Ladies, I’m sure you can relate to this scenario. You’ve just put the finishing touches on your fresh bantu knot out or perfectly defined twist out. You go about your day as usual and get tons of compliments on your curls. You’re kinda feelin’ yourself, right? However, when you get home and actually feel your hair, you realize it’s drier than the heels of your granddaddy’s feet. Ughhhh! So, the question is, ladies: how can we maintain a beautifully defined style without sucking all of the moisture out of our strands simultaneously?
Here are a few tips to help you avoid having what I like to call “hay hair” (hair that looks good, but feels as dry as a pile of barn hay):
- Moisturize before you style. While your hair is wet and before you begin applying your styling products, you should try to lock in as much moisture as possible first. A good rule of thumb is to generously apply a leave-in conditioner such as Good Hair Conditioning Styling Crème, which adds moisture to your hair while also defining it.
- Choose all-natural styling agents. When you’re styling your natural locs, use a styling product that is all-natural, free of the junk and enriched with premium ingredients that both condition and moisturize your tresses. In fact, I recommend Uncle Funky’s Daughter Supercurl Miracle Moisture Crème because it keeps the hair soft, adds shine and is made with Shea Butter and Coconut oil.
- Seal in your moisture. My cardinal rule for locking in moisture is to add a bit of essential oils to my tresses after styling to prevent the loss of moisture. Coconut oil, jojoba oil and olive oil are my top favs.
- Go heatless. Instead of using a dryer, allow your hair to air dry. Dryers remove some of the moisture from your strands that would otherwise remain if you allow your hair to dry naturally.
- Don’t forget the finishing touch. After your hair is dry, add a light shine mist to your hair. Again, we are adding another layer of protection to the moisture that you’ve already locked in. Uncle Funky’s Daughter Glossy Finishing Hair Polish is a great option. It does just what its name indicates: it creates a soft polish or sheen over your finished look.
These five steps allow you to create light layers of moisture that won’t weigh your hair down or make it hard, but will help keep the moisture securely locked in.
Funky Junkies, be sure to check out my YouTube Bantu Knot styling demo using Uncle Funky’s Daughter products. When I styled my hair in Bantu Knots, I spritzed small sections of my hair with the Midnite Train Leave-In Conditioner first. I made my sections small/medium sized.
(I don’t like to make them too small because the curls will come out really tight.) I then smoothed the product through each section. Next, I added Good Hair Conditioning Styling Crème and ran my wide toothed comb through the section to remove any tangles. Then, I added olive oil to seal the moisture in and allowed my hair to air dry. Once my hair is dry, I slowly separate my curls to preserve definition and pick out my curls to add volume to my hair. After I remove the bantu knots, I sprayed my hair with Glossy Finishing Hair Polish to add shine and extra moisture protection. And, voila! I have a head full of beautifully moisturized curls.
As a natural, you sometimes feel like you’re always in a fight to defeat dryness but remember, you’re Muhammad Ali in his prime! You can achieve gorgeous styles and maintain moisture with the proper execution.
