You know one of the only things that I look forward to during the cooler months? Silky straight natural hair. Since I live in the South, it’s way too hot and humid to straighten hair in the Summer. Therefore, I save my straightening days for the end of the year when frizz won’t be an issue. I know a lot of natural haired women are strongly against the idea of straightening their hair at all, but truth be told, it’s not as bad as you think it is for your hair. It’s a great way to change up your look and if done correctly, won’t harm your tresses. The key thing is to make sure that you follow a few simple tips to make sure that your hair is not only easy to straighten but also protected in the process.

Tip #1 Don’t straighten your natural hair too often

When you finally see your beautiful silky straight natural hair, you will probably fall in love with it relatively quickly. When natural hair is straightened, it glides through the fingers, has a luxurious shine, and blows in the wind. As beautiful as you think your hair is, do not fall into the trap of straightening your hair too often. While once in a while won’t be too much if an issue, straightening every single day could be detrimental. Too much excessive heat on your natural tresses can and will cause heat damage. Unless you’re getting your hair straightened professionally every single day, it’s best to limit the amount of heat that you put on your natural tresses if you want to keep it healthy. Now there’s no magic number of times that you can or cannot straighten your hair, so use your better judgment. Thicker hair can potentially stand the heat more than finer hair. Also, it’s easier to straighten finer hair than it is thicker hair.  

Tip #2 Don’t try to straighten dirty hair

Apart from being a bit unsanitary, trying to straighten dirty hair is very difficult. Don’t believe me? Just imagine if you had a filthy shirt that you were trying to iron. Better yet, imagine if that same shirt had a spot on it that you didn’t even see until after you already ironed it.  What’s going to happen? It’s going to make the shirt all sticky and/or crunchy in the place that the spot was. Now, if that happens to clothing, just imagine how it’ll make your hair feel. Get where I’m going with this? Make sure that your hair is nice and clean prior to trying to achieve silky straight natural hair. The Shedavi Crown Moisturizing Shampoo is a great option because not only does it get all the gunk out of your hair to prepare it for straightening, but it also has a moisturizing agent that will make it soft and smooth.

Tip #3  Don’t forget to moisturize and protect

After you shampoo your hair, you want to be sure to do a good conditioner to add nutrients to your tresses as an extra layer of protection. The Shedavi Crowned collection has both a conditioner and a protein masque that you can use to prepare for your silky straight natural hair. When used together, your hair will be perfectly primed to take the heat! Now, right before you get ready to straighten your hair, make sure you use a good heat protectant. Lastly, use Shedavi elixir to add shine and seal the cuticle after you straighten. I cannot tell you how important it is to not skip this step.

Tip #4 Straighten your hair in small sections

The final tip I’m going to leave you with is to straighten your hair in small sections. The least amount of passes that you take with your flat iron, the least likely it will be that you will damage your natural hair. Therefore, take your time and only straighten small pieces at a time. Keep your sections at about 1/2 inch wide. Yes, it’s going to take a little time, but at least your hair will be bouncy, healthy, and silky straight. Be sure to take your Shedavi vitamins for growth and thickness!

What other tips do you have for ensuring that your silk straight natural hair looks flawless and lasts? Let us know in the comments.

Written by Bianca Scott