Wash Days: Just one of those days naturals go through

Photo From: Love My Kinks Art Print by Coily and Cute

Calling

All

Naturals

w/ Curls, Coils & Kinks

First let me start by expressing these are my personal opinions based upon my personal experiences with my natural texture of hair. You are probably wondering what is her natural texture? Great question! I will do my best to try to answer. For those of you who are into hair typing.... I believe after some research my tight voluminous corkscrew coils are in the 3C/4A range. I try to not to get stuck on a particular hair type but at the same time I want to be educated on what's on my head. I find it extremely beneficial especially when trying to search for the best products for your hair. I think the more research you do the better chance of you not wasting all your hard earned money on products that don't compliment your texture.

Wash days can be a very successful and pain free process when you find a routine that works wonders for your hair in addition to us all having bad hair days. So many naturals dread wash day and my goal is to get you to accept they aren't going anywhere so let's have some fun and enjoy the journey. I personally like to wash my hair in the morning for the simple fact I wear mainly wash in go styles and my hair is crazy thick and takes forever to dry. You must find what works best for your hair texture, porosity level and length of hair. I can only express how my hair acts on wash days. Do I pre-poo? I will let you come up with your own conclusion on that. What I like to do is add ample amount of oils to my hair the night before... some may say wait that is pre-pooing right?! Maybe so.... Although most naturals pre-poo the day of their wash day. I prefer to add my oils at night due to the added benefits of overnight penetration. It's totally up to you... as there are many ways to achieve the same outcome. I love my wash days! Maybe its TWA crazy talk since my hair is still short and easy to maintain for the most part. I have decided to make it an enjoyable experience... since it must be done.

For some who may not be familiar with the term co-washing... it is referring to a cleansing conditioner in place of a shampoo. Some naturals use a regular rinse out conditioner to wash their hair... if that works for you great! My dry scalp needs to be cleansed with cleansing agents so I look for co-washes labeled "cleansing conditioner". It was love at first site when my coils became one with co-washing. Find one that parts your hair like the Red Sea and never let it go! Although, I am not going to lie when the term was first presented to me... I thought well now that has to be the dumbest thing I have ever heard of. God made me eat my words for sure. There are many articles and expert opinions on if you should shampoo or co-wash? Which route should you take?! I take both! Yes, I co-wash twice a week and shampoo once a month... best of both worlds if you ask me. The main reason I co-wash twice a week is due to my dry scalp... which I am proud to say is nearly nonexistent since returning natural.

So, my wash day routine is pretty simple... current routine goes like this: All steps done in the shower. ;) Tip: I like to play some groovy music as I wash my hair helps to pass time.

Co-wash in the shower
Rinse out co-wash completely
Add a moisturizing conditioner with a lot slip: I am very generous with my conditioner
Detangle gently with your conditioner and I also use a comb and my fingers: I personally don't section off my hair: If you have longer hair you may want to try sectioning off 4 sections of your hair and twisting and detangling each section individually but do what works best for you...play around with it until you find a technique you like. I even know naturals who prefer to detangle before they wash their hair because that works best for their hair texture.
Rinse out conditioner completely when detangling is complete
Add deep conditioner while in the shower: I squeeze out a little bit of the water from my hair prior to adding my DC

Then I get out of the shower with my deep conditioner slap on a plastic cap then proceed to add my heating cap on top of that. I always always...deep condition and usually for at least 30 minutes! This step is crucial to happy, moisturized curls, coils and kinks. Our hair requires so much moisture that every time I wash I deep condition. Utilize your deep condition time wisely (I also take this time apply my face mask). Once my 30 minutes are up I hop back in the shower and rinse out my deep conditioner with cold water... results are happy bouncy coils! I will dedicate an entire article to the styling phase in the future so stay tuned! My entire wash/detangle time runs about 20 minutes or 30 minutes if my hair is on its period (lol) plus 30 minutes deep conditioning = 50 min/1 hour total. Keep in mind this is after many months of trial and error. Plus, the goal is to find a technique that maximizes your time well not to rush through the process. You will get there if you aren't there already. My hair is extremely tightly curled from root to tip... not to mention I have colored treated hair. I aim to try to use products designed for my texture and color treated hair. I have learned on wash days that patience and the right product combination is the key.

~My Wash Day Results~

Embracing your natural texture is accepting your own texture and making it work best for you. Don't compare your texture to others... if God intended for you to have another texture HE would have given it to you. Rock what you got! Research and don't be afraid to try something new... I know we CAN! ;)

Power Thought - I have decided to make it an enjoyable experience.

Products used on this wash day *Click on product name for the link*
Creme of Nature with Argan Oil Curlicous Co-Wash -
Trader Joe's Nourish Spa Conditioner - Looking to replace this one (long story will share soon) ;(
Shea Moisture Superfruit Complex 10-IN-1 Renewal Masque -
Hair Therapy Wrap- Heating Cap

Today's Natural Hair Lingo
TWA =Teeny Weeny Afro
BC= Big Chop
DC = Deep Conditioner
Slip = How well a product aids with detangling/combing*Lifesaver*
Co-Wash = Cleansing conditioner
Pre-Poo = Usually an oil treatment applied to the hair prior to shampooing or conditioning
CAN = Calling All Naturals
SM = Shea Moisture

Weekly Natural Hair Care Deals*Click on the deals for the link*

*$avings Alert*

Ulta - Shea Moisture Hair & Bath products all BOGO 50%. 7/5 - 7/25

Sally's Beauty Supply - Mix & Match hair care B2GO free. Ends 7/31 unless otherwise noted

CVS - Shea Moisture or Nubian Heritage hair care are all $8.99 7/19 - 7/25

Great time to stock up... Enjoy!