That’s it, y’all. I’ve made the leap over. I’m going to rock my natural hair. For a while.

Okay, okay, so I was technically always “rocking the natural hair,” the only thing small caveat is I wasn’t wearing it the way it naturally sprouts out of my head. In fact, I haven’t worn it natural for months. Literally, the last time I wore it natural was in the photo above, which was taken in September. After that, I can’t remember the last time (and I don’t think there was a time after that). And as I’m sure you all know, battering your hair with heat day after day does nothing but harm to your tresses. Thus, my hair has dramatically thinned (and I’ve never had a thick head of hair, anyways, so just imagine what it’s like now) and it breaks SUPER easily. So, I’m going on a little bit of a hiatus. A #naturalcation if you will. Giving my hair a break and treating it right. The goal is to grow it considerably and to give it some elasticity and strength in the process. It won’t be easy, but it’s worth it.

Check out some of the tips and tricks I have for strong, healthy tresses:

 Absolutely NO HEAT

You might think “Well Siobhan, you’ve already mentioned this one, and I already know how bad heat is for my hair,” to which I say “Fantastic!” Only thing is, we need to take this a step further. That’s right, turn down the heat of that water stream when you shower, and you will see a world of difference. It’s completely uncomfortable to stand in mild water as you clean your tresses, but trust me when I say that heat, of any form, is terrible. Most people don’t even consider the near-scolding hot water they stand in as they shower a form of heat, but oh, friend, it is. I noticed a huge difference when I started exposing my hair to cooler water temps. Oh, and if you can take it, turn it down even further, to the point that it’s actually cold water pouring out of your shower head when you rinse out your conditioner. Yes, it’s a torturous 30 seconds, but you can thank me for your hair’s incredible shine later. 😉

FEED your hair

It sounds super cheesy and cliche, but eating the right foods is an essential part of growing strong hair. Any nutrient packed foods added to your diet are going to do great things, but foods such as salmon (which is very high in omega-3s — which are good fats for your body to consume), sweet potatoes (which are packed with beta carotene, what makes this popular potato orange, that your body will convert into vitamin A, which is great for your hair), and eggs (more specifically, egg whites, which are full of protein) are even better. Also, don’t forget water! Getting 8 glasses a day of H2O is a great way to keep everything in your body functioning smoothly and easily, including cell reproduction, which aids in hair growth. Drink up, friend!

Reserve TIGHT for your clothes on a Friday night

I feel like this is almost pointless to say, but it’s something that I was doing and was completely unaware of: back off the tight ties! That’s right, nothing good comes from triple and quadruple tied dos, you want to keep your buns and ponies loosey goosey! Not only does it reduce the amount of headaches you’ve been having lately (cue the simultaneous “ohhhhhhhh” across the world, YEA, it didn’t occur to me, either!), but it will allow your hair follicles to breathe and won’t cause as much damage! Plus, messier hair is trendy now, anyways. Ride the wave, girlfriend, ride the messy hair wave. 🙂

Want more of these hair-saving tips!? Good news for you — I made a whole video on the topic after my previous hair ban, a video which you can view right here.

As for the current ban? I just started last week, and we’ll see how it goes, because it’s really hard whenever I see girls with pin straight hair or beautiful waves walking down the street (my goodness, I sound like an addict, haha). However, for now, I plan on laying off the blowouts for at least 6 months, to (hopefully) restore strength, shine and structure to my hair. In a bit, when my hair has gained some volume, it’ll be nice to wear my hair down with all of its natural curl and shape, but right now, I’m living in braids (a topic on which I may or may not cover in a post soon ;))! I’ve grown to like it, though, and with all of the cold weather we’ve had this winter, I feel like I am  Elsa. Hehe! Ice queen or not, wish me luck, because I will need it, and if you have any braids inspiration or ideas that you’d like to share, go for it, I’d love to hear!

Until next time,
S♥