May 30th, 2009 by Apjonabudget
Eco Styler Krystal Gel
Hey guys, I have been trying to tighten up my hair budget here lately, things got a little out of hand for me in April, so I took the advice of one my favorite youtubers and got my hands on some Eco Styler Krystal gel. The big one is generally between $4 and $5 at Beauty Supply Stores and the small one is generally $1.99. Did I mention its alcohol free! The drying that alcohol causes is what generally gives gels a bad wrap and attributes to breakage. No alcohol also means it doesnt have that rock hard feeling that I remember from high school when I had to slick down my short at the top long in the back style in between hair appointments, ah the memories! I have found it does have a stiffer hold if I don’t put in a leave-in conditioner first, but not in a bad way. This stuff is a little heavier than my regular gel so it’s a godsend for my edges. I can refresh yesterday’s puff or bun in like a minute; scarf optional! I dont even want to tell you about the time I added a Jamaican Mango and Lime wax with the gel…. the edge nappies were powerless! I even found the small jar at BJ’s for a $1.49 which is a great way to test it out and see if it’s a keeper. I am definately sold for sure. I believe i’ll use this as my base for a cheapie alternative to the expensive curly puddings out there. Once I’ve got the formula together i’ll post my results. Later! ETA: Sally’s sent me another coupon
$5 off orders of $25 or more at SallyBeauty.com. Use code 555202 (expires 8/31/09)This way if you wanted some stuff from Sally’s, you can try the gel for free!
May 24th, 2009 by Apjonabudget
This just in, I got an email from Sabino telling of a 50% off sale of their Sabino Moisture Block. This offer is good until 7/1/09 for one order – up to three bottles. If you haven’t tried this yet you should, I originally got a free sample before ordering so I would suggest that to try it out before purchasing. I wanted to get the word out soon, especially for those in that only buy new stuff on holidays challenge, but I will be reviewing in a few days. Here is what the email said:
Sabino Hair Solutions has a new forum on our website and a special offer for you. Sign up on our forum http://www.sabinohair.com/phpBB/ and post a thread. Tell about your experiences with Moisture Block, things that you have found that work for you or you can ask a question about your hair. Please refrain from derogatory statements, obscene comments or any information that has nothing to do about hair. Please do not use the forum for advertising or promotional purposes.
Once you have posted your thread we will send you a coupon for 50% off on up to three bottles of Moisture Block.
May 20th, 2009 by Apjonabudget
I’m a PJ no doubt, but I rarely pay attention to products for hair that I see on TV. For one, most of the ‘models’ dont have hair anything like mine, and two I like other people to be the guinea pigs first. Of course you know what i’m talking about, you’re reading this blog so you are just waiting for me to spend my money on the something and tell you all about it. Well, you’ve seen the EZ-Combs commercial right? Looks like 500 ways to bedazzle your ponytail right, well sort of. Blame it on youtube with their helpful recommendations I suppose, but once I saw some girlies with textured hair rocking them I wanted to test it out myself. I was cruising the Bed Bath and Beyond store one day and I saw them so I decided to put my 20% off coupon to use, set me back $8. You get two in the pack – I got the black one and a wood looking one. I actually like them for a few styles so far. I think i’ve got an average head of hair so they work cool, but i’d probably be more limited if I had a huge mass of hair like some ladies. In that case I’d head straight to the Hairzings. I’m having photo problems at the moment, but i’m working on it so i’ll probably make an update post soon with some style choices. So far i’ve had a great time spicing up my twistout and 2nd day wash n go looks with these things. When my ends started looking dry the other day, I pulled my hair into what would have been a boring ponytail, but it quickly got upgraded when I tucked those ends in and put the EZ Combs around it. It was a cool little updo, but I believe the girl wearing one in a wedding dress on the commercial is going way too far, but hey you like it I love it! I found a youtube video by the lady that does the KinkyHairBlog so you can check her reviews and style suggestions out as well.
May 13th, 2009 by Apjonabudget
I bet this doesn’t really come as a shock but the next product review on the list is the Kinky Curly Curling Custard (KCCC). I generally use the Kinky Curly
Knot Today as my leave-in after washing and then separate my hair in about six to eight sections. Nothing too fancy, just take a small glob, smooth, and then finger comb for clumping. Everyone will have to get their best technique down, but this works for me and I don’t put too much in or it will take FOREVER AND A DAY to dry. It still takes it’s sweet little time to dry regardless, but I was heavy handed one time and I learned my lesson. I dont know why I was heavy handed in the first place because this stuff is $26 a pop. Sigh… well it does come in a 16oz jar so it will last awhile. If you havent seen it before, its a mostly transparent orangish, glob of goop. I mean its some slippery slime mess, that I secretly loved playing with but was a bit concerned actually putting it in my hair. It worked out really well though and I love the wash n go’s I have gotten with it. Now i’m not sure about other hair types, I’ve done my youtube research and everything, but I dont believe I really got any elongated curls. Oh it looked like that was what was happening at first, but that was basically because my hair wasnt fully dry yet. Once that happened it was back to coffee stirrer size with a few pencil size curls in there for excitement. Its all good though, the moral to the story is it wont give you anything you don’t already have, and that includes looser curls. At least that was the case for my unruly kinky curls, but it looked smoother, defined, and had a little more shine than usual. Combined with my LKT, you couldn’t tell me nothin’, then I forgot and clarified. Oh well, it still looks good on just plain ole me, plus if your hair shrinks up even more overnight like mines, you can just wet it some in the shower and re-activate the pudding. I’ve been able to do this at least three days in a row effectively; i’ve been stepping my cardio game up in the gym and when my hair is wet at night it will retreat back to a twa if I let it, lol. Well that’s my two cents, anyone else try it, what do you think?
May 11th, 2009 by Apjonabudget
Kinky Curly Knot Today
Remember awhile ago I went through alot of drama to get my Kinky Curly on at Whole Foods, well i’m finally giving my two cents on the products. I know, I know, i’m the worst, but okay here it goes. Knot Today is a natural slippery leave-in that I actually really like, but I feel some type of way about the label fading away on me. I try to support black businesses so i’ll let that slide since I like it, but seriously for $14 I could use an upgrade on the packaging. The Knot Today goes on smooth and is very moisturizing to my kinky strands. I originally bought it just for wash n go’s but I find I use all the time even for the unsightly snatch-back look. I dont get alot of build up which is a plus and a little really does go a long way. I know people say that all the time and my naturally dry hair makes a liar out of them, but really it’s true. I haven’t tried it yet, but i’m wondering how it would do for a roller set. It seems to be very good under a styling/holding product for a nice soft hold. I’m not a fan of the crunchy do so this is definately a keeper, I don’t think i’ll have to worry about this one collecting dust in my cabinet. You can find these products at Whole Foods if you have one in your area, Kinky-Curly.com, or Naturallycurly.com. They have a few salons on the official website so check there for any more locations. Try it out, let me know what you think. Ingredients:
Mango fuit extract, slipper elm, marshmallow root, lemongrass, cetyl alcohol, behentrimonium methosulfate, citric acid, phenoxyethanol and natural fragrance
May 7th, 2009 by Apjonabudget
I read in Glamour magazine, March issue I believe, that sleep helps you lose weight. I mean some of these ladies lost 10 – 15 lbs! No change in diet or other habits, just getting at least 7.5 hours of sleep each day. Lord knows I have really been sleep deprived in the last month so I think I’m going to make it my mission to try out the theory. More sleep is also a good way to curb hair loss. I’m sure garlic shampoo or pills still do a good job when stress is not the cause, but good ‘ole free sleep gets it done everytime. Talk about budget friendly. A lot of time when we miss sleep its because of stress, and you know our whole body suffers when you let that take you down. As some of you may already know, when you sleep your body recharges and repairs all the systems in the body. When we miss sleep we get those awful dark circles under our eyes, and our hair can just plain falls out. When your mother told you to get your butt in bed to get your beauty sleep, she really meant it. Your skin and hair flourish with more frequent sleep. Generally most adults need 7-9 hours, but as we all know you can function on less making it easy for a few hours of sleep to become a habit. You produce more leptin, a hormone that regulates hunger, which I found out is the reason why you can loose weight by just sleeping more. I’ve been trying to get at least 7 hours all week and i’ve been doing pretty good. Its suggested that you take a bath or at least a warm shower to loosen you up and get you prepped for some good zzzs. Got some of those calming essential oils that you swore you would be applying to your hair, but they are merely collecting dust, throw them in the tub to pump up that bath and lock in the moisture. Try to go to sleep at the same time each night to get your body on schedule and after awhile you will wake up around the same time each day without an alarm. Sure life happens, but you can do it…. go to bed!
May 2nd, 2009 by Apjonabudget
Well the month of April had alot of ups and downs for me, but hey its May now and hopefully this month will be less eventful. I didnt get to blog as much as I would like, but I did want to let you guys know a little about what was going on. I straightened my hair today, this is the first time since the end of February. It actually grew some, but of course I wish it did more. I am happy with the Viviscal so far, I’ve gained about an inch in the last 6 weeks. I generally get between 1/4 to 1/3 inch a month so its moving things along a little faster! I put some more Liquid Keratin on my hair before blowdrying, so I cant wait to get some of the silkiness back I got the last time. I’ve been drinking water just like I told you guys about and i’m sure its helping my overall health, plus combined with the MSM my face is absolutely glowing. And no i’m not preggars, lol. I made some of that shampoo/conditioner I was telling you about with some Suave (Nexxus humectress knockoff) and peppermint castile soap, it was soo good. You seriously have to try it if you havent already. The castile soap was $3 so not a budget breaker and if you dont have a cheapie conditioner you can get one for $2 or less. I also put some in my soap dispenser in the bathroom and its nice. A little thinner than my Softsoap, but i’ve been really going through handsoap since the outbreak of this H1N1, spine flu whatever you want to call it. I just find myself going and washing my hands almost everytime I pass the bathroom. I generally don’t get too worked up about these sorts of things, but you can never be too careful. Hope all is well with you guys.
