10 Things I Wish I Would’ve Known About My 4C Hair…
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. Like these: Anne Bamboo Wide Tooth Comb or Bass Wooden Brush.
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.
You may be better off doing a faux wash n’ go, which I outlined here.
For many of us ladies with 4C hair Wash n’ gos just don’t work out and then we end up looking like this:
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. I loved to use the Puff Cuff.
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
OBIA Naturals Babassu Deep Conditioner
Qhemet Biologics Cocoa Tree Detangling Ghee
Photo Credit: https://www.instagram.com/freddieharrel/
How often should 4c hair shampoo their hair. Every week or every other week ?
It really depends on your life and your hair. I shampoo my hair weekly because my hair and scalp gets super dry if I don’t.
I have learned that you can get beautiful curls on your natural 4c hair with a wash and go. Over time after your hair “porosity” becomes balanced. Look that word up. Best of luck. I’ve only been natural 1 year and you should see this bad boy!