Its summer and you’re pretty excited as the sun is out meaning you can have some fun outdoors.
But this comes with a different set of problems for your natural hair. During this time your hair is more likely to dry out, become dirtier or even weak. And this is not good news.
But don’t worry, we got you! Read on to discover 7 Summer Natural Hair Care Tips!
1. Protect Your Hair from UV Rays
Yes you read it right; the first summer natural hair care tip is to protect your hair from UV rays. It’s not only your skin that needs protecting. Exposing your hair to UV rays for long periods causes damage to your hair making it brittle and thin.
Try not to stay in the sun for long periods especially between 10am and 3pm. If you have to, wear a headscarf over your hair. Invest in quality hair care products that strengthen and nourish your hair preventing it from getting damaged.
2. Summer Natural Hair Care Tip: Cleansing
Since you are more likely to engage in a lot of activities as the sun is out, your hair may be dirtier than usual. This means that you will have to put in place a cleansing routine to clean your hair.
Even though you want to keep your hair clean, over shampooing can actually dry your hair. This is where co-washing comes in. To co-wash is to use conditioner only to wash your hair. Including both shampooing and co-washing will make sure that your hair is clean and that it is not stripped of too much moisture.
3. Deep conditioning
This step is important for two reasons. First, as we said in our other article on how to build a hair regimen, each time you shampoo, make sure you follow up with deep conditioning. The second reason is that your hair is more likely to dry out during the summer as the sun is out.
Deep conditioning ensures that your hair is well moisturized and hydrated preventing issues like weak and brittle hair. For you to get the best results from deep conditioning:
- Pick the right frequency of deep conditioning. How often you deep condition is going to be dependent on how your hair feels. Play around with different periods and see what works.
- Pick the right deep conditioner. Try our Pumpkin Deep Treatment Masque which is a restorative deep conditioner is designed to directly penetrate the hair shaft delivering all-natural vitamins, nutrients, and antioxidants for stronger, healthier hair.
We have two particular situations here that make moisture very important in your summer natural hair care.
- The sun is out (I know we have mentioned this a lot but it affects a lot of things!) and your hair is more likely to dry out.
- You are shampooing more often now also contributing to your hair’s dryness.
There are two ways you can moisturize your hair. One is by using the LOC/LCO method. LOC/LCO stands for liquid, oil and cream (which is hair cream). LOC your hair immediately after deep conditioning and each time that you feel that your hair has started feeling dry.
Second is by drinking lots of water. Drinking about two litres of water will be a great boost to your hair. Use simple water drinking hacks such as:
- Sip some water as you wait for meals to cook
- Drink a glass of water immediately you wake up
- Buy several water bottles.
Chlorine damage occurs when you don’t protect your hair when you are about to swim in a chlorinated pool. Chlorine dries out your hair, thus weakening it. There are several steps that you can take before swimming and after swimming to protect your hair.
Before:
- Wet your hair before swimming. This reduces the amount of chlorine your hair absorbs.
- Apply our Organic Oil Blend to your hair so that it can act as a protective barrier.
- Place your hair in a protective style such as cornrows or twists.
- Even after doing the above, you still need to wear a swimming cap to prevent the pool water from getting in contact with your hair.
After:
- Rinse out your hair with water immediately.
- Shampoo your hair using our Cocoa Mint Moisture Rich Shampoo to remove any chlorine that may have come into contact with your hair, while delivering intense moisture.
- Follow up with Pumpkin Deep Treatment Masque which is a restorative deep which will help you achieve stronger, healthier hair.
Have any more tips that we haven’t covered in the article? Do share below and help your fellow Dynasty Diva!