I wash my hair once a week. This is my process:
1. Pre-poo and Detangle
This a treatment that I apply to my hair before I wash it to make sure that it does not get stripped of its natural oils during the wash process. I use my favorite oil for this: coconut oil. About an hour before I wash I divide my hair into four sections and apply the oil to each section. While I work it into the hair I start detangling. After I’ve completed each section, I’ll twist it up and out of the way until all four sections of hair have been saturated in oil. I’ll leave this on for anything from 30 minutes to an hour before I jump into the shower.
I love using organic coconut oil on my strands.
2. Wash
Gone are the days of using any old sulphate-containing shampoo, which used to leave my strands ridiculously dry. Currently I wash my hair once a week with Aubrey Organics Honeysuckle Rose Moisturizing Shampoo. I love this stuff. I gently wash the hair section by section and twist up each section before I move on to the next. I focus on my scalp and let the shampoo run off to my ends.
The best shampoo I’ve ever used.
3. Deep Condition
Deep conditioning has really worked wonders ever since I started doing it, which is why I now deep condition every single time I wash my hair. I haven’t been able to find a deep conditioner for natural hair here in Tokyo, so I just make my own by mixing up some ingredients in my kitchen cupboard. It always consists out of a conditioner which serves as a base, currently Aubrey Organics Honeysuckle Rose Moisturizing Conditioner, to which I add honey, coconut and/or olive oil, mashed avocado and apple cider vinegar. I continue to work section by section. Once I’ve applied the deep conditioner I pin the four sections to the top of my head, cover with a shower cap and a warm towel and leave it on for at least 30 minutes to an hour.
Once I jump back into the shower to rinse I detangle the hair under the stream of the shower. If I need more conditioner to help this process along, I’ll reach for one my regular ones. Currently it’s either Tres Emmes Naturals Nourishing Moisture or Herbal Essences Hello Hydration.
My staple conditioners.
4. Moisturising, Sealing and Styling
Again working in sections, I’ll start by applying a leave-in conditioner. Right now I’m hooked on Cantu Shea Butter Leave-in Conditioning Repair Cream. This product is so moisturizing, I highly recommend it if you can get your hands on it. I follow that up by sealing in all the moisture with coconut oil, or my home-made whipped shea butter.
Then I twist the hair up into 2-strand twists and let it air-dry over night, wrapped up in a silk scarf, while I sleep on a silk pillowcase. I don’t use a hair dryer anymore and have been heat-free for almost an entire year.
Have I mentioned how amazing this leave-in is?
5. Weekly Maintenance
During the week, I keep the twists in for 3-4 days, after which I need to restyle. I usually take out the twists and wear my hair in a high bun, or another protective style. I mainly wear my hair out over the weekends, in which case I’ll sport a braid-out, my favorite style.
I maintain the hair’s moisture levels by spritzing with water twice a day, morning and night, and sealing in the moisture with coconut oil and/or my whipped shea butter.
Lastly, I make sure that I wrap up my tresses in a silk scarf every single night.
Wow thanks Eleanore! I stopped using chemicals on my hair and embracing my natural curls. I find that my hair looks dry 3 days after I’ve washed it. Having a rather tight budget, I can’t always buy the expensive brands so I just wash it again but then lose the volume. Thanks for all the tips, I’ll definitely give it a go, will keep you posted!
Hi Jolene, thank so much for stopping by the site.
Honestly, you don’t need expensive products – just make sure you use water for moisture and an inexpensive oil like extra virgin olive oil, grapeseed or coconut oil to seal the moisture in. If I don’t spritz with water and seal with an oil again in the week, by hair will also dry out after a week, so it’s important to keep the moisture levels up, otherwise it’s dryness, which equals breakage and your hair will remain short. Bad news if you want to grow your hair long.
If you have not already, check out this post as well as this post where I talk about moisturising naturally curly hair.
Hope this helps and yes please keep me posted 🙂
Eleanor
Hi Eleanor
Very very useful tips. I need to wet my hair every single morning to get the desired look and effect. I wash and air dry and leave in conditioner. My hair is thin whilst drying then I need to shake my head vigorously to get the BIG look. I tried “the spraying my hair in the morning” .. but then it goes all flat again. I wear it lose everyday cos its still to short to tie up…. so how do i maintain without wetting my hair every morning… Oh yes you suggested coconut oil after spraying with water or do i mix the oil with the water?? lol …. Hope to hear from you soon
Hi Samantha
It sounds like you might be spraying too much water on your hair if it’s going all flat. It should really just be a light spritz to allow you to refresh your curls. If you choose not to spray that’s also ok, but your curls obviously won’t look the same as they did on the day you washed it. Who knows, you might even end up preferring the 2nd and 3rd day curly look 🙂
Regarding the coconut oil, I prefer spraying with water first and them sealing the moisture in with the coconut oil as a second step. Some people prefer mixing the two though. You could try both methods and see which one works best for you.
Hope that helps!
Eleanor