Author: Sarah Fynn

Hello there and welcome to my blog! My name is Sarah Fynn and I am the creator of this blog. So a bit about me, I LOVE travelling, all things hair and beaut. I love LOVE science! This blog came about as I began to transition to natural hair way back in 2011(Well it isn’t that long ago really lol). This blog will focus on 4 main areas Natural Hair. This area will have a diverse range of topics e.g. product reviews and recommendations, tips, advice and virgin hair review (my go to protective style) Lifestyle. This area is mainly poetry, inspiration and anything that doesn’t quite fit the other 3 areas Events. This is self-explanatory really. I will be covering events for my blog about natural hair, beauty and fashion or the odd event I find interesting Travel. Of course I will be bringing you posts on my adventures around the world! One of my goals is go to every single country! My travel posts may not be as regular as I would like (money problems lol) so in the meantime I will be talking about how to budget/plan and organise a trip! With any area, my aim is to INSPIRE you to either travel or go to an event even if it’s you alone, or to let you know your natural hair journey CAN BE SIMPLE! (Eek! I will try my bestest with that part)! Here you will find simple and straight forward information without the technical jargon or wooh-tah (seriously don’t you just hate that?) So don’t be a stranger and SUBSCRIBE its free. I make sure I post regularly unless I have had a very stressful week/month. Leave any comments or drop me an email to say hi, I would love to hear from you. If you’re a company/blogger and you’re interested in working with me, believe I want to too! Drop me an email if I don’t get to you first lol (I hope that doesn’t sound creepy) Email- sarah_fynn@hotmail.com Thanks for visiting and have a blessed day. Love Sarah.

CLEANSING SERIES: CO-WASHING

Welcome back to the cleansing series. So this is the second instalment and we will be discussing co-washing! If you haven’t already, check out the 1^st post in this series on shampoo >> http://wp.me/p1uQOd-za so let’s get started!

Co washing, simply put is cleansing your hair with conditioner. Most naturals prefer this over shampooing because it is perceived as more moisturising and gentler. In fact most natural adopt this technique when trying to shy away from shampooing all together. The process is no different than if you used shampoo: just apply the conditioner as you would to cleanse the scalp. I’m not sure where it originated from but there are a number of products that some naturals swear by to get the job done. I will give you a list at the end

DEVIL’S ADVOCATE

So would you do it? I mean is it like washing your dirty clothes with fabric conditioner? Would shower with lotion only? But what if it was a cleansing conditioner or lotion? I was very sceptical of this technique for the same reason as most: is it effective? Will it remove product build up? Trust me there is nothing worse than spending minutes washing your hair and letting it air dry only to find your scalp is not clean!

CO-WASHING CONDITIONERS

Is every conditioner meant to for co-washing? Yes and No. Yes because you can use some regular rinse out conditioners which may or may not contain the same ingredients as ones specifically for co-washing. No because using deep conditioners as a co-wash is a big NO, NO. They will coat/stick to the hair and could potentially lead to product build up

I started out using regular conditioners as a co-wash and it turned out ok. Remember to co-wash only if you have light/minimal build up because it is not likely it will remove heavy build up! It is perfect for when your hair is feeling a bit dry and there isn’t too much build up. You can simultaneously detangle, co-wash and condition your hair!

Examples of Co-Wash conditioners

Cantu Complete conditioning co-wash- I have used this once and it did a good job of cleansing my hair and scalp but I didn’t really see a major difference in softness. But it’s worth a try. Its £3.69

As I am coconut co-wash cleansing conditioner- I have heard a lot about this product and apparently it’s really good. I am not sure if you can get it here in the UK though (2 secs, let me check, Amazon for £8.99)

Shea Moisture Coconut&Hibiscus Cowash, £12.99

Palmer’s olive formula co-wash cleansing conditioner, £4.99

Pantene Pro-V truly natural hair co-wash cleansing conditioner, £9.99

3 sisters of nature cleansing cowash, £5.99

All the above can be got from beautybyzara> http://www.beautybyzara.com/search.php?search_query=co+wash&Search

My DNA hydrating co-wash, £6.95

Keracare naturals honey shea co-wash, £8.99

Those two can be bought from BritishCurlies > http://shop.britishcurlies.co.uk/search.php?search_query=co%20wash

DIY LOVERS- for a while, I used a mix of conditioner, a bit of shampoo and argan oil and it worked like a charm. Maybe you could try that and let me know how it goes! Remember all my tags are under the social tab!

Do you co-wash? What’s your fav product? Let me know below

That’s all folks! The next part in this series will be on cleansing clays so stay tuned! Thank you for the feedback I’m getting, I will keep these posts coming.

Until next time

Love Sarah

Curly By Nature

Hey family, so it’s another product collection. This time from the UK! I decided to add some UK brands to this series to inform you guys of alternative brands. I know some of us really want to support and buy UK based brands but don’t know where to start so hopefully this can help you. I will try to add as many UK based businesses as possible. Let’s get to it then

Curly By Nature was created by Klerissa McDonald and promises to offer you the best tools in treating and beautifying your hair by providing you with simple healthy hair care methods and natural hypoallergenic products. For those who may be wondering, it is black owned too.

The full product collection include

Hair Repair Oil

Moisture shampoo

Intensive conditioning mask

Nourishing gloss balm

She also offers a healthy hair kit which includes everything expect for the nourishing gloss.

She also offers a personal hair consultation online.

The description says

Experienced haircare specialist Klerissa McDonald (founder of award winning British brand Curly By Nature) will conduct an in-depth analysis of your personal hair history, health, preferences and ultimate hair goals. After completing an in depth assessment (online part 1) and a short but in-depth discussion or practical session (one to one online video) you will receive a Personalised Healthy Haircare Prescription. This will feature your own tailored specific advice and effective tips to achieve your ultimate healthy haircare goals accompanied with a list of recommended high quality products, tools and accessories you may choose purchase at a discount 35% (TRY ME KIT is INCLUDED).

For more information by this brand, please visit their website > http://www.curlybynature.com/

For more UK based natural hair brands, please visit > http://www.unitedkurls.com/

That’s all folks. I hope you guys found this useful. I have more UK based product collections so stay tuned!

Until next time

With love

Sarah

Event: Happy Hair pop up shop

Hey guys another event for your diaries!

What?

Happy hair day pop up shop is targeted at parents who are in need of help with their kid’s mixed race curls or afro hair. Hairduction expert Sal, will be on hand to help you with all your hair questions. New products will be launching on the day and live product demos!

Where?

The Tabernacle
34-35 Powis Square
W11 2AY London
United Kingdom

When?

Saturday, 18^th and Sunday 19^th of July 2015

Tickets?

Tickets are free but pre- register online on Eventbrite. Direct link >> http://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/happy-hair-day-pop-up-shop-for-kids-with-kinks-and-curls-tickets-17496335009?aff=es2

Although this event is aimed at parents, I am sure you can go along to learn if you have the free time (maybe for later on in lifeJ)

That’s all folks, let me know if you plan on going and how it went. Off I go to search for more events

Until next time

Love

Sarah

NUNAAT CREAM GARLIC AND CUPUACU REVIEW

Hey guys! I hope everyone is doing ok so far. How is your summer going? Good I hope.

So as promised, there is the final full review for the NAAT cream Garlic and Cupuacu I purchased from the WITJ2015 event ( if you missed the event, you can read my event cover by clicking this link >> http://wp.me/p1uQOd-wx ). Ok so let’s get started!

Before I get into details, here’s what nuNaat have to say about the product:

NAAT Cream Garlic & Cupuacu is ideal for brittle hair. Specially formulated to strengthen and repair cuticles, leaving hair softer, healthier and completely revitalized. The perfect treatment for split ends.

BENEFITS

Deep moisturizing in 5 minutes or less

Suitable for daily use, in place of conditioner

One for every hair need

Can be combined to create a customized formula for your hair type

So does it live up to it?

YES. From the first use, I noticed a lot less shedding and my hair was left softer. I like that it doesn’t have any garlic or harsh smell. What I love the most though? Is the size, a full 1kg worth of goodness which provides 50+ applications (description on tub)! I think I got a bit carried away and I have now fully realised how much I saturate (over) my hair with conditioner when it comes to conditioning! I have used it four times now, and I think I have a bit more left for another 3 or 4 applications! (Tut tut, Smh Sarah).

For a blast of protein, I mixed one egg with the Naat cream and left on for about 30 minutes and my hair was strengthened with less shedding too. I’m not sure about the split ends as I don’t have any (well that’s what I think lol) and I haven’t noticed any difference in the state of my ends whilst using this product.

Verdict

It’s definitely worth it! We naturals are notoriously known to use more conditioner that anything else so I am happy that this comes in a bigger size! I think I am set for the rest of the year for conditioner, between the others I already had and these NAAT creams (I got 3 for £10 pounds from the event!), I am definitely good.

It also has good slip for finger detangling should you wish to multi use this product or condition before you cleanse.

I am not sure where you can purchase this yet in the UK (sorry guys) and I can’t seem to find it in on Amazon too. Anyway if you happen to come across it or you have been wondering about it then give it a go, you won’t regret it!

Check out the other creams in the range, watch the video below for a full explanation on them

That’s all folks, now moving onto the next NAAT cream and of course I will report back to you as usual. Until next time

Love

Sarah

nuNAAT REAL ME CURL TO COIL COLLECTION

Another one for team natural and team product junkies!

Hey guys, so I’m back with another product collection for natural haired folk! The purpose of this is to bring to your attention (But I’m sure you guys know most of these already) the products out there for us. So if you are thinking of transitioning and becoming natural, this will give you an idea of what to look for in shops, online etc. if you’re a natural and you’re looking for a new product/ brand to try out then this series is also for you! There are many collections here on my blog, be sure to have a good look around and take your pick 🙂 from Cantu to Palmer’s!

So today we are talking about the nuNAAT REAL ME CURL TO COIL collection. This collection has 6 products in total and promises to tame frizz and maximize natural styles.

Each product in this collection contains their exclusive join complex which contains natural argan, avocado, coconut, macadamia, pracaxi oils and green collagen. They say it’s
free of sulfate, parabens, sodium chloride and no harsh chemicals and is great for transitioners, chemically treated, relaxed hair as well as natural hair of course.

So the full range are as follows

Perfect do pomade

Pick me up sheen

Natural curl activator

Blast of shine hair mask

Real moisture conditioner

Lather up and hydrate shampoo

I do not own any of the products but don’t worry I have some videos for you from YouTube.

Twist out demo/ product review

Natural curl activator and perfect do pomade demo

Hair story ft nuNaat

perm rod set

So it looks like a good collection from the videos I have watched and now I want to try it too lol. The only thing is, it doesn’t include a leave in conditioner! What a bummer! Its not the biggest collection I have seen but it does have the essentials. Here in the UK, you can purchase the full collection online at British Curlies > http://shop.britishcurlies.co.uk/nunaat/ . for more information on any of the products, please visit the NuNaat website >> http://www.nunaat.com/products/real-me-curl-to-coil/?cat=327

That’s all folks! If you have any of the products let me know how it’s working for you! And which one will you recommend if you could only choose one? Connect with me on my social media, all the links are on the right hand side under the social tab. If you are enjoying this series please subscribe so you don’t miss a thing!. There’s more to come.

Until next time

Love

Sarah

CANTU FOR NATURAL HAIR

Hey guys! Welcome back

So quickly this post will be a 1^st look at some of the products Cantu sent me. Guys look at my Cantu collection its growing lol!

So I bought most of them with my money expect of the 3 I am about to tell you about. They sent me

Coconut oil shine and hold mist

Curl activator cream

Grow strong strengthening treatment

So from my understanding, the coconut oil shine and hold mist is like a spray leave in conditioner. On the bottle it says it provides lasting moisture and shine and rehydrates and refreshes curls. The curl activator cream is pretty much straight forward and I plan on using this for a twist out soon. The strengthening treatment is a cream which can be used daily to moisturise and strengthen the hair. It also protects from heat damage. So maybe you could use this as your daily hair cream.

I really like the whole Cantu for natural hair line! They smell SO GOOD. For more information about the whole line and the product list, check out my previous post >> http://wp.me/p1uQOd-yF

I am planning a Cantu wash day soon! I really need to get the deep treatment masque then I will be set lol. Until then, I will be using the coconut oil shine and hold as a leave in spray under my wigs and I will report back to you! I was really confused on this product, because it says ‘hold’ in the name I thought it’s more like a hold spray that you would you set your hair styles. The curl activator cream feels a bit sticky and kinda thick for a lotion. This will probably be very good for wash and go’s for type 4 hair.

That’s all folks, really quick post to let you know about the products. Thank you Cantu for sending me the stuff and I can’t wait to use them! You can get the full range of the Cantu for natural hair line online at BeautybyZara >> http://www.beautybyzara.com/cantu/

That’s all folks,

Until next time

Love

Sarah

NAILBOX UK

Hey family! Welcome back to my blog. So this post is for my nail polish lovers! If you crave the latest nail polish and hottest colours and you live in the UK (I think this service is available in the US, I’m not sure) then stay tuned!

So the lovely people at Nailbox sent my 1^st nail box yesterday! Nailbox is a monthly subscription service that sends you a box with 3 or 4 of the latest nail colours and 1 or 2 nail tools from the most recognisable brands in the nail industry ( I’m sure you like your Essie’s, OPI’s and China glazes right?!).

Look at April’s issue of Nailbox!!!!!!

I received June’s Nailbox and look at what I got!

My very first Essie nail polish! Value- £8.99 (Everyone knows this brand, they are really good but I can’t justify spending 9 pounds on nail polish! So if you are like me, then of course you know what to do… don’t worry I will tell you where to sign up later! Lol)

Tanya Burr. Value £5.99

Nails INC gel effect value £15.00!! (I just had to add the exclamation for extra effect! my very first gel nail polish, can’t wait to try this out)

Seche Vite £9.00 (I heard this does wonders! From a close friend too)

Elegant touch cuticle nipper. Value £4.09

Total- £43.07! I checked the prices using Boots, Superdrug and Debenhams

Fancy paying A WHOLE LOT LESS? Stay tuned!

Nailbox offers 4 different payment plans to suit your needs. They all contain 5 nail polishes and free Royal Mail 48 tracked delivery! Boxes are sent out on or around the 21^st of each month. I am not sure when the payment will be taken out of your account.

Payment plans

A month to month plan will cost just £15 which will be charged monthly

3 month prepay plan, £14.50 per month. £43.50 will be charged every 3 months

6 month prepay plan, £14.00 per month, £84.00 will be charged every 6 months

12 month prepay plan, £13.50 per month, £162 will be charged every 12 months

You can see whatever plan you choose; it will never be more than the Nail INC nail polish! This is very good value for money!

Sounds great Sarah, where do I sign up?

You can subscribe via their website >>https://nailbox.co.uk/ (Thank you so much Sarah!!! Lol)

I will bring up updates once I use the polish and let you know how they work. For swatches or anything else, make sure you follow me on my social media, all the links will be under the social tab!

That’s all from me folks, I hope you guys are enjoying your summer so far.

Until next time

Love

Sarah

CLEANSING SERIES: SHAMPOOS

Hey guys, welcome back! So we are starting a new series on the different ways on how to cleanse your hair. Please check out the previous series on conditioners. It has a lot of information and product recommendations (Who doesn’t love that?)

Let’s start off with shampoos, something every natural loves to hate! Is shampooing our hair really that bad? I mean when we had relaxed hair did we not happily reach for our shampoo? (I am assuming we didn’t mind that) so why is shampooing now one of the most horrid words you could say to a natural lol along with creamy crack and heat!

CHECK THE LABEL!

Sure every shampoo is different but if you look at the commonly used ingredients you will find these

Ammonium Chloride
Ammonium lauryl sulfate
Glycol
Sodium laureth sulfate
Sodium lauryl sulfate
Sodium lauroamphoacetate
Polysorbate 20 aka PEG(20)
Polysorbate 80 aka PEG(80)
PEG-150
Citric acid
Quaternium-15
Polyquaternium-10
Di-PPG-2 myreth-10 adipate
Methylisothiazolinone, or MIT

The dreaded S words! Naturals are notoriously known to try and stay away from Sodium Sulfate and parabens too (among a bunch of other scary words lol) why? Were we not reaching for the same sulfate as relaxed girls? Sulfate is the main reason your shampoo is able to cleanse effectively. It is powerful enough to penetrate dirt and oil and remove product build up. Unfortunately it also removes the natural oils of the hair…….. (ooo that’s why) causing it to be drier and frizzier and more prone to breakage. It is painfully irritant (Just let a tiny bit get into your eye) and can also dry out the skin (especially if you wash your hair in the shower and you let the water/foam down your body, although this is impossible to avoid lol. Anyone also notice if they spend a while in the shower washing their hair they can become very itchy?)

So now that we know shampoo is evil! Lool. What happens now? What if I mistakenly use it?!!!!

Well for starters, we have been using shampoos for years but our hair grows FINE so I really don’t think it’s THAT bad (After all, that’s why conditioners were made) but I do think moderation is key. Personally I still use sulfate containing shampoo (horror face) but once in a while when I really want to remove EVERRRYYYTHANGG lol.

SULFATE FREE SHAMPOO

So on the market recently are sulfate free shampoos that promise to do the trick without the dreaded ingredients. So what is in these shampoos that make them effective if not as effective as their sulfate containing counterparts (Are they as effective? Let me know)

And are they really sulfate free or are manufacturers choosing slightly different chemicals and re – naming them and branding them as healthier to driver sales hmm? No doubt in recent years the amount of sulfate free shampoos have increased! Actually it seems any product that is labelled *insert chemical perceived as evil here* free has doubled on the shelves in recent years!

So what ingredients should you be looking out for when it comes to sulfate free shampoo? According to Innersense, these are the chemicals you should be looking for and staying away from

Glucosides, Lauryl Glucoside

Taurates and Fatty Acid Isethionates

Glutamates, Amino Acid Sulfosuccinates

Stay away from products that claim to be sulfate-free but contain the following ingredients:

Cocamide DEA, Cocamide MEA

PEG’s, PEG8

Propylene Glycol

Cocamidopropyl Betaine and Hydroxysultain

I haven’t used many sulfate free shampoos in my day, as a matter of fact I have only used two, Aubrey Organics GPB Glycogen protein balancing shampoo lavender ylang ylang and Dr. Miracle conditioning shampoo. And I used these years apart! The Aubrey when I first became natural about 4 years ago and the Dr. Miracle now (it seems I’m in love with the sulfate lool see what I did there). I won’t say my hair has been in the best state in those years between and even now but I will not contribute that to the shampoo alone.

WHAT HAPPENS NOW?

It’s up to the individual to decide if they want to carry on using regular shampoo or switch to sulfate free. I say just use in moderation. If you want to make the switch check out some recommended ones below although I can’t vouch for most of these personally lol, you would have to carry out further research on them.

Aubrey Organics, GPB Glycogen protein balancing shampoo lavender ylang ylang. Its such a long time I used this so I can’t remember how it made my hair feel. All I remember is the price lol, it was £5 pounds on sale from the usual price of £9.99 (ouch). You can get online for £10.51

Dr. Miracle conditioning shampoo. I still use this and I love it very much. It has a tingling sensation as with most if not all Dr. Miracle products. It lathers up ok and gets the job done. Its £2.99 from most BSS

Dark and lovely Au Naturale: Moisture L.O.C sulfate free cleansing shampoo for £6.99

Design Essentials Almond and Avocado moisturising and detangling sulfate free shampoo for £8.50

NuNaat Real Me Lather up and hydrate shampoo for £7.99

Mixed Chicks sulfate free shampoo for £13.90

All these can be purchased on British Curlies (http://shop.britishcurlies.co.uk/sulfate-free/?sort=featured&page=1)

A great alternative to shampoos are natural shampoo bars. Great ones are African black soap and shea butter soap. I recently received shea butter soap from a company called Mon Shea to review and I must say I love it so much. I actually used it today as part of my wash day and washing my hair has never been so easy! (Why didn’t y’all tell me about the ease of use with shampoo bars? Smh lol) Anyway a first look at the company (On the blog already, read it here > http://wp.me/p1uQOd-ys and a full review will be coming soon. In the meantime check out their website for great alternatives for your hair and skin care needs. http://monsheabutter.co.uk/

If after all of this you are now completely off shampooing all together lol, don’t fret! This series is all about providing you with the different ways to cleanse your hair! Watch out for the next instalment which will be on co-washing.

That’s all folks, I really didn’t think it will be a long one but as I started doing my research I realised I would not be doing you guys any justice if I didn’t include some details. For more information on ingredients or anything please check Google lool. Otherwise here are a few references/websites I used today

http://www.xovain.com/hair/do-you-need-to-worry-about-sulfates-in-your-shampoo

https://en.wikipedia.org/?title=Shampoo

http://www.tightlycurly.com/Ingredients.aspx

Until next time

Love

Sarah

nuNAAT GARLIC MAGIC COLLECTION

Hey loves, welcome back to my blog! So I hope everyone is enjoying the lovely weather we have here in the UK so far! What have you been up to? Beach? London Town? BBQ?

Anyway so this post will be about the nuNAAT Garlic magic collection nuNAAT sent me to review. This will be an introductory/first look post to give you more information about the collection and also where you can purchase it in the UK. After using it for about 4 times (You know the drill), I will report back with my thoughts! Shall we?

This is what nuNAAT says about the collection:

If your hair is slow to grow and you are frustrated and confused; we understand. You know your hair’s hidden potential and we’ve mastered helping you achieve it. NAAT Garlic Magic is developed with garlic extract and will restore your hair to a strong, healthy and natural state. You may have concerns about your hair texture and its response to certain products; no need to worry, the NAAT Garlic Magic Collection is suitable for all hair types especially for those struggling with fragile, slow-to-grow hair.

BENEFITS Restores hair to a strong, healthy and natural state

Formulated with garlic extract

Fresh, clean scent. No garlic smell!

Fights dandruff, excessive oiliness and hair loss

Suitable for all hair types.

Ideal for slow-to-grow and fragile hair

So this collection will be very beneficial to anyone on a healthy hair journey but also a growth journey! It’s so frustrating to look at all your hair shedding/breaking down the drain especially when you are trying to grow it! So I am very happy I chose this collection to review! What’s more? The collection is suitable for all hair types! Relaxed or Natural!

The full collection is as follows

NAAT garlic magic shampoo

NAAT garlic magic conditioner

NAAT garlic magic hair mask

NAAT garlic magic leave in conditioner

Not the biggest, but it certainly ticks all the boxes for a collection that is designed to help strengthen your hair. I received all the products expect for the leave in conditioner! The only issue I can think of is the shampoo not been sulfate free but I plan on pre-pooing with the conditioner then follow up with the hair mask so it should be fine ( I would recommend that as well should you choose to try this for yourself).

What’s left now?

Well wash day is around the corner! Countdown to Sunday! That would be the first time I would have used it, looking forward to it! It doesn’t have a garlic smell! And these are good sizes (I swear nuNAAT gets the sizes right!) and the packaging is great too!

That’s all from me folks! For more information please check out the link below which will take you directly to the nuNAAT website > http://www.nunaat.com/products/naat-garlic-magic/?cat=331 .

You can purchase the full collection on BritishCurlies, link > http://shop.britishcurlies.co.uk/nunaat/

Until next time

Love

Sarah

Event: CFYH Brunch

Another event worth noting

Hey family, I hope everyone is enjoying this heatwave in the UK! It won’t last for long though and our summer will be over lol. So I am back with another event for your diaries, calendars, iCloud, and Google and whatever way you remind yourself of events lol. If you are in the natural hair gang (And I am assuming you are because you read this blog lol) you know Pelumi from CFYH or you know about the blog. I met her at Curlvolution 2015 (event cover >> http://wp.me/p1uQOd-ti ) and she’s really sweet and friendly. Anyway someone tagged me in a post of her natural hair event and you know I had to do my part to spread the word! So if you haven’t heard already, here are the details:

What?

CFYH intimate brunch discussing topics such as natural hair insecurities, Q&A sessions etc. Guests will receive full size goody bags!!!!

Where?

Hush Brasserie

Holborn

95-97 High Holborn, Camden, London, WC1V 6LF

When

Saturday 8^th August 2015 from 11AM

Tickets?

You can purchase tickets on Eventbrite. Ticket sales will end on the 6^th of August. £30.00 plus a £2.45 fee.

http://www.eventbrite.com/e/brunch-with-care-for-your-hair-tickets-17551872122

That’s all folks! I had to do this quickly and make sure you guys are updated with this event! For more information, visit the CFYH blog > http://www.cfyh.co.uk/2015/06/30/brunch-with-care-for-your-hair/

Let me know if you are going and what you will be wearing through my social media (All the links are underneath the social tab). I always get confused with ‘smart casual,’ honestly who invented that? Lol

Until next time

Love

Sarah