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braid maintenance hair braiding scalp care

Scalp care on braided afro-hair to keep it healthy

Happy new year, I hope 2020 will bring perfect vision into your life. Throughout this holiday, I had the comfort or rather the luxury of getting my hair braided for the holidays. Normally depending on the length of time I have available I tend not to do it as much as I would when I was a lot younger.

Getting hair braided

Now depending on how often you get your hair into a protective styling which is what is often common especially on afro hair, I decided to have it styled for the Christmas period. I ended up doing a hairstyle, which I had not done in a long time which typically I would do when going to school. I would say that it’s quite similar to the style below, however it was just with my own hair. After washing it with a wonderful shampoo, that smelled amazing which my sister wanted me to try as we were both doing our hair together, I had to get it blow-dried for the styling.

Getting the hair braided was quick and it took about 45 mins to 1 hour. I had to wait in the salon for my sister as we had gone together. After three hours at the hair-dressers, we ended up going home and got complimented on our looks, we both had different styles. To give a description of my hairdo, I had my hair braided up to the middle of my scalp and also a few braids hanging towards the front of my face. My sister had a simple braid back as she wanted to put a wig on and did not really want anything fancy.

Now one thing I did not mention was that before the hair was braided, I asked the lady to oil my hair but I did not check to see if the ingredients would be problematic to my scalp. In the first week all was well, however I started feeling slightly itchy on my scalp. By the second week, my scalp actually got really itchy. I was trying not to scratch it unecessarily, however there was no relief in sight.

Scalp care

Normally, after hair is braided, different individuals normally maintain their scalps in many ways. Some individuals try to avoid washing their scalps as that would loosen the braid and therefore causing their hair to look unkempt. Due to the fact that I had just braided my own hair I knew that by washing it, It would get frizzy. Therefore I took some olive oil spray which I had and used it to ensure that my scalp stayed well moisturised. It seemed to work for a few days, however after some time it also became a little ineffective. I needed some type of solution and for me using the harsher shampoos with sulfate it would have an impact on my hair by causing it to be too dry.

I dared to leave my hair for two weeks, however by the end of the second week it was quite flaky and I had to do something about it. Therefore I ended up getting some tea tree oil conditioner and one of my favourite himalaya shampoo. When I washed my scalp, I put the shampoo in place twice as I kept scrubbing and rinsing it. Once I had the conditioner on my scalp, I left it for about 5 mins in order to feel the impact. It felt really clean. I ended up rinsing my hair and my scalp was in great condition. The only thing I ended up doing was putting some oil on my scalp to ensure that it does not get dry.

Now sometimes for the sake of ensuring that the braid stays intact an individual can decided to forgo washing, however from that moment, I learnt that I cannot do that on my scalp, it’s just too sensitive to be left as it is.

I think it’s normal to have an itchy scalp after you braid and basically it’s because your hair is being pulled from the scalp. Additionally, some individuals tend to leave their braids without worrying about how to moisturise it.

Moisture

It’s very important to make sure that even though you have your hair in a protective style that you are maintaining it. There is still growth and your hair will keep shedding regardless of the fact that you are not combing it everyday. Although your braids  can get a little loose, it’s nothing to worry about as the condition of your scalp is important to stimulate your cuticles to help your hair in growing. You don’t want to have your hair braided and once you remove your braids, your hair is also coming off with the braids.

A clean scalp will help in getting your hair to grow. I have also listed a few products at the bottom that are great for braided hair in ensuring that it remains moisturised. If you are allergic to some of the ingredients, make sure that you use something that will suit you. A lot of individuals use what others tell them but not everything will work for you.

Some of the sprays that help when hair is braided are:

  1. Sulfur 8 braid spray medicated anti-dandruff treatment
  2. Jamaican Mango and lime maximum  no more itch gro spray
  3. African royale brx braid and extension sheen spray
  4. Dudu-Osun anti-itch braiding spray
  5. Parnevu T tree braid spray
  6. Ashea braiding and lock spray

I have not listed all of them, however there are quite a few brands that provide these types of products that can be useful for your scalp. The benefit of most of these products is that they minimize itchiness and maximize your hair growth.

Through this little experiment that I tried over the holiday period, I realised how important it was for me to maintain a clean scalp as I mentioned earlier I don’t really braid my hair too much.  Be careful to keep your scalp clean no matter how  frizzy your hair will look. Additionally, if your hair does not hold a braid for a long time, there is no use in keeping it on your scalp for too long.

Has anyone ever put in braids for far too long on their scalp? If you did, what did you do about it?

Categories
hair moisture hair products

How to maintain enough hair protein and moisture

I have maintained natural hair over many years now and I am at that stage where I don’t desire to relax it at all. The best I can do is ensure that it is well maintained all year round and is healthy. There was a time when all I wanted was to have long flowing hair and I know I can, however I realised that healthy hair is more important in order to have long flowing hair. Regardless, if you want to maintain longer or shorter hair, the methods mentioned in this blog should be knowledge for the rest of your life.

Many individuals with textured or curly hair are probably bombared with different products on a daily basis. One thing to remember is that if something is working for you, it’s best not to change it. Now the main reason I decided to write this article is because sometimes I get questions from some individuals that I know in finding out what I do to make sure that my hair is in great condition. One thing we all have to understand is that the best individual to know their hair is you. It’s your responsibility to understand what works well for you and what does not. Coconut oil may work well for my hair and scalp but it may not work for some individuals and that’s actually normal.

One thing though that helps with ensuring that you have the right balance of protein and moisture in your hair is how it feels. Another thing to note that is extremely important is that you need to understand your hair porosity in order to make sure that you are using the right techniques for your hair.

Identifying hair that has too much protein

How do you know if your hair has too much protein? well that’s quite simple, when you wash your hair, make sure you look out for these signs. Is it taking too long to fully get wet? does it feel spongy, hard and stretchy? Are you getting more breakage than usual? When you do the keratin treatment for example, you put alot of protein in your hair, do you know how your hair reacts if you put too much protein on it?

If you find that you answered yes to these questions, the best thing to do is start using products that are more moisture based in order to make sure that your hair is getting adequate moisture and there is some balance. Sometimes, protein will take some time to minimize on your hair strands because once it’s coated on your hair, it’s quite difficult for it to get out.

One way to cleanse your hair so that more protein can get off is using a shampoo that contains a lauryl sulphite because that will get rid of everything that may be coating the strands of your hair, then using a moisturising shampoo.

Note that this takes quite a few weeks to get off your hair so you may not see any difference in your hair for some time, be patient and keep at it.

Identifying hair that has too much moisture

When you wet your hair, how does it feel? Does you hair feel limp and gummy and not very strong, does your hair stretch a lot before breaking? You need to make sure that your hair has a good balance of moisture and you can have too much. This means that you are keeping your hair too wet all the time without allowing it to dry. Also because you have not balanced it with protein, it is not strong.

Therefore in order to make sure that you have enough protein, get protein-based conditioners.

I have braids, how do I know what I need?

If your hair is braided, it’s hard to know what your hair needs, the best thing to do is alternate the products. One week have a moisture based protein and in the next a protein based protein. This way you can consistently maintain your hair in a way that you don’t have to lack once you undo your braids.

However everytime an individual removes their braids, they always have buildup, therefore it’s useful to get a stronger shampoo with a sulfate to make sure that your hair is clean.

Conclusion

It is a lot easier to minimize the damage when you have more moisture than when you have more protein. Sometimes individuals get so much breakage and they are unsure what to do. Sometimes the best thing is to cut your hair and start the process again. Hair sheds for many varied reasons and sometimes it may not be too much protein or too much moisture. Your diet plays a big role in helping your hair to stay healthy. Make sure that you are well hydrated as well and that you are exercising and eating well. If you keep up with this, it can help tremendously in your day to day.

Do you know if you have been moisture or protein deficient?

Categories
afro combs hair accessories Hair Styles for Afro Hair

Combs to use for Afro and Curly hair

This week, I experienced a tough week with my afro, I actually felt like cutting it off and this has been after a long time. You see, a few weeks back, I had odered some crochet braids to install in my hair as I mentioned earlier, that is one of my go to protective styles. I was eagerly waiting for them and ready to get that hairdo done. I kept checking with the individuals that mentioned that I should have received them and they said that I should wait a little longer. After one month of waiting, I was extremely unhappy with the outcome of the items and just mentioned that I had not received them. I did not ask for a refund but I enquired with them again as I wanted to make sure that I was still to receive them. I was only informed that I would receive a refund. It got me wondering, what happened to the items along the way? did they get lost? Did someone else get them? So many questions and no answers. Back to the topic of the day, combing afro hair.

Combs and Afro hair

When having natural hair became more of a trend, I came across many theories and ideologies regarding looking after afro hair. One of them was that you should not comb afro hair? That did not last long, it’s extremely difficult to deal with afro hair without a comb or even a blowdry, unless you have less tighter coils in your hair. The best methodology I heard was finger combing. Now depending on the type of coils you have. if you have tigher coils, sometimes the finger combing can help but you still need a detangling brush especially for the little tiny knots. Sometimes if I am a little impatient with the process, I will eventually cut the knot off. That’s why it’s important to keep trimming your hair because it minimizes the knots a fair bit.

So because I did not get the crotchet braids, I was at a loss of how to style my hair this week, eventually I used a brush to comb it out and leave it as an afro for a while. 

It’s been a hot week so I prefer not to add anything to my head because I don’t want to get too sweaty.

Wide Toothed Combs

Every time I shower, I always use a wide toothed comb for the tangles in my hair when I am washing it. It makes the task odf detangling so much easier. Infact when I take out my braids, I no longer try and detangle them before I wash my hair, I usually detangle it during the process of washing. The only thing I do when I undo the hair is remove the product build up, which you can actually avoid if you use spirit and cotton to clean up atleast every week. It’s also wise to use a light oil to keep it moisturised during the braid process, however that’s something I will provide information on next time.

Now if you have tight coils, do not use combs that are small and are not wide toothed if your hair is still tangled. You can use it once your hair has been straightened out. I have not straightened my hair in almost one year now and I actually cannot wait to do that soon. I think less heat on the hair is so healthy for you.

Recent trend

Lately, there have been some combs that have been released in the market and I think that they are extremely innovative and interesting Poppupe detangling brush, it’s easy to use, it bends with your hair. It’s good to use in the shower and it minimizes the tangles which means less pain.

It has not been used by many people, because as mentioned, it’s a new look and style and many individuals have not experienced using that design, however check it out.

Wooden Combs

When I was younger, I was used to the wooden comb it’s only when the manufacturing of combs became more common that the plastic combs started being used. The wooden comb was mostly useful for braiding and a little bit of combing, however not so much. There’s not much production of wooden combs nowadays, however I will certainly find out if I can find a similar comb to the one that I used during my childhood.

Comb etiquette

It does not matter if you are the only individual that uses a brush or comb, however it’s extremely important to keep it clean. After every use I always wash it. The main reason for this is that when you reuse the brush again, you want to know the condition of your hair. You want to see are you loosing a lot of hair, is the condition improving. It’s also important to keep it clean to minimize any cross infection. But just like make up brushes, it’s good to disinfect your comb by cleaning it in warm soapy water. You can also just disinfect it depending on what you like.

Anyway combing and brushing your hair is always important. You cannot live without it and it’s the only way to know how your hair is doing.

What was your favourite type of comb growing up?

Categories
#focus# do what you love making money

Making money doing something you love

In this day and age, technology has helped in providing information in easier ways. It has certainly come with it’s advantages and disadvantages as well. However I would like to begin with the good things technology has done to improve the lives of people.

Technology Advantages

Over the last 10 years, many things have changed, some for the better and some worse. At this moment in time in the information age, a lot of people can take advantage of the fortunes that can be found online, that does not mean that it will be easy, you just have to learn to be consistent and know what it is that you want for your life.

A few months ago, I came across a platform known as Wealthy Affiliate(WA). I was clueless as to what it was all about, however I joined it for free to see what it was all about. My curiosity piqued because I realised that the site was to teach me how to do Affiliate Marketing, something that I heard about but never quite had an idea how to go about it.

From the first day that I started working on it, I enjoyed the lessons so much I decided to join it as a premium member just because I realised that there would be an advantage to myself and my family.

As soon as I joined them, I realised I had a lot of work to do, to get somewhere as in life there are no shortcuts, everything takes time. If something sounds too good to be true there’s always a catch and at this time in our lives, we have to be careful what we go for.

Click here to join for free

The reasons I joined

Well, like most people, you want to be financially stable and in order to get there, passive income is useful in assisting you reach those goals. The other reason was I have a family and want to be there for them, the hustle of commuting to and from work was something I thought was too cumbersome for me. I have been working on my site for the past 6 months, however when I first began, I had another job so I never quite made time for it as much as I should have.

When my contract from work ran out, during the quiet periods, I did spend time working on my passion which has always been afro hair and also working on getting myself financial independence. You don’t know when you will have to look after someone in your family and you don’t want to wait until it’s too late. Life is hard enough as it is and anyone can work on their life to have a vision on where they want to be. Five years from now I know what my personal goals should be and no organisation should dictate that for me.

You see a few years back, I looked at my life and I have been lucky to have some great jobs, but it has always been a challenge trying to climb up the corporate ladder. For me I always asked myself, is it worth it? Do I have to go through all this politics just so that I can get the money? Should I step over someone’s head and be ruthless about where I want to go? Should I wait to be promoted or can I promote myself? Well when WA came up I was like, why should I wait when I can take advantage of this wonderful community where I can utilise my skills online and provide information to others on how they too can improve their lives. This is when my journey began and I have not looked back since.

Technology problems

Now although technology is great, privacy is becoming a matter of concern all around the world and you have to be extremely careful with who you provide your details to. The great thing about WA, you can have all your information kept secure. Additionally, technology especially the social aspect of it is quite addictive. People have become glued to technology that the value of face to face is getting a little lost with people constantly looking at their phones and not socialising. The art of speaking to those around us is starting to get lost in the sea of technology and the human presence is being taken for granted. Sometimes I wonder if an individual from the past would come back to this world, how would their reaction be because I think it would tell alot about where we are headed as human-beings.

We can record events that have happened but do we just record and do nothing about it or do we step in to help victims? Therefore although technology has been amazing for us, it has also brought another set of problems we all need to work on.

What can we do

Take the time to value those around you, your parents, kids, friends and anyone. Step away from technology sometimes even a week off from the digital to the human expereince. Learn to appreciate those around you. The main reason I wanted to provide this information was to assist anyone out there that wanted to create something online and was not sure how to go about it. This is a simple gift that can change your life and create some opportunities that you may not have considered. In a world full of hopelessness I am trying to reach out and help an individual that wants more out of life. If that is you, there is nothing to lose and you won’t waste your time with this.

I am still a work in progress, however that will not stop me from working diligently until I fulfill my purpose and goal on this earth. If this is the type of opportunity you want, feel free to write and let me know where you are, what do you want to accomplish in the next year. 2019 is about to end and 2020 is just around the corner, do you still want to be in the same place as 2019 or do you want to grow?  This is a challenge not just for me but everyone that want to improve their life.

Join Today

What are you waiting for, this is a free way to learn how to use technology online. If you decide you want to join the premium offer, you will receive a bonus for a limited time though.

Categories
hair care hair ideas hair products

How to start looking after your hair

Most people want what they can’t have. If you have straight hair, you want curly hair and if your hair is curly, you want it straight. However, what matters the most is how you look after it. Whatever type of hair you have, if you look after it, everyone will certainly compliment you on it, be it curly or straight. I hope you identified your hair care regimen from my previous post. If you still have not, you can certainly feel free to check it out.

Like most people with afro hair, It took a long time for me to learn how to look after it just because I always thought that having it straight looked better. Now I know most individuals may disagree with me, but curly hair can actually be washed frequently if you have a wash and go style. That means not putting any heat on it. I remember the first year I decided to go heat free. It was a time of reckoning. You can imagine having this afro that decides on a certain day that it just doesn’t want to be shaped in any way. I had to really work with it all the time and I don’t resort to buns, I always end up braiding it some way either it’s a two strand twist or flat twist. It’s not that I don’t have the courage to have it out. Sometimes, I just didn’t want to keep being self-concious about it and it was easier to have it braided.

Looking after the afro

When I first learnt how to look after my hair, I experienced a lot of growth, however that was before I had a child. I used to spend hours on my hair without a tinge of guilt as I had time on my hands. The older I got though, I have become a little more strict with my time as I ask myself if I have had a productive day. Therefore I tend to limit time with my hair to less than 2 hours. That means, I just have to get any style done and the faster it’s done the better. Lately, I decided not to add any type of extension to my hair just to make sure that I am giving it the attention it deserves. I am making sure that it’s moisturised and if that means washing it twice a week, I will do that. If you want to have a better hair regimen, you always have to start with constant hair refreshment, It will make a difference to your hair, probably not immediately but after a period of time.

If you want more growth, you have to trim your hair and honestly, long hair may be hereditary, but as long as you are looking after your hair well, it makes a massive difference.

Having balance

Although it’s important to add moisture to your hair, you must have a good balance of protein and moisture. The good thing is that once you find the right products and the right balance, there is no limit to how long you want to grow your hair and you don’t have to take hair and nail pills, although they can really help.

So if you want to start a healthy hair care regimen, first make sure you diagnose your hair to see if there is any problem you need to address. If it’s dryness then it’s best to add moisturising shampoos. If it’s brittle and tends to break quite a bit then you will have to add protein shampoo to your regimen. Once you have identified the right regimen, you have to create a schedule that you must stick to. You have to have consistency in your hair regimen to see change, otherwise you will get back to square one.

ticktock

Deep-conditioning

I never thought afro hair really needed deep conditioning, however after doing it a couple of times this year, it has really improved my hair condition. I think that if I do it every month, I will probably be even more pleased with the results, however I like to save my time so I may add that to my regimen.

Healthy body, healthy hair

When you are looking after you body and eating the right foods, it will reflect on your body. If you make sure that you are hydrated often and that you have increased your vegetable intake, it will really assist you in seeing a difference in your hair. Additionally, if you work on yourself, it will definitely reflect. Therefore, don’t neglect your body because you are trying to work on your hair only. Everything has to be improved.

Have you done anything to your hair lately that has assisted you in looking after it?