The reality is, everyone won't stay natural...and that's perfectly okay.

Good morning! So I've noticed lately that there has been buzz from different forums, youtube channels, blogs, and various other forms of media, that the whole team natural vs team relaxed is causing "separation" in the black community. I'm sooo tired of hearing, reading, and talking about this with people. This is a slight rant and I surely don't want to bore you with my thoughts but I have a little something to say about it. We (as in our ancestors, our community, the generation we grew up in, etc) black folks have been struggling for so long, with so many things, just by "being" in our own country. I won't go there, but with this hair care revolution that's going on, the information we have is from our own research, our own digging, our own question asking, our own concoctions in the kitchen, our own barrier breaking, etc. No one gave this confidence to us, we gave it to ourselves! Wake up people! We are giving it to each other when we say to a fellow sista "love your hair!" or when that 55+ year old grown black man in a business suit, walks by me, while walking down the corridor in my office building at work, and says "Love the hair!" Sure, Madam CJ Walker did an abundance for our hair community. The conk, hot comb, 70s black pride movement, jherri curl, relaxer, etc, have given us the foundation for what our hair can do, can't do and what we shouldn't do to it, depending on our goals of what we want for it. I have been researching our hair care for going on 15 years, and I'm not bored YET. What I am bored with, is the constant, "we need to stop doing this and start doing that", "Nobody needs to go back to the creamy crack", "why would anyone relax their hair?" All the while being natural for five minutes and now you are an expert. I'm sick of it. HEALTHY hair care is my passion, I don't give a dang how one chooses to wear it. Find what works for YOU and yours. What we need to do, is what suits OUR lifestyle. What we need to do, is stop allowing the media to shape our opinions of what WE should do, be, look like, etc. What we need to do, is teach our little girls that wearing a weave is perfectly fine, but make sure your hair underneath, is moisturized and doesn't look like a bird's nest, relaxed OR natural. What we need to do is teach our little girls some self confidence and not that you can't leave the house because "yo hair ain't done". My hair is natural, yes, however, I texturized (relaxed) my hair in 2009 because it's what I wanted to do. I started transitioning again in 2011 and in Feb 2015, I will be 4 years natural again (previously natural from 2001 to 2009). The youtube/twitter/facebook media wasn't as big back then, as it is now, and the only sources I and many other women had, were my books, printouts, and fellow forum friends. Those books, printouts and forum friends helped me to understand(way back then) that there are those who want chemical free natural virgin hair, and there are those who want relaxed straightened smooth hair. My good friend is texlaxed and she loves it. Not only has she learned how to take care of it,and it's thriving (currently bra strap length, thick and healthy), but she has learned that she doesn't have the time in her life right now, TO experiment with transitioning, going natural, etc. She and I talk on a regular basis about this stuff. Because of the nearly 15 years of info under my belt, she's not intimidated by the conversation of haircare, relaxed or natural. Because we work together every day, we have lunch together, we keep each other's kids, etc, hair becomes part of our convo. The average person, however, would hear us talking and immediately are like "that's too much", "ain't nobody got time", "this natural hair stuff is too complicated". And I agree! The whole media take on it has made it just that, complicated. Cray cray part? It's not. It's so simple that I could just cry at everything I'm seeing going on. Hence my blog name. I love history and if there is nothing else that you remember from this post, remember that history ALWAYS repeats itself and those who don't know history are doomed to repeat it. I say this because we have SO MUCH good information out here about hair care, in 2014, but there's still plenty of bad info. We still have product junkyism, people still looking for the magic in a bottle. People trying to achieve the perfect twistout, braidout, etc instead of rocking that chunky fro, non-defined hair, or low kinky bun or puff. People who are relaxed have learned that wearing a no heat, flat twistout and/or braidout is the BUSINESS...just to see wand curling irons fly off the shelves like those curls are going to last longer than 5 minutes. Many of us who started out on hair forums, were trying to figure out how to stop spending so much money and not to mention time, in the salon, etc. We wanted to find ways to wear our hair without the use of so many heat tools, etc. Before the age of internet video, we had to endure the bad hair days, experiment, making it do what it do. All we had was curl activator, gel, shampoo, simple conditioners, etc. Now there are so many "natural" hair puddings, custards, souffles, butters, etc that I can't even keep up. I sometimes feel bad for many of those who knew nothing before youtube. Don't get me wrong, I am a youtube fanatic, but some vids are just too much. About 7 or 8 years ago, we used to joke that the beauty supply stores would start selling our own kinky texture to us and we would buy it. Sure enough, there's more Marley hair, kinky straight, etc, on the shelves, and the prices are ridiculous! I could go on and on about what I see these days, but I won't. Maybe I'll write a book about it lol. It's way too much to type right now. I need for us to pump the brakes, breathe, and think about what we want and what fits our lifestyles in regard to hair care. I love healthy hair, relaxed or natural. I'm even thinking about changing my blog name. I need for us to know that this hair thing doesn't have to take over our lives. Our options are endless. We can weave it, cut it, grow it, color it, do it everyday, do it once a week, leave it alone, etc. We need to understand that there are SOOO many other things that we need to be focusing on. Our hair is BEAUTIFUL thing, no one can feel that more than me. I just need for us to KNOW that and stop trying to "fix it" because of what someone else is saying about it, whether that be "us" or not "us". I'll say it and keep saying it...DO YOUR RESEARCH, don't buy something just because a guru has it posted all over their website, blog, facebook page or youtube channel. Wear your hair the way it fits your lifestyle. If you live in Arizona, extra dryness will be factor. If you live in California, not so much. If you have 3 kids and are a stay at home Mom who home schools, you may not have "experiment time" and may need to rock protective styles, depending on if you are growing your hair out, or keeping it short, relaxed or natural. If you exercise 5 out of 7 days in the week, you WILL need to wet your scalp more to keep the nasty sweat and drying salt out of your hair. THINK people, please just sit back and THINK. (post all over the place, lol, hops off soapbox and wakes up the toddler)

Healthy haircare essentials

So one of my favorite hair care gurus is Naptural85, like y’all don't already know with how I am repping her every time I get a chance, in real life and online. She posted a video not too long ago about her natural hair essentials by way of tools, not products. I am so glad she posted this video because I think so many get caught up in products, that they forget about the items they use on a daily basis to keep their hair in order. The purpose of this blog post is just to have a little fun in comparing what I use to what she uses. I was doing this while at work and trying to listen to the video, so forgive me if I missed anything in her list on her video. Also, please excuse the typos.😉

Naptural85 uses the following: ---Curlformers, Ribbon ties, Satin scarves and pillowcases, beanie caps, bobby pins, shower mirror, spray bottle, wide tooth comb, Denman brush (modified), large shower cap, hair shears, duckbill clips, head scarves, hair catcher for the drain, drain snake, boar bristle brush, plastic processing caps, baby toothbrush, oversized claw clip--- The majority of everything she uses, I do, in fact use. I'll just go down the list and compare mine to hers. I'll also add some notes that I feel have been my essentials throughout the years: Curlformers - I tried the short knockoff version (Magic Leverag) of these years ago, couldn't get the hang of them, gave them away. After watching Whitney's vid, found the longer knockoff version for a ridiculously low price on Amazon ($12 for 40 magic leverag/curlformer knock offs ok?), used them, and had great success. Had I used a roller setting lotion, they would've last longer than one day LOL. Ribbon ties - I really like these, but I love my Satin scrunchies a lot better. ;) The ribbon ties I found were from Dollar Tree ($ 1 for either 5 or 6 in a pack) and recently I found some longer ones at Dollar Tree (about the size of a headband). These are GREAT for hair banding. ;) Satin scarves and pillowcases - I have about 4 to 5 satin pillowcases that I keep on rotation for sleeping and lounging. My baby has one, too ;). I have been using them since I was about 16 yrs old. I'm 37 now, just to let you know how long I've been sleeping on a satin pillowcase. It's a not so long story, maybe I'll post it someday. ;) I don't wear satin scarves very often, but when I do, it's usually under a beanie cap to keep the friction to a minimum. I have some 100% silk scarves as well, by way of my wonderful Mom-in-law, may she rest in peace. beanie caps – Yes! I always felt strange for wanting to wear these in EVERY season. Nap85 approved, lol! bobby pins – But of course, nothing else needs to be said.  shower mirror – Don’t have one, probably won’t get one being that I have become a master at doing my hair with my eyes closed, in and outside the shower, lol.  spray bottle – A must. Point.blank.period. wide tooth comb – Still have mine, but I am LOVING finger detangling right now. I didn't use a comb AT ALL between April and the beginning July of this year, until I semi-straightened in July. Denman brush (modified) – Still have this, I use it for baby girl. large shower cap – Don’t have one, don’t really use them. I usually wrap a tshirt around my head in the shower and try not to get it wet. hair shears – Yes, I am most DEFINITELY a self-trimmer. duckbill clips – I have a few of these lying around, still looking for some good sectioning clips. I used claw clips, plastic duckbills, metal duckbills, etc and nothing has stuck around. I do however LOVE my “fake-care” or "fakkare" (knockoff / fake ficcare) clips, for those of you who know what those are. ;) I have about 3 or 4 of them (one that I’ve had for over 7 years finally broke and went to glory.) These are awesome as sectioning clips, as well as updos, decoration for a bun or French roll, etc. **Update** I recently found one at Ulta, called a Karina Flamingo clip. It was $7 bucks and worth every penny. I now have two of them as Ulta just recently had their $ 3.50 off $ 10 purchase coupon going on and I got another one, along with a really cute headband. I painted one of them with Sinful colors nail polish in midnight blue and it is gorgeous! head scarves – have plenty of these, but I don’t sleep in them. I may tie one around my head under a beanie or when I’m cleaning and just washed my hair and don’t want dust or debris to get it in. They usually are on the floor in the morning when I try to sleep in them. My satin pillow case does me just fine.  hair catcher for the drain – yes, I have had a few of these, and lost a few, but yes, they are definitely a necessity. drain snake – yes, I have one of these too. boar bristle brush – I’ve had the same one for years, I use it every so often, but not a necessity of mine. plastic processing caps – Good ol plastic grocery bags do the job for me. ;) baby toothbrush – just started using one of these, my edges still don’t really “lay”, though. oversized claw clip – Have broken way too many of these. I use my Flexi-8 clip to hold all of this stuff. So that’s it! I hope you enjoyed some of my random-ness. Until next time, Peace Love and (no) hair grease! 

Product Junky-Ism!!!...Nah, not really ;)

Happy New Year!  Hey all, I hope the new year has been a great start for you all!  I am really excited about the New Year and my on again, off again, hair journey.  My goal this year is to retain as much length as I can, for me and my 3 year old, as her journey started as soon as she was born. :)  She loves her hair and I do my best to let her know, as often as possible, how beautiful her coils/curls/kinks are.

So on to my post.  Throughout my hair journey of approximately 13 years (Wow), I have seen a lot, done a lot, and researched A LOT.  It's amazing how products and techniques have come and gone, ingredients have continuously changed, some good, some not so good, and new products and tools seem to pop up every day in relation to the natural hair movement, etc. 

But even with all of the changes, there is one thing that remains the same....Product Junky-Ism.  It's almost comical how when someone posts a youtube video, or something on twitter or a blog, about how a certain store is discontinuing a certain line of products, and folks go running, lol!  I'm serious because I have been there and saw that curl enhancing smoothie on clearance for $ 3.24, don't pick it up because I don't need it, I don't care how cheap it is, just to go back in that area and the shelf has been snatched clean.

With that being said, I am not a product junky and haven't ever been, but I have learned over the past decade that if you find something you REALLY love/like, make sure you have a back up.  Because if you don't, you will look up one day and see that your favorite conditioner/shampoo/leave-in/deep conditioner/butter/cream has been discontinued, or the ingredients have been changed for the worst. Been there done that...WAY too many times to count.  For example, my favorite butter of all time back in the day was Kemi Oyl Shea Butter Pomade.  Without warning, it became harder and harder to find, and with no replacement, there I was, stuck. Eventually, after trying shea butter, mango butter, shealoe butter, avocado butter and Carol's daughter healthy hair butter, the last two became my faves.  After CD became too expensive for s&h, avocado butter became my staple and is what I still use to this day. :)

Another example, good ol' original Creme of Nature shampoo.  Need I say more?  I use the new Argan oil, sulfate-free one, but I am considering switching from it as well, being that it is literally the ONLY product left in my bathroom that contains parabens.  Yay for me!  Another example, for those of you that remember Salon Selectives Loosely Defined, it was an awesome styler in the early 2000s and it was soooo cheap!  After it was discontinued, naturals had a really hard time finding a replacement.  Remember, all of this was before Miss Jessie's, Curls, Kinky-Curly, As I Am, Camille Rose, Jane Carter Solution, Shea Moisture, etc even hit the scene.

Today, we have SOOO many options, but that can lead to some serious product junky-ism and empty pockets. Many of the products on the market today are awesome, but expensive.  I mean, some of these prices are jaw-dropping!  It discourages a lot of folk.  Folk that don't know that straight up water and vaseline/blue magic, good ol' school grease, will do the trick. :)  Seriously, it will work, but I wouldn't use that either, not on a regular basis, just because I know what works for me.  Unfortunately, there are those still on the hunt and their bathroom closets, drawers and cabinets are running over.

With all that being said, I've learned, throughout this journey, that that there is nothing wrong with doing something nice for yourself, every now and again, even if that means splurging a little on a hair or body product.
The key is once you find something that works, stick with it, but again, there is nothing wrong with a little back up. :)

Three pounds of Avocado Butter, oh my!

Hey all! Ok, ya'll know I LOVE me some avocado butter. For those of you who have followed my journey from it's beginning in 2001 (wow, such a long time ago), you all know that my timeline went something like this: The Year was 2002, found Carol's Daughter Healthy Hair Butter and loved it! ------> became too expensive w/shipping, even after splitting cost w/ a friend that lived near me----> Fell in love with Kemi Oyl Shea butter pomade------> became harder and harder to find and order online--------------> Found fromnaturewithlove.com, tried a variety of butters like shea, shealoe, avocado **cheesing** and mango. Finished all of these containers to find that I was really feeling the avocado butter. The price, results, benefits...sold. So since then, which was around 2004 when I found avocado butter, it has been a STAPLE. Don't get me wrong, I have tried plenty of other "butter-esque" products since finding my AB (what I will refer to instead of typing "avocado butter" over and over again), and I tried making my own butter using oils, shea butter, Crisco (yep I tried it lol), etc, but have continuously come back home to my AB. So why this post? Well, through the years, I have consistently been ordering from ebay or etsy when it comes to my AB. I usually end up ordering from the same company or person. Off the top of my head, the person's name/company name on ebay and etsy is kessil2000. I have had zero problems from ordering from this person/company and the name of my AB is Dr. Adorable. The one thing I've noticed through the years is that they went from a bottle to a jar, which was PERFECT for me and I'm sure many others. I stopped ordering from fnwl.com because the prices seemingly skyrocketed overnight. I mean, I know it happens but I couldn't justify paying almost twice as much for something than I did the previous year. I know about supply and demand believe you me...PLUS...looking at all of the products on the shelves today, I can see, now, what was going on then. After trying a couple of other sites, I found etsy and ebay and the rest is history. So my favorite AB vendor is auctioning big containers of AB on ebay and I got a 3 lb. container for ((drumroll)) $ 26.50! Yes, I got 48 oz of AB for $26.50 (won the auction at $ 20.50 paid $ 6 s&h). Ya'll don't know how excited I was when that container showed up. As many know, I have a 3 year old girl child and she has a lot of hair. This bucket will last us for AT LEAST 2 years. I have always bought the 12-16 oz jars at about $10-12 dollars each, but THIS container? Need I say more? So that's it! Didn't mean to bore you guys but thanks for stopping by! :) Hope this helps out any AB junkies out there! ;)

Same hair product...by a different name?

Hey guys!  Ok, so I am back on hair maintenance and I have been sticking with my main products that I love like CON Argan Shampoo, regular ol' rinse out conditioner (mainly V05), my AO GPB as as a deep conditioner (when I have time!) and my avocado butter as a twistout, twist, braidout, braid, leave in product. I LOVE my avocado butter with a passion, I have been using it for about 8 years now and it will ALWAYS be a staple, as long as I can continue to buy it on Etsy :) :).

Anywhoo, on to my ramble of the day...
This next product (or products) I have to mention is the reason for the title of this blog post.  So, I love finding products that are cheap but effective.  I just never really got the whole "$ 50 for 2 oz of product" thing.  Don't get me wrong, I know that you get what you pay for, but c'mon. So I'm on youtube and I see a review for my Evoo and Moringa and the same reviewer mentions a product called "African Pride shea butter miracle bouncy curls pudding" and "African Pride shea butter miracle leave-in conditioner".  Now, I don't really use the "african" this and "african" that brand names, so I wasn't expecting anything special, but let me just say, whoever formulated this product was spot on.  The ingredients are seemingly pretty good and there is no mineral oil or petrolatum from what I can see.  I really like both products and what I REALLY like is that I got them for $3.45 at my local Fred's Dollar Store for 15 ounces!!   Yes, everyone that seems to be looking for it can only find it at Walmart (ugh, I don't do Walmart) and I have heard prices that range from $3.88 and up at Walmart.  For anyone that has a Fred's in their area, check it out, you'll be surprised at the wide range of products made for "us" there.  I also occasionally buy my castor oil at Fred's.  Walmart ain't always the cheapest ya'll. ;) ;)  African Pride also makes an "Olive Miracle" line but they contain Paraffinum Liquidum (Mineral Oil) and Petrolatum.  They are also cheaper (I have seen them as low as $2.69 at the beauty supply). :|

So, the African pride products are made by Strength of Nature, which also makes Elasta QP per their website.  A THIRD brand that they also make is Beautiful Textures per the Beautiful Textures website. Ya'll know I do my research, so check out the ingredients of Elasta QP Olive Oil and Mango Butter Curl Defining Pudding vs the Shea Butter Miracle Bouncy Curls pudding vs Beautiful Textures Curl Control Defining Pudding:

Beautiful Textures Curl Control Defining Pudding
Ingredients: Aqua, Glycine Soja Oil/Soybean Oil, Hydrogenated Vegetable Oil, Argania Spinosa Nut Oil/Argan Oil, Cocos Nucifera Oil/Coconut Oil, Olea Europaea Fruit Oil/Olive Oil, Butyrospermum Parkii Fruit/Shea Butter, Mangifera Indica Seed Butter/Mango Butter, Rosmarinus Officinalis Leaf Extract/Rosemary Extract, Dimethicone, Aloe Barbadensis Leaf Extract/Aloe Vera, Phenyl Trimethicone, Panax Ginseng Root Extract/Ginseng Extract, Glycerin, Polyquaternium 11, Steareth 2, Steareth 20, DMDM Hydantoin, Imidazolidinyl Urea, Sodium Carbomer, PEG 150 Distearate, PEG 12 Dimethicone, CI 15985/Yellow 6, Parfum/Fragrance, Benzyl Benzoate, Benzyl Salicylate, Coumarin, d-Limonene, Hexyl Cinnamal, Lyral, Methyl Ionone Gamma.

Elasta QP Olive Oil and Mango Butter Curl Defining Pudding
 Aqua, Glycine Soja Oil/Soybean Oil, Hydrogenated Vegetable Oil, Olea Europaea Fruit Oil/Olive Oil, Mangifera Indica Seed Butter/Mango Butter, Argonia Spinosa Nut Oil/Argon Oil, Cocos Nucifera Oil/Coconut Oil, Butyrospermum Parkii Fruit/Shea Butter, Rosmarinus Officinalis Leaf Extract/Rosemary Extract, Dimethicone, Aloe Barbadensis Leaf Extract/Aloe Vera Extract, Phenyl Trimethicone, Panax Ginseng Root Extract/Ginseng Extract, Glycerin, Polyquaternium 11, Steareth 2, Steareth 20, DMDM Hydantoin, lmidazolidinyl Urea,Sodium Carbomer, PEG 150 Distearate, PEG 12 Dimethicone, Daucus Carota Sativa Root Oil/Carrot Oil, Parfum/Fragrance, Benzyl Benzoate, Citrai,Citronellal, d-Limonene, Geraniol, Lilial, Linalool.

African Pride Shea Butter Miracle Bouncy Curls Pudding 15oz
aqua,glycine soja oil/soy bean oil, hydrogenated vegetable oil, butyrospermum parkii fruit/shea butter, mangifera indica seed butter/mango butter, argania spinosa kernel oil/argan oil, cocos nucifera oil/coconut oil, olea eurpaea friut oil/olive oil,rasmarinus officinalis leaf extract/rosemary extract. dimethicone, aloe barbadensis leaf extract/aloe vera extract, phemyl trimethicone, pamax gingseng root extract/gingseng extract, aloe barbademsis leaf extract/aloe vera extract, glycerin, polyquaternium 11, steareth 2, steareth 20, DMDM hydantoin, imidazolidinyl urea sodium carbomer, PEG 150 diftearate, PEG 12 dimethicone, CI 15985/yellow 6, parfum/fragrance, benzyl benzoate, benzyl salicylate, coumarin, d-limoneme, hexyl cinnamal, lyral,methyl ionane gamma

Pretty darn similar, right?  I own the EQP and the AP Shea butter miracle and have seen the EQP at beauty supply stores for about $5.99 for 15 oz, which is still a great price, but I think the AP Shea Butter pudding will do just fine for me after the EQP is gone. :)

So, the rest of this blog will be about stuff I have run across while I have been trying to get my hair journey back on track (don't worry, my hair is doing AWESOME and growing back like weeds hee hee), I have been of course curious of all the NEW and NEW AND IMPROVED?? stuff that's circulating on youtube, blogs, etc.  I have never been a PJ, but I know it's easy to become one, especially with the literally THOUSANDS of products out here these days.  I have been fortunate and have been able to avoid it in my journey of the last 12 years.  That being said, I was low on my avocado butter so instead of ordering a new batch right now, I decided to check out some of the commercial products at the department store.

The first thing I did was check out youtube to see what some good recommendations were.  Anyone that knows me, knows I don't do expensive because expensive didn't get my hair to my tailbone before, so yeah...no.  First, I absolutely love Youtube's Naptural85's winter wash and go method with the oil rinsing. Love it, hands down.  I also love that she doesn't use a lot of products.  Just great methods, great information, gorgeous hair and minimal products. THAT'S how you do it. ;)

So I was in Walgreens one day and ran across the Nubian Heritage Evoo and Moringa line (that I have avoided like the plague since it hit the shelves because of those $11.99 and $13.99 price tags.) But this particular day, they had ONE jar of the Evoo & Moringa Repair & Extend Hair Butter...and it was on CLEARANCE.  Ya'll know I LOVE me some clearance.  It was $3.24 AND I had 1000 points on my Walgreens card that the clerk let me use, so I got it for $2.24.  Seriously, what was there to lose?  That being said, I took it home, tried it right out of the shower on a set of twists and I LOVED it.  It is almost the exact same consistency as my avocado butter but it has shea butter in it.  I am not a fan of shea butter but the consistency of the product just melts like butter in my hair, JUST like my avocado butter!  It also smells so good and citrus-y, like freshly squeezed lemons!  That being said, even though I really love the product, I will not repurchase it, because of the price.  Not when I can get a 12-16 oz jar of avocado butter for about 10-12 bucks, the same price as the Evoo and Moringa.  I am about halfway through the jar, so once it's gone, that will be it for me.  So on to the next...

Another product that I have been eye-ing was the newly revamped line from Eden Bodyworks.  I love the history behind the owner, and I didn't get a chance to try her products years ago before they were discontinued.  That being said, ya'll know I love a deal, so here was my scenario...

My Sally Beauty club card was set to expire in Sept 2013.  Those of you that have one, know that if you renew your card in the same month it expires, you get a $5 off coupon after you renew it, so it's like getting your money right back!  Also in Sept, Sally's was running a special on Eden Bodyworks.  You get $2 off any product.  So I went in to renew my card, I got my five buck coupon.  The next week, I went in and got the Eden BW Coconut co-wash and the Coconut Shea Curl Defining Creme.  They were $7.99 each, $2 off each and w/my $5 off coupon, I got both of them for about $7!  Once again, I hit gold.  The co-wash is great, it doesn't sud, which I didn't expect it to, but it does foam, which I love, because you can kind of squeeze the product through to the ends without wasting it, if that makes sense.  The curl pudding, on the other hand, the jury is still out.  It smells great, the consistency is good and moisturizing, but don't expect any good hold.  I don't think it's geared toward hold anyway. :)  Overall, the co-wash is great and I would purchase it again, but I need to get it on a good sale. :)


So that's it, I hope this helps someone out, peace love and (no) hair grease! :)

Another (long ago) discontinued lovely

Ok, so I have been reallllly into nail polish as of late.  I am still in LOVE w/nail polish strips/stickers/appliques/nail dress/nail wraps, etc, but I have really been drooling over the endless blog swatches out here on the net.

This post today is just a random "I don't know how I got to that blog, or what I was searching for or looking at to end up there" type of post.  For all the nail polish fanatics out there...Clarins 230...need I say more?

I have been salivating over swatches of this absolutely-freaking-ridiculously gorgeous nail polish for about 2 days now.  The questions that keep popping up in my head are "How did they do that?"  "Why did they do that?"  "Why did they discontinue it?"  "Why can't I have it!?" and then the hunt on every craigslist, ebay, listia, swap board, etc starts.  Yeah, sure, you can get it on ebay for about $ 100 bucks...no, I don't want it THAT bad, but it's tempting.

This blog about the much-sought-after "Unicorn Pee", as it's called in the nail polish fanatic world, had me ROTFLMBO, you have to check it out! She sums it up in less than 3 paragraphs.
http://pretty-random.com/clarins230

Enjoy!

Guilty pleasures

Ok, so maybe my nail fetish isn't "quite" close to ending just yet lol.  Ever since I started back doing my nails, I have become addicted to all of the uber-cute nail polish stickers, gorgeous colors available, etc.  This is just a quick post with some pics of what I have been doing with my nails lately. The polish stickers have also allowed my nails to grow out quite a bit, which is exciting considering my nails have been looking a hot, raggedy, deep-fried mess since before my munchkin was born 2.5 years ago.  **WARNING** This post is PIC HEAVY...Enjoy!

This first one is the Sally Hansen Salon Effects mani strips in "Noir Boudoir".  In other words, French manicure w/the black tip.  I absolutely loved the manicure and they lasted until I got bored, which was about a week later.  They didn't chip or anything.  These are the most expensive of the SH brand of strips, but I would say they are worth it.  I didn't buy these retail, I found this set on ebay for $7.99.  This pack comes w/16 tips, but as we all know, once you open the airtight package, they immediately begin to dry out being that they are real nail polish.  The pack also comes with 2 packs of 8 clear strips (similar to the 14 day nail shields, but clear).  I used one 8 pack for this set and just cut a couple of strips in half and was able to use the other clear pack later as a nail overlay (which was awesome!).

Just playing around one day and trying out some of my new colors. Pinky finger - Color Club Holographic in "Blue Heaven", Ring finger and thumb - magnetic polish by Claires (I think it was kind of green).  Middle and index finger - Magnetic polish by Wet n Wild, "Bad for credit cards" I think that was the name, don't quote me on that lol. These magnet polishes weren't as strong as my SH ones, but I think I forgot to shake the bottle before applying the second coat. Oh well, they were on clearance so no love lost.

This was a 2 day old manicure where I painted my nails with my Essie "In the Cabana" and was tired of the blue so I used my paper edgers and cut some scotch tape to make this funky design.  I used a regular black polish to get this effect. :)

This is the elusive "holographic" polish effect that folks have been after for the past few years.  I hopped on the bandwagon and bought this one by Color Club.  It's gorgeous in the sun!  My ring finger is painted w/ Essie's "beyond cozy" as an accent nail.

You'll see this design twice because I loved it so much, I had to do it again.  This was about a month ago, I used Kiss nail dress in "Lovebirds".  I am digging the french tip look in different colors. I put a SH nail shield on first, then the stickers.  This is when I want a quick change and I don't have to use nail polish remover. This is the THIRD manicure I have done with this design.  Remember, Kiss nail stickers come in packs of 28 so the possibilities are endless (well, at least 28 times) on how many times you can use one pack!  I have done the french tip two times, I have done all 10 of my toes (and they have been on for 2 weeks!) And I still have about 12 full strips left!  Yes, Kiss stickers are definitely worth the $6.99(Kmart, Kroger, CVS price) - $7.79(Walgreens) price tag.  I have seen these at Dollar General for about $3 (not as wide of a variety of designs) and they come in a pack of 18.  The second set is the 2nd picture (see different colors on different nails)

 
I know you have seen these before, but this is a different color of the Dollar Tree brand of nail strips that change color. These are the blue ones.

I used a different patten of my paper edger scissors to cut the design on the bottom, which defeated the purpose due to the black design already on the nail. Duh.

This next one isn't my favorite design of SH nail strips but it's doable.  It's called "Checker out".  I didn't use my half moon paper edgers and used one that is more of a diamond shape.  I didn't like it but rocked it for a couple of days.

This next one is a Jade green SH brand of polish underneath the "Toppings" collection top coat by Wet n Wild.  It's duo-chrome and it made the green look like dark blue. It also flipped to a purple color under natural light and sunlight.

 Ok, I absolutely LOVED the design of this next one...HOWEVER, I didn't like the sticker/application.  These were on clearance at Walgreens for $1.74 and they are the Studio 35 beauty brand.  It's a new brand that Walgreens is carrying and they retail for about $6.99 ( I think?) I got this design and a green and white polka dot.  I left these on for about a day and a half and then pulled them off. They were "ok" but I would say they would probably work better on a shorter nail.  They didn't stretch well or mold to the shape of the natural nail very well. They came in a pack of 16 and I will probably use the other 6 strips as a french mani.

This last design is one of my FAVES.  I got this set for my birthday from one of my friends and I love it!  I have always wanted to do newspaper nails and these are wonderful.  The set came with two nail polishes, a dark gray and light creme/eggshell color.  The kit also came with 3 water decal designs.  One is the newspaper look (on my nails), one is a paper stationary design and the other is a map design.  

Paper edgers and nail stickers, oh my!

Hi all!  Ok, so I have been in experimentation mode with my nail stickers.  I have been eyeing these at Kmart lately because I love how you can use the strip two different ways:


I can'tjustify paying $6.99 for these, simply because there are so many cheaper options available out there.  Considering that I have a plethora of nail stickers that I am so anxious to use, buying these just because they have the french half moon on the bottom is not practical.

So I got to thinking, why don't I just use a pair of scissors and cut a set of my nail stickers and my make own?  Well, it sounded like a good idea until I really thought about my unsteady hands and the half moon would probably end up looking like a lop-sided v-shape or something.  I thought about using a pair of toenail clippers, nail clippers, razor blade, etc. Then I thought, hmmm, why not try some crafting scissors/paper edgers?

The paper edgers I am speaking of look like this:


This is thecloud pattern, which is the closest to the traditional french tip half moon.  I have 5 pairs of these scissors that are probably 7 or 8 years old.  Hey, they still cut so who cares how old they are, right?  I have the colonial, alligator, clouds, seagull and majestic patterns. 

So then I thought, I don't want to mess up my Sally Hansen nail strips so let me roll with my cheapie Dollar Tree Donna Michelle Nail Stickers.  This next pic is not the pattern I used because I didn't start blogging about this until I finished my nails (because honestly, I didn't think this was gonna work). But I was able to show a quick cut of one of the strips for you guys.  This is the Donna Michelle packaging:








This is how I cut the strips to make the half moon shape:

And this is the end result!

I absolutely love them! Yes, they are a little narrow but for $1, what do you expect?  I can't wait to do the other flower pattern above because I am addicted!  I know cutting them wastes a lot of the strip but I can justify it a little better because they were only a buck.  I think with these stickers, you can also use them a 2nd time w/out them drying out, unlike the SH, because those are real nail polish and once you open the air tight package, you have to use them immediately.

Hope you enjoyed!


**Photos courtesy of Kissusa.com, google images and my own

Okay, so I'm back...with Hello Kitty and more nail stuff!

Okay, I think my jones for nail stuff is slowing down, but I am finding so much cute stuff it's ridiculous!  So, my 2 year old sees "Hello Kitty" and yells "Kitty cat!" so immediately I am thinking she loves hello kitty so I have to find everything I can for her.  I am happy to say that everything I have found so far has either been on clearance or a great price so I am able to justify buying it. Hello Kitty really doesn't go out of style so I am hoping she will use this stuff for years to come.  So on to my finds...

This is the Hello Kitty haul I found collectively at Target and Claire's...
What you see here(clockwise from left) is a Hello Kitty purse,  Easter beanie baby, sandwich holder, water bottle, set of pencils and pencil toppers and pencil case.  I found the sandwich holder and water bottle at Target for $1 each and I don't know if they were seasonal but they were in the $1 section and $1 was the regular price.

The other items I found at Claire's this past weekend and can I just say that "I walked in at the right time!" The Hello Kitty purse was $4.99 (down from $22, the last one), the Easter beanie baby was $1 (down from $14, also the last one) and the pencil case (which has Hello Kitty mechanical pencils in it, by the way) and pencils were $1 each (there were two left of each)!  Claire's is running a clearance sale right now where anything on clearance(Easter or otherwise) is $1 for ANYTHING that was originally priced $10 and below and anything originally priced above $10 is an extra 50% off!!  Hope you guys find some deals!

**Update** The items you see in the next pic are a collective of 2013 Easter clearance finds I spotted at Walgreens, CVS and Target. 

The bowl and container with top were $1 at Target (regular price in the dollar section).  The little compact in the top right hand corner was given to my baby by her MeeMee (grandma) and it came with some lip glosses that have disappeared lol.  The little Christmas tin I found at Walgreens and it had no sku and was hidden behind a lot of stuff so the clerk rang it up for .10 cents!  The two little furry things are pencil toppers and they were .74 cents each ($ 2.99 regular price).  The bracelet was .30cents at Target (regular price $1). The big tin I found at CVS on their Easter clearance isle and it was $1.99 (regular $ 7.99).  It was the last one so it wouldn't have lasted all the way to 90% off lol.






Okay, I know the pic above is a little dark but my flash was tripping.  Anywho, these are a collection of nail stickers/decals I found at Dollar Tree and Claire's, all for $1 each! Clockwise from left are some flower nail stickers, a set of nail stickers w/a file in a cute little zipper case w/ice cream, glitter and beach designs, more flower stickers, the "Bling" Nail stickers from Claire's (and I LOVE THESE, see pics below), a set of nail tatoos & gems, and some more "Bling" nail stickers.


The last ones here (below) are a set of color changing nail strips I found a dollar tree. These didn't last five minutes as you will see in the pics below (at $1, it's hit or miss).  The stickers were cute but they are truly stickers.  They stick, but tear very easily (see 2nd pic below), so if your placement is wrong, be careful when you try to move it!  The color change did work, though (see below, first pic natural lighting, second pic out in the sun)... Hope you enjoyed!

 
These last two pics you see are of my natural nails.  The first pic (a little blurry, sorry) is a pic of my natural nails with the Sally Hansen 14 day nail shield on them.  They are a little like a nail wrap but in strip from.  I will try to review it later.  Well, I wanted a change after wearing the shields for a few days(I put them on Thursday of last week, by Sunday, I was ready for something else but didn't want to remove the shields w/nail polish remover).  So when I found the "bling nail" stickers at Claire's on Sunday, I couldn't wait to try them!  I am so glad I did!  My nails were longer than the sticker, but being that the stickers are clear, it camouflaged perfectly!  I hope you guys enjoy the pics!

Nail art!

Hi all!  Yeah, I know, long time no see. Anywhoo, let me jump right in lol (the 2 year old is asleep).  I have a new obsession.  I started a post on this in August of 2012 but couldn't finish.  I am going to throw some pics out here and you can tell me what you think.  After all of the shellac, stencils, foils, different colors of polish, different types of polishes (crackle, magnetic, etc) I think I am hooked on....drumroll...Sally Hansen Salon Effects polish strips!!!!  Yes, they are by far the best option for me these days.  They are made of real nail polish so the removal is a breeze!  You just use polish remover.

The stickers like Kiss and some ebay ones are great (beautiful designs and cheap!), but they leave that film that's kind of hard to get off.  The gel nail removal is too time consuming (soaking the fingertips in acetone, covering w/foil, etc).  The Essie, Revlon, L'Oreal, Jamberry, etc nail strips are too expensive (so are Sally Hansen but hear me out). The foils are great but don't last long.  Freehand nail art (ain't nobody got time fo dat!) lol.  I could go on and on, but I won't. This is a rushed post so you'll see pictures mixed in with frugal comments, etc.  Here are a few things I have picked up over the past 6 months so enjoy! (Disclaimer:  I am NOT a pro by any means, this is a fun hobby for me, keep negative comments to yourself please)

Now, the reason Sally Hansen gets my vote is because of, you guessed it, COUPONS!!!  There are always Sally Hansen coupons available and some print out at Walgreens, CVS and Kmart.  I see plenty on displays at Kmart (I don't shop at Walmart) and I have gotten some FANTASTIC deals on Sally Hansen strips lately.  To give you an idea, I have paid an average of less than $2 per box of Sally Hansen strips.  Now, the extreme coupon-ers out there are getting them for way cheaper but I don't stack coupons and all of that, I just use one coupon and try to catch the item at a good clearance price.  Everything you see below is a COLLECTIVE haul, over the course of 6 months.

My nail art (or lack thereof lol):

This design is a simple pink polish bought off ebay with plain ol'white polka dots (freehand w/a dotting tool, also bought on ebay)

This is a dark green I found a Dollar Tree, $1!

This crackle by Sally Hansen, I am not a fan of.  The purple one just doesn't crack over ANYTHING I have. I gave it away.

I really like this Crackle gold by Sally Hansen, it works well.

Another $1 bargain I found a Dollar Tree. It's a really pretty orange.

Another $1 find ad Dollar Tree. It's a nice dark wine/maroon color. :)

I LOVE blues so I had to have this one, another $1 find at Dollar Tree.

These were .99cents each at Kmart.  Lovely!

Here are my faves...Sally Hansen Salon Effects.  As you can see, these were less than $3 and if you had the $2 off coupons (any Sally Hansen nail polish or strip), they were even cheaper!

I have already used both of these, as you'll see below.  I bought them last season after Spring.  They were "Mad for Plaid" and "all a flutter", I think those are the names. lol.

Yes, my index finger is crooked (childhood accident w/a pocket knife, no stitches! lol).  This is a leopard print made by the Kiss brand.  They lasted a really long time on my hands.  They were also a clearance find, they cost $1.69!  With Kiss, the advantage is that they don't dry out and you get 28 strips in one box, enough for two manicures! The disadvantage is, the older the sticker gets, the more it adheres to your natural nail bed which can ruin the top layer of your nail (still not as bad as acrylic though).  I wouldn't recommend leaving these on for more than 5 days.

This was my experiment with the "caviar manicure".  No, I didn't buy the real stuff, I just went to Dollar Tree and found the beads in the nail area, put a color close to the beads as a base coat and sprinkled away.  They were cool looking, but not functional at all.  The beads were coming off everywhere, in my hair, etc.

My first experiment w/my foils.  The base coat is blue and the foil is an ocean color.  I really like them, they just don't last long at all.

All a Flutter (Sally Hansen) Bad lighting...

Mad for plaid (Sally Hansen)...These had been on for about a week before I took the picture, sorry!

Sally Hansen Magnetic nail polish ($1.34 on clearance at Target whoo hoo) Electric Emerald is the name.  I love this!!!

L'Oreal Project Runway Queen of Hearts or something like that. Lovely design, bad sticker! Way too thick, didn't smooth well.  Got them in collective ebay haul.

Not my favorite design of Sally Hansen, Fly with me, they lasted a really long time though.

Ok, due to my frugality, I had to reuse this awesome box! It's an Otis Spunkmeyer cookie box that held the frozen cookies that you buy from the kids at school fundraisers?  See below!!

BAM!  All of my Sally Hansen finds fit in it!  I was so excited!  Everything in this box cost between .49 cents and $2.89!  My average cost...less than $2 bucks each!

I had to share these recent finds...These four items I paid a whopping $3 for all four!  The Walgreens rep saw that some were $2.49 and some were $5.  She had to get them to ring up for $2.49 because all of them were ringing up regular price $9.99!  She then couldn't get one to scan so she gave it to me for free!  She then pulled out her coupons from behind the jewelry counter and I got a $1.50 off each one!  Yeah, she was the bomb.com.  To top it off, a catalina coupon printed out for $2 off another one.  I used it today at a different Walgreens (found another pedicure one on clearance for $2.49, used the coupon and got it for .49 cents!)

Another recent find, found this one at Rite Aid and used a $2 off coupon.  Got it for $2.89.  I just don't know if I will be able to wait until Christmas to wear it! (it's a 2011 or 2012 Holiday clearance collection one)

Okay, I have seen some not-so-good reviews on this new product by Sally Hansen, but I just couldn't pass up the deal.  I already own the Sensationnail kit and I love it, but it is gel POLISH, not strips.  This kit will run you anywhere from $27.97 (Walmart, where I don't shop, saw it online) to $31.99 at Walgreens.  Well yesterday, I bought it at Kmart for $12.49.  That's right, $12.49.  It's on sale this week for $10 off ($27.49 down to $17.49) and if you go to coupons.com, you can print a $5 off coupon for the starter kit.  I may end up giving it away as a gift.

Anoter $1 dollar tree find, it's a dark metal/grayish color.

These are my natural nails with a free-hand french manicure.  I can't wait to take off this polish and put on some new strips!

Well, that's it's guys.  That's what I have been up to lately.  Hope you enjoyed!

 ***********UPDATE APRIL 19, 2013**************

Okay, so today was 15% off day(Family and Friends day) at Walgreens, right?  You guys KNOW I love a bargain so I have to show you my finds!!!!!  I am so excited!

As you can see, I RACKED UP on some nail polish.  These were all in the clearance section and boy, did I hit the motherload!  Okay, what you see above, I paid a total of $ 9.34 + tax!!!!

Yeah, I know you are like "Huh?"  Yes, that's what I paid for all you see above.  Let me tell you how I did it...

Until today, I didn't own a bottle of Essie nail polish.  I have Revlon, Sally Hansen, Wet N Wild, some other cheapies.  Essie is just too expensive for me. From left the right, they are "in the cab-ana" (a pretty powder-y blue), "fair game" (a grayish silver), "size matters" (a dark mauve), "beyond cozy" (a glittery gold) and "under where? " (a nice purple-ish pink).  Also, I got the dark green in the top left hand corner.  It is Sinful Colors in "Kissy".  My fave is the 2nd one from the left on the bottom row.  It's a Sally Hansen salon effects nail strip in Hisss-terical (a dark green snakeskin print).  The other three you see on the bottom row are the Sally Hansen insta-gel strips (that you use w/the UV/led light, which I will probably give away to someone.

Ok, so now for the prices.

The Essie polishes retail about about $ 8 from what I have seen...these were $2 each!

The Sinful Colors is a lower-end polish and they retail for about $ 1.99...this one was $ .50!

The Sally Hansen Salon Effects nail polish strips retail for about $ 9.99...this one was $3!

The Sally Hansen Salon Insta-gel strips retail for a whopping $13.49 to $14.99!  These were $3.87!

Okay, so I know you are now asking, at the prices above, how the heck did you only pay $ 9.34?  Well  here's the breakdown:

Essie polishes X 5                                                = $ 10.00
Sinful Colors X 1                                                 =  $    .50
Sally Hansen Salon Effects nail polish strips X 1   =  $   3.00
Sally Hansen Salon Insta-gel strips X 3                =  $ 11.61
Total                                                                        $ 25.11
Less Coupons                                                     -   $ 2.00 ($2 off any Sally Hansen polish or strip)
                                                                           -   $ 10.00 ( 2 X $5 dollar off insta-gel strips)
                                                                           -   15% off your entire order 4-19-13
Paid out of pocket                                                  $9.34 + tax


Well that's it guys!  Happy bargain hunting!!! :) :)