Dumb Blonde

2012 was not a great year for me.  I made a lot of stupid mistakes in 2012.  A lot of dumb mistakes.  I put myself through a lot of needless, unnecessary heartache just by making dumb mistakes.  I made some bad decisions.  I fell in love.  But I tried to make something fit that did not fit.  And I ignored the cardinal rule: DO NOT TRUST YOUR HEART.  That was the #1 dumbest mistake I made in 2012.  Let me explain.... 

When facing big decisions, oftentimes the mind and the heart are at odds.  The mind tells you to go one way, while the heart tells you the complete opposite.  When you are at a crossroads, which one do you listen to?  Many times, the mind - using logic and reason - gives you the right answer.  The correct answer.  The best answer.  But because we are human, that's not the answer that we're looking for.  That's not what we want to hear.  We don't want what is good for us, we want what feels good to us.  The heart wants what it wants, right?  A deeply flawed statement that should never be touted as gospel.  I shant preach to you, but there is a reason that Biblically we are warned "the heart is treacherous and is desperate - who can know it?" (Jere. 17:9) 

The definition of treacherous?  "Guilty of or involving betrayal or deceit, marked by hidden danger".  How can the heart betray you?  By "wanting what it wants."   Your heart can fool you into believing that the object of your affection is good for you, when in reality it is anything but.  In the beginning, it all looks good (hidden danger) and everything is lovely and great. But eventually, those warning signs go off and the danger alarms start blaring louder and louder...  and you can choose to listen or ignore.  But really - would you "follow" a person that you knew was desperate or treacherous?  That you knew was deceitful or would end up betraying you?  A person who is desperate is reckless and will do a.n.y.t.h.i.n.g. to get what they want.  A person who is deceitful is a l.i.a.r.  If you knew that about a person, would you still "follow" them?  (Is anyone else picturing Samuel L. Jackson as the filthy crack addict desperately trying to score his next fix in the movie "Jungle Fever"?  Just me?  Okay....)

Honestly, sometimes following your heart yields disasterous results.  Fortunately for me, I didn't go too far so the results were not quite as bad as they could have been.  But as mentioned, I did put myself through needless and unnecessary pain and heartache.  And a heart that is finding it hard to let go.

I'm trying something new in 2013.  2013 is all about the brainpower.  Sure, we all make human dumb decisions from time to time, but I refuse to let an entire year be marked by one.  I am not a dumb person.  So really then, I guess I'm not trying "something new" in 2013.  I'm just going back to my roots.

KAT VON D - YOU ROCK!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Ok, let me explain the 75 exclamation points.  Kat Von D, the lovely tattoo freak artist who notoriously slept with Sandra Bullock's husband, YOU SKANK, is a genius!  And I'm not one to go throwing the G word around lightly, I might add.  Ms. Von D has found a way to invent attach her name to a brilliant foundation that seems more like...the Un-foundation.  Her Lock-It Tattoo foundation is genius.  As in...GENIUS.  Amazing.  Brilliant.  I want to die wearing it.  Seriously, I mean, none of that embalming stuff - gimmee the Kat Von D Lock-it Tattoo stuff and I'll be good.  (Though technically,....not.)

Anyway, I should explain that I am not a foundation person at all.  Though I clearly  (as in...clearly) need the coverage, I hate the way foundation feels on my face.  Like my skin can't breathe or something.  I always opt out and go with concealer and powder instead, though I always regret the decision in pictures later.  But I was going out of town over the weekend for a special event, and I wanted to look more polished.  Because I had seen and read great things about this foundation, I stopped by Sephora and picked up a sample.  The first thing I noticed upon using it the first day of my event was the texture.  I could barely get it of the tiny tiny plastic sample bottle I was given.  After finally coaxing it out with gentle words ("please please, you gorgeous foundation, come outta there.  I have to be at this event in twenty minutes? Please?  You can do it.  I'll be your best friend...."), I opted to use my fingers to apply it.  Fingers because the tiny amount that did come out was not enough to apply with a brush or sponge ("you promised you'd come out of the bottle - you slut - is this the best you could do?").  Anyway, turns out you only need the tiniest amount ("there there. I'm sorry...") because this stuff means business.  It covered so well I decided against using concealer, though I slightly regretted that later in pictures.  Not only did this foundation not feel heavy or look cakey, it wore all day long.  I mean, I didn't have to touch up or use powder in the 10+ hours I was wearing it.

  Foundation worn, in sunlight, at 9AM. (You can see why I regretted not using concealer under the eyes, eh?)

 

And back at the hotel....foundation is STILL in place around 7:00 later that evening.  I literally did not have to touch up or apply powder in all that time.  It felt like my own skin so much I even forgot I had it on.  Unfortunately, as you can see, the HAIR didn't hold up quite as well...I ask that you please forgive the bad bangs (self-mutilation) and fried texture....

So in conclusion, ladies, I will say this: RUN...DO NOT WALK...to Sephora and either pick up a sample or just shell out that $34 for a bottle, as I will be doing in precisely 1 hour.  Again, tipping the hat to you, Ms. Von D - YOU ROCK, chica!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

757's Best Kept Secret

ATTENTION LADIES IN THE 757.....

Ok, I showed you pics of my hair in it's natural state.  I showed you pics of my hair with my favorite products in it.  Now let me introduce you to my other 'hair secret', previously referenced as "dream stylist extraordinaire": HADNEY ALEXANDER.

 Check the shoes, yo!

Hadney, aka The Haitian Hair Artist Extraordinaire is The Bomb Dot Com.  Truthfully, this girl is the TRUTH.  You can look @ her own hair and see that she is not playing around - she means business.  Look @ this chick's hair:



GOR-GEOUS.  No weave, no relaxer, just one seriously fly blowout!!!  I should mention that this Haitian Hair Artist Extraordinaire has done my hair since waaay back in the day, when she was only about 16 (and you know I'm still "forever 21" so you do the math) and braiding my hair in her mama's kitchen.  And ladies - WE ALL KNOW ABOUT THOSE KITCHEN BEAUTICIANS, don't we?  The one's who've been doing hair since they came out of the crib - they make the best stylists, yo!  When I say that Hadney is The Truth, I mean...The Truth.  As in Paul Pierce the Truth (Boston Celtics reference, if you're green).  If you don't believe me, believe your eyes:

Me at her salon November 2011 - check out the Knatty Dread, mon:



HADNEY, the Haitian Hair Artist Extraordinaire, handed me a glass of wine, and over pleasantly hilarious conversation, fearlessly worked her magic, undeterred by my tougher-than-Nigerian-hair.  A little bit of this, a little bit of that, some extra Haitian spices for good measure (kidding) and I had one seriously fly cut and blowout.  (And all without the stench of burning hair wafting in the air of so many of those Dominican salons.  No diss - I, too, use to frequent them but even MY tougher-than-Nigerian-hair could not take all that heat.)  Take a look at my "seriously fly haircut and blowout":

 Check out that SHINE, yo!  It's not the camera flash - it's those Haitian spices my girl uses. Lol.

Honestly, I cannot say enough good things about Hadney Alexander.  As a hair artist, she is The Truth.  As a person, she is the genuine article.  The little lady with the BIG PERSONALITY.  She has a Kimora Simmons FABULOSITY about her, but without all the "sickening" that is Kimora Simmons.  If you live in the Hampton Roads area, or will be visiting the area, you.simpy.must. check out this Hair Artist Extraordinaire:

Hadney Alexander
Bradcon Int'l Hair Salon
(757) 717-2346
http://hadneyalexander.com/bio.html






 

Show & Prove (Shortest.Post.Ever)

So many pictures, so little words.  Lesgo:




Love the JBCO/Mango Cupuacu combo. Nicely moisturized, nicely defined ringlets.  Even better (and bigger) when hair is further separated.

Product Review with Tamar Braxton

I'm gonna let you in on a big secret: I am lazy.  Or should I say - when it comes to my hair, I am lazy.  Yes, when I first went natural, I too, was a product junkie, like every other natural out there.  And because I am a hoarder attach sentimental value to things, I still have quite a few of these products under the bathroom sink, collecting dust.  smh.  I've since streamlined my routine because I realized I simply didn't have the time, or money, to use seventeen different products on my head...at one time.  So I figured out what works best for my hair and that is what I stick to.  Shampoo & conditioner aside, today I use 2 products to style my hair:

 Tropic Isle Jamaican Black Castor Oil  & SoftSheen-Carson Roots of Nature Mango Oil & Cupuacu Butter Whip Coil Cream

Jamaican Black Castor Oil, or JBCO as we in the natural hair community affectionally like to call it, is an awesome product. I'd been using regular castor in my hair (and on eyelashes) for years before I'd heard of JBCO.  Castor oil is used for a multitude of things, but it is known to be a tried and true hair thickener and moisturizer.  I can personally attest to that.  My already thick hair has grown ever bigger thicker, and because I rub a little bit on my eyelashes nightly, I often get asked if I'm wearing false eyelashes.  Or more specifically - "what kind of mascara are you wearing? How many coats of mascara are you wearing?"  People - believe me when I say I'm lazy low maintenance.  I simply can't be bothered with more than 1 coat of mascara.  Castor oil just thickens and grows my lashes as well.  No extra "coating" needed.  This Tropic Isle JBCO is (in Tamar Braxton's voice) "the bomb dot comb. And she don't use nothing in her hair if it don't work...." Sidebar: How crazy does Tamar sound speaking in third person? Hil-ar-ious.  And...sad.)

5 out of 5 stars

Now the Mango & Cupuacu....see, too lazy to finish out the full product name....is also a great product.  I purchased it because of seeing the cupuacu, which I know to be extremely moisurizing, having used it on my hair before.  When I first went natural, I purchased straight cupuacu butter directly from  Brazil and believe me when I say that it is some good stuff.  However, this Roots of Nature product (contains cupuacu but is not straight cupuacu butter), used in conjunction with the JBCO (that's how I roll) is cheaper and just as effective.  No passport needed.  I've seen mixed online reviews of this product, but I can only give you my review on what works for my hair.  And she thinks this stuff is the bomb dot com.  Her My hair thinks this stuff is the bomb dot com.  After lightly oiling my scalp w/ the JBCO, I take a little dab of the Mango Cupuaco butter, add a  dab of the JBCO, apply it sectionally to my hair, and commence to twisting.  The moisturization (is that a word? somewhere my "grammar nazi" mother is grimacing in all her grammar-snobbery glory) and definition is awesome. 

I would give this 5 out of 5 stars, but because I've never actually used it alone without the JBCO, I'm going to give it:

4 out of 5 stars

http://tropicisleliving.com/

http://www.walmart.com/ip/Softsheen-Carson-Roots-of-Nature-Mango-Oil-Cupuacu-Butter-Whip-Coil-Cream-6.1-oz/20742663   (because who doesn't shop Wal-Mizzle?)

Stay tuned for Show & Prove pics!