Five Tips for Natural Hair Blowdry

Blow-dry service by Benita Blocker

• Use a moisturizing conditioner layered by a Smoothing Conditioner
• Use a wide tooth comb and distribute each conditioner throughout in two separate passes.
• Set the dryer to "high heat" for platform dryer use unless you have a hair steamer.
• Allow at least 20 minutes conditioning time
• Avoid protein conditioning unless you want to define the curls more.

These steps should assist in hair hydration so much that the hair should feel elongated and non-resistant. (i.e. Ready for Blow-dry)

Product Review: Bee Mine Moisture-only Conditioner

I have been experimenting a lot with the Bee Mine Product line. I like it so far, but I am still trying to see how everything really works. Their Luscious Cream Moisturizer delivers superb shine without weight. All the products smell delicious.

Pictured is the Bee-u-ti-ful Deep Conditioner. It is Bee Mine products' newest conditioner designed for delivering moisture to the hair without adding protein. Most conditioners seem to add some protein into its content so I was excited to get my hands on a deep conditioner that purposely was avoiding the protein. Why? Because when I do my pure protein treatment i.e. "Redken CAT" then I only want pure moisture to balance out the protein. This moisture conditioner seems to absorb nicely into my hair as you can see. I gave my hair the Redken CAT protein treatment first, then I rinsed it out. Next, I applied the Bee-u-ti-ful and sat under heat for about 15 minutes and then sat at room temperature another 15 minutes. (I was working on the computer and had not gotten to another stopping point or I would have rinsed the conditioner out sooner. Just being honest. Smile.) Also, please see my separate article on Redken CAT protein treatment. I used the new formula at this particular wash. It combed through nicely.

Overall, this was a nice "power pack!" Stay tuned for other articles on other Bee Mine products.

Product Review: Naked by Essations Honey and Almond Conditioner

Naked by Essations Honey and Almond Moisture Whip Conditioner has been ecstasy this week for moisture conditioning. It feels soooo good as it is massaged into the hair. The clients are loving it. I brought it back with me from the Hair Show. The closest distributor is in Raleigh, NC area, but the salesperson said that he can make sure that my salon gets serviced.

So far the conditioner is definitely a "keeper." The shampoo is great too! I am still a Pureology fan for shampoo though. Also, I believe the Naked line is excellent for naturally curly hair.

September 17, 2011 Update: This Essations Naked conditioner actually has a lot of wheat protein in it. So if you are doing a separate protein treatment, then this conditioner will NOT serve as a moisturizing conditioner. This conditioner by itself should be enough protein and moisture balance without using a separate protein treatment. In a nutshell, if your hair is relaxed, then one should be careful about overusing this conditioner. It could be drying from the protein. Naturally curly hair is probably the best match for this conditioner. It still feels great going onto the hair and scalp . . .

Revitalizing Human Hair Extensions and Wigs

I have found that the Graham Webb Heat Response Thermal Protection Conditioner seems to restore moisture to commercial human hair. This conditioner literally revitalizes the extension hair to give you more wear time. With the prices going up so drastically on human hair, one would want to get the most use of their hairpieces as one can!

Now the bad news: This conditioner and product line is being discontinued. The good news is that you should be able to buy this conditioner at a great price because it is being discontinued. I have not tried the shampoo, but I found the conditioning phase to be the most important part of restoring commercial human hair. The goal is to maintain tangle-free hair.
Whether you pay $60 or $600 for your human hair extensions or human hair wig, eventually, it will get dry and easy to tangle. Pictured is the before . . .


You must still use plenty of conditioner, a seamless comb, and comb through the ends first and then work through the roots. The end results are shinier and more manageable extension hair! Pictured is the after . . .

Of course, this conditioner was not made exclusively for extension hair. It contains high levels of alcohol. I recommend this conditioner for anyone with an oily scalp regardless of extensions or not.

Manipulating hard hair equals Breakage

This is a beautiful avant garde updo from www.hairstyletwist.blogspot.com! However, you would not try to comb this hair. After all the hair pins and detachable hairpieces that can be removed are removed, then rinsing this hair until all the gels run clearly out would be the first step toward manipulating this hair. A wide tooth comb to detangle any trapped hair would be your next step. Then shampoo and condition as usual.
Pictured here is a broken stick. Imagine if your hair is hard and brittle. If you bend this stick, then it is going to break because it is not soft. The same principle applies to your hair strand. Soft hair strands can withstand manipulation. It is pliable.

If your hair is hard, specifically look for moisturizing conditioners. Please see other articles on this site for moisturizing conditioner options. If it is soft but breaking, then look for a protein/moisture combination.