Grooming Series: At-Home DIY Moisturizing Hair Mask

Hate to break it to you but your hair is dead. All of it except the very roots. Yup, dead. Go ahead, have a cry. But this is good news, because acknowledging that your hair is dead allows you to make more informed decisions about how you treat it.



Dead hair is dry, damaged, weak, in need of moisture and nutrients. So we need to find ways to constantly recharge it and revive it. Your hair has two basic needs - moisture and protein- to keep it shiny and strong. Today I will show you one way to give it a well-needed shot of moisture.


Honey Banana Oil Hair Mask
This is a deep conditioning moisturizing mask that will help revive dry hair for all hair-types. Its ingredients are all natural so unless you have a specific allergy they should not cause any bad reactions. Honey is a known moisturizer that leaves the hair feeling soft yet bouncy; extra virgin olive oil does a fabulous job of smoothing frizzy damaged hair - and any smoothing element also reduces the appearance of split ends; while banana acts as the emollient and does double duty of softening and smoothing. Mixed together they create the perfect hair mask to remedy dry hair.




Making this at home is easy and quick. You will need:

1. A bowl and a fork
2. A ripe banana - the riper the better
3. Natural honey
4. Extra Virgin Olive Oil (got mine at Pricesmart)
5. Plastic Wrap

Step 1: Peel the banana and cut it into manageable chunks in the bowl. Add about one and a half table spoons of the olive oil and two tablespoons of the honey.

Step 2: Mash the banana and mix with the honey and olive oil until it gets to a creamy texture. (Think of the texture of a thick conditioner). If its too thin and runny try  popping it into the freezer for 5 minutes.

Step 3: Comb through your hair and divide into manageable sections. (I usually do two or four sections). It doesnt matter if your hair is wet or dry, it works on both. Scoop some of the mixture into one palm and rub it up between both hands. Apply mid-shaft to the ends of your hair. When all your ends are done apply to your roots.

Step 4: Tuck under your ends in a bun or something equally insulating and wrap your head with plastic wrap, or use a steam cap or tight shower cap if you have one. The mask should stay on your hair for at least fifteen minutes, however if you applied it to dry hair it is safe to keep it on all night. When you're done, wash it out and enjoy soft, shiny hair. :)




(Try this mask every two weeks and you should start seeing a difference in your hair. If you use heat alot then try it every five days)

How To Stay Groomed - The Cheap, Easy Way

Worldwide, women spend most of their money and time keeping themselves groomed. The problem is however that though we spend hours and dollars getting ourselves to look how we want to look, we spend way more hours undoing it- by neglecting the upkeep necessary. I fully fully support beauty professionals but there are too many easy, cheap ways for us to take care of ourselves for me to keep it quiet. Personally, I'd rather spend money on something I cant actually do for myself, like a massage. (Wouldnt it be lovely if that 3-5k you spend at the hairdresser be reassigned to something like a full body massage?).


There are two main ways you can cut your grooming bill down.
 1. Maintaining yourself at your best in between appointments
Are you that client who is always getting the full package all the time because you don't do anything to maintain yourself in between appointments? If you take easy steps to care yourself between appointments it will cut down the time you spend and the money you spend. It sounds like work but I promise, its easy.

Hair:

• Sleep on a satin pillowcase
• Wrap or set or braid your hair before you go to bed
• Tie your hair up with a soft fabric like satin or silk
• Deep Condition your hair
• Use products with protein
• Lay off the heat. Avoid using curlers, blowdryers, straighteners. If you absolutely have to then use a heat protectant

Nails:

• Before bed rub a moisturizing oil, vaseline or thick cream into your cuticles
• Paint clear nailpolish or a top coat over your manicure every other day to make it last
• Wear gloves when doing chores 
• Dont pick or bite your nails
• When your polish chips remove it and replace it with a light shimmery or pearlescent nailpolish. Mistakes are harder to see wth light shimmery colours
• Clip hangnails as soon as you can

Skin:

• Wash and moisturize your face twice a day every day
• Use witch hazel as a cheap toner and astringent to keep acne at bay
• Always remove all your makeup before going to sleep
• Exfoliate once a week- use a gentle scrub for your face.  A baby toothbrush used very gently with regular cleanser is an alternative for a pre-packaged scrub. For a body scrub, use sea salt or brown sugar and mix with body wash, oil or conditioner and scrub down.
• Drink lotsa lotsa lotsa water and get sleep! 

2.Do-it-yourself
Almost everything you pay for you can do yourself. It really just takes the right tools, products and practice. I do not recommend doing chemical treatments yourself unless you really really know what you're doing. Everything else you can do yourself.

Start by taking note of what you like specifically about your appointments then ask the three magic questions when you go in- what, how, and when. What is the product being used and the treatment being applied, how is it done and how is it applied, when/how frequently it should be used/ Once you are armed with the information then go out and buy the products (they should be cheaper than paying for your appointment over time, or else dont bother lol). Get advice from the store and check reviews online.

The how-to is easily learned from youtube. If you practice you can teach yourself anything from youtube videos. Later on I'll post videos of basic how-tos. The frequency will be a combination of the answers your consultant gives you, instructions from the products and how you respond to it.

I will be exploring this further with blog posts/videos to come on: how to wash, treat and set your hair; how to revive dry, damaged hair; diy masks; easy fail-proof skincare; how to manicures and nail art; and eyebrow grooming.

The biggest thing is to trust yourself. Once you do that and you open yourself up to learning it will be fun and easy.