Combatting My Hair Problems (UPDATE)

UPDATE: After all the talk about limiting my hair products, I am back to admit to trying something new. In addition to the products I mentioned previously, I will be trying out some Ojon (or Batana) oil. Apparently, it's hot among the TikTik squad but I found it by looking at lists of herbal remedies for hair loss. I will, of course, follow up with results when I've had time to let this work. I have an oil version (that I will use for my scalp daily) and a solid version (that I will use as a pre-poo rinse-out).

I'd like to be able to say that, with maturity, I have become less vain. I'd like to say that, but I prefer being honest. It's my hair, folks. I'm only vain about my hair but that's because I've lost my once beautiful smile and Lord knows, this body is not in its best shape. Even my skin color has started to dull with the years.

                                                                       🤷🏾‍♀️

However, I'm not a tenth as vain and silly as I was in my younger days, and I do love growing older. Still, the medications I am on have been like a wrecking crew. One issue is bone loss - which includes the jaw. I am going to have to have all my teeth replaced. I don't mind that. I always had a pretty smile but now I just want to be able to eat and to talk to people in public without looking like a meth addict. In the meantime, I wish masks were still mandatory.

So, while I am fine about getting my teeth replaced (when I can find a dentist who will treat me and not charge me like I'm wealthy), and having to be careful not to fall and break any bones, I have had trouble dealing with the hair situation. I can't comb my hair without running a vacuum for the next 2 days. So much of it comes out that I wonder how I still have so much on my head. And when I say it comes out, I don't mean just when combing it. Every time I walk into the bathroom, I have to sweep the floor. Anytime I look into the mirror, I find not just strands but tufts that are hanging loose. I no longer go into the kitchen or near food without either wearing one of my scarves or checking to make sure no hairs are falling loose...

And this is all because of the fact that one of my meds (the same one that messes with my bones) hates my hair. For years, I have had to work hard to keep my tresses healthy. With age, that started to get more difficult. Yay. However, I think I have found a care routine that is working very well. I'm not recommending this because I am not a professional. I will just tell you what's working for me.

• The first step is to not over-wash and dry out my hair. I was never bad about this but I did sometimes wash my hair three or four times in a month. That was to get rid of product buildup. Now I try to limit the products I use so that I don't have to wash as often - maybe twice a month.
• I have started using 100% cotton flour sack towels for drying my hair. (At least I never use a hair dryer but my towels probably weren't the best for my hair.)
• Next, as I said, I have stopped using so many products. At one point, I was using a leave-in conditioner, a curl cream, a secondary moisturizer, and some kind of glossing product. That's a lot. These days, I am down to the 3 products I will talk about in a moment.
• For months, I had been wearing a protective style a lot of the time, but I do so now almost 90% of the time. I really only leave my hair loose when I'm in the mood to girl it up. (I will tell you why I want to keep my hair if I don't wear it down!)
• I am more careful these days about what I eat and drink. You might know from the blog that I am limiting or avoiding certain ingredients. 

Now, as to why I care about saving hair that I don't wear down. One reason is that I see my hair as a sign of my femininity. I love being a woman and I do see my hair as a "crown". That's no shade on women who have lost their hair or like to wear it short. For me, it's just a very personal thing. If I lose it, I lose it, but I want whatever is left of it to be healthy.

One good thing about changing my haircare routine is that I am saving money. This is a box of just some of the products I am giving to someone else in the family. I won't be buying these anymore.

And this is not the only box...

And when I say that it is only some of the products, I am not kidding. Remember, I am doing the Great Cabinet Cleanup...

Here are the 3 products I am down to these days - 4 if I include water:

They have Dax & Murray's beeswax products in clear. Kocatah is always black

Actually, I lied. I do sometimes use Blue Magic for my scalp if I am out of the Kocatah. And I still use shea butter for additional moisture.  Also, I really only use the Murray's when I am wearing my hair down since it's great for controlling the edges and loose hair.

So I use the Kocatah on my scalp, the Dax beeswax on my hair, and the Murray's for taming and controlling. Murray's is very stiff and can be used to "wave" the hair.

The 4th ingredient - water - is the base for everything else. I always apply the Dax beeswax to damp hair. This has replaced the leave-in conditioners I once used because the Dax not only seals the moisture in but also softens my hair. If I am wearing a protective style (usually twists), I don't need to worry about my hair drying out in between washes. If I am wearing my hair down, the moisture lasts for at least 4 days.

(By the way, Dax products are varied and not just for "afro" hair types. Murray's is too thick for use on fine hair - except as an edge hold. Though all are black in color, they are not opaque enough to notice on darker hair colors. The Murrays and the Dax beeswax products do come in lighter/clear shades.)

Of course, neither Dax nor Murray's are pure beeswax. The first ingredient in both products is petrolatum and the second is beeswax (cera alba). Here are the labels for all the products in my routine:

☝🏾

Dax magnified

Kokatah

                ☝🏾

Kocatah magnified

You can see how similar the ingredients are (for all three) but the Murray's has a thicker and a really stiff texture. That's why I say it works best as an edge cream or for the very ends of twists to lock them in.

Once I wash my hair and moisturize it, then twist it for protection, I'm pretty much done. 

As for the flour sack towels, I started out using one from my kitchen that had gotten lightly stained. I heard about using the towels from women back in the day but was recently reminded when reading something in a hair forum. Then Walmart had a sale on some of the large-sized Aunt Martha's towels (I love the towels from Aunt Martha or Utopia).  It's not often you see good towels at such a deep discount (I paid $6.22 instead of $15.28 for a set of 2).  It's so much larger than my old kitchen towel.

I do suggest doing a wash and dry on the towels before the first use. They will soften up a bit and who knows what chemicals are on them fresh out of the wrapping...

When I've been on this routine for a while, I hope to remember to do an update post. I have plenty of pics of my hair in all stages of damage and health to compare to.

Peace

--Free

DISCLAIMER - I was not compensated in any way for this post. I wish...

**REVIEW** Uncle Funky's Daughter Travel Kit

 Since I've tried Aunt Jackie, Miss Jessie, and Carol's Daughter, I figured I'd give Uncle Funky a shot. The first thing I can tell you is that getting a trial kit or samples is best. The full-sized items tend not to be cheap...

The first thing I did was text one of my nephews to tell him that I was going to try some hair products by "Uncle Funky". After we got through laughing about it, I did actually give all 5 products in the travel kit a test.

By the way, I'm being silly. The product line is Uncle Funky's Daughter, and I (kind of) love the name. But it's a long 'un so I'll tag it as UFD from now on.

First I have to admit that I only got the travel kit (with some Google Rewards money) because honey chile! The individual products are priced as if they are Uncle Funky's Gold... You can take a peek at the UFD Amazon storefront or go to the official UFD site.

The kit is nicely presented in a little plastic zip case. There was even a security zip tie on the zipper when it arrived. I appreciate that because we've all gotten products that were wrapped in cheap, stained plastic.

The insert cards give an overview of the key ingredients for each product. As when trying any new hair product, I first did a wash and condition. I began applying the UFD products to my towel-dried/damp hair in the order suggested on the insert. I will use that order to give my take on them. The descriptions are from the Amazon product's "About" section.

(When ordering via the UFD official site, shipping is free on orders over $49 & customers can earn "reward points".)

Step 1 - Midnight Train (8oz) Amazon: $18.54 ($2.32 / Fl Oz)  UFD: $10.99 

Lightweight, herbal conditioning mist. Strengthens dry, weak strands. Adds softness and pliability for comb-out. Works best on curly and kinky textures. Mist generously on hair strands.

Me: 4 .5 stars for the effects and pricing. This smells good - Has a very light, soapy-green scent. It is moisturizing and I think it's what kept my hair from drying out for a few hours after washing. That moisture did not last and I can tell that I would have to re-use the spray more than once a day. It does make my hair feel very soft while it is working. As with the next product, this worked better on my day-old hair.

Step 2 - Supercurl (8 oz) (or Extra Butter) I used Supercurl first. Amazon: $21.99 ($2.75 / Fl Oz) UFD: $19.99

Smooth, lightweight, no-hold formula; Adds amazing softness and moisture, Stretches tight curls to aid in comb-out, Works well on all curl patterns and styles, Rub in palms or on strands and style;

Me: 3 stars for the effects and pricing It smells okay - like a basic rinse-out conditioner. This added more moisture and softness on top of the Midnight Train. My hair does not love coconut oil products for some reason. this did not help my newly washed hair. It works much better on my "day-old" hair and it really boosted the moisture. If I use this to freshen my hair after having used my usual products (StaSofFro), it's wonderful. I like that it softens my hair without adding a heavy or greasy feel. I don't like it enough to pay what it costs...

Step 2b - Extra Butter Curl Forming Creme (8oz) Amazon:$19.99 ($2.50 / Ounce) UFD: $19.99

Thick, creamy, whipped formula; Fortifies curls with natural shea butter, coconut, and palm kernel oil. Elongates curls, detangles & deeply moisturizes to aid in comb-ability. Provides residue-free style ability with this moisturizer. Apply evenly through damp or dry hair, then style.

Me: 3.9 stars for the effects and (mainly) the pricing Another light, clean and unobtrusive scent. This is a product that I would think about getting in spite of that ridiculous price. My hair is a mix of curl patterns - some strands are really curly/coily, some are straight and some are just slightly wavy. This crazy hair of mine is also resistant to curl creams. The only ones to work best are the eco-styler types and Taliah Waajid's Curly Curly Cream. This one is somewhere in between those types. It's not super thick like Curly Curl and it's not a "sticky styler" like the eco gels. I like it the most out of the products in this kit. The downside is that this works best on day-old hair after I have used other softening products. There's not a lot of reason for me to switch from the Curly Curl by Taliah Waajid. On the other hand, if someone with a more consistent curl pattern asked me, I'd recommend this.

Step 3 - Curly Magic (18 Fl Oz) Amazon:$24.99 ($1.39 / Fl Oz) UFD: $24.99

Aloe-based formula; natural fragrance.  Firm hold provides lasting curl definition. Delivers unmatched frizz-fighting ability. Defines curls in curly, wet hair. Finger comb thru soaking wet hair.

Me: 2 stars for the effects and pricing (and smell) I hated the smell of this one (like Eau de floral gasoline) and the texture is of an almost obscene slimy viscosity. I guess some people would say that at least it has "good slip"... Ugh. To be honest, I think I used this one wrong. The product page says to use it on soaking wet hair while the insert says wet or damp hair. By the time I tried it, my towel-dried hair was only still damp from the other products. I just can't with this one - because of the smell and that price.

Step 4 - Thirsty Curls (8 fl oz) Amazon: $14.99 ($1.87 / Fl Oz) UFD: $14.99

Lightweight, coconut water-based mist. Revives the bounce in frizzy, fallen curls. Aids in comb out and styling. Great for day-after Curly Magic use. Spray generously and fluff style.

Me: 3.5 stars for the effects and pricing The smell of this one is neither bad nor good, but it is odd. In my opinion, this is a decent product but, like the others, it does not play well by itself. It was good on my day-old hair but, as I mentioned, by then I'd had to use some StaSofFro. This did help refresh the moisture but I have several cheaper products that do the same.

So, overall, what do I think about these products? 

I have to tell you, nothing really wows me enough to pay the current prices. I'd be more inclined to dish out for the Midnight Train at $10.99 and the Extra Butter at a much lower price (if I didn't like my current and more affordable products better).

Eh...

The main issue for me is that these don't really work well as stand-alone products. Also, they don't solve my dry-hair issue without my having to supplement them with something like StaSofFro. That's not a big problem because I find that to be the case with several other products. But these are much pricier. If I'm paying 15 to 25 bucks for a hair product, I don't want to have to spend more money to boost its effects. 

On the other hand, I can see that for some hair types, UFD products would be really good. As I mentioned, my hair doesn't like some of the key ingredients and my nose obviously hates some of the smells. 

I have one niece with a 2b hair type and I think I'm going to send her this kit. As for me and my nappy naps, I will stick with my current regimen - which now includes a hairdressing cream I'm loving. I will review that soon (or have, depending on how I schedule the posts!).

Peace

--Free