6 Lazy Friendly Ways to Protect Natural Hair this Winter

If you don't want to deal with the process of doing your natural hair, but you also do not want it to look hurt by the time summer rolls around, this is for you. For a while, I didn’t want to be bothered with doing my hair. It felt like too much work and although that's still the case at times, I’m taking small steps to consistently care for my hair and keep it looking healthy. Here are 6 simple things I’m doing to protect my natural hair from this New York winter:

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1. BRAIDS IN, BRAIDS OUT & REPEAT

Braids make my winter hair routine easier and are a great protective style. I’m not talking about box braids or anything like that. I mean single plaits or 2 cornrows that I accessorize/style accordingly during the week(s). This is more cost effective because I'm not buying hair from the beauty supply store.

On wash day, I shampoo and deep condition my braids then redo those braids so my hair looks fresh. This minimizes tangles and is a great low maintenance technique. Braids make caring for my natural hair a smooth process and encourages me to be consistent. Note: be sure to take out your braids every few washes to fully massage and clean your scalp.

2. Use This

This is the holy grail for me right now. It creates a force field that protects my scalp from the cold air and getting dry or feeling itchy. Once a week, I part my hair and grease my scalp like my mom did when I was younger. Then mid week and/or any time my scalp needs it, I touch up with Aquaphor (I love using the tube version) and massage it in. This keeps my scalp looking and feeling good. Products like Aquaphor and Vaseline (fragrance free) have ingredients that are great for moisturizing the skin.

Here is a link to the jar version as well:

3. LESS WASH DAYS

When it’s cold, I’m not trying to do too much, which allows my natural hair oils to do its thing. Sometimes giving your hair rest can be the best thing for it. So let your hair marinate in the natural oils that come from within lol.

4. OILS

Speaking of oils, I use whatever oils I have to moisturize my hair and scalp when needed. I take the oil, place it onto my palms and spread it throughout damp hair, focusing on my ends and lightly tapping the oils into my scalp. When it’s a wash or styling day, I use oil as my last step to seal in all my styling and hydrating products. To effectively moisturize your hair, first hydrate with a conditioner or water (at the very least) before applying oils.

5. DIY MASKS

I won’t hold you, I’ve lived off shampoo, conditioner, olive oil, and edge control for 7+ months before. At the time, I ran out of styling and hydrating hair products and didn't buy more. As a result, I got into making masks with what I had in my kitchen. Shout-out to DIY hair masks because my hair NEEDED it lol. I love to keep it simple and easy by mixing a few ingredients in my Nutri Bullet and leaving the mask in my hair for 45 or more minutes.

6. SCARVES

I styled my hair throughout college with silk or satin scarves. It’s like your hair is blanketed with beautifully patterned (or plain) silk sheets of protection. All I do is wrap a scarf around my head and hair, leave my edges exposed, and style them (my edges) before I go about my day. I love to do this when I am conditioning my hair, feeling lazy or as a hairstyle for when my hair is not looking debut ready. Tip: use bobby pins behind the ears (to remain hidden) so the scarf doesn't slip throughout the day.