Tag Archives: oil

Winter Hair Care

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hair-christmasHello curly friends! I have been absent for a while, but I wanted to pop up for a quick reminder on winter hair care. As I’ve said in the past, this is probably the worst time of year for curly haired ladies living in cold weather regions, and not because of the frigid temps — blasted indoor heating dries out not only our nasal passages and skin, but our scalps and hair as well. Every week I wake up one day and notice that my hair resembles dry straw, and remember that it’s time for another oil treatment. These get expensive, since they use a lot of conditioner in both the treatment and cleansing phases, but they are absolutely necessary this time of year. The last thing you want is breakage when you’ve worked so hard to maintain your length.

In addition to weekly oil treatments of one kind or another, your scalp may need a little extra TLC. If you notice a weird kind of uncomfortable pain that radiates around your entire scalp, take a little dab of conditioner and rub it into your scalp as you would with body cream on your skin. This can be done when the hair is dry. The pain is just chapped skin, and the conditioner will soak right in. Don’t use too much though, a little goes a long way, and try to keep it off your hair as much as possible so that it doesn’t appear greasy.

Other than that, dress warm and cover up! If you’re looking for the best diffuser around so that you don’t have to go outside with wet hair, try this one. Its design doesn’t scrunch the curls and allows them to dry the way you’ve styled them. This also adds to the creation of hay-hair in the winter, so use it sparingly. I wash my hair about every 3-4 days or less this time of year.

Happy Hanukkah, Christmas, Kwanzaa, whatever else you celebrate, and Happy and healthy New Year. I look forward to seeing you in 2013!

Lots of Love, your Shepherd to Curldom

Beach Beauty

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I realized over the weekend, while lounging on the beach under a beating sun, that I should remind y’all to keep your hair hydrated during the summer! We equate winter with harmful drying conditions, but it’s just as likely to happen in the summer when you’re swimming in the pool or ocean and getting lots of sun exposure.

While you should continue the weekly oil or deep conditioning treatments in any case, another handy trick is to bring a bottle of special super-hydrating treatment with you to the beach. What I like is to get one of those little travel-size bottles, and I mix up a combination of quality daily conditioner, deep conditioner, and some hair oil. You want to have something that’s thin enough in consistency that it will not make your hair look all chunky and gross. You also don’t want to use more than necessary.

I slick a dime-sized amount on my long but fine hair, mostly at the ends, before I go into the water so that it is saturated and won’t absorb as much pool or ocean water. When you get out of the water and are back on your towel or chaise, put enough in the palm of your hand to be able to evenly coat both hands with a thin sheen of it. Wipe that through your hair from top to bottom. Always apply product in this way — going the other direction, or even side-to-side, will ruffle the hair’s cuticle and cause it to frizz and break.

If you don’t use too much, it should soak in by the time your hair has dried. If you do use too much, it’s ok, you will just have that beachy-wet look a bit longer. Wash it when you get home either way, since salt and chemicals will still be on the hair.

My recipe:

* 1 Tablespoon Moroccan Oil

* 1 Tablespoon One Condition

* 1 Tablespoon Heaven in Hair

* 2 Drops essential oil of your choice (I like sage or cedar)

Shake it up and enjoy! Depending upon how much you’ll need, adjust amounts accordingly.