Nighttime Hair Care - Protect Your Do!

For many of us, going back natural is a learning process that includes learning to style our hair. One of the most frustrating things that can happen after spending hours setting a style from start to finish is waking up the next morning with flattened out hair from tossing and turning or failing to protect our hair while we we sleeping. Having a night time routine can help you preserve a style for a number of days without having to do too much morning prep before heading out for the day.

The “correct method” for you will really depend on two things: what type of style you did with your hair and  the length of your hair.

Before we discuss how to preserve your hair, let's discuss what tools are common for nighttime routines:

Satin Pillowcase
Satin Bonnet
Satin Scarf
Hair Pins
Satin Scunchies

Why so much satin? Well, cotton is not a natural’s friend! Cotton strips moisture and oils from your hair making it brittle and dry. The texture of cotton is much rougher than silk and satin. This can create friction which can lead to breakage.  Once you have selected a bonnet or pillow that is silk or satin, it is time to determine which night routine will work for you:

The Pineapple Method

Make a really high and loose ponytail with a loose hair scrunchie on the very top of your head. The point is to collect all of your hair loosely so that you are not pulling or putting stress on your hair strands. If you have short hair you might need to do two or more pineapples with loose hair bubbles.

Free Pineapple

Instead of using a hair bubble or Scrunchie, use a scarf around your head and hair by doing a reverse bandanna. Let the ends of your hair hang out of the gap of the Satin Scarf. You might want to try this if a hair bubble or scrunchy leaves a “dent” where it is holding your hair together.

@moknowshair

Re-Twisting/Braiding/Styling

Depending on if you are rocking a twist out, Bantu-knot out, braid out etc. you might want to put your hair back into chunky or large twists/braids/Bantu-knots etc. before bed. This will help preserve the style and reinforce the curl pattern of the style.

If you are constantly rushing in the morning to get out of the house, then re-moisturizing and sealing your hair at night might be necessary. Apply a little water and/or leave-in conditioner and seal with oil and or butter to re-moisturize hair. Doing this will not only hydrate hair, but it can also help to enhance and preserve the style.

How do you preserve your hair at night?

[Via Global Couture]