What to Expect From Cassia Obovata: The Coily Hair Edition

One thing that I used to LOVE to do with my weekend was to spend time pampering my hair. If I wasn't doing a deep conditioning treatment, I was doing small sized two strand twists or steam treatments. These days, I'm extra lazy to do my hair. Today (Sunday), I decided to break open a 200g  bag of Cassia Obovata (colorless Henna), and deep condition treat my hair and both of the girls (T and Dimples). They're always ready for a spa day. We took time out to do clay mask (bentonite) face treatments, and honey masks as well.

We're looking forward to a week of soft, tangle free, well moisturized hair. We will probably do styles like twist-outs, braid outs, and or wash n go's (between the three of us).

CASSIA PREPARATION:
I mixed our Cassia Treatment with about 1/2 cup of Tresemme Naturals conditioner, 3 tablespoons of Hemp Seed Oil, 1/3 cup of Extra Virgin Olive Oil, and 1/4 cup of Aloe Vera Gel. It made enough to finish up all three of our hair (I had to skimp on T's treatment a bit).

Before I applied the Cassia Treatments, I spritzed a mixture of apple cider Vinegar and water (2 tablespoons ACV, and 1 ounce water). We let that spray mixture sit on our hair for about 10 minutes before rinsing. That step was to clarify our hair strands. I wanted to make sure that any and all product build-up was removed, without causing dryness.

I expect that this level of deep conditioning could last all week (if drying products are not put on the hair...mineral oil, blow drying or flat iron, etc). I hope to only have to add water from time to time in order to re-activate the deep conditioner effects. 

3 HOURS LATER....
We took off the cotton t shirts that we used to secure some body heat with. Underneath that we had plastic shower caps. We used those 2 together in order to trap the heat from our body and help the conditioner work it's magic. I had placed our hair into sections and had mini buns throughout during the conditioning process. The ends were tucked under each mini bun. We began by pulling down each section and working with the hair 1/2 of the head at a time. Rinsing with warm/hot water, while using fingers to massage the scalp and work the Cassia through, we began the long journey to removing the "debris".  

The Cassia takes lots of time to remove from the roots and hair shaft. It's best to use warm water to start the rinse. Next, we put some conditioner (preferably all natural) on each section of the hair and continued to rinse. The conditioner (and oils) helps to make it easier to remove the Cassia. "T" finds that it's also easy to remove the Cassia by brushing it out while under running water with conditioner on the hair. We love to use paddle brushes with soft rubber tips (the Goody Finisher brush Listed in our Favorites to the right of this post). It took about 20 minutes (each person) to remove all of the Cassia from our hair.

Put on your sunglasses before checking out these pictures.

Lots of shine and define from the Cassia Conditioning Treatment.

THREE DAYS LATER....
For about days 1, 2 and 3 we had great shine, define, softness and pliability. By day four, though, we each found that the wonderful effects of the Cassia Deep Treatment wore off. I was surprised. I expected it to last well into 1 week. T tried a braid-out, but didn't braid up her roots--so her hair didn't "lay down" the way she likes. That's why she did her trust ponytail. But you can see that her hair is very shiny and full of lush curls. Dimple and I did our trusty braid-out. The definition and shine was pretty extreme.

One thing that seems to be long lasting with this treatment is the strengthening. It seems to have provided a bit of strength to the strands, which is great for anyone who is experiencing breakage, lots of shedding, or unusually fine hair.

All in all, it was a relaxing day with the girls, a few great mornings with lustrous, shiny hair that responded to our styling choices. It put our hair in the right direction for future coily styling options, thus minimizing frizzy days. Isn't that a major goal for every coily girl? Minimal frizz, lots of shine!

We want to hear from you if you've tried any wonderful and natural hair conditioning treatments. Sharing is Caring!  ---------------------------As Always, Stay Beautiful   .tia

Pros & Cons of The Blow Out/Braidout: Coily Hair Edition

Last week, I had this great revelation about how to get maximum stretch from my braidout, without sacrificing definition. I mapped out everything from technique to product. The picture on the right is what the outcome was, but this story has just begun. Those of you interested in achieving maximum length, high definition, with a long lasting braidout, then this post may be just for you.

WHAT I DID:

1. Cleansed hair and scalp with Amla Paste Wash.
2. Conditioned with Tresemme Naturals Conditioner.
3. Did an oil rinse, with a mix of Olive Oil & Sweet almond Oil (extremely beneficial).
4. Get rid of excess water with micro-fiber towel, and air drying.
5. Brush through heat protectant (Shea Moisture Brand)
6. Blow Dried (to about 90% dry, in sections), then braided up the dry sections (had about 6-8 braids when done). You don't want to get rid of ALL of the hair's texture. You will need some texture.

So now there I was with about 8 blow dried braids that had maximum length. Next, I would release a braid, and braid that into 2 separate braids. That means 8 braids turned into 16 braids (which laid even longer). The products that I placed on each section prior to braiding were strategically planned to provide strong hold, and high moisture (all without reverting the hair). That proved to be a tough task.

PRODUCTS USED

1. Loreal Eversleek smoothing system (boasts "humidity defying")
2. Giovanni Wicked Pomade (for hold)
3. Sweet Almond Oil (for shine and to lock in moisture)

THE OUTCOME:

Well, for about 1 hour, I had maximum length, really soft, great definition, nice shine, and great moisture. Then I went out to dinner with a bunch of friends to the Melting Pot. For those of you that don't know, the Melting Pot is the absolute test for true endurance of this technique and these products.

  It's a fondue restaurant, where you skewer your own food and place into a heated pot of steaming oil right in front of you. Needless to say, the steam was blowing right in my direction, while 3 of my friends watched it rise to a huge Afro. Side Note: My fellow sisters with naturally curly hair were sitting next to me, and they watched my hair rise with amused looks. Meanwhile, across the table from me, 3 blond haired women commented on how much bigger my hair had gotten, and how they loved it. Typically, I only concern myself with my opinion, but since I didn't have a mirror, I put my Dr Jekyll/Mr Hyde hair into a side braid (bad idea). 

Lesson Learned: Don't go trying a new technique and a bunch of new products out when you have somewhere to go.

WHAT I DID LEARN ABOUT A BLOW DRY/BRAIDOUT:

You will be shocked to find this out (if you didn't already know). Don't be afraid to spritz water on blow dried hair when looking to do a defined texture! It's not easily reverted once it has been blow dried straight. The water is needed in order to "set" the texture (braidout/twistout).

So after that night's hair episode, the days following that, I decided to spritz my hair with water, and re-braid. The outcome was soft, well defined, moisturized braidout with lots of definition, shine, and length. Due to the stronger definition, a little bit of length was lost, but my hair still hung down the upper part of my back. I wish that I had taken pictures, but I was so busy that I forgot. I recall getting a lot of questions like "is that your hair?", and "I love your hair"...definitely wish that I had captured that on camera!

WOULD I CHOOSE TO BLOW DRY MY HAIR FOR A BRAIDOUT AGAIN?

Not really. The end result can be achieved without heat. Each day, a braidout can be lengthened by braiding on top of the previous textured hair (in smaller sections). This would provide a longer, high textured braidout. Usually, by day 4, the hair is stretched to the maximum.

Manually Stretched/Braidout

Blown Out/Braid Out

What's your favorite braidout style? Fluffy and Big, or Laid Down flat, and Long? I truly love the versatility of coily hair.