We’ve all heard of primers before- face primer, eye shadow primer and etc. but did you know that there is a primer for your hair as well? Hair primer is a semi-new product on the shelves, with promises of protection from humidity, heat damage, sun exposure, and even moisture retention. With that being said, it’s kind of unclear what the purpose of a hair primer would be, but let me break it down for you…
See also: 10 Top Heat Protectants Curly Girls Trust & Love
What is Hair Primer and What does it do?
Hair primer is basically a protective base. What that means is that the primer acts as a shield to protect the hair from humidity, dirt, sun-exposure, and heat styling, but still manages to maintain moisture, reduce frizz and gives the hair an overall healthy appearance.
How Do You Use Hair Primer?
Typically, you would apply the primer after you’ve washed and conditioned the hair, but I’ll go a step further and recommend applying it after you’ve applied your leave-in of choice. This isn’t necessary since the primer has moisturizing qualities, but using it after applying a light amount of leave-in will allow the primer to lock the moisture into the hair.
It’s best to use primer on wet or damp hair, especially if you intend on heat styling. Keep in mind that the primer does not mean that you should forgo using a heat protectant; always apply heat protectant if you plan on using any type of heat styling tool (blow dryer, flat iron, curling wand, etc.)
What Styles Can I Wear With it?
Since primer isn’t really a styling product, you can pretty much wear your hair anyhow you please. Most people tend to use it before doing styles such as blowouts, curling wand sets, straightening- anything that would frizz up on you the quickest.
Which Primer Should I Use?
There are some great primers on the market, but it’s important to stick with one that suits your hair type. For us curly/kinky hair types, we’ll need to stick to primers that offer moisturizing qualities.
A popular primer among curlies seems to be Beyond the Zone Smooth Criminal Hair Primer, which is available at Sally’s Beauty Supply. As always, with any new product, you may need to conduct some trial and error before finding your perfect fit. No one product will work for everyone, so keep that in mind when you’re shopping around.
Is It Worth It?
If you’re someone who enjoys straightening your hair often or wearing semi-straight styles (blowouts, wand sets, etc), then a primer would be a great buy. Similar to a foundation primer, it sets an even base for products like heat protectant to coat the hair shaft, as well as a protective barrier for the hair so that no further damage is incurred.
Also, if you feel as though you need some help warding off the humidity when you style your hair, you should give primer a try and see how it works for you. That protective barrier that I mentioned keeps frizz at bay by locking humidity out so if you live in a humid climate, primer is definitely something that you should consider trying out.
Keeping you in the “know” Naturals,
Sabrina
POPULAR CURLY HAIR PRIMERS
