Hair Raising

I love when the weather turns milder and there is a cold snap in the air, but the cold weather also brings with it dry hair. Really dry hair. It irritates me to no end. Since my curly hair tends toward the dry, frizzy end of the spectrum anyway, winter poses a special challenge.
So, I am here to tell anyone and everyone that fights dry, flyaway hair - help is at hand. There are two hair products I would not want to be without.
The first is from Sundari, a company known for its natural ingredients and Ayurvedic philosophy. What is Ayurveda, you ask? The way I understand it, Ayurveda is a form of medicine from India that integrates the mind, body and spirit. In the West, we practice it as integrative medicine, a combination of eastern philosophies and herbal medicine in conjunction with the western medicine that most of us are comfortable with. But read this link from the National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine to learn more.
The neem plant is a common property in Ayurvedic medicine and while I can't vouch for its medicinal properties, I sure can attest to its affect on dry hair. Luscious!
Sundari's Neem and Coconut Hair Treatment Oil is a godsend. While you may balk at putting pure oil in your hair, keep in mind that this is gentle, all natural and amazingly healthful and conditioning. You just have to leave it in for 30 minutes, than shampoo and conditioner as usual. Bye, bye dry hair.
Another excellent product for silky, soft hair comes from Ojon. This one I use when I have a little more time, because I found it is most effective when left in overnight.
This is also an oil, but this one comes from Central America and is sold in a concentrated form. You rub it between your palm and the heat turns it into a soft oil.
The Ojon Restorative Hair Treatment can be used as a daily treatment put right onto dry, just-styled hair or as I do, leave it in overnight and when you wash and condition your hair in the morning, ooh la la!
Legend has it, that the founder of Ojon, discovered this oil, that is harvested from the Ojon tree, when he came across the Miskito Indians in Central America and noticed their exquisite hair. Here's their video about how it was discovered.
On the Ojon Web site it states "In their native language, they are called Tawira, or "the people of beautiful hair."™
And I do believe it, the part about being the people of beautiful hair because this treatment really does do the trick.

Big Surprises come in Fed-Ex packages

I love when I come home and there's a Fed-Ex box at my door. Especially when I'm not expecting it.
By a curious twist of fate, I received a nice, fat Federal Express box the other day and I was all tingly inside wondering what was inside. I ripped open the tab, you know the ones that never really work and you have to fight it for a few seconds before you actually open the box to retrieve the treasure inside - but I digress.
I reached in and pulled out a plethora of product from Urban Decay. Now I must confess I was a teensy bit disappointed, not being a huge fan of Urban Decay. Well, I was soon eating my words of dismay.
In the few short minutes it took me to rip open the packaging and start applying, I fell in love. I fell in love with the eyeshadows, pencils and eye primer from Urban Decay. I shocked myself.
This lovely gift I receive was actually a sampling of gifts for the holidays. Gifts that I would be keeping for myself...for the most part.
I do think I will give the Stoned Poison Ring to my goddaughter.
But the items that have immediately become staples in my daily makeup routine are the 24/7 Glide-On Eye Pencil sets and the Sustainable Shadow Box complete with Eyeshadow Primer Potion.
I'm really, really picky about eye pencils. Most of them are hard and scrape the heck out of the sensitive eyelid, but these glide on as if they were pastels. And the colors range from smoky and sexy to vibrant and neon. Fun!
Combined with the best-seller colors that are in the Sustainable Shadow Box and there's a different look for every day of the week, or every hour of the day. The box is cool too because it is made of bamboo and the insert is made of recyclable paper. The whole package is practically perfect.
And finally, the Eyeshadow Primer Potion really turned my head, especially because heretofore I believed that primer such as this was a huge waste of money. Just an extraneous step in my already rushed makeup agenda. But noooooo. This stuff is great and really works. My eye makeup stayed on and in place all day. Gotta love that.
And I do. Just as much as I love my super surprise from Urban Decay.