MIA bloggin'

So I apologize for my lack of updates, my internet have been straight off for two months, BUT I am back down and I will be uploading videos and posts soon!
I am so happy to be back blogging, it is such a great outlet when done in moderation, I believe I have 3 "hair stories" to upload so of course that will be my first priority being back on the blog!

6 month low manipulation/protective challenge

Ok,so I kno its been like forever since yall heard from me but...here I am! My last post was about those lovely box braids that I loved so much,well i took them down and the reality of actually caring for my hair slapped me in the face so I'm going for a challenge...Here's the deal my husband as u all kno is in the Air Force and deployed right now he will be away for 6 months....so my bright idea was to make Brittany better it gives me more rime to focus on me...that being said I have embarked on a new LIFESTYLE...Healthy Hair,Fitness,and Clean Eating! I work out every morning at least 20 nonstop minutes (bc its a short time and I want max results I dont stop) sometimes 40 mins! I don't eat processed foods,I only drink water,I take vitamins, protein shakes/bars and watch my portions when I eat! I have my fitness pal on my phone to help count calories...and this weekend i will weigh and do measurements along with a pic (to be used as my before shot). As for my hair i will be wearing box braids,twists, roller sets...all those styles we love that allow for as little maintenance as possible! (Seriously considering LOCS) Pics coming very soon....oh my mini me peyton is on a healthy hair challenge too...braids for her! Oh And I forgot to mention I got braces...I feel like im gonna be a totally different Brittany by the time Byron gets home, well I will be because I'll be healthy!!!!

I am SO sorry

Hey you guys,
I hope y'all havent completely abandoned me lol, I promise I WILL find a great balance between working out and blogging, and eating healthy, and maintaining healthy friendships and relationships.... it is getting real and I truly wish I had found a balance earlier.
I actually have my hair in two strand twists because I work out everyday...six days a week y'all... (watch me hit my dougie) I TOLD y'all I was going to commit to getting in shape.
Um I am working out with Insanity,...Walking in the park, and I go to the gym...I have a trainer, an amazing woman her name is Indiana and she is pushing me to my limit each and every day, I have grown to love and respect her!
I am taking Herbalife shakes for breakfast and  dinner, I eat lunch and two snacks daily, I do not know if I have lost any weight because I try to focus more on working out, more than anything. Herbalife is AMAZING gives me energy and the shakes are tasty, I am not trying to "get skinny quick" this is truly a lifestyle change I am clean eating, my snacks are usually whole grain crackers and fruit, the shakes have ALL the nutrients I need and I will ALWAYS take them, once I lose a significant amount of weight, I will continue to take the shakes because it is NOT a diet you are instructed to eat when you are hungry, just eat smart when you are hungry instead of unhealthy.Because my body is getting all the nutrients I need I am having crazy nail growth which i assume will happen to my hair as well, because with a poor diet my hair grew but with a healthy and balanced diet I know my hair will benefit from it.! I currently have been keeping my hair in two strand twists because it is easy for me, I don't know another way to wear my hair with working out,.. I need to deep condition as I type this post actually, My hair are in medium sized twists, I did not have the time or patience for mini twists because I needed to do something to my hair ASAP. I usually Moisturize and seal my ends before bed and my hair seems to be doing JUST fine which is why I chose to keep my hair twisted because with working out I am more tired and my days start earlier and end earlier, do those long hours waiting for my wash n go to dry just do not seem appeasing to me right now lol. I just want to wake up and moisturize and go& with the twists I can!
I will come back with a weight loss update in maybe a week, so next Saturday I will pop in again with an update about my weight meanwhile give me time to update about my hair lol.

Did you clean your fruit&veggies???

If you are a legit reader than you know I am on a weight loss journey so I eat a lot of fruits and veggies.
My mother and myself were talking today about how often people do not wash and sanitize their fruits&veggies. I believe we began cleaning fruits& veggies maybe 1year, we used to do the quick rinse under the faucet but we learned that we were not truly doing much lol.

So I decided to make a PSA to my readers about this issue, you guys buy a vegetable cleaner brush, you can find them often at your local grocery store. They look like ...

I am stressing the importance of cleaning your fruits and veggies because some fruit must be sprayed with pesticides to keep birds, and insects away from them, this pesticide is a poison of some sort and some are stronger than others however we do not have a way of knowing exactly what pesticides are on all fruit so it is important to always clean them before consumption!

I use the veggie brush and a little soap(even if you do not use soap scrub with the brush) and just scrub the fruit or vegetable, honestly you would be surprised to see all the DIRT that comes off cucumbers, peaches...etc.

So again make sure you clean them before you eat them you want the benefits of these foods, not the pesticides used to grow them lol!

-Bhay!

Droppin' In

Hey :)
I don't have much to say today, I'm actually in the car on my way to see grams :)!!!!
I'm excited because I have not seen her in a while, anyway WHATS going on out there with y'all?? Hope all is well just make sure you keep them strands moisturized lol you know I had to throw a lil suuuuum sum in about hair.lol. Random...BUT it is time for me some NEW shoes lol I LOVE my moccasins but lawd knows it is time for some new ones woooomp woooomp I get attached to shoes...even when they get raggedy.

my shoes lol.

Twists

So Thursday I was sitting here,cutting single strand knots out of my hair, irritated because my tangles were OC even though I had JUST did a damn good deep condition, So I realized maybe my hair was tryna yell at me...no more damn wash n go's for a little minute, nooow Yall know I LOVE my Fro, I also LOVE my wash n go, however when my hair is not thriving well, and i see more shedding than usual on my weekly co-wash, detangle and wash n go day, the eyebrows are raised LOL. I have invested TOO MUCH into my hair, to let it break because of tangles, SO I am going to wear some two-strand twists for a while, to minimize the tangles, and in turn maximize my length retention, DON'T get me wrong, MY hair IS GROWING regardless of my wash n go knots and tangles, but I want to make sure it remains healthy, I don't want straggly ends, or thinning strand from knots and tangles!! & I have began working out so, It is easier anyway, aaaaaand many people like them :) so I don't feel self conscience about not having big hair which is my thing!! I actually Washed my hair with Aunt Jackie's Sulfate free Shampoo only because my hair needed clarifying because just Wednesday I did my wash n go which means I had a hell of a lot of Eco-Styler in my hair and I did not want to just co-wash it out because I really did not want any residue ya feel me, and after i shampooed, I co-washed to get my moisture back in with a little V05 moisture milks, then I blow dried my hair(on a medium setting) I blew my hair out after being inspired by Elle(Denimpixie on YT, Quest for the perfect curl) her twists were done on blown out hair and they were so cute to me, So I blew out my hair in 4 sections, and proceeded to twist, I did not use any special method, I just twisted and applied a moisturizer JUST to my ends, mine of choice was the curl enhancing smoothie, I applies a very small amount to my ends, and twirled the twist around my finger to curl the ends, this took me about 3 hours, I am convinced it would have taken less time but I joked around with my parents, and cousins for at least 40 minutes, I never honestly worked at a steady pace LOL. but 3 hours was nothing especially since I was twisting and watching the VMA's! I did good y'all. My plan is to seal and moisturize my twists mainly the ends every two days with light water and coconut oil, or a little curl enhancing smoothie and coconut oil, when they get frizzy I will use a little gel along the length of the twist to smooth it back out.!I honestly plan to wear these for at least 2 weeks before needing to retwist, and then after 4 weeks have passed I will wash and retwist them, this will be my protective style for fall/winter. Below are many ...many pictures of my twists all from yesterday.

Aunt Jackie's Curls And Coils Review(Written)

Hey curlies, as you all may know I was sent products from the company "Aunt Jackie's Curls and Coils" to sample and review for my natural hair and blog, the following review is based on how each of these products worked for me and MY hair! The line is sulfate/paraben/mineral oil/ and petroleum free products all going for $9.99 each.So with that being said let us dig right into the review.
Disclaimer: I am NOT being paid to do this review, this is an honest opinion.AGAIN no one is bribing me to say good or bad things about the product, this is my honest opinion.!
Now lets get started:

 Sulfate free Shampoo
Price- $9.99
Smell- Fruity, perfume It actually Smells Great
Effectiveness- This does exactly what it says it will do which is clean your hair removing product build-up without stripping your hair, it is a moisturizing shampoo. I actually like this product, I have not used shampoo in months because I am following the "Curly Girl Method" and shampoo really tangles and dry my hair, this shampoo however did NOT strip my hair, my hair was also sort of a detangler as well. I like this product. Rate-  A- , I rated it this way because it was not really "moisturizing" for me however, it did get the job done! I will repurchase

Moisturizing and Softening Conditioner
Price- $9.99
Smell- Fruity, smells great
Effectiveness-I really Love this Conditioner because it has GREAT slip, I mean it literally glides right through your hair. It conditions well, and you can use it as a Deep Conditioner as well.
Rate- A+- I really LOVE this stuff, I will repurchase

Instant Detangler
Price- $9.99
Smell- AMAZING
Effectiveness- This product seriously worked wonders on my knots, I seriously LOVE it, it detangles just as the description claims. It just melted the knots and tangles away.
Rate- A+ I will SURELY repurchase this, as soon as my sample run out lol. It was my favorite from the line.

Defining curl custard
Price- $9.99
Smell- Fruity, it smells good
Effectiveness- This product moisturizes really well!!!! HOWEVER, I must say for my wash n go it was a complete fail, this product is one i will use when I actually style my hair like twist outs/ braid outs/ bantu knots etc.My mother tried a little and she loved it!! lol. I must say it does moisturize well. I just will not use for wash n gos....EVER lol.
Rate- B , Only because I cant use it for my wash n go!

You can find these products at your local Beauty Supply Store, and Online at Auntjackies.com

Hair Update

Obviously I have not been posting hair updates, and this is because I have not done anything "new" to my hair, I have still been a wash n go queen and I get at least 4 or 5 day hair with my method, If you guys would like a visual tutorial on how I wash n go, hit me up and I will surely do one. If you follow me on Instagram you've more than likely seen these pictures lol.

This was just yesterday right after i finished my wash n go

also from yesterday, and no your eyes aren't tricking its blurred(effect)

Being Silly, You know how I do lol

whats uuuuup lol

lol

After I deep conditioned

Air drying with just coconut oil

Wet hair with Eco in it.

Posing before I headed "out"

Thats from my bangs, I see others do it, why not I lol

Wet hair

Dry hair

effects on dry naked hair

Deep conditioner Recipe

Coily Curl Feature: LaCoCoBella

Dry Bantu Knot-Out

1.     Where are you from? What is your name? Age?(If you want lol)

What’s up?! I’m Lauren and I am originally from California…the Valley, yes I’m like totally a valley girl lol but I currently reside in Maryland. I’m 27 years young :o)

2.     How long have you been natural?did you big chop or transition?

I’ve been natural for 7 years, since ’05. I transitioned for about 4 months by wearing a weave, braids and straitening my hair. I couldn’t take dealing with all that for too long so I said forget and chopped all my hair off! I had about an inch of fresh curls.

3.     Why did you go natural?

I was so tired of my hair breaking and being damaged, let alone having to pay to get a relaxer every 3 months or so. I had some friends who wore their hair straight but it was so thick and healthy because they pressed their hair out, no relaxer. Although I seldom wear my hair straight, I liked that I still had the option to….when the weather is so daggone humid out here on the east coast!

 Bantu Knot Out-Twist out

4.     What obstacles socially did you face from friends, family, co-workers, classmates about your new decision? & How you got past them

When I first cut my hair off, I think it shocked almost everyone because it was so unexpected. I was in college and was the “token Cali girl with long strait hair” lol so it was a huge change. I even had people think that I was having a life crisis or something and cutting my hair was a means of rebellion, I don’t know! My mom didn’t really like it much at first, I think it’s because she had seen me with a relaxer my entire life.

When I first BC’d, I was a bit insecure with how I looked, I didn’t want to look like a boy! I always wore cute earrings and a little more eye shadow lol One thing I thought was very interesting, not that this is important or matters because men don’t determine what is beautiful or desirable, but I got less attention from guys! Haha when I would go out or wherever, I noticed I became more overlooked. I was like dang, whatever lol. But overall, the majority of friends/peers really liked it. I think it made me stand out and allowed me to exude a confidence I didn’t know I had. After I cut mine, I noticed a lot more short-haired curl girls popping up around campus ;o) I know it is cliché but confidence really can make anyone beautiful.

5.     What is your current Regimen?

My regimen consists of a) pre-pooing with a heavy oil for a few hours or overnight b) washing OR and ayurvedic treatment c) deep condition d) style. I do this every week and just maintain the style throughout the week. As far as detangling, I finger detangle almost every time I do something with my hair meaning I “detangle-as-I-go”. So if I am doing twists, I will gently detangle as I am separating my hair and applying product. This works and is quick because I am keeping my hair as detangled as possible as much as possible. Maybe once a month on wash days, I will use my modified Denman brush (I took out every other row of teeth).

Twist out

Wash n Go

6.     What are your staple products?

Water :: The only thing the moisturizes hair!

Shampoo :: I really love shampoo bars. Henna Sooq and Bobeam are my fav brands. They have pure, all-natural ingredients and don’t strip my hair plus they are fun to use lol

Ayurvedic Powders :: Amla, neem and brahmi have worked miracles for my hair and scalp. I use Hesh brand from my local Indian market (always check the expiration dates on these!)

Conditioners :: Oyin Handmade Honey Dew, Shea Radiance Maximum Moisture, Shea Moisture Purification Masque and Aubrey Organics White Camellia are all AMAZING. They all have nice slip and really replenish any lost moisture back in my hair. I can use any of these as a deep conditioner as well. I just leave them on under a cap for about 30 mins.

Oyin Handmade Whipped Pudding…I LOVE this stuff for twist-outs. It seals moisture and gives hold for days.

Oyin Handmade Humectant Pomade…use it to seal my ends EVERY time I do a twist-out.

7.     What is your staple style?

I am not very creative with styling lol so I opt for a twist-out most of the time with a few wash-n-go’s scattered here and there. I love wearing my hair out, the bigger the better!

Wash n Go

Twist out

8.     Words of the Wise(tell a natural something you wish you would have known before you went natural)

If you are newly natural, stay encouraged! Don’t give up, I know the road to growing out your relaxer can be rough and unpleasant at times but keep learning, keep experimenting and learning to love the true you! Have fun with it but don’t become obsessed with how you look or trying to keep up with the next natural curly. Find what works for you and go with what you know :o)

9.     Any Last thoughts

You can find all my other thoughts on the places listed below :o)

10.  Where can we find you? (Tumblr, Instagram,Twitter, blog etc.)

I love this lol,this is her logo.

Blog :: www.lacocobella.com

Twitter :: www.twitter.com/lacocobellablog

Facebook :: www.facebook.com/lacocobellablog

Instagram :: @lacocobella

(I LOVE her site, and she was so generous to share her hair story with the blog, go over to her site and show her some LOVE, remember to be featured all you have to do is CONTACT me.)

-BHay