Earring Graveyard

Once I went natural in 2010, I became obsessed with earrings. The bigger, the better was my mantra. Fast forward to the present, I still have a love for earrings, but my size preference varies on my mood rather than the size itself. I still have a love for big earrings, but I've noticed the bigger, the more problems they seem to create. Since my earring selection has become as popular as some of my style creations, I thought I'd make a post about the earrings that I once loved, but unfortunately had to be laid to rest.



Rachel Stewart's Dwennimman earrings
I had my eyes on these Rachel Stewart earrings for the longest time. I loved how big they were and the shape of them. I just had one issue: the price! I'd never paid over $20 for earrings before, but after a long talk with myself about supporting another natural sister and small business owner, I took the credit card and did the damage.

They didn't take long to get to me and as soon as they arrived, I flaunted my latest purchase in photos for my then upcoming styling video.

Although it was a plus that they arrived quickly, it was a huge negative they broke soon after. I remember like it was yesterday. I was organizing all of my earrings in my Jewelmint boxes on my organizer. When I went to go pick up one of these earrings, it dropped out of my hand and onto the floor. "NOOOOOO!!!" I screamed as I saw the result of the six inch fall. It was cracked and one of the circle squiggly part was separated. I almost cried! I immediately went to the store and bought some Krazy glue and luckily it was repaired. Although a blast of excitement flushed over me, I was scared to wear them again, worried that it was going to break while I was out.

Fast forward three months later and I discovered they broke into multiple pieces while in the Jewelmint box. Im guessing the acrylic couldn't handle the sharp edges of the box when it shifted. While one was in perfect condition, the other is all fuxxed up lol. Oh well earring graveyard it goes.

Beads by Aree Zo Zo earrings

I'd been checking out Beads by Aree earrings every since I saw my blogger friend Melissa Chanel wear them while we were hanging out in NYC together. I finally mustered up the nerve to drop $40 on these pair of earrings. They were so unique; like nothing I'd ever seen before.

Melissa Chanel (middle) wearing her Beads by Aree earrings that influenced my purchase.

Although they are visually amazing, it's sort of a job to wear. They are very bulky and when I wear my hair down/out, my hair usually gets caught in them. They also make a lot of noise when you're moving your head from right to left a lot. It can get kind of annoying.

Storing these babies are also a problem. Forget about putting them together. They will automatically get caught together and intertwine with each other. It happened to me several times and it takes what seems like hours to get them unattached.

With all that being said, I continued to wear these earrings until they started to droop and become unmanageable. The wire began to lose its shape making them less appealing. I am reluctant to ship these off to the earring graveyard because of the price i paid, but I honestly don't have much of a choice.

Rosy Mickey Golden Jag Earrings
As some of you may now, I receive a lot of products for review, but when I head out to events, I receive a lot of other things too. I received these earrings during the World Natural Hair show last year and didn't get around to wearing them until a few months ago. I immediately fell in love with them and so did just about everybody else on Instagram.

I wore them about two more times before I realized how heavy the were. Weight of earrings are not a real problem for me. I just take them out while I'm driving or on the way to the destination and when I show up to show out, I conveniently put them back in. Ta da!

I realized these earrings demise when I got back from the Curly Cruise. They were chillin' at the bottom of purse with the jaguar was beheaded from the chain. I screamed of few expletives before I realized this could easily be fixed. I'm not sure how much these run since I got them as a gift, but I would still recommend these earrings. Although I have to repair these, it's a minor fix since some pliers should do the trick. I also like that they're heavy and durable. This one will be up and back in my arsenal in no time.

So which one of your fav pairs of earrings ended up in the earring graveyard and how? Let me know in the comment boxes below!

And So it Starts + My First Green Juice Recipe

Wednesday was my first day of my detox and surprisingly it wasn't so bad. And by so bad I mean I didn't want to say the hell with it and go scoop up a burger and fries at my beloved Culvers down the road, but rather it took everything in me not to grab the box of Cheez-It's off the fridge with full force and gorge out in delight. Nah, nothing like that.

I have a bad habit of waking up and working instead of waking up and eating breakfast like a normal human being. With that being said, I woke up at 7 a.m. and drank my first green juice a little past 1 p.m. I was starving and my stomach was growling louder than it ever have in life!

Making the green juice was easy peezy, the most annoying part was cleaning all that mess up.

 

Recipe:
7 Kale leaves
1 Lemon
5 Mushrooms
2 Tomatoes
9 Strawberries
2 Apples
1/2 Cucumber

You're probably wondering why that bag is inside the juicer. It's inside the part where the excess comes out. It makes for less clean up after your juice is prepared.

See! I just tie it in a knot and throw in the trash!

The juice was delicious. So much tastier than any green smoothie I've ever had in my life. This recipe filled two 12 ounce mason jars. I sipped on one juice long enough to gain enough energy to get in the shower and then put both in the freezer. I was hitting the road to spend some time with my family and didn't want to end up stranded without a juice to sip on.

Five hours later I hit the gym. It was hard for me to do so. I felt glued to my car seat. I didn't know how I was going to workout when I could barely move. I had literally zero amount of energy, but yet I prevailed. I did 35 minutes on the bike and 20 odd on the treadmill. All thanks to the TVs connected to each machine at LA Fitness. Law and Order: SVU is my show and it had me distracted from my pain and kept me intrigued during my entire workout.

I left the gym and headed to Meijer to cop more veggies: swiss chard and kale. I'll be heading to the Farmers Market on Saturday to get more fruit. I think I need to put a lot of that into my juices before I workout to give me more fuel to get through a workout without feeling like I'm going to pass out.

But with all that being said I completed my first day and was proud of myself. Excited for the changes to come!

How was your first day on the detox?

The 30 Day Beauty & Body Detox - Join Me!!!

 

WOAH! That was my reaction when I saw the support coming through via Instagram and Facebook once I posted the photo above. As some of you may know, I intended on doing this detox all by my lonesome, but my friend Danielle changed that the minute she texted me and said she was joining in and suggested I'd get others to do it too. Maybe it's weird, but I never thought that anyone would want to do it with me, but I'm really excited that so many are. It just makes the challenge so much more intriguing knowing other women are serious about their health on the inside and out. It really is inspiring.

So a lot of people are asking me what the rules are. Uh, I'm not the one to tell you that lol. All I have to say is this is a Beauty AND BODY Detox. However far you'd like to go is fine. For example, Danielle is doing the detox by eating clean, but she's still going to wear makeup as she's required to do so for her job. If you want to focus on shedding some pounds by juicing (body) and only use organic soap (body) for 30 days that's fine too. It's totally up to you! Why would I impose some kind of rule on everyone for 30 days? Who's going to take orders from someone else when it pertains to their body? Certainly not I so I wouldn't do it the same to you. We're all grown and we can do what we want...at least that's what Beyonce said. *kidding of course.* I just ask that whatever you choose to do, let it fall in both categories: Beauty AND Body.

My plan:
I originally wanted to just eat clean and juice periodically for my body detox, however that all changed once Derek and I went to hear Joe Cross of Fat, Sick and Nearly Dead, speak at Rodin in Detroit. I watched the movie via Netflix a few months ago so I didn't think I was going to learn much more from him, but I was wrong. Turns out if you juice for a number of days and then start eating (even if it's a salad or fruit) your body changes from thinking it's in famine mode and goes back to being hungry because you're chewing food. The result is you eat more that usual. During Q&A a woman mentioned she'd been juicing and eating, but wasn't losing as much weight as others who were only juicing alone. He said the body kept being confused since she'd juice for a number of days and then eat. There is a way you can do both, but you have to follow a certain formula that can be found on his website.

This changed the game for me. I decided I just wanted to juice. This wasn't the only reason though. He mentioned he released so much waste that was in his body. Some of the stuff was on the verge of TMI so I won't repeat it (you're not going to blame me for the vomit on your keyboard), but it was just mind blowing. It made me wonder how much waste was inside of me and I immediately began to feel disgusted. That honestly was when I decided to do the 30 day reboot. I already have a Breville chillin' at the crib anyway. It'd be nice to put that thing to good use.

As far as my body detox goes, the same rules apply. I'll only be using products with all natural ingredients and that includes fragrances. Did you know they fragrance/parfum could contain up to 200 chemicals? No bueno. I'll also be doing my hair in protective styles during this time. My hair just needs a break so I'm bowing down to it for 30 days.

Workout
Because I know I can, I'm also going to workout each day during the 30 days. Yes, I know rest days are important, but I've read you can do cardio each day so even if I choose not to lift a dumb bell, I still can get up on that treadmill and break a sweat.

What to expect from me
I'll still do product reviews and styling tutorials on YouTube during this time. The only difference is everything I'll be reviewing will be all natural and fragrance free. The styling tutorials will be of protective styles only. I'll also share a few juicing recipes on YouTube and come with a weekly video updates on how everything is going. I'll post most of my experience on the blog as it simply is easier for me to document how I'm doing in a timely and proficient manner.

How to Join
If you're up to put your mind and body to the challenge, simply leave a comment below and tell me what changes you plan to make in your lifestyle for the next 30 days. Also, if possible, take pictures of your before so you'll have great after shots. Keep these for yourself, but of you're in the sharing mood, I'd love to share them on the blog at the end. Of course I'll post my own as well.

Giveaways
I'll have weekly giveaways on my blog and social media platforms of Eco-friendly hair and beauty products that I love. As of yesterday I said this was all coming out of my pocket unless someone wanted to sponsor a giveaway and what do you know showed up in my email this morning? But regardless, everything I giveaway I would have used myself and can attest to the awesomeness of the product.

If you have any comments or concerns please let me know. I'm excited that so many of you are up for the challenge! Yes it will be hard, but remember we are all in this together! If you're posting via Instagram, please include the hash tag #CharyJay30DayDetox so people can see what you're doing for daily encouragement. It's important that people not just look at me to see what I'm doing, but we can all rely on each other for incite or advice by sharing our own experience. I'm so ready!!! Are you?

Karen’s Body Beautiful Giveaway

 

Karen's Body Beautiful products are a favorite amongst the natural hair community. That's why it's no surprise that it caught Target's eye and became the latest natural hair brand to grace their shelves in the beauty department.

My locks have always favored their Sweet Ambrosia Leave-In conditioner since I first received it back in 2011. Since then it has always made its way into my favorite/staple product videos. I also love the Butter Love product as well. It is a great way to seal your hair after applying a leave-in conditioner or to add a hint of sheen to dry and or dull hair.

This was my first time using the Hold It Hair Gel with Argan Oil, but I have to say I loved the results it gave my curls. No crunchiness, stiffness or flakiness detected. Just soft, bouncy and light weight curls achieved. I also liked that it didn't make my curls fragile. I've slept sans bonnet and without a silk pillowcase and my curls are still standing strong three days later. I can't say that's unheard of who it comes to my hair, but sometimes when I'm not using my staples, that very well can be the case. So, yup, this stuff is a winner too!

Unfortunately the products that were sent to me for review did contain fragrance so I will not be using these during my 30 Day Beauty and Body Detox, but I have learned that if you order her products online, you can get them without fragrance, so that is a huge plus!

From Karen's Body Beautiful: 

Karen’s Body Beautiful Sweet Ambrosia Leave-in Conditioner ($16; 8 oz.) This all-natural leave-in conditioner has a cult-following for transforming dry, lifeless locks into soft, shiny and luminous hair. Perfect for natural and transitioning hair. All-natural with Jojoba, Avocado, Wheat Germ and Coconut oils, Arnica, Nettle, Horsetail and Rosemary Extracts. #1 selling product.

Karen’s Body Beautiful Luscious Locks Hair Mask ($25; 8 oz.) Deep conditioning, nutritious hair treatment that repairs dry, damaged hair, restores shine and manageability, while detangling and softening.  With Jojoba and Carrot Seed Oils, Aloe Butter, Arnica, Calendula, Nettle, Echinacea and Horsetail Extracts.  #2 selling product.

Karen’s Body Beautiful Hair Blossom Moisture Mist ($16, 200 ml) Natural hydrating mist softens and refreshes hair, while reducing frizz. With Argan, Castor, Sunflower and Meadowfoam Seed Oils.

Karen’s Body Beautiful Hold It Hair Gel with Argan Oil ($16, 240 ml) Defines hair and provides flexible hold to maintain styles without hardness or a crunchy after-feel. With Argan, Aloe Vera and Marula Oils and Hydrolyzed Silk Protein.

Karen’s Body Beautiful Super Duper Hydrating Hair Cream ($18; 200 ml) An intensely hydrating hair cream and styling aid that also moisturizes and nourishes the scalp, with Shea Butter, Aloe Vera Gel, Argan Oil and Acai Powder. Ideal for twistouts and braidouts.

Karen’s Body Beautiful Butter Love ($18; 6.7 oz.) An ultra-moisturizing hair butter that nourishes and protects hair, while providing hold and intense shine. With Shea, Mango, Cocoa, Jojoba and Aloe Butters.

Karen's Body Beautiful products don’t contain sulfates, parabens, phthalates, silicones, mineral oil, DEA or artificial color. The products are cruelty-free and not tested on animals. Available at select Target stores and online at KarensBodyBeautiful.com.

 

 

 

Contest
To enter the contest to win the full line of Karen's Body Beautiful products, like their page on Facebook and leave a comment below telling me which product is your favorite and why. If you've never tried these products, tell me which one you're excited about trying the most. Good luck to all those who enters! I'll select the winner next week on Wednesday. That's also when I'll put up my first Eco friendly giveaway for my 30 Day Beauty and Body Detox participants!
 

Going Beyond the Video

 

A review of any product should be more than just the effectiveness of the product after one use. It should be more than just the feel and look of a product. It should just be more, but when you want more that takes more time. That means the video will be long (we're talking ten plus minutes and no one wants that), and so would the delivery of said video. That's why it pays to have a blog so I can give you updates with how products are treating me after the initial review. So welcome to my very first "Going Beyond the Video" blog post! I hope you enjoy.

Twist-Out results using the Thank God I'm Natural Moist Collection

Today were going beyond my initial review of my latest review, which is the Thank God I'm Natural Moist Collection. Like I said in the video, I'd been using this line of products for a few weeks and I'd been loving the line so far, however I didn't review everything that was sent to me. Lets get to those products first.

Shea Butter Lip Balm
I love the lip balm! It's really moisturizing and gives your lips a nice sheen. It's also all natural, which is a huge plus! I'm used to (and swear by) the CO Bigelow Mentha Lip Tints. But sometimes if you get a lil' too happy with your application, your lips can appear to drenched in chicken grease...not a good look.

Chicken Grease Lips!

So using the TGIN lip balm is a safe bet to get the right amount of sheen each time. I also love that you get a pack of three. I have one in my bathroom, living room and one in my car so I can always keep my lips pucker up ready no matter if I'm indoors or on the road.

Olive Oil Soap
I also received two bars of this all natural soap in different scents; passion fruit and lavender fields. I used the passion fruit soap first. I loved the way it smelled, but unfortunately after one use it broke me out. I got little red bumps on my chest after I used it in the shower. This is not the first time an all natural soap broke me out in the same place-my chest.

In the spring of last year I used Karen's Body Beautiful's all natural soap that was given to me after visiting her store in Brooklyn in December. I was so excited to use it as there was so much hype surrounding natural soaps and I'd never used one before. I used it a number of times in the shower and then, out of nowhere my entire chest was broken out. It was so embarrassing because it was the very beginning of spring and I was just about to break out my low cut tops. Here is a picture from a past styling tutorial as proof.

I say all that to say I'm apparently allergic to possibly a main ingredient in scented natural soaps. I've used both Shea Moisture and Dr. Bronner's Magic Soap (which what I'm currently using and loving!!) and haven't had any negative side effects.

Thank God I'm Natural Book
I'm so glad this book was included in the package that was sent to me. My sister originally gave me an autographed copy of this book for Christmas when I was transitioning. I read it cover to cover and never let anyone touch it. That is until my friend who cried she wanted to go natural borrowed it and somehow never found her way over my house to return it (every time I see her on Instagram posing in her newly installed weave, I cringe). So I'm happy to have this copy to take its place!

Now to get to the hair products:

Time to Reprogram: Hair, Body & Soul

"All these damn toxins!" That's all I keep thinking as I apply beauty products in my daily beauty routine: shower gel, body scrub, lotion, facial moisturizer, deodorant and body mist/perfume. Once upon a time I used to feel a sense of relief once I got to my hair until I started realizing some of my trusted "all natural brands" have went over to the dark side and started putting these not so natural ingredients into their products, but of course, still slapped that lovely natural title all over their bottles and jars.

That's when I thought I'd start making a change. A change that will begin towards the middle of May (I'm thinking May 15) and end 30 days after. I'd like to do a hair and body cleanse. Note: this is not a full detox/cleanse, but more so a way I can ween myself and my body off the habit of wanting to use certain products full of toxins in my daily use.

But before I get to how I plan to do this, I want to talk about why I want to do this in the first place. After all, I'm always reviewing different products on YouTube so why all of a sudden the change of heart? Well, while aboard the Curly Cruise last month, I attended Tonya aka The V Bar Lady's program where she talked about all the harmful toxins that were found in common beauty products that we use daily. She also played a video about toxins found in cosmetic products. I remembered watching that very same video at least six months prior, but at that time, the information, although shocking, fell on death ears. Now that I'm becoming more conscious of what I put into my body, I listened and started taking notes.

Left: Stylist Felicia Leatherwood doing Tonya's hair during her workshop on the cruise. She got a cut and a twist-out. Right: Finished product.

I could begin to mention all the brands and toxins found in beauty products, but that's a whole other post in itself so I'll let you do that research on your own. I will tell you that Tonya mentioned we should do a body cleanse often (I forgot the exact amount of time). I cringed when I heard this because the last time I did one was freshman year of college. And regardless if you're skeptical of that or not, I do know you are supposed to go to the bathroom right after every meal (I learned that from watching Fat, Sick and Nearly Dead), and I definitely don't do that. So I know I needed to make some changes. To make make matters worse, I was aboard a ship that offered every food under the sun for your consumption every single day. And Lord knows I was happily eating everything my little heart desired. So lets start talking about my plan.

I ate balance meals for the most part and tried to include fruit and or veggies in at least two out of the three meals I ate on the ship. The problem was I ate a rich dessert every night with countless pieces of French bread. Top pic: Tofu steak with Thai veggies. Bottom pic: tiramisu cake. This was not my cup of tea, but their melting chocolate cake was amazing!

Food:
Some of you may know I started eating clean towards the beginning of March. I lost a decent amount of weight (with exercise), but once I moved, that all went downhill and took my weight lost with it. I want to get back in the habit of eating clean and doing a detox/cleanse will jump start that process for me at the same time.

Last night on the ship. My hair was cute, but chucked full of products!

Hair:
Once I got back from the cruise, my hair was full of product build up like I had never experienced before. I used a mud cleanser and Brazilian butter treatment (both completely natural without fragrances) and my hair felt like it had come back to life. I'd like to only use all natural mud cleansers instead of shampoo and use products with all natural ingredients without fragrances for stylers. I'm also going to do protective styles during this 30 day detox. This is going to give my hair a break. I've been twisting and curling the heck out of it for a long time and it just needs to be left alone for awhile. I know my hair is like, "Damn, Chary! Can I live?"

The two all natural and fragrance free products that brought my hair back to life once I got back home. Review on these products are coming soon.

Like I said, I'll start all of this during the middle of May, but I wanted to get this post out now so you guys won't be blind sided with the change of videos you'd be seeing from me. This should be interesting to say the least. Have you ever done any kind of detox before? If you have any advice for me, I will gladly accept!

In Cozumel, Mexico. I'll post more pics from the cruise on my Facebook fan page soon.

Cop this Style: Curls on Curls on Curls!

 

After doing a plethora of styling tutorials on YouTube, it can be hard to keep things fresh and new. I often feel as though there's no style I haven't "been there, done that" so once I got the idea for this style, I knew I just had to do it!. And I love it!

For this style I used ILY natural hair products. I love this line! The first time I used it was back in February for the "Nothing, but Tendrils & Curls" Style Card. Every since then I've been using it to achieve different styles where I needed to have defined curls that lasted because it does the trick every time! I also love this line because it's all natural (for real tho!), vegan and fragrance free. This will definitely be a line I'll use when I start my detox. Unfortunately my boyfriend doesn't care for the smell of these products, but I told him he needs to buck up and deal with it since I'll be using them more often in the upcoming weeks.

How to achieve this style: