Winter weather can be harsh, mainly because the cold air can suck out the sheen and pizzazz from natural hair. The arid winter air can cause extreme frizz, breakage, and dryness, which can stress out your hair and make it unhealthy. Whether you're inside throughout most of the winter or outside where it's colder, the influence of winter air can be tragic on the hair. If you are a natural healthcare guru, box braids can seem like a no-brainer during the winter, but there are some extra steps you can take to keep your hair vibrant and healthy even with braids.
Pay Attention To Your Edges
In the winter especially, it is crucial to take care of the edges of your hair. It is important to take the time out to pamper your edges and keep them laid, moisturized, and sleek. Regularly adding coconut oil to your edges is a great way to keep it laid. Cremes and hair gels can also help this process; however, make sure that every product you use is alcohol-free and try not use it every day.
Spray Your Scalp
It is important to focus on your scalp during the winter and keep it as moisturized as possible. Tea tree oil is an effective ingredient to use on your scalp because it contains powerful properties that kill bacteria, yeast, and fungus. The scalp can get irritable, dry, and itchy during the winter. For this reason, some lavender oil can help to relieve dryness, flaky dandruff, and itching. You can put lavender oil in a spray bottle and spray it into your scalp to keep it moisturized. A mixture of oil and grape seed oil can also help your scalp stay nourished even with braids in.
Use The Right Mousse
Fly-aways can be a big deal during the winter. Using the correct type of mousse can keep the fly-aways in check and leave your hair feeling and looking smooth. To reduce buildup, make sure that the mousse that you use is water-based. Enforce the effect of the water-based mousse by adding jojoba oil or grape seed to avoid unwanted flakiness.
Wrap it up at night
The friction of your bedding on your hair can be especially damaging during the winter. Although your braids may consist of extensions, for the most part, they can still fray. Also, when your roots grow out, it can cause your hair to look rough. Use a big silk or satin scarf to keep all of your hair in place to avoid this.
Take Them Down
To keep your hair healthy, keep your braids in for a maximum of two months. Keeping braids in for too long can eventually cause damage to the hair. Keeping your braids in for too long can weaken or damage your hair and reduce its strength and elasticity, and this is eventually counterproductive to the term "protective hairstyle."
Know That Less Is More
Although moisturizing your hair is extremely important, it is important to avoid heaping too much product on your scalp because this can make your scalp itchy and flaky. Use every water-based product that you put in your hair in moderation. If your scalp is already itchy from the dry winter weather, adding unnecessary products will only worsen it.
Wash, Wash, Wash
Product build-up can be a real issue with box braids, so you'll need to wash your braids at some point (usually around the three-week mark). This process will help to keep your scalp sparkling clean. This will also help you eliminate any extra weight that can come from the hair products you've been using and avoid frizzy hair.