Nightly Moisture Routine!

Many skin issues such as dryness, itchiness, stretch marks and a like can be hereditary, however, some are self-inflicted. Many people, due to busy schedules and fatigue neglect their skin. Many of us don’t even have a nightly moisturizing routine to help our skin stay supple and fresh.

Here are a few tips to bring the moisture back to your skin and to keep it there:

• Shea butter crème with coconut oil and vitamin E. Apply to the body and face immediately after leaving the shower or bath. Your newly cleansed skin and pores are still open and ready to swallow anything that touches it!
• For a less intense moisture routine simply put a light oil such as coconut, jojoba or sweet almond on the skin before going to bed at night.

*Whichever routine you choose to use, the most important element is to stick to it.

Let moisturizer sit on skin for 15 minutes before putting on your night sleepwear or getting in bed. This is to let the moisturizer set into the skin well before coming off on the bed sheets or sleepwear.

You will notice a significant change in your skin and a reduction of those flaws! In addition to this you will feel great that you gave yourself a little more pampering!

Always love your skin!

For any questions or comments feel free to post them, or contact me directly at Simply.naturel@gmail.com

Images Provided by: Blackisbeautiful.se

Underarm Darkness!

Is there discoloration underneath your arm? Do you scrub and scrub and the discoloration is still there? You may have what many other women experience; this is darkness underneath the armpit. Believe it or not, this is a simple thing to reverse.

What causes this darkness? Through research, it seems that the buildup from deodorant is the leading cause of this skin discoloration. You know if your underarms have a discoloration when they are more than 2 shades darker than your arms, neck and shoulders.

Generally people put on deodorant twice a day (minimum), once in the morning after a shower and then again in the evening after getting home and taking another shower to wash to day away.

Through a questionnaire given to a few women, I have noticed that the more deodorant used the more intense this discoloration becomes. Coming to this realization I now don’t feel the need to put deodorant on twice a day, but only once. This one time deal is in the morning after I shower and am off to my daily tasks. When I am going to bed at night I don’t put any on.

Some may think this is crazy especially if you're not single and there is a possibility of odor. The odor is not as pronounce as one might think, in addition there are ways to help minimize the odor.

Some suggested ways to minimize odor:

1. After applying your nightly routine, simply apply a little of the moisturizer to your underarm.
2. Spray freshener is also good (Lovely Lavender)
3. Spray a little feminine deodorant spray

*Note: It may not be a good idea to apply heavy moisturizer and feminine deodorant spray at the same time. One or the other will do. Too much of anything is never a good idea.

Suggestions to help reduce the underarm discoloration:

• Exfoliate using the coffee ground scrub and moisturize afterwards
• Natural remedy for dark underarms recipe (Below)

Cucumber puree: 5-7 slices blended into a paste
Lemon juice: 1 Tablespoon
Turmeric powder: a pinch of power
Apply to darkened area

Leave on for 15 minutes and apply daily for a month for best results

Try the recipe and let me know how your experience went!

Enjoy and always love your skin!

Images provided by: Hicomspices.com, naturalhills.com, mooseyscountrygarden.com

Selling Out?

Being natural is a beautiful experience, however, like anything else great and beautiful in life comes the price we have to pay of being scrutinized, criticized and categorized!

Today I ask the question "Is it selling out when women with natural hair use products that are not completely natural?"

There are many different definitions and perspectives of natural hair.

Here are some of the definitions :

• Some people believe that natural hair is when you don't perm your hair (doesn't matter what products you use)
• Others believe that it's when you don't perm your hair or use products that were manufactured from foreign substances
• While others believe that even adding hair i.e. weave or extensions to your natural hair is not fully natural.

These views are all different and all have their places, I say "Do what works for you!" Any of my closest friends who know me will say that I am an honest person, even to a fault. Yes folks that means I'm blunt, thus when I say do what works for you, I am simply stating my honest opinion. I have seen women who have natural hair use natural products and their hairs grows but 1 inch and I have seen women with natural hair who use petroleum (Yes Petroleum products) and their hair is long and full. Again I say this with love because I am fully aware that this is a touchy topic -"Use what works for you!"

Personally I have found that there are natural products that work better on my hair when it comes to certain needs and man made products work better for other needs. For instance I use store bought (un-natural) shampoo's and conditioners. I also like to us leave in's such as Infusium 23, V05 leave in etc to deep condition... when I use leave in products like oil, styling cream's and such, I like to use natural products for the most part because it will stay in my hair the longest and my face can sometimes be prone to breakouts and I just find that natural (light) products don't cause as much breakouts.

Ladies it all depends on what works for you. I just encourage you to try and experiment until you find what works for you and don't let the words of others even the natural ladies discourage you from finding the best product for you because they said it doesn't work for their hair. It is a fact that what works for one may not work for the other. Your favorite product is out there waiting for you to find it. So keep on looking!

Always Enjoy Your Hair!

For any questions and comments feel free to leave a message in the comment box or e-mail me directly at Simply.naturel@gmail.com

Image provided by: Google search engine- Essence Mag

The Power of Shea!

Shea Butter is one of my favorite moisturizing agents ever created. Most people find it to be very thick and heavy, however, there are a lot of methods one might use to reduce the thickness and also add a little natural fragrance to your Shea butter.

African Shea Butter comes from the nut of the African Shea Tree. It has a rich amount of unremovable fatty acids. These same fatty acids are crucial to the rejuvenation and moisture of the skin. Shea Butter provides all of the essential vitamins needed to make your skin look and feel softer and more supple.

Shea Butter provides moisture and makes your skin healthier. Its has therapeutic properties to protect your skin from natural elements such as wind, cold, the sun and helps to heal wounds quicker.

Additional benefits:

• It stimulates cellular activity
• Helps fight the effects of aging and also repairs rough and damaged skin.

When to use: (Not limited to)

• Treatment for dry skin
• Pain relief from swelling and arthritis
• Improves muscle relaxtion and stiffness
• Provides sunscreen due to its rich content of vitamins E &F
• Treats dark spots, skin discoloration, stretch marks and wrinkles
• Hair conditioner
• Massages diaper rash

Oils that can be mixed with Shea butter to reduce the creamy grainy texture:

1. Coconut Oil
2. Jojoba Oil
3. Avocado Oil

*Any light oil of your choice will do!

Storage Tip:

Shea butter does not expire, simply store in a cool place. I like to use glass jars to store homemade recipes because glass doesn't react to oils and change in temperature.

For any questions or comments feel free to post a comment or contact me directly at Simply.naturel@gmail.com

Always enjoy your hair!

Images Provided by: Essencemagazine.com, Sheabuttershop.net, Traoresheabutter.com, Nz.loccitane.com

Thanks for reading! What is your favorite natural oil?