Spring Hair Recipes- For Natural, Curly, Kinky, Relaxed and Transitioning Hair

Okay I talked about my Spring hair routine previously (Spring And Natural Hair-Time To Get Your Hair Healthy, Manageable, And Beautiful) and now here are the recipes that go with them.  It is super easy. Pics of the ingredients are below.

Oh and Coconut oil, too.

So those are the ingredients I am using to make my hair look great for summer.  It is my hair diet.

Shampoo Recipe:

2.5 Oz of Coconut Milk

3 oz Aloe Vera Gel

Mix it together (no lumps) and that's it. I of course will be making a larger batch.  

ph of hair is 4.5-5.5

ph of this shampoo is 4.5 allowing the hairs cuticles to close properly and you hair to shine.  This is great to control frizz, strengthen damaged hair (relaxers and heat) and stop shrinkage of every type of curly hair.

Coconut Milk and Lime Hair Treatment:

There are simpler recipes for this treatment and originally it was just coconut milk and lime and sometimes sunflower oil but I like adding things I think my hair needs so...

Big Batch

Coconut Milk or Coconut Cream (I use the cream and milk) 5-6 cans

2.5-3 cups of Lime and Lemon juice.  

I squeeze both my limes and lemons and strain to remove pulp.

I use more limes than lemons.  In fact of the 3 cups there is only the juice of 2

lemons total combined with the limes.

I add Jojoba oil and coconut oil for a total of about 1/4 cup of oil.

Cornstarch at least 5 Tablespoons 

Cornstarch is not just a thickener it also helps give you hair shine so flour won't do.

1. I blend all the ingredients together and cook over very low heat to thicken.  (20 min)

2. I place the mixture in a container and place in the refrigerator over night or at least 4 hours

3. I put mixture through my entire head of hair, massage my scalp for at least 3 min and then place a 

plastic cap on my head.  Leave it on for 1-2 hours.

4. I then rinse my hair and then co-wash with Wen or Herbal Essence Conditioning Shampoo

Click here if you want the original recipe

Spring And Natural Hair-Time To Get Your Hair Healthy, Manageable, And Beautiful

Okay so we are all worried about swimsuit season and summer fashion.  Many of us are on a diet and working out.  Many of us are failing at diets and our workouts, lol.  We can't just concentrate on our body people.  Remember your hair is your crowning glory.  Frankly it doesn't matter what size you are or how your hair looks but your hair is something you can improve and not suffer in the process. (I'm on a diet right now and I am suffering.  This sucks but working on my hair is fun.) What makes beautiful hair beautiful? For me beautiful hair is healthy, soft, has a personality, and enhances everything beautiful about your face.  I know if I take care of my hair this Spring I will have beautiful hair this summer.  My hair goals are as follows:

1. Cut down on the frizz
2. Cut down on the shrinkage
3. Stop shedding and breakage
4. Healthy in looks and feel (soft and thick)
5. Shiny

You know there is only one major thing I have to do besides eat right to get the above results.  Keep my strands hydrated!!!! I can't slack off.  I must be diligent.  First of all I am changing my routine.  I am not going to do the caramel treatment this spring.  Don't get me wrong I love this treatment but I want to do something a little less labor intensive.  On the same day years ago that I found the caramel treatment I also found (on the same site) a coconut milk & lime treatment.  I chose the caramel treatment because the coconut milk lime treatment was a relaxer.  I don't want to relax my curls I want to hydrate them so I never looked at that recipe again until last week.  I know that the more hydrated my curls are the looser they are that's why I love Kinky-Curly products.  My mind started thinking people put lemon and lime in their hair all the time.   Lime isn't a relaxer.  Coconut milk provides protein and adds softness to hair but it is not a relaxer! Oh snap said the blind woman who couldn't get pass that word relaxer! The coconut milk & lime treatment is not a relaxer!!! It is a serious hair hydrator.

Okay so I made up a batch for every woman in my family.  Tested on my mom's 2c-3a combination hair first.  She never takes care of it so it is always dry.  I worked it through her hair and her hair was absorbing it all in and loving it.  She left it on for an hour, washed it out and bam! Her hair looked healthy, shiny, and shrinkage was cut by about 25%.  Oh and frizz was like way down.  Did it relax her hair? No! Her curls or waves are still there.  So, coconut milk & lime is a super conditioning protein treatment.  I next tested the treatment on myself and since my hair is a 3b-3c-4a combo I thought I needed to leave it in my hair longer.  Problem is I have healthy but not very hydrated hair.  I left it in for 3.5 hours.  It did not relax my hair.  It made my hair soft and less frizzy but I feel like I got too much protein.  I had to really use a lot of conditioner to fix that over protein feeling.  Too much protein on healthy hair can make it brittle.  My hair wasn't brittle but I could just tell I left the treatment in too long.  Bottom line this is not a relaxer.  It is the hydration that loosens the curls and stops shrinkage.

My spring routine will be as follows:

1. Coconut Milk Lime Treatment (click to get my version) Will do once a week
2. Leave-in, Oil, Cream method for styling (I have not chosen which products I will use but you can find more info by clicking on the link or going to my Pinterest page Long Curly Hair Inspiration.
3.Coconut Milk and Aloe "Shampoo"

Winter Hair And Crisco-What I Did For My Natural Hair This Winter

Okay so winter is the hardest on natural hair. It makes your hair dry.  Air drying becomes a major problem, health hazard and COLD freezing freaking cold!  I found that the following products made my hair hydrated, less frizzy and it gave me fewer wash days.  Now the Kinky-Curly makes my hair perfect every time but I save those products for the days I need to look my best.  I needed to find a cheaper way to look good on regular days.  I needed to find a way to make my wash and go last longer than one day.  Please note: I only air dry my hair so 30 degree temps are extremely cold for me.  I needed something to seal the moisture in my hair for a few days.  Crisco, yes I said it, crisco did the trick.  Not only did it seal in the moisture from the two conditioners I put in my hair but it cut down on tangles.  In fact many people use crisco to detangle their hair.  I have read some people online complaining about build up from crisco but I never had that problem.

Here was my routine:
1. Wet hair completely down
2. Wash Hair with Herbal Essence Cleansing Conditioner (Co-Washing)
3. Rinse
4. Condition with Pantene Repair & Protect
5. Wash the rest of my body and after maybe slightly rinse out conditioner.  I leave some of this product in my hair.
6. Apply Pantene Curl Perfection Conditioner and I leave it in; only adding a little water to work it through if needed.
7. Take a dab or two of crisco, melt it with your hands body heat and distribute through your hair.  This seals in moisture and keeps the frizz down.  My hair also felt silky to the touch.

I am writing this info down because by next winter I may forget what I learned or I may have a completely new routine.  The crisco worked better for my hair than coconut oil.  I think because coconut oil gets hard in cold weather and the crisco melted into my hair strands smoother.  This is what worked for me.  You need to find out what works for your hair in winter.

So my winter hair products are:

Crisco
Herbal Essence Naked Cleansing Conditioner
Pantene Repair & Protect Conditioner
Pantene Curl Perfection Conditioner
Kinky-Curly Knot Today and Curling Custard
I also did Caramel Treatment