Bye Bye Breakage: Part II of Natural Hair Care Series

My hair type, while voluminous, is also fine which causes it to be more fragile than coarser hair types thus more prone to breakage. For years, I wore headbands to create a “bang” shape. I love my upward growing mane but prefer for the curls that frame my face to do so at a downward angle. One day, I began to notice my hair was shorter in some spots where I was placing my headbands.

Pretty much any daily wear of tension causing accessories such as bobby pins, hair ties, or in my case headband usage (made out of non-satin materials) has the potential to stress natural hair to the point of breakage.

Realizing my favorite accessories were compromising my hair health, I decided to throw them all out and instead of relying on the faux bang-by-headband look, eventually achieved the real thing. After weeks of training my front facing curls by simply shaping them in the desired direction with my fingers while styling my strands have learned to cooperate without further manipulation.

Benefits of Satin

I’ve always tied my hair up in a satin scarf before bed. Satin protects hair from friction which can lead to breakage and maintains moisture by making sure hair products stay put instead of transferring to your cotton pillow case.

After stumbling across a website that sells beanies lined with interior satin, I found the idea to be mind blowing in its ingenuity. I began to reflect on my history of beanie wear and had the thought, if I know it’s important to protect my hair against rough fabrics during sleep, why am I not protecting it against the fabrics from hats? Immediately followed by my next thought what about all of my beanies?! Rather than trading my established beanie collection for satin lined ones I now tie on a satin scarf before topping it off with knitwear to create a cost-effective makeshift satin lining (although I do look forward to adding a satin lined beanie or two to my closet in the future.)

Head Wraps

I’ve recently discovered the key ingredient that was missing from my wardrobe: Head wraps! I always imagined them to be challenging to tie on but the process only takes three steps.

To achieve the above look I:

1. Drape a long rectangular scarf behind my head, securing it by making one knot in the front.

2. Twist both ends together, merging them into what I like to think of as one long unicorn horn.

3. Loop the horn into a circle around the front center forming a top knot and close the knot by tucking in the end.

If I’m sporting a head wrap that’s not made out of satin I tie on a satin scarf first just as I do on beanie days.

This protective style is so fly, affordable, and a great way to keep your hair hydrated—which is the enemy of breakage. During this time when most of us aren’t able to schedule appointments with our hair stylists it’s an easy go-to look when breaking quarantine for essential outings, looking effortlessly cute for virtual hangouts, or just when you want to bask in your own cuteness by yourself at home!