Let me start with a usual disclaimer and state for the record that I am not an expert and whatever I share is only from my personal experience.
Having said that, lets get right into it. Honestly most of the hard work was done by mom by passing on her genes and then taking care of the mane in the early years. Now my only job is to make sure I don’t let her hard work go down the drain and I mean LITERALLY!
As far as washing is concerned, I usually wash my hair every two to three days, depending on when I work out. And how sweaty the day is. I used to wash my hair everyday, but it’s a lot of work for me as i have really long hair and I’ve heard some say that it’s better to go as many days as possible without washing. I have really straight, like annoyingly straight dark brown hair. But my hair holds curl really well so I like to make the curl last as long as possible!
Like I said, I loveee curly hair and I use a curling iron on it often. But I try to make my curls last a few days so that I don’t put too much heat on it. We all know that heat damages our hair, causes breakage, split ends and dryness. So I probably curl my hair 2-3x a week, depending on what I am doing or if I’m shooting!
A biggg tip I have for taking care of your hair is to avoid putting it in a tight ponytail all the time! When we put our hair up in a tight pony tail often, it can cause our hair to break from being too tight. It’s not bad to put it up every once and awhile, just don’t do it all the time. It’ll save your hair from breaking and from getting strange bald patches at your hairline! Yes that’s how the balding begins in women. Leave them open as much as possible. Let them breathe. Tying them up all the time also leads to a sweaty scalp which in turn leads to dandruff and breakage.
As far as trimming goes, I honestly believe the “Trim your hair every 3 months” is a myth created by hair dressers to bring in the recurring clientele. I do not trim my hair unless I start seeing split ends. So that would probably be every 12-18 months.
Hair oil massage : As much as I love massages I am strongly opposed to oil massages for the hair. Unless you are okay with leaving a little oil in post shampooing (which I am most definitely not ok with). To get all the oil out you have to thoroughly shampoo your mane at least 2 times and sometimes even 3 thus causing more damage and taking away all the good that the champi did.
Coming to the most commonly asked question which Shampoo do you use. So the thing is I have not experimented too much on it I use Palmer’s Coconut Oil Formula Conditioning Shampoo for Dry, Damaged or Color Treated and the accompanying conditioner & Cab’s Professional Organic Argan Oil Moisture Repair Shampoo. So the trick I have figured out over years is to switch up your shampoo every few months. So I switch between these two and am very very happy with both.
And here is the BONUS! Something I started experimenting with last year and that was RICE WATER. You can find the video on how to make you own HERE. There has been a lot of good things said about it so I will not repeat the benefits but I will share my experience.
First and foremost use unpolished unprocessed raw rice. its actually the cheapest one too. I saw a lot of videos circulated on rice water last lockdown and as it seemed something fairly east to a try I gave it a shot and so happy that I did because it has helped me a lot.
How to use rice water on your hair
What you need:
1 cup rice
1 cup water
How to make it:
– My length needs about 3 large spoonful of rice, you can experiment with how much you need.
-Take a large glass bottle with a tight lid.
– Add the rice to the bottle and about 250ml of water. stir really well until the water gets cloudy.
– Let the rice water sit at room temperature for 12 to 24 hours, I usually just let it sit over night. This allows it to ferment and all of the yummy vitamins and minerals to come out.
– Once the time is up strain the rice water and put it in a spray bottle for use. Don’t throw away the rice you can always put it in your bird feeder.
– Tip: Don’t let it sit for over 24 hours. I let my first batch of rice water sit for two days and the smell was not nice.
– Refrigerate the rice water until you’re ready to use it.
How to use it:
You won’t need to change your washing schedule around your rice water rinse whether that’s once a day or once a week.
When applying the rice water, try to really focus in on your scalp and work your way out. Let it sit for two to five minutes, and then rinse. You’ll probably notice immediately how strong and thick your hair feels.
The results
Here’s my experience using a rice water rinse.
After one minute: My hair already felt different. It seemed to have some sort of outer coating, or a thin shell, around each strand, protecting my hair as I brushed through it. Usually my hair is breaking as I work my detangling brush through my hair. But this time, my hair held its own.
After one day: The morning after my first rice water rinse, my husband actually asked me if i had done something to my hair. So well I must be doing something right.
After one week (approximately four washes): My hair felt thicker, fuller, and more manageable. And it had a beautiful healthy bounce. One that you know means they are happy.
So all in all, it worked for me. And has become an integral part of my haircare routine.
We’ve made it to the end of my haircare routine! The past five years since my pregnancy have been, more or less a journey to find products that smell good, feel good and do good for my hair. And these products do just that for me and don’t break the bank!
Sooo… now I am curious! What are some of your favorite haircare products? Tell me about your hair routine in the comments! Are you as obsessed with pretty hair as I am?!
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