I was sent the Shea Butter Sample Pack (which can also be found on the TGIN site) which consisted of the 100% Organic Shea Butter, Peppermint Lip Balm and Wild Lemon Grass soap bar. I can only review thoroughly the Lip Balm and Soap as LB has done something with the Shea Butter….it probably will never surface again in this lifetime. – __-

Lets start with the peppermint lip balm. It is the Bomb! LB’s lips get very dry, especially during the winter months. I’m always very hesitant to apply anything to his lips because of a couple of things:

1. He’s a boy (that’s always reason number one) and

2. It’s on his mouth and he is a toddler, therefore it may end up in his stomach

Because of the ingredients of this product, number 2 was not that much of a concern to me. There are literally 8 ingredients, all of which I can pronounce and all of which can be found on this wonderful green earth. The Balm also has no parabens, which has become a concern for me as I have been reading up on various studies and the effects parabens may have on children.  Here is the very short list of ingredients:

Organic soybean oil, sunflower oil, organic olive oil, avocado oil, beeswax, cocoa butter, shea butter and vitamin E.

Awesome right??? And now for concern number one. I do try to keep LB hydrated so that his lips are not crusty and crumbly but sometimes that’s just not enough. I have a whole slew of balms that I have tried on him and most of them give off a shine that I don’t like. This balm, however, sinks right down into his lips, moisturizing and softening for kisses to Mommy without looking like he just ate a bucket of chicken.  I love it! LOL.

Now on to the Lemongrass soap. I’m kind of on the fence about it. I don’t really like the scent. It smells natural but there is this underlying scent that doesn’t agree with my nose. However, It did produce a nice lather and didn’t dry LB’s skin out as it is an olive oil based soap.

The bar that was sent was generously sized and we will definitely get a good amount of uses out of it.

You can visit Chris-Tia Donaldson’s Thank God It’s Natural online store HERE  as well as her Facebook Fanpage HERE.

*I was sent this product to review by Thank God It’s Natural. I was not compensated for this review.

Katie Bradley is owner of Mossy Rock Designs on Etsy. This particular piece is available as a 5×7 print of a watercolor. She has several whimsical pieces in her shop. You should check her out! Click the image to be taken directly to Katie’s shop! Thanks BBH!

LB has very, very , very dry skin. And on a recent trip to the ped. he was diagnosed with a mild case of eczema brought on by environmental conditions. Now that it’s winter his dry patches are in full effect.

I have tried cremes, oils, butters, lotions, you name it, we probably tried it. Lately I have been using a lotion from Avon for dry skin. It works okay, but the smell is very medicinal in my opinion. Not at all what I want my “baby” to smell like.

So on a trip to Bryant Park I spotted Shea Moisture’s pop up shop for the holidays. They were having a 3 for $20 special and I stocked up on my faves and also picked up the Shea Moisture Organic Raw Shea Butter Baby Eczema Therapy.

It says right on the label that it helps with Eczema so I was excited to try it on LB. After giving him a bath, I stuck my finger in and pulled out a tip full of product. There are a ton of oils in the product so I expected it to melt down fairly quickly.  I began to rub and rub AND rub, and it still would not completely dissolve. It did melt down into oil form but there were still large chunks of product remaining. In the picture below you can see the little white chunks on the upper part of my hand.

I ended up taking my blow dryer and blowing it on low, hot to melt the product down and then putting it on LB. I didn’t take a picture of the initially grainy product before I got to blasting it with heat but you can see how smooth it is from doing that.

I can say that it helped immensely with his dry skin, especially his knees. I only needed a very small amount and the oil absorbs quickly. Since it has no harmful ingredients, I use it on his face as well which helps in protecting his skin from the cold winter wind.

The smell is very nice and kind of comforting, especially after a warm bath. You can pick up on the Argan oil immediately.

This product retails for $9.99 normally and can be found in Target and Walgreens. Once this runs out I will purchase again. It may be a little to heavy to use in the warmer months though.

*I purchased this product with my own money.

I love using cremes on LB’s hair that are rich and absorb into his hair quickly. I have tried several to find the perfect product that does this. Some have passed the test, others have missed the mark because of things like being overly fragrant, too heavy, too many chemicals, etc. But this product, my friends, is definitely going into the winner’s circle.

Blended Cutie is the kids line for Blended Beauty . There are several products offered ranging from shampoos and conditioners to creams and gels. Rory over at Chocolate Hair / Vanilla Care is a true fan, and caused my PJ’ism to flare up. And now I see why. This “Creme Coiffante” is a leave in conditioning butter and it  is AWESOME. Im not sure if there are others but the “Main Ingredients are as follows (from the Blended Beauty website):

Down & Out Styles Main Ingredients: Aloe and Chamomile Water, Rice Bran Oil, Shea Butter, Natural Conditioner, Vegetable Glycerin, Polysorbate 20, Soy Lecithin, Capryl Isostearate, Guar Gum, Natural Preservative, Rosemary Leaf Extract, Silk Powder.

The texture is smooth and creamy and glides on to on wet or dry hair. I have been using this product for a few weeks to determine longevity of a style while maintaining moisture and shine. Down and Out Styles does this beautifully. It also smells very clean and fresh, which I love.

The cream is THICK and I didn’t need much at all to moisturize LB’s whole head.

I used the Down and Out Styles on a really cool style consisting of small braids condensed into double cornrows that I did for LB. After washing with Cara B Shampoo, I only used this product . I didn’t use any additional oil or leave in. I usually do this with products that are very creamy/heavy so that there isn’t too much stuff going on LB’s hair.

This is LB’s hair after 2 weeks. You can see how shiny it still was. Obviously its frizzy which is to be expected, but the style itself held up nicely and was still moisturized. I refreshed it a couple of times with Cara B Hair Mist but other than that no other products were used.

What I really liked was the fact that Down and Out Styles doesn’t seem to attract dirt and dust. At the end of the 2 weeks, there weren’t any lint balls or dust bunnies hiding out in his hair.

Down and Out Styles retails for $21 USD. You can purchase this product on Blended Beauty’s WEBSITE. Please also visit their FANPAGE on Facebook.

* I was sent this product to review by Blended Beauty. I was not paid to review this product.

How adorable is this “vintage” photograph of kids on a stoop. It seems to be from the 60′s – 70′s. I’m not sure of the photographer. This photo was spotted on a Natural Hair Tumblr. Beautiful.

Peace Love and Joy from Hair & Heart. We would like to wish you and yours a very happy holiday season. Enjoy your family and your health, with the two combined you are wealthy. So to all of our readers; Merry Christmas, Happy Hanukkah and Happy Kwanzaa.

I have heard great things about Jessie Curl products within the natural hair world and was pleased to finally get the chance to try them on LB.

I spoke to Jess personally and she sent over a package with trial sized versions of the Confidence Collection. This trial sized package retails for $20.00. It came nicely packaged in a plastic zippered container with a handwritten note from Jess herself. Step-by-step usage instructions were also included. A desctriptino of the collection from the JessiCurl Website:

The Confidence Collection is best suited for hair types 3C-4C. All of our trial size collections come with unscented product and include scent samples of our Island Fantasy and Citrus Lavender scents so you can see which one you like better.

I think Jess has read a little of Hair & Heart and sent me the products scent free. I really appreciated that because you all know, I’m a stickler for smells!

The first product I tried was the Hair Cleansing Cream.  Its clear with a “snot” like consistency. Although it was unscented it had a slight smell of sharpened pencils. Weird right?  It was okay. Like most sulfate free poos, this one left his hair a bit dry. It did leave his hair feeling clean though, seems to have removed all the residue from the product that was previously in there.

My favorite product so far from the line is the Deep Conditioning Treatment. It totally made up for the dryness the shampoo left. This battled through LB’s kinks like no other, especially since he had a 2 day old wash and go that was very compact. It really and truly melted away the knots and tangles. Best thing about the product was that I didn’t really have to use a lot of it to get the job done. I have used the 2 oz. container 3 times already and can probably get one more use out of it.

You can purchase Jessie Curl Products HERE. Please go ahead and “like” the Jessicurl Fanpage and follow them on Twitter.

I haven’t used the styling serum or the deep conditioner as of yet, but will definitely report back when I do.

I was sent these products for review purposes by JessiCurl.  I was not paid for the review. All opinions are my own.

I was sent two jars of styling cream by the lovely folks over at Wondercul.  One 4 oz. jar of Butter than Love Whipped and Butter than Love Pudding. Each jar retails for $12.00.

The description from Wondercurl’s site is as follows:

Butter than Love Hair Pudding is an ultra-moisturizing hair cream. BTL comes in two flavors, Pudding & Whipped. Both will hydrate your natural hair without weighing down your curls.

BTL Pudding is a light and fluffy formula that gives your hair shine and unbelievable softness.

BTL Whipped is a dream for parched curls. This thick and rich cream is loaded with oils and butters resulting in hair that is full of life and bounce

The packaging screams girl. However, this doesn’t bother me because LB will not be wearing the jar (smile). I like the shape of the container because its easy to get the product out. Some creams and butters are housed in bottles which is frustrating when you’re trying to get out the last bit.

Both butters smell AMAZING. They have a very slight floral-y/vanilla-y fragrance. It’s not overpowering at all, it’s actually quite soothing. I sat for a minute just inhaling deeply (don’t laugh).

The BTL Pudding was my favorite for the mere fact that the texture was better. I found the whipped to be a little too chunky and left bits of product in LB’s hair. Both provided a nice hold and incredible shine to his hair.

Butter Than Love Whipped

Butter Than Love Pudding

I used the pudding on twists and they looked great for the entire week. There was definitely frizz, which is to be expected from a toddler, but the shine was still there. It wasnt oily or greasy and his hair was light and fluffy when the twist were released.

I really love this product and LB’s hair did too.

You can visit Wondercurl via their WEBSITE, or FACEBOOK .

I was sent these products for review purposes by Wondercurl. I was not paid for this review.

I have read many reviews on Cara B products namely from the likes of Baby Big Hair (of course). The problem I have is that I fall for a lot of the hype, get the products and am disappointed more or less with them. However, there are always exceptions and Cara B my friends is definitely a keeper.

First of all, the customer service at Cara B is OUTSTANDING. Even though I was gifted the package, it was still sent as though I were a paying customer. The products were displayed so nicely in a bed of “straw” and wrapped with a pretty green ribbon. There was also a HANDWRITTEN note from the owner. Like seriously?!?!?

My package contained; Moisturizing Hair Mist,  Shampoo/Body Wash , Baby Bar Soap, Leave-In Conditioner / Daily Moisturizer  and Body Lotion. I will be reporting back with the results of each product as I haven’t used all of them just yet. All of the products seem to have the same scent which is a combination of vanilla and honey. It’s a very light, sweet smell and not at all offensive, perfect for babies and young children.

The first out of the lot I will focus on is the Shampoo/Body Wash. It is a dark caramel color and the consistency is very runny. I initially used it as a body wash and was satisfied. It gave him a nice clean smell and lathered up nicely. It also didn’t dry his skin out as bar soaps normally do.

I’m always a bit skeptical of the Body wash/shampoo combos and was a bit hesitant to try it on his hair. But I did and……..I LOVE THIS SHAMPOO. I prefer this product so much more over my Suave 2-in-1. I know, I know…..! The slip of the shampoo is amazing and it lathered so nicely. It really helped in detangling prior to conditioning.

And I love the smell too. It doesn’t linger for a long time and it’s not fruity or floral, so it’s perfectly gender neutral.

You can see the list of ingredients HERE.

You can purchase Cara B products online at MyCaraB.com or on the ground at your local Whole Foods. Please check out their FB Fanpage HERE as well as follow them on TWITTER.

I was sent these products for review purposes by Cara B. More reviews to come!

Source

Contrary to the beliefs of some, I am not against little boys getting their hair cut. It was a personal choice I made to grow out MY son’s hair. I think little boys are adorable with long hair, short hair, curly hair, kinky hair…etc…etc. So when a reader asked the question about a first hair cut, I happily obliged.

LB’s first hair cut experience was more traumatic for me than it was for him. He didn’t cry, he didn’t scream, he actually sort of fell asleep in the barber’s chair.

I understand that its easier sometimes for parents to deal with and maybe they prefer shorter hair on their son and that is fine and ultimately the decision is totally up to you. It’s also a great bonding experience between your son and his Daddy.

I was doing  a little research for one of my readers and came across THIS Wikipedia article. It was a very interesting read in that it describes the first haircut experience of little boys in other cultures. I read the whole article and was enjoying the read until I got to the United States African American boy portion:

African American boys

There is an African American tradition of performing the first haircut on or around the child’s first birthday. However, cutting prior to the age of two may result in a more coarse texture and tighter curl.

I know Wikipedia is not the end all be all for information but that gets a sigh from me.

Anywho, Carrie asked a question on our Facebook Page regarding her son’s first haircut and the options that are out there. I would say it’s totally up to you when it comes to how much length you want to keep or the style. But I did find some pretty cute options via a Google search. Check them out.