TLC For Your Hair: Tips to Nurture Your Tresses
I am nearing the fifth anniversary of wearing my hair in its natural state. Over the years, I have learned what has worked best (gentle washing and essential oils) and what to avoid (tight cornrows and rat-tail combs!). I have listed a few tips that have been an integral part of my hair routine thus far:
1. Choose Products Carefully: Be mindful of the products—specifically, the ingredients—you place on your hair. The general philosophy that I follow is: If I wouldn’t place it on my skin, then I won’t put on my hair. Have questions about which ingredients to avoid? Check out this post.
2. Massage Your Scalp: Many people swear by this method as a way to stimulate hair growth. I have found that this is beneficial for encouraging hair growth around the temples (using a rosemary and jojoba oil blend). Scalp massage is also an unparalleled relaxation technique—I feel better instantly after doing this.
3. Condition Regularly: Conditioning is essential to healthy and beautiful hair. Our hair follicles face so many harsh elements (weather, styling tools, heat), it deserves a little pampering every once in a while. Experiment with different recipes and treatments to find the conditioner that works best for you.
4. Moisturize Often: If your hair tends to be dry like mine, keeping your hair moisturized is key to vibrant tresses. Some may find that their hair loves water; others’ hair absorbs oils and butters better. Whatever your preference, make sure that you provide your hair with the moisture that it vitally needs.
5. Wear a Satin Cap or Scarf: This is a must for those of us with naturally kinky hair, which tends to be more fragile. The satin scarf helps to protect our tender ends from being damaged on traditional cotton pillowcases. For those of you who like to be a little more, ahem, glamorous at night, you can get a satin pillowcase instead.
6. Embrace Your Beauty: We have all frowned at the mirror when having a “bad hair” day or become frustrated when our hair is uncooperative. How often do we take the time to affirm our natural beauty? I used to get discouraged when my hair would not conform to a particular style or attain a certain length. I have now learned to love it unconditionally—flyaways, shrinkage and all. Ironically, since the shift in my approach—my hair has thrived—I credit the power of positive thinking. 
What tips do you have to nurture your hair?
April 12th, 2010 at 12:38 pm
My routine is similar to yours. I don’t massage my scalp like I should, but will try doing that more.
Things I do to nurture my hair.
1. I sometimes do an warm oil treatment using, hair nutrition oil from Sheaterra, coconut oil, or jojoba oil..not at the same time. I rotate the oils.
2. I try to twist my hair every night, so that it is not matted to my head..sometimes, I’m lazy about this.
3. I do less manipulation of my hair, which helps preserve my length.
April 13th, 2010 at 9:18 am
Wow, your hair is so beautiful and rich! Thanks for the tips.
Definitely going to try do less manipulation on my hair…
April 13th, 2010 at 11:34 am
Hey there! I really think this site is great and have learned quite a few things so far! My natural haircare routine is as follows:
1. I shampoo my hair twice a week with shampoo that does NOT contain sulfates (i.e., the dreaded sodium laureth sulfate)and I also use a homemade shampoo made with pure castile soap.
2. I condition for at least fifteen minutes after every shampoo to restore elasticity and moisture to the hair.
3. I use organic aloe vera gel as a moisturizer, its GREAT for defining curls too! And I use a creme leave in conditiner called Nexxus Headdress.
4. I trim (or some call it dusting) on the first of every month. The curlier your hair is, the more tendency it has to break and split, so it’s imperative that the ends are preserved.
5. Scalp massages and good nutrition are a must for any head of hair and I have noticed dramatic results when having fish three times a week and taking vitamin B complex supplements.
I love being natural, its so liberating!!
You can check out my shampoo/aloe vera recipes on Youtube under “2kurly4u”. Thanks for this site!!
April 13th, 2010 at 2:53 pm
I wash weekly, keep my hair moisturized and rarely “style” it. I keep it simple. I don’t apply any heat and I don’t use a comb or brush.
April 13th, 2010 at 3:05 pm
@Evelyn: I did a warm oil treatment on my hair overnight last week with jojoba oil. It left my hair sooo soft. You are right about the manipulation–it really makes a difference. What protective styles do you wear to keep from overstyling?
@Nangamso: Thanks so much! It has been a work in progress for me to get to this point.
@Tangier: Thanks! Your tips are excellent! Your hair looks fantastic. Can’t wait to check out your how-to videos.
@Sly: Yes, simple is best. Do you stretch your hair? If so, how do you do it without heat?
April 13th, 2010 at 3:17 pm
I never intentionally stretch my hair. It use to appear stretched in the past when I would first twist it wet and wear twistouts. Then mid week, I’d twist it dry and wear twistouts. The mid week style would be more stretched than when wet. Now, I don’t do that. I twist my hair wet, keep it pinned up all week and usually on Friday I wear the twist out. I wrap my twist at night, like how you’d wrap straight hair and perhaps that stretches it a little. But I don’t intentionally stretch it to make it appear longer. I like the tight curls and for that reason I didn’t like a shea butter I had been using because it seemed like the ingredients were stretching my hair. Check out Part 3 of my Alikay Naturals review on youtube to see what I mean.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lhmA095zlps
I think you can naturally stretch your hair without heat by braiding it and then a day or so later styling it. Or with dry twisting it over time, if that makes sense though.
April 13th, 2010 at 5:16 pm
Misslycia,
I sometimes wear 2 strand twists, but end up sporting a twist-out. Most of the time, I wear a curly fro. I put a few twists in my hair at night and take them down the next day and walaa. I also use my fingers to style.
April 15th, 2010 at 8:38 am
@ Sly: Yes, I have noticed a natural stretch with dry twisting over time. I’ll check out that Alikay Naturals review.
@Evelyn: Love the curly ‘fro! It’s such a versatile style.