Curly Ning

CURLY HAIR IS AN AWESOME CROWN TO WEAR. YOU JUST HAVE TO KNOW HOW TO WEAR IT RIGHT!

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Friday, January 26, 2018

How I Healed My Acne

 Hi guys! I just want to update you all with how my skin has finally healed over the depressing acne breakout that I experienced since February of 2017. It started in that month that went full blown in October to December 2017 that it affected every positive outlook in my life. It has greatly affected my emotional and physical well-being that as each month passed by for almost a year, acne took away my self-confidence. It did made me miserable which added stress to more acne.

So, in October 2017, as I've said in my previous post, I went to a dermatologist here in Taiwan and I was given three medications: Doxycycline (antibiotic tablets for 7 days only) Differin Gel (1% adapalene gel) and Clindamycin Phosphate (1% antibiotic solution).

For the first two months that I was using it, my acne was worst. But I was still faithfully doing the medication in hopes that it was that gets-worse-before-it-gets-better kind of era. And yes it was! On my 3rd month, my acne has dramatically healed that my face felt flat and fresh for the first time since I had acne! All those whiteheads, blackheads, cystic after cystic pimples were healed! My face has felt a lot better!

I am now off these two products since they ran out. I am currently using Clean and Clear Deep Pore Facial Wash which is very good at unclogging pores and a cream which was a gift from a good friend, the Mildskin Absolute Premium Cream. The cream has this micro-peeling effect on my skin, something I like about it. Differin gel had that effect as well so I'm happy that this current cream that I'm using does the same thing.

For the mandatory before and after photos, Here it is! .....3 months apart!



October 2017





as of JANUARY 2018 (no filter)

I am happy that the hyper-pigmentation has been slowly fading as well and I am looking out for a good serum to help clear out all this dark spots that acne has left. Do you have a product to suggest? I am excited! 

So, that's about it for now. I will be updating you again after 2 to 3 months. Ciao!
Tuesday, October 31, 2017

Acne Update: One Week After Doxycycline

Hey yeah curlies!

I am back as I've promised to blog about an update with the current medication that my dermatologist has given me. I have finished taking doxycycline for the whole 7 days.

Down below are the photos of my face after doxycycline:

GRAPHIC WARNING:  KIND OF GROSS..SORRY!

As for the results, I've seen a significant change with my skin. Hooray to that! The swollen cystic acne around my cheeks and down my neck flattened out in just 2 days of taking doxycycline. My breakout literally have calmed down altogether. I felt no pain and itchiness at all which I've been complaining about before going for a check up. I could already go out without a need for a mask and just wear some face powder on to cover the intense scars if need be. Somehow, I was so happy with this result! And it went on until the seventh day.

Now that I'm off doxycycline, I have noticed two cystic pimples on my neck and right below my left jawline appeared. It's painful to touch but since I still keep using the differin gel and the cleocin-T as my topical treatments, they calmed down and flattened out after 2 days which is today. This I believe must be the 'initial purge' as they say after being off the oral antibiotic. However, I am feeling positive that my skin is slowly healing for good. I just need to continue incorporating these two other topical solutions into my skin care routine. I am afraid that my skin will start breaking out again if I stopped using them. Drastic change with my skin is such a joy to see after battling with adult acne for almost a year now. Be updating you guys soon after quite a bit of time to see how my skin is healing. Praying so!
Saturday, October 21, 2017

Journey to Healing Acne


Hi curlies! Finally, I was able to visit the dermatologist last week because I could not take the severity of my acne breakout at all. As much as I wanted to heal it through research by trying different products, it didn't work out. They all seemed to  just aggravate my acne more. Gladly, my health insurance also arrived just lately, so off I went to see a dermatologist so that I could seek help from this expert. 

So far, I was diagnosed with acne vulgaris. I was advised to stay away from greasy, sweet food and dairy for the mean time as well as sleep early while healing this breakout. I've actually started all these for quite several weeks now.

The following medications and topical creams were prescribed to me:

1. Doxycycline - an oral antibiotic; taken twice daily immediately after meal

2. Cleocin-T - a topical antibiotic called clindamycin phosphate  in a form of solution to help quicken up the healing process by killing off the acne-causing bacteria

3. Differin Gel - a retinoid which will helps encourage new skin cell growth


It is my third day of religiously doing this medication routine. And I must say that there's a significant change on my skin. My acne has all calmed down. My face doesn't hurt or itch at all. My doctor said that it takes quite some time for my acne to heal before the scars are treated. But then, I am not in a rush. Waiting is not a problem for me. As long as my acne slowly heals, that's excellent! Maybe two, three months or more, we will all see.

I will be blogging about the progress of my skin once I got to finish taking all the oral antibiotic which is few days from now. Be posting before and after pictures, too! Stay tuned!

Has anyone of you went to a doctor and was given with these same medication? How was your experience? Let me know at the comments below. I would love to hear from you!
Tuesday, October 10, 2017

Product Review: 1 Month of Gluta Pancea

This post focuses on my review on Gluta Pancea after one month of faithfully taking it. This is my honest review on this product on how it made my skin for a month. So let's get into it.

Let me introduce to you the packaging of this product. I like the packaging. It is well made in a rectangular box unlike in other gluta supplements which are usually packed in a plastic bottle. The packaging itself really made me interested into buying it plus all the ingredients that it contain. They all seem to be promising to me so I dove into trying it out for the hopes that it will help me with my acne breakout. My main goal is to just clear up my acne and maybe a bonus of its side effect which is the brightening up of the skin. So my scars will be treated as well! 

(Gluta Pancea: the front view of the box)

(Gluta Pancea: the back part of the box)

For the ingredients, please see the photos above. I liked all the ingredients stated because according to my research, they all help into boosting glutathione levels in our body which helps detoxify the liver and make the skin look more supple and even toned in the process. I was in the peak of my excitement when it arrived to my address and right away took it that very night. 

Product Details:

GLUTA PANCEA

30 capsules per box
Price: 750$ Taiwan Dollar (Php 1,200 or US$24.75)

The Dosage

I took 2 capsules for the first 15 days, in an empty stomach right before bed. My seller told me to take it along with warm water so that it will immediately dissolve when it reaches the stomach thus faster absorption. After 15 days, I took it once daily same time before bed. 

My Experience

Did my skin become clear? 

Honestly, for some time in the first 2 weeks,  it did made me feel that my skin was starting to get better after the first breakout that I experienced with it. As I thought that my skin was only purging which is expected to happen because as gluta detoxifies my liver, toxins are being released and they chose to come out from my skin which explains why more pimples popped out during the process. I didn't stop taking it. Third week came when my acne seemed to dry out and for several days my face was free from new growth! I was so happy during this time and was ecstatic to keep pushing my hopes up with this supplement. Well, I do have faith with the product in the first place that's why I chose it to be my very first glutathione brand. 

Not until the fourth week came. My breakout came like an angry revenge! The pimples were cystic and painful! They are bumps on top of another bump! Puss after puss that stays fresh for a week before they get dry. So, I would always tone my face with apple cider vinegar and moisturize with aloe vera gel to soothe the inflammation. Put on mask rather than slather on foundation just to stop any more triggers. I felt really stressed and sad when I looked at myself at the mirror. The breakout continues up until now that I'm writing this post. I started getting confused and asked my seller for how long will the breakout happen? Because now I decided to stop taking it for the meantime as my breakout happened to occupy areas on my face which were not the usual spot. I also have developed milia around the cheeks and jawline. The texture of my face is really depressing!

Below are the photos of my current skin condition. ;( 
One month of taking gluta pancea. Major breakout!


My skin before taking Gluta Pancea:
only several pimples on the cheek and chin




Did it make my skin brighter? 

As for the skin whitening, I haven't noticed any changes with my overall skin color as well.  Well, as per my seller's advice that I keep using the product until my skin clears out, but for me, it's time to stop thinking that maybe one of the ingredients is not acceptable by my skin. This may be an allergic reaction. One month has passed by. Enough time that I gave it its chance. For now, I am looking into another remedy to heal this breakout. I might go back trying this product again to see if my skin will react differently and hoping that it will give better result by the time.

I am not in any way criticizing this product. I actually have high hopes with this. I know that for many, they will probably say that I should keep using the product because for some, it really gets worse before it gets better. But this product did make me breakout. The worst breakout I had in my life to be exact. I just had to stop it. 

I've seen lots of good review of this product but every skin is different. And this did not get along with my skin. I'm really just so sad that it did not work for me. 
Monday, September 25, 2017

My Hair Transitioning Stages

I've been waiting for this very hair moment to arrive. Finally, it's here! Healthy and beautiful! Look at that healthy and bouncy natural curls! 

Come see what these hair transitioning stages look like in my case. 



From this awkward two-textured hair transitioning days:


If you have been reading here on my blog, I started this hair journey since December of last year. It was exactly about a year, too then since I had my last rebond treatment. Yes, I hated my curly hair that much that I opted for chemically relaxed hair every year for 13 years straight! I even forgot how  curly my natural hair is. It was the only way I know on how to keep frizz off of my head. Enjoyed it, though. But through the years, I missed my curls as well but to no patience and lack of knowledge on how to truly care for them. They were a poof on my head.

So, from late last year, I decided to stop relaxing my hair, mainly because I've no money to maintain it here in Taiwan and that I wanted my curls back. I kinda got tired of my boring relaxed hair. And so the research for tips and tricks on managing curly hair began. Fortunately, curly hair bloggers and vloggers are all over the internet and I got everything from there - from curly hair friendly products to wash routines to monthly care regimen. Like what I said on my previous posts, if tutorials were made available or if i had known them way before, I wouldn't have spent money on salon treatments at all. My hair thanked me and are looking better every single day. 


For those who have been asking me on how I finally got here and for how long, here it is:

2007 to 2015 - the years when I got relaxed hair treatment 

December 2015 - the final rebond treatment and decided to quit

December 2016 - 1 year post-relax treatment; 4 inches of natural hair growth; no big chop yet

January 2017 - 13 mos into transition; mini hair chop; consistent hair wash routines and oil treatment; all done at home

February 2017 - 14 mos into transition; trimmed some more relaxed hair; co-washing and wash routines

August 2017 - 20 mos into transition; trimmed the rest of the relaxed hair; neck length natural hair growth 

September 2017 - 21 months into transition as of this post; fully grown natural bouncy and healthy curls!



Thank you Lord! My patience finally paid off. Gone are the challenging and awkward transitioning hair days! I've never been this happy about my natural hair. Ever! I owe this to all the curly bloggers ( (Anjana of Curls and Beauty Diary) and vloggers (Curly Penny, Curly Zeria on youtube to name a few) who inspired me a lot into taking this journey. My hair is still on its course. I want to achieve more volume and more healthy curls in the future. And i know that I will get there with the love and care that I give them. 

So for those curlies out there who are into their transitioning hair journey or those who would like to start, my advise is just this: BE PATIENT! YOU WILL NEED A LOT OF IT. I mean, think about the time that you will be wasting if in the midst of your journey, you give in to straightening your hair permanently or damaging it even more with heat tools. Opt for overnight curls instead or overnight straight hair to avoid damage. It's also important to go for protective hairstyles if you need to attend special occasions and you want your hair to look beautiful. I mean, I've been there. I've resisted temptations and thought of all the rewards afterwards. I do not want to start over again as every damage from heat tools will give you months of recovery! So, DON'T RISK IT! 

Are you going into curly hair transition as well? Let me know how it is going with you. Be posting product reviews on my next posts. Ciao for now, curlies! 


Friday, March 3, 2017

Relaxed Hair Mini Chop + Wash Day Routine

I finally did the chop that I've been planning to have! Hooray to this decision! 14 months into transition has gotten me like about 4 inches of natural hair growth. So it actually dominated the rest of the straight hair ends and occupied most of my head. But it is still a little too early to cut off all the relaxed hair, it would be too short and I'm not just ready or brave for it. Even so, I'm happy that I finally did the cut as my curls bounced. The relaxed hair weighed them down so much so when they were cut off, the curls formed as they were supposed to. Not perfect yet but positive that they will be!

So without further ado, this is what my hair looks like now.




I have to say that there's a big difference from when I still had the relaxed hair and now that most of them are chopped off. Plus I feel good with the short hair because I can now proceed with the wash routines and all without having to care for the chemically damaged hair at all.



When wash day came, I did the following:

1. PRE-POO - I have slathered on extra virgin coconut oil unto my hair and scalp with a bit of massage. I did this for about 4 hours before washing it off in the shower. The coconut oil will help strengthen my hair and will also boost hair growth. I did actually see a big difference in my hair since I started incorporating it in my hair care routine. My hair is stronger indeed. Less hairfall and breakage as well. Coconut oil is my best friend now!

2. WASH - shampoo is essential as it will help remove all the oil that sat on my hair for several hours. The shampoo I'm currently using is the Argan Oil Shampoo. Yet one thing that I missed looking from this product is the lauric sulfate on it. It was crazy that I missed checking that out at the ingredients. So very soon, I'll be changing this. For now, this was the only choice I got.

3. CONDITION - This is my favorite part in my hair care routine. I think every curly haired gals like me depends their curl life on conditioners. As this is the most important product that every curly girl should have. It is really a must-have. So with conditioning my hair, I am using the Syoss Silicone-Free Conditioner. Yay to that. It is silicone-free! As silicone isn't compatible with curly hair. I apply a generous amount on my hair and this product really works like magic on detangling my hair in the process.

4. SQUISH-TO-CONDISH - I've learned about squish-to-condish method from Anjana of Curls and Beauty Diary blog. Her blog is my go-to nowadays as I'm learning so much tips from her and also I love the fact that our hair falls on the same hair type. It's important for me that I get to have tips and learn from someone who has the same curl pattern as mine. I feel that most, if not all of the methods and products used by her will also perfectly work on my hair. So, back to this squish-to-condish method, the procedure is easy. The name says it. You have to squish the conditioner to your hair by scrunching the hair with your palms. You have to hear that squishing sound which means that the product is being distributed well into your hair. As for Anjana,  this method also is used for all other styling product while the hair is soaking wet. Since I don't have any styling product at the moment, I did this method with my conditioner. I love it that while I was scrunching my hair, I can already see the curls that form in the process. This determines the curls on how it will look like when it's dry. By the way, I did not wash off the conditioner entirely. It works for my curls better when I leave some in in like 20% of it onto my hair. This will help my hair moisturized even when dry.

5. PLOP - after conditioning my hair, I plopped my hair using a long-sleeved t-shirt for about 20 minutes. I let my hair loose from plopping and did not do anything at all with it as I wanted my curls to stay as is while air drying. So far, that picture above is the result. It took like more than an hour to completely dry.

My hair has looked better from the previous days that I've been doing my new hair care routine. But then, it is a struggle and long battle for me. My curl pattern is still messed up as I am dealing with a lot of damage from blow-drying every shower days a few months back before I researched and started looking up on tips on how to truly care for curly hair. I have been doing it all wrong! And so my hair is taking it's time to heal as well. I can't wait to finally see them popping in healthy and beautiful looking curls!

Moving on and forward! I will be doing a protein treatment and be posting it soon. Stay updated curlies!

Wednesday, February 22, 2017

Going Natural on Hair Products

As you all may know, I am now transitioning from relaxed hair to my natural curly hair. I'm very glad that I have finally made this decision. Thanks to curly community who have helped me realize how beautiful these curls can be. I just have to know the right and proper care that it needs. I mean, wow! Had this been tutorials and tips available long ago, I wouldn't have hated my hair. Nevertheless, it's never too late to love and embrace my curls. I'm in the hype of excitement for this journey!


So, one thing that I've learned is that going natural is the best decision ever. May it be the hair and or the products used, you can never go wrong with being natural in everything. It's actually the safest and most healthy way. I have to say that God has really made everything on earth to co-exist. Human beings need the nature and vice versa. It's how it should be. That's why having to move away from conventional products is my first step.

Rule of the thumb for curlies like me is to know that if ever we do not have any way to look for natural products, make sure that curls do not love and are not compatible with SULFATES and SILICONES. These are the ingredients from hair products that you must avoid. Sulfates are harsh ingredients in shampoos and conditioners as they strip the natural oil from our scalp which is called sebum that nourishes our hair. It is no wonder that my hair always get that frizz and dryness! Silicones on the other hand coats the hair from the outside dirt and other elements. This is actually good. I say that I have no problem with silicones. It's just that it also coats the hair from the natural oil that comes from the scalp to flow down to the hair to nourish them. For some curlies, I don't mind having silicone being on my hair especially on the hotter season. But since I am kickstarting with the LTC that my hair needs, silicones are not an option for now.

Off i went to the nearest grocery store in our place and did my best in finding hair products that are free from sulfates and silicones. And of course, I found some!

Argan Oil Shampoo

My Hair Products: Shampoo, Conditioner, and Hair Mask (all sulfate and silicone free!)


I have been using these products on my hair the past few weeks now along with the curly girl method. To explain what is the curly girl method, will be blogging about it on another post. This is it for now! See you curlies on my next post!

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