Women of color come in all shades, sizes, and curl patterns. Within the last few years many African American women have learned to embrace their curls, kinks, and coils instead of hiding it with the routine flat iron or bundle installation. I have always and will forever be a curly girl. My hair is everything to me. A bad hair day can “make or break” my day, my outfit and my mood. Even though women of color have learned to embrace their hair, they may have never learned how to take care of it. Whether you’re transitioning, using a protective style, starting from scratch with a big chop, or have been natural all you life you should know the basics when it comes to taking care of your hair. 

As a girl with naturally curly, kinky, or coily hair you should….

1. Love your hair. You have to learn to embrace the head of hair God gave you because if you don’t love your hair then odds are, you won’t take care of it.

2. Moisturize your hair. There is no life to dry, dull, crunchy curls. Always moisturize your hair after washing it, co-washing it, and inbetween. To keep your hair moisturized try the LOC method: first apply a leave-in conditioner, then coat your ends in a hair oil of your choice, and lastly apply your curl styler or moisturizer. Your moisturizer tends to stop working after about 2 months of use, because your hair gets used to it. Try switching up product lines every now and then for the best results.

3. Detangle your hair (gently)– Curly hair gets tangled and interlocks in itself very easily, so always detangle your hair when it’s wet, and never dry. For added slip and easy untangling add some conditioner to your hair. You should detangle your hair with a wide tooth comb or your fingers and take your time so you don’t break off your hair and weaken the hair shaft. Curly hair is very delicate so detangle starting at the ends and work your way up to the roots.

4. Co-wash your hair. Co-washing is when you wash your hair with conditioner to remove excess product build up and oils without stripping your hair of its natural oils. You should co-wash your hair once a week or when necessary, and wash your hair with shampoo once a month or when you feel necessary. When you wash your hair use a t-shirt, or a hair towel to dry your hair instead of a towel. The fibers on a towel snag the hair and cause frizz.  

5. Deep condition your hair. Deep conditioning revives and strengthens your hair every now and again. To deep condition, buy a deep conditioner at your local beauty supply store, Walmart or Target, apply it to your hair, detangle, and let it sit under a plastic cap for 45 minutes to an hour. For best results apply heat by sitting under a hooded dryer. You should deep condition your hair after every wash with shampoo and in-between co-washes.

6. Trim your ends. This is a must! Curly hair is the most prone to split ends and breakage.  Hair and ends that aren’t moisturized mixed with friction against your clothes causes the ends of your hair to fray and split. Once the strand splits it will continue to split all the way up to the scalp and eventually break off. You cannot mend split ends back together, the only thing you can do is trim them off.  Cosmetologist recommend getting trims every 6-8 weeks, but do it to your own discretion.

7. Protect your hair. Pineapples, silk pillowcase, and satin scarves or bonnets are your best bet. These are methods of protecting your hair overnight. To Pineapple, pull all of your hair to the top of your head and place an elastic on it so it’s a loose ponytail. The Pineapple preserves your curls at night. Also, at night sleep with a satin scarf or bonnet to protect your hair from the friction of your pillow case if it’s cotton. When your hair rubs against the cotton the friction drys out your hair and causes breakage. If you’re not a fan of head scarfs you can sleep with a satin or silk pillowcase at night.

8. Water your hair. Water your hair like you water a plant.In order to grow and prosper they both need water. Drink water all day every day for its overall growth and health. In the morning or when your hair needs a pick me up spritz your hair with water to activating your moisturizer and add definition to refresh your curls.

9. Oil you hair. Oiling your ends is a necessity to keeping them from splitting and breaking. You can use Coconut oil, Olive oil, Monoi oil, Jojoba oil, Argan oil, Jamaican Black Castor oil and more.

10. Protect your hair. You can protect your hair with protective styling. Protective styling is styling your hair so there is low manipulation. Low manipulation aids in hair growth, prevents breakage, and protects your ends, because you’re not constantly messing with it and changing your hairstyle. Some protective styles include: Box braids, Senegalese twist, Havana/Marley twist, Goddess braids, Faux locs, twist outs, braids out, buns, Flexirod sets, perm rod sets and more.

11. Diffuse your hair. Diffusing is more of a personal preference than a need-to-know. Instead of letting your hair air dry you can diffuse it with your blow dryer and its diffuser attachment. Diffusing applies direct heat to the curls, drys them fast, and gives them ultra definition.

This guide should fulfill all your basic natural hair answers and needs. Remember that everyone’s hair is different, and no curls are the same so results may vary. Do what works best for you. ♡