Ever had a bad hair day? Yeah, silly question, we know. Whether it’s curly or straight, sleek or frizzy, our hair can be a constant source of frustration. But take hope: a great natural hair care routine can change all that! Do you have a plan for taking care of your hair? If not, it's time to create one, or take a closer look at the one you already have. It's easy to build up a mountain of half-used hair care products in the shower without really thinking about what they're doing to your hair. Well, we say "out with the old!" It's time to approach hair care more naturally. What goes into a natural hair care routine? Less reliance on gels, sprays, and chemical-filled concoctions. Instead, we're talking a great brushing routine, a gentle cleansing strategy, and a greater understanding of how your overall health impacts those gorgeous locks of yours. Here are our top 3 ways to completely transform your hair care routine.
#1. Rethink the Way You Look at Brushing
The humble hairbrush. You probably have a dozen of these lying around your bathroom, all plasticy and filled with lost hair. When you're building a natural hair care routine, your hair brush can be your best friend. However, the wrong brush can do more harm than good. Ever hear the old advice to brush your hair 100 strokes a day? With the wrong brush, this strategy can cause damage and split ends. Especially cheap brushes can even cause snags and tangles, both of which are difficult to work out. That's why hair care experts recommend being very choosy about the type of brush you use.
Choosing the Right Brush
There are a lot of brushes out there - how do you know you've found the right one? Stick to the gold standard - the boar bristle brush. Boar bristle brushes have been the go-to brush for high end hair care since the 1800s. All those glamorous actresses from the early 20th century got their signature 'do's thanks to boar bristle brushes. These brushes do so much more than detangle hair - they're actually a dry shampoo in and of themselves. How can a brush shampoo your hair? It's all thanks to sebum, an oil your body produces in your hair follicles. Sebum is an amazing substance that naturally hydrates and conditions your hair. Boar bristle brushes have a unique texture that harnesses the power of sebum perfectly. When you use them the right way, they carry this sebum down from your scalp to your tips. This little trick gives you so many advantages:- Conditioning: The tiny amount of oil these brushes spread coats each hair, reducing dryness and giving you a natural shine.
- Shampooing: Sebum is the reason oil builds up on your scalp. By using a boar bristle brush to spread it out, your hair won't look oily, allowing you to go longer between washes.
- Frizz: Sebum is the original anti-frizz treatment. Use your boar bristle brush regularly and you'll be amazed at how it tames your hair.
- Texture: Boar bristle brushes bring out the best in your hair's texture. Properly distributed sebum helps straight hair find some volume and helps bring out the definition and bounce in curs.
- Styling: As your hair becomes healthier and better conditioned from regular boar bristle brush use, you'll have less and less need to style it.
We've seen the impact that a boar bristle brush can have on our own hair, which is why we've decided to add it to our product line. Check out our new boar bristle brush in the Beauty by Earth shop! Alongside your boar bristle brush, it never hurts to have a dedicated detangling tool on hand as well. Our new detangling brush is a great choice - its bristles are rigid enough to deal with stubborn knots and tangles while remaining flexible enough to prevent hair damage or discomfort. Win-win. You can also use it to massage and stimulate the scalp, increasing blood flow to encourage hair production.
How to Brush Your Hair
So you have your tools – what next? Brushing! Taking the time to carefully brush your hair every day will transform its appearance and texture. Not only will your boar bristle brush distribute sebum even down the shaft of each hair, it will also get rid of buildup on your scalp and stimulate oil producing glands. All this means healthier hair. When it comes to getting the most out of your brushing routine, we can’t find a better technique than the Morocco Method. You’ll find copious amounts of really great information on their website, but here are the basics:- Choose three times of day to brush your hair. Morning, late afternoon, and before bed are best.
- Take a few minutes to sit quietly and breathe slowly and deeply through your nose. This relieves tension and optimizes blood flow to your scalp.
- Stand up straight, then bend over at the waist.
- Move your brush from your scalp to the tip of your hair. Repeat, making sure that all hair is brushed.
- Stand up straight, and repeat the last step.
Voila! Your hair is now tamed and nourished by your body’s amazing natural oils.
Taking Care of Your Boar Bristle Brush
Your brush gives your hair lots of love – return the favor by giving it some TLC. Use a wide tooth comb to carefully remove any hair caught between its bristles. Then, use a gentle shampoo and a cloth to give your brush a good cleanse. Rinse your brush under running water, then gently squeeze out any moisture in the cushion. Finally, lay your brush bristles-down on a towel to dry.
#2. Clean Out Your Bathroom
The right brushing routine will do great things for your hair, but if you’re constantly assaulting your locks with unhealthy, unnatural, and potentially toxic ingredients, you won’t see the results you want. Get rid of the stuff that’s not helping (check out this post on our blog for more information on ingredients worth avoiding), and replace it with products that truly care for your hair. Our Favorite Natural Hair Care Solutions Here are our go-to hair care products: Argan Oil: Fact – Argan oil can replace pretty much every hair care product in your bathroom. Use it to condition your hair, give your locks a lustrous shine, help define curls, prevent sun and chlorine damage, and nourish your scalp. When you’re done caring for your hair, use it to moisturize your skin and nails. Best of all, there are no fillers or additives involved, just pure Argan Oil. Aloe Vera: Think Argan oil is flexible? Meet our friend aloe vera. Use aloe vera gel as a replacement for shampoo, as part of a homemade dandruff-fighting treatment, to encourage hair growth, and to naturally add volume and shine. Aloe vera gel has plenty of other health and personal care uses too, so it’s definitely worth having on hand. Apple Cider Vinegar: We love raiding the kitchen, especially if it lets us add some life to our hair care routine. Apple cider vinegar is packed with nutrients your hair loves. It also helps to gently exfoliate the scalp and hair, which removes dead skin cells and sweat. The result is shinier, healthier hair. You can find out much more about using apple cider vinegar on your hair in this post on Health Ambition.
#3. Follow a Hair-Healthy Diet
Great hair starts from the inside. Following a hair-friendly diet is an effective (and delicious) way to transform your hair care routine. Try working some of these foods into your diet for good health inside and out.
- Salmon: This pretty pink fish is just packed with omega-3 fatty acids. Your body relies on these healthy fats to support your immune system, reduce your risk of heart disease, and grow hair. Enjoy salmon once or twice a week for hair that is long, strong, and (most of all) shiny.
- Sweet Potato: Remember how great sebum is? Sweet potatoes are the key to making even more of it. These vegetables have a high quantity of beta carotene, an antioxidant your body uses to make vitamin A. That’s the vitamin that encourages your scalp to produce sebum. Vitamin A also helps to keep hair from drying out or looking dull. If sweet potatoes aren’t your thing, no worries: you’ll also find plenty of beta carotene in carrots, mangoes, and cantaloupe.
- Greek Yogurt: Your hair is built out of protein. If you want locks that are long and strong, you need plenty of it. While there’s nothing wrong with a nice, juicy steak, there are some interesting benefits of looking to Greek yogurt for some of your protein needs. This type of yogurt contains pantothenic acid (affectionately referred to as vitamin B5), an ingredient that improves blood flow to the scalp and encourages hair growth.
- Guava: Add a little tropical flavor to your diet and help keep your hair from breaking. Guava is tasty and chock full of vitamin C, a micronutrient that’s a real superhero when it comes to preventing hair breakage.
- Eggs: Eggs really have it all. They’re full of protein, have tons of iron (which can help to prevent hair loss), and they contain a compound called biotin, which helps in hair growth. In fact, a biotin deficiency is a common reason for hair loss, so enjoying your breakfast sunny side up is a great way to make sure your locks stay thick and healthy.
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