Maintaining proper moisture balance presents a challenge for many naturals.
It is a challenge with which I have struggled. Before I learned how to care for my natural tresses, I would cringe when thinking about my hair’s condition. However, the dryness, breakage, and unruliness seemed to improve once I discovered oil rinsing natural hair.
This hair rinse can change the game within a natural hair regimen. Moreover, there is no need to spend loads of money or time to make it work for you. Let us uncover below the essential tips you need to boost natural hair’s moisture by rinsing with oil.
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Oil Rinsing Natural Hair – Why Do It?
Rinsing natural hair with oil helps retain moisture.
Hair strands naturally let moisture in and out. However, curly-haired individuals with moisture retention issues need to boost hydration and hold it in longer. Oil rinsing offers a helping hand.
Applying hair oil helps to close the cuticle to prevent moisture loss. Furthermore, the emollient creates an additional barrier for water to cross. This added hurdle makes it more challenging to lose vital hydration from hair strands.
Oil rinses provide vital nourishment to the scalp and hair.
When looking at hair oils, the choices are almost limitless. Each oil carries with it a unique set of properties benefiting the hair. Some items possess potent antioxidants, while others supply minerals essential to hair synthesis. Others may help to fight bacteria, fungi, and other microbes on the hair and scalp.
This nourishment helps promote a healthy, thriving scalp. The hair follicles will have better oxygenation, nutrient delivery, and waste removal. Consequently, healthier, stronger, more damage-resistant hair will soon follow.
Bathing the hair in oil improves appearance and manageability.
Moments ago, we discussed oil’s role in closing hair cuticles. This action has another benefit. It helps create a smooth hair surface.
With this smoother outside layer, light easily reflects, creating a shiner look to hair. Who does not want more luminous hair?
Also, a less rough cuticle promotes better manageability. Strands will have a lower likelihood of getting caught on one another, tangled, knotted, or matted.
Oil Rinsing Natural Hair – How Is It Done?
Oil rinsing starts with proper preparation of the hair.
Performing a hair rinse with oil constitutes the beginning of your moisture sealing routine. As such, it should be commenced after pre-pooing, washing, clarifying, and conditioning/deep conditioning natural hair. Oil rinsing on dirty hair will trap grime, dirt, germs, and residues, while further weighing down tresses.
Every natural should have a robust regimen for wash day. This routine plays a foundational role in your natural hair care and strongly influences whether you reach your hair goals. The best solution lies in building a natural hair routine to promote health.
However, I know that a lack of time can create a challenge in a regimen for some. For those individuals, Naturally Curly’s lazy approach to wash day may better fit the bill.
Three steps are needed to perform an oil rinse on tresses.
First, rinse any previous products used on the hair from tresses. This step adds the moisture you want to seal into the hair shaft while removing items that could interfere with an oil’s even application.
Next, apply a quarter-sized amount of your chosen oil to the hair from roots to tips. You will want to smooth the product down tresses with the hands. You should perform this step in sections.
Last, lightly rinse the excess oil from the hair by holding strands under running water for just a second. You do not want to rid your tresses completely of the oil you just applied with this rinse. You only want to prevent strands from feeling greasy.
The effectiveness of oil rinsing natural hair improves when you incorporate the following tips.
TIP #1 – Determine the frequency of rinses with hair oil based on your needs. Hair is unique to the head it occupies. As such, you may need to oil rinse more or less often based on your hair’s condition and porosity. For a good rule of thumb, make oil rinsing a part of every wash day and then tweak from there.
TIP #2 – Hair ends need more tender loving care than the rest of the strands because they are the oldest. As such, you may need to apply more oil to your ends for optimal results.
TIP #3 – Use cold to lukewarm water for the last step of the hair rinse. Warmer temperatures will cause the cuticle to open. Since the purpose here is to help with moisture sealing, you should lower the water’s temp.
Oil Rinsing Natural Hair – Which Oils Work Best?
Choosing an appropriate oil for rinsing plays a significant role in the process.
When selecting rinsing oils, you should look at your hair’s and scalp’s condition before making a final decision. What, if any, damage do you experience? Do you suffer from severe dryness? What are your hair’s porosity and texture? Do you have dandruff or irritation?
Furthermore, it would benefit you to think about your routine and time constraints. Would it be best if you could use the same hair oil for rinsing and scalp massages? Would you need to alternate oil rinses among others your perform? Can you save time in another part of your regimen to incorporate oil rinses?
A multitude of options exists when deciding which product to use for oil rinsing natural hair.
Oils are not all created equally. As discussed previously, different oils bring different benefits to the hair. Once you have determined your hair’s needs, narrowing the oil choices should come without difficulty.
In general, you will want to stay away from thicker oils for rinsing, as rinsing out the excess will pose a challenge. So, castor and avocado oils may not serve you well as the base for oil rinsing. Additionally, coconut and palm oils will become solid when cooled by cold water, making them not the best rinsing choices.
However, jojoba oil presents an excellent choice for rinsing because it most closely resembles hair’s natural sebum. Olive and sweet almond oils should also receive attention when selecting. Both contain lots of antioxidants and help to fight damage to cells from free radicals.
Want some oils to try for your natural hair rinsing routine? Check out the items below:
Pure Body Naturals Cold Pressed Sweet Almond Oil
Organic Extra Virgin Olive Oil, Cold Pressed, Unfiltered by Sky Organics
An oil blend also offers a choice to meet hair rinsing needs.
We have talked about tailoring the oil your use for rinsing to your unique tresses. A single oil may not do all you want it to do in your oil rinsing for moisture sealing regimen. Nevertheless, an easy solution is out there . . . It is called the oil blend.
You can mix two or more oils for rinsing your natural hair. This tactic can help you customize the mixture to address the challenges your hair and scalp may face.
It also allows you to add essential oils in the mix to boost oil rinsing benefits further. As long as the oil does not turn solid or get too thick, only your imagination bounds you.
Final Thoughts
Moisture serves as an integral part of natural hair’s vitality. Oil rinsing will assist in the moisture sealing process, improving tresses’ feel, appearance, and health.
Moreover, it is easy to do and costs extraordinarily little. Overall, completing your final rinse with oil rates as a win in almost every natural hair care regimen.
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Natural Hair Nysa educates and works with individuals to promote positive perceptions and healthy care of natural hair. Ask for more information about personalized natural hair coaching on our Contact Us page.
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