Continue reading to find out what I used. . .

1. Base Coat –  Essie’s Protein Base Coat  is cheap and effective. Check it out.

2. Nail Polish (Clambake Coral by Color Club) – Courtesy of this month’s Birchbox. An unexpected shade for my fingernails, but I’ve been getting tons of compliments so it can’t be half bad. Goes on smoothly as well.

3. Quick Dry Top Coat – Not giving up on Duri Cosmetics Miracote Super Fast Dry Top Coat any time soon! It dries in seconds and never gets gloppy or sticky.

So, what do you think? What’s on your nails this week?

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By Dr. Uzoma for Beauty 365 

Disclaimer: I am not a hair scientist, cosmetologist, or anything of that sort. However, I do have an extensive science background and I have reviewed a vast amount of literature. With this information, I will explain this topic as clearly as possible.

There’s plenty of talk about hair porosity on the Internet and hair forums but there aren’t always clear explanations of the science. This series is aimed to give you a simple and clear explanation of the science of hair.

Porosity is defined as “the ability to absorb fluids”[1]. It is typically described in relative terms. . . For example, a sponge has a higher porosity than a brick. In this example, the brick would have low porosity and the sponge would have high porosity. With regards to hair, porosity refers to the hair’s ability to absorb water or chemicals.[2]

A good analogy is one I saw on Natural Selection Blog. It likens hair to a sponge. As you know, a sponge has small holes where water can be absorbed.

A normal sponge is like hair with normal porosity. It can absorb water and it releases water at a slow rate.

A sponge covered in plastic wrap or in a plastic bag is like hair with low porosity. If you were to submerge the covered sponge in water, no water or very little water would be absorbed.

A sponge with large holes cut in it is like hair with high porosity. The large holes will allow water to enter in easily. However, these holes will also allow water to leave the sponge quickly. As the water leaves, the hair will dry out faster than the normal sponge.

Afro textured hair tends to have low porosity naturally and is usually less porous than Caucasian or Asian hair types unless it has been chemically processed. Hair with “good” porosity retains moisture well and accepts chemical treatments, if desired.[2]

Hair Porosity Tests[3]

The following questions will help you determine whether or not your hair is overly porous:

• Does your hair continuously soak in moisture without ever actually feeling moisturized?
• Is your hair chronically dry despite your best conditioning efforts?
• Does your hair appear/feel puffy, frizzy, swollen, or tough to the touch?
• Does your hair have a natural, reddish toned cast to it that is usually more pronounced in spring and summer time?
• Does your hair hold styles and curl well?

If you’ve answered yes to any of these questions, you may have a problem with your hair’s porosity level.

At-home Tests: It is best to test your porosity level on freshly cleaned and dried hair.

Test 1: Wet your hair. Before you start to shampoo your hair, notice how long it takes for your hair to actually feel soaked and fully saturated with water. Hair that “wets” easily is typically porous. If your hair takes quite some time to actually get fully wet, your hair is less porous. Or your hair could be coated with heavy oils and other products. As your hair dries (air dry), note how quickly the drying takes place. Porous hair dries very quickly, and in some cases, the ends of the hair may be dry before your body is fully dried! Hair that takes longer to dry is typically less porous.

On fully dried hair, note whether your hair feels rough and tangles easily. Hair that “catches” on itself, does not move well, and tangles easily, is usually porous, or is in need of a trim.

Test 2: Gently hold strands of your dry hair between your index finger and thumb, and then slowly slide your fingers along the length of the strand. You should be moving from the scalp to the ends. If you feel an overall uneven texture as you move along down the shaft, your hair is slightly porous.

Test 3: Take a few strands of “harvested” hair (shed hair from your comb, hair brush, etc.) and place them in a bowl of water. If the hair sinks in less than a minute or two, it is porous. The sooner your hair sinks, the more porous it is. If only one part of the strand sinks, you have a spotty porosity problem. This is not uncommon.

Lab Tests: You can also send hair samples into a lab to be analyzed. Search “Hair Analysis Porosity” on Google for several analysis centers.

Next in the Hair Science 101 Series: What affects hair porosity and how to correct porosity issues.

So, leave a comment and let us know if you are able to determine the porosity of your hair? All other questions/comments are welcome, too!

The Beauty365 team with Hope Solo

The UK’s top facial skincare line has crossed the pond and launched their brand in the US and Canada. Last week, they were kind enough to invite the Beauty 365 team to a press event to learn more about their products.

Simple Skin Care was established over 50 years ago in the UK with the aim the provide quality skincare products for sensitive skin. Simple has no dyes, artificial perfumes or harsh irritants that can upset skin. . . By offering a skincare range suitable for all skin types, especially sensitive skin, Simple has helped generations of women look and feel beautiful.

Simple’s new North American line is gentle yet effective enough to treat the needs of the 58% of women that have sensitive skin.[1] Their products include facial cleansers, moisturizers, cleansing wipes, and eye care. All of their products are fragrance-free, hypoallergenic, non-comedogenic, and pH balanced.

During the event, we spoke with Dr. Jennifer Segal, a board certified dermatologist and consulting dermatologist for Simple, who gave us sound advice about skin care. We also met Simple’s spokesperson, US National Soccer Team Goalkeeper, Hope Solo. Hope uses Simple products for her sensitive skin on and off the playing field. Her motto is “Look good, feel good, play good.” Gotta love it!  Check out Simple’s Facebook page for a chance to win a trip to Los Angeles to meet Hope.

Photos from the Event

Do you have sensitive skin? If so, how do you deal with it?

by Stephanee for Beauty 365

Commercials have the biggest effect on consumers and their buying habits.

Advertisements, however, aren’t all that honest and you rarely end up with the picture perfect burger or bouncy hair that you saw on TV.

Commercials that really get under my skin are mascara commercials. . . They claim you will have dark, thick dramatic lashes that look like falsies, meanwhile all the models in the ads are wearing false lashes. The nerve!

I sometimes wonder if they take us for fools or they feel their products won’t sell unless they lie to our faces. My friend (who is a false lash connoisseur) had thick lashes the other day. They looked so natural! I finally just asked her if she was wearing false lashes and she said, “No I’m wearing that new mascara I told you about L’Oreal Voluminous False Lashes” ($9).

The next day I ran and purchased it at CVS. This mascara is awesome it made my lashes freakishly long and thick. It didn’t clump when applying and didn’t flake throughout the day.

Before

 Before

 After

After

This mascara does everything the commercial claims it’s supposed to do which I was ecstatic about. False Fiber Lashes also washes off easily at the end of the day. In the commercial Gwen Stefani has mile long false lashes but I don’t mind because after using this mascara I had mile long lashes too.

Get yours here or at your local drugstore!

xx,
Stephanee

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by Dr. Uzoma for Beauty 365

In January 2011, I got box braids and I was really excited because I hadn’t had them in a long while. I wanted a break from maintaing my relaxed hair. The previous time I had braids was in early 2008 and my hair did pretty well after taking them out.

That was not the case this time. My hairline was WRECKED and my relaxed hair was really thin and breaking. . .

I didn’t really know what to do so I covered it with weaves and wigs in an attempt to help it recover. That didn’t really help. It took about a year to grow out all the thin parts but my edges were still a disaster. I couldn’t wear my hair pulled back in a bun or ponytail like I often enjoy doing.

So, being the scientist that I am, I did some research on the Internet and found the blog, African Tresses. The author, Phro, discussed how castor oil saved her hairline and she even posted pics of the results. (Her blog is really informative. You should check it out.) She has a hairline challenge that lasts for 2 months.

So, I decided to try it. I thought the worse that could happen is that my hairline would remain the same. . .

My hairline recovered by leaps and bounds. By the end of the first month, I saw a tremendous difference. I could not believe it. I was truly amazed. By the end of the second month, my hairline had almost fully returned. I am not sure if it is the castor oil or the scalp massages or a combination of the two, but it really worked for me.

For the first month, I used regular drugstore castor oil (the one used as a laxative). For the second month, I used Jamaican Black Castor Oil by Tropical Isle Products. You can get details on it here I would wholeheartedly recommend this method for anyone suffering from these issues.

Here are photo the results:

Left Temple on Feb. 28

Left Temple on Apr. 28

Right Temple on Feb. 28

Right Temple on Apr. 28

What a difference!

Currently, I use castor oil three times a week on my scalp before I moisturize and seal my hair. It really helps soften my new growth. I also continue to castor oil on my hairline daily.

Have any of you had success/disappointments with castor oil and your hair?

Let us know in the comments!

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Photo Credit: Amazon

Howdy Beauties!

Wanna see what came of this lovely set of ingredients. Keep on reading to find out. . .

Not too long ago, I mentioned that I had recently gotten into making whipped shea butter mixes for my hair.  I made my first mix based on a video (posted below) by the lovely Fusion of Cultures.

That last batch recently ran out (RIP!) so I decided to make a new batch (YAY!) with ingredients I picked up at my local health food store. You can play around with oils and their proportions to your heart’s desire, but here’s what I used (pictured from left to right):

1. Raw Shea Butter from Ghana – Got this from a dear friend, but you can buy some just like it here.

2. Coconut Oil – One of the few oils that can penetrate the hair shaft. My dry and thirsty hair likes it very much. You can get some here.

3. Vegetable Glycerin – My hair’s new best friend. This is a humectant that really helps my very dry hair retain moisture. I’ll do a post on my current regimen in the hear future, but in the meanwhile you can get some veggie glycerin here.

4. Castor Oil – Good for my dry hair. Also, helped Dr. Uzoma do some major hair reparation on her hairline. Keep an eye out for a detailed post on how she did it, but in the meanwhile, you can order some castor oil here.

5. Jojoba Oil – I use this on my face at night sometimes. Random, but it feels lovely. Not only is it great for skin, but it’s great for hair, too. Grab some here.

6. Orange Oil – I like yummy smells and this mix as-is didn’t smell like much of anything. A few drops of this added a lovely hint of citrus.

Then I mixed it in a big bowl with this (super-affordable) handblender I got as a gift and there you have it!

Creamy, moisturizing goodness. 

Do you guys make your own hair concoctions? If not, would you ever? Leave a comment and let us know your thoughts!

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by Dr. Uzoma for Beauty 365

I am usually very loyal when it comes to exfoliators.

When I was a teenager, I was an avid user of St. Ives Apricot Scrub. I was in my price point (e.g. CHEAP) but very rough and harsh on my skin. . .Later, Beauty 365 introduced recommended Self-Adjusting Exfoliator by Cosmedicine ($35), which I loved. I was truly disheartened when I went to my local Sephora and found out that it was discontinued. I have been in search of a replacement ever since. Beauty 365 gave me a chance to review Caudalie’s Gentle Buffing Cream, so I jumped at it.

According to Caudalie, the scrub ‘eliminates imperfections, dead cells, and excess sebum, all while stimulating cellular renewal. The complexion’s radiance is gently awakened, and the skin is left soft and clean.’ Sounds good to me!

I am happy to say that I enjoy using this exfoliator. It has a lovely smooth texture and a great clean smell. The buffing spheres are soft and do an effective job of smoothing my skin. My skin felt quite soft after the first use and it is still effective after continued use.

Even though it is a bit pricey, I would definitely recommend it.

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by Stephanee for Beauty 365

I recently had a conversation with a friend of mine about age brackets and how they have evolved over the years.

It seems that 40’s are the new 30’s and 30’s are the new 20’s. Who even knows anymore?! I told my friend that all I needed in my life was my eye cream and I’m good to go.

I’ve been using eye cream since my mid-twenties. . . Taking preventative measures to fight wrinkles early is always in your best interest. Thank goodness I came across Neutrogena Rapid Wrinkle Repair Eye Cream ($18).

After a month or so of using this eye cream I noticed my eye area was brighter and smoother. That must have something to do with the Accelerated Retinol which is a key ingredient in this product.

I also like the fact that you can apply this eye cream to your entire eye, other products limit you to apply under eye only.

I’m excited about trying other Rapid Wrinkle Repair products to keep my smile lines at bay. Now instead of worrying about aging and those pesky expectations forced upon us in our 30’s, I can focus on enjoying life to the fullest!

Have you tried this line before?

xo,
Stephanee

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Hi babes!

So sorry to have been away for so long. I’ve been buzzing away on twitter, but life got in the way of blogging as it sometimes does.

But, don’t fret, because we are back! I missed you guys!

We’ve got some updates for ya. I also know that you all are dying to know who won the CURLS Giveaway.

So, without further ado. . .

I’ve been dog-sitting the most adorable (and fiesty!) Boston Terrier named Piggy. She says hello!

“Hi readers!”

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Hi friends,

Another week, another (DIY) manicure. . .

Products used, in order:

1. Base Coat –  Essie’s Protein Base Coat ($4) Good stuff and affordable.

2. Nail Polish (Ballroom Blue by Matesse Elite) – I am still in search of the perfect (NON-SHIMMERY) deep navy polish. I found this in Ricky’s and think it’s a touch too deep in color, but I like it all the same.

3. Sparkle Polish – From my recent BirchBox, Essie’s Set In Stones ($8) polish. Semi-gradient sparkle effect like my other mani from a few weeks ago. Such a lovely touch.

4. Quick Dry Top Coat – Great stuff. Duri Cosmetics Miracote Super Fast Dry Top Coat ($7)

Thoughts?

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