Swathy

My Experience with Kamini Aunty

Swathy · April 29, 2012 · 66 Comments

Well, you would all be wondering who the hell is “Kamini aunty”??? I came to know about her from Mehak’s blog and on my recent trip to Delhi, I went to this lady who is supposed to be a miracle for hair. She can cure any hair problem apparently. She runs her hair clinic from her house in Safdarjung enclave. And, the clinic is just like a home parlour.

I went to her with my mommy. “Kamini aunty” looked at my hair and declared that its thin and she didn’t really say much about my hair. I got her to check my mom’s hair too and she declared that my mom has very dry scalp. And, she instructed the girl on what to use for our hairs and off we went in for the treatment. It consists of 3 things basically:

Oiling – She has variety of oils of probably different grades. The girl attending me gave me instructions about how to go about my routine. And, she applied really a LOTTT of oil to my hair (around half a cup). It is supposed to have lots of herbs.

Ginger Tonic – After the oiling was done, this was applied to my scalp only. Its basically ginger powder infused in vinegar. This is for aiding the hair growth since ginger stimulates hair follicles.Well, I do think other herbs might also have been there. It has to be left on for 30 minutes.

Hair Pack – After the ginger tonic, a hair pack is applied on the scalp and the ends of the hair and then, the hair is covered with a shower cap. This is made from many pulses and other ingredients and it smells strongly of dhania and it smells really warm. It also has to be left on for 30 minutes.

And, then, I am left for 30 minutes for the treatment to soak into the scalp. Meanwhile, I watch the whole procedure being followed on my mom and this is the first time she is getting any kind of a hair treatment so I was obviously enjoying it a lot 😀 And, then, I was taken for a hair wash which includes a shampoo and conditioner free of chemicals. Finally, my hair is blow-dried and my hair really felt so soft.

So, what’s the treatment?
We are prescribed a shampoo, conditioner, hair oil and the ginger tonic. The treatment has to be done everyday for the first week in the same order as I have described above. And, after the first week, it has to be done on alternate days till you see the desired results. The hair pack has to be applied weekly once. I was told that I would see the new growth in two months.

How much does it cost?
Yes, it is expensive. Not overtly but still it is. Frankly, I wasn’t prepared for the bill presented to me but my mom had already anticipated it. The shampoo and conditioner cost about 400, the tonic is around 800, hair pack is 600 and the hair oil is around 2500. To be just, even my dad said that the quantity given was good enough.

How am I liking it?
I went to her on 18th April. I have used the products around 5 times till now. Yes, I wasn’t regular as I should have been in the first week and neither was I in the second but I hope I shall be from now on. But, strictly speaking, I would say that the treatment has brought out shine in my hair. And, it has definitely become more manageable with less flyaways.

Also, I love the shampoo a lot. Its free of chemicals and it smells nice and it seems to be a concoction of reetha and shikakai with orange fragrance. Its watery enough but not entirely watery and lathers well enough but not exactly generously but cleanses my hair nicely. And, I like the conditioner too. It lathers a lot and doesn’t weigh down my hair.

Of course, none of the products ingredients are written as they are supposed to be a secret. And, whether I’ll have a head full of hair, only time will tell. But, being a cynic, I do have a small doubt. If I follow the very same routine with regular products in the same time frame, will it yield results??? Of course, taking into consideration that I choose a SLS free shampoo and silicone free conditioner. What do you say??

How much oil do you apply? {Your Opinion}

Swathy · April 28, 2012 · 13 Comments

I didn’t know what to write for today so I thought I’ll pose a question to you all today. The premise of this question is something which I shall reveal in the following week but this question has nagged me to no ends since long.

How much oil should be applied? And, where should the oil be applied? How long should the oil be kept? Should you cover it with a shower cap or not? And, also, how should one go about applying oil or massaging the scalp? I searched on this topic and I found out that some people apply oil only to the hair length!!! Well, oil has to be applied to the roots and massage din so that it reaches the hair follicles and nourish it.

For my part, I don’t have any answers yet. And, I am confused on all accounts. So, hoping that you would solve my confusion 😉 Adios!!!PS: Do you watch Vampire Diaries? I am not, in general, a fan of VD but this season is undoubtedly the best and I am in love Klaus 🙂

Open Pores? {Reader’s Query}

Swathy · April 27, 2012 · 22 Comments

“I am having normal to skin, I don’t have acne problems but I have some tiny pores around my cheeks and in the forehead. Please do suggest me a solution for this. I don’t know how I got this pores , I use to scrub my face once in three days. I thought this should be a problem so I have started to use scrub once in one week.”

Open Pores and Causes

Open pores are one of the worst problems of a smooth and flawless look. I do have huge pores on my cheeks, upper lip area and even forehead and sometimes, when my face is too oily, these pores look even bigger which is such a buster for me. Open pores are not exactly a problem but can occur to anyone at any age.

In fact, the size of the pores is dependent on two factors, neither of which are under your control – heredity and age. Yes, if either of your parents have large pores, your tend to get large pores and sometimes, the size of these pores tend to increase with age or rather the prominence of the pores increases with age.

How to control the Open Pores

Reducing the size of the pores is impossible. So, any product which promises to do that is lying. Ok, yes, it is possible to get a flawless look with the help of foundations or tinted creams but if you use mineral makeup, sometimes, the pores can get enhanced instead of getting covered up depending on the quality of the product. This can happen with cream foundations too at times if its not blended well. Thus, to get a flawless look, it is essential to have a good brush for application as well as a good product.

Also, since the size of the pores is more, the dirt can get entrapped more easily and likely, there is more dirt inside so cleansing of the pores becomes essential. Generally, oily skin has larger pore size and consequently, more secretion of sebum. Thus, the pores have to cleansed on a regular basis. Three times a week is a good routine.

Home Remedies to reduce the pore size

These are temporary solutions and can be done as a quick fix.

Egg White mask: makes the face firmed up, lifted up and pores size also gets decreased.
Ice cubes: Cold constricts the pores size and gives a flawless blending of the foundation.
Cucumber: Similar to ice cubes effect.
Honey: helps in making the skin smooth.

What do you do for open pores?