Treat

Happy Earth Day!

I'm a big supporter of Aveda products. Not only do they use organic ingredients, but the company believes in earth friendly packaging, renewable energy and environmental sustainability. Support companies that support the earth.

Trace Magazine

I'll take that, that, and that....oh, and that's cute too. Love, love, love the fierce fashions and photography in Trace magazine's Issue #83, a magazine established in London that celebrates transcultural style and ideas.

Girl is workin' the natural in the top image. Check out Trace magazine's web site to download a free pdf of this issue as well as previous issue #82.

Method

The first time I saw Method products was at Target, and I thought that it was a Target brand. Not true. The company was founded by two roommates, Adam Lowry and Eric Ryan. They started with an idea. That idea transitioned into creating products that didn't have to be "hidden under the sink." Thus creating Method, a line of products that clean, but are gentle to the user and the environment. The designs of Method products are simple, elegant, and eco-friendly, and they smell really good, too!

Happy Earth Day!

HAPPY EARTH DAY! Every day, the earth does something great for you. Why not do something great for the earth?

If you aren't hip to the grocery tote, then you'd better get to moving! Grocery totes are not only reducing the number of plastic and paper bags used at grocery stores, but they're becoming fashionable items. I've seen people in downtown Chicago carrying not only groceries, but work items in these totes!

Check out these totes from Whole Foods. So designer-friendly! They're great for the planet, and they're so much easier to carry and use because they hold so many more groceries! The colorful one to the left is made of 80% post consumer waste. The one to the right is made of a thick canvas and has two straps. One long, one short. So you can carry it in whatever way is more convenient for you.

If you don't think you'll be in a Whole Foods anytime soon, many grocery stores, at least in the Chicago area, carry their own grocery totes. Design has been a really important factor in the creation of these bags. It seems that grocery stores are becoming more competitive with their designs. Who could blame them? The more people who carry the tote, the more advertising the store gets. My favorites have been these Whole Foods bags. Do you have a favorite in your city?

Check out the YouTube video below, Earth Day 2008: Be a Part of the Solution, to learn more about what you can do to be more eco-friendly.

Find an Earth Day event in your city.

Natural hair–part II

This is the second portion of my natural hair post series. I had so much information to share, that I couldn't put it all on one post. So, here's part II.

I've been asked to address dry/frizzy ends. First, I want to say, I am in no way an expert on this. I am only telling you what I do for my own. I trim my ends about every 6 weeks. I condition them, along with the rest of my hair, with Aveda's Brilliant Humectant Pomade. It's a bit expensive at $18 per 2.6 oz. jar, but you only need a tiny dab. Then, I wet the ends with water and single strand twist them, either with my fingers, or a comb. One jar of this Aveda pomade can last me a little over a month—maybe even longer. Another great conditioning agent I have used is Mizani's Moisturizing Silkening Liquid Gel. It works great and smells really good too. It's just harder for me to find.

Feel free to print images to display around your mirror or anywhere in your home where you need a touch of inspiration!

 
Click on image to view larger.

YouTube now has many videos and tutorials on how to style natural hair. Here are some of my favorites.

1. After many requests, Fauryn78 has created a YouTube tutorial to learn an alternative to the "basic" loc bun. This video is awesome and makes me wish I had locks or longer twists.

2. This tutorial by Kittykat 1374 is a bit humorous, but she has some really helpful hints on how she styles her natural hair. Check out Hair Before, During, and After below.

3. A great collection of photos and styles by Sharon (aka Dreamy Pisces).

4. There looks like there will be another resource coming soon: Natural Black Hair Care.

Hope you can take these inspirations and have fun during your Saturday mornings, or whenever you do your hair. Have a great weekend!

Natural hair–part I

My natural hair journey started 4 years ago last Thursday, March 6, 2004. I had originally considered it in college. I started growing out my relaxer during my freshman year. it didn't last long—a mere two months, then I was on to the salon. I didn't seriously consider it again until I started working at my first design job, and even then, I figured the time wasn't right. I thought that I wanted to be in a state of total self consciousness to take the natural journey. It finally dawned on me that total self consciousness was not going to happen. One would think that I would have known that considering my college thesis was that self discovery is a life-long process, but somehow, it wasn't even a consideration.

My first relaxer was in 7th grade, and my last one was in November, 15 years later. I remember telling my hairdresser that it was my last perm, and she said, "we'll see." Four months later, with a photo in hand, I went to another hairdresser to have it all cut off. The interesting thing was that I wasn't at all nervous about it. I remember my new hairdresser asked me if I was having second thoughts. I told her "not at all. I've been waiting months for this." After the big chop, I felt relief, and haven't looked back since.

Here are some photos that I've collected of natural hair styles. Also check out my earlier post with natural hair inspirations.

Click on image to view larger.

Check out these natural hair inspirations:

1. Here's an article by Evette Collins of Newsweek about her journey towards accepting her natural hair.
2. Looking for a new way to wear your locs? Check out this YouTube video. You can also do this with long twists.

If you haven't seen A Girl Like Me, you should check it out. See below.

3. This video is a response to A Girl Like Me.

4. Another great resource on natural hair: Textured Tresses: The Ultimate Guide to Maintaining and Styling Natural Hair.

5. Of course, Nappturality and Motowngirl.com are great resources.

Tomorrow's post: Natural Hair, part II

pure & natural product line

I went to Target over the weekend and discovered a new product—Pure & Natural body wash. I believe it is a rebrand of the old pure & natural product line. If so, they've done a great job with the packaging.

I bought the moisturizing almond oil and cherry blossom scent, which smells pretty in the bottle. I didn't like the scent quite as much once I poured it on the loofah, but it does leave a nice cherry almond scent once you dry off. There are other scents too that are just as enticing to try. If you try any of the other scents, let me know what you think.

Just wanted to let you know...

For those of you who read the post about the wooden afro picks, I just wanted to let you know where you can get these beautiful picks. You can read the history of the picks as well as purchase picks from Goddess Glory at http://myspace.com/fropicks.

Wooden Afro Picks

A friend e-mailed me pictures of these cool and contemporary wooden afro picks, and I wanted to share.
You can find these picks by going to Goddess Glory's MySpace page. Go to http://www.myspace.com/fropicks.

Products by Fruits & Passions

If you've been in Anthropologie, then you've probably experienced Cucina products by Fruits and Passions. I love this product line. Not only are the scents natural and delightful, the packaging is eye-catching too.

South of France Body Care

I love Whole Foods—not only for its organic and healthy food products, but it also has some great body care products, like this french milled soap made by a company called South of France. The soaps come in almond, green tea, lavender, honey, verbena, shea butter, and mango scents. My favorites are the Green Tea and the Shea Butter. They smell sooo good! I love them because they're not "perfumy". I tend to like very natural scents. The products aren't offered online, so if you're interested, you can find them at Whole Foods or Wild Oats.

The Colors of Summer

With all the beautiful inspiration that I blog about, don't forget to also take the time to be inspired by the greatest designs of all—nature. Labor Day weekend marks "the end of summer" for many cities, thus cultural and outdoor events start to come to a close. It won't be long before the vibrant green trees you see now will reflect the foliage of autumn. It's nice to take note when the seasons change. It's another reminder of the circle of life.

I will be taking off Labor Day to enjoy the extended weekend, and to take note on more of the sites, colors, smells, and sounds of summer. I hope you will too. I will be back on Tuesday, but until then, have a great Labor Day weekend!

Note: These are photos I took of Lake Michigan as well as various areas around Northwestern University's campus.

Fall style–Amel Larrieux

Fall is quickly creeping in, so I've been on the lookout for fall fashions. I was happily surprised to see one of my favorite recording artists in Lucky magazine, Amel Larrieux. Here she's combined a delicate silk dress in a great Fall color with a menswear-inspired pinstriped blazer. Check out her other fall fashion recommendations in Lucky's September issue (pages 330-331). If you're not familiar with Amel's music, you should check her out at Blisslife.com.

An Inconvenient Truth

No matter what city or country you live in, it is important for all of us to learn and implement steps toward conserving natural resources. If you haven't seen An Inconvenient Truth, you should really consider renting the movie. It explains how global warming and the decomposition of our natural resources is hurting the planet. You'll definitely be moved by it. Check out this movie trailer.

The Burden of Poof

No matter what your race, many people have something about themselves that they could learn to love better. For many Black women, loving or even just appreciating the beauty of their natural hair can be a long-term process, or a process she may never explore. In design school, I designed a book called The Burden of Poof: The History and Politics of African-American Hair. Below are images of Black women with their hair in its most beautiful state, natural—no chemicals. These women are just a few of many men and women—no matter the race, color, or hair texture—who captivate the natural essence of beauty in our world.

To learn more about African-American hair, here are a few great books I enjoyed reading: Hair Story: Untangling the Roots of Black Hair in America, Hair Matters: Beauty, Power, and Black Women's Consciousness,  and  Black Hair: Art, Style, and Culture.