Hello hello lovely people, I hope you all had a wonderful weekend and Monday isn’t being too harsh on you!
Natural hair can be a bit stressful, but a good wash day really sets the pace of your two week-long bouncy healthy hair. If you’re anything like me, wash day is the one day for no calls and no plans. It’s a whole day affair, TLC time with my crown.
Now let’s get to it! There are three stages to my regular wash day routine, but my hair isn’t really public ready for another one or two days after wash day. It’s a process, but it’s worth it.
I start off by putting my hair in an overnight pre-poo or I go in the dryer for half an hour.
The pre-poo consists of:
coconut oil
Castor oil/ Jamaican castor oil
Olive oil
2 drops of tee tree oil or lavender essence
If you have damaged hair, weak hair, or you just want your hair to be stronger and thicker, apply aloe vera gel on your roots and ends first. You can use a fresh aloe plant by using the juices of the plant. Or you could use the store-bought aloe gel; it all works the same.
The process!
Separate your hair into 4 sections (or 8. Whatever you’re happy with) with each section apply a generous amount of the oil and lock in the moisture with an easy twist. Repeat that for every section of your hair, put a shower cap on it and go under the dryer. Or you could put both a shower cap and a bonnet to sleep with overnight to retain the heat.
Wash time!
Don’t take out the twists. Wash your hair with them in. Your hair will be soft and easy to manage because of the treatment. Lather the shampoo on your hair, one section at a time, then, put that section back in a twist. Repeat this routine for every section of your hair for the conditioning process as well.
Deep treatment!
It isn’t necessary to do a deep treatment every time you wash your hair. However, when you do, use the same process of twisting every section of your hair and go under the dryer or let it sit for a couple of hours if you don’t use heat on your hair.
L.O.C
For those who are unfamiliar with the LOC process, it is a simple step by step method to retainin the moisture in your hair.
L – Liquid
O – Oil
C – Cream
I use the LOC method to hydrate my hair with the liquid base and moisturize with the oils and cream.
If you have damaged hair you could make warm green tea, put it in your spraying bottle and spray a reasonable amount to your hair to make it damp. Only use it until your hair becomes stronger. When your hair is healthy, just use regular degular water.
Green tea is a great liquid used for those who have damaged hair, thin hair and weak hair. And can be used to reduce dandruff.
Please do not use caffeinated green tea as it may not have the same effects as natural green tea. Pure green tea has antioxidants that help keep the hair clean, shiny and soft. It may also help stimulate hair growth.
There is a wonderful lady who specializes in natural hair in Nairobi who always said, “if you can’t eat it, don’t put it in your hair.” That may sound slightly difficult, however the point of that statement is that we shouldn’t be putting products with questionable chemicals.
Keep it as natural as possible. Use products designed for natural hair. Do not be swayed by the expensive and attritive products for ‘curly hair’. Natural African hair is not the same as curly hair.
During the oil step I tend to use the same mixture that I used for my pre-poo. The combination of oils nourishes my hair and my scalp for the full two weeks until I need to wash my hair again.
Lastly is the cream. I usually use a leave-in conditioner to lock the moisture in, then I put my hair in twist outs overnight.
If I want to pull my hair the next day, I take out my twists and put my hair in plats. This stretches my hair and makes it appear longer, by minimizing the shrinkage.
To all of the natural hair Queens and Kings, I hope this has helped. Please send me feedback.
See you soon!
Xxx
