My perfect wash & go – falling in love with my afro all over again

Just when I was getting incredibly frustrated with the state of my curls, I decided to try something new over the weekend, well an old hair style but with new products and  just like that, my faith in my curls was restored. I’d actually had a product review planned for today, but if you follow me on social media, you would have noticed me going crazy with the selfies over the last few days.

Why? Because I decided to do a style that I don’t do very often these days – The Wash & Go.

It’s  a style that many naturals say they can’t really get the hang of. I’ve said before that one of the reasons I don’t do it very often is because my hair is more prone to tangling than wearing it in a stretched style like a twist or braid out. Also, the longer the hair gets, the more prone it is to tangling. I suspect it’s the same for many of you. Add some single strand knots into the mix and you really have a recipe for tangles galore.  But with a few twists and tweaks to my technique, I have found the ultimate method to achieve the perfect wash & go for me.

To add to that, can I just say that my curls were absolutely popping! I’m really not obsessed with having every single curl defined, but oh my word, was every single curl on my head defined this weekend, with absolutely no frizz. Even though I still have single strand knots, I’m starting to think that maybe they are not such a nuisance after as all my strands were curling properly from the roots to the ends. I firmly believe this is partly due to my recent trims as fresh ends are more likely to be healthy ends.

So why wash & go

Every time I opt for this style after a long leave of absence from it, I wonder to myself why I don’t style my curls this way more. After all, it is the quickest way to style the hair and gives a true reflection of my natural curl pattern. It’s what my hair does naturally, sans manipulation of the curls.

The key is to do it on clean, well moisturised hair. Feel free to use these steps, and even to modify them, to create your perfect wash & go.

1. Cleanse the hair by either co-washing or using a gentle, natural shampoo.

2. Apply conditioner / deep conditioner and detangle. Rinse out.

3. Apply leave-in conditioner followed by oil to seal in the moisture. Make sure you apply the product while your hair is soaking wet. This way you won’t give the hair a chance to start frizzing up by applying product to damp, already frizzy hair. If your hair starts to dry because you’re applying product in sections, just re-wet it using your spray bottle.

4. Apply a styling product such as gel (an alcohol-free one) or  a creme styler for hold and/or a butter for extra sealing and softness.

5. Air dry or use a blow dryer on a low setting to speed up the drying time. Do NOT touch the hair while it’s drying. Honestly, I never used to take this step seriously, but it does contribute to more frizz, so try your hardest to only touch your hair once it’s dried.

6. Once the hair has dried, pick at the roots with an afro pick or wide-tooth comb to create extra volume.

Voila! Well moisturised, frizz-free wash & go curls. To maintain your fabulous do, read this post.

I’ll admit, I couldn’t get enough of my curls this weekend! Here are the selfies to prove it.

Love your curls!