Halloween at our house! (costumes)

Wow, Its Halloween, what happened to October, I only did 7 or 8 hair posts this month and I am sorry, but now you know why I have been working on Halloween costumes as fast as I can. In my other life I work with a youth Theatre group as the costumer, I don't think that my kids have ever had a costume off the rack at a store, they start dreaming about what they are going to be all year long and we talk and work and think, I all ready have in a costume order for 3 kids for next year.... wait I think all 4 gave me an idea of what they wanted to be, well enjoy my pics, we sure did enjoy today! Here we are in a Halloween family pic

The little princess as Medusa,

To Cool for Hair as Mario!

Jack Sparrow, Monkey Man in the Captain Morgan pose, He made me laugh every time I went to take his picture he put his foot up on something! funny funny boy!

Here is Baby Mermaid in her Indian Princess costume

Here is the whole Chic-clips family, even my niece, "the girl with the curl" and my nephew "Daredevil" and my Baby Brother

I had a few minutes to kill before we took off for the night and so I thought that I would paint up my face just for fun.

Halloween at our house! (pumpkins)

At our house pumpkins are a big deal, this year we only carved 2 each (except for me I only carved one for my self due to the fact that I didn't buy enough pumpkins) We have done 3 or 4 each in years gone by, I love to have it dark outside and a ton of jack-o-lanterns lighting up the yard, you can hear the trick or treaters ooh and ahhh down the street! we carved these monday so they are starting to wilt sorry for the late pics its been a crazy week

Friendly Reminder

I wanted to remind everyone of the Giveaway I plan to do once I reach 100 followers.

If you're anything like me, you bookmark blogs instead of following them. GUILTY AS CHARGED! Ok, I don't do that anymore! I promise! :) Please follow the blog. The Giveaway is only open to those of you who follow Beads, Braids, & Beyond! Again, it will just be something like some cute hair accessories, nothing major, but hey- it's free! haha

I would like to thank all of the followers we have so far! I truly appreciate it! I would also like to thank those of you who have spread the word about this blog! Thanks so much everyone!

I also made some buttons for the blog. (to the right) Please feel free to use the code on your website!!

Tinkerbell

Okay, so I think I have already posted this picture once before, but I missed the i Heart faces again this week. It was for costumes... anyway, I still loved Alex in this so I'm posting it! ;)

As for the hair... this was incredibly simple. I had her lay down and pulled her hair into a very high ponytail, using mousse to hold it together. I folded the hair over once at the end. I left out quite a bit of bangs and some tendrils at the sides. I used a 1/4" curling iron to get the baby curls. I used a piece of matching ribbon and tied a bow, nothing fancy. A quick mist of hairspray and she was good to go!

classic flip

We did a classic flip on the little princess, I got brave and did it with my flat iron! Here I am flipping away!
see how it works, see the concentration in my face, yeah, I published this one anyway, dude I must be crazy!

from the front

with a flower to hold back her bangs

from the back, tada I am done!

Messy Bun with Braids and Flowers

This is a pretty simple style, but it looks really cute. It is just perfect for days when you're in a hurry.

She was super-cute yesterday, so I uploaded lots of pics! ;)
Okay, so this is how I started. Part the front however you want and put the elastics in the middle of each section. Then, do a pull-through knot with each one.

I like a side bun for this style. Just brush or comb the hair slightly to one side in the bottom section of hair and secure with an elastic.

Next, simply braid each section of hair from the top and add them to the side pony with additional elastics. Now, make a messy bun or finish however. ;)

Finish with flowers or a nice bow, etc.

And there's the sweet, relaxed look that is perfect for any day. If you want something dressy, just add curls to the ends...

And a happy girl is, of course, the best part! ;)

smocking with a twist

Today Is Baby mermaids 8th birthday and so we thought that we would do something special, It took about 20 min but I think that with some practice we could cut some time off that! It was fun to sit and talk about why she is important to our family and why we love her so I didn't mind the time! We parted her hair into pigtails and pulled one side out of the way, then we parted out the very front, split it in two and then put that in Little pigtail, then we parted out the next section and pulled the front to pigtail back and twisted them and them hooked them into the pigtails on the same side,
Here is me half way done with the first side I think that we did 6 sets back to the base of her neck and then hooked the four little pigtails together to make two pigtails!

Here is the other side

From the front with cheese!

and the back with bows of course!

Diva Spotlight!

I'm going to add Diva Spotlight to the blog. Basically I will just interview mother's and ask them different questions in regards to their child's hair. What kind of products they use, their routine, to share some pictures. You get the idea!

If you would like to be a part of Diva Spotlight please email me at beadsbraidsbeyond@yahoo.com

Thank You

Also, on to other news, I would like to do a giveaway once I reach 100 followers. Seems like long ways away but who knows? Nothing major, just some cute hair accesories and things like that. Just wanted to let everyone know!

Flowers in Her Hair

We did this on her yesterday for some fancy pics... I had her hair all curled, but its early before school and I was not going to spend any more time curling hair so this is more of a straight version! It really is cute both ways Here is her hair all combed out ready to go.

so, I started by pulling chunks from the front and...

Hooking them in the back with a flower pin.

Here she is with all the pins in,

from the front

Walmart

So, thanks to Cassie (told you I'd blame you too) I went back to Walmart (very rare, I go maybe once a year) to get some cute hair stuff. I spent almost $30. I got almost 2 packs of everything. Hey, she has a lot of hair! I had to stop myself because I could have easily spent close to $100 on hair accessories. They actually have some really cute, cheap stuff!!



Check them out! You should be seeing some of this stuff in upcoming posts.

Hair Accessories

Little Lady & Me: A lot of style for your little lady!

TwiggleBox

Curly is Cuter

Sidewinder Hair Holders

A's Hair Care Routine

This post is still a work in progress.

Weekly Washing & Detangling:

• Shampoo scalp 1x per week with sulfate free shampoo. I shampoo her scalp 1x per week whether she has her hair out and free, or if she has a style in. I only add shampoo to her scalp and massage with the balls of my fingertips. Lately I have been using Bee Mine Shampoo, but I use other sulfate free shampoos from time to time. I'm not very picky when it comes to shampoo! As long as it's moisturizing and sulfate free.
• After shampooing, rinse hair and scalp well, then immediately apply moisturizing conditioner to hair. I usually use Herbal Essences Hello Hydration Conditioner. I say immediately after rinsing because her hair soaks up water pretty quickly so I want to apply the conditioner on soaking wet hair. Leave conditioner sit for 5-15 minutes (with or without plastic cap) while she plays then do a quick, light water rinse over the hair and begin detangling.
• I start parting (with my fingers) a small section of hair straight across in the back, then tie the rest of the hair off to get it out of my way. The first step in detangling is finger detangling. I finger comb her hair, gently removing all knots and tangles. I smooth my fingers over sections of her hair, if they feel "lumpy" I will focus on that section and gently pull apart the strands of hair. If the strands of hair (or knots/tangles) are not coming apart easily I will rewet the section, add some more conditioner, and gently try to work my way through it. I do not snap the hair apart, which causes breakage. After I finger detangle that section, I comb through with a wide tooth comb, at this point the comb should easily glide through her hair. I then twist or braid (if I have the time) so it doesn't tangle back up and move on to the next section. I usually have about 6 sections total.
• I (usually) rinse the conditioner out (with a large cup) while her hair is braided/twisted in 6 sections. Once again, I do this so her hair doesn't tangle back up. I gently squeeze the braids/twists to remove any excess water or conditioner. If I didn't have time to braid/twist each section then I just rinse the conditioner out of her (detangled) hair as is. I do not towel dry her hair.

This is usually what her hair looks like after being washed and detangled:

• After she gets out of the bathtub we go to her room, I put on one of her favorite shows (Sprout or Noggin) and I begin to unravel one braid/twist at a time and apply a leave-in or moisturizer. We are currently using Bee Mine Luscious Moisturizer. I apply about a quarter sized amount (or more) to each section, focusing on her ends. I comb through with a wide tooth comb and braid or band the section. Lately I have been banding. Since I usually wash her hair on Saturday, I like to braid/band it up after washing to stretch it out a bit for styling on Sunday. Banding works much better for us than braiding/twisting each section, it keeps the hair detangled so when I go to style we don't have any of those little "snags" or any knots/tangles, therefore no breakage. I make sure the ponytail holders are not too tight and I only use the Ouchless or No Damage ponytail holders. I find that the cloth covered Goody Ouchless ponytail holders work best. I usually band her hair in 3-6 sections, I leave 1-2 inches out of the bands on the bottom and I braid the ends.

What her banded hair usually looks like after washing and applying moisturizer:

• The entire washing, detangling, and banding process usually takes 40 minutes to 1 hour
• I try to cover her hair each night with a satin bonnet.

Styling:

• As previously stated, I usually wash her hair on Saturday, moisturize and band it after washing, then style it on Sunday.
• She usually has 3-4 styles per month.
• I remove all Ouchless bands from her hair, apply a little more Bee Mine Luscious Moisturizer, finger detangle her hair again, then use a wide tooth comb or Modified Denman D3 Brush. I gently start from her ends, working my way up to her roots. Her hair must be stretched and well moisturized for "dry" detangling.
• Lately I only use Bee Mine Curly Butter to style her hair. Whether it's braids, twists, cornrows, buns, etc. Before using Curly Butter I used Unrefined Shea Butter mixed with Extra Virgin Coconut Oil and a little Organic Root Stimulator Lock & Twist Gel.
• Most of the time, I leave her styles in for at least 1 week. Cornrows and box braids can last us up to 2 weeks, box braids can last us sometimes close to three weeks.
• While she has a style in I am sure to moisturize her hair. I spray her styles daily or every other day with Bee Mine Juicy Spirtz and moisturize her ends with Bee Mine Luscious Moisturizer or Bee Mine BeeLoved Hair & Scalp Moisturizer each night. I focus on her ends, edges, and nape area. Before using Bee Mine I used Giovanni Direct Leave-in and Unrefined Shea Butter mixed with Extra Virgin Coconut Oil.
• I make sure her styles are not too tight. No tight ponytails or braids, etc.
• If you do not know how to cornrow, please check out our Cornrowing for Beginners post.
• My current favorite product for defining her curls (when she wears her hair out) is Blended Cutie Down & Out Styles.

Accessorizing:

• I absolutely love to accessorize her hair! I do try to limit accessories though.
• When I use rubberbands or elastics I soak them in Extra Virgin Olive Oil or melted Extra Virgin Coconut Oil. If I do not have time to soak them I will quickly dip then in and use them like that.
• I am sure not to make any ponytails too tight and I also do not wrap the rubberbands around her ends (when she has beads or barrettes in) too many times, wrapping them a million times is unecssary.
• I try not to keep rubberbands in her hair for too long. Whether they were soaked in oil or not.
• Lately I have been using hair snaps on the ends to hold beads in place of rubberbands.
• I only use certain ponytail holders to band her hair, and I only use certain ponytail holders for ponytails, buns, puffs, etc. All ponytail holders are not created equal!
• Check out this post I submitted to CurlyNikki for more info on accessories and using them properly.

A's Swimming Routine:

• Rinse the hair with water before getting in the pool.
• Apply a light leave-in. Giovanni Direct Leave-in, a little Herbal Essences Hello Hydration, or Bee Mine Deja's Hair Milk. Focus the leave-in on her ends.
• Coat the hair with Extra Virgin Coconut Oil.
• If possible, put the hair up in a high ponytail or bun with ends tucked under.
• Braids and cornrows hold up very well in the water so try to incorporate those at least 2-3x per month during the Summer.
• Cowash (washing hair with conditioner only) with Herbal Essences Hello Hydration Conditioner or Bee Mine Avocado Conditioner after swimming. Leave conditioner in for 15-30 minutes, sometimes longer, with a plastic cap. I will continue only shampooing 1x per week (see above regular routine) unless I feel it is necessary to shampoo more often. I will let you all know if anything changes.
• I am going to try to incorporate a deep conditioner (specifically made for deep conditioning) 1x per week. I will keep you all posted.
• Apply Bee Mine Luscious Moisturizer to hair after rinsing conditioner out, focusing on her ends.

If you have any questions or suggestions please feel free to email me: beadsbraidsbeyond@yahoo.com