Whether you are transitioning or natural, caution must be taken when using heat to your hair.

There’s absolutely nothing wrong with the occasional flat iron or press, however you can overdo it and change your curl pattern completely.

And if you are transitioning, it can accelerate damage– which could cut your change shorter than you desire.

Below are some ideas to ensure your hair remains healthy throughout your heat application

1) Deep Condition First

Deep conditioning strengthens the hair and should be done prior to any sort of bigger application like heat styling and even coloring the hair. It’s everything about offering your hair that strength prior to applying any heat.

Let the deep conditioner sit on your hair for at least 30 minutes, and to get the maximum advantage, sit under the clothes dryer with a plastic cap on.

2) Blow Dry on The Coolest Setting Possible

When preparing to straighten your hair, blow dry on a cool to medium setting. The cooler the much better, obviously.

3) Always Use a Heat Protectant

Apply this to your hair prior to aligning to add a layer of protection on your hair. Some people use it before coiffure and flat ironing simply to be safe.

If you want to go the more natural route, grapeseed oil is likewise a terrific protectant and can generally be discovered at most health food establishments like Whole Foods.

I would recommend purchasing the salon-grade protectants that you can discover at Sally’s or other expert beauty supply shops.

4) Minimize Heat Exposure

If you’re transitioning, heat is truly the opponent, so if you need to utilize it, attempt to keep it down to 1-2 times per month if you can.

Heat not only makes your fragile, transitioning hair brittle, however you can dry it out and alter your natural hair pattern also.

If you’re natural, you could find that you can straighten more often, but I would still recommend limiting the quantity of heat exposure as much as you can due to the fact that you can get heat damages and wreck your curl pattern.

You will certainly understand when this takes place since your hair will certainly not curl up anymore. It will certainly look straight or semi straight like processed hair. In some cases you can nurse the curls back by shampooing and deep conditioning, however if the damage is too severe you’ll need to cut it off.

Exactly how often you can flat iron/press is truly up to your specific hair and just how much heat you make use of, so simply beware.

5) Watch The Temperature

Never, ever buy a flat iron that does not have a temperature level control. If you want to avoid modifying your curl pattern, attempt not to surpass 350 degrees. In fact, go as low as possible. If you can straighten your hair at 300 or 325 degrees, then that’s even much better.

6) Don’t Go Bone Straight

Aim for a semi-straight look. No, it won’t last as long however you will shield your priceless tresses.:).

You might desire your hair as straight as possible, but reviewing and over the exact same strands with the flat iron can ruin your natural curl pattern.

Press your hair in little sections and only review it once. Avoid using repeated heat applications on the exact same section of hair.

7) Avoid Dominican Blowouts!

I understand they straighten much better than anything in the hairstyling world, but I’ve heard a lot of horror tales about destroyed curl patterns after getting one of these treatments. This is just way, way too much heat for both transitioners and naturals.

Yes, there are constantly the exceptions and not everyone has damage from these blowouts, however let’s simply state I’ve become aware of lots of more individuals who suffered damage than those who didn’t.

Now, if you are a natural who plans to use your hair straight all the time, then loss of curl pattern might not be an issue. However, if you wish to go back and forth between curly and straight, beware with excessive heat treatments. And constantly make certain a protectant is utilized.

8) Use Ceramic and Tourmaline-Ceramic Products.

Yes, these flat irons are going to cost you a bit more, but they will certainly minimize the possibility of damages and work much better. Look for the labels that say 100 % ceramic.

The finish on the less costly flat irons will commonly wear away, which’s a guaranteed method to damage your hair. Trust me, this is one area where you most likely want to splurge.

NOTE: I am not a flat iron expert. Just like with products, you need to experiment and see what works for your hair. I can tell you that a bunch of naturals appear to choose the Sedu brand. They make an excellent quality, Tourmaline Ceramic flat iron with a temperature level control. Just please beware and use at your very own risk.