Halloween aka Maya's Annual Dress Up Day!

i love Halloween! i absolutely love dressing up and i love it even more when everyone else dresses up too. the one day of the year EVERYONE can play their alter ego. discover your inner Sasha Fierce! for the past 6 years I've been going above and beyond the call of duty for Halloween. it started off with a random idea i had to photograph myself (well my mom did) as Dora years ago which has since been an annual tradition of mine i hope to pass on to my heirs :) since Dora i've been Scary Spice, Jimi Hendrix, Minnie Mouse, Blaze from American Gladiator and now....RUPAUL! That's right! This year I will be the fabulous diva Rupaul! on my bucket list is actually performing in a drag show. i'm not ready for a live performance yet but at least i can get into character and embody all things fierce for an evening :) key to this costume is makeup and HAIR! lucky for me i found the perfect wig here on 125th. it seems every year my budget keeps going up. next years goal is to keep it under $40. this year...i already spent $55 on the wig :S but it's so worth it :)
look at all the wonderful wigs...i want, i want!

impromptu photoshoot in the wig stores :)

and now for some inspiration:

curls, curls, curls, curls

every curly haired girls wants to know what i do's with my hair. well in the past 10 years i had the same hair care regimen: shampoo with whatever, condition with Herbal Essence, Tresemme, or whatever but usually those two, my must use leave in was Olive Oil Moisturizer, and my must use curl defining styler Eco Styler Gel and the occasional deep treatment with i can't remember but several products oh and of course dry with a diffuser or air dry...boom! that's all i did and it worked and my hair was healthy and long. THEN I moved to NY and something happened. my hair became brittle and dry, split ends everywhere, even holes in the middle of the hair shaft. WTF!!! i have no idea what started it...the water? the few dominican hair blow outs? the one time i did that silly vinegar/baking soda clarifying wash which was a huge no no, stress? maybe a combination of all of the above? in any event i need to change up my game cause what I did in the past isn't holding up these days. i've already chopped off about 3 inches which solved the split ends but my hair is still feeling dry and brittle. i tried a protein treatment called Aphogee which you can see and feel the results immediately but it didn't last much longer than a few days to a week. oh! i did find a really amazing deep treatment called Parnevu Organic Hair Mayonnaise which REALLY conditions my hair but it seems my biggest problem is when my hair is finished being washed and when i wear it out curly. the curls actually look great to everyone but me cause it feels horrible! i tried moisturizing with 100% shea butter and Vatika oil, which is an Indian product charged with coconut oil and a bunch of healthy stuff, it's kinda working but i was still missing something. i turned my attention to google and youtube and made some amazing discoveries. most recently i tried a homemade leave-in which i read about on naturallycurly.com. then saw a video on youtube on how to make it here. this so far seems to do the trick. my hair actually feels soft...FINALLY! it's only day 2 so i'll touch base in a few weeks but me likey :) all the info on how to make it are on those links. after i wash my hair i spritz that on in sections, do some twists, put on that funny cap, which my hubby finds so attractive, and go to bed. in the morning i'll do step 2 and use my Olive Oil Moisturizer (unless you know of a better product) and my Eco Styler Gel. I haven't had the need to do the last 2 steps but i think i'll need to to keep my curls looking juicy. but yes! if your hair is feeling dry and brittle i suggest this. hopefully it works for you. cost:$7.99 vegetable glycerine, $3.99 apricot oil (you can forego this if you have olive or coconut oil), $1.99 spray bottle, $2.99 night cap, all under $20 bucks and so worth it!

i love all this stuff right here. my hair doesn't seem to like Tresemme anymore but i'm gonna try adding oil to it. i read on naturallycurly.com that that helps. otherwise i'll have to experiment

a collage of my hair throughout the ages...

i'm headed out to meet with fellow curly hair Andrea Lewis from TGAW and introduce her to the wonderful world of hair care products here on 125th

movin on up!

and where have you bloody been missy? ahhhhh....where to begin...we haven't moved yet however we have applied for coops here in NYC. getting involved and being a part of the community is key to getting deals and we all know i loves me a deal. me and the hubs have been taking a home ownership workshop. rent sucks! the money you give away doesn't build equity, there are no tax breaks for renters and you're paying for your landlords vacation. it is a vicious cycle you don't realize until you're educated in. for those of my local Harlemites you NEED to take this class over at HCCI. we finished the workshop (but i'm retaking it just cause) and the infamous Reverend Charles Butler referred us to UHAB. UHAB works with buildings converting from rental properties to coops, which are newly renovated and selling well below market value. coops here in NYC are different from Toronto. here it means your buying shares into a cooperative corporation, we own the building...closest thing to home owning here in NYC and most people still need mortgages unless you got cash like that. any who, we finally finished collecting all the paper work and applied for a few coops...now we wait and continue to save for our down payment. if all goes well i'll have a view across from central park in a few months. now to visualize so this can materialize...more post a comin... :)