Keeks Pharmacy is Naural Hair Friendly

Hi Ladies!

"Due to popular demand, we at Keek's pharmacy now carry more natural hair friendly products. To buy the products shared with you, and more from Natural Nigerian,  visit us at bright plaza, No. 5 Ebitu Ukiwe street, plot 363 cadastral zone, opposite first bank beside zenith bank, Jabi district, Abuja."

NatM. says: Keek's therapy will have a stand at LRR on Saturday the 30th of October 2014 . 

DETANGLING MADE EASY

There is nothing as tiring -and sometimes painful- as detangling your kinks after 1-2months of protective styling. You take down the extensions/plaits looking forward to seeing what little length you must have gained during the period, but then you notice a lot of build-up at the roots. So what do you do? You pour lots of conditioner and/or oil on your hair and begin taking apart hair strands that are clumped together. Not only does the exercise feel like life is forcing you to learn divine patience, but you are disappointed by all the short hair strands that are falling off as you work through all the knots.

MY NEW SOLUTION TO THE PROBLEM: MANSHANU!!
2 weeks ago, I bought a bowl of manshanu from wuse market for N500. The plan was to use it as a dc protein treatment after washing with a shampoo but detangling a small section of hair took 2 days and I decided, in frustration, to try something new.

 

 

HOW TO
I smoothed on some manshanu to a little section of hair until it felt soft and then loosely twisted it. A few minutes after saturating all my hair with the product, I noticed that it was really easy for my fingers to pass through the knots without much of a problem (nice!). I then went on to take out the shed hairs with a wide tooth comb which was just as easy. No pain, no time wasted.
If there is one thing I love about manshanu is that it has got SLIP. This makes detangling so much easier and faster!!

I left the product on for another 30 minutes and washed it off afterwards.

Detangling has never been so easy and breakage was minimal

  Hair is soft and manageable one week after  treatment

On Sunday I tried the same process on my Mom. If there's one thing I know about her regimen is that she never washes her hair or puts anything liquid on it without properly detangling it first. When I offered to try manshanu on her hair using this method I could tell that she wasn't really buying my 'gist' but fortunately she let me work my magic.
During the process, not one "careful!'' was uttered. Instead I got a "what exactly is this?" and "how did you find out about it's uses?"
Answer to question 1:It is magical manshanu.
Answer to question 2: Out of frustration and I'm still learning about it.
The major lessons I have learnt during my hair journey are that one should never be afraid to try new things and short-cuts do make life easier (not all the time sha *_^).

NOTE:A little goes a long way. Apply too much and your face and neck will be full of oil in no time.

Storage: Manshanu should be stored in a refrigerator

Ready for use? If your manshanu is solid and sweating as seen in the picture opposite don't use heat to melt it. Rather, let it seat for 30-45mins (depending on how hard it is) and it would return to its original state.

REVIEW: HEMANI ZAIT JADAYL HAIR FORMULA

Happy Holidays People!

Like I promised the Hemani Zait Jadayl Hair formula review is ready.

 Ingredients

 Mustard oil, Olive Oil, Coriander Oil, Jatamansi, Coconut oil, Alkanna Tinctoria Oil, and other beneficial herbs.

Claims

1. Significantly reduces/stops breakage: The vendor drew similarities between Man-shanu and the product in question. She claimed that like man-shanu, Zait Jadayl stopped breakage significantly. And with reduction in breakage comes length retention. Abi?

2. Thickens the hair
3. Great as a pre-poo treatment.

First Impressions

1. Nice packaging

2. List of ingredients: I noticed that Hemani only listed 6 ingredients on the bottle. "...and other beneficial herbs"? Hmm....

3.The smell: A bit too strong at first but you sort of get used to it. My comfort was in knowing that it would soon come off.

4. No direction for use on the bottle: I wish the company gave some instructions on how we can use their product. Do we leave it in? Wash it off? Apply on the hair? Skin....what?

My Experience

Before HZJ: For the past 3 weeks, I have been wearing chunky twists. During the first 2 weeks we had humid/hot weather (so grateful for AC's). During this period, my hair was the last thing on my mind. I'd put it up in a bun or tie it up quickly and be good to go. Then out of no where it rained and the dry harmattan winds blew in angrily the very next day. Instead of taking down my hair and doing a dc treatment to protect it from the harsh weather, I totally ignored it again (issokay). Fast forward to Wednesday last week an what I saw after take down was very dry, lifeless, straw-like hair :(

 How I used Zait Jadayl hair formula to detangle natural hair: So I poured a bit of the oil into my palm and smoothed it on a little section of hair, then I patiently took out the tangles and knots. Like Olive Oil and Coconut Oil (my favs), Zait Jadayl hair formula did a great job of getting those dry hair strands to separate with a bit more ease. The oil is not too thick or sticky. Application is easy and working with hair that has too much of the product is not as uncomfortable as working with hair that has too much castor oil *_*.

*The state my hair was in, if I had applied water before detangling, I would have lost a lot more hair than I did. 

Will I use it for this purpose again?

Oh yes.

Using Hemani Zait Jadayl hair formula for a pre poo treatment: 

Using the baggie method, I did a pre-poo treatment with the product. I sat under a hooded dryer for 30mins and after an hour, I went on to wash my hair. Lord!! My hair strands thirsty. It took a lot of water to get it soaking wet.

After washing once and co-washing twice, I proceeded to detangle. I noticed that my hair did not just shed but was also breaking as I detangled!

Whose fault? Most definitely not the oil. Remember that I neglected my hair for 2 weeks and one week of very dry weather. It is only normal that I deal with the results.

I almost expected the product to protect my hair from my negligence after just an hour of leaving it on but lets face it, that is too much to expect from any product.

Immediately after washing, I knew I had to do the right thing; I had to do a moisture treatment. Not in the mood to mix anything up, I used my Natural Nigerian Moisture Detangling Leave in Conditioner as a deep conditioning moisture treatment for my still thirsty roots .

After an hour, I took out the excess, applied some of my shea butter mix, braided and left hair to air dry.

 

By the next day, my hair was dry but very soft again. Amen! :) Above is a picture I took of my hair two days after wash day. Still soft and very easy to manage.

 To Protect my hair from further damage I...

Applied some Natural Nigerian hemp seed oil and twisted the hair in big chunks. If you look closely you will see that I used Noble kinky extensions- which is very close to my hair texture, colour and length  - to twist my hair. This should last for a week and after, I will do another Zait Jadyl pre poo treatment and follow up with a moisture treatment.

 Will I use this product again?
Yes.
 But you still experienced breakage after first use, why go back to it?
I do not expect any product to miraculously fix days, weeks or months of neglect in one day.I would keep using it and would report my results after each use. Jemila told me to expect results in 4 months so I'm prepared to give this product more chances to prove itself.

Interested in trying this product out, visit our PRODUCT FIND PAGE for information on how to reach the vendor.

Share your hair secrets: Harmattan is here,what products are you using to keep the kinks healthy and moisturised?

Product Find: Hemani Zait Jadayl Hair Formula

 Hi People!
Last week, a reader told me about a  hair product called Hemani's Zait Jadyl Hair formula. I have never heard of or seen this product before then so I wasn't too intrigued about it (having found my staple products, I'm not that product crazy any longer).
Not too trusting, I asked the vendor if she could show me results and she agreed to. Even better I got to see the results in person and not just in a picture. So I met Jemila and her sister and the moment they took down their hijabs I was really impressed with their long healthy looking relaxed hair. 
I was given a bottle to try (thank you Jemila!) and I will be doing a review as soon as possible.
The cold/dry harmattan winds have began blowing hard so man must be ready to protect these fragile strands.

 

CLAIMS:
1. Significantly reduces/stops breakage 
2. Thickens the hair
3. Great as a pre-poo treatment.

USE:
Liberally apply Hemani's Zait Jadyl hair formula to your hair and cover with a bag. Seat for some minutes and proceed to wash.

FIRST IMPRESSIONS:
I love the packaging! But the smell seemed a bit too strong for me. I guess that is why I was advised to use this as a pre poo treatment. There are a few other reservations I have but I will deal with that after I have used it. I have already done a patch test with no reaction so....lets go there:)

Has anyone seen or used this product before? If yes, please share your experience in the comment box below. 

*POST EDITED:
It has been brought to my notice that the link below which was posted last week talks about a different type of oil produced by Hemani (Zait Al Hayee). Please excuse the error.

For those of your who are interested, here's the closest thing to a kinky hair review I found online. Please read the whole thread before making up your mind.

Product Find: Gift Packs Made by Natural Nigerian

 

No Nigerian wedding is complete without take-home gift packs. The gifts are usually given to the guests from the couple, their relatives and friends. The usual pack contains fans, buckets, plastic bowls, scented candles, note books etc. 

Well, Natural Nigerian has put a new twist to our tradition. Instead of getting stuff you might keep and never use, she packaged oils, butters, shirts,bags and other items you are bound to fully appreciate.

                                    For the grooms men

                                                 

                                  

Contents of Basket: A complementary card holder, an embroidered ankara shirt, a tie, and a jar of Shito.

A note from the couple

For the brides maids

 Contains...

 Ankara bangles, a notebook, Natural Nigerian's whipped shea butter, grape seed oil, and Moisture/shine detangling leave-in-conditioner

Someone's already rocking her ankara bag :)

 

KinkLove: Beautiful Sisterlocks

And if you didn't get any of the above here's some shito and fabric for you:)

So what think you of NN's gift pack? Will you rather have this or the usual at your wedding/ocassions?

Product Review: Natural Nigerian's Leave in Conditioner

 

Hi People,
I was totally excited when Natural Nigerian's leave-in conditioner was launched into the Nigerian market. NN's leave-in has been able to solve two big hair problems for me:

1. I don't have to wait for my friends/family to travel before I can get an affordable leave in conditioner that works for my natural hair and
2. I don't have to pay double for a leave in conditioner. Most of the leave-in conditioners that find their way into Nigeria are hard to find and can be very expensive.

To the review....

CLAIMS

• Nourishes, fortifies and moisturizes hair.
• "Natural Nigerian Moisture and Shine detangling leave in conditioner is a light weight , pH balnaced conditioner which can be used to detangle as well as improve the general manageability of your hair."
• It contains plant derived active ingredients.
• Contains high performance moisturizers.
• Protects hair from heat .

INGREDIENTS

Aloe barbadensis leaf extract, coconut oil, glycerine, hydrogenated olive oil, shea butter, olea europaea (olive oil), citrus aurantium dulcis(orange peel oil) e.t.c

 

FIRST IMPRESSION

After reading the ingredients and recognising some as being suitable for my hair, I opened the bottle and the first thing that hit me was the yummy citrusy fragrance. The smell reminded me one of my favourites; citrus cake. I poured a bit on my palm and noticed that the consistency was light...hmmm....this girl is used to thick conditioners oh. Well, there's always a first time.

THE INTRODUCTION: NN LEAVE-IN & MY MANE

To get the best results, I washed my hair and did a deep conditioning treatment. After rinsing off the deep conditioner, I was too tired to do the usual detangle, smooth and layer products on my hair. So I applied some leave in, detangled, smoothed my hair and then braided it for the night. By the next morning, my hair was dry and felt very soft after take down. Okay:).
Since my hair felt soft and moisturised I decided to do without olive or coconut oil. After day 3, I took down the braids and noticed that my hair had begun to feel dry so I applied some more NN leave-in conditioner in place of  water and immediately I felt a difference. (see pic. below)

MY DIRECTIONS FOR USE

•  Apply the product immediately after washing. smooth product on hair strands and apply very little coconut oil or shea butter afterwards. Or

• Apply the product immediately after  washing and braid. The next day, apply very little coconut oil or shea butter for added shine and manageability.

Dry Hair?

•  Put some water in a spritz bottle, pour in some of the product and shake.
• Working in section, spray on some of your mix, smooth hair, apply some butter or light oil (sealant) and braid.

 My hair after moisturising using NN leave-in condish

 After carrying those braids for 3 weeks (covers face), I used the leave-in to detangle hair. I couldn't wash the hair immediately because my scalp felt sore so I braided hair and let it be for 2 days (pic to the right)

Styling?

...this.
Frizzlove

• Put hair in a bun, smooth very little amount of the product on your hair, and tie with a satin scarf. Proceed to do prepare for the day. After some minutes take down scarf and rock your smooth , curly fro.

NOTE: If you have tight curls like mine and do not like frizzy hair, you might want to follow up that with a gel. I like the frizzy look so I go without. Hair ends up looking something like....

PROS

After using NN Moisturising detangling leave-in conditioner I found that:

• The leave-in's consistency is light: I don't think anyone (at least I know I don't) enjoys the hours and days it takes to air dry natural hair so this product should be great for naturals with long/full hair. The lighter the product the less time it takes to dry your hair.
• The fragrance is awesome: I just love how the leave in leaves my hair smelling fruity.
• The product can be used without using oils: If you are one of those lazy naturals (like myself) who gets tired of layering product after product just to get soft manageable natural hair, then this product is for you.
• Because the product contains oils and butters like shea butter, a little goes a long way. Too much and your hair would feel slippery and oily. Applying too much oils after using the leave in to seal in mositure would give you the same oily result. This is a plus as you would be able to save your oils and butters.
• Detangling: The leave in was also able to deliver on this promise. Dry hair? Apply some of the leave in to your hair (in sections) and detangle using a comb or your fingers and the tangles would come apart. 

CONS

I haven't found anything I dont like about the product. Its been more than 2 months but I think we are still in early days. If you are a frequent Dbk visitor you would have noticed that I use different products in different weather conditions (weather change = regimen/product change). Given the pros, I am  hoping that I can use this product all year round.

Let's talk money.... 
Although I did not pay for mine, I gats recognise that the leave-in is slightly pricey.Trust me when I say I understand how difficult it might be for some of us students, job seekers and frugal people to pay N2500 for a bottle of conditioner. But I think that if one uses the product in moderation, a bottle can last for a whole semester. I got mine in July and between my 2 sisters and I, that leave-in has survived more than 3 wash days (each). And guess what, I still have more than a quarter of the bottle left. Remember moderation is KEY.

On the left is the amount of coconut oil I use to NN leave- in conditioner per section. 
Please note that I use very little product because I can't stand oily hair. If this is too little  find the quantity that works for you.

 Have you used the Natural Nigerian leave-in conditioner? If yes, please share your experience below.