Q-Redew: The Benefits Of Hair Steaming

Hello lovelies!

So I recently got my hands on a Q-Redew thanks to Heidi, the founder of the Q-Redew who was kind enough to send me one to review. 

Wait...what is a Q-Redew? 

It's a life-changer. 

Okay, in all seriousness it really is! It is a handheld hair steamer that is great for all hair types. I'm writing this blog review as a fellow natural girl and I can really vouch for it as a wonderful tool if you have natural hair. 

Why is it so great?

It does exactly what it says it does. Steaming your hair has many benefits. It temporarily lifts up the hair cuticles and allows moisture to actually penetrate the hair follicles which is great for naturally curly hair since it is drier by nature. As a tightly coiled curly girl, it has done wonders for me especially on dry weather days and in the mornings to quickly refresh my wash-n-gos or my other styles. 

It is a very simple device with only one button and no settings. You just push down on the trigger to release the steam from a reservoir that you fill up each time you need more water and release the button when you've had enough steam. It also has some very handy prongs with different lengths on the head of the steamer which help to easily lift, fluff, and separate your hair in order for the steam to reach every part of your hair. It warms up in seconds and only takes a few minutes to steam your entire hair so it is handy if you're on the go or only have a few minutes to get ready in the mornings. It also has helped me detangle my hair if I have an oil in my hair before hand. 

It has a tendency to create a faux-blowout look if you you use it on stretched styles like I have or on your natural texture. It makes my hair appear big and voluminous (you will turn heads). 

Since you're able to open up the hair cuticle, not only is the water from the Q-Redew actually able to moisturize your hair, but you can use this as an advantage for conditioning your hair as well. Pre-steamed hair takes better to hair masques, hot oil treatments, and deep conditioning treatments because the products you add to your hair can actually penetrate rather than just sitting on top of the closed cuticles (which doesn't do much). You'll notice your products seem to work a whole lot better if you steam your hair. 

If you want to see his bad boy in action, here is my video review of it: http://youtu.be/bvc3Wo68Tk4

If you would like to check it out for yourself, here is the website link to the Q-Redew: qredew.com

Leave your comments or questions below :)

-Crizzycruz 

*Disclaimer*: I received this device for free and was not paid to write this review or to tape the video review. All opinions and thoughts are 100% my own and the Q-Redew Company did not tell me to write/say anything about the device :). 

Taliah Waajid World Natural Health & Beauty Expo NYC !

Hey Guys!

Just wanted to drop in and make sure you know about the Taliah Waajid World Natural Health & Beauty Expo NYC ! 

It will be held in New York City on July 19th and July 20th of 2014. 

It is usually held in Atlanta but this year they're taking it to NYC so you know it's going to be dope. You can come learn and exchange information about healthy hair and skin care, healthy living, the latest beauty products and more.

It is going to be toe days PACKED full of activities. 

See what else is happening at the Expo during the weekend…

• FREE on-the-spot hair and beauty make over’s
• FREE Sample hair, health & beauty products
• Live music
• Book Nook
• Da Poetz Corner inspiring, uplifting spoken word artists.
• FREE Health Screenings, natural & holistic products.
• Fun, excitement, beautiful people, uplifting ambiance and more it’s great fun for the whole family!

Here is the link for your tickets and don't forget to use my promo codes for a discount ! 

https://www.eventbrite.com/e/taliah-waajid-world-natural-health-beauty-expo-nyc-tickets-8679435425

CRUZNYC (General Admission Sat/Sun)

                                

 CRUZNYC2 (General Admission 2-Day / Professional 2-Day)

I will see you guys there ! 

-Crizzycruz 

Review: WonderCurl Restoring Hair Treatment

Hey lovelies ! Back with another product review as seen on my YT channel unboxing video here :

http://youtu.be/8hXFMb-auJs

Anyways I'm reviewing the WonderCurl

Restoring Hair Treatment ! I was sent this cute little sample size from the company. 

Let me tell you, even this small size was enough to do wonders ! As it says, it's an intensive deep hair treatment that strengthens, moisturizes, and smooths hair. I found it really easy to use once I watched the convenient video located right underneath the product on the website. 

It's pretty simple.

1.Divide damp hair into sections. 

2. Apply small amounts of the products from ends to roots and smooth through. 

3. Apply plastic cap and sit under heated hooded drier for 20-30 minutes. 

4. Rinse completely and style as usual. 

Now, I don't own a hooded drier so instead I just relied on the heat do my own head being trapped underneath a plastic cap. I did this for about an hour since I wasn't sure how much heat I would need. After that I rinsed it right out and revealed incredibly soft hair ! 

It was great stuff ! My hair was very, very easy to finger detangle at that point and I didn't even need a comb (that's saying something for my thick, crazy hair). It was also a lot bouncier after I washed out the product after the 60 minutes if letting it set in. 

After all of that, I re-sectioned my hair and with a small bit of oil I twisted my hair for a twistout the next day (the Restoring Hair Treatment contains Olive Oil in it already so I didn't need to apply much else). 

Needless to say, the twists were just as moisturized and fluffy as expected after such a juicy deep conditioner ! I definitely recommend this product. 

DISCLAIMER: This product was sent to me for free from WonderCurl but I was not told or paid to say anything about the product therefore my review is 100% my own. 

Product Review: Simply Organic Oils

Hey lovelies !

Just wanted to make a review post on some oils sent to me by Simply Organic oils. They sent me their Extra Virgin Coconut oil, their Jamaican Black Castor Oil, and their Extra Virgin Organic Jojoba Oil. 

First of all, need I remind you guys of the awesome powers a good oil can provide you with ? Their uses are endless. I use the Coconut oil to seal in moisture after wash-and-gos. The Jamaican Black Castor oil is a Godsend in the winter when sealing and protecting the hair is a must. Finally, I loved using the Jojoba oil for the first time as a deep oil treatment once a month (I've heard amazing things about this oil but had never used it until now). 

If you're looking for a great company to get your oils from, I would definitely suggest Simply Organic oils. They have affordable prices (around $10-$11 per bottle) and give you enough oil in each bottle to really last you. They are put in glass bottles that deal in the freshness better than some plastic packaging that you find with other brands. They use quality ingredients and, unlike some falsely advertised brands out there, they actually ARE 100% Organic. 

I used the Jojoba as a deep oil treatment on my hair and it resulted in incredibly soft and moisturized curls. A great plus is that it can also be used on skin. I applied a few drops to my knees and elbows daily for a week and saw the dry, scaly patches I get during the winter completely disappear ! It was great. 

The Jamaican Black Castor Oil is heavy and thick enough to protect my thick hair during this harsh winter weather we had. I loved it! Many people use it to provide hair growth as well. 

Coconut oil has always been a staple of mine but I found that this oil was wonderful for my wash-and-gos. It left my hair shiny and bouncy when I did twistouts as well on damp hair. It's a great moisturizer and can also be used in place of lotion for your skin. 

If you're in need of great oils, head over to Simplyorganicoils.com and grab a bottle or two :). They have great reviews and also ship quickly. They also have some conditioners and shampoos infused with their great oils so check those out too!

Instagram: Crizzycruz
Youtube: Crizzycruz1
Twitter: Crizzycruz1

Disclaimer: These products were sent to me free of charge. However, my review is completely my own and not influenced by the company itself.

Natural Hair Do's and Don'ts: Being a Product Junkie

This is more of a tip than anything else but ladies, especially my newly transitioning ladies, do not believe the hype of product buying ! You do not need to become a product junkie
when going/being natural. It is all too easy to fall prey and victim of the "best cowasher" or the "newest curl definer" when going through this journey.

 A well known myth of the curlygirl natural hair community is that "being natural is expensive
and too much work". This does not have to be the case. The problem is that up until you start going natural, a lot of us (especially women of color) are not used to taking care of our OWN hair. Therefore the sudden transition can seem daunting or appear to be a lot of work. This
is where the whole "product junkie" can emerge.

 You know, that girl who needs to buy every and all new products for hair that will help "ease" the journey. I happen to be the admitted product junkie. I have a huge shelf in my bathroom full of products plus a storage cabinet in my room full of more. I also receive the monthly hair product subscription for natural hair called the CurlBox which provides me with samples and full sized products to test on my hair. Now, I am happy with being a product junkie because one of my favorite things to do is test out new products to let you guys know if they work or not, so I am a whole different story. However, I realize that being natural actually does not require all these "expensive" products and maintenance that people make it out to be.

You don't need much to care for natural hair. Some staples that are good to incorporate in a simple regimen would be oil, MOISTURIZER, conditioner, and shampoo. Most girls say
they already own these four products anyways. The enticement of the natural world is just
very alluring and wanting to try those products that your favorite YouTuber is promoting can
be very exciting. Well, I'm here to tell you that it doesn't have to be that way! 

Like I said, you can get away with doing very little and spending very little. Heck, you can even make your own moisturizing mask from ingredients in your kitchen if you do not want to buy more product or are in a pinch. We tend to take the easy way out though and just buy a bottle of liquid magic for our hair off the shelf.

 I will leave you guys with one last message though: There is no miracle product. There is nothing better that you can do for your hair than actually taking care of it. Products can help but you need to learn and feel for your OWN hair in order to know what she wants. Listen to
her and she will tell you.

YT: Crizzycruz1
Instagram: @crizzycruz

Natural Hair Do's and Don'ts: Over-Conditioning Vs Conditioning

If you have naturally curly hair, you may by now be aware that moisture is key to healthy, happy hair. Deep conditioning is essential in order to add that much needed moisture that our curly tresses crave. Dry and brittle hair may be a sign that you need to increase the number of times that you moisturize on a regular schedule. 

I deep condition every 1-2 weeks with a variety of products. If you want a good homemade conditioner, check out my "Arid Territory" blog post :). 

Mositurizing is key but are you aware of the dangers of OVER-conditioning? Yes, there is such a thing. I believe I was in the first two months of transitioning when this happened to me. I was so overwhelmed with all there was to know and learn about going/being natural that I spent my entire days just browsing YouTube nonstop. One thing every video had in common was moisturizing your hair one way or another. My hair was already dry and brittle from the chemicals and heat so I began to deep condition for hours every 2-3 days. I was loving the new vitality of my hair and the results so I continued with this process and repeated the deep conditioning so often that my hair passed the point between "healthy" to limp. I didn't realize what I was doing because transitioning was something I basically thrust upon myself with no one in my life to learn from (besides YT ofcourse). 

Adding too much moisture can be just as detrimental as not adding enough. You know your hair is too dry if you can tug gently on your hair and have it immediately break off in your finger. You may even see tiny pieces of hair stuck on your clothes or pillow that have just snapped off. This could be the reason that you hair "just can't grow any longer" or "stops growing". Don't be fooled: Your hair is growing, you just aren't retaining length! 

Adding too much moisture can be just as detrimental as not adding enough. My hair began to feel "too soft". Yes I know, hard to believe there is such a thing. It was lifeless and super stretchy. I could pull one strand of relaxed hair to almost twice is length (mind you, it is already straight) and it would stretch and stretch and STRETCH until it would snap off. This is a clear cut sign of over moisturizing. 

Healthy and properly moisturized hair lives between a happy medium of "stretch factor". You should be able to gently pull on a strand and have it stretch (while still feeling strong) before it snaps off. Snapping off too quick or not quick enough is not where you want to be. 

If you are already at the stage where I was at, the first thing you have to do is stop conditioning as often, then you want to do a protein mask to toughen up your hair and add some more strength back into the strands. This is what I had to do and in no time, I reached the happy balance of moisture in my hair. 

Has this ever happened to you? What is your favorite conditioner?Leave it in the comments, I would love to read it!

Next time we will be discussing being a PRODUCT JUNKIE! When is too much...too much ?

YT: crizzycruz1

Instagram: crizzycruz

Natural Hair Do's and Don'ts: Protective Styling !

The beauty of protective/low-manipulation styling is that it is very versatile. You have plenty of options when it comes to this type of styling to keep your locks healthy. 

Low-manipulation and protective styling differ in that the low-manipulation styles still require some type of working with the hair that most likely includes detangling. For example, buns can be a good low manipulation style. With protective styling, you are able to let your hair "rest" sort of speaking.  

When I was transitioning, buns were my absolute favorite go to style. I would usually twist the edge of one side of my head to make the buns less plain. However, I would have to blow out my hair as well in order to achieve this style which was not only time consuming each week, but also damaging to my hair. Now that I am fully natural, I have not used heat of any kind on my hair but it is also much easier to manage because I don't have those pesky straight ends still hanging on and needing to blend them in. Wash and Go's and twist outs have been my main styles but I realized my hair (and my fingers) needed a good break. 

Protective styling is GREAT for this because it protects your strands from over-manipulation and from this harsh winter weather coming up. I recently put in some Marley Twists myself. I plan to leave them in for about 3-4 weeks though it is possible to leave them in for 6-8 even. Any longer, unless done very well, the twists begin to look funky. The process, since I have never attempted these before, took a total of 6 hours and 3&1/3 packs of Marley braiding hair. I payed only $5 per pack at a local beauty supply so this style is very affordable. I didn't want to shell out $150-200 to get them done at a hair salon so I decided to attempt them myself and they look pretty good ! I went for a chunky natural look. I love how versatile they are and I can wear them in some many ways !  

If you don't like the look of Marley twists, you have other options like box braids, Senegalese twists, or even wigs and weaves if done well. The internet is your best friend when deciding what style is best for you. YouTube helped me achieve my Marley twists but there are tons and tons of tutorials out there for the other styles as well if you want to do it yourself. 

Going natural is not easy if you are transitioning but protective styling is a key tool that you can use to mask the two textures between your new growth and your straight ends. 

So remember ! The internet is your best friend. Search styles and tutorials and have fun with it :). 

For more on my Marley twists visit my YouTube video. 

Don't forget to comment bellow with any questions or comments you have for me! Next tip will be on CONDITIONING !