Oyin Handmade’s Pomade (for thicker hair),
Vegan Cheese Sauce, and other Favorites This Week!
GoOD Morning to you!
Here’s what I’ve been Loving (and reading, eating, and listening to) this week!
What I’m Reading
The Christmas Letters by Joel Goldsmith
From the cover– “The Christmas Letters is a collection of inspiring words from Joel S. Goldsmith that shine a new spiritual light on the inner joy of the Christmas season. It is a compilation of the December Infinite Way Monthly Letters that the author sent out over the many years of his ministry to his students around the world. Each chapter celebrates an aspect of the universal Christ message of “Christ in us.”
He says, “To understand Christmas Day, then, let us understand clearly that God has planted the seed of Himself in each of us, the seed that springs forth as the fully developed son of God whose mission it is that our lives may be fulfilled, that we may show forth the glory of God which the Master revealed.”
I’m not reading it cover to cover, I just like to flip to a random page and read the message given, and it’s always right on time. I’ve had it for a while and it’s one of my favorite compilations of his work to date. I’d read it in April, or July too, but it’s especially appropriate now that Christmas is rapidly approaching, so that you may understand it on a deeper level. The Son/Sun (in your Heart) has risen. Check out today’s ‘GoOD Mornings with CurlyNikki’ episode on a similar topic!
What I’m Eating
Still vegan, still mostly raw, but also enjoying some re-vamped familiars! My dad made rotel with green chilies and tomatoes whipped into this delicious and simple vegan cheese sauce recipe. The best part is that unlike your standard, store-bought vegan cheeses, the ingredients are recognizable and dang decent-
Raw cashews. Soaked and blended smooth, these act as a thick and creamy base for the cheese sauce.
Potato. Feel free to use any variety! These add bulk to the vegan cheese sauce and contribute a velvety texture.
Carrot. This contributes color and a touch of sweetness. You can substitute in sweet potato or butternut squash, or omit it altogether if you’re in a pinch.
Plant milk. Unsweetened plain cashew or oat milk are my preferred varieties since they tend to be creamy and have a neutral flavor (though this is brand-dependent). Feel free to use any kind of milk you like. In a pinch, you can even sub in plain water.
Onion + garlic powder. These flavors make the vegan cheese sauce taste more savory and well-rounded.
Paprika. Optional but recommended! If you like a touch of spice, add in a pinch of cayenne pepper too.
Lemon juice. Adds a slight tanginess.
Nutritional yeast. This contributes most of the cheesy flavor and umami to the vegan cheese sauce, so don’t skimp on it! You can purchase it at most regular grocery stores nowadays, or order it online.
We use fresh almond milk and add green chili peppers and tomatoes for pizazz and eat with tortilla chips! We’ve also poured it over gluten free noodles (Max’s fave), and broccoli (Nik fave). My dad gets a kick out of saying, “look at me pouring carrots and potatoes on my broccoli!” It looks and tastes like a real cheese dip. Get the full recipe, HERE.
What I’m Loving
Oyin Handmade Burnt Sugar Pomade
I’ve been looking for something to set (twist and bantu knot-outs) my dry and stretched hair with, that’s not water-based and that will leave my hair shiny, fortified/strong, held, and the good kind of weighed down (as I have fine hair but like the look of thicker hair). I need a product that gives these strands some added substance, while not feeling greasy or tacky to the touch. I could feel that old thought creeping in… ‘I need some old school hair grease’, and found myself sitting before Google. I decided to search my own website instead, and found a Holy Grail from 2009. I revisited it over this last week and can’t for the life of me understand how I ever stopped using it. I still had a jar under the sink (that was 3 years old according to my Amazon purchase history) and when I smelled it, I was transported back in time, back in space, to North Carolina, to Washington DC, to the smell of Pampers, Huggies, and 4th of Julys in St. Louis, MO lol.
When I applied it to my hair before bantu knotting the other day, I swear there was a flash of light… a remembrance 😂 a homecoming! I’m so thankful to be BACK! Here’s my original review, and here’s the link to get your own jar! The smell is divine and the castor oil (main ingredient) will help to thicken up your situation (even your edges), if that’s needed! It won’t necessarily make your hair thicker, but it’ll give it a fuller appearance while maybe, actually stimulating new growth (people have much anecdotal success with castor oil in that department), and maintaining your present length (emollients prevent dryness and breakage- so you keep more of the hair you already have). It’s all natural, and butter-based and can be used on your skin, too! Thank me later! I had to thank the old me, too!
From the packaging-
Oyin Handmade Burnt Sugar Pomade Humectant Pomade with Sheen to Shine & Seal your hair| 4 oz
Don’t. Do. Dry hair. Our sugar pomades are petroleum free, sheen-enhancing powerhouses to shine & seal your hair.
They’re the perfect final step over a liquid or cream moisturizer in your natural moisture retention regimen.
Similar in texture to an old school ‘hair grease,’ this completely vegan blend of oils, butters, and veggie waxes acts as humectant and protectant for hair, increasing shine to a high glossy sheen, and locking in moisture.
Contains virgin coconut cream, mango oil, and hempseed oil in a base of nourishing castor oil.
Petroleum free, will NOT block pores! Every oil in this pomade contains essential fatty acids to nourish scalp, and is bio-available to your hair’s strands.
Actually sinks into your hair and skin for a long lasting, non-greasy feeling.
Available in two fragrances – Original warm/sweet Burnt Sugar scent, and delicious fruity Sugar Berries.
amazing shine & control while braiding or twisting
- keeps scalp healthy and ends supple
- Packed with essential fatty acids to nourish scalp, and actually sinks into your hair and skin for a long lasting, non-greasy feeling.
- Brushes nicely into the hairline for a glossy finish
- Adds luster to locks!
HOW TO USE:
Rub between your fingers or palms to soften/liquefy. Use to moisturize scalp, to twist locs, to seal the ends of twists or braids, to polish a pulled-back style or an updo, to add weight to the canopy of your hair, to weigh down flyaways or control frizz, or to create waves on super short cuts.
Store in a cool, dry place.
Ingredients: castor oil, hydrogenated soybean oil, organic virgin coconut oil, mango seed butter, olive oil, unrefined hempseed oil, candelilla wax, cocoa butter, broccoli seed oil, fragrance… and love
Castor Oil: The natural solution to natural hair growth (thicker hair)
What I’m Listening to
How to Be Filled With the Holy Spirit by AW Towzer
Got an hour? I’d suggest you fill it with this. Well, first notice that it’s already filled with Love, that it is Love, and that you’re That, too… but play this Audible in that Love. It’s a transcript from a talk given by AW Towzer. Read this quote for a taste-
“Are you sure you want to be possessed by a spirit other than your own? Even though that spirit be the pure Spirit of God? Even though he be the very gentle essence of the gentle Jesus? Even though he be wisdom personified, wisdom himself? Even though he be as loving as the heart of God?”
And after or before that, check out my interview with spiritual teacher, Moojibaba on Youtube, Apple and Spotify. . I share a bit about my self-inquiry and Divine Love journey, and then he walks me (which means ‘you’!) through The Invitation, a series of simple questions meant to immediately dissolve the one seeking answers, seeking more, seeking ‘next’. He says, “I feel that all beings are destined to wake up, to find God“, and that, “in everyone, the Perfect Self is there, already. It cannot be improved upon. It needs only be discovered.” And in this episode, we do just that, abiding as That, eternally.
I Love you and we’ll cha(n)t soon!
Nik
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