4 Ways to Care For Color-Treated Natural Hair

I think many natural women freak out at the sound of the words ‘hair color’ or ‘bleach.’ I completely understand the reservation behind it. You may be afraid that your hair will fall out; it’s too permanent; you are afraid of the unknowns of applying lightener to your hair.

Here are 5 ways to care for your color-treated natural hair.

1. Go to a professional for your color. If you want to avoid a potential color disaster, you may want to consider going to a professional in the first place. They have specific training on what is necessary for a healthy color processing session. As professionals, they have licensed access to products that the general public doesn’t have access to.

2.Use products that are specifically formulated for color-treated hair. These products will not only keep your hair in the healthiest possible condition, but they will allow for the longevity of your color.

3. Wash your hair in cooler temperature water and finish with a cool water rinse. This will also help with the longevity of your color as well as helping to close the hair cuticle.

4. Deep condition. It’s no secret that color-treated hair may be prone to dryness. To help keep a lot of the dryness at bay, use deep conditioners and hair masks to further infuse your hair with moisture.

Don’t be afraid of color! If you need a little sumthin sumthin to add a little pizazz, you can always consider coloring a small fragment of your hair instead of committing to the color on your entire head.

Happy Coloring!

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Sweet 28

My birthday recently passed on August 14th. Now that i’m in the 28th year of my life, I’ve been re-evaluating a lot of things. I’ve thinking about my life, goals, relationships, and truly living into my passions.

One of the things that I strive to do is live unapologetically. The truth is, we will all make mistakes. We will all do or have done things that we are not proud of. But I’m finding that it is way more important to not live a life that is a continual apology, but to live a life of continual forgiveness of myself and others. The older I get, the more I begin to realize the importance of building fences with gates instead of walls.

I’m letting go of the things that I can’t change. I’m letting go of the things that I don’t have control over. I am loving, believing in, affirming, and investing in myself. I am living the truth of my life, my experiences, and my beliefs in every present moment. These are things that I am choosing to do because they are life-giving to me. I am able to disagree, with love and respect. I am practicing living a life of authority and vulnerability.

And I love these shoes. I digress. These are all things I’ve pondered, wrestled with, and decided to live out. I’m excited for what this 28th year is unveiling. A few of my other goals consist of sharing quite a bit more and allowing much more space to create in being the artist and creative that has always been. Sweet 28.

How To // 1 Pair of Shorts, 3 Ways

I picked up these jacquard shorts at Target a few months ago for only $19.99 because my heart couldn’t leave them in the store. Then again, I may or may not be one of those people that go to Target for mouthwash and end up in the clothing section. Either way, these shorts were coming with me. I treat these shorts more like a neutral (then again, leopard print is a neutral for me too, but to each their own…haha), so there are a ton of things that I mix and match with them. These are just a few options.

Denim Shirt// H&M  Grey Tank// TJ Maxx

Pocketbook// TJ Maxx

Sandals// Dolce Vita via TJ Maxx

Have you ever been the gracious recipient of a gift card from a place you have no intention of ever shopping, but now you’re stuck with a card for some hunting store, when you’d rather have a card for something useful (like some red pumps)? Then you MUST check out Raise.com!

Embroidered Shirt// TJ Maxx  Necklace// Forever21  Sandals// Bucco via Hautelook

I was recently introduced to Raise.com, an online marketplace where you can buy and sell gift cards. How it works is you take the gift card you received to, let’s say, a hardware store and sell it. Then, you turn around and use that cash to buy a gift card to Target, TJ Maxx, Forever21, or another store of your choosing. Easy peasy.

This is a great shopping tool because if you receive a gift card to a place that doesn’t fit you or your needs, you can turn it into something that will.

Shirt// Forever21  Necklace// Forever21  Watch// Hautelook

If you end up with 20 bucks, you can pick up an awesome piece to add to your wardrobe to maximize your options for wearing it.

Wedges// Target

For more information or to sign up, go check out Raise.com. I don’t get anything if you do or don’t. I’m just a bearer of the good news. And yes, there is purple in my hair.

xo

Outfit // Watercolor Peplum

Jeans Jacket: Thrifted

Shoes: Target (from forever ago)

Pants: Target

Top: TJ Maxx

One of my 500,000 (mild exaggeration) god children graduated from Kindergarten. For some reason, this morning, Jason and I were on serious Jamaican people time. Fortunately, we got there while he was still sitting with his classmates so I could get a photo of him. He was so proud of himself, sitting up there with his piercing blue eyes that was intensified by his blue shirt, holding his diploma. It wouldn’t have been E if he wasn’t wearing a tie with skulls and cross bones.

Seeing E at his graduation made me reminisce a bit. I remembered the age of simple delights like cookies, playing on the playground, loving all of your teachers (I mean, what kindergartener didn’t?), and falling asleep in the car and having your mom carry you in the house. Ah, those were simpler times.

The first time I saw this top, it was actually from a distance.  I thought it was a floral print, but when I got up close, I realized it was more like watercolor. I also really love the pleating on the bottom portion of the top because it adds a bit more structure to it.