Summer Tips for Natural Hair

by Emilia Obiekea of AdoreBotanicals.com

It’s summer time! We know that means fun in the sun, playing in the water and tons of outdoor activities. Many people forget to protect their hair while they are out having fun. Just as your body needs sunscreen your hair needs a layer of protection as well. After all the fun you may notice your ends looking a bit frayed or raggedy. The best thing to do is trim the damaged ends and start taking care of your ends as a preventative measure. Who wants unnecessary length loss? No one! The following will help to avoid hair damage while enjoying your summer.

Read On!>>>
Swimming

• Prior to swimming:
  • Wet your hair with water and coat in oil (such as coconut oil). This will prevent your hair from absorbing chlorinated or salt water. The hair will swell less.

• When you are done swimming:
  • Cleanse your hair by clarifying, shampooing, or using a cleansing conditioner of choice.
  • Moisturize your hair as normal.
  • Apply a bit of oil to your ends in a smoothing motion. This prevents the likely hood of them fraying.
  • Always condition your hair after cleansing. It does not always need to be a deep conditioner. Using a quick rinse out conditioner is good for regular use.
  • If your hair is very dry and needs a bit of a boost try doing a hot oil treatment or oil rinsing. They are very effective.
    

Protect Your Hair Color
Regardless of if your hair color is natural or chemically altered, the sun can damage all hair. This is more likely to happen to those of us with dyed hair but all hair is vulnerable to lose its luster due to constant sun exposure.

You can protect your hair simply by wearing a cute hat with a brim and moisturizing your hair very well prior to enjoying the outdoors.

Frizz Woes

I personally love frizz. When my hair was relaxed I hated when it would frizz. Now that I’ve been natural for approx. 6+ years I adore my frizz. When my style is too perfect I rough it up a bit lol.

For those that don’t enjoy rocking frizz this tip is for you.

• Avoid using products that have humectants, or other ingredients that act as humectants, high on the ingredient list. If a humectant is in the top 5 ingredients listed…that product won’t be your friend today. Just have to leave it for another day.
• Use anti-humectant leave in products.
• Use a silicone based serum on your hair. Your hair can be dry or freshly moisturized. It will still provide the necessary level of protection needed to maintain your hair in its current condition. A little goes a long way. Using too much can result in limp/weighed down hair. No one wants that.
• In a hurry? Just mist your hair with an anti-frizz spray or a humidity blocker. Comb, brush or smooth it through the hair. Focus on your problem areas.

Hair Styles
Wear your hair in simple, stress free styles. Tight braids or styles can damage your hair due to the tension of the style. This can cause the hair to break or tear and can also cause damage to your follicles. Great styles to wear are lose buns, braids, twists, etc…whatever is simple and doesn’t pull your hair is great. Just don’t leave it that way and neglect to wash it after swimming.

Heat
Reduce the amount of direct heat used on your hair. Air drying is optimal for most. If you do blow dry, do it on a low setting using the tension method.