See the right way to care for your natural hair

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Avatar for Mudia50
3 years ago

There’s nothing more beautiful than a crown of

healthy, natural hair. So if you’ve ever had a

case of bad breakage, then you know it can be

a total bummer. Brittle, damaged hair gets in

the way of length retention, weakens strands,

and limits your style versatility. Definitely not a

good look. Luckily, breakage isn’t the end of

the world. If you find yourself in a tangled

mess, these tips will help get your kinks and

curls back on track.

First things first: It's important to identify the

culprit of your hair woes. Breakage can be

caused by a number of things, including lack

of moisture, overprocessing from chemicals,

heat damage, and overall poor hair-care

practices. According to New York City–based

celebrity hairstylist and Hair Rules salon owner

Anthony Dickey, textures that happen to be

naturally drier, like kinky, curly, or coarse

straight textures, are easily prone to breakage

and therefore require some extra TLC. “Split

ends, single strand knots, and tangles are all

red flags that your hair is insanely dry or that

your hair-care regimen is off,” he says.

If

you’ve noticed that you’re losing hair at an

alarming rate, you see excess shedding on

clothes, or your scalp is hella dry, you might

want to reevaluate your hair-care routine.

Wearing tight hairstyles and a lack of

preparation when styling can also cause

damage. So, that Ariana Grande ponytail you

love rocking all the time? You may want to be

careful. Celebrity hairstylist Vernon François

explains, “With natural hair, I often notice most

breakage when it’s tied up in a topknot.

This

causes unnecessary tension on the hairline. It

can often snap from the centre of the crown,

as this area is often neglected during the

prepping stages — for example not combining

hair thoroughly before putting it into your

desired style.”

All right, by now you’ve probably figured out

what’s causing your breakage, so how do you

bring it back to life? Read on for tips on what

to do (and what not to do) to stop breakage.

Co-Wash Daily

Washing with conditioner, also known as “co-

washing,” is a way to mildly cleanse hair and

replenish dry strands at the same time. Co-

washing keeps hair soft and hydrated,

especially during the colder months.

“If your

hair is very fragile, particularly for type 4 kinky

hair, co-washing can be done very frequently

and even up to twice a day for intense

hydration and conditioning,” François shares.

To be clear, co-washing doesn’t mean you

should skip shampoo altogether. "When

looking for a shampoo, the objective is to

keep your hair away from ones that lather, as

these chemicals can strip hair of its moisture.

Use sulfate-free and nonsudsy cream

shampoos like Hair Rules Cleansing Cream

Shampoo to keep hair lubricated through

wash-and-gos,” suggests Dickey.

Deep Condition Weekly

Get ready to make deep conditioners your new

BFF. No, seriously. Use a deep conditioner

weekly with a plastic cap in the shower, under

a dryer, or even overnight to activate the heat.

To make your deep conditioner go the extra

mile, celebrity hairstylist Felicia Leatherwood ,

who has blessed the strands of Issa Rae and

Skai Jackson, suggests steam treatments.

“I

like to do steam treatments with my clients.

Those are beneficial because they open up the

cuticle of the hair and deposit hydration. One

of my favorite conditioners to use during a

steam treatment is the Tgin Honey Miracle

Hair Mask .”

If your hair is still feeling drier than the desert,

you can add a hot oil treatment to your deep

conditioner. “Apply the hot oil at the scalp and

when you go to rinse off the conditioner, you

rinse through the scalp.

It helps the oil seal in

the conditioner over the hair strand, because

oil is a sealant,” she continues. When all else

fails, Leatherwood recommends using an

ApHogee Two-Step Protein Treatment , which

repairs breakage on sight, or a rice water

rinse, to stop shedding and smooth out your

cuticles.

Detangle With Care

Detangling on dry hair is a major no-no.

Leatherwood advises, “It’s easier to detangle

your hair in the shower, when your hair is full

of conditioner and wet. Section the hair off

into two parts, then split that that into four.

You have to take your time — be gentle and

detangle from the bottom to the root.”

Making

sure you have the right detangling tools is an

absolute must. Felicia recommends her

Detangler Brush, which catches fairy knots and

smoothes hair at the same time. After

detangling, put your hair into double-strand

twists and rinse out the conditioner with the

twists still in.

“You’ll have a little bit of

conditioner, but dry it with your T-shirt and

your hair will feel like butter.”

Ditch Your Cotton Towel

A traditional cotton bath towel can pull and

stretch the hair, stripping out moisture, which

is not good at all.

“A much better option is to

carefully squeeze and pat your hair dry with an

old cotton T-shirt or, ideally, a microfiber

towel. It’s far more caring for your hair and

really helps to reduce breakage,” François

shares.

Avoid Heat

Try to avoid heat drying and styling if you can

until your hair is in better shape. If you are

going to apply heat, use a heat protectant,

keep temperatures low, and use a blow dryer

with a comb attachment to prevent further

damage.

Protect Your Edges

ICYMI, damage usually happens at the hairline

regardless of texture, and that’s why it’s called

“baby hair.” It’s the finest, softest hair, but you

can avoid breakage by keeping your baby hair

soft and moisturized.

Get Regular Trims

Don’t be afraid to get haircuts, my friends.

Tangles, single-strand knots, and split ends

are characteristics of needing a trim and ends

that are begging to be set free. Getting a trim

every three and a half to four months will keep

your kinks and curls popping and looking their

best.

L.O.C. It Up

Adopt a routine of using leave in conditioners,

oils, and creams to keep your hair hydrated

and protected at all costs. Leatherwood likes

using the Curls Blueberry Bliss Reparative

Leave-In Conditioner for all hair textures and

Obia Curl-Enhancing Custard for kinkier hair.

Be Mindful of Protective Styles

Raise your hand if you live for a protective

style? Me too. Protective styles are great

because they give your hair a break from

constant manipulation, offer style versatility,

and literally protect your ends during colder

months. The key to wearing braids, twists,

weaves, and wigs is to not wear them for too

long or forget to take care of your actual hair

underneath. “Three to four weeks is as long as

you can wear a hairstyle before your scalp

gets funky and you have too much stress on

strands. Remember a protective style is meant

to protect your hair," says Dickey.

If your hair is shedding and breaking after a

style, then it wasn’t protective after all.

To

treat the hair underneath your protective style,

we like François’s SCALP NOURISH~MENT

Braids and Locs Spray , which is packed with

hydrating and nourishing oils that soothe the

scalp and promote hair growth.

Not to be forgotten, your take-down method is

as important as your style preparation.

“It’s

more about being preventative than what you

do after. So, when you do the prep work with

the moisturizers and oils, your hair is super

lubricated before take-down, and then the

process isn’t as damaging. Your hair won’t be

matted and dried out,” Dickey adds.

When taking out braids and weaves,

sometimes hair can collect balls of debris

(yup, pretty gross); for this, Leatherwood

recommends using a softening product like

Hawaiian Silky Miracle Worker 14 in 1.

“I

would spray a little bit of that and dilute it with

water. Once you break it out, use the detangler

brush and it will loosen it up.”

Sleep With a Satin Scarf or

Pillowcase.

If you’re sleeping with a cotton pillowcase,

toss it right now. The fibers rubbing against

your already-stressed strands cause friction

and even more breakage. Swap it for a silk- or

satin-lined scarf and pillowcase to protect your

hair while you catch some zzz's.

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