Black Hair care, How to style black hair, History, types of black hair
Black Hair care, How to style black hair
By
Kathryn D'Imperio
Afro hair type has a unique texture. At
first glance it appears thick and strong
but this is deceptive. There are fewer
hairs per square inch than any
other type of hair so it rarely
grows very thick. Also, the
curved follicles give each hair
a spring-like action which
makes the curls appear short.
The type and degree of curl is,
in fact, the main difference
between Caucasian and Black
hair. Instead of growing and
curling in a uniform manner
the hair grows in various
directions, thus making it fall
in uneven frizzy waves.
In addition, far from being
strong, this type of hair is the
weakest - fragile and dry, it
rapidly loses moisture and
needs daily moisturizing to
keep it in condition.
How to Care and Protect Black Hair
In the past oils and grease
were used to combat dryness
and to protect the black hair. The
weight and heaviness of these
products also clogged the hair
follicles and sometimes led to
hair loss. Strong detergent
shampoos were often used
which led to further problems
of dryness and flaking scalps.
 Today, specialist
manufacturers provide
preparations that are lighter
and more easily absorbed into
the hair. If you have Black
hair it is important to take
extra special care. As a guide
you should always use a mild
shampoo and conditioner
each time you wash. If your
hair has been chemically
treated you should use a hot
oil treatment at least every
two weeks. Each day use a
light film of moisturizing
spray.
Black hair is very dry
and porous and will literally
soak up any moisture in the
atmosphere. When this
happens the hair reverts back
to its pre-styled state.
Products called 'reversion
resistant' sprays are designed
to seal the hair shafts and
prevent this happening.
How to style black hair
A popular way of dressing
Black hair is to straighten or
'relax' it. New products
enable hairdressers to get the
desired straighter hair with
just a foundation of curl, to
provide lift to the hair and
enable the style to be dressed
in a variety of ways.
As this
type of hair is so fragile. I
would strongly recommend professional application of
relaxing hair products at a
salon that specializes in this
technique.
Coloring Black Hair Style
Colour can look
stunning on Black hair and
you can do this yourself using
the wide variety of spray-on
colours or glitter sprays which
look superb on dark curls. If
you want a colour rinse or
lowlights, try coppery-gold
shades - sheer magic!
Bleaching is a very drastic
process for Black hair and
needs perfect maintenance,
so, once again it is best left to
the hairdresser.
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