Natural Hair Care – Moisturizing

One of the questions I get asked most frequently about natural hair care is how to keep natural hair moisturized.  Many ladies with natural hair, myself included, have struggled with dry hair.  The coily nature of afro-textured hair tends to make it more difficult to moisturize.  Also natural hair is often porous making it more difficult to retain moisture.

Check out my video on “Why My Hair is Dry” explaining common reasons natural experience dry hair.

 

My Moisturizing Solution

I think I have discovered the perfect product combination to solve my dry hair problems, particularly during the winter.  I moisturize my hair at night with the following combination and find that my hair is super soft and moisturized all day long even in cold weather.  Now please use discretion, if it is below zero it is probably best to wear updos and other protective styles in addition to properly moisturizing.

I layer the following products for super soft natural hair

 Layer 1 Curl Activator- I divide my hair into 5-6 sections and apply about a quarter size amount of product.  If my hair feels particularly dry I spritz it with water before applying the activator. Specifically I use Lustrasilk Curl Max Activator. This layer adds moisture to the hair.

Layer 2 Creamy Leave in- I typically use Rusk Brilliance Leave-In or Kinky Curly Knot Today. My hair feels damp at this point. Since leave-ins are designed to work best on damp hair it is important that this layer come after the moisturizer.  The leave in helps to smooth the hair cuticles.  (only skip layer 1 if your hair already feels properly moisturized)

Layer 3 Oil/ Butter- After allowing the products above to soak into my hair for a couple of minutes I seal in the moisture with oil.  My favorite oil combination is safflower and olive oil.

To keep my ends free of knots I apply shea butter to them every couple of days. The oil helps prevent the other products from simply evaporating quickly from your hair.  For porous hair it is particularly important to use oil.  In winter months you may want to use a butter.  After doing this I put my hair in large braids, twists, or a bun. In the morning I find that my hair super soft and moisturized.