Proudly Nigerian Cartoon for the kids – Bino and Fino

A while ago, I spoke to Adamu Waziri about Bino and Fino, his educational cartoon aimed at children. In the current market climate that is Nigeria, it is laudable that this young man is not only following his passion but is being ethical about choosing sponsors.

If you have not already seen clips, follow this link to view clips of Bino and Fino on the web. You can also buy DVDs for friends and family (fantastic Christmas gifts).

If you ask me, what I like the most about Bino and Fino is the fact that it is African - we are quickly introduced to Bino and Fino's extended family - they eat local food, celebrate African holidays and speak with an African accent. Lastly, Bino has a big, bouncy AFRO which she secures together in two buns! My daughter has a DVD and I have gifted children around me with the same, putting my money where my mouth is.

Here's what Adamu had to say when I asked him a few questions.

When did you absolutely know that this was something that you were going to do?

I would say 2009 was when everything crystallized and I decided to go for it. Up till then Bino and Fino was just an idea which had been bouncing in my head and I was scared to implement. In fact I didn’t even have a name for the show then. I just knew I wanted to do a genuine animated cartoon show for children. I also knew I wanted the production to be done entirely in Nigeria. Beyond that it was just a void. The Bino and Fino show was developed out of that void. Even though it has been tough I am glad I made the decision to pursue this project.

I am sure that you have had some highs and some lows with this project. Please share them with us.

The highs come in different ways. The fact that we were the first to actually produce an educational children’s animation DVD in Nigeria and then bring it to market was a high for me. We had to go through a lot to achieve that. Another high is more important to me. That is the reaction of parents and children to the show. When a parent gets in touch with us to let us know the positive effect the show has had on their kids it gives me more fuel to push ahead past the lows. At the end of the day that is what Bino and Fino is about. Educating and entertaining kids.

The lows are those I’m sure many businesses face in Nigeria. These include lack of funding, infrastructure etc. As we produce a media product we are also susceptible to piracy and other distribution problems. There are also several sponsorship deals we’ve missed out on due to politics within organisations.

Please click here to ...continue reading →

Christmas offer from Ahia Natural Nigerian

From now until the 20th of December (when we close for the year), take 15% off all items in the NN Ahia. As long as it is in stock when you pay, it is yours!

To facilitate your order being processed quickly, please send your

name
address and
phone number

to orders@naturalnigerian.com for an invoice. This offer closes at 1400hrs, 20th December 2013. If you have not paid for your items by that time, you will not qualify. Also, you must quote CHRISTMAS15 for the discount.

This is limited to people ordering direct from our Ahia and does not cover ordering from our affiliates or shops that carry Ahia NN products. That means that even if you are in Adamawa, as long as you buy from our shop, you are covered by the discount.

We will be shipping everyday this week to make sure that you get your orders on time.

Tell a friend or 4!

Please note that the price for Cocoa Butter is now N1500 for 500g.

Lagos Natural Hair Meet Up – Naturals In the City 7 – In Pictures • 12 Comments

The quarterly Natural Hair Meet Up in Lagos, NITC, held on the 30th of November. This was the 7th edition. It was very well attended...as usual and I loved meeting new people, catching up with my usual folks and ogling hair 'dos. I apologize greatly to those who did not find seats (at a point it was full inside where the hair workshop was taking place AND full in the garden where the vendors were set up). From a numbers perspective, we hit an all time high! Thank you!

I took so many many pictures that it has been tough choosing which will make it to the blog as well as annotating them all. I believe I have over 60 pictures here which is a lot!

Special thanks to Ebele for taking charge of the Product Swap Segment. Tope Jobi of Chez Moi and Hadassah for leading the discussion after the viewing of the Kickin' It with the Kinks documentary. Cynthia and Mundia of KIWTK for trusting us to do a good job of showing their video. Bunmi Roberts of Tunmise Natural Hair Salon for donating 3 lovely (high quality) T-shirts for the giveaway. Nneka E. for facilitating things. Lolo for helping me out when I was getting pulled in a million different directions! Lanre Kosoko for gifting me with a Rich Coffee Body Scrub and Whipped Cocoa Butter.

Lastly, thank you to all those that literally travelled to be there. Yes, there were people there from Iju, Abeokuta and Ife. I had a fantastic time and I hope you did too!

This is Sherese. Co-host of NITC7

In Session Say Cheese She styled her hair Smile Chic Protective Style 2

To view more pictures. please ...continue reading →

Grocery Shopping with Natural Nigerian • 18 Comments

L-R: 70% Lindt Chocolate, Eggs, Salted Butter, Empty Jars, Bones, Frozen Vegetables.

Since embarking on a natural and healthier lifestyle, I have found that several habits have changed. An important one is how I shop. The most dramatic change would have to be that my shopping trolley is a lot emptier when I shop at the supermarket, and the happiest change is that I spend less making myself ill.

Hardly any biscuits, candies, artificial juice and other non-natural things find their way to my basket. I say hardly because, let us be real, from time to time I will sneak it some things. However, even the things that are snuck in are inherently healthier than they would have been before. An example is chocolate. I honestly cannot remember the last time I bought a Twix or Bounty Bar.

I would rather buy a Lindt excellence bar that is at least 70% dark chocolate. As a matter of fact, I picked these up because my daughter asked for them. I know that most children prefer sweeter chocolate bars, but my daughter has learned to love these ones.

Bones are very important to me. I buy them and boil them for stock. The stock is a base for most of my cooking and helps me achieve tasty meals. At less than N200 a bag, that is a steal. There are also many benefits of using bone marrow stock from cellulite reduction to an all round healthier body. I may have to get to it in another post.

I buy frozen veggies as they allow me an easy way to instantly upgrade a meal. I put it in everything. Noodles, rice, pasta, beans. If I can boil it, I can vegetalize it (yes, I just made up a word). Frozen vegetables are purportedly about as nutrient rich as fresh vegetables so I always make sure that there is a bag in the freezer.

Now, butter. Hmmm. I do not like eating bread. Even more so since I have just found out that it blocks my pipes (if you know what I mean). However, I have a weakness for butter. So I eat bread to get my butter fix. I only allow myself this 200g pack every other month or so - that is the equivalent of about 12 slices of bread as I pack it on thick. Yes, my weakness.

The glass jars are there because I constantly need containers for my various DIY hobbies. The bigger glass jar now holds moisturizing leave in conditioner for my daughter and I.

So that is it. Please share what you buy with me.

NITC7 – Flyer • 11 Comments

The 7th edition of the Meet Up is here! This is a P.A.C.K.E.D edition. Phew! Let me attempt to start breaking it down.

Click to enlarge. Please feel free to share!

The theme of NITC7 is Protective Styling which is very important for retaining length and growing healthy hair. Get ready to learn about protective styles and getting tips for caring for hair while it is protectively styled.

In our tradition of taking things up a notch, we are pleased to announce that we will be screening Cynthia Bature's much talked about Kickin' It With The Kinks documentary. After the screening we can have a bit of a chin wag about what we have seen. I know that there will be lots of opinions and can't wait to hear them all! Come, watch with an open mind. We present this alongside Tope Jobi of Chez Moi Apartments.

If you have ever been curious about Ayurvedic treatments for your hair, you definitely attend NITC7 as there will be whole segment dedicated to explaining how to achieve healthier hair using Ayurvedic herbs. These herbs and the Ayurvedic practices have been long used by Indians to grow and maintain their long, shiny hair. The actual herbs will also be on sale at the venue.

Have I ever mentioned that one of my pet peeves having make-up applied by most professional Make Up Artists (MUA) in Nigeria is the fact that they are not very hygienic about it? I have literally only ever met just one MUA who uses a disposable brush to apply Mascara and disinfects other things as she goes along. The rest just use the very same brush on everyone else *cringeworthy*. I have invited this New-York trained MUA to come over and share a few tips on how to apply make-up hygienically and also what you should expect your professional MUA to do for you. Benefits to you? Seriously reduced risk of infections and skin diseases.

It doesn't end there! For the first time ever, there will be a Product Swap segment. I am lucky to have Ms Isioma handle it. Inspiration for this segment came from Hadassah. Thank you, ladies! It is easy, if you have a product that you no longer want you can bring it along and if someone else brings something you want to try, exchange it for that. You get a new product with no money involved.

As always, there is no criteria for entry so your hair can be relaxed, texturized or all chopped off. All are welcome and equally respected. Don’t let anyone tell you otherwise. We are all about Healthy Hair.

Directions to the NITC7 venue, the amazing Omenka Gallery can be found here. I can't wait to see what exhibition they will have set up that day.

Entry is free although I feel that it is important to mention that the next NITCs may not be. It costs quite a bit of money, time and other resources to put these meet ups together and if we are to continue to put out good quality meet ups as well as attract the right sort of speakers, we may need to compensate them. I actually think that we are the only long term Natural Hair Meet Up that allows free entry in the entire world. For real. Check on it. If we do decide to charge, it will not be costly at all. Just a token fee.

See you there and don’t forget to bring a friend or 3! And please, walk up and introduce yourself and say hello - I will have a tag on with Natural Nigerian written on it! I love meeting people at the Meet ups and look forward to meeting you!

The hidden dangers of Packet Juice – Capri-Sonne • 20 Comments

I received a disturbing email a few days ago and just had to share it.

To summarize, a child began vomiting and complaining of a stomach ache and was lucky enough to have vigilant minders and parents who quickly linked it to the Capri Sonne she had been drinking. There was biological matter (most likely mold) in it - black , white and thoroughly disgusting. I need to point out that the parents had done their due diligence by buying a batch that had not expired. In fact, the expiration date was set for June 2014.

I shudder to think of what the outcome would have been if this child had drank more of the juice. She did not even finish an ~6oz pack when she started vomiting.

This is what the juice looked like. Naturally, this is not anything a parent would feed a child if (s)he had seen it.

Tainted by Biological Matter

There are lessons we can all take away from here.

Give your children juice you prepare yourself. It is healthier and you can whiz up something quickly if you have the right equipment. As a working mum, I know that packet juices are easier but easier is not always really easier, if you know what I mean.
If you must drink packet juice or eat anything out of a can, pour it out so that you can see what you are drinking/eating.
Move away from processed foods as much as you can. It is still possible to prepare most things from scratch, quickly. The time you would have saved not doing so may not be equated to time spent in hospital due to the associated illnesses that can occur – obesity, hypertension, diabetes. We all know that processed foods have been linked to these and more.
Spread this information and get your child's schools involved too.

To see the original email (which was written by the child’s mother), please keep reading. This story was confirmed to me by someone that knows the child’s mother personally so it is authentic. There are also more pictures if you read more.

...continue reading →

Stylespiration • 4 Comments

A lot of what what we do these days is inspired by our ancestors.

I found the picture on the left over 2 years and was amazed at how the style had been translated into something modern. I am pretty certain that our modern girl did not use palm oil and charcoal on her hair, thus the softer, more temporary style.

Another interesting point is that the style on the left supposedly denoted high status - not just any Igbo maiden would rock this style. Now, just about anyone can rock it.

Of course, the fact that the lady from the 19th century was Igbo drew my attention. Especially as we appear to be learning this style now from African Americans and not our mothers directly. (Before I am shot down for being politically incorrect, I do know that there are African Americans of Igbo descent - not trying to make a political statement here).

Is there any ancient beauty practice you know of that has found its way down to our generation?

Things I am loving this month – November 2013 • 8 Comments

After reading tons of reviews about this product - the spiralizer - I decided to get one for myself. While there is currently no danger of me going on a raw food diet - this Nigerian still likes her cooked meats - between my daughter and I, we put away quite a lot of veggies so adding this handy device to my collection was a no-brainer.

So far, I have to admit that I have not used it as much as I could have, but at the times that I did, I was able to come up with a salad in minutes. It is easy to clean and not as easy to cut oneself on as the mandolin (I have one nasty experience with a mandolin under my belt).

All in all, I love the spiralizer because of all the potential it holds. Veggies as quick meals. Easy to clean. Does not require electricity - an important feature in Nigeria. Go here for a short video showing the spiralizer helping to make healthy meals and here for even more recipes.

For those that are looking to purchase it locally. I bought this abroad and not in Nigeria, I do not know where to buy it from here. If you do, please share!

Thinking about making this (Things I am loving this month) a feature every month. What do you think?

My hair now – October 2013 • 21 Comments

I am often asked if I do length checks and also how long my hair is. The answer is that I do not do length checks. They are really not that important to me as I am more focused on healthy hair than "lengthy hair" (had to make that rhyme, somehow). I know that it is possible to have a balanced view, but I am not one of those that do.

A few months ago, Nat. Mane worked her magic on my hair and I took a picture. So for those that asked, this is what my hair looks like now (well, approximately 2 months ago).

I will write another post detailing what Nat. Mane did. Later.

P.S - If you would like me to do more of these, let me know.

Health Store in Lagos – Fig Health Store • 16 Comments

This is NOT a sponsored post and I did not get any free products for doing this post.

A few weeks ago, I went to Fig Store in Lekki. I daresay it is the first dedicated health store in Lagos. All the items have been picked out to support a natural and healthy lifestyle.

Their offerings range from cosmetics to vitamins. Grains to sweeteners and much more.

I got talking to the owner of the store, Bimbo, and asked her why she had decided to open the store. Apparently, her husband (and by extension the entire family) had to undergo a lifestyle change due to some medical issues. That was when she discovered how difficult it was to buy certain foods locally. This is something I fully understand as I have friends with autistic children who have to buy E.V.E.R.Y.T.H.I.N.G from candy to milk abroad. Fig Store is helping to bring these foods closer to those who need them locally.

I was also glad to hear that they weren’t stopping there. They have ambitious plans to expand and add even more items to the store.

One of the things that I like about the store is that they offer to whip your shea butter free of charge there. So you can buy your Shea butter, oils and essential oils and have it all whipped and packed up before you leave the store. Free of Charge. Sweet deal, abi? They also mix black soap for you with camwood and more.