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The collaborative effort of Belle Cheveux and Sunshyne, The Coarse Hair Diary offers beneficial tips on how to grow long, strong, healthy hair, whether natural or relaxed, as well as other beauty tips and product reviews.

Eloquently designed, TCHD is easy to navigate and chock full of hair features, healthy hair recipes and updates on Belle’s very own transitioning journey.  In their very own words…

The Coarse Hair Diary is a hair care blog geared towards Women of Color. Founded in June 2007, the website began as a personal blog but soon evolved into somewhat of a movement. Yielding over 10,000 unique visitors a month, The Coarse Hair Diary has become a resource for Women of Color to gain knowledge on obtaining healthier and longer hair.

Considering joining the TCHD movement?  Well surf right on over and get  a healthy dose of hairlistic bounty!  Be sure to leave a comment!

Happy exploring!

Healthy Hair Wishes,

I was cruising the Nappturality boards when I came across a link to Bella Sugar where there was a entry containing this video:

After getting over my shock that this topic was added to a seeming Caucasian centered beauty E-mag, I watched the video and it interesting… in a backwards sort of way.  Originally broadcast in May, according to a “study“, as reported by Chicago newscaster Robin Robinson who “ethnic’ed up” her hair for this particular segment, one-third of African-American woman seem to shy away from working out, because to them keeping salon fresh hair trumps hitting the gym.  The women interviewed, all of which sported natural hair do’s, agreed with the findings of this study, citing a reluctance to work out during the week when their hair was “relaxed” or they wore straight styles because of all the time it took to get their tresses together to return to work.

Because I work from home and I don’t work out any more now than I did when I relaxed my hair, I see this theory as kind of bogus.  While I realize hair is important in the African-American community, specifically when it come to women, I find it silly to think that beauty means more than health.  One-third is a low percent, but still… have be bought the lie that tough?

Of coarse I am biased in my opinion, considering I haven’t seen the inside of a gym in well over twenty years and I don’t have boardroom hair issues.  If anything, and Naturally_Flyy and I were just discussing this on Twitter the other day, transitioning to healthier hair  has inspired me to start living a healthy lifestyle, but  that was not impeded by my hair before.  My mind just wasn’t on such matters.

So I pose the question to all of you.  If you are an African-American woman and relax your hair, do you stray away from working out and living a healthier lifestyle in order to keep your style?  If you are an African-American woman and wear your hair natural, (not including braided or loc’ed) does the fact that you can either wash and go or twist and bounce encourage you two work out more?  In short, no matter how you wear your hair, does it dictate just how you live your life, socially, professionally and health wise?

I’d love to hear your thoughts!

Healthy Hair Wishes,

When I used relaxers I made certain to either wrap my hair each night to protect my hair from breakage, as well as keep my ends “bent” the length of my hair flat and straight.  If I didn’t wrap my hair, I slept on a satin pillow case which allows hair to “slide” over it instead of “snag” on it like cotton does.  The result of taking this precaution was always smooth and tangle free hair, less breakage and virtually no split ends.  When I made the switch to the naptural side of life, I foolishly ditched the wrap because I naively assumed my natural tresses were much stronger than when they were chemically altered, and as long as I treated them with loving care and proper products, my adopted night time protective routine could go the way of the buffalo.  I mean, the purpose of wrapping your hair at night was simply to keep it sleek, right?  And aint nothing non-sleeker than my hair in its natural state so… no need for the wrap, right?  I could not have been more wrong!

Although tightly coiled hair may give the appearance of being strong and less susceptible to damage, this assumption couldn’t be further from the truth.  In actuality, Black hair in its natural state (coiled and/or kinky) is actually very fragile because it has less medulla and cortex protecting cuticles than straight hair (the more coiled, the more fragile).  So while it may appear rough or coarse when the strands are densely packed, each individual strand itself is  actually more prone to breakage and damage than any other hair type.  For this reason, importance is always stressed on proper conditioning, moisturization and the use of protective styles such as braids, twists or locs to keep the hair healthy when being natural by day, but very little is said about what to do with your hair, even while it is in these protective styles, when it’s time to call it a night. Well after a couple of months going by with me noticing an abundance of frayed ends, frizzy shafts and a large amount of shedding (way more than what my hair normally does), and knowing I’ve done everything I possibly can to keep my hair healthy (regular end trims, keeping it clean and well nourished), the only logical explanation for my malady was sleeping “open headed” on cotton pillow cases every night.  Eureka!

What most of us don’t realize is, it is not the shaft of the hair that needs the most attention, its the root and the ends that do.  Dry and damaged roots cause hair loss at the scalp and frayed, dry ends cause the shaft of the hair to unravel, split and break all the way up its length.  We all know keeping a moisturized and healthy scalp contributes to strong roots, and that keeping your ends trimmed and moisturized prevents splits, but because I wear Puffs most often when I sleep, the constant rubbing of my ends against the pillowcase encouraged fraying and dryness (remember, cotton is absorbent) was undoing all my good care intentions.  In addition to those rough looking ends which required constant trimming, because the cuticle of the hair gets snagged on the material of the cotton pillowcase, there was very little I could do about the frizzy appearance of the strands, no matter my day time routine.  With all that going on, it only seemed logical that a return to wrapping my hair at night was the only solution, and so it has been my mission to do so every night… or as often as I can remember. *lol*

Wrapping the hair at night is especially important for the transitioner, who is working with two hair types and a line of demarcation where those two types meet, because even those protective styles (short of full weaves or wigs) can’t fully protect your hair from the effects of sleep damage.  Satin wraps, bonnets and pillowcases are relative inexpensive to procure from your friendly neighbourhood beauty supply store, or if you’re handy, you can purchase the materials from your local craft store and manufacture your own!  It’s the perfect way to build healthy hair… in your sleep!

Healthy Hair Wishes,

(click the image to visit site)

I have been in love with this Blog for about a year and a half now because she serves a banquet of Blog dishes dealing with natural hair care, make up tips and reviews and her fashionista perspective.  Sprinkle it all over with a dash of personal life experiences, and you have a smorgasbord of the must read variety.

Created in 2006 by Naptural Bella Patrice Elizabeth Grell Yursik (who has been walking the natural journey since 2002), Afrobella combines Patrice‘s love for writing with her passions for natural hair, beauty and fashion.  Now while you may think by that description you’re sure to find a bunch of “hoity toity” reviews or entries that only B.A.P.S. can relate to, Afrobella has such a homegirl flavour to it, that even the most ardent of tomboys can get with.

With sections like Bella on a Budget, which gives tips on how to get that celeb beauty look for less, and Afrobella Body, which offers ideas on how to eat healthier and shed unwanted weight, this Blog offers something for everyone and should be on the Blogroll of every naptural and fashionista.

So what are you waiting for?  Click on over there today, and be sure to leave a comment.

NOTE: The image used for this spotlight is the property of Afrobella.com. All rights reserved.

Happy exploring!

Healthy Hair Wishes,

One day while flipping through the Net I happened upon this most distressing news story:

Garnier, Adecco Fined for Rascism

The French cosmetics company, Garnier, and Swiss employment agency Adecco have been found guilty of carrying out a racist recruitment campaign in 2000.

A French appeals court overturned an earlier acquittal and ruled both companies had colluded to find only white women to sell make-up in Paris.

They were fined 30,000 euros ($40,865) and a former Adecco employee was given a three-month suspended jail sentence.

Garnier‘s parent company, L’Oreal, said it was not racist and would appeal.

Adecco, the world’s biggest employment agency, said it was astonished by the ruling and was considering an appeal.

‘Coded instructions’

The Paris Appeal Court found that Adecco had complied with what prosecutors said were coded instructions from Garnier to find only young, white women for its counters in the capital.

The court was shown a Garnier memo requesting “BBR” women – an acronym for “bleu-blanc-rouge” or “blue-white-red”, the colours of the French flag in French.

Prosecutors said the term was a racist code for excluding black, Arab or Asian women.

The term is also used in the literature of the far-right National Front party in France.

After finding them guilty, the court fined Garnier, Adecco and one its subsidiary’s, Ajilon, 30,000 euros, as well as 10,000 euros ($13,600) of legal costs, to the pressure group SOS Racisme.

Therese Coulange, a former Adecco employee, was given a three-month suspended prison sentence.

However, the former Garnier director, Laurent Dubois, and another Adecco employee were acquitted.

The ruling was the first time in France that blue-chip companies have been convicted of racial discrimination in hiring.

The charges had originally been dismissed by a civil court in June 2006 on the grounds that there was sufficient doubt about their guilt.

source: http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/europe/6279418.stm

Now you know I just about had a heart attack when I saw this — not that racial discrimination wasn’t uber evident from watching their commercials already– because you all know how much I love the Fructis line (presently I possess two of their shampoos, two of their conditioners and a bottle of their anti-humidifying milk) because of how well it works for my hair.  Even though this atrocity happened only in Paris, and more than likely won’t cause me to stop using their products (they don’t have to like my ethnicity in order for me to like how their shampoos and conditioners work on my hair), the mindset of the advertising French is so bass ackward.  And to think they thought they’d get away with it!  This is 2009, right?

A couple of days later I notice a barrage of Blog posts concerning the “bad hair day” commercials, in which Gariner shows a Caucasian woman sporting an Afro-esque do prior to using the products to make her hair sleek and straight (I haven’t personally seen it and can’t find it anywhere on the Net, but I did see this one which I found offensive), along with the Fructis Flow spot featuring Memphis Bleek and an R&B type song but no women of colour in the singing line up (there was at least one in the commercial… I saw her… she was in the club with a natural style).  Needless to say, the sisters are not amused, and I can’t say I blame them one bit.  Considering I am a loyal consumer of the the Fructis line of products, it would be nice to see advertising that represents us women of colour who probably make up a larger portion of L’Oreal‘s revenue base, as well as does not liken our unique and beautiful texture to dogs or use it as examples to reinforce stereotypes of what “bad hair” looks like.

So how do we make that happen ladies?

Well Karen over at the Naturally Beautiful Blog spoke her peace directly to the company and receive a quick, albeit terse, response from their Consumer Affairs Department.  Writing Addict over at On The Road to Queendom did the same, and I say so should we, because we need to have a say in how our hair is depicted in marketing campaigns!

Here’s my letter:

I have been a been a loyal buyer of your Fructis brand for many year and rave about how well they work with my hair type, but as an African-American woman I find your recent ad campaign for your Sleek and Shine line, depicting “bad hair” as the type that closely resembles mine and others of African descent — frizzy, course, kinky and coily.  In your most recent commercial, a Caucasian model’s straight hair transforming into an Afro after a drop of water falls onto it.  The model then screams in horror and is rushed to by a man with hedge clippers.  The verbal message of the commercial is a claim that your product will “fix” the model (consumer, by proxy) hair so that it returns to it’s former glory instead of remaining a frizzy mess.  In another of your commercials, aired outside of the United States, a pair of Caucasian models are shown walking dogs past the camera; one walks what appears to be a Poodle with matted fur and the model seen wearing what appears to be brown Dreadlocks, and the other walks what appears to be a Chow and wears a poofy Afro-like style.  With the bad hair and the dogs the models walk off camera, then return walking in the opposite direction totally transformed into blondes with long, flowing straight hair.  Because the language of the commerical is not one I’m fluent in I am not sure what was said, but despite that the offensive message came across clear.

Now while the objective of both campaigns is evident, the messages communicated by the visual are quite culturally offensive and done in very poor taste.  By terming Caucasian hair that looks like African-American when it is in its natural state as “bad” in your advertising, you alienate your African-American customers and bolster the negative stereotype that hair like ours is undesirable.  As a woman of colour who uses your product on her chemically unaltered (course, kinky and coiled) hair, I feel that your commercials are misrepresenting just how beautiful all hair is, not just that of the glorified straight, sleek and Caucasian variety, and sending the message that ethnic hair is not considered part of  Garnier‘s demographic.  And many of women like me agree.

In the future, I hope your company takes into consideration that women of all hair types use your products and are subject to your advertising messages, and will work harder to produce commercials that appeal to all of your consumers without being offensive to other ethnic groups.

And I kindly dropped it HERE.  Quite possibly, if we get enough people on board and make a big enough fuss, Garnier will change its advertising stripes at home and abroad.

Update

Having sent out my correspondence on Saturday, I was surprised to find this response from them in my Email today:

From: Garnier <garnier@us.loreal.com>

July 20, 2009

Thank you for letting us know how you feel about the commercial for our company.

The opinions of our consumers are important to us when making decisions about our products, services and advertising.  We value you as a customer and will forward your comments to the appropriate individual in our company.

Sincerely,
Cesarina
Consumer Affairs Advisor
Ref # 5174282

Now while I appreciate the promptness of the reply, the terseness of it, the fact that it is not addressed to me personally, and none of my searches brought up a “Cesarina” connected with Garnier or L’Oreal under the title of “Consumer Affairs Advisor” (notice there is no last name attached) makes me quite dissatisfied with the response at present.  Provided my comments really are being forwarded to the proper individual, as relayed in this communiqué, I will wait about a week or so before following up.  Now while I was not prepared to stop using the Fructis line based on the initial practices because as I’ve said, a company does not have to like me in order for me to like their products (when it comes to corporations, it’s never “personal”, and I understand that), but depending on how they choose to handle this situation, I just might reconsider my stance.

I will keep you all updated.

Healthy Hair Wishes,

Picking up where I left off with the features, I present to you Ms. Emerald Shaw, a make up Goddess and transitioner I met while I was a Plurker.  Hailing from my hometown of Detroit and relatively a newbie, Emmy took up the natural journey last year and has not turned back since.

M. Michelle: So what made you want to go natural?

Emmy: Following my last relaxer I got my hair in micros and a few weeks before I took those out I made the decision. I didn’t like the fact that I had to cut my hair because there was so much damage.  Last summer I educated myself about hair and wanted to learn more about my hair and why it was the way it was.  And then there’s a deeper reason why I decided to go natural. I was going through a lot of stuff last year and I was in a few situations where I simply didn’t feel like me. I decided that i never wanted to alter myself for the sake of others, and as a symbol of that I never want to chemically alter my hair again. I want it to grow and flourish the way it was intended in hopes that I as a whole will follow suit.

M. Michelle: How long had you been perming beforehand?

Emmy: I’d be perming my hair forever.  *lol* I think I had my first perm when I was six or seven, possibly five.

M. Michelle: Wow! Six or seven? That’s early as all get out.  I have heard of perms that early, but never known anyone personally who’d gotten one so young.  Looking back, why do you think that was an option your mom turned to?

Emmy: I’d guess that she didn’t know any better. I’m not sure how old she was when she got her first relaxer, but I know her mother was a cosmetologist. Maybe it’s what she was taught, or maybe throwing a Just For Me in your daughter’s hair was just the thing to do in the 90′s. Before then she always put my hair in cornrows.  Having mentioned that, maybe she just got tired of braiding my hair all the time. *lol*

M. Michelle: What products do you use now?

Emmy: I’ve been using Dr. Miracle Shampoo lately and very now and then I’ll buy a packet of Dr. Miracle Deep Conditioner. I like the tingling sensation. I use shea butter in my hair rather than hair grease, and if I need to get it to lay down I use Jam. I try not to use a whole lot of product, especially since all of that isn’t natural.  Recently I began using Aphogee’s Balancing Moisturizer, Aphogee’s Deep Moisture Shampoo and Aphogee’s Provitamin Leave-In Conditioner.

M. Michelle: Do you follow any regular maintenance routine?

Emmy: Yep. I wash either Saturday night or Sunday morning, throw it in either 4 pony tails or some lil rascal braids so it can air dry, the I have my mom press it out Sunday night and shea butter it up before bed. Depending on the how I want to wear it the next day I’ll put it in rollers for the night.   Every once in a while I’ll do a mayonnaise treatment instead of using a deep conditioner.

M. Michelle: Are you heat style free now?

Emmy: Pretty much. I have a CHI iron but I don’t use it often. I have a curling iron as well, but I only use it in emergencies.  *lol*  I try not to use heat other than the pressing comb.  I stopped blow drying because I wanted to limit the heat.

M. Michelle: Other than braids, how do you normally style your hair?

Emmy: Most of the time I roll it at night, take the rollers our in the morning and then just play with it until it looks decent. Other than that I brush it all to the back and wear a knit beret over it. For the past two days I’ve been throwing it in a pony tail.  In general it’s pressed out on Monday morning and I’ve been putting it in a pony tail.

M. Michelle: Do you use any heat protection products when you straighten your hair?

Emmy: Yes.  The Aphogee Leave-In serves and a heat protectant, and in addition to that I use CHI Silk Infusion.  I like the CHI a lot because it protects from heat damage but it also keeps my hair from reverting back so much during the week.  Even in the heat and humidity

M. Michelle: Other than braids, have you experimented with any other styles?

Emmy: Not as of yet.  I thought about getting a sew in, but I’m scared. *lol* thought about kinky twists too, but I don’t think they’d look as good on me as braids do.

M. Michelle: What makes you scared to get the sew in?

Emmy: Mostly because I don’t want it to look silly. I feel like if I get a full sew in it’ll look uber fake because there would be no natural part in the hair and I wouldn’t be able to part it myself.  If I get a partial, I’d have to flat iron the portion of my hair that doesn’t have weave sewn in every single day. I don’t wanna have to apply that much heat to one section that often.

M. Michelle: What, if any, stigmas did you have to bypass in making your decision to go natural, and how did you do it, especially living in the Hair Capital of America? *lol*

Emmy: I don’t think I was really affected by any. I was never one to be all weaved up so I wasn’t bothered much about the societal things.

M. Michelle: But you permed up until this year.

Emmy: Well yea, but I mean once I made the solid decision nothing was going to deter me from that. Sure, society played a part in why I kept relaxing my hair but more so I think I did it because I didn’t know anything else.

M. Michelle: So what are you hair goals, if you have any?

Emmy: I just want to grow it as long as I can.  If I can get it down my back I’d be super dee duper happy. I wanna be able to wash and go without lookin weird.  But the main goal is to help it grow as long as it wants to.

M. Michelle: Do you have an idea how much new growth you have?

Emmy: Since I’m not working with two textures of hair anymore its harder for me to tell, unless I have it braided. But if I had to guess I’d say it’s doing a few millimeters per month. It seems to grow a lot faster when it’s braided. Probably because it gets a break.  When it’s braided I usually have anywhere between 1/4 inch to 1/2 inch or so by the time I take them out.

M. Michelle: Are you clipping the ends regularly?

Emmy: Yes and no.  *lol*  Whenever I’m taking braids out I make sure I cut a little while in the process of cutting braids out. When not braided, I don’t trust myself enough to do it. But since I am employed now, I’m going to start going to a salon regularly so that someone can do it properly for me.

M. Michelle: Okay so, what made you decided to grow your hair out, versus simply keeping it braided or doing a big chop?

Emmy:I actually did keep it braided for about a year. I would have the braids in for two months, out for a month, and then back in for another two months. I didn’t want to do the chop because I was very scared of having a TWA. There are some people who can rock it, but I didn’t think I was one of those people. Plus I kinda feel like the big chop is a punk move. *lol* It takes guts to do it, but I think you have to put a lot more work in if you don’t do it.

M. Michelle: That’s not necessarily true. There are trials and tribs with working with a TWA, considering you’re still learning your hair and it takes a lot to manipulate and style short, textured hair.   A lot of people chop and get a weave or extensions

Emmy: My friend Liz did that; chopped and got a sew in.   I’m sure there’s some rough moments working with a TWA, but, I don’t know, I can’t imagine it being harder than two textures. *lol*  I don’t know, that’s just how I felt.   I wanted the challenge and I felt like not chopping would give me that.

M. Michelle: What are your current frustrations?

Emmy: Basically having to do with growth.  My hair is not growing as fast as I want it to, though my view of fast may be unrealistic.  *lol*  The front/top of my hair is shorter than the back and the hair on the left side of my head has always grown longer than on the right. Working in a doctor’s office everyday its better to have your hair pulled back, so I throw it in a ponytail, but with some hair being longer than others, its a process to get it into a decent pony tail.

M. Michelle: Are you a member of any hair care forums or groups or do you have any favourite sites?

Emmy: I’m not a member but I do browse them from time to time if I’m trying to find info on a product. My biggest resource is YouTube actually. There are soooo many natural hair chicks on there with product reviews and style tips.

M. Michelle: Aye.  I have yet to watch any myself.  I’m a reading kinda girl.*lol*

Emmy: *lol* I’m more of an auditory learner so the vids work well for me. I think you might like Blaqueindigo‘s videos. She talks about lots of different things, but she has a few hair videos. Those were what sparked my decision.  Or at least got me thinking “Hmm, what if i went natural…?”

M. Michelle: If you could change any part of the beginning of your transition, what would would you do differently, if anything?

Emmy: You know, I don’t think I would change anything. Well, maybe I would’ve tried more products at the beginning, but other than that I don’t think I would do too much differently. Considering how damaged my hair was at the beginning, I cant complain about all that I’ve done thus far.

M. Michelle: Any advice for others who would like to “go natural”? Any ways to make the process easier?

Emmy: Educate yourself thoroughly.  That helped me a lot. Learn about the history of hair in your ethnic background and research productions, methods and options in getting/keeping it healthy. Above all, understand that this is a long term commitment. Understand that the decision to go natural is like a proposal. Make sure you know what you’re getting into so you don’t end up in an ugly divorce.

~@~

Emmy’s Progress in Pictures

(click each image to enlarge)

Would you like to hear more from Emmy? You can contact via her Website at www.theneverlove.com.

###

Thank you so much for allowing me to share your transitioning story with my readers, Emmy.  I wish you much luck as you grow and learn your hair and yourself.

Healthy Hair Wishes,

NOTE: All pictures used are property of the individual persons featured, unless otherwise noted.  All rights reserved.

I came across this topic while perusing The Coarse Hair Diary.  Seems in October 2008, the people over at Carol’s Daughter, who I adore, has filed a complaint again the makers of Carol’s Express, who I’ve never heard of, citing a possible case of… trademark infringement? According to this 2008 press release, it appears to be true:

Carol’s Daughter Prevails in Trademark Infringement Case

NEW YORK, Nov. 7 /PRNewswire/ — Carol’s Daughter, LLC, the widely popular beauty personal care line created by Lisa Price, commenced legal proceedings against Carol’s Express, distributed at CVS stores, for trademark infringement. After a hearing at the federal court in downtown Manhattan, the Court issued an order requiring Carol’s Express and CVS to stop selling and to direct their stores and distributors to pull Carol’s Express products off the shelves.

“Carol’s Express is trying to capitalize on the name, trademarks and brand that is Carol’s Daughter,” says Lori Haram, General Manager of Carol’s Daughter. “While imitation is said to be the highest form of flattery, in this case, it is not.”

The complaint filed by Carol’s Daughter alleged that Carol’s Express deliberately marketed inferior products under a “Carol’s Express” name and logo, which were confusingly similar to Carol’s Daughter‘s federally registered name and trademark. Carol’s Daughter also alleged that the Carol’s Express products had already confused customers and could cause a substantial number of customers to be further confused or mistaken into wrongly believing that the products found in CVS were associated with Carol’s Daughter.

Lisa Price, founder of Carol’s Daughter, commented, “We are relieved and take any threat to the integrity of our brand very seriously. The experience I provide my customers is built on years of authenticity, and can never be replicated.”

About Carol’s Daughter

Carol’s Daughter is a line of beauty products, including products for hair, skin, and hands, as well as fragrances created by Lisa Price and named after her mother Carol. Nature, family and love are words that resonate with Carol’s Daughter and each product carries a unique story that describes the familiar manner in which it was born.

Soon after, Carol’s Daughter opened its first boutique in Brooklyn’s Fort Greene neighborhood. In 2005, the company introduced new product packaging, an updated Website, celebrity investors and a highly anticipated Harlem flagship store in New York City. Even after approximately 15 years of success and expansion, Carol’s Daughter products are still made with love and by hand, all the while carrying a treasure trove of family secrets ready to be experienced by its valued consumers.

SOURCE Carol’s Daughter, LLC

PR source: http://news.prnewswire.com

This was followed up by a press released by Carol’s Express, ironically six months to the day of the CD press release:

Carol’s Express Fights Suits Filed by Carol’s Daughter

NEW YORK, May 7 /PRNewswire/ — Carol’s Express, LLC, the widely popular beauty personal care line under the leadership of Donyale Bush, COO continues to defend its position against Carol’s Daughter, distributed at Macy’s and Sephora, regarding trademark infringement.

In an electronic filing on October 17, 2008 at 4:23 PM EDT, attorneys for Carol’s Express cited “Plaintiff’s (Carol Daughter, LLC) prior counsel, Jones Day Law firm… advised on an investigation… and was not a request to cease and desist from the sale of (Carol’s Express) products in CVS.”

“It’s important that consumers know where Carol’s Daughter is really made, what the relevant facts are and that the whole home spun story is nothing more than marketing spin,” states Donyale Bush, COO of Carol’s Express, LLC. “While we welcome legal competition, intimidation and sour grapes of this nature is shameful.”

The defense against the complaint filed by Carol’s Daughter substantiates the high quality of Carol’s Express and ceXpress brands. Carol’s Daughter and the Carol’s Express brand were made in the same warehouses at the time the suit was filed. Neither brand was made in the kitchen as of the filing date of the suit.

Donyale Bush, founder of Carol’s Express, commented, “This is a desperate attempt to continue to exploit consumers for anywhere from $20-$45 per product, when we provide a high quality product in ceXpress at half the price. We provide the consumer with a nature-based product at a sexy value. We know this will make our customer base, which we know to be savvy customers scrutinizing ever dollar in this economy, happy.”

About Carol’s Express

Carol’s Express, makers of ceXpress, consists of beauty care products designed for the African-American woman, including products for hair, skin, and hands with a new line of fragrances coming this fall hand picked exclusively by the women of Carol’s Express. The revolutionary ceXpress Soy Straightening System helps consumers retain more of their natural hair texture. Respect, Culture, Crown, Value, Family and Love are words that resonate with ceXpress Products. More information on ceXpress can be found at www.ceXpressproducts.com

SOURCE Carol’s Express, LLC

story source: http://www.entrepreneur.com/PRNewswire/release/151912.html

And this press release was followed a month and one day later by another press release that you can read HERE via the Fox Business News Website, stating that  Carol’s Express was in negotiations with a Carol’s Daughter affiliate concerning the matter.

Upon first reading I was sure of the legitimacy of this story, having Googled it and seeing it appear on several hair Blogs and forums.  But a deeper investigation of the matter, I am less convinced.  Due to the wording of the press releases, and this statement on MMDNewswire.com — where the press releases have been removed — by the purported  affiliated said to be in negotiations with Carol’s Express:

From: Ethan G. Foster, Managing Partner, E.G. FOSTER GROUP, INC

In response to the press release titled, Carol’s Daughter Affiliate, E.G.Foster Group, In Negotiation with ceXpress:

1. E.G. FOSTER GROUP is not now and has not been in negotiation with ceXpress with respect to any matter.

2. E.G. Foster, nor any representative or employee of the E.G. FOSTER GROUP has ever had a conversation or communication in any media with Donyale Bush, of ceXpress

With product labeling that is questionably similar to the Carol’s Daughter brand and press releases that look and read like duplicated advertisements, sounds to me like the people at Carol’s Express, LLC are indulging in a bit of “clever marketing” spinning of their own.  Especially considering none of my searches turned up any information on the issue via any legitimate news sources (PRNewswire.com is simply a press release blast site, nothing more, nothing less).

Anyone else hear anything about this?  Anyone ever used any ceXpress products? Honestly, if the products are comparable, and priced significantly lower than CD‘s, not to mention available at my local CVS, I think they might be worth a try if I can find them.

More as this develops, and feel free to add your own buck fiddy!

Happy exploring!

Blessed Be,

(click the image to visit site)

Today’s spotlight is on a Blog that began out of Affrodite‘s love for hair, and slowly graduated to cover a broader range of topics affecting the African-American community.  In her own words:

Originally, my intentions were to make this all about nappy hair and related topics. I soon realized that makes me yawn because there’s only so much you can say, plus I’m sooooo not the beauty type (don’t wear makeup, sometimes I shave my legs and sometimes I don’t). I will continue to post nappy stuff as I try new products and new-do’s and such, but I’m also going to share topics that strike a nerve for me and call at my soul to speak out, websites and blogs worth checking, black media and entertainment news, charitable causes, current events, history revisited, etc. Those who know me in my day to day life know that I’m passionate about things and have no problems letting people know what I think.

Our reason for spotlighting Affrodite.net is because she is putting on a fantabulous contest featuring a CURLS Essentials Sample Kit, a $22 value containing a variety of CURLS hair products!  This is a great way to get a taste of products designed for the kinky and coily among us, and  each kit is specifically designed according to fit your curl pattern.

For your chance to win, as well as to see life and hair care through Affrodite‘s eyes, surf on over and give her Blog a visit.  Be sure to leave a comment!

Happy exploring!

Healthy Hair Wishes,

I’d heard about Karen’s Body Beautiful — the brain child of Karen Tappin Saunderson, owner of Clinton Hill’s Karen’s Body Beautiful Dayspa — from my literary G_dmother, Linda Dominique Grosvenor, who has also started her very own journey to natural, so I decided to surf on over to the Website and check out the product offering.  Still loyal to my Carol’s Daughter Hair Milk and Healthy Hair Butter, I just wanted to check and see if Karen had anything comparable… Ya know… In case I needed to switch due to financial reasons.  Well lucky for me, KBB also offers a Hair Milk… and a Hair Butter, both priced a bit less than CD‘s listings.  And even better than that, KBB bundled these 1 and 2 oz.bottles of the two products in what they call their Heavenly Hair Sample Pack, which includes a 1 oz container of hair cream and a 1 oz bottle of hair oil!  I was overjoyed that for a “mere” $25 I could sample four products, without having to “commit” to full size bottles (an advantage over CD, who has “kits” but no sample sized products).  In addition to that, KBB gives you a choice of eleven fragrances to add to your products!  Woot-tacular, right?  Needless to say, I placed my order (grumbling all the way about UPS being the only shipping option at $8) and waited with baited breath for my goodies.

And I waited.

And I waited some more.

And still I waited…

I’d placed my order on May 10th and received confirmation that my order shipped on May 8th via UPS Ground.  I started getting antsy when the products hadn’t arrived by Memorial Day weekend, so I went to UPS to track the package.  Turned out they’d delivered it to the apartment complex office in lieu of walking up three flights of stairs to bring it to me door.  NOT a good look, considering any other package I’d gotten via UPS was delivered into my hot little hands directly.  It was more a UPS issue than err on the behalf of KBB, but I was a bit miffed that the company only offers one option for shipping… and it’s the most expensive one to boot.  But no worries and no bother, by the 26th I had my hair treats, with two lotion samples (sultry sandalwood and pomegranate guava), and was anxious to try them on for size, so I immediately washed my tresses and prepared to dress them.

First came the coco lime Hair Milk, which smelled so delectable it almost made me hungry.  Compared to CD‘s Hair Milk, KBB‘s was lighter in consistency with a slightly “oilier” feel to it.  While I did not mind the oily feel, I did hold trepidations that the product would be too water based for my thick hair.  But I applied, leaving my hair damp enough to help distribute the milk evenly.  From there I applied a bit of the lavender vanilla Hair Butter to my edges, just as I do with my CD combo.  The butter is creamier than CD‘s, which is cool, and did not gum up when coupled with the milk, and obvious plus.  The combination left my hair feeling soft and supple, although it played up my coils in a way that made it harder to comb through than when I use the CD products, and the fragrance combination was complimentary.  I styled my hair in two Afro puffs and allowed it to dry like normal.  The softness lasted on the base of my hair for about two days, which proved the milk was not overly watery, which would have been sucked up by my hair within a couple of hours, but the ends were unruly and needed something more.

Next came the Hair Oil, a mixture of carrot and rose hip oils infused with Egyptian Musk, one of my favourite scents in the Universe.  Because I suffer from slight scalp build up from time to time, I don’t typically use a lot of product very often, so when I began to feel my tresses deplete themselves of the milk and butter, I freshened them up with a quarter sized amount of the oil, paying special attention to the ends.  The oil is very light, in comparison with the Africa’s Best ultimate herbal oil I used to use when I first started out, so a slight coating was all I needed to make the most of it.  I loved the sheen the oil gave my tresses, and the fragrance was not overpowering, yet I gifted with uplifting whiffs of it all day which was a bonus.  I treated my hair with this serum every other day in the morning, in between washings and using the milk and butter combo, and my ends stated well moisturized.

And finally, the honey oatmeal Hair Cream.  Beyond the consistency, there really isn’t much different between this product and the hair butter, so my idea was to use this product for twisting purposes.  After a good cleansing and deep conditioning, I applied a few drops of hair milk to my scalp and hair shaft, then combed through.  While my hair was still wet, I began to twist the hair by applying an ample amount of the hair cream to each section.  The result was a head full of luscious twists — that I didn’t manage to get any pictures of cause I’m a slacker — that remained twisted and well moisturized for four days!  Even after washing the twists, they remained in tact, and with the water “reactivating” the cream, I did not have to apply much more when it was time to tighten them.  I applied a couple of drops of oil to my scalp in between each twist and the entire style looked refreshed, renewed and revived!

Now because the hair milk and hair butter were all I really wanted out of the bundle, and they didn’t work on my hair quite the way I’d expected, I gifted the items to my daughter who’s hair is a lot finer than mine.  Just as I’d suspected, the hair milk worked wonders for her, leaving her hair moisturized a lot longer than it did mine.  She’s able to go at least four days without having to reapply.  The hair butter and cream work perfectly to reduce frizziness, and the hair oil keeps her scalp well… uh… oiled. *lol*  As with everything, all products don’t work well on all hair types, but I am glad I was able to find someone who could benefit from KBB‘s hair goodness.

Price wise… for all you hair divas who love Carol’s Daughter but aren’t too fond of her prices, Karen’s Body Beautiful is sure to be a winner for you.  For the hair milk, KBB offers 8 and 16 oz bottles for $16 and $24, respectively (CD offers 4 and 8 oz bottles for $12 and $18).  Compared to CD’s Lisa’s Elixir, KBB‘s oil is $1 cheaper for 8 oz, with a 4 oz option that is $6 cheaper (trust me, a little goes a long way here), and compared to CD‘s Tui Hair Smoothie, KBB‘s hair cream is $3 cheaper.  As for the hair butter, KBB only offers an 8 oz jar for $16, $0.50 less than Carol’s Daughter, but CD offers a 4 oz jar as well  for $6 less than KBB.

The one major disadvantage I can see, and part of the reason I probably won’t be a regular Karen’s Body Beautiful customer, is availability.  Whereas with Carol’s Daughter you can walk into virutally any Macy’s or Sephora and stock up on your favorite items, the only way for consumers who live outside of Brooklyn to get their hands on KBB products is to order via the company Website.  This may not be convenient for everyone.  Be that as it may, here’s my rating:

JBTM Rating:

Hair Milk

Hair Butter 1/2

Hair Oil

Hair Cream

All in all, KBB products do as promised, are shipped as promised (delivery… not so much), smell great, feel great and come recommended by me.

Healthy Hair Wishes,

Hi Hi Napturals!

I think that I have come to the conclusion that I am ready for locs.  Yeah, yeah… I know I said I wasn’t sure I was ready for such a permanent style, but after many months of consideration, and talking to other loc’ers from all walks of life, as well as growing weary of limited styling options for my free hair, I think the time has come for me to commit.  Both my seester Eve and BFF Selena have offered to start the process for me, but I think I’m going to play around with starting locs from two strands this week.  While I’m sure the method is pretty “easy” in essence, I have taken to trolling the Internet to see what information I could find in order to “properly” start the process.  And here is what I came up with:

How to Start Two-Strand Twists or Braid Locs

Wash your natural hair.  Have a spray bottle of water handy to keep your hair damp throughout the twisting or braiding so [you don't] damage your natural hair by manipulating it dry.

Equipment:

• Fine tooth rat tail comb or any comb you can handle easily
• Non-alcohol loc gel or loc cream
• A light oil or pomade
• Spray bottle of water
• Hair clips
• Blow dryer or hooded dryer

Part your hair into large sections.  Separate a small section into the size you want to start your two-strand twists or braid locs in.  If you are two strand twisting or braiding, apply a TINY amount of loc product to the section you are about to twist.  Two-strand twist the hair gently but tightly (this is the same thing as braiding your hair, but instead of three strands of hair you use two).  Attach a clip to the end and the root. Continue throughout] until all is either two-strand twisted or braided.

NOTE: A loc product is NOT necessary, but may make it easier the first time you attempt this!

Either blow dry hair or sit under a [hooded] dryer.  Lightly oil your scalp [then] tie hair up with silk or satin scarf or bonnet.

The Good… The Bad… The Ugly???

Two-strand twists and Braids are a very cool way to start your locs, however, you have to either twist your hair or use another method to tighten them after the [initial] start.  They can be very versatile and go [through] the same stages of frizziness every other method does.

Tightening

Spray hair to dampen [then] apply a TINY amount of light gel or loc cream to the section that needs tightening at the root of the hair near the scalp.  Lightly smooth the gel or cream down the loc from the root to the end gently.  GENTLY but firmly twist the hair either clockwise or counter clockwise from the root.  Place a hair clip at the root to hold it while you smooth the rest of the section by twisting the same direction.  You may have to apply more than [one] clip depending on the length of your hair.  Do the same thing throughout until all the twists or braids have been tightened, then lightly blow-dry your hair or sit under the dryer, apply a light oil to the scalp and tie hair up with a silk or satin scarf or bonnet.

IMPORTANT: Remember your newly tightened hair will probably not STAY tight.  Don’t lose patience and try to tighten too often!   NEVER twist your hair when it is DRY.

source: http://www.daezhavoo.com/howtolocyourhair.html

Easy peasy, it seems, right?  Well, once I start I’ll be sure to keep you all updated on my progress, with plenty of pictures of the good, the bad and the “ugly” of it all.

Are you loc’ing now?  I’d love to hear your stories and advice on how you survived the journey!

Healthy Hair Wishes,