Mercedes Marie

I made my long term goal! I'm finally waist length. I have been on a hair journey for a very long time and through so many trial and errors I found what helped me. My growth has definitely come from protective styling. I'm either doing a sew in and if not that my hair was always in a bun. Also having a simple hair routine is key! Not only that but keeping up with my ends. I plan to get my ends lightly trimmed but the only person I trust is so far from me but very soon I will get one. I might try to do a new hair goal of hip length but honestly not sure having long hair can kind of be annoying, but I'm not complaining I love my current length. 

Price : $12.00 for 12oz  Claims :  "Is a rich hydrating recipe that takes dry, brittle and unmanageable hair and leaves it detangled, soft and easier to style. Perfect as a co-wash for those curly girls out there." Ingredients (First Few):  Cyclopentasiloxane, Behentrimonium Methosulfate, Amodimethicone, AMP-Acrylates Copolymer, Ascorbic Acid, Biotin, Butyle ne Glycol, Butyrospermum Parkii (Shea Butter), C11-15 Pareth-7,C12-13 Pareth-23, C12-13 Pareth-3, Calendula Officinalis Flower Extract, Caprylyl Glycol, Cetrimonium, Chloride, Citric Acid, Cyclohexasiloxane, Dicetyldimonium Chloride, Dimethicone,  My Opinion :  I haven been wanting to try out Carol's Daughter products for some time now. I finally purchased this conditioner along with the deep conditioner from Target. I started off with Black Vanilla line first because its main focus is moisturizing dry and brittle hair. You can never go wrong with a moisturizing line.   As far as t...

I  have not written a post in over a few months now & I feel a little okay about it. I just was not in the mood to really write about hair. It just started to become repetitive & a little boring to me. Don't get me wrong I still plan on documenting my hair journey & I still enjoy everything hair related. It was just a moment for me that I was kind of over it. I have been enjoying my hair length & been using heat a little too much, but that's okay. I mean isn't that the point of reaching your goal length, to enjoy it in whatever way you want? Well I definitely did & now it's time to get back to my normal hair routine. I still have a long term goal I want to achieve. So let's see where I go from here. This is my small space on the internet & I don't plan on abandoning it any time soon.

I can not believe how far my hair has come. My hair has been in a protective for half the year, which was a sew-in. I did not have a sew in for the summer I gave my hair a break. I am currently debating if I should get another sew in for the colder months that is coming but I am not sure. My hair feels fuller & thicker. I was even asked if I had a weave in lol. Here is my current length. Am I Mid-Back length ? This picture was taken in Oct/13  Here is my current length as of Oct/14

Price: $7.99 for 16oz Tub @ Target Product Claims:  "This light creamy conditioning lotion spreads easily throughout to cleanse your hair and scalp. Detangling is wonderfully easy and rinsing is too." "Helps maintains moisture, adds more moisture and retains moisture - vital to the health and happiness of your coils and curls." "Plus! Contains organic ingredients that help promote healthy hair growth."   Ingredients:   Aqueous (Water, Aqua Purificada, Purified) Extracts: Cocos Nucifera (Coconut) and Citrus Reticulata (Tangerine)¹, Cetyl Alcohol², Cetrimonium Chloride, Cetearyl Alcohol², PEG-40 Castor Oil, Stearlkonium chloride, Cocos Nucifera (Coconut) Oil², Ricinus Communis (Castor) Seed Oil¹, Phytosterols¹, Serenoa Serrulata Fruit Extract¹, Quaternium-18, Potassium Sorbate, Fragrance/Parfum, Limonene, Methylisothiazolinone.   Source:  1-Natural, 2-Coconut My Thoughts:  My first time using the product I did not like it. I mainly focused...

[1] Detangled hair & shampooed in four sections with ORS Aloe Shampoo. I feel that this shampooed is a great shampoo especially to remove build up. [2] Deep condition with Creme of Nature Moisture Milk Masque. I recently purchased this deep conditioner and wanted to see how well it worked on freshly washed hair. I applied it to my four sections starting from tip working my way up to the root. I put on two plastic caps and left it on for 40 minutes while I did some house cleaning. Rinsing the product out it was nothing impressing. My hair looked really shiny and moisturized, hair detangled rather easily but I detangled prior. First impression it did not wow me. [3] Leave in of choice was Chi Keratin mist because my hair has been shedding like crazy and Creme of Nature 7-in-1 [4] I also recently purchased Creme of Nature Foaming Lotion. I never used a foaming lotion my initial reason of purchasing this was to do a flexi rod set but I decided to skip that and just braid my hair....

[1] I did a hot oil treatment with grape seed oil & avocado oil. [2] I rinsed the oil out and shampooed with a clarifying shampoo. I decided on using this type of shampoo because I went swimming. I applied it directly on my scalp and massaged it in allowing the suds to go down the strands. [3] Followed up with a rinse out conditioner just to aid in detangling. I used the Suave Shea & Almond conditioner. Not much of a fan for this conditioner. [4] I toweled dried my hair and applied Aunt Jackie In Control deep conditioner. I then slather grape seed oil on top of that and covered with two plastic caps. I ended up taking a nap and had left the deep conditioner in for 2 hours. I rinsed and my hair felt amazing soft hair. I already love this deep conditioner but adding the grape seed oil made it a lot better. [5] I rinsed it out and applied my It's a 10 Leave in. I did not use anything to style my hair just that and did two twist. My hair feels really soft and looks fluffy ...

- Use Up 1 Product  - Attempt a Bantu Knot Out  - Ceramides Used for 30 Days [ JustGrowAlready Challenge ] - 2 Liters of Water Daily Starting off simple with my monthly goals.

[1] Once the extensions were all removed I left the hair in the braids and applied my oils. I applied grapeseed oil and jojoba oil thoroughly on the braids. I decided to leave this on for 30 minutes so that it can loosen the braids and help with the detangling process. [2]  While the oil was in my hair I began to detangled after the 30 mins. Detangling was fairly in between. It took me 3 hours to detangled and get all the shed hairs out. I had a lot of shed hairs, a big handful of hair maybe even more since I did not accurately measure it. [3]  I then followed up with ORS Aloe Shampoo. I shampooed in four sections and directly on my scalp. It felt pretty good to be honest to wash my hair properly.  [4]  I decided to do a light protein treatment. The ORS Replenishing Pak, I left it on for about 10 minutes while in the shower. So no heat was used. My hair felt pretty strong but a bit hard so I decided to use my Aussie conditioner. This helped to loosen the...

So I had my Lola's hair extensions installed for now a little longer then expected. Take down is this week and to be honest I am nervous. But that is for another post. Here my review of what I think on this hair. Here is a brief stats of the hair: Purchased - Lola's Hair  Extensions - Malaysian Body Wave Lengths - 16 inch & 18 inch Price - $165 which I purchased myself  PRO'S Holds Curl's -  had spoke on how it was difficult to blend my natural hair to the curl pattern of the extensions. I decided to stop straighten the hair as well as mines and just curl my hair with a curling wand. By me doing that my hair blended a lot better with the extensions. The extension never dropped there curls. I decided to now use flexi rods to persevere my curls. Days that I did not use a flexi rod at night I still woke up to nice loose waves.  Never lost it's Luster - The hair has a very lustrous look to it which is what made it hard to blend. Softness- The hair ...

1. Prepoo scalp & leave out with a combination of jojoba oil & grapeseed oil.  2. Shampooed the leave out with Shea Moisture Retention Shampoo. I am starting to run low on this & being it isn't a ultimate favorite I am going to look into other sulfate free shampoo's. Any suggestion? 3. I rinsed out the oil and shampoo. I did not apply any shampoo to my scalp instead in a applicator bottle I used the As I Am Coconut Cowash and massaged that in.  4. Left the Cowash in for a few minutes then rinsed it out to put in my deep conditioner.  5. I used the Aussie 3 Minute Miracle with the same oils and applied that to my scalp. Also on my leave out.  6. Now I started to work on the extensions. I Cowash with Herbal Essence conditioner because I love the scent. Rinsing that out I followed up with the deep conditioner which was also the Aussie 3 Minute.  7. I wrapped my hair and placed a plastic wrap over it. Used my Hair Therapy W...

I saw this post on Dessyluvs and decided to do it. I was not tagged but I wanted to do it anyway. It is fun to answer these questions and also give you ladies more insight on my journey. 1. Why did you start your hair journey ? I started my hair journey from being inspired from the first hair youtube video I saw. It was from Ulovemegz and although she was relaxed I enjoyed learning about how she took care of her hair. After watching a few videos I started wondering about my natural hair. I was about 17 and all I knew was using a flat iron. I then came across a site that she mentioned called Hairlista which peak my interest. From there I started 2. How long have you been on your hair journey ? I been on my hair journey for going on 3 years now in August. I had setbacks and laziness which had put a halt to my journey progress. I still consider myself still a newbie in all this. 3. Are you natural, relaxed or transitioning ? I am natural and do not plan to change it. 4. What ...

So it has been already one month and two weeks since getting my hair installed. I have washed my install and hair underneath twice already and this week will be my third time. I didn't write a post on my second wash day because it was a late process. The hair always reverted back to it's original pattern which is a body wave. Being that I do not know how to blend my natural hair with the body wave I end up flat iron it. I always use a heat protectant on the weave and my leave out before I flat iron. It straightens very easily and the ends do not feel fry.  I have also curled the hair which it held the curl very nicely and lasted for three days. The way I maintain the weave is just combing it before bed and either putting it in a high ponytail or bun. I sleep with a satin pillow case so I don't feel the need to wrap the hair with a scarf. A quick combing in the morning and my hair is good to go. As for shedding it is very minimal but what I have notice is that a clump of...

1. In a nozzle bottle I put half water and half of my Shea Moisture Retention Shampoo mixed. It was definitely a refreshing feeling. I had been itching my scalp and all that came to stop during the shampoo step. Washing out the shampoo was a challenge. I have a net over my braids so it was really difficult to making sure that the shampoo was thoroughly washed out. 2. I followed that with a mixture of Aussie 3 Minute Miracle with water as well. I applied that to my braids and had let that sit. I left that on for awhile as I focused next on the weave. It was on my hair for about 10 minutes. 3. I shampooed my weave with the Shea Moisture Shampoo as well. A lot was not necessary but I made sure to thoroughly wash it. I then washed that out and followed up with the Aussie deep conditioner as well, making sure to focus on the ends. It instantly soften the hair and made the ends feel a lot better.  4. I rinsed out the braids until I saw no more bubbles. Also rinsed out the ...

Today makes it 2 weeks since I got my Lola Hair installed. What can I say about this hair.  So far I am not loving it but not hating it either. Since it is a body wave texture I would assume that it needs a lot of attention and moisture. My biggest issue with the hair is the ends. They are the driest part of the hair and no matter what I use on it nothing seems to help. I used what was recommended which was a Chi serum that did not work. I used Organix coconut serum still nothing. I then purchased the Organix Moroccan Argan Oil and it was still dry. I even spritz It's a 10 leave in. Nothing has yet to work. Since this is the second week I will be washing my hair and the extensions this weekend. Hopefully with a deep conditioner it will feel a lot better. Also the ends since they are slightly curled they do tangled up quite a lot, but that is expected with curly hair so I am not complaining. As for my natural hair I have been using the same spritz that I used before which was th...

The hair that I purchased is from Lola's Hair Company. I purchased a 16 inch and 18 inch in Malaysian Body wave. It cost $145 and when you add shipping it was an additional $20. The shipping was really fast. I placed my order Monday night and received my hair Thursday which was great. When I received the hair each bundle was packaged in a separate plastic bag. Once I open the packaging I had ran my finger through the 18 inch and it was very soft and had no smell. I also received two cards on how to maintain the hair and also a bundle deal. I also got this little pink baggy that is lined with silk. I will be using this bag once I remove the hair. I did color the hair to a soft black and color took very well. I do notice that this hair does have split ends which sucks but I did put heat on it to see how well it straightens. So far so good, minimal shedding and again low maintenance. I did not get a chance to take a photo of the natural texture but once I wash it I sure will, hopeful...

For the month of March I have not been that good to my hair. I straighten my hair twice ! Something I rarely do. I haven't done much with my hair, which is why I haven't posted anything. I did co wash twice last week and deep condition as well. I used a new deep conditioner that I had in my stash. I decided to finally try it out because of a YouTube video I saw. That deep conditioner was really good, but that was my first time trying it so I can not say a lot on it yet. So for my protective style it will be a sew in again and I'm getting it installed this week ! I spoke about this in my previous update and wanted to give my hair a months break, sort of. I have already purchased the hair which I will share soon (Lola Hair Company). I am going to do my normal wash day prior to the install, which will be this Friday. I am not going to put any heat on my hair though. I plan to do a roller set and then blow out ONLY the roots, then wrap my hair. I want to do a light trim to my ...

I did gain some length from my sew in I do not have a before photo which upsets me but I know I was at Bra strap (When I say Bra Strap, I mean exactly on it. Others refer to it as just hitting bra strap). I also had gotten a mini trim before the install. I am now past bra strap so I gained about an inch of growth or so, which is awesome! But now I am scared of getting spilt ends! I am a victim of always getting bad split ends & I DO NOT use heat on a weekly or daily basis. I feel that my split ends happen because my hair is always rubbing on my clothes. I constantly do protective styles which are usually braids outs and even though it is a protective style my ends are still exposed. I would do buns again but I feel that buns have caused some damaged to my crown area. My crown area is my problem area and I feel it was because of buns. I'm sort of stuck on what protective style to do next. I am thinking about doing another sew in but I am not 100% sure if I want to. I did have ...

I had a SUCCESSFUL take down !!! Compared to my last take down which was a complete horror story . I did not experience NO matting and NO breakage! I took my sew in down on a Saturday so this is a bit late.  Here how my take down went about: [1] With the help of someone I had the sew in removed [2] I then applied a hot oil treatment onto the braids (this will help to unravel the braids easily) Oil is the key to taking down the braids ! It went smoothly  [3] I then unravel and finger detangled to remove all the shed hair one braid at a time. A lot of shed hair was removed which was expected. I also followed up with a wide tooth comb to make sure it is fully detangled  [4] Once I got to my last braid my entire head was fully detangled and all shed hair was removed. I shampoo with Shea Moisture Retention Shampoo. [5] Followed with Herbal Essence Conditioner that made my hair even more easier to detangled.  [6] Deep condition with Aussie 3x Moist w...

The hair was purchased from Rosa Hair Products on Aliexpress. I purchased a 14-16-18 Malaysian Body wave for $136 with free shipping. I can honestly say that this hair was pretty good for the price, but there are a few pros and cons about the hair. Of course the price is really good for three bundles although I only used two. Pros:   - NO SHEDDING ! Omg I can tell a big difference from my first sew in (which I used Bobbi Boss Remi) to now. There was minimal to none it was amazing to me because my first sew in I had shedding like CRAZY! I felt "oh maybe it was because I had cut the wefts" but no. I cut the wefts for this hair as well and minimal. - Very natural looking. Although this is not yaki texture my leave out was very easy to blend with the hair. It did not look as if it were "weave" at least from the people that I spoke to. They actually believed it was my hair.  - Of course the price was very good. Especially for someone that's on a budg...