When I first received the package containing Jamaican Mango & Lime products I was so ecstatic. I admit I use to be a product junky, but attending college leaves me little to no room for experimentation with different products for my hair. When opening the box, I didn’t know where to start there were so many products I was overwhelmed! I decided to test some of the products previous to the shoot to see the results depending on the combination.  Looking over the Jamaican Mango and Lime colorful website and even the products, I noticed the product creators in the division of the Rastagroup, aimed for great twist and even locs maintenance. After reviewing the website, I realized that despite the fact that communities have  became progressive with natural hair care and products, we lack creating great products for people with locs and those who like to wear their twists majority of the time.

To style my hair for this shoot I used several products from this line, 6 to be exact! Some people may think that using so many products for one style is crazy but trust me there is a method to my madness! When products ‘ directions usually say, “Use a dime size”, it is nothing but a joke and my hand is drenched with product. With the Jamaican Mango & Lime products I truly only needed to use a dime size to achieve the looks in my shoots.

~Tutorial on Jamaican Mango & Lime Products~

1. Using the “Jamaican Mango & Lime Island Oil” I put a couple of droplets onto my finger tips, then massaged into my scalp.
2. Next I sprayed my hair with a little bit of water mixed with oils (my own DIY)
3. I next sealed my ends with the “Jamaican Mango & Lime Black Castor Oil with Rosemary” (I love how rosemary smells!)
4.  I sectioned my hair and detangled using  between a quarter size and dime for each section detangled. (Amount depended on the section of my hair since parts of my hair tangle easily)
5. Next I put in the “Jamaican Mango & Lime Coiling Crème pudding” coating each section of my hair. (I used this to enhance my curls for when I untwisted my hair for my shoot)
6. Lastly, while two strand twisting my hair I dipped my fingertips in the “Jamaican Mango & Lime Resistant Formula Locking Gel” for great hold and frizz control.
7. *I used the “Jamaican Mango & Lime No More Itch Gro Spray” to help refresh my curls after I undid the twists and to fluff up my hair*

~Inspiration for the shoot~

Lime themed Shoot:

My first idea was to use limes by making them into a necklace. With a TON of trial and errors of cutting the limes to the perfect size and trying to keep it in the right placement, I finally got the “lime” necklace I was dreaming of doing! I left my hair in twists to showcase how well these products work for maintaining and moisturizing the twists throughout the day.

Yellow Dress themed:

For my yellow dress pictures, I wanted to take my hair out to see how well the combination as well as “Jamaican Mango & Lime Coiling Crème pudding” worked well with defining my hair. As I began undoing my twists, I noticed that the definition in my twist out was amazing! Probably the first time, with no frizz, tangles, and for once I achieved “two day” hair after the shoot! During these shoots I wanted to show the diversity in the products. They can not only work on dreads and two strand twists, but those who want a great twist out or braid out with amazing definition. I think that showing that a product can achieve multiple looks is a great way of reeling in consumers. I showcase the products in a bag I actually used to carry all my items in for the shoot, besides aesthetics, I wanted to represent that these products are easily portable and the choice for any natural girl traveling or on the go. 

Mango themed:

For this shoot I noticed on some of the products possessed a drawing of a person with locks with their hair spread out to the side. Even though, I don’t have locs so I wanted to try my best to copy the wild coolness of the dreads by letting my hair be a little wild and pulled into a draping styled at the top. I also wanted to make use of the limes that I butchered so I made them into earrings to truly represent “Mango & Lime” colors and products.

For my shoots, I wanted to truly take into consideration the judge’s constructive criticism as well as let my creativity shine through! Looking at the Jamaican Mango & Lime Products, I noticed the bright warm colors representing the Jamaican flag, I wanted to showcase the products and emulate it with my clothes and props for the shoot.

Photography Credits: Steven Mercure www.smercure.com

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