From the title, it sounds like a blog post about a new dance, but instead it is a polish escapade using the LacQit One Step Gel Spring 2013 collection. I decided to test out an unlikely combination; Tangerine Tango and Pop on this Purple. Check it out in my latest video:
I started out with 2 coats of the Tangerine Tango as my first color and cured each coat using my LED lamp. Next, I used nail tape to create an X shape near the upper portion of my nails.
I used more nail tape to create another X above the first one, making sure to leave a small space between the first X and second X. This will look similar to railroad tracks crossing over each other. Once the tape was in place, firmly press down to avoid any bleeding of the polish underneath the tape.
Next I used the Pop on this Purple color to paint above the first X all the way to the tip of my nail. Cure the 2nd color and apply another coat to enhance the sparkling effects.
Once the polish was cured, I removed the tape from each nail.
I've tried an assortment
of gels and creams, but there is one that is a keep sake in my hair arsenal;
that is good 'ole Eco Styler gel. I started using Eco Styler back in 2009 after hearing about it from some other Naturalistas on YouTube. The Eco
Styler combined with Castor Oil created massive curl definition for me and
provided great hold. But in this "How To" video, I decided to try a different combination.
In my past videos, you will notice the use of Liquid Lanolin for many of
my styles, so I decided that I should test it out with the Eco Styler gel.
You will notice in the
video that I did not rinse out the Alba Botanica Hawaiian Coconut Milk
conditioner. My reasoning behind this was that I felt the conditioner would help reduce the crunchy feeling that I get
when using gels alone. I got this idea when I first started wearing
Wash-N-Goes using Kinky Curyly products. I would use the Kinky Curly
Curling Custard and the Knot Today Leave-In Conditioner along with Castor Oil
to seal in moisture. Using those 3 products would always leave my hair
soft and well defined for the duration of the style (usually 7-10 days).
When I first started applying the liquid lanolin on top of the Alba Botanica Hawaiian Coconut Milk conditioner, I couldn't tell that the lanolin was actually on my hair. All I could feel was the conditioner. As a result, I added a little more of the lanolin to each section and focused on working it onto the ends of my hair. Even when I began applying the Eco Styler with Olive Oil gel (level 10 hold), I could not tell whether the gel was on my hair. However, I continued to apply and shingle as usual...and hoped for good results. After the application process, I lightly misted my hair with water to give my hair concoction a boost and then allowed my hair to air dry. In the pictures at the end of my video, you will see how my hair progressed from Day 1 through Day 7. I must say that my results were AWESOME. Throughout the week, my hair remained soft and well defined. Even my gym escapades did not jeopardize my curl definition nor create excessive frizz. I didn't have to mist my hair with water until Day 5 to reshape the style, but really could have reshaped without it. The Liquid Lanolin and Eco Styler gel combo is a winner in my book!
Day 1
This is how my hair looked on Day 1 after styling. Although it is still wet in this picture, my curl definition is visible.
Day 7
By Day 7, my hair still maintained a lot of curly definition. I decided to switch the look up by doing a simple up-do.
Below are a list of highlights about the products I used:
There is a wide variety of Eco Styler gels. I've only used the Olive Oil formula which is a level 10 hold.
Eco Styler gels can be purchased from stores like, WalMart, Sally's Beauty Supply, WalGreens, and CVS.
A 32 fl oz container costs less than $5.00.
Liquid lanolin can be purchased online. I actually purchased a 4 fl oz bottle from the Vitamin Shoppe for around $8.00.
Eco Styler does NOT contain Alcohol.
Eco Sytler DOES contain Hydrolyzed Wheat Protein for those of you who may be sensitive to this form of protein.
LacQit One Step Gel Polish has released the 2013 Summer Color Collection and the owner, Nanci Spencer, sent me some colors to try out. I decided to get a little creative and use a combination of various colors to create some nail magic. Check out my demonstration video below.
Nail art definitely adds flare to the overall look of pampered hands, but as an amateur, it is a challenge...but in a good way. The challenging aspect of nail designing is that I seem to spend hours trying to decide what look I'm going for and what color combination I should use. So in this attempt, I finally decided to use the 3 colors listed below:
In a Blue Streak
It's a White Out
A Flare for Pink
I started off with In a Blue Streak as my first color. Next, I used nail tape to section off a portion of my nails to create a color block using the It's a White Out color. Lastly, I used A Flare for Pink to create mini dots and abstract curves. Below are a few pictures of my final results:
I am always looking at creative nail art work on Pinterest and wanting to give it a try, but always talking myself out of it...until now. For the past 2 weeks, I've been wearing the LacQit Cosmo to Go color, so I wanted to spice up the look. Using 3 LacQit One Step Gel polishes, a dotting tool and nail tape (both purchased from Amazon.com), and a nail decal (purchased at Sally's Beauty Supply Store), I set out on my FIRST attempt at nail designing.
Items used
After deciding on a design, the application process was simple. I used the nail tape to section off a portion of the nail so that I could add the Pop the Cork color. I followed with using my dotting tool to add about 7-8 dots toward the lower portion of the nail to create a subtle burst of color with a combination of Road Trip with Rosie and Pop the Cork colors.
These days, there are so many curling gels on the market offering those with natural hair a plethora of options. I recently watched some fellow YouTubers demonstrate their application process using Gorilla Snot Hair Gel or Moco de Gorila. I've been doing wash-n-goes using the shingling method for years using products like Kinky Curly, Uncle Funky's Daughter, Eco Styler Gel, and the list goes on (LITERALLY). So, it made me want to try this Gorilla Snot out for myself.
I purchased the Gorilla Snot Hair Gel at a local Walgreens for $2.99. This gel comes in a few different hold/strength levels, so I picked level 9 out of 10. I felt this would give me the hold I need without too much of a crunchy feeling or that helmet hair look after it dries. Now keep in mind that this gel is used by various ethnicities, such as Hispanics or Latinos to create spike styles. With that in mind, who would have guessed it would be suitable to maintain wash-n-goes of those of us with curly textures. My impressions of the Gorilla Snot Hair Gel: Display Look & Feel: The design of the container is cleverly funky yet very practical because it allows you to easily squeeze out the product due to the fact that the bottom of the container is also the lid. This eliminates the need to turn the container upside down to get that last tiny weeny bit of product out.
Smell: Very pleasant scent with a hint of lemon smell.
Cost: $2.99 + tax....no further cost point analysis needed:-)
Gel Look & Feel: This gel has a slime consistency. It is sticky, but not as sticky as some other gels I've used. As my hair was drying, I didn't have a sticky residue feeling on my face or neck, so that is a plus.
Ingredients off the bottle: Water, PVP, Alcohol, PEG-150, Sorbital, Hydroxyethylcellulose, Triethanolamine, Carbomer, Cyamposis Tetragonoloba (Guar) Gum, Fragrance. Hair Impact Review: The Gorilla Snot Hair Gel is good, but the alcohol seems to have caused frizz by Day 2. Although my curls remained defined, my day 3 hair had more volume than expected. I decided to lightly spritz my hair with water and add some of my shea butter mixture for moisture. I repeated as needed on the following days. Overall, I will continue to use this product and tweak my regime to see if I can reduce some of the volume and retain more curl definition throughout the week.
Day 1 results using Gorilla Snot Hair Gel
Application Process:
I applied Castor Oil and Lanolin Oil to wet hair from root to tip.
I applied a generous amount of Gorilla Snot Hair Gel to each section.
I smoothed sections of hair from root to tip to allow my natural curl pattern to take shape (Shingling Method). NOTE: In some areas I used my Denman brush to help separate my curls.
I allowed to air dry from morning until night.
I pineappled my hair with a satin hair tie.
Take a look at my application process and more pictures in my video.
Sometimes you just don't feel like shampooing & conditioning your hair just to get a new style so you begin to realize that nothings wrong with reviving a style and saving time to do other things. Well, my hair goes through a lot of those "reviving" situations too not only save time, but also to reduce the chance of my hair and scalp being stripped during the shampooing process.
With this in mind, I decided to give the Curl Popper product another try to refresh an old braid-out. This time, I just lightly misted my hair with water then mixed my shea butter mixture and Curl Popper together before applying to my hair. This was applied to each section of hair before braiding. Since my hair wasn't soaking wet, I let it air dry and slept wearing a head wrap. The next morning, my hair was completely dry and ready for take down. I got great definition and shine!
In the days that followed, I just added a small amount of Curl Popper to wet hands then applied to each section and re-braided to maintain the style each day until time for my next shampoo & condition regime.
Here's my demonstration using Curl Popper to refresh an old braid-out.
Although I knew the natural hair phenomenon had spread like
a forest fire, I didn’t think the age range of women strutting their natural
crown of glory would be so broad until I recently attended a natural hair forum
in Birmingham, Al. This event was hosted
by Dr. Dianne Coleman, a cosmetic chemist and instructor, who has developed her
own line of natural hair products. The
event was held one Saturday afternoon from 2-5 pm at the Crestwood Festival
Center. When I arrived there were other
vendors show-casing their businesses, which offered the event attendees an
opportunity to mingle while waiting for the main symposium to start. There was a mid-size crowd of approximately
40-50 eagerly awaiting the opportunity to ask natural hair care tips at this symposium.
One key take away was Dr. Coleman’s
advice on the importance of moisturizing and sealing in the moisture for healthy
hair growth and length retention.
Unlike a classroom room full of unenthused students, these
women asked question after question, took notes, and shared their personal hair
experiences. By the end of this event,
Dr. Coleman had given several door prizes and I was the recipient of a full
size bottle of her Curl Popper (the original formula). Of course after winning, I thought it would
be a good idea to test out her product and share my results.
The application process of the Curl Popper potion was simple. After shampooing &
conditioning (with Alba Botanica products), I applied castor oil to my hair
while wet. Next, I sectioned my hair into four sections and applied a liberal
amount of the Curl Popper potion to each section of hair. I locked in the moisture by using my shea
butter mixture (see mixture ingredients below) then braiding my hair. Due to the thickness of my hair, I sat under
my hooded dryer for 2 hours using a low heat setting until my hair about 80% dry.
You will notice in my video that I did over saturate my hair
with my shea butter mixture, so I decided to use a bandana to cover my hair at
night so that it would absorb some of the oils.
This really worked wonders because when I styled my hair, I had a smooth
finish without an oily or weighed down feeling/appearance. Also, I didn’t have to add more oil for the
entire week. I noticed that the lanolin I added really enhanced the shine and
reduced frizz. After high aerobic
exercising throughout the week, the roots of my hair remained smooth with
minimal frizz. In addition to the use of
lanolin, the reduction of frizz is also attributed to the fact that about 2-3
nights out of the week to help maintain the braid out, I just re-braided at
night and tied on my bandanna.
My shea butter mixture consists of the following ingredients. I used a hand mixer to blend the ingredients
until it reached a fluffy texture very similar to whipped cream or butter cream
frosting. Note: I have been using this
mixture as my hair and body moisturizer for about 6 weeks; enjoying it thus far.
