Wash Day

If you are a natural , you know that wash day is a whole day affair and sometimes even a two day affair in my case. I do my my wash day in two parts:

Friday Evening:

I pre-poo my hair with Jamaican castor, moringa or pure coconut oil by applying a generous amount on my hair then do three strand braids and apply a plastic cap/plastic bag then a satin scarf on my head and let it set overnight.

Saturday Morning: On Saturday morning, depending on how dirty my hair is, I either co-wash or shampoo. I co-wash when my hair doesn’t have to much build up of oils and butters. When my hair feels dirty or sticky then I give it a good shampooing.

Deep Conditioning: After shampooing or co-washing, I apply a deep conditioner or mask,  apply a plastic cap and let it set for half an hour as I do my chores.

ACV (Apple Cider Vinegar) Rinse: I do an apple cider rinse as a final rinse before moisturising my hair. It helps to minimise itchiness on my scalp, eliminates any bacteria that may caused by build up of oils and gives my hair a shine.

Moisturising: I use the LCO(Liquid – Cream – oil) and LOC(liquid – Oil – Cream) method alternatively depending on my mood. LCO – Liquid – is obviously after shampoo and rinsing with water as the liquid, then applying leave-in conditioner or a moisturising cream hence ‘Cream’ and applying an oil of your choice to seal in moisture, hence ‘Oil’ and LOC – is just swapping oil in place of cream. I hope this makes sense.

So, in my case,  I apply my CANTU LEAVE-IN CONDITIONER, my all-time favourite leave-in conditioner, then I either apply my whipped Shea butter or any oil of my choice to seal in moisture.

Hair Stretching or Protective Styling: After moisturising my hair, I either do a protective style for the week or do a style to stretch my hair for styling the following day.

Daily Routine: I always do a protective style for the week so that I spend little time on my hair in morning when getting ready for work. Despite my hair being in a protective style, I moisturize it daily and to do that, I make a spritz with either water/leave-in conditioner, water glycerine or water/aloe vera. I alternate the three each week. Its very important to keep your hair moisturized when it in protective style, to make it easier when taking down to avoid tangles.

If my hair is not in a protective style and I have to style it everyday, I do simple three strand braids, spritzing each section as I braid and apply a satin scarf on my head or put a satin scarf around my pillow.

There you have it! That’s how my wash day looks like.

I hope you find this post helpful.

If you have any questions or suggestions, please don’t hesitate to leave me a comment.

Dee