If you’re like me and have 4c Hair these 10 tips will change your life! Well maybe not your life, but it certainly will make your 4C hair so much easier to work with. Looking back I wish I knew this information because it would have made my transition to natural hair a whole lot easier. Use these tips and transform your 4C hair’s health and manageability:
1. This goes for most natural girls, but especially for 4C ladies never comb your hair when it is bone dry. When you do this you are asking for breakage galore, not to mention a tough time even getting through your hair. It is best to comb damp hair but if you like to style your hair while it is dry, always put in a product that will give you tons of slip before you comb.
2. Avoid using small tooth combs for detangling 4C hair. This is just asking for it! Always use a wide tooth comb or even try finger detangling your hair for a more gentle approach.
3. Try not to use brushes on 4C hair at all. To new naturals this may sound funny, but yes try to eliminate your usage of brushes. Brushes rip and pull at your hair causing splits and breakage. If you must use a brush for your edges or your nape, use a boar bristle brush, infrequently. Brushing will thin your hair out so fast; every time I see someone over brushing their hair it makes me cringe a bit. Girl you are losing so much hair doing all that!
4. Wash n’ gos may not be for you, especially if you like curl definition. For many 4C ladies this “shortcut” will not be the route you want to take. If having no definition is cool with you, then by all means try it! However, be prepared for massive shrinkage and matting with your 4C hair. For many of us ladies with 4C hair Wash n’ gos just don’t work out and then we end up looking like this:
You may be better off doing a faux wash n’ go, which I will discuss in a future upcoming post.
5. You don’t have to do anything special to 4C hair when you go to bed. Put your hair in a sloppy ponytail or very chunk twists, the goal is just to prevent your hair from matting. If you go to bed with only a bare bones fro, overtime, your hair will become matted, tangled, and the end result will be breakage.
6. For some of us wet styling just doesn’t work on our 4C hair! In fact, it may cause tangles, matting, and severe shrinkage. When you air dry your hair first you will get a more stretched out result for your style and there are less tangles to deal with.
7. You can use water to moisturize your hair. The trick to using water on 4C hair is do not saturate it; lightly spritz it! You will find that sometimes using product throughout the week is not enough. In some cases, you may need just a touch of water to restore the balance.
8. Choose 4C friendly hairstyles that you can stick to for at least a week and that do not require tons of daily styling. The less you have to manipulate your 4C hair the better. Lately my puff has been my go to style, because I simply moisturize when needed and go.
9. Have a trouble spot? The center of my head seems to be the driest and kinkiest texture. If you can relate, the best way to deal with this is by applying more moisture and conditioner to this area. Also try to lay off heat in this area and when you do use it use a lower setting to avoid dryness.
10. Conditioner is your friend! Try to deep condition 4C hair as often as possible. This will help with moisture issues, plus it will improve your hair’s manageability.
Some good conditioners for 4C hair, that I recommend are:
Carol’s Daughter Black Vanilla Smoothie
I’m trying to find ways in shortening my wash days. I’m thinking about sitting under the dryer when I do a hot oil treatment and deep condition. How long should I sit under the dryer for both?
How frequent is too frequent when deep conditioning? And what about (protective) styling for the gals with only 1.5in of hair?
Good article am also a 4c natural hair blogger though I just started but am 2yrs natural now.