Now do you remember this scene...

Barber - Damn boy, is that some kind of weave or something.

Hakim - It is my natural hair, I have been growing it since birth.

Barber - What do you put in this?

Hakim - Only juices and berries.

Barber - S**t, that ain't nothin' but ultra perm. "Coming to America - 1988"

That's right - when Eddie Murphy sat down in that barbers chair with his soft and bouncy fro, he said it was juices and berries that made it that soft and man, was he right! Our natural hair loves natural products to stimulate the scalp and moisturise the tresses. So have a read of how you can naturally care for you hair.

Shea Butter; Sheer Goodness

There is a tree in West Africa called the Shea Karite tree. After 15 years (and sometimes up to 30 years) this tree annually bears a wondrous fruit, a nut that resembles an avocado but which yields a high quality of unremovable fatty acids. Traditionally to remove that fatty acid the Shea nut was cracked, grilled, pounded and boiled and a beautiful butter-like substance would rise to the surface which would be scooped up and left to set. The end result, Shea butter, has been used for centuries by Africans to rejuvenate their hair and skin.

With it's wealth of ingredients such as vitamins A, E and F, essential fatty acids, Allantoin, Kariten and Cinnamic acid, Shea is now recognized and used all over the world to moisturise, condition, protect and repair hair and skin. Just look at the beautiful benefits of Shea:-

Hair benefits	Skin benefits
Essential Fatty acids provide great moisture retention and restores lustre to hair.	Essential Fatty acids provide great moisture retention and improves the elasticity of skin to combat wrinkles and stretch marks.
Contains Cinnamic acid - natural UV sunscreen protecting against weather damage, dryness and brittleness.	Contains Cinnamic acid - natural UV sunscreen protecting against weather damage and dryness.
Repairs and prevents breakage and soothes scalp irritations.	Heals eczema, burns, rashes, severely dry skin, and to lessen the irritation of psoriasis
Absorbs quickly without leaving a greasy residue.	Absorbs quickly and deeply into the skin without clogging pores.
Doesn't clog the hair shaft and promotes growth.	Allantoin & Kariten heals wounds and even skin tone, improving scars like stretch marks and blemishes

Types of Shea Butter

Unrefined Shea butter is the most natural form of this wonderful butter. It is extracted traditionally using water or cold pressed, so as not to disturb it's all the shea nutrients and goodness. It's colour is dependent on the colour of the nut that it is extracted from, so it can range from a cream to bright yellow.

Refined Shea butter is extracted using a method which involves the use of hexane (petrol chemical) to remove the shea butter from the kernel. This method is used because it yeilds large amounts of the shea butter. The butter is then purified to remove any hazardous chemical elements but traces still remain in the butter. The quality and benefits of the butter are also reduced.

You can see how great Shea is on it's own, but your shea experience can be taken to another level when you mix it with carrier oils and your favourite essential oils. In fact I'd go so far as to say whipped shea butter mix is the most naturally sexy product I have used on my tresses!

The power of Vegetable Glycerine

Another oil which is great for naturally sexy folk is Vegetable Glycerine. It is a humectant which is a substance that not only retains moisture but also draws moisture from the air. It has a very thick constitution but put it in a spray bottle and dilute with water and you've got yourself an excellent spritzer. Add a few drops of your favourite essential oil to add fragrance, help preserve it and give it some additional value to suit your needs. The ratio of water to glycerine is down to personal choice. Some people use 50:50 ratio (water:glycerine) personally tend to only use this strength mix once a week. I spray this in my hair after I wash it to set it up to draw and retain any moisturisers I apply during the week. I don’t use this strength daily, as it's ability to draw moisture can cause excessive shrinkage. I therefore also have a milder glycerin water spray (90:10 / water:glycerine) for daily spritzing. You can pick up Glycerine in most chemists and Health Food Shops.