Toia B.closeAuthor: Toia B.Name: Toia Barry Email: tobnatural@gmail.com Site: About:
Toia B. is a wife, mom and natural hair enthusiast. This online platform has become a resource for positive images of women with textured hair and useful hair care advice. Since going back to natural in the Fall of 2009, Toia’s aim has been to inspire and share what she has learned to help others embrace their natural beauty.
So, you wanna add some flavor to your natural hair but may be wondering about maintenance. Here are some tips on caring for your color-treated natural hair.
Our resident natural hair care professional Simeko Watkins-Hartley answers… What do you recommend for dry and itchy scalp? Dry and itchy scalp is usually a sign of your body’s way of letting you know that something is off balance. It can be caused by a number of things; environment, poor diet, stress, internal issues, etc. So the first step in finding a solution is finding the cause. Here are some questions you may want to ask yourself: ● Do I have any medical conditions or taking any medication that may cause dry, itchy scalp? ● Am I getting the proper nutrition (vitamins, minerals, essential fatty acids) through my diet daily? Am I drinking enough water daily? ● Am I using the right products/ingredients for my skin type? Am I properly moisturizing and oiling my scalp? ● Can my external environment be causing my dry scalp? Here are some practical suggestions…
Our resident natural hair care professional Simeko Watkins-Hartley answers… “My hair seems to be thinning, can you help?” Although hair loss is a normal process that we all will experience at some point in our lives, excessive hair loss, much like excessive hair shedding (see this post for more details) can be caused by a number of different factors and recommendations would depend on the underlying cause. However, keeping your scalp/hair clean and well-nourished with natural oils can be helpful start. Another very important factor is getting your daily intake of vitamins. To get a better idea of how vitamins can help with preventing hair loss, here’s a breakdown: Vitamin A– Aids in stimulating the follicle and making healthy sebum in the scalp Vitamin Bs– Aids in stimulating hair growth. Also may help to reduce stress which may cause hair loss Vitamin C– An anti-oxidant that helps to maintain healthy hair Vitamin D– Plays an important…
Our resident natural hair care professional Simeko Watkins-Hartley answers… “My hair is very healthy and I don’t have split ends, but it’s the same length for the last 6 months. What’s up with that?” OK… so you’ve done everything to retain the length of your hair: protective styles, proper moisturization, protein treatments & regular trims and still, your hair is at the same length it was several months ago. “What’s up with that” you ask?! If you’ve done everything (and I mean EVERYTHING) externally you possibly can to care for your hair and it still seems to be at the same length, then maybe you’ve reached your MTL (Maximum Terminal Length) or in other words… your hair growth limit. Now, let me ask you this: have you ever wondered why your eyebrow hair never grows past a certain length? Probably not, because it’s just eyebrow hair! Well, much like our eyebrow hair,…
This question comes to us from @curiouscoils (how appropriate!) on Instagram. Our resident natural hair care professional Simeko Watkins-Hartley answers… How do I soften my ends? Answer: Moisturize, Moisturize, Moisturize! Usually, when the ends tend to be harder or rougher than the rest of your hair, it may be due to lack of moisture. The ends are the oldest part of the hair and tend to hang out furthest away from the scalp, so they may dry out faster, leaving a hard, brittle feel. Here are some steps you can take to whip those ends back into shape: 1. When cleansing your hair, use a moisturizing shampoo and luke-warm or cool water to rinse Moisturizing shampoos are usually pH balanced and generally have ingredients that will lubricate the hair, making it soft. Cool water helps to seal the cuticles which aids in making the hair smoother and shinier. 2. Treat your hair to an…