Touch-Up Tuesdays

Hello everyone and welcome to a special day I like to call Touch-Up Tuesdays. You all know how it is out there if you have to deal with natural hair or locs; you retwist your hair one day and three days later your hair is puffy, dry, and looks like you have not even tried to take care of it. If you have locs, the last thing you want to do is retwist them every week.That is the quickest and surest way to either break them off and/or over-stress your scalp. You should limit your retwists to once every month to a month and a half. I know it sounds like a long time but trust me, your scalp will thank you. The truth is that there are a lot of steps involved with maintaining your hair; locs especially. They require a lot of love, time, and attention. The big misconception with locs is that when you get them, you don't have to do much to keep them nice but that is a horrible lie. I love for my hair to look its best. That in turn makes me feel good and when I feel good I have a great day. You do not have to dedicate every morning or afternoon to your hair but you should also not neglect it either.

Touch-Up Tuesdays is the time when I give a little extra loving to my hair. Every Tuesday I wash, condition, and apply extra moisture to my locs. Water actually should be your best friend. It not only clean your scalp but it is a natural moisturizer that also aids in helping your hair loc up faster. Your hair gets curlier after it gets wet and when you can't comb the curls out, they sit, they mat up, and they loc and that's how you get dreads.When you wash and condition your hair, make sure you are not scrubbing your scalp to death. You do not want to ruff your locs up, you just want to clean your scalp. Apply your desired shampoos and conditioners and try not to produce too many suds. I personally prefer to use the Jamaican Mango and Lime products by African Pride which I order online but to each his own. I know this particular brand is also sold at just about any hair store too. So to continue, you want to gently let the water cascade through your hair until all the products are thoroughly washed out. Gently towel dry your hair and then apply hair oils or moisturizers. After you have applied your moisturizer, section your hair into 4 to 5 different ponytails using hair ties. Now you want to let your hair dry. You can let your hair air dry or you can use a hair dry. Of course the hair dry would be quicker but some people prefer not to apply any heat to their hair and that's fine also. I use a hooded hair dryer. This particular type of hair dryer is one that I bought from Walmart and it only set me back $40 bucks. I can plug it in, set it up on the counter, turn it on, adjust the heat, and sit back and allow my hair to dry while I sit underneath the hood. When your hair is dry, remove the hair ties, apply more oil as needed, and style as you wish. A hair oil that works wonders for natural hair is the Olive Oil Moisturizing Hair lotion by Organic Root Stimulator. I use it just about every other day and it makes my hair look nurtured and healthy without looking overly greasy. If you have the time, I recommend checking out a blog entitled Healthy Scalp Healthy Locs. They have an extensive list of products, tips, and videos that I feel are very beneficial to individuals with locs. Please chime in below and tell me what moisturizers you prefer to use as well as how you touch-up your natural hair. Thanks for reading and good luck!!!

Photo Credit: Mercedes Jones