Author: HairWeavings Editorial Team

Can Castor Oil Really Help Your Lashes & Brows Grow?

Hair loss is a well-known and wide-spread issue. Thinning hair can be caused by a vast array of different things, from genetics to stress to diet and prescription medications. However, while we typically think of the hair on our head when it comes to this concern, our lashes and eyebrows can also be impacted by the same reason the hair on heads begins to thin. Castor oil has been generating buzz lately, touted for its apparent ability to help promote accelerate eyebrow and eyelash re-growth. Unlike Biotin and other B-vitamins, there isn’t a ton of clinically backed research vetting the alleged connection between castor oil and accelerated hair regrowth. On the other hand, the anecdotal research is pretty compelling, with plenty of before-and-after pics scattered throughout the web.

While the academic research and clinical trials examining the oil’s ability to promote hair re-growth may be scant, that doesn’t mean the connection is to be completely discredited. In fact, castor oil does have natural anti-bacterial and anti-fungal proprieties, which can thoroughly cleanse and remove dead skin and product buildup from the scalp. When the hair follicles on the scalp are clogged, this inhibits normal hair growth. Just like congested pores on your face, congested follicles on your scalp are simply no good. And, according to some castor oil manufacturers, it functions as an effective growth accelerant because it’s penetrated easily, delivering a saturated dose of Vitamin E, triglyceride fatty acids, and bond-building proteins. In short, while more research needs to be conducted for castor to earn  the FDA’s seal of approval, if you’re like us, the vast amount of “true stories” documenting its benefits are enough to convince us to try it out for ourselves.

After experiencing a month or two of non-stop stress and lack of sleep, I woke up one morning and as I looked in the mirror, I realized that my brows were noticeably thinner than a week or two ago. Of course, given my non-stop schedule that had taken over my life during the past weeks, it makes sense that the thinning brow situation would go unnoticed until that very moment. In panic mode, I immediately began to research what type of disease could be at the root of my suddenly skimpy brows, only to settle on the conclusion that it was in fact, probably stress — a very common cause of hair loss according to my bible, WebMd. Anyways, after learning that a few friends of mine had also been battling this sudden onset of thinning brows, I began to try out the oil myself to see what I could glean. I’m not sure if my restored brows were courtesy of my return to a more balanced schedule or the castor oil, but there was a visible improvement in the fullness of my brows. While I can’t speak to its impact on eyelash growth, I would imagine it would have same effect and the products below all claim to help in this department. Here are some of our favorite formulas.

Our mission at STYLECASTER is to bring style to the people, and we only feature products we think you’ll love as much as we do. Please note that if you purchase something by clicking on a link within this story, we may receive a small commission of the sale.

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Garcelle Beauvais’ Blue Maxi Dress

Garcelle Beauvais’ Blue Maxi Dress at Kyle Richards’ House

Real Housewives of Beverly Hills Season 10 Episode 8 Fashion

I think I say this almost every time I write a post on Garcelle Beauvais, but her blue maxi dress with silver metallic stripes is my new favorite outfit of hers. As we now all know the “Beverly Hills casual” style has different interpretations, but I think Garcelle was right on the money with what she chose to wear to Kyle Richards’ house.

To me a metallic maxi dress is a little more than casual and it wasn’t even the most dressy of all the looks the women wore, but that’s only because my kind of casual is more like Denise Richards’ t-shirt and jeans, but still LOVE this dress nonetheless. It’s fun and breezy and perfect to wear to any outside day outing. And the best part about this dress is that it’s not just meant for Beverly Hills casual it’s meant for everywhere.

 

Sincerely Stylish,

Jess

 

Garcelle Beauvais' Blue Maxi Dress

Click Here To See Her Sold Out Blue Saylor Avril Dress

Originally posted at: Garcelle Beauvais’ Blue Maxi Dress

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7 Black-Owned Nail Polish Brands to Up Your Mani Game

According to Essie, June 1 is National Nail Polish Day, but to us, it’s always a good time for a manicure. But we aren’t currently living in a time we can just hop on over to the salon. That inspired us to round up our favorite Black-owned nail polish brands to support minority brand founders in an industry that’s tough to break into. According to a report by Crunchbase, just one percent of venture-backed founders were Black in the last five years. It’s time to change that.

In the meantime, we’ll shop these vibrant nail polish shades to give our manis an upgrade while at home. These seven brand founders created polish that flatter all skin tones and are inspired by each of their lives, whether it’s the city they live in or their love of color. Looking for 10-free, non-toxic shades? What about vegan ones? Don’t worry—they’re all here and ready to be purchased.

Whether you’re looking for glitter shades, sunny hues of yellow and orange or dramatic wines and eggplant colors, you’ll find the perfect polish that will take you into summer and beyond. Pick up some of their nail care accessories while you’re at it.

Our mission at STYLECASTER is to bring style to the people, and we only feature products we think you’ll love as much as we do. Please note that if you purchase something by clicking on a link within this story, we may receive a small commission of the sale and the retailer may receive certain auditable data for accounting purposes.

did nail polish

Image: D.I.D.

D.I.D. Nail Paint

Created by Adrienne Blanks, a licensed nail technician and esthetician, this eco-friendly polish brand hawks both bright and neutral shades that will pop on all skin tones.

ooo polish

Image: OOO Polish.

OOO Polish

Founder Symantha Wechie-Onyechi created a nail polish brand after not finding the right nudes and vibrant colors for her skin tone. Now you can shop all her neutral and bold shades, including glitter and gel polish.

breukelen polished

Image: Breukelen Polished.

Breukelen Polished

Ariel Terry is a Brooklyn-based high school algebra teacher who created this 11-free, non-toxic line inspired by her vibrant city. This soft pink is so pretty.

polish and co nail polish

Image: Polish and Co.

Polish & Co.

Cosmetologist Theresa Williamson created this 5-free nail polish brand with “the aesthetics of a Southern belle.” We love all the metallics.

cab ride in cairo

Image: 25th & June.

25th & June

Nexus came up with this nail polish brand inspired by her love of nail polish and color (this yellow hue!). It’s cruelty-free, vegan-friendly and 10-Free.

mischa beauty

Image: Mischa Beauty.

Mischa Beauty

This vegan, gluten-free and and 10-free line was started by Kitiya Mischo King. Her bold shades as just as gorgeous as the bottles themselves.

audab beauty first lady

Image: AudaB.

AudaB

Samara Walker is a Boston-based entrepreneur who launched this vegan nail brand alongside a “beauty marketplace” connecting customers with on-demand beauty services.

banner newsletter 2 7 Black Owned Nail Polish Brands to Up Your Mani Game

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5 Ways Inadequate Sleep Can Undermine Your Weight Loss Efforts After 60

Weight-Loss-After-60

Do you have some days when you feel hungry all day, no matter what you eat? That might be because you didn’t get enough sleep the night before. 

What does the amount of sleep have to do with your weight? According to Harvard Medical School, the lack of sleep along with lack of exercise and overeating is now being identified as one of the most common risk factors for obesity.

No doubt you’ve noticed that it’s harder to lose weight post-menopause. Not sleeping enough can hinder your weight loss efforts even more.

Several studies have linked insufficient sleep to weight gain, with people who normally sleep fewer than six hours per night being much more likely to be overweight. A lot of this has to do with how much of certain hormones your body makes.

Inadequate sleep can make weight loss after 50 even harder in 5 important ways.

You’re Hungrier

Not getting enough sleep – or sleeping poorly – affects the hormones that regulate your hunger levels. If you don’t get enough sleep, your body makes more of the hormone ghrelin, which stimulates hunger, so you’re hungrier.

The hormone leptin, which tells you you’re full, decreases, so you eat more. The combination of too much ghrelin and cortisol, the stress hormone, shuts down the areas of your brain that make you feel satisfied after a meal, so you may feel hungry all the time.

If you have those “hungry all day” days, notice whether they’re related to the amount of sleep you’ve been getting.

Your Metabolism Suffers

If you are sleeping badly, your body is more inclined to store fat. When you’re sleep deprived, your body suffers from “metabolic grogginess,” according to researchers at the University of Chicago. That means that your body can’t use the hormone insulin properly.

When insulin functions well, your fat cells remove lipids and fatty acids from your blood and prevent them from being stored in your liver and on your body. But when you become more insulin resistant, those fat cells circulate in your blood and your body makes even more insulin.

That’s not a good thing because to lose weight, your body must burn stored fat for energy, but when there is insulin in your blood, your body doesn’t use that fat.

You Crave Junk Food

Poor sleep leads to an increase in the hormone cortisol, which is your stress hormone. This affects both your appetite and your mood. To counter the extra cortisol, your body produces more serotonin, which is a feel-good hormone.

This may be what makes you crave fat and carbs in the first place, because they lead to the release of serotonin. When you eat because you’re upset and feel better briefly afterwards, it is partly due to that serotonin spike.

Harder to Make Healthy Food Choices

Sleep deprivation causes changes to the parts of your brain that govern eating. In one study, after a single night of sleep deprivation, participants wanted more unhealthy foods than when they got enough sleep.

Also, sleep-deprived people were less able to make intelligent, reasoned decisions to overcome their urge to eat junk food or overeat. Sleep deprivation also makes you choose bigger portions. I’m sure you can figure out what happens when you eat more and bigger portions of unhealthy food!

Your Workouts Are Undermined

Not enough sleep interferes with your body’s ability to make muscle, which causes muscle loss and maybe even injuries. It also makes it harder for your muscles to recover after exercising by slowing down the production of the growth hormone, which is produced during deep sleep.

Plus, you may be too tired to get to the gym in the first place.

I know I’ve been talking about a lot of studies, but here’s one more, published in the American Journal of Epidemiology.

This one concluded that women who are sleep-deprived are a third more likely to gain 33 pounds over the next 16 years than women who get seven hours of sleep per night. 33 more pounds! And that’s based on the amount of sleep alone.

But here’s one tip: Don’t eat after dinner. There are two good reasons for this: First, you’ll sleep more soundly when your body isn’t busy digesting food.

Second, eating will cause your body to produce more insulin, which will prevent you from burning fat during your natural fast between dinner and breakfast. So it goes without saying that midnight snacks are a really bad idea.

If you make getting enough sleep a health priority, you will likely find that managing your weight will become a little easier.

Do you think you get enough sleep? Will knowing how sleep affects your weight change your sleep habits? What are some thing you do to make sure you get enough sleep? What do you think are the keys to weight loss after 50? Please join the conversation below!

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8 Black-Owned Beauty Brands to Shop At Target

According to a report by Crunchbase, just one percent of venture-backed founders were Black in the last five years. One percent. A whopping 77.1 percent of founders were white regardless of gender and education. For about a million reasons, it’s always important to support minority-owned brands but now more than ever, we’re putting the focus on Black-owned founders. That’s why we rounded up some of our favorite Black-owned beauty brands at Target that you should add to your cart, like, now.

Trust us—these brands did the work to bring you quality products at reasonable prices. We’ve tried them all. The best part? You can grab them on your next Target run. Shop ultra-pigmented makeup from Coloured Raine and The Lip Bar, hydrating haircare for textured hair from The Doux, Alikay Naturals and Mielle Organics, grooming products from Scotch Porter and wellness ones from The Honey Pot.

Of course, this isn’t an extensive list of all the Black-owned brands from Target nor is it a list of all the products great for Black hair and skin. There are many more brands at the retailer who cater to textured hair but are owned by huge companies such as Procter and Gamble and Unilever. That doesn’t make them bad products, of course. Some of them, such as Shea Moisture, are our favorites. But here, we’re focusing on Black founders to boost their success in the industry. And with these stellar options, it’s a win-win for us, too.

Our mission at STYLECASTER is to bring style to the people, and we only feature products we think you’ll love as much as we do. Please note that if you purchase something by clicking on a link within this story, we may receive a small commission of the sale and the retailer may receive certain auditable data for accounting purposes.

the doux fresh rinse moisturizing conditioner

Image: Target.

The Doux

Stylists Maya and Brian Smith own a salon in Macon, GA, of the same name. Their “real results without the hype” approach to haircare means you get professional quality haircare without the price tag. The Doux products were created for textured hair when it’s worn straight, curly or somewhere in between.

the lip bar vegan lip stick

Image: The Lip Bar.

The Lip Bar

Founder Melissa Butler might have gotten rejected from Shark Tank but who’s laughing now? The vegan and cruelty-free lipstick brand hit Target and fans are going crazy for its vibrant shades for all skin tones.

alikay natural shea yogurt hair

Image: Target.

Alikay Naturals

CEO and founder Rochelle Alikay Graham-Campbell launched her haircare brand right in her kitchen when she was just 22 years old. Now, we all scoop up her natural, organic haircare free from petroleum, mineral oil, alcohol, parabens, sulfates or silicones.

coloured raine eyeshadow palette

Image: Target.

Coloured Raine

Founder Loraine R. Dowdy left her job in the financial industry to launch a makeup line dedicated to self-expression and diversity. Pick up lipstick, eyeshadow and highlighter in ulta-pigmented tones now at Target.

scotch porter

Image: Target.

Scotch Porter

Calvin Quallis, founder and CEO, started with a small barbershop in his neighborhood and moved on to develop grooming products for textured hair made without common toxins.

mielle organics

Image: Target.

Mielle Organics

Registered nurse Monique Rodriguez used her science background to create products for women to finally achieve hair and scalp health.

the honey pot

Image: The Honey Pot.

The Honey Pot

This wellness brand was started by Bea Dixon after she suffered for months from bacterial vaginosis. Her period and vaginal health products are made from certified organic ingreidents.

banner newsletter 2 8 Black Owned Beauty Brands to Shop At Target

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