go several days without having to remoisturize my hair. That is good for me because I have coarse/kinky hair. My overall review of this product is that it worked excellent in both our hair types to maintain moisture. I now want to try more products from the line in the future.

This style did not quite work out because the ends that were suppose to be curled frizzed on me :(. So I braided them down and made a small bun in the back.

This style however came out pretty cute, I did this after clarifying her hair with Shea Moisture Black Purification Masque, than I styled with Butter Me up and few other products to seal in the moisture.

Lexflnatural Holiday Giveaway

This is a holiday giveaway to show my appreciation for your support please feel free to enter. It is sponsored by My black skin you have the opportunity to enter each day. There will be two more giveaways upcoming, one at the end of January and one in March. Thank you all and good luck :) Please leave your Twitter and IG names in the comment section so I can verify you quickly.

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Qhemet Biologics Aeothiopika Hydrate and Twist Butter

So I had the opportunity to revisit a product that my curlfriend Kay was so gracious enough to send to me. Keep in mind I have tried this product before, the first time I don't think I was really clear on how do use it. So I proceeded to give it away, since several naturals had been raving about this product line. I decided to give it a try again, and the verdict is  I love, love this. Not only does the butter provide an excellent seal factor but it is also very moisturizing. If combined with the right moisturizing leave in the butter can leave your hair soft for days. Yes I said days lol!!! I have personally been using it with my beloved Oyin Handmade Hair Dew but will be trying it with another leave in stay tuned :) I rate this product a five out of five, I will be buying it again because unfortunately I have used it all up. Pictures will be posted below for you to see the style I did using this. If you have any additional question feel free to ask. Ingredients list will be posted below in addition to were to find this product :)

Lex

Sage Naturalceuticals 

Ingredients list-Olive (Olea europa) oil, mango (mangifera indica) butter and rice (oryza sativa) oil blend, behenyl esters, cetyl alcohol, soy (glycin soja) extract, plant (euphorbia cerifera) wax, phthalate free fragrance.

Influenster VoxBox Crest Whitestrips

So I have been on influenster for a while now, but I had forgotten I had a profile on there. Recently I decided to take the time to go back on there and do some surveys to earn badges. The concept behind this site is to earn badges as you do more surveys. When you get to a certain point, you are than chosen to be sent a voxbox. I was sent a box to review Crest Whitening System, I will be doing an opening of this box in a brief video. If you are interested in how these work stay tuned for my review. I have never used this kind of system so this should be interesting :).

The Versatile Blog Award

The Versatile Blog Award

It is my pleasure to be nominated for this award by my curlfriend The Hodgepodge Files. I was very surprised and Im humble that she thought of me. Below I will include the rules and my nominations :)

The RULES are as follows:

• Thank the Blogger who nominated you
• Share (7) random facts about yourself
• Nominate (15) fellow bloggers that you recently discovered or follow regularly
• Inform each nominated blogger of their nomination by posting a comment on each of their blogs
• Add the Versatile Blogger Award to your post 

Seven random facts about yourself:

1. Im very introverted and shy :).
2. Im short.
3. Im the only child.
4. Im afraid of heights
5. I have never traveled out of the U.S.
6. I hate all bugs lol!!!
7. I'm a good listener.

My nominees for this award are:

KandyLand

Sunshine's Natural & Loving It

Texture Me Natural
Kinky From the Heart
All Naptural
Beeb's Curls
Purposeful Beauty
Cutie Kinks
Shakara Natural Tips
Afro Divas
The Kinky Khronicles

Big Chop Natural Hair Anniversary

Hello Naturalistas,
So September 19, 2012 was my natural hair anniversary I went into my bathroom one year previously and cut all my hair off. It has been a interesting journey one that started with knowing absolutely nothing about hair. I think one main reason I had to cute my hair off so much while relaxed was the lack of effort I made to care for my hair. As a natural I gained a fresh perspective on how important it really is. I wash my hair at least once a week whether it be cowash or using a shampoo bar. I deep condition it once a week as well, for me its so important to keep the balance of moisture in check. So to help with that I do a protein treatment about every 6-7 weeks. My treatment of choice is henna, it does make you hair feel stronger. I have been using it for several months now. I will include in the post a list of my main products along with picture.
My main product list:
Bobeam Shampoo Bars
Spiral Solutions DC
Tresemme Naturals mixed with alma and brahmi
Henna Gloss
Darcy Botanical Sweet Cocoa Bean Smoothing Cream
Oyin Handmade Hair Dew 
Curl Junkie Argan and Olive Oil Conditioner
Shea Moisture Black Soap Purification Masque
Shea Mositure Deep Treatment Masque
Camille Rose Almond Jai Twisting Butter
HoneyChile Hairlove Honeyblossom Twist and Loc Souffle 

 big chop picture

This is a side by side comparison BC on side, other side I was about 7 months natural.

 Picture taken September 21, 2012

Growth Progress

I will be sharing some pictures of my growth progress from the time I big chopped until now. I think I have gained a decent amount of length and thickness. However I must say my goal is not to have hair down my back its to have healthy hair. For past couple months I have been using alot more all natural products and herbs for my hair I think this has helped tremendously in my progress. 

 September 2011 still have some relaxed ends

 September 20111

 October 2011

 October 2011

 April 2012

 August 2012

Back view August 2012

Put some kick in your conditioner

This is pretty much an continuation of the last post I did concerning changing up my hair regimen. I posted a picture along with the post to share some of the ingredients that I include in my cowash. To start off all you need is a basic conditioner what ever brand that you desire, you should also have 2-3 carrier oils to add to it they can be extra virgin olive oil, avocado oil, coconut oil, etc.

Now to the meat of this post, the ayurvedic powders there are three that I use on a regular basis when I do this treatment/cowash. They include brahmi, amla, and hibiscus; I will go into some further detail as to their benefits for your hair. 

Brahmi= Cools the scalp, helps with dandruff, also helps strengthen the hair root.
Amla= Helps with hair growth and thickness, if you have issues with thinness amla will help strengthen your hair. This can also be used to help clean the hair, use on regular basis will add shine and luster to the hair. 

Hibiscus= A gentle cleanser and conditioner which helps with shedding of hair, by strengthening and conditioning it. Its also increases shine, helps with hair growth, and scalp issues. 

All of three of these are excellent items to add to your conditioner, if you use these or want to try them please share your experience with me. Feel free to leave your comments. 

Changes in my regimen

My official natural hair anniversary is July 2011 after being relaxed since 4th grade, I never imagined embracing my hair texture. Many ladies wonder what is secret to growing long hair; well there really is not one everyone is different. I have found for myself using ayurvedic herbs to be very helpful.

I use the herbs once a week in my conditioner, for most part I use same ones unless I need to adjust to my needs. I only wash my hair with shampoo bars which are less drying. I use the loc method, which is leave in, oil, cream. In my next post I will go further into loc method and will also share the herbs I use along with their benefits.  I will be sharing more photos next month, my big chop was September 20, 2011. What changes have you made lately to your hair regimen????



I use this to clarify my hair if I dont feel like mixing something up such as Rhassoul Clay or Bentonite Clay.
This consist of  Tresemme Natural, Brahmi, Hibiscus, and Amla Powder along with coconut oil, avocado oil, and finally JCBO.

Sophisticated Bun Style :)

I have been really inspired lately do alot more styling. I think part of it is I am in the between stage of length for my hair. Although I do enjoy twistouts I just want something different, so this time I came up with a sophisticated bun with twist in front. This type of style can be worn to work, on interview, etc.....I hope you all like it and feel free to try it yourself. The only thing I used was Hairveda pomade, for twist in front, for back I slicked it back in ponytail with some Hicks Edges. I added some Marley Hair to make the bun. Let me know what you think??? Until next time rock your natural self :)

Bantu Knot Out

I managed to achieve my very first bantu knot out. I only used two products which were a refresher spray and HoneyChile HairLove HoneyBlossom Twist and Loc Souffle. It was done on damp hair that I allowed to completely dry before I took them out. This will definitely be my signature style in future, what has been your experience with this style????

Day 2
Day 1

Make it up/Goat Milk Soap Giveaway

I just want to take the opportunity to thank everyone that has supported my page. So as a token of my appreciation I will be doing this small giveaway there will be another later on this summer too. The items are  Elf Beauty Eye Manual/Smokey Eye Edition, Elf Little Black Beauty Book (Warm), and  a bar of soap from GoatMilkStuff (Strawberry/Champagne Scent). There will be three winners so send people over the more the merrier :). These are not reviewed products but items that I love and I want to share with you all. All you have to do is like my page and enter a comment underneath this post. Good luck!!!!!!!

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Tropical Traditions Coconut Oil Giveaway

Win 1 quart of Gold Label Virgin Coconut Oil!

Tropical Traditions is America’s source for coconut oil. Their Gold Label Virgin Coconut Oil is hand crafted in small batches by family producers, and it is the highest quality coconut oil they offer. You can read more about how virgin coconut oil is different from other coconut oils on their website: What is Virgin Coconut Oil?

You can also watch the video they produced about Gold Label Virgin Coconut Oil:

 

Tropical Traditions also carries other varieties of affordable high quality coconut oil. Visit their website to check on current sales, to learn about the many uses of coconut oil, and to read about all the advantages of buying coconut oil online. Since the FDA does not want us to discuss the health benefits of coconut oil on a page where it is being sold or given away, here is the best website to read about the health benefits of coconut oil.

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Atlanta Natural Hair Meet up Day Event Giveaway!

I believe in paying forward so I have purchased a ticket for this event coming up on May 19. It is in the Atlanta area so you must live in this area in order to win. All you need to do is subscribe to my blog and make a comment under this post why you want to go :) You have until May 11 to enter, Good Luck!

http://essentiallynatural.eventbrite.com/

Tropical Traditions Coconut Oil Review

Disclaimer: Tropical Traditions provided me with a free sample of this product to review, and I was under no obligation to review it if I so chose. Nor was I under any obligation to write a positive review or sponsor a product giveaway in return for the free product.

This will be my third product review, I was not paid for this review just to let you know. The product that I reviewed is called Tropical Traditions Gold Label Standard Virgin Coconut Oil. It is 100% organic vegan coconut oil, I used it several ways; as a prepoo, sealant, moisturizer mixed with conditioner, and finally in my homemade mixtures. My overall opinion on this oil is its excellent, its a little bit creamier than some of the other types of coconut oil I have used in the past. This also provides a little more moisture as well, would I buy this product again for my own personal use yes. I have several other coconut oils in my product stash so as soon as I use them up. I will most likely purchase this with my own money. If you wish to purchase this product I will include a link at the bottom of this review along with some pictures of the actual jar. 

The website for this company is http://www.tropicaltraditions.com/virgin_coconut_oil.htm.

If you have any additional questions feel free to add them in the comment section :)

Also they are offering to do a giveaway of this product stay tuned for that. 

Glossy Locks Honey Coconut Milk Shampoo, Conditioner, & Smooth/ Moisture Hair Balm Product Review

This will be my second product review my first one was not on hair products but on organic bath soap. I was given the opportunity to do this review because I contacted the company. They were gracious enough to send me three of their products in sample sizes, and I was not paid for this review just to let you know. The three products that I was sent were Glossy Locks Honey Coconut Milk Shampoo, Conditioner, and Smooth/Moisture Hair Balm. There are only three products from this particular Glossy Locks line but I believe they are going to add more in the future. On to the review :)

Glossy Locks Honey Coconut Milk Shampoo=  Honey, Concentrates of Green Tea, Burdock, Nettle, Rosemary, Peppermint, Rose Petals, Calendula and Hibiscus, Aloe Juice, Vitamin E (a-tocopherol), Coconut Milk Powder, Saponified Coconut Oil, Rice Protein, Wheat Protein, Panthenol (Pro-Vitamin B5), Colloidal Oatmeal, Neem Oil,Citric Acid, Extracts of Japanese Honeysuckle, Grapefruit Seed, Thyme, Oregano, Cinnamon, Rosemary, Lavender and Goldenseal, Coconut Flavor.

Glossy Locks Honey Coconut Milk Conditioner=  Infusion of Green Tea, Burdock, Nettle, Rosemary, Peppermint, Rose Petals, Calendula and Hibiscus, Aloe Juice, Honey, Rapeseed Oil, Vitamin E (a-tocopherol), Avocado Butter, Virgin Coconut Oil, Shea Butter, Cetyl Babassuate Oil, Rice Protein, Wheat Protein, Panthenol (Pro-Vitamin B5), Colloidal Oatmeal, Neem Oil, Vitamin C (ascorbyl palmitate), Coconut Milk Powder, Citric Acid, Extracts of Japanese Honeysuckle, Grapefruit Seed, Oregano, Thyme, Cinnamon, Rosemary, Lavender and Goldenseal, Coconut Flavor.

Glossy Locks Smooth and Moisture Hair Balm=  Avocado Butter, Shea Butter, Coconut Oil, Cocoa Butter, Vitamin E (a-tocopherol), Panthenol (Pro Vitamin B5), Rosehip Oil, Lavender Essential Oil.

These are the ingredients of all three products as you can see all of the ingredients are all natural. The scent of the conditioner and the shampoo are the same they smell like honey and the balm has a different scent it smells like lavender. My opinion of these products first the shampoo is very thin, however a little goes a long way so you should not have an issue getting it to lather. The shampoo to me is a little drying if I were to use this on regular basis I would do a prepoo before hand. The conditioner however is quite thick and the slippage on it is awesome I have super thick hair. As far as the moisture for it I give it a 5 out 5 it provides great moisture I did not have to do a deep conditioner to give my hair some extra moisture. Finally the balm I give it a 4 out 5 only because I felt like it smoothed on better on my daughter's hair who is 3c/4a her hair is kind of fine. My hair is thicker it smoothed but I need something heavier its just too light. Does this product live up to the name Glossy Locks? After using this twice and the only reason I could not get more use out of it is the sample is 3.5ozs. So between my hair and my daughter's it went quick, for both of us I think it did give some shine. 

Overall these products were better than I thought I was kind apprehensive because I did not see any reviews on these products, online for individuals with kinky hair. Now just to let you know the price is kind of high the full size of these products comes in 8oz. which will cost you $16 each. The balm the biggest size for it is 2oz. the cost for this is $15. If you want to get samples of these they will run you about $8 for each one. The balm sample size is 0.5oz will be $6. If you have any additional question feel free to leave comment or send me an email :). 

.

http://www.100percentpure.com/default.asp

No justice...No peace...

911 Call


I was quite shocked after hearing the news of the death of this young man, whose life was taken before he even had a chance to really live. Although we have made much progress it just shows how far we have to go when it comes to race relations. Now the question is, will justice be served???  How will authorities prosecute this person that shot him if at all?? We would all like to believe this will happen, but if you think about it how far have we really come. Our society unfortunately is still full of hateful people who dislike because of race, class, economic status, etc.....Lets all take a minute to pray for this family, that at some point they will have peace of mind. 

Curlbox!!!

Hello,
Today I got my Curlbox as you can see I got a little happy with the boxes lol. It has a few more samples than the Curlkit. After reviewing both of them I doubt I will be getting either again but it was nice to get a surprise in the mail :) I will post a picture below and make a video tonight....

Curl Kit

I got my curl kit today which I was excited to receive; I decided to do a one month membership. It came by USPS priority mail the box includes 6 samples of product. There are no full samples in comparison to the curlbox. These samples include Miss Jessie, Amazing Botanical, Oyin Homemade, and Wondercurls. I will include pics along with a video I did on it enjoy :)

Health Benefits of Castor Oil

Health Benefits of Castor Oil

Lavender Oil

Essential oils are extremely popular for their beneficial properties that help cure various health, skin and hair problems. These are also known to promote hair growth and control the problem of hair loss caused due to various reasons. Lavender oil is one of those popular essential oils used to treat a number of hair problems including alopecia. So if you are looking for an oil that will be effective in promoting hair growth, then lavender oil is the answer. Lavender oil is adored by many for its aromatic fragrance. It is used in soaps, fragrances, air fresheners, sachets for scenting clothes and shampoos. This herb is a natural remedy for many ailments like insomnia, anxiety and depression. Lavender oil is extracted from flowers of the lavender plant, basically through steam distillation. These fragrant flowers are also popularly used in making potpourri.

Benefits of Lavender Oil for Hair

Lavender oil, is among the commonly used aromatherapy oils, which is extremely effective in treating the problem of hair loss. Regular usage is helpful in controlling hair fall and improving hair growth. Alopecia areata, a condition wherein you lose excessive hair, especially in patches can be treated with lavender essential oil. Daily scalp massage with lavender oil will definitely ensure significant hair re-growth in a few months. You can use lavender oil for hair growth and get rid of problems like itchy scalp and dandruff as well. It is a powerful antiseptic and useful in disinfecting the scalp hence, treating dry scalp, lice, lice eggs or nits. It also fights fungi, viruses and other microbes.

Moreover, a relaxing head massage with lavender oil is also helpful in curing insomnia and improve sleep quality. One of the lavender oil benefits is that it relaxes you and helps you get rid of anxiety and depression. The calming and soothing effect of this essential oil is beneficial for relieving stress. This in turn helps control hair loss, as insomnia, stress, depression are among the common and probable causes of this problem. Sufficient sleep and mental peace ensures that hair loss is in control. Moreover, it also enhances blood circulation, hence a scalp massage will definitely help in hair growth. Apart from this, you can regularly use one of the undermentioned hair masks for improving the texture of your hair and controlling hair loss problem.

Ways to Use Lavender Oil for Hair

You can use lavender oil in combination with other essential oils that are beneficial for hair growth to make an effective hair mask. Here are some combinations that you can try, apart from using lavender oil alone.

For Hair Growth...
You need to take 10 drops of lavender oil, 10 drops of rosemary oil, 5 drops of basil oil and 4 oz. of jojoba oil. Mix all these oils well and store them in a dark bottle. Use it regularly for scalp and hair massage. This is very effective in smoothing your hair and boosting hair growth Make sure that you shake the bottle well, before each use.

For Dry Scalp...
Take ¼th cup of oatmeal and soak it in water for 20 minutes. Take 7 drops of lavender oil and 5 drops of rosemary oil and mix all these ingredients properly and then apply the paste on your scalp. You can wash off this mask after an hour with warm water. This mask is good solution for getting rid of itching and dry scalp.

While using lavender oil for hair growth or other problems, you will start noticing its benefits within a few weeks or months. You need to keep using it regularly as the results will not be seen immediately. So include this essential oil in your hair care routine and take the first step towards healthy hair.
http://www.buzzle.com/articles/lavender-oil-for-hair-growth.html

Attention Attention :) Im doing another giveaway its for two pair earrings...

Hey Curlfriends doing my second giveaway there are several requirements to qualify, all you have to do is tell me how you will rock the earrings in the comment box below this post and which ones you want to win, go like Urban Vibe and The Blaque Butterfly facebook pages tell them LexFlNatural sent you....alright lets gooooooo :) The brown earrings are by Urban Vibe and the purple earrings are by The Blaque Butterfly....There will be two winners for this giveaway one for the Urban Vibe earrings and one for the The Blaque Butterfly earrings!

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