HELP!!!! Military Ladies or Those Living Overseas

[ojthomas]

Ciao from Aviano, Italy. So I just moved to Italy on Monday and need some help. I'm afraid my natural hair will be like "oh no you didn't". I dont have my regular Sally's or BSS. I have been asking alot of ladies around the base where they get their hair done. Most say they do it themselves. and products here oh no! A lot of the products from the base exchange have mineral oil in them, and cones which my hair hates.

The only product I brought from the base was carefree curl, all they had was the smallest size. So my quest for products are limited!

I guess I can ship items but that might take 2-3 weeks, or months to receive . Shipping fees are not that bad since I have a P.O. box on base.

But, how do you ladies do it any overseas websites I can use?

What would you suggest?

Please help

 

[ojthomas]

Just bumping

 

[lettieg27]

Hi I understand your pain right now Im in South Korea and had to change my reggie for the time being b/c natural products here are super expensive, the ones from the states at least.
First thing is look for natural things that can be found easily at the grocery store to use in your hair like honey, olive oil, mayo, etc....
Research the area you're in Italy will probably have some sort of health food store where you can find products.
Finally even though you don't like cones maybe you can look at the products on base to see which have water soluble cones I believe there is a thread on here that ranks products with cones in them from low to no cones. HTH, and maybe some other ladies have suggestions.

 

[PacificPurinsesu]

Hi there! I am stationed on okinawa and get alot of my products from http://store.goldenmartbeautysupply.com/hacapr.html and my bx. My bx is huge and has quite a selection.
In the 7 years of being here, these 2 places are the only ones that I have used and had no problems. Goldenmart takes exactly 7 days and the shipping fees are o.k...
Also, check you local community. I have found some great things at local stores!

 

[carnivalapple]

I live in Germany and almost never use our PX for hair products. But the great thing is I've never waited more than 8 days for an item (most arrive within 4 days) from the US. Between 2-3 weeks from Asia, or 8 days via EMS from Japan, incase you are considering getting items from there.

But the sites I utilize are Sally Beauty and Drugstore.com, a lot of sellers on Etsy. The greatest guarantee is asking a family member or friend back in the states to ship a bunch of stuff in a flat rate box every couple of months.

I've found a lot of sites are more than willing to ship to APO. If you tell me what products in general you are looking for I can see if I've purchased and where I got it from.

 

[Bajanmum]

Ok, I not sure how long it will take or how much it will cost you, but this website British Curlies will help with natural products and we're not as far from you, as is the US.

http://www.britishcurlies.co.uk/store/

HTH, Bmum

 

[ojthomas]

Thank you ladies for your response. My number one problem is I have no car right now until it is shipped. So getting around town is hard for me, and I really hate to rely on my sponsor.

At some point I know I will have to.

You ladies are great!!!!

 

[VinDieselsWifey]

When I lived in Japan & South Korea vitacost.com was my best friend. $4.99 flat rate for shipping & I would get my box in about a week. When I did order I would buy in bulk. They have great prices for the good natural lines like Aubrey Organics, Giovanni, Jason Naturals, Alba Botanica, etc.

As far as natural butters & oils, I stocked up from camdengrey.com before I went overseas & had it shipped with my household goods. For some things I would have my mom send it to me. I would buy honey from the commissary. You should be able to find some good things locally too. I'm sure you can get some great olive oil there.

I don't know how the water is over there but the water in Japan & South Korea was horrible so I bought a shower filter from waterproducts.com. I lived in Germany as a child. Went over there when I was 8 with about BSL-MBL hair. When I left 3.5 years later my hair was barely touching my shoulders and my hair was natural. The hard water was terrible.

Sent from my iPhone using LHCF

 

[miss stress]

hey! Im in Germany and I get alot of stuff from the commissary like evoo and coconut oil actual products I love handmade stuff so I mostly order from Shescentit, Hairveda, Bee Mine and they ship here also lucky vitamin.com has alot of oils and such and ship here too! And if by chance I really cant get my hands on something I want there always my mama who will send me whtever! Good Luck

 

[Your Cheeziness]

Beautyofnewyork.com stayed on my internet explorer when I was deployed. They ship quickly considering the normal wait time and have a wide range of products.

 

[ojthomas]

Those are some great websites. Thank You I sure will be looking into them.

 

[Prelude to a Kiss]

Wie gehts from Germany! Going to the PX here is just So, I order most of the things I want online. Hairveda, Bee Mine, Madinaonline.com, Vitacost.com... Just make sure that the site you are looking at ships to an APO. Also look in the member's exchange forum. A lot of the ladies there have no problem sending things to where you are. Hope you find what you need. Tschüß!

 

[ojthomas]

lettieg27 how long are you going to be in Korea? I will be in Italy for three years! Not so bad, I guess. Considering I just spent 6 years in Las Vegas by the way it was my first duty station!

 

[Sunrise]

She Sells and Mariposa Imports both based in the Netherlands and ship to the EU.

 

[theeREALmccoy]

Shipping things overseas doesn't take as long as you would think. I usually ship her things and it may take a week or so to get there. Also, My mom is actually stationed in Vicenza but goes to Aviano frequently to see her hairdresser. Are you looking for a stylist or just hair products?

 

[ojthomas]

Shipping things overseas doesn't take as long as you would think. I usually ship her things and it may take a week or so to get there. Also, My mom is actually stationed in Vicenza but goes to Aviano frequently to see her hairdresser. Are you looking for a stylist or just hair products?

I'm looking for both! Mainly places that can do braids!

When it comes to salons and my natural hair I get scared. Went to this one shop in Las Vegas and it was not so great she detangled my 4b hair from the root to tip and then used so many appliances and now I have heat damaged strands in the front of my hair!

 

[ojthomas]

Wow theeREALmccoy your mom drives 1 1/2 hrs just to get her hair done! The stylist must be great!

 

[brownstallion]

Hey there!

I order from vitacost.com, target.com, also I found a great German line. I find that because of the hard water here other shampoos on the economy works way better.

 

[shasha8685]

I have nothing to add except that I used to live in Naples (during HS) and Aviano was our rival lol. So....forza Napoli!

But the responses you have gotten from the other ladies are the way to go. During our time overseas, we had to do our hair ourselves and usually got our products from the NEX...

 

[Minty]

why don't you go off base and shop the stores?

I think other countries have some of the best little finds.

 

[ojthomas]

HijabiFlygirl, I plan on doing so but I don't have a car right now. My car won't get here until 6-8 weeks.

 

[Cocoeuro]

Hey, I'm in Germany. I order butters, henna, and other mixtress items from butters and bars, I like curls products straight from them curls.biz. Also ordered from curl mart, the vitamin shoppe, and Sally's with no problem. A few companies like miss jessies and Macy's (off topic) does not ship to APO addresses. I use a company called ship to APO you can check out their websites. hth enjoy ur tour in Italy!

 

[HotRibena]

My family was stationed at Aviano years ago and we lived there for 4 years. I relied on online ordering and was also lucky enough to find a spouse that braided hair (care packages from family members also helps too). Once you get to know more people you will be surprised how many services are available to you. I'm guessing that you are part of the MDG - that's where DH worked. We loved the time we spent there and have been back for visits since.

 

[MrsLadyK]

You should have no problem finding a hair braider. There are alot of African's that live throughout Europe. Just ask around on your Base and I am sure someone will be able to get you intouch with a hair braider. I am in the Netherlands and there are hair braiders here, Belgium and Germany.

I order most of my hair products on-line from various sites and receive them in a week or two at the most. Essential oils you can find off base at a health store. Good luck and enjoy Europe.

 

[ojthomas]

HotRibena I'm actually going to work in Flight Med, its located in the part of base that has the commissary, BX, Lodging

 

[carnivalapple]

Hey there!

I order from vitacost.com, target.com, also I found a great German line. I find that because of the hard water here other shampoos on the economy works way better.

Could you tell me what German shampoos you used? I go to my local Galleria Kaufhof and Müller but get so overwhelmed by the selection I just reach for what I know, Garnier and Herbal Essence...

Really need a cure for this hard water!

 

[theeREALmccoy]

Wow theeREALmccoy your mom drives 1 1/2 hrs just to get her hair done! The stylist must be great!

Yea my mama don't play about her hair lol... But her hair dresser has a daughter that gets braids often. If u want, I can try to find you some contact info..?

 

[An_gell]

Hi! I was stationed at Aviano for 3 years and I understand your frustration. Online shopping became my best friend especially drugstore.com. There products got there in a descent amount of time and their shipping wasn't that bad as well. I learned how to braid prior to going there and I mainly wore braids. I would have my sisters send me hair from the states or when I would go home on leave I would buy hair and ship it back. But your best bet is to learn how to do your own hair, that is the best place to go natural. I just hated the summers because they can be hard on someone who is trying to transition because it gets so hot and they don't believe in air conditioners over there so you sweat something terrible.

 

[tasha7239]

Camp Phoenix - Afghanistan

I usually order off Amazon. They have almost everything - Kenra, Miss Jessies, Alba etc. Amazon can be kind of pricey with shipping though. I paid $32 for a bottle of Keracare Humecto. They dont have Shescentit, Qhemet etc. - however they will ship to APO. I also order products off drugstore.com. Usually free shipping and its fast. U could always have someone stateside send your boxes. The longest I have waited was ten days during the holidays. The mail system is really not as bad as it seems.

HTH

 

[ojthomas]

An gell,

Thanks for the response, I normally do my own hair, but need some breaks sometime. I can braid my hair with extensions but it takes me 2 days because I'm just plain lazy and my arms start to hurt.