Winter is upon us ladies, and Winter ain’t kind! The brisk air may be great for the lungs, but your hair is another story. Natural hair, as a rule, needs a wee bit more TLC than our straight-haired friends. Indeed that fact becomes even more important during the colder months. Below you’ll find some quick tips to keeping your strands in tip-top shape during the months ahead.
1. Protective Styling
Protective styling usually involves keeping your strands braided for weeks on end. The longer the better (as long as you are caring for your hair while it is being protected). Protective styling allows for low manipulation, leaving your hair free from daily stressors.
2. Moisturize
Yes, moisturizing your stands through these harsh winter months is key. This is the time of year when you may want to set aside your lighter oils like grape seed, jojoba, or coconut oil, and opt for heavier oils and butters like castor oil and/or shea butter. It’s important to note that the key to moisturizing your stands is ensuring that you are sealing in that moisture. So while the hair is wet with either water or a leave in conditioner, follow up with a sealant. Read this post HERE to learn more about which oils are best for sealing in moisture.
3. Trim your ends
I like to start the new year with a trim. Why? Because if you have split/ dead ends from the summer months, you definitely don’t want to take them into the winter. The split ends will simply travel up the hair shaft, weakening your hair and making it even more susceptible to breakage during the winter months.
4. Leave your hair alone
If you don’t like the idea of keeping your hair in a protective style, consider limiting your hair routine to low manipulation styling, or simply keep your hair in a satin scarf or satin-lined hat (click HERE for options). Ultimately, you’ll have to decide what works for you, but try to limit your self to styles that don’t need daily “touching up.”
5. Cut out shampoo.
While there are plenty of sulfate-free options available, I like to cut out shampoo all together during the winter months. This is the time when you want to keep your hair and scalp as moisturized as possible. Try cleansing or co-washing creams like this one HERE or HERE instead of traditional shampoo.
6. Protein Treatment
If you are not protein sensitive, give your hair a protein treatment every 6-8 weeks. Protein will help strengthen your hair, allowing for more growth and moisture retention. The key to using protein, however, is to immediately follow your protein treatment with a heavy moisturizing masque/deep conditioner. Protein, alone, is not moisturizing, so if you give your hair a protein treatment and fail to follow up with a moisturizer, you run the risk of breakage. There are plenty of options to choose from, but this HERE is my favorite.
Check out this video for my Top products for 4B/4C hair:
any tips for grey hair ?