October 18, 2021 1 Comment
Caring for black hair really isn’t as complicated as we sometimes make it seem. Here’s the full guide on how to take care of natural curly hair or kinky hair so it can thrive.
Level 1: The Absolute Basics You Need to Care for Natural Hair:
The first thing to consider when thinking about how to care for black hair is getting it clean. You need a shampoo that cleans the scalp and hair strands without leaving your hair feeling dry. Avoid products with silicones, parabens and sulfates, especially when you first start out since these can dry out your hair. We make a great shampoo that cleanses without stripping the hair. Check it out.
How to Shampoo Natural Hair:
The biggest complaint most people have when trying to figure out how to maintain natural hair is how to deal with all the tangles. Depending on how your mother did your hair growing up, this probably gives you some level of PTSD. Who else felt like their soul was being pulled out their scalp?
These two things will make sure you never have that problem again.
A good conditioner for kinky and curly natural hair has tons of slip and moisture. This combination makes detangling a breeze because your hair is so much easier to comb through when moisturized. Plus, it’s slippery enough that the hair strands will be easier to separate.
As for detangling, you can use a wide tooth comb, but if you want an even easier time, invest in a detangling brush.
Our detangling brush is specially designed to reduce breakage caused by detangling, cut the time spent detangling in half, and is the easiest route for a beginner or a naturalista who has been dreading detangling of late.
How to Condition and Detangle Natural Hair
Now, your hair’s clean, detangled and smelling divine! Our next step is to use a leave-in conditioner. A good leave-in restores luster and moisture, helping the hair become more manageable in-between washes.
RELATED: HOW TO CHOOSE THE RIGHT LEAVE-IN CONDITIONER FOR 3A - 4C HAIR
How to Use Leave-In on Natural Hair
For best results, you’ll want to add a lil’ something on here to give you moisture for days. We’ll cover this in the next section.
Tip: Aim to wash and condition your hair every 1-2 weeks and keep it moisturized throughout the week. That alone will have your hair growing!
Level 2: The Extra Stuff You Can (and Should Do) For Your Natural Hair
Here’s where your styling, treating and moisturizing routines come in.
Moisturizing
Keeping your hair from getting dry in the routine above can slowly turn into a daily chore. If you’d like to keep it from becoming one, then this is for you.
The two most common methods to keep kinky and curly natural hair moisturized are the LOC and LCO method. In both of those, L stands for ‘leave-in’, O stands for ‘oil’ and C stands for ‘cream’.
If you’re following these routines, then you will apply the products, in the exact same order they appear in the abbreviations, to damp, freshly washed hair. If you want the full low-down on moisturizing natural hair for days, especially in the winter, check out this post we did.
Our curated Moisture LOC Kit comes with all three, so you don’t have to spend hours trying to find what works for you. Did I mention it gives 3-5 days of shiny, soft, moisturized hair? Check out the reviews.
Doing Treatments
Just like your skin, treatments can be beneficial to your hair to help with a specific problem. Treatments are usually either moisture or protein treatments. There are exceptions such as scalp treatments.
We have both a moisturizing deep conditioner and a strengthening conditioner to suit your needs whether that is to boost moisture or strengthen brittle strands.
Tip: If you want to amp up the benefits, throw your hair under a thermal cap. The heat will improve product absorption.
Styling`
Cue all of the cute styles you’ve been eyeing on Instagram. Twist outs, braid outs, flat twists… all of them. These styles often need a styling cream or gel to set the style and hold it like that for a few days.
Our styling cream for kinky and curly hair is thick enough to set the style, moisturizing enough to keep your hair soft in the style and flake-free, saving you from the embarrassment of having white flakes all over your shoulders.
The last thing I’d mention here is also try to avoid heat styling and chemical processing like texturizers or dyes as these can damage your hair, making it difficult to maintain your natural hair.
Now that you know the A-Z of how to care for natural hair, go out there and be great. You’ve got this!
Rochelle Pydana
"Scientist of Black Haircare"
Comments will be approved before showing up.
November 26, 2021
November 19, 2021
November 18, 2021
Bundle and save big! Our holiday gift sets make perfect gifts for yourself and loved ones. Pamper your tresses and skin with these premium natural products that are guaranteed to be oh so delightful.
https://pydanathermalcaps.com/pages/gift-guide-2021
Doretha Harris-McElliott
November 05, 2021
This was a great article with a lot of helpful information. Thanks