Did you have a natural hair question?

Question!!!

“I have been following your blog and its full of great information. I have been natural since ’98 and never have been one for long hair.

Well now I have decided I want to start growing my hair but have run into a few obstacles and I am seeking some assistants. I have type 4C hair, tight coils and very, very thick. My main issue that I face is dryness, no matter what I use my hair continues to be dry and dull, plus I live in Michigan and the cold air does nothing for my hair but make it worse. I don’t use shampoo and I co-wash no more that three times a week or when I see a build up. I am using Cocount Sublime Moisturize Conditioner & Clarifying Shampoo by Curls.

Do you have any suggestions how to retain moisture in my hair?”

Answer!!!

I understand that Michigan weather, I graduated h.s. in Illinois but anyway a good thing to do is keep your hair covered with a satin scarf until you get to work or your destination. Those below zero wind chills are horrible to the head. The kinkier, more curly your hair is the more porous it is. A good example of this is, to imagine your watering a plant with many holes in the flower pot. The more you water, the more water is lost. Your hair can only absorb so much moister at one time. It is critical to feed it when needed which may be daily.

Make sure all your products are free of sulfate, silicones, mineral oil and petroleum. For hair products keep it as natural as possible. (Silicones and their derivatives end in -cone.) These ingredients will strip oils or prevent absorption by clogging pores.

Do Not Neglect your Scalp. When cleansing focus on removing build up from the scalp. I recommend using a more gentler cleanser the Curlious Curls Cleansing Cream, it moisturizes more than the Clarifying Shampoo. Massage and stimulate your scalp while wet with your finger, wide tooth comb or a brush. Avoid towel drying and direct heat such as blow drying. (Hood Dryer are an acceptable tool.)

Deep condition your hair at least once a week with a conditioner high in protein such as Hair Mayo. Also do hot oil treatments with your favorite natural oil at least once a week. The Deep Conditioning and Hot Oil Treatment can be done at the same time.

When rinsing your head be careful not to rinse all of the conditioner out and do a cool shot at the end of every rinse. A cool shot is when you finish up your rinse with cool/cold water. This creates a shine and closes open pours to retain the natural moister of the water.

Apply a leave-in conditioner such as Cantu Shea Butter Repair Leave in Conditioner.

Invest in a daily creamy moisturizer or a hair butter such as a whipped shea butter or Carol’s Daughter Hair Milk.

Protective styles are helpful such as braids, buns, finger coils and two strand twist. These styles can be refreshed with a mist of braid sheen.

A very small amount of hair polisher/glosser can be used to coat the hair.

It is very important to sleep on a satin pillow case or in a satin scarf/bonnet to retain moisture throughout the night.

You will notice a difference in how you hair feel after practicing these tips. Your hair will be shiny and softer and your curls may even loosen a little.

Did you have a natural hair question?

QUESTION!

got a BIG question for you about my hair.

Soooo…. I went natural over a year ago, and so far…it is getting better as I enter the 2nd year, but I messed up badly. I got my hair braided and weaved with the exception of the very top front of my hair where I wanted the girl to weave in my bangs like my beautician always did for me.

The young girl (My sister’s friend, she is 17 and just getting into the midst of doing hair) told me that she didn’t know how to sew in bangs, so she parted my hair and glued in my bangs…fortunately, my hair no longer takes to glue, so my sweat and curly roots made it come out in less than three days…but, I didn’t have any money on me to go to my beautician to help me put in my bangs, so I began to manage my open and exposed natural hair with my home products. I normally use a protective chrome iron on my hair, but my sister took that one to school…so I used the regular metal plug in iron on my hair to curl my bangs…several times….and when one of the braids came loose on my weave a few weeks ago to the bottom left side of my hair, my sweat from working out got on it and tried to braid it back up…so now…when I took my weave and braids out…I washed my hair… and I noticed these two big and tall patches of long hair that would not curl back at all (Looks like I used a perm or something on two different parts of my hair, LOL)! Of course the simple solution is to cut it and blend in my curly roots with the rest of my hair…but my hair in thoes sections are pressed out so close to the roots that cutting both patches of fried hair will result in a very hetic hair situation for me. So I am wondering if I need to keep my hair braided up completely for the next few months, and then cut off the dead hair..or what? Let me know what you think I should do…for now, I am chilling with my wig until get to the hair shop later this month. Thanks honey! Peace!!!

ANSWER!

No more amateurs in your head. Ok?!

Well, I think you have learned a very valuable lesson in regards to how sensitive and fragile natural hair really is.

You are doing the right things as far as wearing a wig when you go out but I’m sure you know its not a good idea to workout with a wig on your head. We don’t even want to talk about the bacteria, dirt and sweat that are growing and festering under there. Its a breeding grow for diaster. Just bad for business.

So for the straight pieces of natural hair, sometimes with time and nourishing product the hair will repair itself as it grows out. But until then, since you work out often I suggest transitional styles that mask the straighter texture of hair. These styles include roller sets, straw sets, two strand twist and/or braids. Two strand twists and braids provide more versatility and longvity. When you do these styles you can were them as is and then in the middle of the week take them down and you have a brand new style. You can always twist the front into a design and have the back in braids or twist and take them down towards the end of the week.

Be careful with braids or kinky twist with hair extensions. Sometimes the tightness and the friction of the extension can break your natural hair. Also, be mindful of your hair products such as shampoos. The harsh detergents in shampoos can sometimes make straight hair straighter. As your hair recovers try the “NO POO” method.

Answer