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Continued from previous two posts… 
After all of this, I stumbled across an email on an Ethiopian adoption group that recommended the products by Carol’s Daughter. I checked out the site and was a bit overwhelmed at all of the choices, and I admit I was impressed by the recommendation by Brad Pitt (they have a quote by him that he and Angelina use these products for their daughter from Ethiopia).
In the end I chose a few products that I thought would be good for hair and scalp. The products are more expensive than the Motions and Kids Organics stuff, but cheaper than the Miss Jessie products. (Lots of the products are between $10 and $16). The bottles are much smaller though…most of them are about 4 oz., although like the others, a little goes a long way). I believe all of the Carol’s Daughter products are completely natural, and have no mineral oil or petroleum.
The Hair Milk came highly recommended. It has a very strong and flowery scent which I am not crazy about, but you can’t argue with how fabulous it made Belane’s hair feel. It is great stuff. However, it didn’t do much for her scalp, and within a day or two we were back to itchy and scratchy.
There were a few other products we got and sent back because we did not like the scent at all (Marguerite’s Magic is one of them) but we did find the PERFECT hair product for Belane.
Carol’s Daughter’s Hair Balm has been our solution. It is almost like a cross between an oil and a lotion…it gets into her scalp and moisturizes it as well as the oil, but absorbs better into the hair and doesn’t leave her hair greasy or oily. It has a unique scent…it is definitely not girlie or flowery. It took me a little while to get used to it, but now I really like it. It keeps Belane’s curls hydrated, soft and darling, and best of all it keeps her scalp VERY happy…no flakes, no dry spots…it looks great! Jada Pinkett Smith also recommends this product on the website.
So, there is our rundown of hair product experiences. Whew!
Keep in mind that since Ethiopian kids and African American kids and Haitian kids can all have such a range of hair textures, what works for one family or even for one child, won’t necessarily work for another.
I would love product recommendations if you have any, and I’d love to hear your experiences.
My hair has been natural for years and I am a strong advocate for the use of organic hair products and for products that shun petroleum and mineral oil. Finding the right match can be exhausting, however, and I applaud you on such a thoough search. I’ve heard great things about Carol’s daughter on natural hair care websites and have been considering buying their products from my spa (it’s AA owned) or from their website…this blog topic is yet another nudge for me to do so.
Thanks for the comment! I recommend checking out the Miss Jessie’s website http://www.missjessies.com
Like I said, their products do have the two no-no’s, but the site has tons of great tips for natural styles and care.
Thanks again for reading, and if you try the Carol’s daughter, please let me know what you think.
E
Erin,
Oh, I really don’t know what I am talking about here, but as I was reading I was wondering if it is possible that Belane’s scalp will get better with time . . . as her nutrition has surely improved with her move home. (keep us posted if you notice anything like that . . . please)
Thanks Jen, I do think you are right…we are also hoping that once she has been on her meds a little longer that her body will be stronger and able to “fight” that better. I will let you know.
thanks again,
E
I love Carol’s Daughter’ ingredients, but I also have major issues with most of the scents. The hair milk smells good to me when I first put it on, but later all I can smell is the lemon grass and it makes me think of Thai food (which I love, but not in hair). ;o)
It’s funny that you found you prefer the Baby Buttercream to the Curly Pudding, because I had just the opposite experience!
) The Baby Buttercream definitely smells better, but I was able to get the most adorable twist-outs on Cora with the Pudding. I love it! It just goes to show there’s no one perfect hair product for everyone. 
)
Erin- I have to admit I was so excited to see this topic as it is so scary to me. Do you find a difference with boys and girls. As we are waiting for an infant son I am unsure of what kinds of products I should be looking for. Have you found a difference with infants and toddlers?
Thanks! JillF
Speaking of nutrition, and I have no idea whether it would work for Belane…
But on the Yahoo Adoption Hair & Skincare group, I was just reading yesterday that a mom said that she’d begun giving her daughter a half teaspoon of lemon-flavored cod liver oil she’d found in a health food store each day, and it really made a difference in the condition of her skin, requiring far less moisturizer than before.
I wonder if it could help with Belane’s scalp?
Just a thought.
I just ordered some products from Carol’s Daughter. My daughter is always asking for curls, but all the products we have tried so far just produce puff. Thanks for the recommendation.
Erin,
I love this post, between you and Mary I am armed with great hair advice. BabyGirl’s hari is the same, very dry scalp but her hair is too soft to absorb the oily products. I am sure her hair will change (I think it will, maybe not…) but for now I needed a nice “inbetween” product. The price of both Carols Daughter and Miss Jessie’s has been off putting….. I am glad to get some more rec’s.
Look at that Marcus. He is so big!! He and Belane have the same little twinkle in their eye.
Oh yeah, one more thing… I appreciate the boy hair info.. I am going to try Burt’s Bees. I am going to grow Cubby’s hair out this year and try loc’s and needed something that will keep his scalp moisturized.
That blanket that Belane is wearing in the picture is the same one we bought for BabyGirl when she came home to us. It has the bright colors that remind us of her first home and it is so pretty. I loved seeing it on YOUR little girl too.
Because you asked:
My son had the most terrible cradle cap when he came home. Incredibly awful. The dr. office recommended baby oil.. which just made it worse. Huge flakes.
I tried things from beauty stores, health stores, natural food stores. 2 options from Walmart had scents that literally made me nauseous. Some of the herbal oils and cremes have ingredients that made me break out (allergies).
The winner – Organic Root Stimulator’s Olive Oil creme. It moisturizes his scalp, with no flakes, and leaves his tight curls brush/combable.
I’ve continued to try other products, and a few months ago his hair was miserable to comb and his scalp was drying out – I thought we needed a new product – but I realized that the Olive Oil had run out and using only the other products didn’t cut it. I bought another tub, and things are happy.
We leave Sat. to bring home 3 from Ethiopia – the adventure begins to find what works for them.
Bek,
That is too cool that we picked the same blankets. All of kids have gotten a Gymboree blanket as a baby/toddler and that is the one I picked for Belane. She loves it. Also, I don’t know that Burts Bees would be good in long hair, but it is great on the scalp (it is sold as skin lotion). Carol’s Daughter sells a loc butter that is supposed to be really good.
Sandee (3+4) Thanks so much for the recommendation. That does sound great. How does it smell?
And CONGRATS on the new three! How exciting you are traveling!!! have an awesome time. How old are your new kids?
Jill, A lot is going to depend on your child’s hair…typically their hair changes as they get older, but it all varies so much. I wouldn’t buy much until you get your baby home and see what his hair is like and what you need from a product.
Jen, I have heard of the cod liver oil, but Belane already gets so much meds I can’t make myself give her anything else. If it doens’t clear up though over the next few months I may try it. Thanks for the recommendation.
Nohe 5- To try and get curls, the Miss Jessies might be your best bet. I know quite a few people who have gotten great results with their products and instructions on “twist outs”. They have lots of info on the web site.
Thanks every body for the comments.
E
My daughter Grace (16 mos) is having the exact same issues you are describing. She was doing fine, but once winter weather hit, all heck broke loose! I am SUPER sensitive to smells, so that makes it a little harder to choose products. Can you try to describe the smell of the Carol’s Daughter Hair Balm a little more thoroughly? It really seems like our girls have the same hair type, so this product would probably work really well. I just need to be careful about the smell. Thanks!
Blaine
Good old-fashioned jojoba oil works wonders on black hair (my husband, who is Ethiopian also uses it). You should also take a look at some of the products made by Kiehl’s – it’s kind of expensive, but nice. Also, if you can find it Kuzaa makes great products.
Our sweet Jack has kind of sparse looking, dry hair so I’m thinking I need to invest in better hair care products. I’ll check out the Carol’s Daughter options for him. I got jealous this weekend when we were at a party with lots of Ethiopian kids and so many of them had goregous hair! My mother in law uses Miss Jessie’s curly pudding on her hair and loves it (she’s not AA – her hair stylist recommended it for her curls). I was really impressed with their website, the tips and the before and after photos!
Katie
I really like the blended-cutie products. I use them on my bi-racial boys and I am hoping that they work with our daughters hair (she will be joining our family from Ethiopia in about a month)
http://www.blended-beauty.com/Blended-Cutie.html
Thanks for the recommendations ladies! I have never heard of Kiehls or Blended Cutie before…I liked the Blended Cutie stuff so much I ordered some… I post an update and review it once we use it for a few days.
E
Are you washing her hair every day? Washing everyday may be too much for her hair/scalp and causing the dryness.