Henna: Lush vs Jamila

It is well past time for me to henna again.  If I am on my game I should be doing it every 6 - 8 weeks.  I started using henna about a year ago when I was looking for a natural way to color my hair.  The coloring became secondary when I saw how much it enhanced my hair in other ways.  My hair appeared to be shinier.  The treatment seemed to make it appear darker but tinted in the light and it also appeared to be thicker.  The deep conditioning like effects that I got from the henna far outweighed my desire for colored hair and is now part of my regimen.  The very 1st time I used henna from Lush called Caca Rouge.  Here is the video from that application:




The last time I did a treatment I tried it a different way.  I used Jamila Henna and a recipe from a fellow blogger @NaturalByL of Natural Review By L The recipe called for Henna, Coconut Milk, Apple Cider Vinegar and Extra Virgin Olive Oil

Jamila Henna

Jamila Henna Box

Coconut Milk

Apple Cider Vinegar

Extra Virgin Olive Oil

It was a simple blend and this is the consistency of what it looked like blended together.

I applied it the same way for both methods. I used EO Chamomile & Lemon w/Honey conditioner to rinse it all out after 4 hours.

Overall, I think both techniques for the treatment are effective and beneficial for my hair. There were no dramatic changes in the color for either method.  The ingredients for the Jamila Henna method were more economical and easier to obtain.  I have to go to the mall or order the Lush on line and it is pricey.
Do you henna?  If so, whats your method?

Thanks for reading.

Peace :-)

Chocolate Chat Atlanta

I am pleased to announce that The SistahChick & Our Natural Kids will be one of the sponsors for Chocolate Chat Atlanta!!  Chocolate Chat Atlanta is a face to face social networking mixer.  It is the brainchild of Ericka Tinsley aka SwarthyDaisy.  Since its inception in June 2011 it continues to grow into a major Atlanta happening.
On January 29th, 2012, SwarthyDaisy along with planner Dianna Hicks of Luxe Events Atlanta are preparing for the third installment of this wonderful event and we are so excited to be a part of it.

This time the focus will be on Finances!  There will be professional speakers and specialty vendors from all over Atlanta and as stated in Chocolate Chat Atlanta's beautiful program guide, "... it promises to be Atlanta's most entertaining, informative and fun way to blend the community and business professionals together!"

Check out footage from ~ The SistahChick attends Chocolate Chat Atlanta II



Click here to see pics from The SistahChick attends Chocolate Chat II
Chocolate Chat II

For more information on Chocolate Chat Atlanta
https://www.facebook.com/ChocolateChatAtlanta

Thanks for reading!
Peace

Sistah Spotlight! ~ ChiChi Sophistication

I am so excited to tell you about this wonderful spirit that I am honored to have run into along my natural hair journey.  Her name is Keianna aka KeeKee aka ChiChi Sophistication.  I met KeeKee on the Our Natural Kids website.  From the moment she entered our online space she has been nothing but positive. KeeKee is a stylist who specializes in natural hair and braiding for children.  The DMV area is where she spreads her love for her people and her craft.  She says on her blog that she "...plants the seeds of self-love and acceptance while providing the hair with proper care..." I couldn't agree more.  We just love her over at Our Natural Kids, so much so that she was named Social Information Contributor for the site!  She brings us a wealth of information.  Her positive energy is astounding.  Her willingness to encourage & motivate speaks volumes about who she is as a person.

In addition to helping Our Natural Kids to promote natural hair health style and maintenance for kids here are a few other places that KeeKee lends her time to:

ChiChi Sophistication (blog)
Natural Hair Care for Children (Facebook, along with ONK Contributor, Jamesha Bazemore)
KeeKeeAllNatural (YouTube)
Chi Chi Sophistication (Facebook)
@KeekeeAlNatural (Twitter)
...and more!!

Please go check her out in whatever venue you like.  You will be glad that you did.

Thanks for reading.

Peace :-)

DIY ~ Tween Bedroom Make Over

This is a a pic of my precious daughter when she was 3 years old in the personal space that I created for her in an effort to get her out of our bed.  As you can see, at that time she loved her dolly's and she loved her room.

Pink and green Disney colors along with the whimsical flowery border made her small room bright but cozy.
Defined areas were created so as not to waste any space.

My daughter, aka The LittleChick is now 9 years old.  Children in this age group are socially referred to as "Tweens"  A Tween as defined by www.thefreedictionary.com is "...a child between middle childhood and adolescence, usually between 8 and 12 years old..." She is definitely not into the same things that she used to be into, but she is still my little girl. We decided that it was time to update her space to something a bit more age and personality appropriate.

We started by letting The LittleChick pick her paint color. She chose a stunning shade of purple. We decided to accent that purple with hot pink and black.  3 bold colors for her vibrant and bold personality.  Perfect!

Because we are a DIY family, we called my brother in law to come over and paint the room, while hubby and I got busy clearing out the room and painting her bed and other accessories black.

I found this beautiful hot pink & white, reversible, zebra print comforter set.  It really pops against the purple backdrop and the now black bed.

My daughter loves to draw and paint, so we got her a sleek black writing table.

Since her room is small she needed a nice spacious dresser to store all of her things in.

We had some of her own art framed in black and hung them in her room.

  

 Doesn't everyone need a spare set of butterfly wings?

Overall, it took us 1 day, some elbow grease and about $250 to complete this makeover.  The LittleChick is pleased with the transformation and so were her friends.  If they could just stay little...

Thanks for reading :-)

On The Home Front: Christmas Appliance Disaster!

I had a fantastic holiday and I hope you did too.  The hustle and bustle of Christmas, Kwanzaa and New Year is something that I look forward to every year.  We usually have a house full during the entire 2 weeks of celebrations, which is why this WAS NOT the perfect time for our refrigerator AND our washing machine to go on the fritz! We lost our fridge due to compressor issues that the repairman said would be $700 to fix.  With a house full of kids and 5 days left till Christmas Dinner we had to think fast. Craig's List to the rescue! After a thorough search of Craig's List, we were fortunate to find a young lady that was desperate to get rid of a nearly new (a year old) and barely used Whirlpool Black 25 cu ft side by side refrigerator w/ice maker and water dispenser.  Once we saw it, we offered $375.00 and she accepted.

 Once we got that squared away our washing machine's transmission decided to put on a show to the tune of $300 in repair.  Keep in mind please that is Christmas time!! We'd had this washer & dryer set for a long time and just weren't willing to put any money into it.  Once again we went to Craig's List.  Seems as though a lot of you are going for those new fangled front loaders and are in a big hurry to get rid of your top loaders.  Again we found a great couple with a baby on the way, a cool dog and new front loaders who were eager to get rid of a set that included a Kenmore Heavy Duty Super Capacity Plus Washer and Dryer for $200.00. The set was a few years old yes, but in great shape and newer than the set we had.

All in all I think we got some fantastic deals and came out ahead.  Of course you have to be careful with ANY purchases that you are making online and use common sense.  Things that you buy on Craig's List are NEVER guaranteed.  Lucky for us we ended up meeting 2 really great families during our hunt!

Stay tuned for more "On The Home Front..."  posts that will deal more personal aspects of my day to day life as a working mother and wife!

Thanks for Reading!

Happy New Year & Fro Fashion Week Spring 2012 Update!!

Happy New Year!  Thank you so much for your continued support of The Sistah Cafe, Our Natural Kids, and The SistahChick & Our Natural Kids  (fb)
2011 was a GREAT year and I am looking forward to seeing what 2012 will bring!

I reported to you back in October that I was selected as a Lead Press Supporter for Fro Fashion Week Spring 2012 and I wanted to bring you an update! Fro Fashion Week is a bi annual, week long conference in Atlanta that celebrates the beauty of the natural woman in all areas including fashion, business, society and more!  It is a fantastic event and the brainchild of Ms. Tarin Boone.  It will take place February 1 - 5, 2012 and I am so excited to be a part of it!!

The event is drawing near and the LIVE Kick off begins this Friday, January 6th at Coposhi Boutique in Buckhead from 7p - 10p!  I will be there and promise to bring back 1st hand coverage!




For more information on Fro Fashion Week - Spring 2012 (Tickets, Accomodations & More)
Please Click Here

It doesn't stop there!  TruChatOnline.com, JessiCurl & Dazzling Diva Day Spa are presenting an event that is geared just for our little girls!!  I Love Me And I Have A Right to Remain Curly!  This is a Fro Fashion Week - Spring 2012 sanctioned event and my LittleChick and I will be in attendance!  The event will take place on Thursday, February 2, 2012 at the Dazzling Diva Day Spa (A Spa for Little Girls!).  This is a free event but you must register to participate and from what I hear, tickets are going fast!

Click here for more info http://truchatonline.eventbrite.com/

Stay tuned to The Sistah Cafe, Our Natural Kids, The SistahChick & Our Natural Kids (fb) for more on Fro Fashion Week Spring 2012 and many more Atlanta based, natural hair related events in 2012!!

Thanks for reading
Peace