Make-up Tutorial by Daphne

My beautiful boo thang, Daphne, is my go-to person for makeup. I'm not a makeup person; the most I wear is some concealer for a few blemishes. If the occasion fits, I might even do some mascara and eye shadow. But a full fledged face beat? Not my thing.

So when I decided that I wanted to do a makeup post, I knew I had to let Daphne step in on this one. I asked her for steps on eye makeup application and also on a full face of makeup.

Eye Makeup Application: Always start with a freshly cleansed face!
1. Shape/Clean up eyebrows
2. Apply eye shadow primer
3. Apply base
4. Eye shadow of choice
5. Eyeliner 
6.Mascara
7. Lashes (optional)

Full Face Application:

1. Apply lip moisturizer

2. Use primer or moisturizer as a base to make a barrier between your skin and the makeup

3. Apply corrector/concealer

4. Apply foundation or bb cream of choice

5. Contour and highlight under the eye with setting powder (optional)

6. Apply bronzer and blush

7. Set face with setting spray or powder

8.Apply lip liner (optional)

9. Apply lipstick or lip gloss of choice

Two YouTube vloggers she recommends for makeup tutorials:
MsCreativeDiva

Queenii Rozenblad

Thanks Daphne!

Please check out Daphne's Etsy page to buy her handcrafted hair accessories.

How I washed my kinky twist extensions

It's been almost two weeks since I got my kinky twists installed and it was time for a wash. I was noticing that my scalp was starting to itch. I know from past experience that although it would make it quicker and easier to just stand under the shower head to wash it, I then have to deal with the arduous task of getting the twists and my roots completely dry as to not cause any mildew or unattractive smell.

I started researching and found a method to just get my roots washed by using applicator bottles... GENIUS! I bought two from Sally's Beauty ($2.29/each) in one I put cold water and grapeseed oil and in the other I put warm water, shampoo, and tea tree oil.

I then divided my hair into four loose ponytails, allowing access to my roots while getting the twists out the way. I then clipped a towel around my neck just to catch any of  the excess water that may dribble down. I tried to make it as effortless as possible.

                         

Here is a picture of my scalp before I started, so you can see there's some flakes:

I then began applying the warm water/shampoo/oil mixture to my scalps and rubbing it in, creating a light lather. The reason for the tea tree oil is because it's an anti-fungal and antibacterial oil so it's perfect to use for a pre-poo (Not the greatest picture but you can see the slight lather, especially in the middle):

After doing that in all four sections I then used the other bottle with the cold water and grapeseed oil. Grapeseed oil is a great sealant for natural hair. So while the cold water cleansed and closed up the hair follicle, the grape seed oil locked in the moisture. Once it was completely cleared of the shampoo, I then blowdried my hair on low heat using my handheld dryer, allowing me to get close to the roots. Afterwards my head felt and looked amazing. This is an after picture, you can clearly see the difference: 

I then oiled my scalp with the Soultanical Scalp Oil I told you about in my previous post and that's how I washed my kinky twist extensions :)

I'm alive...I swear lol

I really hope everyone has been doing well. I know it's been just about a year since my last post. I loved posting but as crazy as it sounds, I got burned out. The last year for me has been crazy; I accepted a great job in my field and moved to Florida. Additionally, I've finished my Masters degree so actually have spare time in the evening and on the weekends (at least until college football season starts lol). I felt that it was naturally time to start blogging again.

Previously I think trying to blog a couple times a week was too much. My plan is to at least get one new post up a week. My posts will focus on (of course) natural hair but I will also be incorporating more health/beauty topics and maybe even bring in guest bloggers. I already have a few in mind I'd like to do.

So to start things off, I wanted to talk about two things today: protective styling and facial cleansers.

I did my third big chop back in October. I literally do one every other year. My hair grows crazy fast and super thick. I've done every style imaginable so after a while, I just love to chop it all off and start over. After almost 8 months of growth, I decided to get some kinky twists installed. It was tricky finding something to do it here in Tallahassee as there isn't a real big natural hair community. I had a younger girl install some rope twits a couple months ago but literally the same day they started falling out. I was super upset not so much about the money spent on it, but the time. That was 6 hours of wasted time that I could have been doing something else.

Well after looking around, I found a stylist on styleseat.com and I love her. She's very Afrocentric so we were able to talk about so many things that we had in common. Also, she was saying that she was installing the twists with a twisted root instead of the usually braided root that you usually see in kinky twists. I never knew that could be done but wow they turned out great! I've been using Soultanicals Platinum Scalp Oil ($8). It works really well and smells nice, not too strong

                 

 Now on the subject of facial cleansers. First let me say that I have combination skin but mainly oily and as a result, my skin seems to prone to breakouts. I have to wear sunscreen all year round just to protect it as much as possible. As I'm getting older I'm noticing more breakouts and I realized that I don't clean and tone my skin as I should.

I LOVE the Cream & Coco line. The creator and owner is a chemist and knows what she's doing. When I saw that she made skin products, I had to try them out. They're as natural as I've ever seen and I love that. So I've been using the Pink Grapefruit & Rosemary Botanical Cleansing Oil ($8.50) that draws the oil out of my skin while allowing moisture to stay in my skin. I follow up with Honey Butter Toning Moisturizer ($10.50) to help tone and gently close the pores. I use this combo in the morning when I first wake up and before bed at night and so far I've already seen a change in my skin (for the better) in just a few short days. I'm excited to track the progress.

 
 

I look forward to my next post. Please feel free to send ideas of posts you'd like to see. I think I may do a giveaway soon!

Namaste'