Protective Styling

Protective Styling is a great way to protect your natural hair in the winter months. Its easy and helps you to save time.



Protective Styling

There are many ways to define protective styling and just as many methods. This process is not exclusive to naturalistas or the relaxed, it promotes and maintains the overall health of your hair. In practicing this styling method you ultimately will protect the hair from external factors that result in damage and breakage. Damage can a result of the elements (wind, sun, and/or snow) or chemical alterations such as chemical straighters, texturizers or color. Or one thing that many of us do not think about is the scarves or turtlenecks we're wearing causing breakage.

I'm a trendy person so I have a couple of scarves. Sometimes I notice a pull and then a small pop which is the sound of strands of my hair snagging and breaking into my scarf. This is a very common thing in which protective styling prevents. It's not just scarves its knitted surfaces such as shirts or even some chairs.

What styles are protective?

Any style that prevents the snag and breakage of the hair can be considered a protective style. I will name a few styles but I don't want you to feel limited to this short list.

Protective Styles

• Two strand twist
• Twist outs.
• Rollers sets
• Straw sets
• Braids

There are many more. Feel free to comment and add your favorite protective style to the list.

What are the benefits of protective styling.

These styles allow your hair to rest from combing daily while also retaining moisture. But just because you are protective styling does not mean you can neglect your hair and scalp with expectations of obtaining or maintaining health hair. You must still wash and moisturizer. I recommend moisturizing with your favorite moisturizer (I recommend moisturizers that are shea butter base such as SheAloe) prior to styling and use a daily moisturizing sprintz to further protect and nourish the hair/scalp.

(Don't neglect the basic needs of your head.) It is equally important to cover your hair while you sleep to maintain the style and avoid friction that can break your hair while you sleep.

Read See More Protective Hair Styles For Natural Hair Here

Just In Case You Missed Natural Hair Rules Live Q & A!!!

Re-Cap of Live Q & A with

Natural Hair Rules!!!

If you missed this very informative Live!!! Interactive Question & Answering Chat, I hope you will be able to participate in the next one. Below is the video from Thursday, Sept. 2nd Question and Answer Session. Vast array of topics were discussed and addressed from Tips for Transitioning, Maintaining your Natural & Moisturize, Moisturize, Moisturize.

Do you still have questions? Don't worry!!! Natural Hair Rules offers One on One Video or Phone Question & Answer sessions. Email info@naturalhairrules.com for detail. Price May Vary!!!

The video is fifty-nine minutes. Below is outline of the different segments.

Who is Natural Hair Rules!!! (NHR)

• Number one Beauty/Natural Hair Blogger in Texas
• Resident of Houston, Natural for almost 4 yrs in October
• NHR began in Oct 2008 as a resource for those natural or transitioning
• Begin natural hair journey as self discovery to define one's own definition of beauty
• Definition of Natural-chemical free, unaltered but unrestricted to any particular texture or ethnicity
• Simply Advocate of Healthy hair & living. Nurturing from the inside out
• Commonly Asked Question: Hair Color Dark & Lovely Honey Blonde

Tips for Transitioning

• Make-up your mind that this is something your want to do.
• Research the process and products in order to develop a plan of action.
• Don't be afraid to experiment with different styles & products
• To minimize tangles wash your hair in the shower
• Increase your moisture level: incorporate more natural products (sulfate & alcohol free), deep condition weekly or bi weekly, use a great leave in conditioner and all natural moisturizers such as butters and sealer like olive & coconut oil
• Trim your hair regularly at every 2 or months while transitioning or as needed
• Don't compare your hair to others

Maintain Natural Hair

• Make friends with your hair
• Invest in Natural Products as your staples
  
• Detangle Hair Only When Wet
• Moisturize, Moisturize, Moisturize
• Protect Hair tie up at night and protective style in the winter months.

Do you have an upcoming event? Promote your event on Natural Hair Rules!!! for optimal exposure in the Natural Hair and Beauty Community. Contact us for more information.

maneandchic’s: 10 Tips for Preventing One Strand Knots

10 Tips for Preventing One Strand Knots

Trichonodosis also known as One Strand Knots, Single Strand Knots, Fairy Knots, Pixie Knots and Peppercorn Knots are one of the most annoying things about having naturally curly to kinky hair. I've rarely ever heard them referred to as endearing (and only if the person was being sarcastic). Most women either hate or ignore them. They charge them as just a necessary evil of being natural. When I first cut off my relaxed ends, I became all too familiar with these little nasties. Over time, I learned a few ways to manage these vexatious diminutive tangles. So before you sentence yourself to countless hours of your life staring at your strands through a magnifying glass — needle and scissors in tow — here are a couple of ideas on how to prevent single strand knots or reduce their occurrence.

1. Moisturize at least twice a day with a nutritive moisturizer. Look for super moisturizing natural ingredients. Remember that oil is not a moisturizer. Make sure the strands are moisturized before you seal with an oil. Moisturized hair is less likely to knot up.
2. Do not give your hair the opportunity to coil up on it's own: wear protective styles, braids, braid outs, twist outs or roller sets. For extra protection against knots, set the ends on rollers. This may be difficult to swallow if you're a 'wash-n-go' type of girl, but if the knots are really getting on your nerves, you will have to decide whether you love your 'fro more or hate the knots.
3. Protect your hair while you sleep. Wear silk/satin bonnets or scarves to bed. Braid, twist, bun or place your hair so that it's comfortable for you to sleep, but in a way that it won't coil up on it's own ends. Friction from cotton bedding can damage the hair over time if it's not being protected.
4. Deep condition or use deep treatments on your hair weekly and really focus on taking care of those ends. Healthy hair is less likely to tangle, mat and knot.  
5. Employ the use of oiling well-conditioned wet hair (also) known as oil rinsing to seal to make your hair easier to detangle. One way is to deep condition, apply oil and use a heat cap or wear the treatment overnight. Another way is to shampoo, oil, condition and rinse the hair. This makes the hair easier to detangle and prevents knots and matting.
6. Do thorough, but careful detangling. Use a seamless fine tooth comb after detangling with a wide tooth comb or your fingers (and perhaps a Denman brush). Always start and the ends and work your way up. This is not something you'd want to do everyday because using a comb in a hurry is tantamount to using a pair of scissors if you aren't careful. A careful detangling should take A LOT of time. Divide your hair into sections and detangle each section before moving on to another section.
7. If you must shampoo, only apply the shampoo to your scalp. I shampoo once a month or less. I find that applying shampoo to my scalp on dry hair before any water ever touches my hair is a far superior method than the traditional way of shampooing. I section my hair and apply to my scalp as if I'm greasing my scalp and then rinse out in the shower, making sure to really massage all of the shampoo out. Sometimes I also apply shampoo to my scalp , diluted with water, with an applicator bottle. With both methods, my hair never mats up, it's far easier to detangle and that means I loose less hair when I wash. Shampoo can strip old fragile ends — a breeding ground for fairy knots. 
8. Stay away from towels and cotton. I never ever use towels or cotton on my hair. They can snag on curly and kinky hair, causing split ends and those dreaded knots. Would you wipe down a Bentley with a cotton bath towel? Treat your hair the same.
9. Smooth your hair. Before styling or setting your hair, run your fingers down sections of your hair as if you are flat ironing your hair between your fingers. This will reduce frizz, stretch, smooth and lessen the chances of getting knots. 
10. Keep your hands out of your hair. Too much manipulation will scratch the cuticle, wreak havoc and can lead to split or splitting ends and pixie knots. Would you claw at antique cotton drapes or a fabulous silk dress? Think of your hair that way.

I'm Protective Styling!

(My lil sis, Veronica and me)

I'm wearing two strand twist as my choice of protective styling. My goal is to promote the growth of my hair by maintaining moisture scalp and root to tip. In the pictures above it the two strand twist and two strand twist twist out, in respective order. Updates later.