How to Revive Your Weave

Everybody has lazy days. Some of us have lazy weeks or months. I am guilty of all three. What a lot of people fail to realize is that having a weave is much like having to take care of your own. Maintenance is required. Have you ever laughed at a girl from YouTube when she took the extra mile to take care of her weave because you thought she was "doing the most?". We all have, but I can promise you that her weave lasted longer because she took the extra mile. No matter where your weave was purchased, if it is any type of human hair it requires maintenance. You would never go weeks without not washing your hair, deep conditioning or applying a heat protector. If you fail to care for your hair, your hair will fail to care for you. If you notice that your weave is becoming brittle, dry, unmanageable, matted, it may not be the hair, it may be you and what you're NOT doing to keep it fresh. Take a day out of your week to care for your hair. Even if you're busy and on the go, all you need is 30 minutes to make sure that your weave is up to par.

By simply using a heat protector or a serum could help your weave in the long run. Just like the hair on your head, the hair on your wefts require moisture as well. Just because it is no longer attached to a scalp nor is it still alive, it still can get split ends, dry, matted etc. The most important thing about having a weave is that you do not have to go all out and purchase expensive products, cheap products do the job and they do go a long way. Here are a few tips and products that will help bring your weave back to life and help it look fresh.

Product Review: Suave Naturals Rosemary+Mint Conditioner

Rating: 4.5/5

I'd been eyeing this product for a while now. A lot of people rave about the Almond & Shea Butter conditioner; but me being me and wanting not to jump onto the bandwagon, decided to try out the Rosemary+Mint Conditioner. Now I must say, for the price of this product one must should not complain. I purchased the 14.5 fl oz bottle from Walmart for about 1.95. the 25.5 FL oz bottle is about $2.88. My first instinct was to pick up the biggest bottle because the amount of product you get for the price is unbeatable, but I had to remind myself that I did not want to be stuck with this product if my hair did not like it. So the 14.5 fl oz bottle it was! Let's get to the specifics.



Smell : This product lives up to it's name. It indeed smells like natural rosemary with a very small hint of mint. The smell is not over powering and it smells very clean. The scent does not linger so once it has been washed out you no longer smell it. What I really like it that it does smell natural and not artificial.

Consistency : This consistency of this conditioner is just right. Not too thick, not too thin. I personally slab on a lot of conditioner on my head because I like to feel like it's actually "doing something" and as an "invigorating clean" conditioner that is what I expect it to do, especially since I do not use shampoo on a regular basis.

The GHE Simplified

The Green House Effect Method or "GHE" is something that I mention a lot on this blog. I have been using it since the start of my hair journey and it has helped my hair prosper tremendously. As a matter of fact, coming across Mika and Ivauno's Youtube channel one night during my freshman year of college is what prompted me to start my hair journey. I consider the GHE to be the advanced version of the Baggy Method, as it focuses on the science of the hair. The GHE promotes the production of sebum on your scalp which nourishes your hair and promotes growth.
At the start of my hair journey I did try to follow the Real Queens Regimen because I did not have one of my own. I eventually branched away from it because I found that my hair does not require much. I knew that I wanted to keep the GHE apart of my regimen and decided to make it "my own". Instead of following it step by step, I would do it the way that was easiest for me.

1. Twist or braid hair. I usually chunky twist my hair. It does NOT have to be neat or uniformed.
2. Apply oil to STRANDS of hair. I use Castor Oil, Olive Oil or Coconut Oil.
    (DO NOT APPLY TO YOUR SCALP. IT WILL DEFEAT THE PURPOSE.)
3. Put on my plastic shopping bag or plastic shower cap
4. Layer on silk head scarves. Sometimes I use a beanie as a layer to make sure its extra warm.
5. The end.

I do not wet/dampen my hair because my hair creates its own moist environment almost instantly and I find that adding additional water to my hair creates a smell after a few days. Though it is not extremely modified I found that this is what works best for me. I often wear head wraps or crowns so I am able to GHE for days at a time (as I am doing now). Every night before I go to bed I make sure that my plastic cap did not slip, my edges are covered and moisturized and my scarves are secured. Just remember that you have to be consistent to see results. The more you GHE the better. Just make sure that you do not neglect your hair.

2 Years 4 Months & Some Change Later

Wow,

It's amazing. I can't believe the amount of people who visit this blog daily/monthly. It's overwhelming! I have not been consistent with this blog since 2012 with a few posts made in 2013. People still leave comments and send me emails. A lot has changed since I first started this blog and I wanted to come back and interact with everybody who was once a follower and those who are new and just now finding out about A Queen & Her Crown. I've been blogging since 2009 and when I went to college it stopped. However, it is summer and I have a lot of free time on my hands and I have been focusing on my hair a lot more lately. So, I want to present to you all the new and IMPROVED version of A Queen & Her Crown. I hope everybody who views this blog/it's posts will find some sort of inspiration and or learn something from it.

Thank you from the deepest part of my heart for supporting this blog.

MSM Journey: Day 1

I have started taking MSM for hair growth. Today was my first day of taking the supplement and I am here to document it.

I was a bit nervous to take it at first for some odd reason. Yes I did my research, but anyway.

I am taking 500mg of MSM. I had a headache today. That's supposed to be one of the negative side effects. It wasn't too bad. I feel a bit fatigued but it's probably because I need to drink more water when I take the supplement as suggested.

U-Parts vs Sew In's

U-parts vs. Sew In's. This has been the on going debate I've been having with myself for the past year. However, as many of you know; I gave up wearing u-part wigs a few months ago to go back to sew in's. That has been going very well. However, something in me wants to go back to wearing a u-part. My only issue with the u=part is that I'm going to want to play with my hair and length check it every so often. Now with that, I will be able to do the GHE again. Now, with me wearing a sew in, I am able to retain my length for long periods of time without me thinking about wanting to do a length check. It allows me to go long periods of time without playing in my hair and taking it down. I feel like with sew in's, the results are much more rewarding. After wearing a sew in for 2-3 months, taking down your hair and seeing how much new growth I've retained is such a good feeling.

So, what I think I'm going to do is stick out wearing sew in's until May and when Summer comes I will be back to my U-Part wigs. Hopefully the front of my head has grown out more so I can finally flaunt my curly locks.