How to safely straighten natural hair

 Hello darlings!
I know I haven't written in a while but things have been pretty hectic on my end, however I have been working on a ton cool things for you but for now lets talk hair.
I Have been holding out on getting a trim for a few months because I noticed that the same amount of hair was being cut whether I waited 6 weeks or 6 months and the former was causing more damage to my hair due to straightening. I'm aware that a lot of naturals trim their hair while it is in its natural state but I find it more difficult and time consuming. I have no problem with applying heat to my hair as long as it is done correctly and infrequently. Having said that lets get into the details.

In order to safely straighten your hair, you will need to start of on a clean slate and follow these golden rules:

Rule # 1 Cleanse

One should never try to straighten hair that is dirty. Product build-up can prevent heat protestants from working properly and cause the hot tool to burn the hair.

Rule# 2 Deep Condition

As I have mentioned in a previous post, Straightening the hair removes moisture from the strands and so it is imperative to properly deep condition before straightening. This means leaving the treatment in for at least fifteen minutes and sitting under a dryer or steamer for deeper penetration. This will allow the hair to stay straight longer and it may require less heat in order to straighten.

Rule# 3 De-tangle and Elongate

While the hair is still wet, De-tangle with a wide-tooth comb starting at the ends and work your way up. You may also use a leave-in with thermal protection. Just remember to do so sparingly. Separate hair into 3 to 4 sections depending on length and thickness, Braiding the hair by itself or with pieces of satin to elongate.

You can also do a roller-set on wet hair and sit under a hooded dryer.

Rule# 4 Dry Completely

Never flat iron your hair while it is still wet. Many products brag that they have this feature but your hair can end up feeling dry and stripped due to immediate moisture loss. Air drying,using a hooded dryer and even blow drying to an extent is a gradual process and so your hair retains more moisture as it drys. When my hair is being done professionally, after my hair is braided I sit under a hooded dryer until my hair is half way dry and then it is blown out.

At home, I prefer to air dry and start my straightening process the following day.

Rule# 5 Use a temperature controlled tool on an appropriate setting.

Natural hair is often abused by hot combs and other tools that can permanently change the natural curl pattern. I find that a Flat iron is quite capable of straightening natural hair. A ceramic iron insures that heat is evenly distributed throughout the hair and this is all that is necessary for best results.When using a flat-iron there is no need to use the highest setting to straighten your hair regardless of your hair type. Start with a low setting and do a strand test on a small portions of hair to see how straight it gets. Write down the number if you feel you might forget.

Rule# 6 Straighten in as little passes as possible.

 Once hair is completely dry, undo your braids or rollers and De-tangle once more. Keep your hair in sections. Ensuring that you have applied a heat protector to the entire head, begin to part a 1 inch section within your first section.

When using a traditional Ceramic Iron, Place the flat iron near the roots of the hair for a few seconds and place a heat-resistant fine tooth comb under the flat iron while gently gliding down the hair shaft. Repeat this once but no more than twice if needed. The fine-tooth comb will remove knots that the iron would normally flatten.

If using the Instyler, which is my personal preference, There is no need for a comb since it has a brush attachment. Just follow the instructions in the guide. However, you may need to use a smaller iron to straighten the roots and edges. For best results, pass the flat-iron from your roots to about 2 inches down and then follow with your Instyler.

Repeat until you have gone through the entire head and be careful not to burn yourself.  After appling a small amount of finishing product such as an anti-frizz serum.You can now wrap the hair for a sleek look or set with flexirods for softcurls.

Hope this was helpful! Until next time Darlings...