‘How to take good care of short hair’

Question: I am one of the followers of the Every Woman beauty pages.  May you please share some tips on how to take good care of short hair.

Ndindase

Answer: Natural short hair can be difficult to deal with. However, when you cut your hair short, its natural texture shines through, therefore using the right products and styling techniques will help you bring out its beauty.

Wash your hair only once a week since natural hair is typically drier than other hair types and most shampoos use sodium lauryl sulfate as a detergent, which can often dry out hair. Condition your hair as you normally would. The best way to dry short hair is to use a good leave-in and wrap lotion and sit under the hair drier for 30 minutes. Dark & Lovely hair moisturising lotion or Pink moisturising lotion will leave your natural hair soft and beautiful.  Use of gel will also help keep your short hair looking styled rather than messy.

Apply a hair oil after 3 or 4 days when you notice your short hair going flat. A pomade oil or wax can help bring it back without washing, drying and styling process again.  However, do not use products that contain mineral oil or petrolatum as these will clog pores, rob your hair’s moisture and can retard hair growth.  Natural oils like Jojoba and coconut oil are great conditioning oils. Shea butter is an excellent hair moisturiser.

Remember, short hair doesn’t require as much amount of hair products as you may have used with long hair. Apply small amounts as too much will weight down hair and make it dirtier faster.

Avoid using chemical relaxers or heated styling tools like straighteners on your hair.  Shorter hair is more prone to frizzing since it doesn’t have the weight of more hair to pull it down and make it smooth.  Therefore, if you are planning on leaving your hair short, it is best to experiment with your natural kinky texture, rather than trying to tame it into a style that is unnatural and even damaging to the hair.

Remember that choosing the right hair cut for your face and head is very important.  The shape, cut and style of your hair should enhance your face and head shape.  Short hair is constantly growing in popularity and is being adopted by more and more women who feel confident enough in themselves. Apart from being carefree style, it is very modern and sophisticated!