Name: Loulou
***You can find her on YouTube as “LouLouMatou”
Where are you from?
I am originally from Cameroon, from a very mixed background. I so far have lived most of my life in the UK, but as an adult, it’s been here and there 🙂
How long have you been natural?
2.5 years exactly (although throughout my relaxed years, which started at 17, I often went back natural for a year or 2 in between, until 2009).
1. Let’s talk about one of your most recent trips and your hair care regimen during!
(Feel free to name some of your favorite products)
We went to Curacao in April of this year (that’s my most recent trip outside of the country). My hair care regimen was pretty much the same as it is at home, except that I found I had to spritz my hair 2 or 3 times daily, as it was so hot and dry there. I used Giovanni’s VitaPro spray and it worked wonders.
I also did coconut oil pre-poos a lot because the house we rented had a swimming pool and I would swim quite a bit with my son. When I travel around Europe, I don’t change much to my regimen, the weather is pretty much the same around. I always do take my favourite products with me. I know that lots of naturals tend to take the products they like the least when they travel (from YouTube videos I have watched) and I always wondered why, I want my hair to feel and look its best especially when I am abroad! Lol 🙂
My usual hair care regimen is:
– wash every 2 to 3 days (I don’t really co-wash, I like to use sulphate-free shampoos or cleansing conditioners)
– Bee Mine shampoos, Curl Junkie Daily Fix
– Use a rinse out conditioner (not fussy with these, as long as there is good slip, like Tresemmé Naturals, Aussie Moist 3 minute Miracle, Dove Intense Repair) to detangle with under the shower (using a seamless wide toothed comb)
– Deep Condition at least once a week, sometimes twice. I analyse the state of my hair:
a) mushy: use a protein DC – Aubrey Organics GPB, or Curl Junkie Deep Fix
b) Super mushy or breaking: Use Curl Junkie Repair Me, followed by a moisturizing DC (any)
c) wiry: use a moisturizing DC such as Curl Junkie Curl Rehab
– I always use a leave-in conditioner under any styler. Favourite is Curl Junkie Smoothing Lotion, but I rotate with so many others I like.
– Styler for either wash and go (most likely option) or twists for a twistout (when I am feeling fancy). The stylers would most likely be creamy ones, such as Curls Whipped Cream, Komaza Care Califia Hair Pudding, Donna Marie Dream Curling Cream for more hold or Hairveda Whipped Gelly for a more gel-like styler (super moisturizing though, no crunch).
– Sometimes I might add some oil after my leave-in before my styler, but not too often.
– Moisturise my ends at least every night with a creamy moisturizer.
– pineapple hair at night and sleep on satin pillow case, fluff up in the morning, add more products if necessary (usually not), or just spritz with a hair spray like Oyin’s Juices and Berries (or whatever spritz I have at the moment), or simply wet my hands, run them through my hair and rub a bit more styler to tame down the frizzies, but I do like my hair quite pouffy so I don’t mind too much.
2. Did you do anything differently for your regimen while traveling?
In Curaçao yes, because the weather was so much hotter and dryer, I had to moisturize more often, and sometimes tuck my ends in to keep them from frying in the sun (twists updos, buns, cornrows).
But elsewhere, my regimen doesn’t really change.
Like I said, I take all my favourite products with me, and aim to take a bit more than what I think I will need, just in case you know!!
I buy a lot of those plastic sample size containers (jars and bottles, 2oz to 6oz), fill them up and label them. I like to have 2 or 3 different stylers with me, 2 creamy moisturisers, coconut oil (or Vatika Frosting from Hairveda), 2 or 3 leave-ins (you never know), 2 shampoos (one moisturizing and one clarifying), and 1 full size bottle of rinse out conditioner (sometimes I love to take my Aubrey Organics GPB because I use it both as a rinse out and DC, so it’s 2 in 1).
I know it sounds like a lot, but put into those sample size bottles and tubs, it’s not really and I want to have the same kind of variety and choice I have at home too!
My go to style is always a wash and go. When I am in a hot dry country, I bun a bit more or I wear twists more often.
3. What about your nighttime regimen?
My nighttime regimen is the same no matter where I am. I dampen my hair, mostly my ends, with either just water, or a bit of leave-in conditioner (usually whatever leave-in I already have in my hair that day). Then I “seal” in the moisture, focusing on my ends. I use a very creamy moisturizer that’s rich in butters and/or oils, or just coconut or castor oil, depending on what I fancy.
My favourite moisturisers to use are:
– Qhemet Biologics Amla and Olive Heavy Cream
– Komaza Care Califia Moisturising Cream
– Oyin Handmade Whipped Pudding
I have so many others I like, but these are the ones I would pack, I know exactly how my hair does with them.
4. We all know that when we had relaxers swimming was something you had to think twice about! Have you been out swimming at all? If so how did you prepare your hair?
I have to say that even when I had relaxers, I still went swimming a lot, I always shampooed my hair and conditioned it afterwards (used to leave conditioner in my hair, because I wore a lot of wash and goes too when I was relaxed, in fact I hardly ever flat ironed my hair. My mother would roller-set it for me every now and again).
Now, I go swimming a bit less, but when I was living in Asia, I had a swimming pool and swam 5 or 6 days a week. I just put lots of coconut oil in my hair before I go, or the night before, If I am swimming in the morning. Now I have also learned to use swimmers shampoos and conditioners (Aubrey Organics), or I use Curl Junkie Daily Fix right after swimming, does wonders for my hair.
I however make sure that my hair is tied back, and I don’t swim with it loose, or I get lots of tangles.
5. How do you wear your hair while you are on the plane?
Same as usual, a wash and go. I feel it now and again, to see if it’s getting dry, in which case I spritz it (maybe with Oyin handmade Greg juice or Giovanni VitaPro Fusion) or just moisturize with whatever I have in my handbag.
6. What are some compliments you get on your hair while traveling (or even just around town)?
– it looks so big!
– it feels so soft, looks juicy
– how do you get your hair to do all these things!
– could you give me some advice on my hair?
– can you help me go natural?
7. You just missed your flight but your entire luggage was checked. You must spend a night in a hotel. What essential products for skin and hair care is in your carry-on?
– I put pretty much ALL my skin care, face and hair care products in my carry-on, in those sample size bottles and jars, I usually only have big sizes of my skin moisturizer and rinse out conditioner in my luggage, but I also have sample sizes of these in my hand luggage!
🙂 as well as some extra knickers (undies), socks and toothbrush + toothpaste.
🙂 as well as some extra knickers (undies), socks and toothbrush + toothpaste.
8. What do you love most about being natural? What annoys you?
I love everything about being natural, the way my hair feels, the things I can do with it if I choose to (I am lazy with styling, wash and goes are for me) and the volume I have (my hair is fine and not very dense, so when it’s relaxed, it’s not that voluminous). Nothing much annoys me, the one thing is that sometimes I want to show some length, but I don’t like the effort I have to put in (twist/braid/blow dry, to stretch it, then keeping “dry” so it doesn’t shrink back up. I like to wet my hair a lot, love washing it, so wash and goes are for me!).
9. I admire the versatility of your hair care and the hair styles that you share with your YouTube viewers, what is one product you can’t live without?
Thank you! But I have to laugh at the question! Lol J I love so many products! I am sure I could live without most of them. I do however feel that if I had to choose one and only one product, I would go with Qhemet Biologics Amla and Olive Heavy Cream. It does so much for me:
– soothes my scalp when itchy
– moisturizes my hair for days on end
– good styler for twists/twistouts
– I even use it for fluffy wash and goes
– As a deep treatment overnight
– It’s perfect, and a little goes a long way!
But you can check out my YouTube channel for my most recent holy grail list!
10. What is some advice you would share with mommies of babies with curly hair ?
– To get to know your baby’s hair.
– Realise that it is going to go through changes in the next couple of years in terms of texture and curl pattern. Max had straight hair until about 12 months old, so I didn’t do much to it, except shampoo and condition every now and again. Now that he has curls, and I know which bits are dryer than others, I pay much more attention to how I deal with his hair. It gets water every day, but not necessarily an actual wash.
– Use gentle products. I try to go for natural or organic products for Max, until he is at least around 4 or 5. It’s just gentler on their scalp.
– Realise that it is going to go through changes in the next couple of years in terms of texture and curl pattern. Max had straight hair until about 12 months old, so I didn’t do much to it, except shampoo and condition every now and again. Now that he has curls, and I know which bits are dryer than others, I pay much more attention to how I deal with his hair. It gets water every day, but not necessarily an actual wash.
– Use gentle products. I try to go for natural or organic products for Max, until he is at least around 4 or 5. It’s just gentler on their scalp.
– Figure out a simple routine that works for them, not some lengthy thing that will have them in tears, just so that their hair looks “right” to you the mum. It’s ok if it looks a bit messy or frizzy, they are just babies and it’s not that serious. If the curl pattern is tighter, then do things that will keep the hair from tangling (loose twists if hair is long enough), but saturating it with moisture helps against tangles.
– Every time I am washing Max’s hair or putting a moisturizer in it, I say things like “oooohh look at Max’s lovely hair! Nice hair Max! Mama is putting a nice product on your hair, feel it, so niiccceee!!”
He repeats after me and enjoys getting his hair “done”.
If he starts fussing when I am trying to brush/detangle his hair, I let him go, I don’t force him. I try again later when he is busy doing something else.
Products I use for Max’s hair at the moment:
– Shea Moisture Shampoos (Curl and Shine, and Moisture Retention), every 3 to 4 days.
– Curl Junkie Daily Fix (every other day in between the shampoos)
– Curl Junkie Deep Fix (every now and again)
– Curl Junkie Curl Assurance Smoothing Lotion (a leave-in) – every other day, just a dab to keep his hair moisturized.
oooohhh lovely!!! thank you for posting it!! i do ramble on, don’t i? lol 🙂 xxx
I loved reading this post. I follow her on YouTube and I’m glad you chose to spotlight her!