For the summer, I wore my hair curly/in it's natural state and loved it. Yes it was a little more work on a daily basis than I'm use to but it was a nice change from wearing it straight all the time. I received a lot of compliments on my curly mane. Once the weather became a little frigid, I straightened it and it felt different, a little healthier. Since then, I've been on a mission to wear it au naturale.
I only had one perm in my life which was done by my aunt. My hair felt silky smooth but curled up not too long after. I never bothered to perm it again. I think it was due to the horror stories I heard in the girls bathroom at school. Or maybe it was because my mother never permed her hair either. Today, I have a decent head of hair but due to constant application of heat in various forms (curling irons, flat irons, hair dryers and hot rollers), I now have heat damaged ends which gave me a hard time when it was time to wear it curly (you can see this in the above picture). I've noticed many of my friends of African-American or "mixed" decent have been going natural or already are so I decided to do a little research.
In the past, I use to wash, condition, blow dry, flat iron and then run the barrel iron over the edges of the hairline where the shorter hairs live. As time passes I become lazier and do not wish to go through a lengthy process just to take care of my hair. I was on a constant mission to find the right products and the right regimen for me. With the many, and I mean many, products on the market for African-American hair, it's hard not to do an (sometimes lengthy) experiment on what works best. There are many regimens but they are tailored to what works best for the person experimenting. With that being said, I have used a combination of various tricks to have healthier hair.
-Saturate ends with EVOO (extra virgin olive oil) and/or Shea butter (raw, warmed up to a smooth texture) before shampooing. Leave on for 15-30 minutes. This is also known as a "Pre-poo".
-Wash with shampoo that does not contain sulfates which will strip the hair of moisture. Shampoo only the scalp and let the soap suds flow to the ends. You do not want to wash out all of the Pre-poo mixture.
-Condition half way down the hair shaft (not from the crown) for 30 minutes or overnight wearing a thin shower cap or plastic bag.
-Rinse conditioner but not thoroughly.
-Apply leave in conditioner if necessary.
-Air dry (I use to blow dry but I am cutting down on the heat slowly but surely)
-Section into 4's (2 in the front and 2 in the back) then section each piece into 4's again.
-Apply a small amount of heat protectant and Shea butter or any oil that is lightweight (Olive Oil and Vitamin E is sold in a lighter form in hair supply and health food stores).
-Use a barrel bores head bristle brush and the flat iron to straighten. I have one like this by Conair that I bought at the dollar store. They are great to keep the hair in place while straightening with the flat iron. Click here for a few how to videos for this technique.
-I will try "Co-Washing" on my next mission (in 2 weeks). Here's a little tutorial on how to do it.
-When wearing it curly, I section my hair into 4, comb through with a bristle brush like this one, apply a little oil and light gel (Dove gel works pretty well and does not contain alchohol), braid it and let it dry over night. In the morning, it's nice and wavy =)
*I lightly oil my scalp 1-2 times a week taking care to focusing around the hairline. I don't like me hair to feel oily.
**I trim my ends at least 4 times a year. I hear if your hair is very damaged, this should be done at least once a month if not more. If it very healthy, you will only have to trim twice a year. There is the dusting technique which is done if hair has very few split ends.
***I have heard great things about Caruso steam rollers and the Maxiglide steam flat iron. I will be giving them a try as soon as they arrive in the mail. Gotta love ebay!
So far, my hair has been holding up pretty well with this regimen. I always think there is room for improvement so my research begins again from square one. I was told to rid my mane of heat damaged hair, I should cut it at least up to my neck (it is midway down my back now). I'm not sure if I'm ready to go this short. I'm hoping cutting down on heat and wearing natural more often will help. I'll be sure to keep you posted!
Here are a few blogs and videos on other ladies that are going au naturale:
Mane & Chic
KISS
Honey Brown
Curly Nikki
Miss This
So what do you do to your hair? Any suggestions on how to maintain a healthy mane? Do tell =)
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