I am going to stress the importance of moisturizing and sealing natural hair. My regimen for moisturizing and sealing is all over the place (still experimenting with different moisturizers), but the idea is the same. Here are the steps to moisturizing and sealing your hair. First, moisturize your hair with your favorite moisturizer (the mix I use right now is made of braid spray, infusium 23 leave-in, and water OR Hello Hydration by Herbal Essences and water). The second step is optional, which is to put a shower cap on top of your head to trap in body heat, which opens up the hair cuticle and allows moisture to penetrate the hair shaft. This method is called the baggy method. Thirdly, "seal" your hair with a hair oil of your choice. I prefer NO mineral oil, because it is know to clog pores and inhibit hair growth. So I use either castor oil or grapeseed oil. Grapeseed oil is a light, runny oil that is great for absorbing into the hair without making it greasy. Castor oil is very heavy that I usually use to seal in water on freshly washed hair. If I want my twists to really hang to get the stretched longer look for my twists, I will use castor oil. BEWARE, castor oil used on twists can contribute to frizz since it's so darn heavy!
Moisturizing and sealing hair is especially important for natural hair. It is very difficult to retain moisture in natural hair and just moisturizing without sealing will cause the moisturizer to evaporate in little time. Since oil has larger molecules than water-based compounds, it coats the hair shaft while the moisturizer does its thing inside the hair cuticle. The oil then absorbs into the hair and nourishes it. So it's like killing two birds with one stone! I love moisturizing and sealing because it leaves my hair feeling so soft and moisturized. It also helps retain growth because moisturized hair has increased elasticity so it can stretch and then go back to its original state.
Thank you for reading!
Morgan
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