Why natural oils?

Many manufacturers use mineral oil in a majority of products that contain synthetic ingredients because it’s a good preservative. Mineral oil is the result of the distillation of petroleum which acts as a saran wrap against your scalp and skin, slowing down one of the skin’s main job which is to eliminate toxins. On the other hand natural oils are easily absorbed by the skin.

Jojoba Oil benefits

Jojoba Oil is an extract of the Jojoba plant. Its molecular structure is similar to sebum (the scalp's natural oil), therefore is readily accepted by the scalp and does not disturb the skin’s natural balance. Jojoba is considered a moisturising oil since its molecules are small enough to penetrate the hair shaft

Jojoba Oil benefits for your hair
• Excellent  moisturiser for hair and scalp
• Conditioning
• Prevents dandruff
• Promotes hair growth

Jojoba Oil benefits for your skin
• Excellent skin moisturiser
• Eases the symptoms of skin conditions like psoriasis, dermatitis & eczema.
• Massage oil

Jojoba Oil benefits for your baby
• Good moisturiser for baby’s sensitive skin
• Relieves cradle cap
• Moisturiser for your little one’s hair
• Great massage oil to use when massaging their infants.

Coconut oil benefits

A Plant-based oil extracted from the kernel of the coconut with a high concentration of saturated fatty acids, lauric acid, capric acid and vitamins E and K. It also has antimicrobial, antioxidant, antifungal, antibacterial and soothing properties. In its natural unprocessed state, coconut oil has a high moisture retaining capacity and does not breakdown or evaporate easily.


Coconut oil benefits for your hair
• Excellent  moisturiser for hair and scalp
• Conditioning
• Prevents dandruff
• Promotes hair growth

Coconut oil benefits for your skin
• Excellent skin moisturiser
• Eases the symptoms of skin conditions like eczema.
• Massage oil

Coconut oil benefits for your baby
• Good natural moisturiser for your little one's sensitive skin
• Excellent for soothing nappy rash
• Moisturiser for your little one’s hair

The start of an amazing journey

San Francisco - Lombard Street (Crooked Street)

A son: the one thing I always wanted to give my husband. When I was pregnant with our first child I was convinced I was having a boy, I had all the symptoms, according to the old wives tales (For example, I am a chocolate a day kind of girl, but all I wanted was salty and hot spicy food). I was so convinced that during the Cesarean (yes I am “too posh to push”) when the surgeon said "It's a girl!", my response was "are you sure??". I am sure you are thinking I should probably keep that to myself, unfortunately my daughter will eventually know about this because it was caught on camera. I can’t deny ever saying it. Why the obsession with a son you ask? Well for starters, I’d always thought that if I gave my African husband a son he would love me for life. I know - dumb right? We all know that the counts for nothing.

You have to forgive me; I had been contemplating this idea for a long time, since I was very young. The main reason for my preference of the boy child was hair.

Yes you read that right hair (vhudzi). Anyone who knows me will know that I could not care-less for my hair. I was happy and am still happy to spot a bald hairstyle, it’s simple. I grow my hair and chop it when I get bored. So the idea of having to deal with a baby girl's hair was a little bit off putting, surely with a baby boy the haircuts would not be a stress? As luck might have it, my husband and I have been blessed with two beautiful girls. Ndana's hair is a big challenge, very kinky (thanks to mum) and sparse (thanks to paternal genes), Atida's hair looks much better but she is still young so it's too early to call it.

And so began the journey of discovering #naturesownsolutions, a journey as straight as San Francisco's Lombard Street.

As a mum, I want only the best for my kids, therefore organic hair products were a no-brainer. I trolled the hair shops and hair salons for "natural" organic hair products for black babies with no luck. There are so many different brands to choose from it was mind boggling. I finally found what I was looking for, I loved the products but it costing me dearly. The products were a delight, they smelt good and after a few treatments, the hair was more manageable. Being the penny pincher that I am, I was not willing to spend that much money on hair products. I had to make a plan because the mainstream products marketed for Black African children were not an option. Having done a lot of research on hair care, looking at the various lists of ingredients, I realised these products were full of "bad ingredients". According to various sources, mineral oils / petroleum, parabens, sulphates, fragrance, propylene glycol and others are no good for our kinky hair. It was back to the drawing board for me and more internet research! This time the results were more reassuring, the internet is full of natural hair bloggers advocating for the use of nature's own products to grow and maintain kinky hair. So, armed with virgin coconut oil, unrefined jojoba oil, extra virgin olive oil (yes the one from my kitchen) and unrefined Shea butter, I have the daily care of my girls' hair under control. Every weekend I am in my kitchen cooking up a storm, no not to eat but to feed the hair. Alternating between protein and moisturising treatments, the weekends are never dull. The weekends in our household are now reminiscent of my childhood weekends when Sundays were dedicated to hair plaiting to make sure everyone’s hair was nice and neat for school. I have come from knowing nothing about hair to making my own treatments and plaiting (kuraka mabhanzi) the girls' hair all on my own. We don’t have it all figured out yet but we are getting there, part of the fun is finding out what works well for one’s hair and in my case, three people's hair, yes I said three, because I too have been inspired to grow my hair naturally.

As for the son that I so longed for, I live in hope. Maybe if we are blessed with a son I can enjoy the same level of excitement that my husband is greeted with every day when he comes home from work; apparently mum's arrival from work is a non-event. I need to teach these girls that mum's the word.

  

Hair Days Fun!!

So much for this mummy pursuing happiness! I seriously need to get serious. Been having cake and biscuits since my son cried for a HUGE Easter egg decorated cake which he only had a few crumbs of. I have since picked up nearly a kilo and need to get it off me!!!
Besides eating the delicious chocolate cake over Easter, I took the time to bond with my sister-in-law over our girls' hair. First up was a Caramel Treatment I got from this site http://www.blackhairinformation.com/hair-care-2/hair-treatments-and-recipes/the-caramel-treatment-a-natural-hair-softener/ followed by an Avonana (avocado and banana) Deep Conditioning Treatment courtesey of http://beauty.about.com/od/organicbeauty/r/Banana-And-Avocado-Deep-Conditioning-Treatment-For-Dry-Hair.htm. Now as much as we love to cut corners (by we I mean me), I recommend you not do that here. I skipped sieving the Avonana mix and it was so dramaful trying to get the banana out of Mikie's hair! We had tears! So after a bribe (sweets!), she calmed down and I managed to do up her hair in my favourite hairstyle. Wool standing buns! Lol... I know there is a more sophisticated name for these, but its just flown out my head and I will kick myself when I remember. Unfortunately she still had banana bits in there but we had passed her limits so...
Easter Monday and she had managed to unravel my tight knots! Serious, she can be trying. I know its her hair but does she have to mess my work of art? Anyways! I set down and got to work. I still had banana bits to comb out. Her hair was SUPER soft! I mean extremely! Besides the SUPER softness it was straight! Now try it out and see for yourself. Reminded me of when my mum used to stretch my hair with a hot comb heated over an open fire. Without the burnt hair smell of course. True story! So it turned out to be an easy day and we simply sprayed our ACV conditioner and got a fresh batch of a new product in the Bare Naturels Appointed Oils range. It was a smooth gorgeous smelling Mango Mousse! This is rich and creamy and a little applied to the damp hair was more than enough to soak it. Changed our do to 3-strand twists and its so soft and light her hair bounces as she moves about! Now the Mango Mousse, I kid you not, is divine. Tried it on my skin and it was GOOD! Other products have left my skin greasy but this was GOOD! Place your order and feel for yourself!
I never really enjoyed hair days but my advice to you, let Bare Naturels bring fun back!

Happy Hair!

So it's been 2 weeks since the rice milk trial and I haven't gone back to it. I guess I should officially declare it a miss! Thankfully Mikie's hair has been thriving inspite of the misses! At the moment we are using a made to order cream from Bare Naturels Cosmetics. It works wonders on her hair and smells divine too with a subtle blend of rosemary and cinnamon. Soft and manageable hair were words I would never have associated with my daughter but now I so proud of it I cant keep my hands off her hair. I even get questions on whether its natural or relaxed. For hair that was on its way to the barber, my little girl's locks are a delight. If you have issues with hair, I recommend Bare Naturels Cosmetics. Get in touch and maybe they will be able to assist you get delightful locks!
Cant wait for our next batch! It so lovely its moreish!

Castor oil challenge - will my daughter's hair respond?

So, my eldest daughter's hair is dry, thin and grows at snail's pace so I thought the castor oil challenge might just be the way to go. You might think that I am a little crazy but I am quite serious - I am not even going to try and reinvent the wheel with this one! One of my favourite natural hair bloggers NenoNatural has a well-documented castor oil challenge so I shall just follow hers.
Here are the details of the challenge NenoNatural's Castor oil challenge.

I shall not be using the essential oil for my daughter, I got my castor oil from Bare Naturals Cosmetics. I will document the progress here. Wish us luck!

Day 1 Before the challenge

Coconut oil to treat nappy rash

Bare Naturels Cosmetics Coconut oil

So my youngest daughter has just turned 1 and we transitioning from formula milk to cows' milk. I have not yet quite figured out why but this just seems to coincide with the onset of nappy rash, it happened with my first daughter as well.
At the first sign of bum redness out comes my Extra Virgin Organic coconut oil (Supplied by Bare Naturels Cosmetics). I apply the coconut oil directly to the affected areas. Coconut oil works well to treat mild cases of nappy rash.
Of course if the nappy rash is severe consult a doctor.

Weekend of pampering - the hair

The hair Shea butter

I love this recipe because my daughters' hair is extremely dry and responds really well to this cream. It leaves her hair nice and soft, making it easy for me to plait it. I have used Shea butter, a great moisturiser and added coconut oil in addition to the avocado oil.

Ingredients (Supplied by Bare Naturels Cosmetics )

• 1 cup Shea butter
• 2/3 cup coconut oil
• 4 tablespoon avocado oil

Whip everything together until a nice texture is formed.

Directions for use

Apply to damp hair as often as you deem necessary

Weekend of pampering - the body

I really need a body scrub, back to the kitchen it is then. This weekend lets start with sugar

Sugar and jojoba oil body scrub

Jojoba oil is an excellent moisturiser

The ingredients  (I got all my ingredients from Bare Naturels Cosmetics, exception the sugar of course which was in my kitchen)

100ml jojoba oil

500g  sugar

5-10 drops of lavender oil

Mix ingredients together.

Direction for use

Rub on skin, massage, relax in a warm bath and rinse. I figure this will be a good one for the relaxing evening bath. Lavender will have me sleeping like a baby.

Comments after first use

Skin felt really silky after a nice soak. Loved it.

The body butter

In my recipe I have used Shea butter, a great moisturiser and added coconut oil in addition to the avocado oil. Coconut oil has many benefits but the reason its in my face cream is because it contains anti-oxidants that help prevent wrinkles. The rosemary will make my cream smell nice.

Ingredients (I got all my ingredients from Bare Naturels Cosmetics)

3 tablespoons Shea butter

1 tablespoon coconut oil

I tablespoon avocado oil

2 tablespoon Glycerin

2-3 drops of rosemary essential oil

Whip everything together until a nice texture is formed.

Directions for use

I plan on using the cream twice a day as I would any other body butter

Comments after first use

Loved the texture and provided the moisture my dry skin needs.

Weekend of pampering - the face

So now that the facial skincare products that I loved have run out, I have decided to make my own. When I was deciding on a skincare brand back then, I remember reading that at my age (I shall not say what the age is) an avocado based face cream is best. Avocado is an excellent moisturiser and contains sterolins which help the skin produce collagen. I am using avocado oil where I possibly can (So no collagen fillers for me hopefully.).

The face cream

In my recipe I have used Shea butter, a great moisturiser and added coconut oil in addition to the avocado oil. Coconut oil has many benefits but the reason its in my face cream is because it contains anti-oxidants that help prevent wrinkles. The lavender will make my cream smell nice.

Ingredients (I got all my ingredients from Bare Naturels Cosmetics)

3 tablespoons Shea butter

1 tablespoon coconut oil

I tablespoon avocado oil

2-3 drops of lavender essential oil

Whip everything together until a nice texture is formed. This formula made approximately 115g of cream.

Directions for use

I plan on using the cream twice a day as I would any other cream

Comments after first use.

Loved the texture, I had used the face serum so it was a little hard to judge if it had the right amount of oil.

The face serum

My serum has jojoba oil because its an excellent moisturiser and also helps reduce wrinkles.

Ingredients (I got all my ingredients from Bare Naturels Cosmetics.)

50ml Jojoba oil

50ml avocado oil

5 -10 drops of lavender essential oil

Mixed the oils together, shake vigorously.

Directions for use

I plan on using the serum at night before applying the cream

Comments after first use.

Loved it a lot. It reminded me of a serum I used to pay £48 for (I shall not name the brand.). I am so very excited about this one, I cant wait to see the long term results.

The face wash

Not too sure about the wash, oatmeal has excellent cleansing properties apparently

Ingredients (Can find these at you local supermarket)

1/2 peeled Cucumber

2 tablespoons Oatmeal

2 tablespoons Plain unflavoured Yogurt, with active cultures

Whip everything together until a nice texture is formed.

Directions for use

I plan on using the cleanser twice daily wish me luck

Comments after first use.

This was a lovely surprise. I had used the face scrub below so I wasn't sure how the cleanser was going work. It passed the test, all the sticky honey and sugar was gone after cleansing.

The face scrub

Ingredients (Can find these at you local supermarket)

1 tablespoon honey

1/2 tablespoons sugar

Mixed the 2 well

Directions for use

I plan on using the scrub twice a week.

Comments after first use.

It was rather sticky but it wasn't rough on the skin, I really expected it to be rough.

Hit or Miss???

I once more went experimenting in the kitchen with a recipe I chanced upon thanks to my trusted friend Google. Having kids with super kinky hair, anything with "soft hair" grabs my attention. Below is the recipe for the leave-in spray I made;


Rice Milk Spray

In a 250ml spray bottle add
2 tablespoons of rice milk -plain
2 tablespoons rosemary essential oil
2 Tablespoons of an oil of your choice... I used coconut oil
Then fill the rest of the spray bottle with water..

Make sure that this mixture is shaken prior to each use because the oils ,milk and water would separate.

  

When I used this on my daughter's hair, the mixture felt a bit thick and sticky. It didn't soften the hair but made it feel heavy. It was manageable and it was a painless process to get her hair done. I was left a bit disappointed by the whole adventure. This was two days ago...

Today I decided to redo her hair and when I undid the locks, I found really soft hair. It was a pleasant surprise because I was expecting straw like texture. Really confused now about my feelings on the spray... I might just try it again and use a different oil instead. Maybe avocado????

Please try it out and give me some feedback...

Laters...

Protein treatment for brittle and breaking hair

This is a protein treatment which works well on breaking hair, restoring shine and control dandruff. Bananas contain carbohydrates, vitamin A and potassium, the combination of which makes bananas ideal for strengthening and softening hair, while promoting hair growth. Honey with its natural sweeteners nourishes the hair and when combined with other ingredients like bananas and jojoba oil, leaves your hair feeling soft.

Click here for more detail on the benefit of;
Vitamin A; http://www.livestrong.com/article/403367-does-vitamin-a-help-to-grow-hair/
Potassium; http://www.livestrong.com/article/317274-what-are-the-benefits-of-hair-products-with-potassium/


The recipe

Ingredients 
1 whole ripe banana
1 tablespoon Honey
1 tablespoon jojoba oil
1 egg

Preparation
1. Chop the banana and place in a mixing bowl
2. Add the honey, jojoba oil and egg
3. Blend until the mixture is smooth

How to use
1. Apply to damp freshly shampooed hair
2. Cover hair with a shower cap for 45 - 60 minutes
3. Rinse hair with clean warm water
4. Apply your usual conditioner to hair and rinse with warm water
5. Dry hair and style as usual
NOTE: Use weekly for extremely damaged hair and monthly to prevent breakage

Results
My little girl's hair was very brittle, after 3 weekly treatments I have seen a big difference. I shall be using it once a month to prevent breakage.

Avocado and honey deep conditioner

This is a moisturising and softening conditioner. Avocado is a well know super food that is rich in mono-unsaturated fats and vitamins, including vitamin E, which makes it a good moisturiser. Honey with its natural sweeteners nourishes the hair and when combined with other ingredients like avocado,  leaves your hair feeling soft.

Click here for more detail on the benefit of using avocadohttp://www.livestrong.com/article/410882-avocado-for-hair-growth/

  

The recipe

Ingredients 

1/2 cup Avocado

1 tablespoon Honey

Preparation

1. Chop the avocado and place in a mixing bowl

2. Add the honey

3. Blend until the mixture is smooth 

How to use

1. Apply to damp freshly shampooed hair

2. Cover hair with a shower cap for 45 - 60 minutes

3. Rinse hair with clean warm water

4. Apply your usual conditioner to hair and rinse with warm water

5. Dry hair and style as usual

Results

This is one of my favourite treatments, I love avocado. Have not used in weeks but will definitely update when I do. The little's hair also responds well to it.

Welcome to the Bare Naturels Cosmetics Community

Welcome to our blog. This is where the Bare Naturels Cosmetics team and bloggers write about their daily lives, experiences, and thoughts on the latest hair and skin care trends, as well as their beauty tips. Here you will also find some recipes for homemade beauty treatments for those who want some pampering the naturel way. Join us on this journey and you will discover a whole new world of nature's own hair and skin care solutions.

Welcome to our online community!