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.
Brrr… it’s hat season! Wool is often the go-to option for obvious reasons. Even so, this über warm fabric can cause unwanted damage to your natural hair… While they serve an important purpose, wool winter hats can cause breakage from friction. Have you ever worn a wool turtleneck or scarf pretty often and notice later on that the hair at the nape of your head is thinning out? Yup… friction! Also, much like cotton, wool absorbs moisture from your hair which, as we know, can eventually lead to breakage. So look for hats with satin or silk linings. Now, don’t go throwing out the wool hats you already own to run to the mall for those that are satin-lined! Who has that kinda dough?! If you’re a DIY-er, all ya gotta do is head to the fabric store for a bit of silk or satin fabric (don’t forget to check the…
Water. I’ve covered this topic a bit like here and most recently here. But since “repetition is the mother of retention”… here we go again. This time, we’ll dig a little deeper into why you should drink water for healthy hair. How Does Water Intake Affect My Hair? The body is composed of about 60% to 70% water. Some of that water is lost throughout the day from things like urination, sweating and even just breathing. Therefore, we need to replace that lost fluid daily in order to stay hydrated and be healthy. If we don’t, we become dehydrated which will have an adverse affect on our hair {and yes, our bodies as well}. Our hair follicles receive their nutrients from our blood which is about 85% water. No water → no nutrients → no healthy hair. But, How Much is “Enough” Water? While many of us may have heard that we should drink…
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,…
When wash day is overdue and you've got that sweet kinda itch in the scalp, a good scratch will spell relief! But did you know that too much of that can actually damage your scalp? Read on to see why!
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…
