BEGINNER’S GUIDE TO NATURAL HAIR

By Kellen Chosen Njoroge

So I am sure most of us have heard the term natural or naturalista being used. I am also certain that still most of us vaguely if not entirely know its meaning; unless you’re like my friend, who for the longest time thought that being a natural meant that one only lives on a diet of traditional food such as arrow roots and yams. Well, a natural simply is a person who maintains natural hair.

So what is natural hair?

Natural hair is hair whose hair hasn’t been altered by chemical straighteners including relaxers and texturizers. It may also include hair in which hair hasn’t been damaged by heat due to excessive straightening using curling irons, blow driers or electric brushes.

Knowing this you would notice that maybe your hair texture may completely be different from maybe your walalo or even Indian friend. This is because most of us tend to have type 4 kind of hair. Type 4 (which includes 4A, 4C and 4B ) hair has basically the following kind of characteristics

·         Mostly does not have a defined curl pattern in its raw state( no products added and freshly washed)

·         Experiences shrinkage – where your real length does not show without stretching out your hair

·         Does not hold in moisture or even allow it in kind of like its water proof

·         Has the puffy effect- the only kind of hair in all the hair types that can rock an afro

Basically it’s the hair that defies gravity. To know which exact hair type you is, just visit blacknaps.org and do a quiz to learn more about your hair.

 

How to maintain natural hair

The essence of knowing your hair type is it allows you to know the techniques of maintaining it. If you are thinking of transitioning from relaxed to natural hair, it’s good to know from the beginning that maintaining natural hair is not a walk in the park. Natural hair would need your time, care and attention; it is simply not for the faint hearted.

Maintaining natural hair is mainly maintained using the following procedures

1.      Conditioning and shampooing

Our hair tends to be naturally dry with minimal oil so it is not necessary to wash your hair more than once a week.

So when its wash day one needs to do the following

·         Section your hair maybe into four areas then detangle (combing to remove knots) preferably with a wide-toothed comb from the ends your roots

-detangling reduces hair breakage which occurs when you comb your hair during shampooing

·         Pre-poo(pre-shampooing) –this is just conditioning(restoring the moisture) using the LOC method

*LOC method; is first adding a liquid, which is mostly water then adding oils(coconut oil, olive oil, jojoba oil)which provide your hair with the necessary nutrients and lastly sealing in the moisture with a cream.

-pre-pooing basically helps to ensure your hair is not brittle after shampooing

·         Shampooing- when your hair is conditioned apply the shampoo on both your scalp and hair and wash out all the dirt

-it is important to avoid products with silicates and sulfates which strip your hair of its nutrients

- The recommended brands that are available in the larger East Africa are Marini naturals and Cantu

·         Deep-conditioning- using protein masks and maybe using products specifically made for that purpose

-deep conditioning kind of feeds your hair of the nutrients it needs

*it’s basically what we used to call ‘oiling’ in high school.

2.      Styling your natural hair

As mentioned earlier it is advisable to be using a wide-toothed comb when styling natural African hair. Kinky hair should be in sections from the root to the ends in a gentle manner to remove the knots and clumps in the hair. If one is combing hair on a day that is not wash day, one should always moisturize before combing. It would be prudent to buy a spritz bottle that helps in equally moisturizing your hair with water and maybe adding some light weight essential oils in the mixture. 

Versatility and manageability

We are already aware of shrinkage and how it would seem unfair for us to not be showing our actual length of hair. We can still appreciate the diversity of our hair by having styles such as bantu knots, twists, flat twist, twist out and finger coils.

 If you are unsure on how to do any of them there so many vloggers on you tube who have creative and different ways of styling hair. I would recommend Sheila Ndinda; her hair being similar to most of ours and her videos being so easy to follow, she would definitely be top choice in teaching these styles. There are also more materials available on the internet to learn about styling African hair.

Our hair is so versatile because of its kinky nature that we can so many ways of styling it without necessarily going to the salon.

Protective styling

Twist outs and bantu knots might make our hair look bouncy and radiant but it can be hard to do them on a daily or even weekly basis. During the rainy season or even when one doesn’t have time to be manipulating hair every day, you can always opt for protective styling.

This basically involves having braids for a period of maybe a month or so to reduce on every day manipulation of hair. There are so many styles to choose from and the most popular one being box braids (makeba). One should always ensure, when going to a hair stylist that it should be

- a clean place where they properly wash their combs and towels to avoid risk of infection. If completely unsure just carry your own.

-never allow to plaited on our edges (baby hair), it is not only painful but also has detrimental effects on your hair, also the style should never be too tight

-Find a stylist who is open minded to new styles, willing to learn but still offers services at an affordable price.

Never stay too long with a protective style; it should only go to a maximum of 6 weeks. Prolonging this period makes dust and dirt to clamp in your hair which produces a ghastly odor when mixed with sweat that we excrete every day. When the braids become loose it might literally cut your hair and destroys your edges.

Sleep time

As mentioned earlier our kind of hair loses moisture quite easily.  Having a cotton pillow case or head covering when sleeping drains the hair of the little moisture it has. One should sleep on  a satin or buy a satin bonnet to reduce moisture loss thereby preventing the  hair from being brittle and breaking. If you want your hair stretched out in the morning you can always plait twists at night.

Embracing our hair

We have been told for too long that with hair we got the shorter end of the stick; that our nappy hair was not a definition of beauty. We have had to always straighten, relax, hot iron our hair and in the process damaging the beautiful gift God endowed us with. Hair that defies gravity, hair as versatile as the creative minds can be. There should not be one gauge for beauty; our bouncy kinky hair is beautiful and also their silky hair is beautiful. Let us love and embrace our hair and in that thanking the Lord for His gifts.