Summer is here, and we have the scorching heat and suffocating humidity to prove it. Many of you spent months perfecting your routine only to find that everything you just perfected doesn’t help you handle your hair for summer. To prevent you from spending another few months working your summer routine only to have winter roll up on you, here are some tips to help you get your hair routine summer ready so you can spend more time out and about instead of in front of the mirror.
Products to Use
Here are some must have ingredients and products to help your hair thrive this summer.
Glycerin
Some curlies avoid glycerin during the summer since it is a humectant that can suck moisture out of the atmosphere and into your hair making it sticky. However, I say go for it. Super moisturized hair equals happy hair that thrives and grows. As long as you aren’t piling on the glycerin or it isn’t too high in the ingredients list, you should be able to avoid sticky hair. You can also purchase vegetable glycerin at your grocery store and create a spritz with it to keep your hair moisturized throughout the day, or add fragrance oil to it to create a hair perfume.
Fun scarves and hair accessories
Also another must have for the summer are decorative scarves and accessories. Winter is so cold that many of you have had to hide your hair away from the elements under hats and scarves or been stuck wearing protective styles for much of the year. Summer is the time to break this mundane routine and get some life back into your strands. Make an effort to place at least one accessory in your hair daily to brighten up your entire outfit or make your average hairstyle go from everyday to fabulous. This summer large flowers and printed scarves are definitely in.
Use gel to fight humidity
It’s hard enough to fight the halo of frizz most of us naturals have, but summer sends those strands on our crown into overdrive, and that sleek do you left the house with can so easily become a full on ‘fro. To help combat this, invest in a good gel with a harder hold than the gel you use in the winter. Also, ensure that glycerin is low down on the ingredients list or not there at all, since it will draw moisture to your hair and cause your hair to puff up.
Wash and go
Summer is the season for wash and gos as they are so easy to do and unlike in winter you have a better chance of your hair actually drying before bedtime. A good rule of thumb for picking a gel for wash and gos is to find one that works well with your leave-ins and moisturizers and is moisturizing. Usually moisturizing gels have glycerin in them so scan the ingredients list before purchasing.
A good deep conditioner
The general rule to prevent summer time frizz is to moisturize, moisturize, moisturize. The theory behind this is that if your strands have been moisturized sufficiently, then they won’t suck up any more moisture from the atmosphere and swell and create frizz. To start moisturizing from the cleansing stage, invest in a good deep conditioner that is moisturizing and will fix any underlying hair issues and damage that can prevent your hair from being as healthy it can be.
Lots of cheap conditioner
As the temperature increases, we tend to go out and sweat a lot more which can cause our hair to need cleansing sooner than in the winter. Plus, since our hair dries faster, we may find it easier to wash and restyle our hair rather than fight the swelling and frizz the humidity brings. Shampooing too often is a curly crime of the highest degree which is where conditioners come in. Conditioner washing allows most of the dirt and product that is in our hair to be washed away without the drying effect that shampoo causes. The more hair we have, the more conditioner we go through, so save the expensive stuff for winter and special wash days and look out for a sale or stock up on really inexpensive conditioner for co-washing.
Products to Ditch
Following are all the products you need to shelf and hairstyles you should take a break from for the summer months.
Heavy oils and butters
In the winter, it’s often necessary to layer on thick products to fight the harsh dry weather. During the summer, however, the temperature is much milder, and there is a lot more moisture in the atmosphere. Applying the same amount of heavy oils and butters to your hair as you did during the winter may cause your hair to become dull, limp and greasy.
Protective styles
While some women may wish to do protective styles during the winter to reach hair goals, summer is the perfect time to give your hair a break. It is the time to break free from the mundane routine of twist and buns and try the plethora of styles out there that you really wanted to. Wear it big, wild and free now then when winter comes around you can get right back on the protective styling train.
I hope that this helps to take some of the guesswork out of transitioning your hair care routine from winter to summer.
