doing it on a budget

Ya’ll remember this…the results of my overnight wash and go method.

 Ok.. so the post title may be a bit dramatic but let me explain lol. Now.. if my hair was an actual limb, I can safely say that earlier this week, I should have put in a police report for assault…and imagine, the setting was church of all places! Last Sunday, I went to service, wearing my hair as pictured above. Now you would think black folks would get the idea of…”please don’t touch/I’m not a petting zoo/this takes hard work,” but it was quite the opposite. I literally had a man yank my hair…as if I were in a girl fight! Apparently, according to my mother, this was to see if it was real…I CANNOT. With the force he used, if I were wearing a wig…it would’ve been SNATCHED. Assault in the first degree. Then there were the second degree offenders who’d say, “This is so beautiful,” and then would run their fingers through my hair. Hello? Knot city anyone? Destroyed curls perhaps? *Sigh* I’m trying to get sixth day hair out of this! LOL, no but really…. 

But that was not the only time that this has happened. One time, I went out dancing with friends and a dude (complete stranger) out of nowhere just straight up grabbed my puff and gave it a squeeze from behind. !!?! Dead pan stare in his direction. Really sir? Just explain to me the line of reasoning that made you think that this was a good idea, “Hey her hair is different…I wonder what it feels like…I don’t know her…but you know what, I’m going to palm her hair like a basketball anyway.” !!?! I get the allure of big natural hair but seriously? Does its just make you lose your mind and disregard all social norms? Like the rest of my body…don’t touch without permission. Simply because I am wearing it out doesn’t mean you have an open invitation to grab it or verify its authenticity.

Is this just me? If you care to share, tell me about the time that someone has crossed the admiration line and went for the (hair) grab. Leave your stories on the facebook page.

I’ve been seeing these rings pepper my tumblr dashboard over the past few months and have been dying to get my hands on some. No, they aren’t called “those rings that don’t go all the way down your finger” as I so deftly described to the sales associate at Claire’s…they are “mid rings” and are so fierce.

So where is the best bargain? I hunted through 3 different stores but didn’t actually purchase the cheapest rings only because I think that the thin delicately-shaped mid rings look the best.

H&M: 2 mid rings for $3

My issue was that these rings were really quite thick and thus weren’t doing it for me. If the thick ring is your aesthetic, go for it. It’s definitely a decent bang for your buck.

Claire’s: 4 mid rings for $5.50

These were actually super cute but they ran out of my size! I’d suggest going here for your mid rings. The fairly thinly cut, textured rings were eye-catching. Scoop yours here.

Aldo’s: 2 mid rings for $8

Absolute highway robbery- absolute. However, I loved the way they looked so I bought them and frankly, after this past semester in school, I felt that I deserved them. At the time, Aldo’s was running a sale- 20% off when purchasing 3 accessories and best believe I took advantage of that. Unfortunately, I was unable to find these rings online, but check out your local Aldo’s.

Quick note- another great thing about these rings is that if you switch fingers, you can wear them as regular rings (that go past the knuckle).

Knuckle Rings:

A while back I purchased a knuckle ring from my local jewelry store, Light Years which I like to call my Beyonce Single Ladies ring. Worry not, the ring does in fact bend at the knuckle. I believe I bought it for about $7 and I absolutely love it. Knuckle rings are a great way to spice up an outfit- for day or night. 

Looking for you own knuckle ring? Found one for $6 at Forever 21. Check it out here.

Also in case you were wondering, pictured nail polish is several coats of French Beige by a super unknown-scooped-from-the-beauty-supply-store brand called CQ (less than $3).

Questions, comments, love? Leave it on the facebook page. If you haven’t, like the facebook page!

Before I dive in, apologies for the long hiatus. School was absolutely out of control and to maintain some semblance of sanity, keep up with academics and stay on top of work…I had to focus. This post has actually been hanging out in my drafts for over 5 weeks. Thanks for your patience! Without further ado ….the post:

The wash and go… seemingly easy: 1. Wash. 2. Go. However the name conveniently leaves out appropriate adjectives like sticky, wet, cold, drippy, shrink-eriffic and unpredictable. 

Youtube’s Naptural85 posted a long time ago, her experience achieving the perfect wash and go. I didn’t pay much attention to it since she used very different products and I wasn’t willing to spend money to buy what she was using.

Today (read 5 weeks ago), I stumbled upon my own perfect winter wash and go which had way fewer steps. I actually think it’s less about the specific products and more about how well moisturized/happy your hair is, although product choice for this style is important. You will have to find what product helps your hair to clump but I will still share with you what works for mine. This method will probably work best for those that see curl definition when detangling their hair in the shower. To get my curls to clump, I finger detangle instead of using a comb or denman. Another key is clipped ends. If you have ratty ends, when you try to separate your curls when your hair has finished drying, they will frizz.

Pics are a bit limited for this tutorial since many of the steps happen in the shower and my camera is not waterproof but you should be able to get the drift.

What you’ll need:

• Moisturizing conditioner (I use Nature’s Gate Henna Conditioner -$8)
• Cheap thin conditioner (I use Suave’s Revitalizing Anti-Dandruff Conditioner -$2)
• Oil of your choice (I prefer Nutiva’s Coconut Oil -$10)
• Old T-shirt

1. Co-wash your hair with cheap conditioner. A sulfate-free shampoo also works well. The key is you do not want to dry out your hair while cleansing it. 

2. Section hair into four and twist. Take one section, apply conditioner, and detangle your hair using your fingers. If you find your hair is more defined using a denman/comb then by all means do that. The key is that post detangling, your hair should clump.

3. Don’t wash out the conditioner. After detangling the section, two strand twist, pin up and move on to the next. Deep condition by leaving the conditioner in. I usually will leave it in while I do the rest of my shower rituals.

4. At the end of shower rituals, untwist a section while running it under the water (cooler water is preferable so you can close the cuticle). Let the water run through, don’t disturb clumped curls. Conditioner completely rinsed out and still under the water, braid this hair tightly (not too tight) starting as close to the scalp as possible. Make sure when braiding to carefully divide the hair into 3 sections so you don’t have to borrow when you get towards the end of the braid. Braiding the hair is to simply stretch your curls. Make sure to braid to the very end and smooth the end by twirling between your fingers (helps to avoid fuzzy ends). If you notice the ends of your braids are fuzzy after braiding, apply a dime size or less amount of conditioner to the ends and twirl between your fingers. Repeat for the other 3 sections. 

5. Before exiting the shower, squeeze out excess water.

6. Your hair will still drip so wrap your head with an old cotton t-shirt to absorb water. Go to bed!

7. In the morning, you will need about 25 min to unbraid and moisturize your hair. Your hair may be slightly damp, no biggie, but should be mostly/completely dry to minimize frizz. (Ideal is completely dry.) Grab your oil of choice and rub down the shaft of the braid. Unbraid your hair carefully, keeping the 3 sections in tact.

8. Apply more oil once unbraided, concentrating on the ends (oldest part of your hair!). Now carefully separate the sections, making sure not to frizz your hair. (Careful? What does that even mean?! Well, when in doubt, just stop. I.e. should I separate a few more curls, it may get frizzy… just STOP lol.) Move on to another section. If at the end you’re not pleased, shake your head to help separate. Still not pleased? Try separating further, making sure you have oil on your hands to help reduce frizz. 

9. Repeat across the rest of your head. Separate carefully in the back in order to cover the parts originally created by the 4 braids. The result is dry fluffy, moisturized hair. No drips! 

I’ve done this style a couple times, and as you can see it comes out a bit different each time. I have noticed that allowing the hair to COMPLETELY dry allows the curls to be more stretched, defined, shinier and moisturized. Why? Well, I think that when applying the oil on slightly damp hair, the oil isn’t able to penetrate the hair shaft as well. Sometimes, depending on your hair, drying can take longer than overnight and could take much of the next day. When I need more drying time, I don a hat to hide the braids.

Finally, here’s a side by side of one of my twist outs (left) and the overnight wash and go method (right). 

Questions, comments, love- leave it on the facebook page! 

…was the name of the 1920s themed party that I intended on attending this past weekend.The invitation for the 20s party  was worded in the form of a telegram and all were asked to come in their finest flapper era inspired attire. My mind immediately went to my closet because this grad school budget isn’t a game…what’s beaded…and sequin-y?  How can I accessorize with things that embody the feel of the Roaring 20s but that I would also still want to use for other occasions?

For all you careful readers out there, you may be saying, “Intended? But you’re in full costume.”

Yea, about that. I definitely went to my friend’s birthday dinner dressed for the Roaring 20s party but never actually made it out because dinner went long. Lol, at least the outfit got the chance to shimmer and bathe in the cool glow of moonlight… albeit, at the wrong location.

The Breakdown:

I actually had a beaded silk vintage dress that I snagged last summer  for $25 (originally $40 but she was closing up and gave me an amazing deal) from the SoWa market in Boston- why not bust it out?

Accessories? I bought a pair of fishnets ($3.50 from Time after Time)…everyone needs a pair of fishnets. I also took the opportunity to create my own feather hair piece (supplies $7). Post on how to do this coming, promise!

Hair! Of course! The era was known for the pin curl, bobs and the finger wave. With natural hair…achieving any one of these looks can be tricky, but I made it work with these strategically placed and hair-pinned large twists.

Tutorial on how to do this style will be on the way too- It’s a great winter style to protect your ends.

As always, questions, comments, love? Leave it on the facebook page! If  you haven’t, don’t forget to like the facebook page too.

Vivian Banks is one of my favorite black TV mothers-up there in the ranks of Claire Huxtable. Both successful black women doing the thang and holding down a home all while looking fly. 

It was 40 min before my friend was about to pick me up to go out and I had just rolled off the couch from a nap. My hair? A hot mess. I whipped this up in just 15-20 min. It’s a take on Vivian’s short hairstyle that can actually be done on textured hair- long or short. You would probably need at least 4 to 6 inches of hair to do this style. 

Outfit

I got this Cynthia Rowley suit jacket from Marshalls in December for $30. I really shouldn’t have picked it up, but I couldn’t put it down.

The pencil skirt is a H&M find for $20. Pencil skirts always make me look like I’m doing something with my life, even if I’m really doing nothing at all. It’s kinda like getting the effect of asymmetrical bob but no commitment. (Ever notice how women with bobs just look like they run stuff? It’s true, take note next time).

I wore a black tank top to create the illusion that the skirt and top were one piece. This really allowed for the pattern of the jacket to pop.

Accessorized with gold as Vivian would do. Chunky pieces (the earrings) add a layer of luxuriousness to the outfit. Necklace- a birthday gift from my mom! The doorknocker earrings were $10 from my local vintage store Fossil.

 $85 outfit (including $25 shoes). Not too shabby at all!

Hair

What you’ll need:

• Hair pins
• Stretched dry hair
• Spray bottle with water
• Oil of your choice (coconut is my favorite)

1. Moisturize your hair with your oil before you begin. Grab a section from the back of your head on the left side. Begin to roll -starting the roll about 4 inches from the hairline at your neck. Roll across to the right ear and then towards the front of the head at a diagonal. Secure with hair pins as you go.

2. This is where it gets a little tricky in terms of describing the step with words. Try looking at the picture. As you roll the hair to the front it is essential to keep the diagonal line going because this creates the asymmetric look. Continue to roll until you have hit your left ear securing with pins as you go.

3. Now that you have reached your left ear, begin to roll towards the back of the head. For an alternative look, you can stop the roll at your  left ear and secure all loose hair with a pony tail holder. Dampen hair with 1-2 sprays of your water bottle and put in a few twists or braids. When it has dried and you take it out, your pony tail should have some texture to it.

4. Another alternative style you can do is after step 3, do not roll the hair as tightly, instead roll loosely to give the roll more height. Once you reach your left ear, roll the end of your hair tightly, allowing the hair at your roots to remain big and fluffed (see image 2). With the end of your hair that is rolled tightly, wrap in a circular pattern securing with hair pins. Great for a fancy occasion!

5. Ok, back to the original style- after step 3, continue the roll towards the back of your head until all loose hair has been incorporated. Now roll the loose part of your hair smoothly and tightly (see image 2) and then tuck into  hair found at the beginning part of your roll (see image 4).

 6. Mist with spray bottle (not too much! or it will take forever to dry and you can’t remove your scarf until is dry otherwise it will frizz). Tie with a scarf. Wait about 20 min/until completely dry. 

There you have it! Fashion forward, yet elegant hairstyle of Vivian Banks! Great protective style - wear to a party or the office!

Questions, comments, love? Leave it on the facebook page!

..in all of us. Have a favorite childhood sweater you just can’t let go? Oversized thrifted sweater? Just bored with a sweater you bought ages ago? Re-purpose it into an infinity scarf using this tutorial! Now, I purposefully concocted this post so that there was a little bit of something for folks of all craft-ability levels.

Craft-ability Level 0: Me? A Needle? Hah!

Worry and fret not-I got you. Here is the link to the Urban Outfitter’s scarf however I personally think that the list price is outrageous so you can also check out these chunky affordable scarves from Forever 21.

Craft-ability Level 1: Not much of a DIY-er?

This is how you would make the “simple” scarf which produced looks like the “high fashion” and “hoodie” (see previous post, “Baby, It’s Cold Outside” for images).

 Here’s what you’ll need:

• Old (tightly knitted) sweater
• Pair of Scissors
• Tape (optional)

It is key to get a tightly knitted sweater, like the knit found in the sweater on the left  vs what you see on the right. Loosely knit scarves (ie the knit on the sweater produces a hole-like pattern) will be no good because once you cut the sweater, the whole thing will unravel. 

1. Lay your sweater out flat (in my picture my sweater is inside out).

2. Here you can use the optional tape and tape from one side of the sweater to the other. We are going to essentially cut the body of the sweater off. Cutting right below the tape will help to make sure you cut a straight line across the sweater, but if you trust your hand-eye coordination, more power to you.

**Take note that the length indicated by the blue line in the image above will determine the thickness of your scarf. I like it to be about 15-16 inches but you can start with something longer and cut again to get it to your taste.

**Additional note, scarf looks more finished when you hem it (I was too lazy to do so and just hid the unfinished edges when I was fixing it around my neck.)

3. Throw it over your neck and arrange. That’s it! (Need ideas on how to wear? Check out the previous post, “Baby, It’s Cold Outside.”)

Craft-ability Level 2: I think I can, I think I can…

(Note: Pictures may not completely match instructions. Follow the instructions- I didn’t quite plan out my images with the tutorial for this post, whomp! But you will still be able to get the idea.)

Here’s what you’ll need:

• Old (crew/turtle neck) sweater 
• Sewing needle
• Thread
• Pair of Scissors
• Tape

1. Lay sweater flat, and make sure it is inside out. Sew the neck closed (Sweater should remain inside out). If your sweater has a collar like mine, cut it off. Put tape across the sweater as pictured above, right underneath the armpits. Sew right above the tape (the tape helps you sew a straight line). Sew only about 3/4 of the way across the body of the sweater. 

2. Cut your sweater below the the tape, using the tape as a guide in order to cut a straight line across the sweater. You can now remove the tape.

3. Now we need to sew the sleeves together however we first must maneuver the sweater a bit. Put your hand in through one sleeve and push your arm all the way through until your hand is coming out of the opening of the other sleeve. Now grab the cuff of that sleeve and pull it inside through the body of the sweater all the way into the other sleeve’s center (the edges of the sleeves should be lined up as pictured in the last image). So now your sweater has one sleeve layered into the other sleeve.

4. Sew around the wrist of the sleeves. I sewed right where the cuffs of the sleeves began (as indicated by the blue line) in order to hide the cuff pattern from showing in the design of the scarf.

5. Now pull the sweater right side out, through the opening that you left when you were sewing the body of the sweater closed in step 1. It should look like an infinity scarf at this point!

6. Now time to sew close the opening! Push rough edges into the hole and sew closed, trying your best to hide your stitches within.

And there you have it! A sweater sleeve infinity scarf! Way cheaper than paying $30 bucks for one of these from Urban Outfitters.

Questions, comments, love? Leave it on the facebook page! And if you haven’t, like the facebook page :)

It’s actually freezing. Or maybe I’ve just lost my thick-skinnedness when it comes to the cold- the South can make you soft in that respect. Being back up North, I have found that my grandmotherlyness has increased two fold:

1. The couch has been looking so good
2. I have this insatiable desire for thick knitted scarves to shield me from this blistering cold

In my search for such a scarf, I found that their cost was astronomical (anywhere from $30 to $40) or the more affordable ones were just a bit boring. So I was inspired  by this nifty sweater sleeve scarf from Urban Outfitters (yes this scarf is made of sweater sleevessss!):

I’m a fanatic for bold, old-school, Bill Cosby-esque patterns and digging through some old sweaters at my parent’s house I happened upon one with an amazing design! However, it was super over-sized (not in the cute way) and had some damage. I was, however, determined to re-purpose it and satisfy my desire for a new funky scarf. 

I ended up making 2 infinity scarves, 1 which was super easy, and the other which took a bit more time and some actual needle work:

I had a lot of fun finding new ways to wear the scarves (and creating random names for each style).

High neck-high fashion (simple scarf):

• I took the simple scarf, created a loop and placed the loop over my head. I then pulled and arranged my scarf around my neck in order to gather just right.

Hood action (simple scarf):

• From the high fashion-high neck scarf, you can transform the look into a hoodie. Pull the part of the scarf that creates an ‘X’ to the front of your neck. Grab one of the folds of scarf material located at the back of your neck and pull over your head.

• Pull, tuck and arrange until the scarf achieves the look you want. Perfect for that cute jacket that doesn’t have a hood! Even if your outerwear does have a hood, this a great way to increase the warmth.

Double Trouble (both):

• I layered both infinity scarves on top of one another to create this look. This is a great way to va-voom a simple outfit.

Pageantry (harder scarf):

The Graduate (harder scarf):

Your turn- have fun, be unusual with your scarf and leave a photo on the facebook page!

I will be posting the tutorial for these scarves soon. Questions, comments, love? Leave it on the facebook page! 

Who knew? Now we all are aware that in the natural hair world, sometimes you happen upon amazing results without the slightest idea of how to achieve them again. For me, lightning struck for the first time last summer when I had the best bantu knot-out of  my life, (pic below):

My hair was soft, curl game was tight, shine and bounce were both on point. I completely WAS NOT expecting this. I pinned the miracle on two things:

As promised, below is the tutorial for the hairstyle donned in last week’s post. This is where I should have come up with some fabulous name for my coiffure but I’ve got nothing… nothing. First semester of grad school is coming to a close and I’m ready for this break. All that critical thinking? It’s not for the birds but ugh,  it’s certainly not for the faint of heart.

First off, I must credit inspiration of this style to Crownofhisglory of Youtube. She also helped me to rethink my perspective on the banana clip, which I had deemed “the devil,” alongside rubber bands, high heat and fine-toothed combs. However, now I’m a HUGE fan of banana clips.

Here’s what you’ll need:

• Stretched hair
• Banana clip
• Few hair pins
• Spray bottle
• Quarter-sized amount of conditioner or gel
• Soft bristled brush

1. Create a side part about 2 inches long going towards the back of your head then switch directions and begin to part along the side of your head towards your ear. As you can see, I wasn’t too concerned about making the part that straight…unimportant for this style. Leave the smaller section of hair out and put the larger portion of your hair into a pony tail.

2. Time to twist! Flat twist the section of your hair that you have left out. Pin down the flat twist by your ear with about 2 to 3 hair pins.

3. Now that your flat twist has been secured by your ear, undo the flat twist up to where you pinned the twist down (see picture 1). We are attempting to blend the flat twist into the bun we are going to create in step 4/5.

Take the rest of your hair down from the pony tail and gather all  hair down by the nape of your neck to create a side pony tail. Insert the banana clip. Beware: don’t give yourself a head ache-if too tight, try re-inserting the banana clip until it is comfortable. If you can’t manage to get it to feel comfortable, you may need a larger banana clip.

4. Now you can rock the style like this! Mist hair with water bottle and apply a quarter-sized amount of conditioner or gel to edges. Brush the left slide of hair down and where a satin scarf for 15 to 20 min to achieve a slicker look. Do not apply too much water as it will take longer for the hair to dry and to get a slick look, hair must be completely dry before the scarf is removed.

5. To make this a protective style, gather hair and pin with a few (4-6) hair pins. If you want to add more complexity to the style, you could do a large flat twist and pin or 10 to 15 two strand twists and pin.

To calm the fly-aways, follow instructions mentioned in step 4.

6. The finished look!

Questions, comments, love? Leave it on the facebook page. Also, been looking for some boots? Check out the facebook page for this week’s clearance boot highlights ($50 and under).

It was hideous actually but I couldn’t put it down.

So back to the ugly dress- I showed it to some friends for their opinion and in response I was greeted with a chorus of cricket chirps. It was pushing boundaries…understandably so. The grandma-esque pattern, coupled with the drabby color..the length…it seemed like a recipe for design suicide BUT I saw the potential, and that’s key in fashion. Even after trying on the dress, my friend stared, trying to process what she was seeing. Shaken but not deterred, I bought it. I had something in mind.

Dress:

I go this dress from a local vintage shop, Plato’s Closet, for $16. What attracted me was the unique pattern, low back, scoop neck and puff sleeves. I liked the fact that I hadn’t seen anyone wearing anything quite like this.

After trying it on, I knew right away I would have to make some changes.The length wasn’t working for my body type (I’m not a tall woman). Where the dress stopped on my legs made me look a bit short/disproportionate. Also due to the old woman vibes that were emitting from the design (color, pattern, large shoulder shape), I had to modernize it. Insult to injury, the dress just kind of hung on my body like it was a hanger. No bueno.

I corrected the lack of shape issue by belting the dress with a Banana Republic leather belt that I got from Goodwill for $5. I countered the length issue by slightly untucking the dress around the belt and allowing a bit of the fabric to hang over. Creating the illusion of a shaped mini dress helped to take the edge off of the dress’ matronly feel.

I managed to turn this sucker into a mini dress without casting a single stitch!

Love love LOVE these shoes. Snagged these from DSW clearance for $15. So incredibly comfortable that it’s out of control.

I threw on tights because A) I’m modest and B) it was chilly outside. I’m too practical to sacrifice comfort for cuteness. I actually got these from Ross in a pack of 2 for $5 a while ago. Choosing patterned tights also helped to update the dress’ feel. To increase the warmth factor, wear a regular pair of black stockings underneath the patterned tights.

The earrings I got YEARS ago…probably in middle/high school. I have not the slightest idea how much I paid for them (sah-wee!). Any drop earring helps to kick up the elegance of an ensemble.

Total outfit cost? $36 for the dress ($16), shoes ($15) and tights ($5)!

Where’s the HAIR TUTORIAL?! I know, I know… I will be separating them out from now on, so expect to see it next week!

Questions, comments, love? Leave it on the facebook page!