Twist Out on Natural Hair

Just like most of you I have seen hundreds of tutorials and blog posts about twist outs on natural hair.  I wanted to show you how I perfected my own Twist out on my natural hair. I have 4b/4c hair with low porosity so doing my twist outs on wet hair is best. The below twist out I did is on dry natural hair and I have actually been love the results more. My twist outs last longer and first day hair i don't have much shrinkage. Check out the few steps below. 

Step 1: Add your favorite hair oil while taking out your twists. Right now I am loving this Argan oil by Orlando Pita. This oil smells delicious!

Step 2: Take down you twist and separate. As you can see where I am pointing I have already started to separate the curls for a fuller look. Separating your hair with the oil on your finger tips helps control frizz. 

Step 3: Take your pick and fluff. I place the pick in my hair and only comb through the roots not all the way through because I don't want to disturb the curl pattern. 

Step 4: Take a selfie and enjoy your curly fro! 

If you want more step by step looks from me leave a comment below on what styles you would like to see. Thank you for reading. 

Natural hair and the Gym??

Hello ladies! I hope you all had an amazing Thanksgiving.

I have been receiving messages about what I do with my hair when I work out. As of lately I have been wearing my wigs (as shown in the picture below). It is just so much more easier for me and my hair. When I get home I rinse my hair with water and spray a light leave in conditioner to keep it moisturized.

When I am not wearing my wigs and just wearing my natural hair I put my hair in a high puff. I notice when I work out I have to wash my hair every 3 to 4 days because my scalp and hair gets very dry and itchy. My work out routine usually consist of 30 min cardio and weight lifting 4 days a week.  Washing my hair as often as I do is a must especially in the winter time. When I am not working out I let my hair free and just let it breathe.

Leave a comment below and let me know what you do to your hair when your working out?

My Natural Hair Nighttime Routine

Hey Naturalists! Many of you have asked me to do a post about my nighttime routine. Well here you go!

I have been doing this routine for years and it never disappoints me. This routine keeps my hair moisturized, my curls bouncy and the definition is still on point! 

These are the exact steps I use to get ready for bed.

Step 1:

Water is the #1 item to keep our naturally dry hair moisturized. I do a light spray all over my hair and let it sit on my hair for about 2 mins before proceeding on to the next step.

Step 2:

My hair LOVES oil. Lately I have been using the Sunflower Mega Care Argan oil. I take a quarter size amount rub it in my hands and rub it through out my hair, concentrating on the ends. 

Step 3:

I take a thin head band gather all my hair and place all of my curls on time of my head. This keeps my curls intact and left undisturbed while I sleep. Most call this the pineapple method.

Step 4:

Last step of the night I take my satin scarf. (Yes ladies you should be sleeping with a satin scarf on you head every night. Cotton pillow cases are our enemies! If you do not like scarfs get a satin pillow case instead.) I wrap the scarf around my head having my curls dangling out at the top. The scarf protects all of my hair around the perimeter of my head and the top part of my curls. 

Step 5:

In the morning I remove my scarf and headband and shake shake shake! Letting my curls free and place them exactly were I want them to be. My hair is nice and moisturized and my curls are elongated due the pineapple method. 

I hope you enjoyed this post. If you have anymore questions about my night time routine or my natural hair leave a comment below. Until next time!! 

The Tension Method on Natural Hair

Picture this, you want to blow out your hair but you don't want to put a lot of direct heat on your hair. What do you do?? Well let me tell you something I have recently discovered that protects and stretches my hair. Most of you probably of have heard of the tension method. How this method works is you hold on to the end of your hair and point the blow dryer down the shaft of your hair. I try not to go back and fourth with the blow dryer because it makes your hair very frizzy. I love this method because It gives me the stretch that I need for a blow out plus the protection of my strains. How do you stretch your hair?? If you have heatless method please let me know I would love to try them! Until next time!!

Blowdryer: Conair

Heat Protectant: Olive Oil lotion

Girl you better trim those ends!

Lets talk about hair trimming. Who actually likes to get there hair trimmed? I bet about 80% of you don't because you want to hold on to that length. Well lets be real, you're holding on to your length is actually stunting your hair growth. Your hair grows about an inch every four months. A professional stylist would say you need to trim your hair every four months when that inch grows in. Personally, I feel that everyone hair grows differently. So I trim my hair every time I feel the need to. There is not a specific amount I get trimmed its just whatever I need to be cut. Another thing, I get my hair trimmed by someone else. I use to trim my own ends but, when I would straighten my hair it was very uneven. Letting a professional trim your ends especially in the natural state would be more beneficial for you and your hair. So it can continue to grown evenly. Don't hold on to those raggedy because your hair is not going to be happy and will just break off. How often do you trim your ends? Are you a victim of holding on to that length? Comment below and let me know! Until next time!

XOXO Liva!!

Winter Time and Natural Hair!

Happy New Year everyone!!! I hope you had a safe and healthy new year!! I'm coming to you today with a new blog post about this weather and our hair! If you live in America and is on the east coast then you know it is FREEZING cold outside! It is about 6 degrees where I live and it is not getting any warmer. A lot of people on my social media networks have been asking me what do I do with my hair in the winter time. In the winter our hair is very dry. Now I know some of you are thinking, "wait Olivia didn't you write a post about our natural hair always being dry?" Yes, that is very true but in the winter months our hair is extra dry and coarse due to the cold and dry air. As naturals in these winter months we need to take extra care of our hair because it is more prone to break off. The way I prevent that from happening is doing protein treatments. My favorite and only protein treatment I use is the Aphogee Two-Step Protein Treatment. I only use this treatment every six to eight weeks, you never want to over do it with protein because to much protein can make your hair feel like grass. Ever heard of "too much of a good thing isn't always good?" that is the exact case when it comes down to protein treatments. Also I deep condition once a week instead of twice a month. When I say deep condition I really mean deep condition as in leave it in over night. I need my hair to retain as much moisture as possible because as soon as I step outside that cold air is going to attack it. Another way I retain moisture is putting my silk scarf on under my hat. That fabric in the hats draw moisture out of your hair so putting your scarf on under it helps protect your hair. I have been doing this system for years and it continues to work for me! What do you do to your hair in these winter months?? Please leave a comment below and if you aren't already join this site on Google+ and subscribe via Bloglovin!

XOXO LIVA<3

DIY: Spa Day!

Hello ladies!! Yesterday was my day off and I decided to do something a little different. I decided to have a spa day! Now I'm not talking about going to the spa and paying all that money, I'm talking a spa day right at home. Yes ladies the Chiclikeu DIY: Spa Day is in full effect. Let me take you through the process...

First I started off with a nice shower. I washed with the Japanese Cherry Blossom body wash from Bath and Body works. I love this body wash it smells just like the perfume and it has your body filling very soft. Then I used the Milk n Honey body scrub. It is always great to use a body scrub once in a while to take off dead and old skin. This body scrub is EVERYTHING I use it once a month and every time I use it makes my skin feel even softer. 

The next thing I did is shave my legs and under arms. I know that it is winter but I still like to shave probably not as often as I do in the summer but ladies we still need to keep it nice and trim! I have been using this EOS shaving cream and honey let me tell you this has been the best one I have used thus far. I have been using this shaving cream the last 4 months and it keeps my skin moisturized while shaving and I don't get razor bumps. That is always a plus in book!

Next it was time for hair. I washed and conditioned with the Trader Joe's Tea Tree Tingler. I have been using this set of shampoo and conditioner for the last 2 years and I don't plan on changing now.

I decided to follow up with a deep condition using the Argan Oil of Morocco Intense Moisturizing Treatment. This was my first time using it and I have heard some great reviews on it. I thought it was a pretty good product. (if you want a full review just let me know in the comments below) I left it in for 2 hours and washed it right out. 

While I was deep conditioning I washed my face with the BIORE Balancing Cleanser. This makes my skin feel really clean and removed dirt located in my pore's. Then I used the Queen Helene Avocado and GrapeFruit Masque. I have been using this forever and I love it plus my skin loves it. If you are looking for a good masque I'm telling you this is a great one. 

After washing out the Argan Oil of Morocco, I added some Olive Oil and Cantu Shea butter Leave-In conditioner into my hair and but it into 4 braids. The next day on stretched dry hair I added the Cantu Shea butter Coconut Curling cream into my hair and added perm rods. 

I left this in and sat underneath the dryer to make sure it was fully dry. I sat under the dryer for about a Hour and a half.

Here is out the curls came out and I really love them!! I have gotten so many compliments on my hair! It feels so good to finally get away from Twist out and braid outs. Im going to definitely do this again. 

Well I hope you loved my DIY: Spa Day!! If you have your own spa day please take a picture and follow me on Instagram! I would love to see your spa day! @FlygurlO92 #chiclikeu

Until Next time XOXO Liva<3

Mini Twist In... Mini Twist Out!

Hello everyone... I hope you all had a wonderful Thanksgiving! Im here with a Natural hair topic that can help you stretch the style.  I wanted to style my hair in mini twist, small mini twist that can last a while. I kept them in about 3 weeks (once it started looking very frizzy and old) and did a couple of styles but mostly wore them down. It was very simple, easy and a great protective style. After the 3 weeks I decided instead of washing my hair, how can I stretch this style? I co-washed with the Trader Joe's Tea Tree Tingler conditioner and put olive oil and coconut oil in my hair. Once I was done I rolled the mini twist with perm rods. I had the grey one's available but I'm pretty sure any size would work. I have gotten these cute drop curls with the perm rods and then just took the mini twist out. I had a full twist out that lasted about another 2 weeks. I figure why take out the mini twist and re-wash my hair again just to do another twist out. When you have a protective style like mini twist there are so many ways you can stretch the same style but get a different look. I loved how my hair came out and now its definitely time to wash! How do you ladies stretch your styles?? What type of conditioners do you use?? Please let me know in the comments below and don't forget to subscribe!!

XOXO LIVA!

Big Hair... Really Don't Care!!

In my previous post I told you I would show you how I achieved my big hair while I was in Atlantic city. The night before I did a medium size twist out and rolled my ends. I let them set over night and took them out the following morning. When I took the twist out I was still at my house and haven't left for Atlantic City yet. I did not separate my curls until it was time to go out. I wanted the curls from the rollers to drop a little before I separated them. I put olive oil on my hands and began to separate. Now I usually achieve my big hair from my hair pick but, I forgot it at home. In the hotel they did have a blow dryer so I decided to use that. For me to achieved volume I stretched my hair at the roots and place the blow dryer direct on that spot. Placing the blow dryer right at the roots gives the hair lift and volume. Once I was done stretching my hair I took the blow dryer and started shaking my head all around to give that care free look. At the end I got big hair with wavy definition. How do you achieve your big hair?? Leave your comments below!!

 XOXO Liva <3

Protective Styles... Yay! or Nay?

What is protective styling??  Protective styling is styling the hair in such a way that prevents damage from everyday elements. As you can see I have box braids in my hair. I wanted to have a protective style because its been a long time since I have had one. I have started noticing my hair more dry than usual and I was going to myrtle beach so I figured, box braids would be the best and easy way for my hair. I'm trying to retain the length of my hair and make it grow even longer. The best way to length retention is having protective styling so your hair can have a rest. A rest from minipulating the hair with braid outs and twist outs. Box braids is one type of protective styling, other examples are weaves, wigs, mini twists and etc. I get a lot of questions on how I retain the length of my hair and I always say, first I trim my ends and second protective styling. So for me I would say YAY!! to protective styling. But, there are some protective styles that DO NOT protect our hair. For example weaves with glue can hurt our hair. If not put in/ taken out correctly it can rip you hair out. Also micro box braids is not a good protective style. It can rip out your hair when you take the braids out. So there are pros and cons when it comes to protective styling. At the end of the day it all comes down to what protective style is right for your hair!!  I would love to know what protective styling you use?? Is protective styling a YAY or NAY to you??? How often do you have a protective style in your hair?? Do you feel protective styles are good or bad for our hair?

OR

Please leave a comment below!! I would love to hear your thoughts! Until next time XOXO LIVA!

Wash and Go gone RIGHT... but then WRONG!

Hey there Naturalistas! I know its been a while but I am back in hyper drive now to give you guys what you are looking for! I wanted to talk about Wash and Go's. I usually don't do them but lately I have been having the urge to give them a try. Now usually when I do a wash and go I use ECO Styler Gel because I need something strong to hold my curls and make sure they are intact. After a couple of days with the wash and go it gets super dry and my curls are hard and crunchy. I don't like it at all because when my next wash day comes around detangling is SUPER difficult!!! So I went to target and I saw this product by Cantu Shea Butter called Coconut Curling Cream. It wasn't a gel but it claimed to keep my curls intact with out that crunchy feeling. I decided to get it so I went home and tried it out. I washed my hair, moisturized it and then decided to run the Coconut Curling Cream throughout my hair. After I diffused it dry my curls where literally POPPING!! I loved it so much I couldnt keep my hands out of my hair. I put my hair in a pineapple and went to bed. The next morning I went after getting dressed I took my hair down and my curls look great! The ONLY problem was that the product was so flakey!! It looked like caked up dandruff in my hair ALL around my hair!! I was so disappointed, I wore that style for 3 days and the washed it right out! Maybe I put to much product in my hair I don't know but, please help me!! Do you know of any products I can use for my wash and go's?? What products do you use? Please leave a comment below to help me out!! Until next time!

XOXO Liva!

Dry hair?? Not this again!!!

Hello Ladies!! I know its been awhile but I'm back with another Natural hair Topic!! So I would like to talk about dry hair. what else can I say about dry natural hair besides it is VERY DRY. You see with the type of hair African American women have it is naturally dry. Usually women with natural hair think that we have to moisturize our hair every day to get that perfect bouncy non dry hair. Well ladies let me tell you something... WE DONT! Embrace how your hair is naturally. Moisturizing you hair is great an that is something you should do but it will continue to be dry because that is just how it is naturally. Personally I think it is beautiful because dry hair you can mold. You can spritz some water in there and start molding it your hair like playdough. No matter what we do after the end of the week that four day old twist it will still be dry. How do you feel about your dry hair? What do you do to moisturize your dry hair for a long period of time? Please let me know! Subscribe to my blog via Google+ or Bloglovin!!! Until next time ladies!! XOXO Liva!

Also Check out my E-store in the shop section!! DEALS DEALS DEALS!!!!
                                                             

Who are we getting pretty for?? (Natural Hair vs. Weave)

      So I'm here with another Natural hair topic. As most of you know my birthday was last month and as a birthday present to my self, I decided to put a weave in. Now before I placed the weave in I was telling people what I was going to do with my hair. All my girlfriends were excited for me and said how nice I was going to look with it. I got nothing but positive feed back when I actually got the weave from women. So many compliment from women. If you notice in my last two sentences I'm putting emphasis on "WOMEN". The men on the other hand ( all of my male friends) were very unhappy and upset when I told them I was getting a weave. When I actually got it all of my male friends told me it looks okay, but when I have my natural hair all of them say how beautiful my hair looks and how I have such natural beauty. What I'm basically trying to get at is men see women differently than how we see our selves. Most men that I have met love natural beauty and not all of them like fake things. We as women add fake hair, nails, make-up, etc to enhance ourselves for the opposite sex. Now I know that I didn't need the weave I just wanted a different look. I wear weave mostly once or twice a year. When I did little statistics in my head I realized that women are making themselves pretty because that's what we think men like but, in reality most men like us natural. I would love to know what your thoughts are on this topic! How do you feel about men loving naturals or men loving women with weave?? If your a man what do you prefer? Leave a comment and follow me for more topics like this! Until next time.

Praying makes your hair grow?? Say What?!?!?

So Ladies the other day I was on youtube and I saw a video with a women saying that she prayed for a big afro and she got it! She kept reading the scripture from 1 Corinthians  11:15 which says "But if a woman have long hair, it is a glory to her: for her hair is given her for a covering." Now yes I am a Christian and take religion very seriously. I thought this was a great topic to talk about because its amazing how even back in biblical days women was always seen with long hair. Now in 2014 long hair is still considered a "glory" to her but not for her "covering" but for her enhancement of beauty. Not all women feel this way but all the celebrities and everyday women either have long wigs or weaves, or trying everything possible to make her hair grow. It is embedded in us that long hair is beauty. From my point of view its not always about the length of the hair but it is about the health of your hair. You can have long hair all day if you wanted to but if your hair is not healthy then it is not beautiful. Seeing this youtube video opened up my mind and made me think is this the number one thing we have to do to make our hair grow? Now I know that God takes longer to do things but when you ask it shall be recived with hardwork. Lets just get back to the basics pray, eat healthy and lets take it from there! I would like to know what do you think about this?? Do you think this really works?? Do you even want long natural hair?? COMMENT AND FOLLOW ME!! Until next time ladies!! Natural hair 

Lets Talk Shrinkage!!!

             Hello Everyone!! So this week's topic is going to be about Shrinkage. Yes the number one thing every natural hates. My opinion on shrinkage is that I LOVE LOVE LOVE it!! I love it because it gives me the chance to fool people about the length of my hair. Now yes sometimes I want to show my full length of my hair but thats the thing about natural hair, it shrinks up. For us to have beautiful bouncy curls we have to have shrinkage. Now if we go back to the typing chart you can see from 3a down to the 4c has tighter curls than 1a to 2c. Due to those tighter curls the hair is going to shrink up more than the other hair types. My whole thing is lets just embrace our hair.  Curly hair shrinks up no way to change it , prevent it or hide it. Plain and simple as that. My hair personally to me is easier and looks better when it shrinks up. It's a shake and go situation. I'm the type of person that like to sleep to the last minute before work. When I straightened my hair I realized that I had to wake up 30 minutes earlier just to take down and style my hair. Thats not for me at all! When my hair is in its natural state and it shrunken... oh yes lord its a breeze!!! My Fro is what I like to call instant chic! It instantly looks great after I fluff it and shake it. I know everyone is different and every hair type is different but, we all have one thing in common and that is shrinkage. I think its time we start embracing it and love it for what it is. What are you opinion on your shrinkage?? Do you feel like your confidence level goes down when your hair has shrunken up? Please let me know I love to hear your opinion!! Don't forget to follow my page!!!

Here is a picture of my hair shrinkage vs. a semi-blow out. 

XOXO Liva!

Natural hair 

To Hair Type or Not to Hair Type???

                Hey Naturalistas!! Today's topic of discussion is something that has been talked about for a long time in the natural hair community and that is HAIR TYPING. Now some of you may not know what hair typing is. Hair typing is a chart that hair stylist came up with to categorize the different types of curly hair. For the last couple of years there have been a lot of controversy on the hair typing system.  I personally feel like the hair typing system isn't a bad idea. Now yes there are some people who have the hair who necessarily don't see their "curl pattern" on the chart, but its not for that. This chart is here to help you see what category you may fall under to identify with the women (or men in some cases) who have the same hair type as you. When you find other people with the same hair type as you, you can relate to them with the same issues they are having with their hair, hair care techniques and products that works great with their type of hair. Saying "Oh I have type 4b hair!" is better than saying "Oh I have Nappy hair!" Sometimes in this community we focus on a lot of negatives instead of positives when it deals with natural hair. At the end of the day your hair is your hair that God has blessed you with. Whether is 1a hair or 4c hair all hair is beautiful and its time to embrace it and use the guidelines that was provided to help us embrace one another. Please leave a comment and let me know what are some of your opinions on the hair typing system. Do you like it or not?? and if not why not?

*Reality of MY Natural Hair*

           Good Afternoon my fashion crew! I know my last two posts have been about fashion, so now now I'm thinking... lets talk about hair! In this discussion I would like to talk about products. In the picture below are most of the products I use for my natural hair. Now I don't use them all at once but for the most part these are my staple. Being natural is not easy. When I first started wearing my natural hair I use to go into the beauty supply store and just stand there looking at the products. Yes literally just standing there! I was thinking what would make my hair grow? Not realizing thats its not all about the products, its about what you put inside your body to make your hair grow. I take vitamins (once a day for women) and drink lots of water. Now for the outside of my hair to keep it healthy are the products below. I start off with the Tea Tree Tingler shampoo. Now yes it does strip your hair but, only from dirt and dandurf. It does not strip your hair from the natural oils. Then I follow up with the conditioner. That conditioner is the best thing ever made. Its 100% natural and its bounces my curls right back. After conditioning and washing I then dry it with a towel to were is not soak and wet but wet enough. Then I use oil, I dont mean the oil from the beauty supply store I mean the oils from walmart that says 100% virgin olive oil. Yes the one you cook with! It is the most natural oil I found that keeps my hair healthy and shiny. Then I take the leave in conditioner from Kantu Shea-Butter and rub it all around. This keeps my hair soft and locs in the moisture. Then I section off in four sections and style using either the Curls Unleashed, Shea Moisture or the Eco Style Gel for my wash and go's. Its a processes but it works for me, I keep seeing better results every time I wash or co-wash my hair. Now tell me, what works for you?? How do you keep your hair healthy?? What products do you use?? Please leave a comment!!  Thanks for reading and please SHARE!

Xoxo Liva <3