Once you’ve learned the techniques necessary to maintaining your hair, you might find that you will need to change the hair tools you use. I found that as my hair grew longer, I needed to consider adjusting the tools in my arsenal to meet the changing demands of hair care.
The temptation to use heat on a regular basis is often a result of wanting to display the length of your beautiful hair. Excessive use of heat can lead to hair damage and negatively impact the health of your hair. As an alternative I use elastic hair bands to stretch the length of my hair, thus allowing me to display length without manipulating your hair unnecessarily. When choosing hair bands be sure you select those without the metal connector as these can snag your hair.
The word “seamless” is key. You can usually find a traditional wide tooth comb at most beauty supply stores or places like CVS or Target. I used these types of combs for years when detangling my hair. Why did I change to a seamless comb? Well, as my hair grew longer, I no longer had the time or energy for long detangling sessions. I would normally detangle with a wide tooth comb, then re-comb the section with a smaller toothed comb. When my hair was shoulder length, this didn’t take an inordinate amount of time so I didn’t really mind. A seamless comb prevents snags that can be created by the seams of a traditional wide tooth comb, and allowed me to comb sections of my without out strands “catching” on frayed seams. This really helped as my hair grew longer. I will warn you that a seamless comb may be more expensive than a non-seamless comb, but you won’t need to repurchase. I use the Magic Star Jumbo Rake comb and absolutely love it. I paid around $20 for mine and have had it for about two years . Trust me, it’s worth it.
The longer my hair grew, the more important it became to learn how to wash my hair without creating tangles and knots. I choose to wash my hair in 10 sections that have already been detangled. In order to effectively apply shampoo (non-sulfate of course!) to my scalp I mix 2 parts shampoo with 1 part water in a color applicator bottle. In doing so I limit any tangles that might occur along the length of my hair, while getting my scalp properly cleansed.
4. Hair Brush
Okay, this was kind of a trick. No to hair brushes! I’m serious. Occasionally smoothing your edges with a soft bristle brush is fine. However, I would not under any circumstances recommend combing the length of your naturally curly or coily hair with a bristled brush. Besides ineffectively detangling, brushing will also create split ends galore.
What hair tools do find essential to retaining and maintain long natural hair?
