The Lagos Hair Natural Meet Up – NITC9 was this past weekend and as usual we put on a good show!
We changed venues for this NITC – for the first time in years. The Social Place in Victoria Island hosted us this time and we loved it! Lush gardens, potted plants dotting the entire venue. That really is my thing – greenery!
We also took on a new co-host: Ekene of theKinkandi.wordpress.com. Besides looking totally fantastic on the day, she took over handling the talks. We are glad to have her on board! Also, Ebele (Ms_Isioma on twitter) was on hand to help and she, as always, did a fantastic job.
Quick highlights of what went on:
- We set up a hair clinic with a real doctor, taking on hair and scalp issues. This was a big success, yay for us!
- Vendors selling various hair and skin products. We even had OhSo Nutrition there with their amazing smoothies.
- Hair talks for those interested in maintaining their hair with adequate information for every one, even those that have locs.
- Lots of hair admiration, networking and knowledge swapping.
Unfortunately, we forgot all about the product swap but we won’t next time!
I love NITC because it is such a relaxed atmosphere! How many other places can you go where not wearing a scrap of makeup on your face does not make you stand out? The women are so nice to each other! Also, I have made friends at the meet ups that have transitioned to other aspects of my life.
Okay, enough words, here are the pictures!! I took 483 pictures (yes o!) so it took me a while to distill this down to the 50+ pictures you see here.
P.S: We had a few signs and asked people to pick out the ones that best described them. It was such fun!
As promised, here is more information about the 9th edition of our Lagos Natural Hair meet up! It is the last one of the year so we are going to make it count! Our theme this time is Maintaining Hair Length!
By now, you have seen the pictures and read the gist, but have you seen the Clip from Ebonylife TV? If you were unable to catch it when it aired last week Friday, here it is now.
Thanks to Arit of EbonyLife TV and her crew for being there and for uploading it for those of us that don’t have access to DSTV.
See if you can spot me!! This my anonymous status is going to the dogs sha, lol!
The Naturals in Paradise in Calabar, meet up was this past Saturday. To say that I was immensely pleased with the entire event is an understatement. Even the one disappointment for me (the Natural Nigerian products did not get to Calabar on time) was not enough to cloud over what a success the meet up was.
Not only did I get to finally eat locally prepared White soup, Afang and Ekpang Nkukwo, I met up with the natural/healthy hair community there – yes, relaxed hair people can also be on a healthy hair journey alongside naturals.
Ekene of The Kink & I , my fellow organizer, was absolutely amazing. She literally handed out flyers on the road and made all the arrangements for the meet up. The success of the meet up was largely due to her. She also took really good care of me, making sure that I got the food I wanted to eat, saw the sights I wanted to see.
We began late. It rained quite a bit so people did not arrive early. However, when we did start, our lovely compere, Lucy (who came all the way from Eket, Akwa Ibom!), got the crowd started by asking them to share their natural hair stories – why they went natural and how they achieved the style they were sporting.
I have alluded to the mega giveaways at NITC8 from our vendors. Now is the time to reveal them in all their glory!
Just to digress a teeny weeny bit, let me explain how things will go when you register at the meet up.
You will receive a ticket which has a number on it. Please keep this carefully as we will retain a stub which we will put into a raffle. We will draw from this raffle to determine the winners of the giveaways. We will begin to do this early on in the meet up as we have quite a bit to give away!
Now, on to the prizes you can expect to win that day.
Apples & Oranges is “The first Salon and Spa in Nigeria that Provides “One Stop Spa Experience for the Entire Family”. They have a salon specifically for Natural Hair and I have been there one more than one occasion to get my hair done, my daughter’s hair done. Even my sister has gotten her hair done there.
Apples & Oranges will have stylists from their Natural Hair Salon there to style your hair, completely free of charge.
All you need to claim this prize is to show up to the meet up with your hair washed and ready for styling.
Please have realistic expectations. Don’t expect micro twists or styles that will take a very long time to achieve.
O’Naturals Beauty was established by three sisters to meet the demands of women who require natural products, hair and body care. They have a Salon in Ogudu, Lagos.
They are offering a free wash and Deep Conditioning treatment at their salon.
Owned by the lovely Kemi Lewis, KL’s Natural Beauty Bar is a salon and store in Dolphin Estate, Ikoyi.
KL’s Natural Bar is offering One Shea Radiance product trial set PLUS a huge bow up-do using Marley Hair. Here’s a picture of Kemi, sporting the style!
Awwni Organics is a A 100% Natural Shea Butter-Based Bath & Body Care Products Company. They have products ranging from soaps to body butters. As you can see from the flyer above, they are going to be launching their new soap – Palm Oil and Papaya at the NITC8 Meet Up. There are offering up a 20 of these soaps.
To win: First 20 people who buy from the Aweni stall gets a free bar of their Palm Oil and Papaya Exfoliating Soap.
Sahara Sunrise has been making natural hair and skin products for years. They will be giving away Bath Bombs which are excellent for relaxation therapy. Don’t have a bath tub? A bucket will do just fine. They have Moringa Leaf and Tamanu Oil Bath Bombs, Chocolate Bath Bombs and Calendula Bath Bombs.
African Naturalista needs no introduction. A fellow blogger and owner of her own brand of cosmetics, ‘Ilola who owns African Naturalista offers a bottle each of
Black Moisturizing Natural Shampoo
One Moisturizing and Detangling Conditioner
They have been making products for a few years and if you have never gotten to try them, this will be a good opportunity to get in on the action.
Makers of Black Soap, Body Butters and more, Namaste Organics have diversified recently and started making hair products. If you win, you can try their
Leave in conditioner
Aloe Vera spritz
To win: Your ticket qualifies you.
Natural Nigerian
Ah! You didn’t think we wouldn’t participate, did you? You win a N10,000 gift voucher which you can use in our Ahia.
To win: Our giveaway is actually ongoing and you can get details on how to enter here.
UPDATE: Fashion Strings, retailer of pretty much every hair accessory you could need plus more is offering a giveaway too.
To win: Buy goods worth N2000 from the Fashion Strings Stand and take anything off the stand completely free!
Phew!! Finally done. As you can see, there is quite a bit to be won. And this on top of things to learn at the meet up. What can I say, Naturals in the City Meet Ups always pack a wallop! If you are in Lagos, you have many many reasons to want to be there. We were one of the first Natural Hair meet ups in Lagos, Nigeria and we hope to be around for a long time.
As promised earlier, here is a bit more information as to what to expect at the Naturals In The City 8, Lagos Natural Hair Meet Up.
A little difficult to believe that this is just the eight one, right? Seems like we have been at it for quite a while.
Who is invited?
Anyone really. You don’t need to have Natural Hair to be let in. Our focus is helping ladies get on a Healthy Hair Journey and providing them the resources to see them through. So please come if you are relaxed, a weave queen or just curious. We welcome everyone!
Vendors
Already many vendors have confirmed that they will be there Namaste Organics, African Naturalista, Sahara Sunrise, Aweni Organics, Accessories by Didi, Ajali, Nazuri Curls, Kalos Health and Beauty….to name a few. They will have available natural products that will help you along on your healthy hair and skin journey. Natural Hair and Skin Products all in one place. Some even proudly made right here in Nigeria.
Wondering who the guest speakers will be?
I don’t want to let the cat out of the bag, but I will let you in on a sneak peek!
Wondrous, who own La Poshe Salon in V/I and has many many years of experience under her belt will be leading a discussion on Coloring Hair Safely. This is an important topic because while a lot of ladies would love to color their hair, they are a bit scared about how to do it without ending up with lots of damage.
There will be at least three more speakers – one of whom is a experienced stylist with a Natural Hair Salon on the Mainland. Practical sessions will be in place as well.
Product Swap
We tried this at NITC7 and it went so well, we have decided to do it again at NITC 8! It is very simple. Bring any products you don’t want and swap it with items that may wish to try. The success of the swap depends on people bringing in their products, so bring those products in!
Get your hair done free!
Yes, you read right. Apples & Oranges will have a couple of stylists at the meet up and they will be there to style your hair. Free! If you do not know about Apples & Oranges, know that they have a Natural Hair Salon in Victoria Island. Plus an amazing spa!
Nothing as complicated as micro braids of course, but as long as you turn up with your washed and ready for styling, they will go to work on your hair for FREE! It will be on a first come, first served basis so get there on time.
How come there is a gate fee?
I had said that we were considering charging for the event and we will start doing that with this one. While we thoroughly enjoy putting on a good quality show so that you are comfortable and happy, it comes at some cost. So that we do not have to dip into our pockets to do this, we ask that you support us by paying a N500 gate fee.
When you pay your gate fee, you will receive a ticket which allows you to enter into a giveaway – there are many amazing gifts to win! I will put up a post before the meet up, letting you know what those giveaway prizes will be exactly.
Hopefully, you will agree that our meet up will be worth the N500 gate fee. We thank you in advance for supporting us.
Giveaway
Now, on to the first giveaway. This is open to anyone in Nigeria. Help us spread the word and we will give you a N10000 voucher to spend in the Ahia NN and more.
Rules
Repost the flyer on this Page on social media, tag Natural Nigerian and you gain one entry- Twitter(naturalnigerian), Instagram (nnigerian), Facebook (naturalnigerian). The more entries you post, the more your chances of winning. It is important to tag us each time as that is the only way it counts.
Tweet a link to this post = 2 entries.
Posting on your blog (remember to mail us a link) = 5 entries. Mail links to nn@naturalnigerian.com
There are no limits to how many times you can enter!!
We will close the giveaway on the 28th of June by noon and announce a winner by Tuesday, 1st July.
Prizes
A N10,000 voucher that you can spend as you like in the Ahia NN. Full access to all items that are in stock!
Top five taggers will be entered into all the giveaways at the meet up whether they attend or not. This is fantastic for out of state entrants.
Good Luck all!
Want to see pictures of past meet ups? Go here, here, here…there’s a lot more but let’s stop there.
Last week, I was in Abuja for the Capital Naturals 3, Natural Hair Meet Up. I love how beautiful Abuja is and was very excited to be back there. I was also quite curious to see how far the natural hair community had come along there.
The very first meet up we had in Abuja, there were several ladies in attendance who came with weaves, braids and twists and the rallying cry was “My hair is natural under this!” a clear indication that
They did not know how to handle their natural hair
There was no real support – salons, products e.t.c
I am glad to say that at this meet up, that had changed significantly. I am also aware that there are at least four dedicated natural hair salons in Abuja and now lots more vendors selling products that are natural hair friendly. Progress, no?
Our chosen venue, Baytown Lounge, Apo was lovely. The staff were very friendly and helpful. They quickly re-purposed one of their air conditioned indoor lounges so that our attendees would have a place to sit and listen to the talks. This was amazing of them as it meant that we did not have to sit outdoors in the heat – Abuja is hot o! When we realized that the canopy we rented for vendors was not sufficient, they brought some of theirs out of storage, set it up and even supplied us chairs. The compound is H.U.G.E and so we were not wanting for space outdoors where the shopping was taking place.
We did not start on time, mainly because a lot of people came late. For some, this was because they had some difficulty finding the venue. Well, nothing to fear! We are going to continue with this venue for some time so the hassle is a one time thing only
And then it began – Our beautiful and funny compere, did a really good job getting people to talk about themselves and their unique hair journey. One of the ladies she asked to speak was actually all the way relaxed. I was quite glad that she had come for the event as we do not discriminate.
After the ice-breaking discussion, the hair talks began. It was started off by Farida of Lumos Naturals Salon, Gwarinpa speaking about Ayurvedic powders and how they can be beneficial for growing healthy hair.
This was followed up by Natural Mane of Deep, Brown & Kinks taking participants through tips on managing their hair during Rainy Season. She threw in some tips as well.
The third speaker was moi! I spoke on Healthy Hair NOW! My message was essentially tailored towards healthy practices and regimens that would help one achieve healthy hair. I stressed that only healthy hair can give sustainable length.
Kiki of Keeks Therapy gave a talk as well, tackling things from a health perspective. She’s a pharmacist with a fully functional pharmacy in Jabi, so she knows her stuff. Unfortunately, I do not have a clear picture of her giving her talk.
When the talks were done, people started walking back to the vendor area. See how much space we had? It was slightly ridiculous. I love that about Baytown Lounge!
Okay, let’s do some hair ogling. That, after all, is what most people go to meet ups to do! Don’t deny it!
Dear Lizzy! Where do I begin from? She came all the way from Jalingo in Taraba State to attend the meet up AND it was her birthday! She makes me smile.
Pose for the picture now!
Dami Oyedele, check out her blog: http://t.co/7U1VXc2Yb8
Absolutely loved her hair style!
This lady showed up with threading. Loved it! Doesn’t she look good? I really hope this catches on. It is one of the best things you can do for your hair.
Mdeevan and Avana
While I was busy running around to make sure that the event was going well, this chic right here took a lot of the pictures here. She very kindly gave them to me to share. Follow her on twitter. She also slyly took pictures of me when she thought I wasn’t looking.
As always, we had vendors at the meet up. Here are a few pictures. I loved that they were selling things that were different – one from the other. I particularly liked the fact that there were a lot of items there that were locally made. #BuyNigerian.
And that about sums it up! I had a delightful time and I am so grateful that we had such a good turn out – while I was giving my talk, I saw that not everyone had a seat and some were standing. That is something we will definitely address. At the next meet up. Later this year!
I absolutely love how the Nigerian Hair community is shaping up and these Natural hair meet ups we hold in Nigeria really help us see the progress we make.
Want to make sure you get your favorite products at the Capital Naturals 3, Abuja meet up before they run out? Pre-Order! More details below.See you there!
