Trevor Noah!!!!

Had a blast today at the vodafone comedy festival..... Performing acts included Irish MC Abie Philbin Bowmanm, South African Trevor Noah and African American Reginald D Hunter. Had such a great time and Trevor Noah was by far my favorite act; I would totally recommend him.
I caught up with him after the show despite the rain and my, he is such a lovely person, very humble.

Trevor Noah

Hope y'all had a great weekend. Have a blessed week ahead.

XOXO
Miss Jay

My hair straightening experience.......again

So remember I said in a previous post that I was going for a wedding and was going to get my hair straightened....Well things didn't exactly go as planned unfortunately; I was unable to get an appointment at the brazilian hair salon. I left the booking till the last minute by which time they had no availability. I thought of going home to do my hair myself but in one last burst of hope I headed to the north side to try the 'minority' salons. 

And so I walked into to the first chinese salon, on a quiet street....the receptionist lady eventually attended to me and when I asked if they did a 'wash and blow-dry', she politely said she would ask one of the stylists who came to 'inspect' my hair and said no. I found it quite funny how he looked strangely upon my bunch of coils and kinks...

Then for more laughs, I headed to a second asian salon which had an organic vibe going on...I was quite pleased to find that it was quite empty and clean...nwys some asian man came running up to me and when I asked if they could do my hair he had this shocked expression (you know like that long 'noooo' expression when u ask them for a discount a la Russell Peters....lol) nwys he followed by saying we don't do 'those'....at which point I simply burst out laughing.

To be fair though I know I was kinnda taking the piss 'cos asian/chinese people have bone straight hair and so in hair academy they wouldn't have learnt how to deal with coily hair. I guess I was just looking for a professional who would go out of his comfort zone and be adventurous enough.

Anyways I get home and about 2 1/2 hrs later, I'm done washing, blowdrying, and straightening my hair. Oh the joys....i don't mind the process cos I love all things hair but its nice when u can just relax and read a book whilst someone does all the work for you :D

So here's pretty much what I used

Whoaaa I know it looks like a lot so I'ma break it down :) [Oh and by the way I have the places of purchase in brackets]

PRODUCTS (L-R): Tresemme heat defense styling spray (Boots),

Herbal essences beautiful ends (Boots), Chi silk infusion (CVS), 

Giovanni direct leave in (South William street Pharmacy)

BRUSHES & COMBS (T-B): Heat retainer brush (Sally Salon services),
Tangle teezer (Boots), Blue Wide-toothed comb (Boots), White
Small-toothed comb (from random airline) 

ELECTRICALS (T-B): Sassoon hair hydration straightners (Boots/argos ),
Remington hair envy hair dryer (Boots)

Anyways, so here was my routine:

1. I Co-washed in 4 sections using herbal essences beautiful ends (Ya, I know I probably should have shampooed first but I simply did not have the time).

2. I then took down each section and moisturized with Giovanni direct leave in and sealed with the  Chi silk infusion. I then twisted up each section into 2-3 smaller sections.

3. When I was done moisturizing my whole head of hair, I sprayed my tressemme heat protectant everywhere and started off blowdrying a tiny section from a small twisted section using a round bristle brush.

4. I blow-dried the rest of my hair and then proceeded to straighten in tiny sections using my vidal sassoon hair straightener.

Unfortunatley on getting to the wedding it started to pour, and even though I used my jacket to cover my hair, it started frizzing up.

Anyways enough talk....now pictures. (I was in a bit of a rush so didn't take any pics of the initial finished result, so I straightened my hair upon returning using much larger sections but overall the results were very similar to the first attempt).

By the time I got home, yup it was a frizz-ball...... (is it me or does my face and part of my chest look purple????)

..... and so I decided to re-straighten it

Phew....glad that's over...lol..
Wrapped my hair loosely overnight and planning on keeping it straight till maybe Wednesday..

Nwys take care and God bless.

XOXO
Miss Jay

Hair Inspiration: Spotlight- Solange Knowles

Is it just me or does this blog need a bit of color??? I've been wanting to do a hair inspiration section for a while now but wanted all the pics to be those taken by me.....But you know what, I think that may have to wait till some other time. Below are some of my fav pics of Solange's natural do.... Please enjoy responsibly :-)

the big chop

TWA 

growing steadily- loving the accompanying colours

i think mustard just became my fav color

loving the fro in front and the curl definition at the back

whoa check out the eyeliner!!!!!- point taken :D

.....and those shoes are 'killer'

african print all the way baby

growing bigger

ka-boom!!!

the re-invention of the box braid

Sigh!!!...She's got both the hair and the fashion...what's not to love. I will be taking some fashion tips from her that's for sure.
Nwys that's all for now. Will be doing a couple more installments on some of ma fav natural celebrities.

Take care and peace out..
XOXO

Miss Jay

Derm corner: the hair shaft

Wow I feel like an old dusty book writing this post. I bet u didn't think books had feelings....well they actually don't just incase you were second guessing yourself... :)

Anyways, I remembered my promise to post at least once a week and I was going to post last week but was away having fun in Cork for the weekend. If you havn't been you soo have to go. Its the second largest city in th republic of Ireland (and yes it has a funny name) but it's a real cool city. I think I prefer it to Dublin. I love the layout of the city...it's oozes britishness and for any one who knows me, I tend to love all things british in comparison.... Its also a very hilly city so the landscapes are just amazing.  And the people, the so called Corkonians, they are known to be very friendly people indeed. So ya, that's what I've been up to.

It's also a friends wedding this weekend and I'm planning on getting my hair straightened for hopefully the second and final time this year...and this time I'll defo be going to the brazilian salon to get it done. Can I just say that brazilians can dance...I know random to throw that in there, but my...they are real good. I tend to spend more time nowadays watching than actually dancing at the salsa nights...

Ok "re-calculating" (like the GPS woman says)...i'm having a bit of verbal diarrhea tonight largely cos I didn't get out of work till 7:30pm today and secondly cos I treated my self to some thai food +/- white wine as compensation.

Anyways so back to Derm corner...you are very welcome..pls take a seat as I continue from where I left of......... the hair shaft .........

The hair shaft is comprised of 3 layers: the outer cuticle, the inner cortex and the innermost medulla.

1. The CUTICLE- the cuticle covers the cortex...kinnda like a scales on a reptile or tiles on roofing sheets.

Roofing scales

It is basically a thin layer of cells, which may consist of as many as 5-12 sheaths. Each layer is actually anchored to the cortex below and not just simply floating in mid air. 

Interestingly,  the numbers of layers reduces from root to tip, such that at the root you can have about eleven overlapping sheaths forming one layer and at the tip about 5 or less sheaths. Likewise, with thicker stranded hairs, one tends to have more overlapping layers than thinner stranded hairs.

the real deal

The hair cuticle is the first line of defense against all forms of damage. It acts as a protective barrier for the softer inner structure (including the medulla and cortex), and is responsible for much of the mechanical strength of the hair fiber. Interestingly, the cuticle also controls the water content of the fiber, such that when it is open or raised, water entry is permitted and when closed or flat, the opposite occurs.

Y'all will probably notice that I have more information written about the cuticle than any of the other layers and this is because the condition of the cuticle determines the appearance of hair in general. Tattered, worn out cuticles reflect light poorly and the raised cuticle layers rub against each other causing friction thus preventing the hair from moving well. Much of the shine that makes healthy hair so attractive is due to the cuticle. 

In addition, Relaxers, hair dyes and some shampoos can wear away the hair's protective cuticle layers (hence why ingredient reading is so important...which we'll get to in a later post). In fact, the cuticle can get so damaged especially at the tip such that the cortex becomes fully exposed. Below are some pictures of what a damaged cuticle looks like.

Ewwwww

And you thought that was bad

Interestingly, the cuticle  is colorless; This is because it contains no melanin. The hair color we see is actually the pigmentation found in the cortex. 

Ok I think that's enough cuticle talk for one day. Moving on quickly to the next layer.

2. The CORTEX: This is the main part of the hair fibre, accounting for approx 90% of the total weight of the hair shaft. It contains spindle shaped cells made of protein and is responsible for giving hair its elasticity and curl.

3. The MEDULLA:  This is the innermost, central core of the hair shaft..kinnda like an apple core. It contains special cells that are filled with air and may or may not be present in some types of hair.It is mostly seen in terminal hairs and it's function isn't very clear.

Anyways, thats all for now folks...I'm almost dozing off.

Take care ,

XOXO

Miss Jay




References:
Pics- Google images
Text- Dermatology lecture notes by Graham brown and Tony Burns
          Clinical dermatology by Richard Weller, John Hunter, John Savin and Mark Dahl
          The science of black hair by Audrey Davis-Sivasothy
          Wikipedia

Style Series 7- Bantu-knot out

So I was having a bad hair day last week as I went over to visit my folks. As usual, I didn't have anything in my hair arsenal as I had to travel real light (especially after paying to put my luggage in hold the last time....sigh...ryanair)... On a side note, I think it would be such a great idea if the airlines in 9j imposed a 1-piece hand luggage policy; it would be a blessing to see Nigerians traveling light for once (or who knows, probably mama iyabo and her 5 underaged children will be carrying 1 small suitcase each).

Anyways so my dad was distracted by my 'messy' hair upon seeing me and as usual we had the 'when are you going to do your hair?' conversation; I later made a trip to tesco that day, and stocked up on some conditioner.... (little aside) Speaking of conditioner I had to go to 5 different pharmacies/health shops today before I could find a Giovanni direct leave in conditioner. I literally bought the last two in the store and God knows probably in this city. Only 2 of these places sold the giovanni line and the pharmacy I bought the leave-in's from said that they may be discontinuing the range...oh joy!!

Did I mention that one of my natural friends got a relaxer? (ok I know I didn't mention..lol). You know what,  it actually didn't bother me as much; and it definitely has not  hasn't changed the way I see or feel about her one bit. 

For some people being natural can become almost a part time career, whereas on the other end of the spectrum, it's just one of those things. I think it was later for my friend and I hate to think that she got frustrated with her hair and didn't know what to do with it but turn to the creamy crack.

The one thing I  must say I regret however was not inviting her home and demonstrating with my products how to manage her hair. I've actually NEVER dealt with anyone's natural hair but mine come to think of it and I'd really love to give it a go. 

Anyways sorry for all the digression, having a bit of verbal diarrhea today.

So I decided to do a bantu knot out. As usual I divided my hair into four sections and starting with one section, I did about 9 bantu knots per section. I spritzed each small section with water and added a pea-sized amount of conditioner to the section before 'rolling'. I didn't have any oil with me at the time otherwise I would have used something thick like castor or moroccan oil to seal in the moisture. Unfortunately I didn't take pics of the initial bantu knotting process but did take a few of the results. The style lasted about 5 days and by the 5th day I wore my hair up in a messy bun.

PRODUCTS: hands, water, herbal essences (beautiful ends).

Day 1 hair- side view

Day 2- a bit more stretched out...i think

Anyways that's all for now folks. I found some old pics of a faux bun and a flexi rod set so keep an eye out (literarily...lol) for the next style series.

Mucho lovo,
Miss Jay :P

M.I.A

I've been very busy and quite lazy at the same time when it comes to blogging. I keep writing in my journal that I need to blog about this and that but end up procrastinating and before I know it something comes up that takes a lot of my time and the zest to write on a said topic fades away.
At the moment I feel the only way to keep up my tempo is to be accountable to who ever is reading. I love the freedom and creativity in writing but I also believe some element of discipline should follow so that one does not become ineffective and so I'm not going to wait another 6 months before I make a resolution. I'm gonna make it now.
- I promise to blog at least once every week from today.
- I will ensure I update the derm corner every 2 weeks and the style series at least once a month.
- I will also keep up the interviews and do a once monthly update on them.

I'm still super shy about it but would love to take pics of fellow naturals in my city for some real time hair inspiration. I also plan on taking photography classes and will update y'all on how that goes.

2 months ago I attended a WOFBI bible course and even though initially I experienced a spiritual awakening, I've been a bit distanced lately. I'd like to start a God corner where I document my discoveries in the faith and help to encourage others and learn likewise. Anyways enough of my epistle. I took some hair pics from a recent Bantu knot out and will be uploading that next.

Take care and ttyl.
Xoxo

Miss Jay