Well look who decided to blog again... *sideeyes myself*

I know, I know.. You're probably thinking, "Guuurl where the hell you been?" and I wish I had something deep to y'all. Like a life lesson or something so dope that people are gonna start quoting.. (I've always wanted to be quoted...)

No girl (or boy.....) I hate to disappoint but I've just been uninspired (and lazy) to write. However, I needed that hiatus to work out some other things in my personal life. Cuz 'ish' happens but that's life ..
I do however want to THANK YOU for still checking in on me and the blog, I truly appreciate the L.O.V.E. 

Good news tho!! 

I was honored to be in my first panel discussion about beauty standards and how it pertains to black people. The event is coordinated by Afrosvenska Akademin, which is a newly established project for young people of the African diaspora in hopes of promoting knowledge and self-awareness. 

I was excited and super duper nervous because it was a great challenge since I've never done anything like it before.
(I seriously hate public speaking. I used fake being sick in school just so I wouldn't have to hold a presentation lmao). 
Despite the fact that my nerves were all over the place and that I kinda forgot what I wanted to say (lol), I put my game face on and went up on that stage. 

I'm proud of myself for that.

Another post on the topic we discussed as well as my own thoughts will be up soon.

Love Always,
Yaya

When your hair just does what it wants...

You know that feeling when you're trying a new hairstyle for the first time. Crossing your fingers and hoping that it'll turn out just as cute as the picture you saw... And it turns out looking like "who did what and why?" Hahaha it feels like your hair is telling "Girl bye, that ain't gonna happen"  That's how I feel about wash'n'gos, it just doesn't work for my hair and it put everything in perspective because everything isn't for everyone.

I came across this hilarious video by Glamfun about wash'n'gos that I just had to share with you guys.

Love Always,
Yaya

STHLM ❤️ Curls- The Event

April 16 was THE day that Lydia (So Nappy and Kinky), Nandi (Hair of Heritage) and myself worked so hard for. It definitely paid off! The STHLM Loves Curls event was a great success with lovely people, amazing atmosphere and awesome food, it couldn't be any better.

Thank you to all of our sponsors for supplying us with wonderful samples for our gift bags, our guests were happily surprised.

And we cannot forget to thank Jamrock for hosting our first event. The food was delicious!

It felt awesome to know there's a growing interest in natural hair and I feel very hopeful about having more events in the future. We're already working on our next one!

Make sure to stay tuned and 'FOLLOW' @sthlmlovescurls on Instagram and 'LIKE' our Facebook page STHLM Loves Curls for updates on upcoming events.

Love Always,

Yaya

My Current Hair Regimen

Daily: 

Moisturize hair according to LOC-method 

Weekly:

1x Hot oil treatment; Co-wash 

1x DIY Hair Growth mix; moisturizing shampoo; deep condition; LOC

Monthly: 

1x Cleansing shampoo or ACV

I realized as I wrote this that I need to add more protein treatments to my regimen. I've tried Aphogee 2-step treatment and it worked great on my hair. Don't know why I haven't continued using it... I need to get back to it and do it every 6 weeks. 

Love Always,

Yaya

Purchasing a new product

When I find a new product line, I do my research first.

Check out reviews on company websites, blogs and YouTube before buying.

I want a product that I know I will benefit from and not because it's getting a lot of hype.

Make sure you know what your hair likes and dislikes, it should be beneficial to your regiment.

I check if the company or the stores if they offer any samples for free.

Stores often give out samples to customers before they have the products for sale.

If not, I buy sample sizes, travel kits if available or the smallest container from the company directly.

Purchasing sample size, at a reasonable price, is recommended because it won't be waste of money if you happen to not like it.

Finally, I look for products that have a unique value. For instance I'm interested in organic hair products which is hard to find in Sweden

The unique value should be the factor that made you interested in the product in the first place.

I hope that you found this helpful!

Love Always,

Yaya

STHLM <3 Curls Update!!!

I'm amazed and extremely excited about the response we've gotten about the STHLM <3 Curls event!!

Unfortunately, the list is now closed but we encourage you to sign up for the wait list in case of any sudden availability.

For my scandinaturals that made the list, can't wait to meet y'all!

Make sure to follow our blogs and IG account for further information.

Stay tuned for more!

Love Always,

Yaya

STHLM <3 Curls!

My Swedish Girls!! I've been dying to tell you a little, exciting plan that I've been plotting on with two other Swedish bloggers!

We have an healthy hair event coming up!! Join us for hair talk, mingle and yummy food. Oh yeah, you don't want to miss the surprises we have in store!

When: Wednesday, April 16

Time: 18.00-21.00

Place: Jamrock, Folkungagatan 128

It's RESTRICTED ENTRY so hurry and sign up because you don't want to miss it! 

DISCLAIMER: All participants have to pay for their own food but trust me, it'll be worth it!

Make sure to follow my partners:

Lydia

IG: @sonappy_kinky | Blog: sonappyandkinky.blogspot.com

Nandi

IG: @hairofheritage | Blog: hairofheritage.blogspot.com

(Blogging from my phone that's why I can't insert the link)

Hope to see you there! 

Stay tuned for more!

Love Always,

Yaya

NeoRoots- New Awareness

Before I went natural my hair was so unhealthy and I hardly knew what it looked or felt to wear it au naturale. I had a hard time seeing the beauty in my hair, sad but true, however that was my reality growing up. My hair always never left in its natural state long enough for me to appreciate it. And I don't blame my mom for that because she didn't know any better. 

I came across natural hair journey videos on YouTube of beautiful women who nurtured their beautiful kinks and curls, and wore it proudly and I was instantly inspired. 

Now I know that my inability to see the beauty in my hair stems from lack of knowledge and that's why it was easier to chemically treat it and keep it hidden. I came to realize that when I learn to nurture it, I inevitably start to love and appreciate my kinky and nappy roots. I'm definitely embracing this new awareness I have gained about my roots.

The video below features Kathleen Cleaver of the Black Panther Party explaining why they chose to wear their hair in its natural state. Although the Black Panthers were a political party, there were no political intent behind wearing afros except to promote natural beauty among black people. I feel like her words definitely hits home amongst the growing number of black women who are naturalistas.

Stay tuned for more, I have some exciting news coming by the end of this week. You don't want to miss it!

Love Always,

Yaya

I couldn't take it anymore..

My ends were a Hot. Mess. Split ends and single strand knots everywhere. I couldn't take it anymore, so I cut it all of!!

Okay not all of it, I did get kinda scissor happy and cut about 3-4 cm (1 1/2 inch) and about 6 cm in the back. I went from almost shoulder length to right under my ears. 

I washed and deep conditioned my hair the night before and then braided my hair in cornrows. The day after I blow dried my hair on low heat and then continued to trim my horrible ends.

I just had to get rid of that dead weight, start fresh and I'm LOVING it. It looks and feels so healthy again. I've done this before when I've avoided trimming because I wanted to retain length but that didn't help because my hair kept breaking off. I'm gonna start trimming probably every 2-3 months, stick to my hair regim and hopefully I'll see some length and thickness by summertime.

It feels great running my fingers through my hair!! 

Stay tuned for more!

Love Always,

Yaya

Swedish Naturalistas UNITE!!

I started an Instagram account not too long ago with the intentions of connecting Scandinavian Naturalistas. It's time for us to get our shine too!! I post pictures that are natural hair related but I really wanna see more Scandinavian beauties!! Make sure to follow @neoroots_se and tag pics #neoroots

And also there's now a Facebook forum called Afrotalk for all Swedish Naturalistas so make sure to follow them too. I deactivated my Facebook account about 2 years ago and had no plans on activating it again but I couldn't resist knowing that we got a growing platform for us online. I had to support, make sure you do too!!

More exciting news on the way!!!!!!

Stay tuned for more!

Love Always,

Yaya

My beloved Heat Wrap!

When you do a hair treatment such as deep conditioning and oil treatments, it's highly effective to incorporate heat because it causes the hair cuticle to open up and allows the product to penerate into the cortex. (Source: Blackhairinformation)

I bought my heat wrap on Amazon (<---- Click the link!) Make sure you purchase from the warehouse in the UK; amazon.co.uk because shipping is going to be cheaper.

These liquid filled cushion things (I clearly don't know what the correct name is.. But you get what I'm saying lol) can be heated in the microwave or on the stove. I heat them up for about 1-1.5 min in the microwave. 

The next step is to put the liquid things in the pockets of the wrap.

The big one is placed on top of your head, from forehead to nape and smaller ones are placed on the sides.

The texture of the wrap is similar to a towel. You have to put on a plastic shower cap before putting on the wrap.

This is what the package looks like.

Stay tuned for more!

Love Always,
Yaya

DIY: Onion & Rose Water Hair Growth Mix

As I mentioned before, I made three DIY (Do-It-Yourself) concoctions that I'm currently using on my hair.  In case you're not familiar with DIYs it  basically means creating or modifying something without any professional experience.

In this post I'm gonna tell you about the onion and rose water mixture.

Onions carries nutrients that are beneficial for hair growth such as; sulphur, folic acid, vitamin B6 and C.

The onion juice also has anti-bacterial properties, promotes blood circulation and if used religiously it can lead stronger hair and prevent scalp infections. (Source: StyleCraze)

I find it difficult juicing the onion since I'm using a blender, so I added some rose water because:

A. it helps to liquidize the onion. I use a blender and it helps to blend smoothly when liquid is added.
B. to somewhat disguise the smell because onions stink!! Although it didn't quite mask the smell entirely, it wasn't overpowering. (Depending on how much rose water you use.)

Rose water has it's own properties that will stimulate hair growth, moisturize, nourish hair, and also treats dandruff and scalp infections. It's perfect for stabilizing the hair porosity level as the pH balance of rose water is close to the ideal state of the hair. 

Click on the source for details on how to incorporate rose water into your beauty regim. (Source: StyleCraze)

Don't get me wrong.. You will probably still smell like OLW Grill Chips (my swedes know) with the solution in your hair and you have to make sure to thoroughly wash your hair afterwards.

I chopped up 1 small onion with the peel.

I then poured about 1 dl rose water 

Finally, I strained the mixture to get rid of the chunks.

Stay tuned for more.

Love Always,
Yaya

Wash Days...

Wash days... Sigh.. I don't like them. At all. It always takes FOREVER! I need to give myself a time limit, when to start and finish, also prep my DIYs (Do-It-Yourself products) and my hair the day before. I did do three DIYs last week, my results weren't the best but they'll work for now.

Let me tell y'all about the wash day I had this past Sunday.

1. I started off by finger detangling on dry hair. I usually finger detangle with conditioner in my hair but this time I didn't want to add anything so that my hair can be ready for the next step. 

2. I followed with my first DIY which is my onion juice and rose water mixture that I put in a spray bottle. I put on my heat wrap and left the mixture for about 40 minutes.

3. I rinsed out the mixture with lukewarm water and shampooed my hair with Aphogee Shampoo for Damaged Hair.

4. Since I was waaaay past my bedtime (aintnobodygottimefodat), I just did a quick deep condition with the heat wrap for 15 minutes.

5. I rinsed out the deep condition with cold water and dried my hair about 70% with an old tshirt. 

6. I use the L.O.C method when I moisturize my hair. 

Leave-in, I used my other DIY which was another mixture with rose water and a little Herbal Essence- Hello Hydration conditioner.

Next, I apply both Almond and Coconut Oil.

And finally, I use my last (failed) DIY, a Shea Butter Cream with Almond and Coconut Oil.

I ended my misery by putting cornrows in my hair that I wear underneath my wigs and keep for no more than 2 weeks.

I'm probably going to modify my routine a little and add a midweek routine because my hair is so dry lately and I'm really striving for thicker hair and stronger edges. I'll keep you posted!

After I've finger detangled my hair, I section it into four parts. #yesfilter

Wearing my heat wrap while deep conditioning. I will post information about in another post. #yupanotherfilter

I will have a separate post with information about my DIYs.

Stay tuned for more!

Love Always,

Yaya

I need to tell y'all...

About my obsession with Lupita Nyong'o! She's a absolutely beautiful, intelligent and talented young lady who made an amazing Hollywood debut in the movie "12 years a slave". It's a great movie based on a true story and if you haven't seen it, GO SEE IT NOW!!! (Make sure to bring tissues).

I love seeing her being celebrated in Hollywood, she's become the new It-girl. On top of that she's a fellow naturalista and looks incredible in her low cut hairstyle.

Stay tuned for more!

Love Always, 

Yaya

I just wanna say...

A big THANK YOU to all my new and old readers!! I'm sending all you lots of love and appreciation because even though I haven't posted in a while, you still check in on me and I appreciate it. I see y'all!! :-) And don't forget to write me a comment, I would love to hear from you :-)

I needed some time off to just reflect on this past year and my goals for the future. I definitely plan to step it up a notch when it comes to my blog so I hope you'll stick around. 

Hope you all are off to a great start this year and I wish much success moving forward!

            2014, I'm ready for you...

Stay tuned for more.

Love Always,

Yaya