Homemade Fruit Facials for your Summer Glow
The skin on our face is one of the most delicate and sensitive areas of skin on our body. It is vulnerable to all sorts of pollution from the air and damage from the sun as it is quite exposed throughout the day. There are a few important self-care methods that we must undertake in order to keep this skin healthy and smooth, including drinking lots of water, washing the face before we sleep, making sure our bedding is clean, etc. But one of our favourite self-care rituals at Girl Boss this festive season is the fruit facial.
We all know that including fruits in our diet is great for our health, but we don’t all take advantage of how great fruits are for our skin. Fruits are rich in antioxidants, vitamins and minerals that can penetrate the pores to deeply cleanse, detox and replenish the skin. A proper mask treatment only takes up to 30 minutes of your day and the positive effects of it can last all week.
We’ve put together a list of our favourite masks that we experimented with this holiday and have included a step-by-step of how to make them. You can use these to get an outstanding glow at your New Year’s celebration for your best 2019 glow.
Mango

Our tribe knows how much we stan this super-fruit. Our entire hair range contains Mango because it improves the elasticity of hair strands and fosters strength at the roots. It is equally as beneficial for the skin as the beta-carotene in mangoes encourages skin regeneration, which helps reduce acne and is also great for anti-aging.
Ingredients:
- 1 Mango
- 1 tblsp of Plain Yoghurt.
Instructions:
- Peel a Mango and place ¼ of it into a bowl (without the peels).
- Mash it up until it is a thick liquid consistency.
- Add 1 tablespoon of plain yoghurt and mix the contents together.
- Apply it to the skin and relax for 15 minutes.
- Rinse off, dry and moisturize your skin.
Pomegranate

Rich in vitamin C and antioxidants, pomegranate juice can work wonders for your face as it make for an excellent skin detox. Its also perfect for the holidays because pomegranates can treat and prevent skin damage caused by the ultraviolet rays of the sun. When mixed with seed oil, pomegranate peels break down collagen, encourage cell growth which leaves your skin looking younger and healthier.
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon pomegranate paste
- 1 tablespoon organic honey
Instructions
Grind the pomegrenates in a small bowl
Add honey and mix well.
Apply the paste to your face.
Keep it on for at least 30 minutes and then wash it off.
Watermelon

It is rich in vitamins and potassium, with high water and fibre content that wil hydrate and refresh your skin. It also works very well as a toner, which can reduce signs of aging when used weekly.
Ingredients:
- 1 slice of watermelon
- 1 tspn of honey
Instructions:
- Crush the watermelon in a bowl
- Add the honey and mix
- Dip a cotton ball in the mix and gently apply to your face. Allow it to dry and add a second layer.
- Rinse off after 10 minutes
Kiwi

Kiwi is another superfruit that we love as it it is rich in Vitamin C and contains Omega- 3 fatty acids, which defend your skin from germs. They can help you avoid lots of skin issues as they prevent bacteria that cause infections from penetrating your pores. And it can also help prevent your skin from sagging later in life!
Ingredients:
- 1 Kiwi
- 1 tablespoon yoghurt
Instructions:
- Mash the Kiwi in a bowl and pour out most of the juice (the pulp holds the majority of the nutrients).
- Add the yoghurt and mix.
- Apply the mix evenly on your face.
- Let it dry and relax for 15 minutes.
- Rinse off with warm water.
Oranges

This is our most highly recommended facial for those of you who have a problem with blackheads and acne. Oranges are fantastic for extracting blackheads, reducing blemishes and treating acne. It also just improves the skin texture, giving it smoothness and clarity.
Ingredients:
- 1 tsp of coconut oil
- 1 tbsp orange pulp
Instructions:
- Mix the prange pulp and coconut oil in a small bowl an mix well.
- Apply the mix to your face and let it dry.
- Relax for 20 minutes for 30 minutes
- Rinse off with warm water.
In our homemade facials, we used the fruits individually but depending on what your personal skincare needs are, you can mix and match different fruits. Some fruits work combat acne while others are better for repairing heat damage or severely dry skin. Be sure to check out which fruit serves what magic before mixing it into your facial. Its also fun to make sure the scents work well together so that you enjoy the aroma of your facial while you relax.
A weekly facial is a great way to manage your skin. In order to maximize skin beauty, ensure that you are drinking plenty of water and eating a balanced diet (loads and loads of greens!).
How To Look After Your Hair During The Holidays
by Zani Tsabedze
The holidays can have us so consumed in our fun that we may forget to pay attention to the quality of our hair care. Whether you’re chilling with the family at home or travelling with friends, nurture and care for your hair should always be included in your holiday plans. However, it doesn’t have to be time consuming. There are some quick ways in which you can keep your hair health at its best throughout the holidays. Here are some tips and suggestions from the Girl Boss team.
First thing’s first: Where are you going?

Keep your holiday destinations in mind when you’re packing your hair products. Try to be aware of the climate conditions in those areas. Will you be in the sun very often? Will you be at the beach? Will you be in swimming pools? Spas? All these components affect your hair in different ways. Here are some products that we recommend for your hair according to the different types of destinations you may be going to, as well as how/when to use them.
The Beach

Hair can become dry, dehydrated and unmanageable when exposed to heat, sun, chlorine and sea salt. Make sure that you pack at least one moisturiser and leave-in conditioner to keep your hair manageable throughout the holiday.

Make sure you keep your hair protected from salt water bymasking it with a Strengthening Maskbefore you hit the beach. Ensure you condition and moisturize it well beforebasking on the beach as well to ensure it is not dry, which makes it vulnerableto heat or salt water damage.
To give your hair a quick cleanse before going out for thenight, after leaving the beach, run some co-wash through your hair and spray itwith our light-weight Leave-InConditioner.
Spas

Spa treatments are divine self-care for your skin and body,but they do not treat your hair with as much care. Rooms are usually heated ortemperature controlled and the air usually contains elements of scents fromessential oils, dehumidifiers, incense smoke, steam etc. These can dehydratethe scalp and hair cuticles. It is important to repair the moisture lossafterwards with hair oils and moisturizer. Consider giving your hair a quickwash after a spa treatment to remove sweat from your scalp. A Co-Wash can be a quick and easy way tocleanse your hair before replacing the lost moisture with our Mango & MarulaStrengthening Oil Lotion.
Winter Holidays

Cold climates are usually easier on the hair as we are more likely to cover our hair up in this weather. This helps preserve the natural oils that our hair produces. The best way to preserve hair health in these conditions is to avoid washing it too often and keep it moisturized. Using the Mango & Marula Co-Wash and following it with a Leave-In Conditioner Spray is a quick way to clean and moisturise without stripping away its natural oils or taking up too much time. This leaves your hair feeling and smelling fresh.
Tip #1: Get a Fresh Start

First thing to do before you go anywhere for a long period of time is to ensure you have given your hair a proper treatment. This includes a deep cleanse, deep condition, oil treatment and ensuring it is moisturised. This helps you guarantee that your hair will be hydrated and manageable during your getaway. Our Mango & Marula range caters for a full treatment.
Tip #2: Hats/Headwraps

Headwraps are always a good idea. You can’t go wrong with a hat or a scarf to protect your hair from the heat, and all the potentially harmful elements floating around in the air.
Apply a nutrient-rich hair oil in the morning before you wrap it up to head out. We recommend our Mango & Marula Hair Growth Oil it contains natural oils that penetrate the hair cuticle rather than just coating it.
Tip #3: Protective Styles (Braids, Cornrows, etc.)

Protective styles make your hair easier to manage during the holidays but they expose your scalp to the sun because your hair is sectioned into individual parts. It is important to moisturise and mask the lines in your hairstyle where your scalp is exposed. You can protect your scalp with hats and headscarfs. You can also add a layer of moisture protection by rubbing some Mango & Marula Hair Growth Oil into your scalp before heading out.
Tip #4: Combs and Brushes

Make sure you’re using the right kind of comb to detangle your hair during the holidays. A wide-toothed comb is usually highly recommended for 4c hair as it detangles without breaking your hair. If your hair is well hydrated, your hair should be easy to comb and detangle. Try to avoid harsh brushes if your hair is going to be exposed to chlorine, intense heat and/or salt water. Tugging on dry hair makes it vulnerable to breakage and damage.
When our hair looks and feels good, so do we! A Girl Boss nurtures her crown. What are some of your favourite hair care tools to take on holiday with you?
- Published in Beauty, Hair, health, Health & Beauty, Uncategorized
Top 10 Series to Catch-up or Binge on this Season
by Zani Tsabedze
Comedy
- Insecure

Issa Rae’s awkward black girl persona took us over in 2018. If you haven’t watched her comedy series, this festive season is the perfect time to sit back and get into all the funny girls as they grow together through 3 seasons of Insecure. Issa’s unique perspective shines throughout and takes us on a roller coaster ride of social anxiety and laughter.

Binge – 12 hours
- Atlanta

We all know Donald Glover’s creativity translates in everything he does, whether its comedy, music or drama. He’s a writer and visionary that knows how to get his ideas across, and Atlanta is no exception. With a cast of some of the most natural talents, Atlanta is 2 Seasons of pure black excellence. It is raw, intelligent and hilarious. The perfect chill session for your December holiday.

Binge – 21 hours
- Orange is the New Black

We highly recommend Netflix’s most-watched original series.Women’s prison is not a place that anyone wants to experience but it makes for brilliant fictional entertainment. Get into these diverse stories and diverse struggles all inspired by a true story, if you haven’t already. Its full of intense drama lightened by several moments of comedic relief every episode. You won’t be bored with OITNB this December.

Binge – 3 day 6 hours
Fantasy/Sci-Fi
- Black Mirror

If you’re a fan of plot twists, there is no series more perfect for you than Black Mirror. With each episode being a completely different storyline with different characters, Black Mirror explores ideas of what the future of technology may bring and the different challenges we could face with it. It is brilliantly written and it never ceases to amaze. 3 Seasons of excitement to get into this season, every episode feels like a mysterious treasure chest of interesting ideas and surprises.

Binge – 18 hours
- Stranger Things

We can’t resist including one of the most popular shows of2017/2018. Stranger Things is simply one of the strangest phenomenons in pop culture as it is pure, youthful fun for the whole family with no specific genre. It’s a combination of comedy/drama/sci-fi/fantasy/thriller/horror and its not easy to describe or explain but its so fun and easy to binge-watch. We highly recommend this for family bonding time this festive season.

Binge – 14 hours
- Game of Thrones

There’s nothing to say about Game of Thrones that hasn’t already been said at great lengths all over social media. Its hype is not unjustified. GoT is easily one of the best shows to ever grace the screen. Get into the Mother of Dragons and the story of the Iron Throne this festive season.

Binge – 2 days 16 hours
Drama
- Dear White People

Adapted from the 2014 movie, Dear White People follows escalating racial tensions at a prestigious Ivy League college from the perspective of several black students. It’s aimed at the woke youth of 2018, challenging ideas of politics and race amongst the usual Gossip-Girl-style drama of college students. It’s a good balance that gives you an equal fix of drama and comedy, while hitting you with the hard facts of our racial climate.

Binge – 10 hours
- The Crown

A young woman unexpectedly finds herself in the position of being the Queen of a whole nation, with countless responsibilities and duties that no one necessarily believes she’ll be capable of fulfilling. The entire show is based on the true story of Queen Elizabeth II, constantly drawing from real events in the history of her reign. With everything that has happened this year with the Meghan Markle hype, this series gives a sense of insight into the vibe of the Royale Family and their lifestyle. It goes past the glamour and into the gloom, tension, politics and challenges of being a member of the family. There are some interesting lessons in there for a Girl Boss and a good overall message that everything is not always what it appears to be.

Binge – 19 hours
- Suits

We can’t leave out this legal drama about the fictional law firm powered by some of our favourite fictional Girl Bosses in television. A diverse cast and constant gripping drama that’ll keep you at the edge of your seat, Suits is entertaining and even makes for good comedy. A highly recommended binge for this festive season.

Binge – 4 days 22 hours
- Empire

One of the biggest series to hit the screens in 2015 is still going strong. The HipHop mogul played by Terrence Howard brings the drama with Taraji P. Henson as they fight for control over a multimillion-dollar company. If you love music, especially HipHop/RnB, this is a good way to keep yourself entertained if you’re spending a lot of time indoors this festive.

Binge – 3 days 7 hours
- Published in Entertainment, Entertainment & Reviews, Pop Culture, Reviews
Girl Boss Interview With 16-Year Old Activist Zulaikha Patel
by Mpho Sehlapelo
Zulaikha Patel is a FORCE! She is inspiring in so many ways. Her vocal activism started at a young age, she has done so much and just turned 16. She has already been listed as BBCs 100 Most Influential Women 2016, andTime Magazine’s 100 Most Influential People. She was also recognized by CNNAfrica in October 2016 in the feature #AfricanGirlsRock. She received the Mbokodo Award in 2016 and is also ambassador of Kidz of Biko.
How Would You Describe Yourself?
I would describe myself as loud, unapologetic, outspoken, fearless, a pan-Africanist, and a feminist!
Currently Studying…
High School – consumer studies, history and geography
Passionate about…
Black history and global issues
Career aspirations?
I live by the statement “Conquer the world African girl, she is king! Power to she!”
I would like to study political science, history, anthropology, African literature in university. I aspire to be the first female youth president as I feel that Africa is on the Western world’s dinner plate, Africa is rich but Africans are poor, and the thing about our society is that those that have ideas have no power and those that have power have no ideas.
Africa is not progressing because the majority population that is black youth is not in leadership, and has no power yet has endless ideas. We have a generation that led powerful revolutions and radical ideas like “fees must fall” but they have no power. Every generation has its own freedom to win; freedom is a constant struggle. Our is to radically transform Africa, and that can only happen if we have youth in leadership, we need a youngCabinet. We need a young, woke, black members of parliament, we need a young, black, woke President!
I also aspire to become Miss South Africa as I feel the time the title is bigger than winning a beauty pageant, I feel it is about empowering and uplifting the spirit of the girl whose spirit has been broken by society’s norms and western standards. I feel it is about empowering the girl who has been body shamed simply because she is not a size 28. It is about empowering the black girl whose hair is too kinky to tie a ponytail. It is about empowering the girl whose voice is too mad for society. It is about empowering girls of the LGBTI community, it is about empowering girls whose voices are constantly being broken down by patriarchy and it is about empowering the girl with no self-confidence, the girl who is depressed. It is about empowering all women.

What kind of change would you like to make in the world?
The kind of change I would like to make in the world is a pro-black, pan-African, feminist, radical notion. I dream that one day a black woman will not be defined by what they wear, women will not be objectified and will not be defined by how domesticated they are but rather by the content of their character. I dream that one day black women will not be at the bottom of economic, social and political statuses. I dream that one day that black women will be understood, that black women will have power. I dream that the youth of Africa will push Africa forward into a radical, economically free society. That is the kind of impact I want to make. I want to make my dream into a reality.
What made you stand up to wear your hair natural at school?
What made me stand up to wearing my hair natural is that I had changed schools a number of times because of racism in schools, I had changed 3 schools due to racism over my hair. I felt that as an African girl the time has come for me to defend my identity, its gone on for too long, that African girls are not allowed to express themselves just as they are because asking me to change my hair is asking me to erase my roots, it’s asking me to erase the Africa within me, it’s asking me to erase my blackness basically. And I felt that I couldn’t keep running anymore and I had to fight. I wasn’t doing this just for me, I was doing it for every other black girl whose character has been belittled, whose identity has been taken from her. So I believed that I had to fight for my identity and fight for Africa.
What did this experience teach you about yourself?
Growing up, I wasn’t as outspoken and unapologetic and fearless as I am now, that experience taught me to be brave and to stand up for what I believe in regardless of who is standing with me, because the most powerful thing is believing in yourself, it’s self-love. Self-love is the greatest revolution you can wage as a black girl, self- love is the best love , it has taught me to love my skin inside and out and to love every aspect and fibre about my being. It has taught me to speak out against injustices and it has opened my eyes about our society that we don’t live in a free society. It has taught me that the struggle continues and we have to fight, the baton has been given to the youth and it is our to fight for our freedom. The previous generation fought for democracy and fought for a basic constitution and their fight was for political rights, to express themselves politically and now our fight is to radically transform and develop Africa and to defend that democracy. Because if democracy doesn’t work for everybody, if it doesn’t empower and uplift oppressed masses; then it is not a true democracy. As the youth it is our fight to transformAfrica, not just to physically transform it, but also to transform Africa mentally and empower conscious thinking. We are not free without mental liberation, liberation is a process that begins in the mind. Freedom is psychological freedom, in terms of black consciousness, which means the realization of self-determination. As Africans we need to be determined, we need to think beyond chains of colonialism, we need to think beyond the western world’s ideas and norms. We need to think in an afrocentric way and empower afrocentric norms amongst us.
You were recently campaigning for justice for the 6 year old that was raped…
I was campaigning because I am questioning where is democracy for children, Africa’s future is being taken from us, children are the future. It evoked a lot of emotions of anger within me that we live in such a patriarchal society, controlled by white supremacy, our society was built on the compromise of black people, black women especially. Women’s bodies are disregarded. I felt like shouting that my body is not a crime scene! I was campaigning under the notion that “men are trash” not in the sense of attacking individuals but to say the system of patriarchy is trash and we need to change this system. It was emotional to see that our society disregards rape; rape is a very de-humanizing crime. That 6 year old’s life will never be the same again and that perpetrator is being defended. I really, really had to fight for my womanhood, fight for democracy for women and children.
Advice to girls on activism at schools and communities…
Aluta continua – the struggle continues! It is not yet uhuru, we still have a long way to go. Womandla! Power to SHE! Female is the future. We, as young women have to change Africa, it is within us. We developed Africa, we birthed Africa, it’s in us to change and give life to a new society inAfrica.
The revolution is still unfolding and it is young, black and beautiful and most definitely female. Young women need to use their voices; it has gone on for too long that we have been silenced. The more they try to silence us the louder we should scream and make a noise about injustices we are facing, we should standup for ourselves, it is time we make an impact and I strongly believe that without women we have no future.
Stand up for what you believe in even if you are standing on your own, it is the most powerful thing you can ever do, believe in yourself!
What about how you were raised makes you an activist?
I was raised in a very, very, very political home. My father always mentored me about politics. As a child growing up I new a lot about political parties, politicians, politics in general. My mother always taught me to be independent as a young girl. She basically created the mad, wild, radical feminist I am. She always empowered that as a girl I should never limit myself, I should never think less of myself, I should always be independent and that being a girl should never define what I can and cannot do. Being a girl is actually powerful and she taught me the power in being a girl.
- Published in Activism, Bossing Up
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