Friday 20 December 2013

TIPS TO HAVING HEALTHY LONG HAIR

Hey there guys!

Today it's all about growing our hair ladies!!!... Ladies love hair, but men love them more. (On the ladies, I mean). There are also men that love to grow their own hair too, just the way some ladies don't like hair. Whether you like hair or not, whatever little you have on your hair, you want it healthy. I hope we can all agree on that. For the purpose of this discussion, I'm sticking with growing a long healthy hair, (on your head). 


Let's take a trip down memory lane, rewind 5 years back to 2008. I had a short, shaggy, almost nasty hair. There are almost nothing on the front of my head especially at the sides. My brothers never stopped teasing me about it. They said one day I'll become like Mr.T. [If you don't know Mr. T, then the hair cut on the black guy from the movies "The A-Team" is exactly what they mean]. I could pack all of it (my hair) together in the middle of my head in a mini-bun but it was very light. There were a few things I was doing all wrong but had no idea. I'm going to list them below;
  • I retouched (relaxed with a creme relaxer) every month, sometimes every 2 weeks. Reason is stated on point 3
  • I never used to steam my hair.
  • I used whatever type of relaxer I came across or was told did wonders at the time. (I have an incredible pure African hair texture). The type usually referred to as "stubborn" hair. Back then I used "Venus super", sat for almost an hour, waiting and still at the end, the hair came out like I did nothing to it. (Reason for point 1).
  • I carried my weaves from a total of 2 weeks and washed, then carried my natural for another 2 weeks and retouch. Yep! it was that bad.
  • I dyed my hair a couple of times, and it was my friend who helped me not the proper way.
  • If you bring a scissors near me, to cut off the split-ends, it meant war! (For goodness sake I was trying seriously to grow my hair. Didn't the stylist realize that?)
  • I did use some treatments though.
Fast forward by 1 year to 2009, I met a good hair stylist, those from my mum's generation. She still believed in washing and rolling and setting your hair. AS opposed to iron straighteners preferred by the younger generation. She thought me a few good things which I now practice and I have a healthier and a tiny bit longer hair. (Still having issues with relaxer kit I can trust). The Nigerian market believes in making fake versions of products that as doing well in the market. *Shaking my head*. I'll be sharing those tips on this blog.

Move forward to another year (2010), I travelled to the north for a period of 1 year. Had to change stylist too. This time they were Northerners too. Their type hair treatment consisted of a lot including snake oils. I chose the ones I felt comfortable with. One good thing they could do was a very good weave. Weaving protects the hair and helps with its growth, but when done too tight, it could go the other way.

After meeting with these stylists, these are the tips I adopted. It worked for me, may not work for everyone. The thing about hair just like skin is; you have to find what works for you.

MY TIPS

  • I started retouching my hair every 3 - 4 months. 
  • I learnt that the ideal time to carry a weave-on for is 4 - 6 weeks. I use products that I can use routinely for my natural hair for me weaves, meaning no oils just creams.
  • Every 6 weeks, I treat and steam my hair with products like cholesterol, Shea butter, placentine, coconut oils e.t.c.
  • Good shampoos and conditioners are advisable.
  • I also use good relaxer cremes now, even though I have to battle through the fake ones occasionally.
  • If you used natural weave-on then you can wash your hair with the weave on your head. It prevents smells and helps to moisturize your scalp. I can't say the same for synthetic weaves because some of them tangle. So, know your products.
  • To grow both the back and front of my hair, I use a good stylist who can weave it, picking every strand.
  • I stopped dying my hair. Still tempted though.
  • I'm no more afraid of chopping of the split ends. I realized they cause more harm than good.
  • Finally, I do protective styling especially during the drier times of the year like harmattan. I am the ultimate "side fringe" queen (with no hair brought out). That is my hair style for every weave I have on. Be it straight, curly of wavy; long or short. It doesn't matter, unless it's braids of course.
Protective Styling


Forward to 2013, and my sister (you'd know her by now from by relationship posts), is now obsessed with anything to make hair her long and bouncy and she is the inspiration behind this post. She has her own home made mixture she uses to steam her hair and it works because when she's done, I always love her hair. All shiny and bouncy and all. Her mixture contains Shea butter, mayonnaise, eggs and honey. She massages it into her hair in sections, wraps up the hair in a plastic bag for about 30 minutes then rinse.

I still insist on knowing whats good for you and your hair. A tiny gist before I leave. Indians are a group of people I believe to have to longest hair ever. When I went to India, I decided to try out some of their hair products. I can say that when I used all the products, it didn't do much, probably because it wasn't meant for my type of hair.

So finally, when it comes down to it, do what works for you and stick to it. I now have a healthier hair, stronger, a bit longer. I am also no longer scared of becoming Mr. T.

Cheers to having long healthy hair.

4 comments:

  1. I always get worried about my hairs, thanks for sharing these helpful tips.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thank you Divya for commenting on my blog. Happy to have helped.

      Delete
  2. These Tips to healthy hair are vey effective to make your hairs healthy and long.

    ReplyDelete
  3. Thank you John, for your nice comment.

    ReplyDelete

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