Big Thank You to our 1,212 readers!!

When we started FroChic a month ago, we didn’t know how the natural hair community would react to it; but we surprisingly got more support than we hoped.

To everyone that takes the time to swing by this blog, and to all our subscribers, we want to say a big THANK YOU! As we’ll also be going away for a while, we’re hoping to see you in the new year (2010), all natural and still rockin it like it’s 1960.lol.

Have a fabulous Christmas & New year. May the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ; the Power & the Fellowship of the Holy Spirit be with y’all. Also, may we all remember the real purpose behind Christmas.

Peace, love  & blessings
Nangamso & Matlhodi

Top summer holiday hair care tips!

Its that time of the year again, when we kick back and relax! We have all worked hard in the year and we deserve a well-deserved break. Some of you will be meeting with family, visiting friends and others of you will be going away on holiday.

With summer comes new,  fresh and exciting things, and we are also celebrating summer with our new bright theme!

I’ve been reading a couple of magazines and I noticed that most of them all have different types of tips for enjoying those lazy summer holidays, but none for hair :-). So, we’ve come up with a short list of some of the different ways you can take care of your hair this summer, so that when you come back in January, its not only your body that will be rejuvenated but your hair will be in a good and healthy condition for 2010.

Top hair care tips:

1. Avoiding being exposed to direct sunlight for long hours. It’s not only your skin that needs protection but your hair too. Make sure your hair is always moisturized so that it doesn’t dry out quickly.

2. Wear a protective hairstyle like plaits, twists or braids. This will help to keep your hair ‘under-wraps’, thus protecting it from the harsh rays of the sun. Protective hairstyle don’t only protect your hair, but you will sure look funky and beautiful!  

3. Invest in a good sun hat or an ultra cool trilby hat. If you are not a hat person, you can always rock beautiful trendy scarves. These really look chic for summer. 

4. Drink lots of water. This does wonders for your whole body (and you hair will also benefit!).

Merry Christmas ya’ll!!

Does natural hair require one to up their game?

I was shopping with two of my friends the other day; one natural (locks) & the other with straight, relaxed hair. I was not the only one that noticed how myself & the other natural were gravitated towards big & colorful accessories (Shades, earrings, bangles & necklaces, belts) among other trendy items; but my other friend with relaxed hair also noticed.

She then asked “How come a lot of naturals love big earrings?”.

“Because when you have hair like ours, you need to up your game when in comes to style.” answered my natural friend.

And then it dawned on me, many naturals that I’ve met, seen on TV, magazines & the Internet really have they’re unique style going on. Not to mention to-the-T-make-up. Yes, many naturals are uniquely stylish. Does it come naturally or do we feel that we look less beautiful with natural hair, that we have to go the extra mile to look exceptionally beautiful?

Another natural friend of mine sent me a pic of hers the other day. She’s got BEAUTIFUL, healthy looking, thick tresses, but you wont believe the 2nd thing I picked up on her after her hair… her ungroomed brows. Yes. Before she went natural, she didn’t bother to groom them (just brushed them neatly) but I never took notice. All i saw was her breathtaking beauty. Now that she’s natural, I felt that the bush had to go(yes, I told her when we spoke on the phone later on and she laughed it off.lol). A large percentage of natural ladies I’ve met, seen in magazines, TV & the Internet have a really polished look on the face & their fashion sense in mind-blowingly awesome. They stand out. I’ve been reading a number of natural hair sites & noticed in many interviews,  the usual answer to the question “How do you feel after going natural?” is usually,”liberating.”

Does liberating mean one can now express their unique style which was overshadowed or limited when they were still tying to fit in the society with straight hair?

No wonder people used to think I was an artist when I had locks.lol.

Question: Do we get creative when we go natural?

M.

Our first hair product review: Organic Root Stimulator (ORS)

This post is inspired by one of our readers, Kiyah. She wrote a comment on our blog that she is a natural African American lady living in South Africa, but is looking for good natural hair products which she can purchase locally. Well, both of us (Matlhodi and I) are new in this and we are tyring out a couple of hair products which are available here in SA. In most of the sites and blogs we visit, the products listed are usually not available in SA, so the only option would be to purchase the products online, but with the rand-dollar exchange and postal charges, you will pay big time!

Well, no need to worry about that anymore because here you will find product reviews (tried and tested on our hair :-)) of different hair products;  from shampoos to mosturisers, from well-known brands to the not-so-well-known ones. I’m also a self-confessed product junkie, so I’m always willing to try out new things. The main things that matter the most to me are: how the hair product smells, and how soft and mosturised it makes my hair feel.

The brand which both of us have tried so far and love is the Organic Root Stimutalor (ORS) brand. This has only been available in SA  for about year or two now. Initially i was quite skeptical about their products, until i read someone’s product review on this range. So, I decided to give their Hair Mayonnaise a try and what a great experience I had, and needless to say, I never looked back!

ORS Hair Mayonnaise treatment

 

 

 

 

What is it?  This is a deep conditioner and treatment.

Price? R49.99 at Clicks.

Is it any good? Both Matlhodi and I have tried this product and we normally apply it to our hair once or twice a month. We use it as a treatment for our hair. We normally leave it for about 1 hour to 1 hour and half, with our hair covered in a plastic cap (to retain the heat) and then rinse it out. You hair literally feels soft afterwards. It has a ‘herbally’ smell to it, which is not amazing, but its also not too bad. So far we like using this product.

ORS Olive Oil Creamy Aloe Shampoo

 

 

 

 

 

 

 What is it? Its a shampoo for your hair. Its main ingredients are olive oil and aloe vera. It helps to cleanse your hair and scalp from any product build-up and it also helps to mosturise it.

Price and stores where available? R49.99 at Clicks. You can also find it at most local supermarkets and Charlie Parker stores.

Is it any good? From my personal experience, it left my hair feeling hard and void of any moisture after shampooing. It also seemed harsh on my hair, and my hair felt like it was stripped of any little moisture that was there. However, it was good in terms of removing any product build-up on my scalp. My scalp did feel clean afterwards and any grease that was there, was removed. It also smells great – it has a minty and fresh smell to it.

ORS  Olive Oil Replenishing Pak deep penetrating conditioner

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

What is it? Its a deep penetrating conditioner, which you can use after every wash. You can find this in a pack or in a bottle.

Price and where its available? R13.99 for the pack and R55.99 for the bottle at Clicks. You can also find it at any local supermarket and Charlie Parker stores.

Is it any good? I love it! It smells great, the smell is that of citrus fruits and it really makes my hair feel soft and moisturized. So far, this is a must in my list of hair products.

ORS Olive Oil incredibly rich oil mosturizing hair lotion

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

What is it? Its a hair mosturiser.

Price and where its availabe? R49.99 at Clicks. You can also find it at the same place that sells the ORS brand.

Is it any good? I find that it works best for me if i apply it after spritzing my hair with water or water/glycerine mixture (i think the olive oil in the hair lotion helps to seal in the moisture). Its quite oily, so you don’t want to put a lot of it on your hair. I also don’t use it everyday, because after a while your hair starts to feel greasy. It also smells okayish.lol

Yay! Our first product review.

We plan to test out other hair products that we come across, so we will keep you updated. If you have a product that works for your natural tresses, please feel free to share.

Enjoy!

Nangamso

Charlotte’s styles…

Graphic designer, Charlotte wanted to contribute some of the styles she loves rockin. She’s been natural for 8 years; gave in to the ‘creamy crack’ half-way through her journey due to frustrations of maintaining her naturals (Every natural who has done this before will tell you that it was one bit regret) & wanted to transition back to natural hair immediately after putting the relaxer on her hair. Again, we’re not bashing sisters with straight hair, but this blog is about celebrating natural hair.

HAIR CARE REGIMEN:
Wash:  Once a week with Head ‘n Shoulders shampoo
Conditioner: Dark ‘n Lovely hair cholesterol (once in 2-3 weeks)
Moisturizer: MPL oil (once a week after a wash & before plaiting); It leaves my hair feeling soft & smelling good.
Scalp conditioner: Virgin Hair fertilizer
“I wear protective hairstyles most of the time (‘Benny ‘n Betty’ or twists) and spray with Styling Dretz hair spray.
For twists, I apply Jabu Stone beeswax for them to stay intact for longer. ”

“8 years into natural hair journey, I’m still a product junkie.lol”

Join the club honey. 😀

We are loving these summer must-haves…

1. Gladiators shoes
   
2. Dresses
   
3. Accessories (Big jewellery, Huge necklaces)
   
4. Pencil skirt with vest + Bling
   
   
5. Nail art
   
6. Frohawk
   
7. Hair Accesories

8.  Jumpsuits/Rompers

9. Skinnies and distressed jeans

10. Wide belts

11. Big Hair (Afrooooo)lol

12.Shoulder tops

13.Hats

14.Colourful shades

And remember ladies, these items can only look hot on you if rocked with CONFIDENCE. Merrryy shopping ya’ll!!!

Mzansi natural of the week: Shé Davis

This week we are featuring a beautiful Mzansi coloured lady, who has taking the time to give us a run-down of how as a coloured lady she takes care of her hair. She also gives us a break down of the challenges and joys that come with having her type of hair texture. We would like to present: Shé Davis, our Mzansi natural of the week:

FC: Where in SA do you originate & what do you do?

Gauteng, Pretoria, Eersterust. I am the marketing assistant at an academic publishing house

FC: You’re what we call coloured in SA, which means your hair can be a bit kinky or completely straight. Please educate us on the different types of coloured hair textures.

You get thick and curly and then you get thin and straight.

FC: What’s your hair texture like?

Thick and very curly.

‘Wash and go”

FC: Is your hair as easy to maintain as we think it is? What is are some of the challenges you face and joys you experience with having your type of hair texture?

Not at all, but sometimes it depends on the look you want for that particular day. One of our major challenges would be if our hair is straight it “frizzes” quickly if the weather does not play along that particular day (i.e. if its hot and humid), the easiest way of dealing with would be to wet our hair, put some conditioner on it and have the “wet look” – and still look good.

FC: What is your signature/everyday hairstyle? And what other hairstyles have you experimented with/tried out?

Everyday hairstyle “tied back in a pony”. Some of my hairstyles that I do need my hair to be blown out straight and to get my hair straight it takes me about an hour. Other hairstyles that I wear would be curly ones were I would roll in my hair in rollers, let it dry for about a half an hour, take the rollers out and there I go.  Then my favourite (of course) would be the wash and wear/go, where I would just wash my hair, put conditioner in and of course every coloured’s favourite product SOFT AND FREE GEL.

FC: I find that a lot of coloured women like colouring their hair. Your take on that, please.

I think it depends on their moods and also change of hairstyle coz we tend to get bored with our hair quickly.

Blown straight and coloured

FC: What products do you swear by?

Believe it or not I use anything for my hair but my favourite would be COLGATE SHAMPOO AND CONDITIONER, it actually makes my hair shine, and of course every coloured lady’s trusty “swirl kouse” (this is a pantyhose which has been cut by the knee of the one leg.  A knot is then tied at the ‘foot’ part and you would then stretch out the leg part of the pantyhose. Once you hair has been blown straight, you ‘wrap’  the hair around your scalp and put the pantyhose over it, to keep your hair in place while sleeping.)

FC: Please take us through your hair care regimen.

Weekly wash with shampoo and conditioner and then blow dry.

FC: Lastly, is there a debate in the coloured community about what is classified as ‘good’ hair or are all different types of hair textures appreciated?

We complement each other if our hair looks good but in our case it is different strokes for different folks, as long as you don’t walk around looking like Tina Turner (a.k.a. frizzy hair) that is a no, no in the coloured community.

Everyday style

Check us out on BGLH!

Hey peeps. One of our posts “Our celebrities rocking their natural hair” has been featured on BGLH (Black Girl with Long Hair). We are super-excited about this!

BGLH has always been one of our source of inspiration when it comes to rocking our natural hair with pride. To see our post on BGLH, check it out HERE.