While an effective wash day routine includes cleansing the scalp, washing your afro scalp, and washing your afro hair in sections, it also involves detangling it. Detangling can help you cleanse your scalp, as combing your natural hair can remove build-up from your follicles. When dirt is removed from your scalp’s follicles, the proper nutrients can reach it to stimulate better hair growth.
More importantly, detangling your hair regularly will ensure that your afro hair is tangle free which also means less breakage, more definition, and less shedding. Still, the most critical question is how you detangle your afro curls before, during, and after your wash day routine.
Detangling Before Your Wash Day
You need to detangle your curls before shampooing. Applying shampoo often can generate tangles as this mixture lifts the cuticle, which then causes friction between your strands. Even more, your washday could become even longer if you already have matted or tangled hair before wetting your afro hair from shampoo or water.
When wet, your natural hair is at its weakest point, so you must detangle your afro curls with care before and after shampooing. In this way, you can remove all hair from the natural shedding process and tangles and knots. Lastly, detangling your curly hair before shampooing is also essential if you have just removed a protective style like twists or braids.
Pre-Detangle Using The Pre-Poo Method
Pre-poo is an abbreviation for pre-shampoo and moisturising treatment that type 3 and 4 curls need before shampooing. It can add moisture to your curls and can help shorten the detangling time on your wash day.
Pre-pooing can also prevent your afro hair from drying out during cleansing. You need to use penetrating oils to create this protective pre-poo later, so why not use our conditioning Curling Creme With Coconut & Jamaican Black Castor Oils? Both oils can penetrate and moisturise your hair strands and add shine.
Start the pre-poo process by dividing your hair into six sections. Then use clips to keep these sections apart. Next, lightly spray the first section of hair and apply our curling crème mixture to that section, ensuring all sections are covered. Repeat this process for all sections.
Opt for a finger detangling method or wide-toothed comb for each section once the oil has been applied. After detangling each section, you can cover your hair with a shower cap for around 30 minutes to allow the pre-poo mixture to penetrate your scalp and strands further.
Alternatively, you could also use a steamer or a hooded driver. Once the 30 minutes are up, wash this mixture with warm water before applying a shampoo like our hydrating mixture with Manuka Honey. It is necessary to wash off the pre-poo mixture with warm water as it opens the pores in your scalp and allows the shampoo to penetrate quickly and remove product build-up.
Detangling During Your Wash Day
After rinsing the shampoo from your natural hair, apply a moisturising conditioner like ours with Manuka Honey And Avocado from your ends to your roots to evenly distribute the product. After applying conditioner, you should use your fingers or a wide-toothed comb to detangle your afro hair again. This is to remove any more tangles caused by the shampoo.
If you opt for a co-wash between your traditional shampoo wash days, you can gently cleanse your scalp, detangle your strands, and put the moisture back into your natural hair using this mixture. Lastly, when rinsing out your conditioner, rinse with cold water rather than warm water to close the pores on your scalp.
How To Keep Your Afro Hair Detangled Post-Wash Day
Following the conditioning process and rinsing it out, wrap a microfibre towel around your natural hair to absorb all excess water. You can also minimise tangles by leaving your hair to air dry. Once your hair is dry, use our Leave-In Conditioner With Manuka Honey And Avocado Oil to put moisture back in your afro curls and keep any tangles out.
Lastly, opt for our Curl Elongating Gel With Flaxseed Oil & Rosewater to keep the definition of your curls intact and also keep tangles and knots at bay as it is extremely moisturising. More importantly, you can also use small amounts of this mixture to keep your afro hydrated in between wash days.
The road to mastering the detangling process will depend on the right products, your hair texture, and the hairstyles you opt for. Whatever you do, it is best to find a routine that works for you, meaning that you should try detangling your afro hair before, during, and after your wash day to see whether it can make a difference to your curls.