DRINKS ON ME!

Thank you Sarah!

Sunflower oil

 

Image source

Just thought I should do a quick post on sunflower oil after I used it as a pre poo on my last wash day. Growing up I used to eat sunflower seeds like my life depended on it I stopped somewhere along the way but recently picked up my sunflower seed eating habit albeit not as frequently as I did as a child, it sure is a great and healthy snack that keeps your jaws busy.  Sunflower oil is extracted from the seeds of the sunflower and is light in texture; it is rich in vitamins A, D and E and also contains linoleic acid which is its main component. It’s an all purpose oil meaning that it can be used as a hair and beauty oil and also in the kitchen and contains a host of health benefits. Natural sunflower oil contains high amounts of vitamin E which is very good for skin care and I have started using it on my face and body for soft supple skin as well as my hair. When used on hair sunflower oil nourishes hair, is a natural conditioner and helps prevent breakage. It is said to help prevent hair thinning and is effective in the treatment of hair loss and baldness. Read more about the all rounds benefits of sunflower oil for your health, skin and hair HERE…

Pre Birthday Wash

I went back to a conventional wash day for yesterday's wash; if you have been reading my recent wash day posts then you will know that I deep condition on damp hair first then shampoo which is the reverse of what most people’s wash days are like. Yesterday I felt like going back to old habits. I pre pooed with sunflower seed oil from the kitchen this was actually a spur of the moment decision I had gone in to get an orange saw the oil sitting there and was like hmmmm I can actually pre poo with this so I did. After pre pooing I shampooed twice with black silk shampoo I hadn’t washed my hair in almost two weeks out of sheer laziness and lack of motivation and it showed in the brown water that came with the first shampoo rinse. Shampoo done I deep conditioned with body heat while working out for about 30 minutes then rinsed.

For some reason I did not comb my hair through before shampooing like I usually do big mistake! I had knots and tangles everywhere some parts were almost matted the horror! I started detangling with the aid of my conditioner in the shower but got frustrated and gave up because I couldn’t see what I was doing I have never had such a hard time detangling since I started my hair journey. I had to stop detangling and that was the best decision ever because if I had continued I would have lost a lot of hair, so I rinsed the conditioner out and t-shirt dried till damp. I then sprayed on my leave in conditioner and then sat down in front of the mirror to detangle in sections. I finger parted and held the other sections back with hair clips I applied coconut oil to each section it provided great slip for detangling, then proceeded to first finger detangle gently and then when I was satisfied I combed through to make sure there were no more knots left. I did this for my entire head it took a while but I am glad that I was patient and took the time because I ended up losing very little hair in the process. Detangling done I oiled my scalp with my oil blend and then made 6 braids to be worn as a curly braid out the next day. This wash day resulted in a few empties and I am so looking forward to going product shopping!

( Image Source) Cupcakes for everyone!

In other news today just happens to be my birthday:) I have some real lovely friends one sent me a message asking if I had a paypal account and I ask why and she goes like I want to make a deposit for your birthday and I am like you don’t have to and she insists seeing as we don’t currently live in the same country that was her birthday present to me so I could get myself anything I wanted with the money totally awesome and unexpected!!! FYI according to the Ethiopian calendar we are in the year 2007 and that is the calendar I am going by:)

braidout

 

Fitness Friday: Quick update

I sorta fell off the fitness wagon for about two weeks I did some walking but I wasn’t doing my regular workouts like I should. I was still eating healthy I may have indulged in some junk food a few times but it was nothing overboard and was always in very low quantities. So on Wednesday feeling quite motivated I decided to get back on the fitness train did some hip hop abs and 30 squats. My thighs were killing me the next day, I don’t plan to stop working out for this long again not worth the body ache I am experiencing if anything daily squats even if it’s just ten will keep me going if I don’t feel like doing a full work out. Anyway that’s my quick fitness Friday update now that I am fully back to the grind.

Tried and True: Good Old Faithful

I started my wash day by spraying water mixed with a little white vinegar on my hair to get it damp

Deep conditioned with ORS Hair Mayonnaise a fav and definitely an old faithful for about 30 minutes

Rinsed out the deep conditioner and shampooed twice using TRESemme Naturals Shampoo

Rinsed that out and detangled with Enliven Coconut and Vanilla conditioner and t-shirt dried till damp and then blow dried to stretch my new growth. I am way overdue for a touch up these roots ain't smiling!

Applied my leave in conditioner, oiled my scalp with my oil blend, moisturized using ORS Carrot oil and then braided my hair up in 3 tucked in braids to be unravelled and either bunned or worn as a braid out and called it a day. 

By the way I changed my blog name to http://lydzcrowningglory.blogspot.com/ so if I am listed on your blog roll please change the URL accordingly since the old URL is no longer working.

Uncharted Territory: Rice Water Rinse

Yes you read right! It’s funny how you type one thing on the search engine and end up with something completely unrelated…that’s how I ended up on rice water hair rinses using the water from boiling rice or washing rice.  The women of China and Japan have been washing their hair with rice water from time immemorial; the Yao women of China are famed for their long locks averaging at 6 feet in length which they wash religiously with fermented rice water. Rice water is full of vitamins and improves hair elasticity, leaves it soft, shiny and silky, the proteins in rice help strengthen the hair shaft.  Rice water is also said to be beneficial as a face rinse as it improves skin elasticity, renews and nourishes the skin.

According to this website the Yao women traditionally prepared their fermented rice by putting rice rinsing water into a pot together with camellia seeds and shaddock peel (pomelo) for about two weeks and leaving it to ferment. After fermentation they boil the water and then let it cool and use that to rinse their hair. They leave the mixture on their hair for about 20 minutes and then rinse with mountain spring water. The ingredients in this recipe contain vitamins B and C and camellia oil from the camellia seeds. The women say that this rinse keeps their hair dark and lovely way into old age and I highly suspect that the dark colour is from the oil of the camellia seeds.  I came across an article which claims that camellia oil reverses gray hair if this is scientifically true then I believe the dark hair is more from the camellia oil than the rice water alone. A bit like how black tea rinses done repeatedly darkens hair over time.

 

Yao women washing their hair; they only cut their hair once in their lifetime and the hair is usually wrapped in a front style bun (protective style) Image source

While doing my research online on rice water rinses I came across various methods that modern women have adopted to make the rinse. Some included collecting the second and third rinse water and using it as it is (the first water usually has impurities so discard that), others add an extra cup of water to boiling rice and drain it out once the rice has started boiling. I made my rice water two ways I collected a cup of the third rinsing water and also added an extra cup of water to my boiling rice and drained it out five minutes into boiling. I left both waters out on the kitchen counter covered for a day to ferment. The next day I boiled the rice water to stop the fermentation process, let it cool and used that as a rinse. The rinsing water had actually started to develop a not so fresh but bearable smell which I believe was the beginning of fermentation the water collected from boiling rice had no smell at all.

·         I deep conditioned on damp hair with body heat while working out for 30 minutes using my Natural Classic Henna Wax Conditioning Treatment.

·         Since it was co wash day I simply rinsed out the conditioner and once fully rinsed I rinsed with the rice water let it sit for about five minutes and then rinsed with water.

·         Verdict: my hair was soft all right but I attribute that to the deep conditioner but it felt real silky on rinsing out the rice water like silky extension hair silky. But once fully dried it did not feel as silky maybe it’s my hair texture, maybe it’s because I only had one ingredient – rice- maybe because I only fermented my water for a day as opposed to two weeks, maybe it's because I only left it in my hair for five minutes as opposed to 20 who knows.

 

My boiled rice water

Would I do this again? Probably yes if I have the patience to do a two week fermentation using the other two ingredients (pomelo and camellia). However other ways I will be using fresh rice water obtained by rinsing is on my face and also to mix my henna and see if I get better results in the long term. Because KLP asked in my last wash day post, I rarely have photos of my just washed styled hair because I currently do my hair at night, it’s more convenient at the moment so all I do after it’s dried, moisturized and sealed is to braid two jumbo braids in readiness for a bun the next day. But here is a file photo for you if it's not in a bun or a braid out you will most likely find my hair down and straight:)

This was taken in March this year.

Would you try a rice water rinse?

Edited to add: I just realized that there is a perfect alternative if the fermentation process seems too long - Rice Vinegar! Just use like you would normally use white vinegar or Apple Cider Vinegar as a rinse; I wonder why it hadn’t crossed my mind before; well better late than never:)

Happy birthday in advance to all September babies me included!!!