Sunday, January 16, 2011

Hair-A Public Service Message

Most of the adoptive parents that I know (of Ethiopian children) spend a ton of mental energy and even $ on their newly adopted child or children's hair.  When we first got home I went to a salon that specialized in braiding, cutting, and caring for black hair so that I could learn how to braid Bella's hair.  A beautiful black woman helped me.  She took one look at Bella's hair and said, "Oh honey, her hair is more like yours than mine."  Really?!  What does that mean?  "It means.  You don't braid her hair.  You can, but it won't stay in for more than a few days."  So, we do occasionally braid it.  We do put it up in pony or pig tails.  We keep it down and "free."  But on those days when it is free, we have to bring some semblance of order to it.  Easier said than done.  At first I spent a small fortune on different product hoping that they would be a quick fix.  I have found a couple products that I love.  But today, I found magic!  Really!  This mom has become somewhat of a rock star in my house.  She used the same SW for her home study but we never got to meet until after she adopted her baby.  Go check out her blog.  She was a superwoman before but now.....

She posted about hair products and Sally's Beauty Supply Shop.  I went out and purchased.  I LOVE Sally's.  How did I not know about this store!  Prices are great and the products I purchased work.  So my first purchase was the tangle teezer.  Why does it work???  But it does!  It costs $9.99.  So worth it.  It took me 10 minutes to comb/brush through her hair.  I had panned on doing it during the football game today.  It should have taken me until half-time.

I used it with Hawaian Silky to help detangle.  Wow!  Bella had a few dreadlocks starting (underneath neck area) and using this stopped them.  The combination of the teezer and this was seriously easy.  Her hair is really long, when wet it reaches mid back.


Then while I was there, I found another product that I have not used yet but will try.  Bella uses Wen as a cleansing conditioner.  It works very well.  Love it.  It is expensive, though.  Because her hair is so long we also go through it pretty quickly.  Well, Sally's sells the generic form.  It is about 1/3 of the price of Wen.  They also sell sample size packets for $1.49.


I have not used it but I will let you know if it works as well as Wen.  It may depend on your child's hair texture, but they are worth a try.  Not a big investment.  And if they work as well for you as they did for me....you will have so many more hours in the day to do laundry, dishes, or even read a book:)  Thank you Staci!




5 comments:

Sara said...

I just saw Adoption #2 on your sidebar! Congratulations and can't wait to follow your journey again!

Deena said...

Thanks so much for the info! I have been meaning to write a post about hair care too! I was at Sally's this week and buy a few products from there that we love. I had not heard of the comb thingy you wrote about...looking forward to trying it. Thanks again for the info. Can't wait to hear more about your next adoption - hope it is all going smoothly!

michele said...

Great info! Thanks so much!!! We are waiting to bring our daughter home but it never hurts to be ready! Congrats on your second adoption :)

coffeemom said...

I always love a hair posts. Hair will always be a big deal in my house! Heck, I'm still learning how to figure out MY hair!....Haven't heard of "Wen" products before - a regional thing? Or just me so out of the loop (more likely).
We love the tangle teazer too...and now I'm heading to Sally's to try the other ones, especially the hawaiian one...fun!

Robbin Hopkins said...

Love this post!!!! I can't believe you never heard of Sally's!!! I love that place LOL. Your daughter is beautiful!!! Congrats on the second adoption. Gladney is the best!