Product Review- Elasta QP Olive Oil & Mango Butter Moisturizer

Hey All!

I have been meaning to do this review for a little bit now, so I've finally sat down and made myself do it! This is a product that I have been curious about trying since the beginning of my transition in 2009. I have been using  Elasta QP's Olive Oil & Mango Butter for a few weeks now and I have got to say, I love it! Now it is technically Curly Girl Approved  though it does have natural ingredients, (I'll do a post on what makes a product Curly Girl Approved soon) because it has cones, but I have never been one to only use all natural products. It all boils down to personal choice.


I use it in my L.O.C method, and it works wonderfully. I have very fine 4a hair, so a quarter size dallop is enough to moisturize my whole head, sometimes less. I have used it on dry hair and it perks up my thirsty strands. I can say that it's great for styling as well because I always do the L.O.C method after cowashing.

The product comes in a yellow 8.25oz jar. Apparently not only is it a "New & Improved" formula, but also 80% free. (Lol) So I'm assuming it was once sold in a smaller packaging. Once you open it, is a light yellow, think banana pudding. It actually could fool you into thinking it actually is banana pudding sans the scent and packaging. The scent is of mango, kind of hair product-y, but mango which is something I love. I need something that smells good after using Vidal Sassoon's Color Protecting Conditioner. My hair loves it, but I hate the smell.

Like I said, it smells great, it's good for moisturizing even on dry hair. I would be mindful about the amount you use because it is a pudding texture it's hard to tell how much you need.  It is spreadable, meaning you can rub it in between your hands before applying, it is also a good way to keep track of how much you are using. I would stick to a nickel-quarter size, though really it depends on your hair's porosity. Oh another thing I should mention is the shine/sheen, this products leaves my hair with the loveliest gloss. It is sold in any BSS or your local Rite Aid/CVS etc. It retails for $3.99 USD, so very easy on the pockets of curly/kinkies on a budget!

On the Jar it also states that it can be used as a thermal (heat) protectant as well, I have yet to test this theory as I am staying away from heat since contracting heat damage. Yes y'all I said contracting, because there is no cure for heat damage. (Lol)

The ingredients are as follows...

Ingredients:
 Water/Aqua/Eau, Olea Europoea (Olive) Fruit Oil, Capric Caprylic Triglycerides, PEG-75 Lanolin, Behentrimonium, Methosulfate, Cetearyl Alcohol, Ceteareth 20, Cetyl Alcohol, Dimethicone, Phenyl Trimethicone, Mangifera Indica (Mango) seed butter, Theobroma (Cocao) Seed Butter, Cocoa Nucifera (Coconut) Oil, Retinyl Palmitate, Tocopherol, Ascorbic Acid, Biotin, Unoleic Acid, Persea Gratissima (Avocado) Oil, Parfum/Fragrance, Imidazolidinyl Urea, Methylparaben, Hydrolyzed Silk, CI 19140 (FD&C Yellow 5)


I'm not sure if it will work for my hair during the warmer months, but right now this product and I are best of  friends! 5/5 for me.

Never Use Shea Butter In your DC!

I purchased pure unrefined Shea Butter not too long ago, and to be honest I have not found much use for it, in terms of hair, I know it is a great sealant, but I don't really need it for that right now, so I thought, why not add it to my preoo, but using it in a dc, on clean hair, not a good idea!

 I  know the title is a bit harsh, but guys, I had the worst experience last night!

For my prepoo I used Melted Shea Butter, Castor Oil, a little Africa's Best Ultimate Herbal Oil, mixed with Herbal Essence Hydralicious Self Targeting Conditioner- which reeks of Alcohol, I'm not sure if I didn't notice it before, but It is definitely noticeable, which I do not like, will be using out, and not repurchasing, anyway that was not my problem.

It came out nice after shampooing, and since it worked so well in my prepoo, I said, why not add some to you DC. Boy was I wrong. I added all the same ingredients excluding the Hydralicious, and mixed it with my Hollywood Beauty Olive Cholesterol, applied and put on a shower cap.

I would say I left it on for close  2 hours, and I went to rinse. Now here is where my problem lies, I rinsed with water, and used my wide tooth comb to detangle, like always, and I put my towel on my head and head to the bathroom- I wash my hair in the kitchen sink, and my hair was coated! It was thick and slick feeling, I could use my nail to scrape the Shea butter off my strands of hair!


I immediately went to cowash, I used my VO5 Herbal Escapes Clarifying Conditioner Kiwi Lime, and my hair went back to normal.

I don't know if I added too much , or it was the combination of Shea and Castor Oil, but my hair did not like it, at least not if I'm not going to wash it out.

So for those of you out there who are Do It Yourself-ers, or 'Chemists' as I like to call myself, be careful of the ingredients you add, and what you add them to, I did not get any adverse results, just slick hair, but I sure didn't like it. However, I did like it in my prepoo! Shea Butter is a sealant too, so that could be why my hair felt coated.

Just wanted to share my experience with you all! Happy Product Mixing!


Until Next Time, Naomi~

Pixie/Box Braids on Natural Hair (No Extensions!)

For a while now, I have been wanting to do pixie/box braids using my own hair, and the inspiration came from watching vids on youtube, and this past Sunday, I got the courage to try doing them.

I went about my Sunday schedule as usual, I tried prepooing with Vegetable Shortening (Crisco), which turned out to be a total disaster! I could not get water hot enough and it solidified in my hair. I eventually got most of it out, I then did a cayenne treatment for three hours without heat, with a plastic cap. I clarified after with VO5 Herbal Escapes Clarifying Kiwi Lime, conditioned with VO5 Herbal Escapes Free Me Freesia.

(Comparing VO5 Free Me Freesia to Suave Naturals Tropical Coconut, out of the two, I think I liked the Suave better. They both did fairly well at detangling my hair with the help of my wide tooth comb, and came out soft after rinsing, but Suave gave my hair a little poof/body, where VO5 FMF left my hair flat, still both very good conditoners, and cheap, VO5 Shampoo's and Conditioners can range between .79- 1.49 USD depending where you purchase, I have not seen Suave that cheap, but it can range between 1.00 to 3.50 USD, depending on what 'flavor' you get) (There are different lines on the Suave Brand which is why prices vary)


I deep conditioned with Hollywood Beauty Olive Cholesterol for an hour, with a plastic cap, without heat. (My hair does not always come out soft after using this dc, so I'm not sure if I will repurchase, perhaps it could be better if I added oil to it, we'll see)


After dcing, I rinsed, and I oiled my scalp with a mixture (in an applicator bottle) of Africa's Best Ultimate Herbal Oil (ABUHO), and Lavender Jamaican Black Castor Oil (L)(JBCO).

 To make use of the Softee Mango Butter that has been collecting dust on my shelf (due to petroleum being it's first ingredient) On the directions, it states that it can also be used as a heat protectant, so that is exactly what I used it for. I blow dried my hair, and then got to braiding. While blow drying, I used a comb, and made sure that my ends were dried completely, and detangled, I was able to check this by seeing if I could comb through my hair without it snagging.

Since my scalp was already oiled up, and I had a VO5 HE FMF, and Softee Mango Butter on my hair (not on scalp), I did not need any added moisture.

All I used was a comb to part. I would say it took 7-8 hours over the course of two days, of course while doing other things here and there, I could never stand/sit still for that long. I started with the front, so that just in case I did not like how it turned out, I would not be forced into completing the style. I completed last night.

I put my pixie braids into six plaits, and put on a satin scarf and just undid the braids the following morning.

Here are the Results

 Until Next Time, Naomi ~