Ladies!!! The winter months are slowing creeping along and will not shed mercy on our hair, especially if you wear your hair in its natural state....so lets visit some DOs and DONTs in order to preserve our beautiful tresses!
1.) DO use Moisture, Moisture, Moisture!!! Beef up the length of time you leave in your deep conditioner. I use
Aubrey Organics Honeysuckle Rose Moisturizing Conditioner. After applying this product, put on a plastic cap and wrap a towel around your head to promote heat! After one hour, rinse product out with cold water and then make sure to use a quality leave-in conditioner.
2.) DON'T go to bed with your hair "out"! Every night I section my hair into 6-8 parts, lightly dampen each section with water, then apply a water based moisturizer to seal in moisture. During winter, I use
Qhemet Biologics Amla & Olive Heavy Cream or
Carol's Daughter Hair Milk: The Original Curl Definer (this works great for curl definition and moisture). I braid or twist each section and then tie it up with a satin scarf. This method locks in moisture at night, so that in the morning your hair is well moisturized.
3.) DO stay well hydrated! What you put inside your body is just as important as what you put on the outside. My diet includes drinking a gallon of water a day...(and yes, I drink it straight from the container, lol). The composition of our hair strands consists 25-30% of water. Therefore, lack of water consumption can leave your hair dry and brittle no matter what you apply to the outside.
4.) DON'T allow scarves, sweaters, and wool coats to rub against your fragile hair strands! When wool fabrics rub against our hair, it leaves the cuticles of our hair open which inadvertently leaves our hair prone to dryness. It also snags at our hair causing breakage which impedes hair growth. Instead, put your hair up and away from your coat collar/scarf or line the collar of your coat with a fashionable silk/satin scarf.
5.) DO use protective styles! Contrary to what some may think, protective hairstyles can be very mod and trendy! Ninety percent of the time, my hair is kept in protective hairstyles. I save the more dramatic/big hairstyles for nights I go out :) Braids, two-strand twists, and vintage buns and rolls (check out this link
here for retro protective hairstyles) are the way to go this winter! The goal is not to leave the ends of your hair exposed to the harsh elements. Remember this very simple equation (see below) which preserves hair and promotes hair growth during those cold winter days!
MOISTURE + PROTECTIVE STYLES= HAIR GROWTH!!!
I absolutely love Janlle Monae inspired hairstyles...so classic, yet edgy and funky! Great style alternative for the winter.
RANDOMNESS ALERT!!!!
Speaking of Letting Go yesterday....check out one of my favorite songs from Ms. Monae
