Caring for Natural Hair When You’re Short on Time

quick tips for curly hair

Juggling university, the blog, my job, a social life and all the other stuff life throws my way, I sometimes struggle to make my hair look presentable (seriously, sometimes it’s embarrassing. I actually pray I don’t see anyone I know when I go out with my hair looking A HOT MESS). We’re all so busy and we all know how time-consuming natural hair can be but it doesn’t have to be! Despite loving our curls, we can’t allow our hair care regimen to rule our lives so here are some quick tips for curly hair that may help you quicken your routine:

1

Try to keep your hair stretched (e.g. braid outs, twist outs, bantu knots, blowouts *with caution* etc) – if your hair is in a stretched style, this will most likely reduce tangling so this will obviously cut down on the time it takes to detangle on wash day.

2

Try detangling under running water – when I’m in a rush and I need to wash my hair, I saturate my hair with conditioner in the shower (as usual) but instead of detangling normally, I detangle my hair under the running water of the shower. Something about the water pressure essentially ‘pushes’ the tangles out (for the super environmentally conscious ladies out there, this may not be for you but desperate times, friends!)

3

Deep condition (DC) on the go – wet your hair, apply your DC, put on a plastic cap/plastic bag and wear a beanie or wrap your hair in a scarf (I usually do this if I have to run out to grab some stuff or when I go to the gym). This is great for those ladies who just don’t have the time to sit around waiting for the DC to work its magic.

4

Diffuse your hair – this one is hit or miss for some people because it does involve heat (but you can do it so the heat is minimal). After you wash your hair, try drying your hair with a hair dryer using the diffuser attachment instead of waiting for your hair to dry. This will help spread the heat evenly across your hair and will prevent your curls/kinks from getting crushed or flattened. This also helps with adding volume to your hair. And if you’re somewhere cold, you definitely don’t want to be walking around with wet hair.

5

Protective styling – this is an obvious one! If you do a protective style, you won’t have to do your hair as often and your hair will grow (remember to moisturize and seal though).

6

Steam your hair while deep conditioning – steaming your hair adds moisture and combined with a DC, you may be able to cut the deep conditioning time to about 15-20 minutes. Steaming your hair has numerous benefits (e.g. preventing breakage, stimulating growth, reducing dandruff).

You see? Natural hair doesn’t have to take forever! With just a few minor changes, you can cut down on the time it takes to care for your hair.

Free Blogging Bootcamp Curls Understood eBook

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *