Tadera

Kinky Curly Coily?

Hola Bonitas!

It’s the weekend and yet I find that I’m caught in a bit of an awkward stint. The thing is, I haven’t quite latched on to the ‘Friday Feeling’ nevertheless, work mode appears to have evaded me. I’m hanging in limbo…. a transit… some kind of portage perhaps, who knows. In spite of this predicament, I have decided to return to my former love, the art of Blogging. Here we go…..

Recently, I’ve fallen head over heels in love with my natural kinks, curls well… more like coils (call it what you will) and I’ve been taking pictures non-stop in order to document my numerous experimental looks. For a change, I had the ‘fro out for 2 whole weeks (can you believe it?) and I loved every second of it. The sponge like texture is one of those things I’ll never get over and the underlying length restrained in the elasticity is an awe that will always leave me gobsmacked.

The last weekend that I had the ‘fro out, I headed to Gentle Touch for their natural goodness and as usual, I left a happy customer. Below are pictures hope you like…..

xXx

Ps: This post was meant to go up yesterday hence the references to Friday.

Pps: I have a Diesel Launch party to attend today 🙂

Vanity Oils

I’m not even going to lie, I’m still very much excited about the whole natural hair phase that I’m going through. I love the spring/elasticity, I’m obsessed with the spongy/fluffy texture and I’m a sucker for the constant attention that natural hair demands. My hair is constantly in protective braids (my Dad + my Job wouldn’t have it any other way), so it’s fairly easy to neglect my hair and forget about how much TLC needs to go into maintaining it.

It’s no secret that natural hair is a struggle (to say the least) and so having limp/dry/dead natural hair cannot afford to be an option! To avoid such dilemmas, I got in touch with Ekua of Vanity Oils (courtesy of Solape, my colleague) and she had the following delivered to me:

1. Argan Oil;

2. Coconut Oil; and

3. Shea Butter.

I’m so excited about all three products (the 4th, being Tea tree oil, is on its way) and so thought I’d share with you. You’ll remember from previous posts that I’m in love with Coconut Oil aka The Holy Grail and Shea Butter aka Women’s Gold. My latest obsession is Argan Oil, but I’ll save that post for another day and perhaps insert the link once it’s done.

In the mean time, I’m off to read up some more on Carrier Oils and Essential Oils and thought I’d leave you with pictures of my Vanity Oils purchases.

Until next time Bonita’s…….

xXx

PS: I decided to leave my natural hair out this week. I’ve got it in some funky twists. I’ve received a mixture of comments on it (more good than bad thankfully). When I’m more comfortable with it, perhaps I’ll upload pictures. Until then……..

5 Blogs 5 Days: Fashions Fade, Style is Eternal

I love Pinterest because it allows me to discover so many new things with very little effort. One of my first Pinterest discoveries (and instant obsession) has got to be Atlantic-Pacific (“AP”). Below are three reasons why:

1. The Atlantic Pacific blog is solely a style blog and I must confess I have a style crush on the author Blaire Eadie. Not every outfit is to my taste (I veer as far away as possible from ripped jeans and sweat shirts), nevertheless; her style is original and unique to her, it’s modern with a twinge of vintage and it’s relevant to her location and the changing seasons. What more could one ask for?

2. The AP blog is very visual. Who needs writing when pictures scream a thousand words? The image quality is also as good as professional.

3. Now this point, I’ll have to give to Wura (my sister), because she pointed it out as I shared this blog with her. She repeats her clothes!!! Most people these days are of the impression that clothes should be worn once and from then on damned into eternal flames. Come off it! Money doesn’t grow on trees. People spend so much on clothes because they should be durable and (as much as possible) they should be timeless. How else will we ever get vintage clothes?

Well there you have it. So far I’ve written a blog on Hair, Beauty and Fashion. I bet you’re wondering what’s up next. You’ll have to visit BV same time tomorrow to find out……

xXx

Ps: This is the first time I have referred to my blog as BV. I think I like it. Might do this more often…..

PPs: It’s FRRRRRIIIIIDDDDAAAAAAAYYYYYYY 🙂

5 Blogs 5 Days: Beauty is in the eye of the beholder

I’ve never been good with makeup which is ironic really, seeing as I’ve always thought of myself as a bit of an artist. No matter how hard I try, my face is the one canvas I haven’t quite mastered. Perhaps it’s because I don’t use foundation so I never achieve that flawless base. Maybe it’s because I’m no good with mascara so I never accomplish the piercing eyes… Who knows, maybe makeup is just not my thing. Regardless, I happen to love The Beauty Department below are 3 reasons why:

1. The Beauty Department encompasses all the different aspects of beauty: makeup, hair, nails (my favourite) name it…. It’s all there. Believe it or not, this blog also considers your diet as I recently noticed a post on healthy food. I guess this goes to show that beauty is not just what you slap on the outside… You’ve got to take care of your insides too.

2. The DIY approach the bloggers use which takes you through the different stages of achieving the great results is fantastic. Moreover, the site not only breaks down the steps one by one, but it provides visual backings so that you can see the progress as you pursue your desired results.

3. TBD notices the little things which are likely to grind your gears as you apply makeup. The annoying gap that appears when eyeliner is applied but fails to touch the eye waterline, the difference you achieve in using a primer as opposed to straight makeup, etc. they pay attention to detail which the average girl tends to neglect.

For these reasons amongst many others I ❤ TBD, nevertheless Inspite of everything ever written on beauty, it’s important to know that beauty is only skin deep. An ugly personality will never be masked by layers of beauty products.

xXx

Ps: I tried black up foundation a couple of weeks ago. I looked pale/ashy.

5 Blogs 5 Days: Good Hair

Greetings ever faithful readers/subscribers…. you truly are my sunshine on a cloudy day. Please forgive my disappearing act, it is far from my intention to desert you as a result of my time mismanagement or straight-up laziness.

In a bid to ditch my slothful ways, I have taken on a self-inflicted challenge and I really do hope to get engrossed in it. This week, I have decided to let you in 5 of my favourite blogs/bloggers; and what it is about their blogs that really captivates me. I will try my utmost to keep the list versatile with each blog distinct from the previous and yet focused on the usual: Style, Fashion, Beauty and Hair.

Good Hair: Curly Nikki

I need not emphasize that I went natural a little over a year ago and so natural hair blogs have pretty much been my hair bible and motivation. Needless to say, kicking off my 5 in 5, is Curly Nikki and the below listed are reasons why….

1. First and foremost, what I like about this blog is the general aesthetic and structured organisation. The padded walls (although red) are not distracting neither are they overpowering; on the contrary I find them quite relaxing, balanced and focused in line with CN’s mission to promote self-esteem.

It’s so easy to navigate through the different pages of the CN blog. Every tab is subdivided into different pages addressing different topics. My favourite to date although, has got to be the Recipes Page under Basics. I love trying new hair recipes and this page is definitely my ‘Go-To’ page for yummy natural hair recipes.

2. The CN blog covers everything from transitioning to children’s hair. There’s no question I’ve thought to ask, that hasn’t already been addressed and in addition to that, did I mention that there’s a forum.

3. The blog has a dictionary (Hallelujah!). When I first got the Big Chop, I was totally clueless about what ‘sealing’, ‘3abc/4a/4b/4c’ hair types and twist outs. Thankfully, there was a dictionary I could reference.

You don’t need to be natural to visit Curly Nikki, you just need to want to look after your hair delivering healthy and beautiful results.

xXx

Ps:I’m back! 🙂

It’s Official… I am a Published Writer. Lol!

It’s official, I have been published. Let’s hope this is the start of a flourishing career in the much pursued fashion journalism.

Deets:

Newspaper/Magazine/Publisher: The Guardian Life Magazine

Spread: Half a page (the next one shall be a full page)

Location: Middle Page

xXx

Ps: As spotted in the picture above, I made the Front Page too. Whoop!

African Queen

It’s been a year since the Big Chop and I must admit the road to becoming the ultimate “African Queen” has been paved with tempting Chemical Crack and damaging heat applicators. All the same, I have remained ever faithful to my afro dream.

Below are pictures of Teyona Parris and Janelle Monae my latest hair inspirations. I’ve also snuck in pictures of my ‘fro a year on. Hope you like…..