Black Silk Products Review

Black Silk Products was created by Desreta Jackson. Many people will best know her as Young Celie Harris from the Oscar Nominated Film "The Color Purple" Desreta has spent over 12 years of research to finally perfecting what she calls a “Mahoginized Technique” and a product that does what it says it will do. I was able to speak with the creator herself to get an insight on Black Silk. In our conversation she explained to me how the product came about. Her daughter was having issues with her skin. She went to numerous Doctors and nothing they gave her worked. She began to think about how West Indians used natural items for remedies. Desreta herself a native of Tortolla knew what she had to do. She began to mix, add and take away natural ingredients to make a product that would eventually turn into what it is known as Black Silk Products. What started out as a remedy for her daughter's dry skin became a hair product made by blacks, for black. It is the FUBU of the hair industries. She started to test the products on her daughter and herself. As they continued to use the products she notice who their hair began to grow longer and silkier. She moved from using the products to herself and daughter to friends, family and clients. It became an overnight success that she was able to run a successful home-base braider. The demand became so overwhelming she couldn’t meet the demand.

Interestingly enough, Desreta also owns her manufacturing plant. She has all the power on who and where she distributes her products, which is rare when it comes to African Americans and the hair industry. She stated that when she started to go into the manufacturing phase many have told her that her ingredients were on the high end. Their fear was that African Americans would not spend money on such a product. She stood her ground despite what the manufactures said because she knew the beneficial factor of each ingredient that made Black Silk Products so great.

As we got deeper into our conversation she began to explain to me how she got the data she needed to make changes to the product. Desreta did hair on the side to help put herself through film school. Each time her clients came back she would have them write down what they noticed about their hair getting real time response to what the product was doing. While attending film school she took up extra course in Chemistry. She stated to me "A lot of the time we use products knowing that its working or not working, but don't know why, I wanted to know those reason" Which is why chemistry was so important in her research.

I was able to get my hands on this products and tried it for myself. Of course I was skeptical as most will be when they hear about a new hair product that is promising wonders. First thing I remember that Desreta did we we first started to talk about Black Silk was put a sample of the product on the back of my hand. What happened next was mind blowing. The shampoo and conditioner literally absorbed in my skin. What shampoo do you know your skin will soak up? She told a funny story about her husband actually taking the shampoo one day and used is as a lotion because he was too lazy to get actual lotion. She later went into detail and told the main function of the product was made to re-balance the Ph level in your hair. So no matter what state your hair is in Black Silk WILL re-balance your ph level. Remember that your hair is basically made up of protein.

Facts About Ph Level:

Ph Scale base 0-14
Ph of 0 is considered Acidic
Ph of 14 is considered Alkaline
Pure water ph is 7
Hair and Skin ph can range from 4.5-5.5
Your hair is always adjusting depending on the weather. Your hair will take some time to adjust to the new conditions. When we use products especially new product your hair will take time for your hair to adjust to the changes. The natural oil that is produced in your hair that maintains moisture and balance is Sebum. Sebum is a natural protectant not only on your scalp but on your skin as you secret sweat. Think of your hair follicles as fish scales. As you use products the "scales" open and close. Products with low ph level (high acidity) will cause the hair follicles to lay flat and smooth trapping the moisture your hair needs. Products with high ph will cause the follicles to open like a pine cone causing the moisture that you need to escape which ultimately will dry your hair out. You can also test the products you are using with litmus paper to determine the ph level. It is important yet difficult to find balance with your hair. This is what Black Silk products are made to do just that. So you can stop the guessing game. Remember to keep away from products with a high Ph level. This can cause damaging to your hair.

My Experience with Black Silk

About a week after I received my Black Silk System I finally used the products. ( Took me while to use the system because my hair was already washed and done a day prior to receiving the products and it was styled)
First thing I noticed was the smell. It was rich of coconuts fragrance. I started with the shampoo which took only about two half pump for me. Of course I wasn’t expecting it lather because it was designed to cleanse with out stripping the moisture from your hair. After I was finished the the shampoo I felt how clean my hair was but also still soft and not dried out. This was a good sign. After my cleanse I proceeded to use the Silk Restoring Conditioner, which can also be used a a curl definer. It really didn’t take that much to get complete coverage. I did what I normally do, Put my conditioner in, detangled and sectioned off my hair where I placed medium size twist in it, place it under a conditioning cap and let sit for however long I keep it on my head. This does depend on what is going on so I can have conditioner in my hair from 1-8 hours

8 Hours later, hey don’t’ judge me lol I got real busy =)

I finally washed out the conditioner. My hair felt so soft!!! Ladies with 4c hair you know how hard our hair can feel (Brillo pad) I couldn’t stop running my hand through my hair. It was just that soft. Hmmmm I could get use to this!! Next I applied the clear protector. Now because I was so eager to use the products I didn’t read. The clear protector is suppose to be the first step I did. Black Silk Products is a system so when we hear system that means there is an order to how and when you use each product. Once you use the clear protector once (first time) you don't have to use it again for another 4-6 months and when there is new growth. So the Shampoo and Conditioner will be the only main things you would use during your regular wash.

The real test for me came in when I detangling my hair. I was amazed on how easy my hair slid through the comb with ease. I even walked on the wild side and used a fine tooth comb as I started to do my two strand twists. *GASP* GUH SEY WHET!!!???! Yes it was the only way to truly test this products capabilities. When I Say that comb went from root to tip without a snag I was a believer!!!! *Queue Shrek music* I have used Black Silk twice and I can say I love the way my hair feels with each use.

Picture of Black Silk Model

Be sure to check out www.BlackSilkProducts.com buy now and save today!!!!!

Overall I can say Black Silk Products is a must have product that you should have in your cabinet. Hope you enjoyed reading my review on Black Silk. Be sure to get your hands on this wonderful product you have nothing to loose, you try everything else so why not? Trust me, it will be worth the money!

Til next time,

Natural Luv

Regiments: Getting down to the Nitty Gritty

We ALL have heard about regiments and that you should have a regiment. This is one thing that is drilled to every person heads, it is the first thing that new followers of the healthy hair movement is asked. A conversation from a newbie would would proably go like this:

Hi, my name is Jane, my hair is dry and cant keep a style, it breaks a lot and never seems to want to do what I need it to do. Can someone help me?

Hi Jane welcome, what is your regiment? Of course Jane is not sure what anyone is speaking of!

Jane; Regiment?

Lista: How often you wash, co-wash, dc ect.....what products are you using?

and this is were Jane is blown away from all the information that everyone is telling her just like each one of us who has graced the Hairlista website and joined in on the chat.

Since going natural I think I have gone through countless regiments. If you did the big chop your regiments was strictly wash and goes. Get up wash your hair slap some curly kinda pudding on it and your done.
As your hair became a Tinni Winni Afro (TWA) for some it was still get up slap some curly pudding on it and go. For others it was every few days you would do a wash. For me it was every three days I would wash my hair, put a leave-in and out the door.
As you hit that middle phase,,,,,ahhhh yea thats when its not short and not long you probably will find it a little hard. I know I did!! Heck I thought I was doing something with the little I was doing. You might ask what regiment I was on in the "Middle Phase" Well my dear friends I was on the same regiment I had when I had a TWA . PAUSE!!!!!!!!

Here's the scoop:

See I thought I could keep doing the same thing I was doing when I first started which prove to me as utter FAILURE!!!! You can't keep doing the same thing and expect different results. We have all heard it before! Same rule applies. Why am I doing the same thing I was doing in the beginning of my natural hair Journey now that I am nearly 2 years post BC (Big Chop) Oh no that's not going to work.

So once this light bulb went off I began to try different things.

I would DC twice a month, poo once a month, moisturize every other day.......NOPE didn't work. On to the next!

DC once a week, poo once a month, moisturize daily.....Ok we are onto to something here but still something was missing. On to the next......keep in mind I try theses regiments each month to see if I had any results.

ok they say third time’s the charm......let see if it would be for me.

DC once a week, poo once a month, black tea rinse after DC, moisturize daily (using L.O.C. method)......It keeps getting better but not a winner!

Alright so third time was not the charm for me. So back to the drawing board

Pre poo and Poo (as needed)

Condition

ACV Rinse

THEN

DC (Weekly- 4-5hrs under conditioning cap),

Protein treatment (Once a month)

Black Tea rinse (twice a month)

Moisturize (L.O.C.) daily

Style as normal OH I can’t forget to oil and massage scalp (3 times a week)

DING DING DING DING WINNE WINNER CHICKEN DINNER!!!!

I think I have found a regiment that works for me *Heavens rejoice* I came to this final regiment after one day being at home bored while doing my weekly treatments. I said to myself.......SELF what will happen if you did an ACV rinse BEFORE your DC? So I tried it and my hair was SO soft and combable!!!!! I went to my friend’s house that was going to straighten my hair and she too noticed how soft my hair was. It really felt like what everyone would think a cloud would feel like S.O.F.T. SOFT!!! She asked me what I did and I began to enlighten her on this new found information. Side Note: She also stated that she wishes she would have met me before she decided to lock her hair up.
I was happy with the results I saw after trying my new regiment.

Ok so now I have set regiments I can get Operation Grow Healthy Long Hair back on track. After countless trail and errors and much gained knowledge I know now that Year 2 would be AWESOME year!!

Things to remember:

1. Everyone hair type is different

2. What works for me MAY not work for you

3. Always try to find what works for you

4. Get with other people with the same hair type

MOST IMPORTANT ON OF ALL

5. Don’t get discourage when things don’t work out!! That’s the beauty of each individuals hair journey……finding out things about your hair you never knew!

Thanks again for stopping by and reading about my Adventures in Natural Hair Land!!

Till we meet again,

Natural Luv

Hairlista Castor Oil Challenge part 6

If you are a Hairlista you know what I’m speaking of. The Castor Oil Challenge begins tomorrow. I have decided to jump on board with the rest of the Listas and do this challenge. Last year I tried to do the Ultimate Growth Challenge and that posed a challenge for me. I became "Lazy" and didn't make it two weeks. Yea that's bad isn't it lol Now that I am on my new revelation and I have jumped back on the natural hair horse I decided to try my fate at this one.

On Wednesday I went to Whole Foods to pick up my bottle of Castor Oil. You might want to know a little bit more on what this challenge is Well, Here's the scoop

The Castor Oil Challenge

Start Date: September 2nd, 2011

End Date: December 2nd, 2011

(total of 3 months!)

There are different levels that you can choose from

Basic: Apply Castor oil to scalp twice a week.

Intermediate: Apply Castor oil to scalp twice a week followed by a scalp massage (2-5mins focusing on damaged areas). Add 1 tsp to your weekly deep conditioner.

Advance: Apply Castor oil to scalp three times a week followed by scalp massage (2-5mins focusing on damaged areas). Add 1-2 tsps to weekly deep conditioner.

I have decided to try the Intermediate level of this challenge. Of course you can do which one you feel most comfortable doing. This is an inexpensive challenge to do. A bottle of Castor Oil is about $10 for the 16fl. oz. Remember this is a 3 month challenge so getting a good size would be most cost efficient.

What I have done was getting a small bottle with a tip (.99-$1.59) and added some of the Castor Oil in it so that it can be easier to apply to my scalp. It’s less messy that way.

Challenge Goal

So far I am at EL (Ear length) I plan on achieving NL (Neck Length) by the end of this challenge!!! My hair is not damaged but I will focus most of my massaging on my temples and the nape of my neck since that's where my hair seems to not grow as fast as the rest of my hair.

Benefits of Castor Oil in Hair

Increase hair growth

Thicken hair that is starting to thin out

Reduce and prevent hair damage

Eliminate dry hair

Make the hair fuller and shinier

Deeply condition and moisturize hair and scalp

Prevents dry scalp

Boost your hair’s overall health

Other Benefits of Castor Oil
Softens thick calluses and removes corns

Cures skin infections like athlete’s foot and ringworm

Prevents stretch marks

Removes moles and warts

Removes age spots (liver spots)

Cures acne

Keeps the skin looking smooth, youthful and unlined

Breaks up external and internal scar tissue, and prevents new scars from forming

Soothes shingles

Jamaican Black Castor Oil

There is also another more famous Castor Oil made famous by Tropic Isle Living Jamaican Black Castor Oil. It is said that Black Castor Oil is more potent than the regular Castor Oil and that you see more results when used. The difference in the two is that Jamaican Black castor Oil seeds are roasted then boils to remove100% of the oil. The longer the seed is roasted the more ash is produced which ultimately make the Castor Oil more potent. High ash content = high potency of the Castor Oil. Jamaican Black Castor Oil distinguished by the earthy smell it gives off. That is a distinctive feature to know that you have the real deal.

I am excited to stat this challenge. I have decided to start this challenge today since it was my day off and I wouldn’t have another one for another week and I want to get this thing moving. One day will not hurt and I don’t see it as cheating lol

Follow along as I update you on this 3 Month Journey.

Till we meet again,

Natural Luv

4C Natural hair straightened

Below: Castor Oil from Whole Foods, tipped bottle for application and DC mixture that I made