Joy to Her World: The Perfect Gifts for the Naturalista
This had to be at the top of my list because deep conditioning costs me the most in time. It's pretty hard to leave your hot shower and then sit in a cold room stuck under a dryer or a steamer for an hour to an hour and a half. Either way, it's something that every natural girl HAS TO DO... so it might as well be a pleasing experience. When one wants an effective deep treatment, she needs to use heat so that the cuticles of hair follicles will open and truly absorb the nutrients and oils, instead of just sitting on top of the hair of giving one false hope at healthy hair dreams. However, I have been that girl sitting in an awkward position under a dryer and can tell you that trading in a non-stiff neck for healthy tresses is not the way to go. Steamers are in style, but they are expensive and the stiff neck issue resurfaces when you add back in the fact that she's got to sit like a statue for an hour. I recently bought this microwavable deep conditioning cap, and it completed my life, in more or less words. It contains flaxseeds, so you just throw it in the microwave and the cap will remain hot for about 45 minutes to an hour. This cap is perfect, because she can just throw it on and go about her life! I can cook, clean, or SLEEP to re-gain my strength for the next 1-2 hours to come with styling my hair. Either way, I'm not tied down; I love this cap, and she most likely will too. It retails for about $30, and that's a pretty darn good price for a Christmas gift if you ask me! This steam cap filled with hope and wonder can be found here.
2. Scalp Massaging Shampoo Brush
If I've got to stand on my feet for 30 minutes to wash my hair and risk the possibility of my shampoo running down my face and burning my eyes out, then my cleansing experience should at least be a relaxing one (as much as one can relax while their eyes burn to a crisp). Now I don't have one of these babies, but it's been on my list to purchase for a while. It vibrates as you use it to clean and massage your scalp; just hearing about it makes my eyes roll back. This not only cleans the scalp, but it can stimulate the root of the hair follicle to grow.
Pack this baby alongside some Tea Tree and/or Peppermint essential oil to add in to her favorite shampoo, and you've just gifted a million dollar spa package... for her scalp. Reviews of this product can be found below, and the brush can be purchased here.
3. Microfiber Towel Cap
Tired of her always using your favorite "kick-back and chill" shirt to dry her hair? Then this is PERFECT for her.... and you and your shirt, I guess. First, let me explain this weird obsession with drying our hair with shirts. Towels can tangle, pull, and break the hair follicles. It's even worse when you have a kinkier texture, because this just increases the chances of her strands being caught in the towel's standing threads. That's why it's important to use either an old cotton T-shirt or a microfiber towel; they don't have the same standing fibers, so they don't snag your hair at all. They do just what a towel or towel-like device is supposed to do: just absorb.
I have been using this microfiber towel for YEARS and have loved it from the first time I've used it. It functions as a towel, but it also doubles as a head wrap, so I can walk around the house while my hair dries. And because it comes with a band to secure the twist in place, it doesn't unravel every 5 minutes like shirts do!
You can see where to buy these babies here. Stuff these goodies into her stocking, or in a gift basket alongside her favorite natural hair products, and you're set!
4. Hair Products
Remember when I mentioned that this natural hair life ain't cheap? Well, it's true, this life ain't for the faint-hearted, or for those with the light wallet. This Idea is an obvious choice for the girl that, like me, already has her go-to products and just needs a refill on her staples, that girl still trying to find her staples and longing to try a certain product, or for that girl who's a product junkie and has a whole room filled with just hair products. Surprise her with a line that she's been wanting to try, or her favorites!
One of my favorite gifts was when my guy surprised me with not only the entire Deva Curl Line (which at the time, I was dying to try), but also with the fact that he actually LISTENS to me when I'm rambling on and on about natural hair and all natural hair related things. It was refreshing to know I wasn't talking to a wall.
You can never go wrong with Shea Moisture, because they are easily accessible, and each hair line also has a skin line, so she can get her "my elbows ain't ashy, they smooth as a baby's bottom" on too!
5. Pay for a Hair Appointment
Now this idea is solely if she's been expressing how anxious she is to change her hair. Whether she wants a cut, color, straightening, box braids, (and the list goes on), you'll be sure to get that smooch underneath the mistletoe with this one! Only precaution I'm going to give you is: PLEASE don't just buy the cheapest deal you can find. You'll get the side eye and the rolling of the neck if it turns out to be a disaster. Actually put some time into researching which salons specialize in cutting, coloring, straightening, and styling natural hair, talk to the stylist, and look at his/her work. Talk to some women in your or her circle to see if they know any good stylists or salons. Pay for it ahead of time, and then make a gift certificate of your own and stuff it in her stocking!
Let me know how it goes, or if you have any other gift ideas below! Trust me, you can never go wrong helping a sister out with her crown!
***Any images used may or may not be solely my own. Any borrowed images have been cited as not my own, and no plagiarism was intended.***