The Secrets to Making Your Natural Hair Blowout Last Longer
Looking for ways to keep your heat-styled natural hair straighter, for longer? Are you tired of spending hours blowing out your natural hair and it not lasting like you want? Girl, I have been there, and believe me I know that it can be frustrating. Whether you’ve spent hours doing it yourself, or hours at the salon, you want to get the most of your new style! #AintNobodyGotTimeForThat
I am here to tell you how you can get your blow out to last 2 weeks. I know you can because I have done it! Here are 4 ways to help make your blow out last up to 2 weeks.
Use a Heat Protector
Before you blow dry and flat-iron it is important that you use a heat protector– it not only acts as an insulator for your strands, but it can help lock out humidity.
Start your Style with A Lot of Curls
The more curls you start out with the better. The more curls you add while you are doing your blowout, the less likely you will have to rely on heat styling over the next few days. The curls will gradually fall, but you will not have to worry about having flat hair or using more heat to re-style your hair.
Avoid water like the plague
You want to avoid all products that are water based. So this means certain edge controls and gels. Don’t use too much edge control because you don’t want your hair to revert back or get weighed down by too much product. Make sure that your hair is protected in the shower as well, put that shower cap on we are not judging you.
Wrap or Pin Curl your hair at night or anytime
Yes EVERY SINGLE NIGHT. You should be wrapping your hair up. If I am just around the house and not going anywhere I make sure to keep my hair wrapped up. This will definitely keep your blow out lasting a few days longer. Wrapping your hair is essential when working out as well. You definitely don’t want to sweat your tresses out while you are getting your sweat on. In my experience my hair has lasted longer when I wrap my hair when I am working out.
By following these tips you can make your blow out last for a few weeks. That’s a good amount of time because I know the struggle of straightening your hair, or getting it straightened by a professional. xoxo
2022 Update:
While I rarely get my hair blown-out anymore (I’ve since moved to Florida- where my stylist isn’t and the humidity IS), I do get my daughter’s hair blown out twice a year for trims. I also use curlformers in her hair regularly to stretch her highly textured hair without heat, to make morning styling easier and quicker. I’ve found that whether her hair is stretched with heat or stretched mechanically with rollers, the wash day routine, and conditioning and styling methods and products matter A LOT. They will make or break her style. First, cleansing. I make sure to use a thorough but gentle shampoo (like Aubree GPB products from Whole Foods) to remove any build-up. I then follow-up with a deep conditioner with a healthy moisture-protein balance. This is crucial. It helps to fortify and moisturize her strands to set her up for success. I don’t seal this in with a butter, lotion or oil like usual, tho.
If I’m blowing her hair out or using curl-former/rollers, I use a liquid leave-in that contains light-weight silicones to simultaneously lock in the moisture from wash day and lock out the moisture from the atmosphere. But I only use these AFTER I’ve t-shirt dried her hair for at least 15 minutes. This step can’t be skipped for any style. Styling on damp hair works. Trust me. I love Jane Carter’s Leave-in Conditioner and ApHogee’s Leave-in Conditioner- both are liquid, easy to apply, and *somewhat* help with detangling. I still prefer to do the bulk of the detangling work in the shower, under the running water, with a thick, slippery conditioner to prevent damage. Here’s the ingredient lists for my fave leave-in and heat protectants-
Jane Carter Leave-In:
Water (Aqua), Glycerin, Polysorbate 20, Amodimethicone, Fragrance (Parfum), Behentrimonium Chloride, Aloe Barbadensis Leaf Juice, Chamomilla Recutita (Matricaria) Flower, Symphytum Officinale Leaf Extract, Equisetum Hyemale Extract, Urtica Dioica (Nettle) Extract, Rosmarinus Officinalis (Rosemary) Extract, Humulus Lupulus (Hops) Extract, Lawsonia Inermis (Henna) Leaf Extract, Citrus Aurantium Dulcis (Orange) Peel Oil, Helianthus Annuus (Sunflower) Seed Oil, Tocopherol, Trisodium Ethylenediamine Disuccinate, Isopropyl Alcohol, Trideceth-12, Cetrimonium Chloride, Phenoxyethanol, Ethylhexylglycerin, Citric Acid.
ApHogee’s Leave-In:
Water (Aqua, Eau), Amodimethicone, Panthenol, Tocopheryl Acetate, Hydrolyzed Vegetable Protein PG-Propyl Silanetriol, Mauritia Flexuosa Fruit Oil, Simmondsia Chinensis (Jojoba) Seed Oil, Triticum Vulgare (Wheat) Germ Oil, Hydrolyzed Keratin, Phytantriol, PPG-5-Ceteth-20, PPG-2 Methyl Ether, Polyquaternium-11, Trideceth-12, Cetrimonium Chloride, Aminopropyl Dimethicone, Laureth-23, Laureth-4, Trimethylsiloxyamodimethicone, Hydrolyzed Glycosaminoglycans, Linoleic Acid, Aminomethyl Propanol, C11-15 Pareth-7, Collagen Amino Acids, C12-16 Pareth-9, Glycerin, Linolenic Acid, Citric Acid, DMDM Hydantoin, Methylparaben, Fragrance (Parfum).
I use the blow dryer (and any flat iron) on her hair at the lowest heat setting possible and once done, immediately part her hair down the middle and create two French braids. This not only prevents reversion, but sets the hair and gives it awesome waves for when we take them down. She’ll wear the French braids for days, and then we’ll release them to create cute buns until the next wash day. We wrap her hair every night (with a silk scarf) and sometimes set in 4 large bantu knots (with an oil like Carol’s Daughter Hair Honey) to keep the hair looking smooth and healthy. I follow this same routine with her roller stretched hair. Light weight setting products, French braids, and light oils to keep it up in between washes!
How do you protect your natural hair blowout? How do you make it last longer?
