Thursday, June 18, 2015

Do guys care for their beards?

The subject matter is a genuine query, because I really want to know.

The whole "lumbersexual" look is really hot right now. Everywhere you look you see men in lush beards, and on a lot of them, yep, it looks HOT. I mean, just look at the fine specimens below. (Fanning myself...)






I have two friends with very lush beards, as in, their beards contain SO MUCH more hair than what is on top of their heads. And it seems like they both are of the opinion that their mojo lies in their beards. Anyhoo, I've never actually asked them myself, but I will. In the meantime, out there in the whole wide world internet, I was wondering if any of y'all know if:


  • guys shampoo and condition their beards like girls take care of their hair?
  • they trim their beards without losing volume and lush the way women trim and dust theirs?
  • they use leave in products or if they're just wild men? 
If there are any gents out there sporting a lush beard, kindly inform us. If there are any ladies out there whose significant other sports a lush beard, drag some answers out of them, lol. 

Anyhoo, that's my curious question for the week. 

Have a good one y'all!!!!

Getting it under control, finally!!!

Hey there y'all

So, as y'all know, I have been struggling with excess breakage and shedding for a few months now, to the point that wash days nearly drove me to tears and which also led to long pauses in between blogging due to feeling despondent. But I had a #washdayexperience last night/this morning that makes me wanna throw confetti! I apologise for the lack of pics, life is a little rushed at the moment, but here's a quick recap.

The Wash Day Experience


Overnight prepoo with OGX Moroccan Argan Oil conditioner. Not a great conditioner in general (for me) but an excellent prepoo. Used it as is straight from the bottle, sectioning my hair and twisting the sections after application to prevent tangles. Still some breakage, especially considering that my hair was sweaty and a bit matted from gyming and that fact that it has been about 3 days since a comb saw my head, but it was less than ever considering the past 6 months.

Shampoo with my Avon Supreme Oils Shampoo, lathering up twice and rinsing properly till my hair felt super clean, but still super soft.

Detangling and instant conditioning with Mane and Tail Deep Moisturising Conditioner. I freaking love this stuff!! So much slip, my fingers just glided through, it MELTS knots away.

Fast DC with ORS HAIRepair Nourishing Conditioner. I love this stuff! The banana scent is heavenly, but my favourite aspect is the slip and how it SINKS into my hair, like absolutely sinks in. I covered my whole head then put on a shower cap to let the DC work its magic for at least 5 min whilst I took a real shower. When I rinsed it off - BUTTER!

I then proceeded to apply my leave ins of Cantu Shea Butter strengthening treatment and MoroccanOil Treatment serum and then rollerset. Considering that I'm doing this before work I then started blowdrying my hair whilst in the rollers on medium heat. Once dry I just blast it with some cool air to close the cuticles and then when I took out the rollers I simply combed my hair into a ponytail and out the door I went.

During the ENTIRE process I lost so little hair that if I actually took the time I would have been able to count them and tell how many are were shed and how many were broken. It has not been like that in I think about a YEAR! Even though the hairloss has reduced slowly but steadily, up and till this morning it has still been a BALL of hair every wash day. I am so freaking happy!!! I have got my balance right, finally! And now I just need to stick to it.

Also, I've learned again that consistency is KEY. For the past couple of wash days my prepoo, shampoo, detangling conditioner and leave in conditioner have all remained the same. The OGX is almost finished, but I don't think it will kill my hair when I switch to another prepoo (which will probably be something drenched with coconut oil, as I know that works fabulously as well) since I think that I will continue doing this overnight prepoo thing - it's awesome!!!

Anyhoo, I am off to Johannesburg, South Africa for the weekend to visit a friend and to go see One Republic live in concert. Anybody else got any travel plans?

Have an awesome Thursday and a great weekend, whenever yours start.

Monday, June 8, 2015

Keep it simple stupid and know what needs to be done

Hey there everybody

So I have a massive week ahead of me due to the fact that I'm back in the office after a week of the flu, so I am just going to give you a quick fast update on my wash day this past weekend and stuff I noticed.

So, I prepoo's with OGX Moroccan Argan Oil conditioner, separating my hair in about 4-6 sections, finger detangling and applying the conditioner and then twisting it up. Covered my hair with a showercap and a head towel and then got my flu ridden body back between the covers and binge watching Spartacus. Now, I must say, that this conditioner does not have the greatest slip and it's not great for me when used as a normal conditioner but my hair LOVES it as a prepoo.



After about an hour and half (aka two episodes of Spartacus) I got to the shower and started actually washing my hair. My hair was buttery soft as I washed out the prepoo. I then shampooed with my trusty Avon Advanced Techniques Supreme Oils shampoo, which is also great. My hair and scalp feels clean without feeling stripped at all. It also lathers like a mofo from just a little bit of product aka value for money. a little goes a long way.




I instant conditioned with one of my London pick-ups (which I am so happy to report, I found a stockist for right here in Windhoek!!!!! and I LOVE this conditioner - Deep Moisturizing Main and Tale conditioner. The first time I used it it was a bit weird because it's this sickly blue colour that one associates with industrial cleansers. But it's magical on knots!! And man! Have I been struggling with single strand knots - they are the bane of my existence! The scent is very light and it melts into my strands, so in shower finger detangling is a dream. This is DEFINITELY going to become a staple!


I then proceeded to deep condition with an old trusted favourite - ORS Replenishing Conditioner. Because I am such a sucker for trying out anything new I have left this oldy but a goody on the back burner. And I really should not have. I really love this DC. I applied it to lightly terry cloth dried hair and then again covered it with the cap and head towel and continued watching Spartacus, also a good 2 episodes worth.


After rinsing I said to myself - Robyn, just because you have a plethora of new products that you want to try and test, DO NOT let this one go! My hair felt SO strong, yet soft. 

I then let my hair air dry a bit whilst getting dressed and what not and then applied my leave-ins of Cantu Shea Butter Leave in and OGX Coconut Milk Serum. 



I then proceeded to roller set and had my hair air dry in the rollers. The Coconut Serum has a slight sticky quality to it, but my hair is soft as silk when dry, so I simply make sure to not use a lot. I have had that bottle for a good 4 months now, it's not even half yet. The Cantu Leave-in is going to last me forever, I swear. I have been using it consistently for about 6-8 washes now and every time I open the jar one would swear that it has never been used. A little truly goes a LONG way.

We had a girl's night planned so I wanted to do something a little different, and since I've been wearing my hair curly for the last few weeks I decided to go straight, ram rod straight. I have this infra-red straightener which imparts such a shine and gloss with a single pass. Because I'm only a few weeks post the straightening sessions went fast AND confirmed to me that my ends are in the best condition in months!!! Trimming really is beneficial people! Unfortunately I don't have a decent pic showing what I did - I sweeped up the left side of my hair and pinned it up so that it LOOKED like I had sheared off the hair on that side and left the right side loose and hanging over my shoulder. I then added a cuff earring to make the look a bit more badass and then off we went!

So stuff I noticed - my hair likes it when I give it a shot of protein every wash day. Not HARD protein every wash day, that would be stupid. But a shot of it nonetheless. I'm getting better with finger detangling and minimizing manipulation. My hair likes being straight but protected. Today I'm wearing a high pony held with a scrunchie (yes, a scrunchie!) my ends out of the way of my scraf and coat collar. The keeping it straight is to help make sure the single strand knots are kept at bay. Also, it's just easier to keep a comb out of my hair when it's straight because then fingers suffice for all things. With curls I tend to want to use a comb to manipulate it in the style I want. Which is not that great, as we all know. But that's also why rollersets are the best - I can get heatless straight hair with my rollersets and a wrap. Also - KISS - keep it simple stupid!

So there ya go! what have you done lately? And what products have you come to love or rediscover? Have a great week everybody!!!