Taking Care of my Kinky Twists

This is the first time that I have done twists (using kinky extensions) without experiencing much breakage. The picture above showing my hair immediately after take down reveals that I just might have found what works for me. Read on for my kinky twist regimen and some advice for those of you who plan to try this style out.

Before attaching the extensions…

• I washed my hair using shampoo mixed with conditioner,

• Properly detangled my hair, and

• Deep conditioned.

• After rinsing off the deep conditioner, I applied just Coconut oil to my hair and braided it to stretch out the coils a bit since I was not going to use a comb to detangle when my hair got dry.

• Left hair to air dry

Putting the kinky extensions…

First Lady kinky extensions

•  I bought and used First lady kinky extensions for 4 reasons:

1.       Curl pattern- closest to mine in the market

2.       Colour- close to mine

3.       Soft texture- close to mine

4.       Price- affordable.

working in sections

• I cut out a section, 
• Applied  Shea butter mix, 
• Took out any tangles using my fingers, 
• Applied same Shea Butter mix to the kinky extensions, and 
• Attached it to my hair making sure I don’t hold on too tightly to the roots (one of the reasons that I don’t miss hair stylists is that I get to sleep well after plaiting my hair- no unnecessary pain)

Remember to always work in sections- only take down a section when you want to work on it.

After putting in the extensions:

• I slept with a satin scarf to keep my hair tidy for as long as possible

• Oiled my scalp when it felt dry - using castor oil (from vanity oils)

• DID NOT spray water or any oil/water mix on my hair for the whole time the twists were in. I know that a lot of Naturals spray water  on their hair while it’s in protective a style but I don’t think that works for me. The other time I tried kinky twists, I sprayed my hair every morning and when take down day arrived, my hair was so entangled with the extensions that I had to cut off tangled, damaged ends. Not only did I loose hair/length, I had a sore scalp for days as a result of the tugging and pulling. 

I think that the reason for the dryness and breakage was these:

1. When water touches kinky-coily natural hair, it shrinks and coils up on itself. So when it is in kinky extensions, it coils into the fake hair .
2. Kinky extensions are  known to rub off the moisture from natural hair.

So, when the kinky extensions get entangled with natural coily hair, it dries it up and the result could be stubborn hair and a sore scalp on/after take down day. Now you understand why I had to skip this step and I’m happy I did because this time around, take down and detangling afterward was not a struggle.

• When it got dirty, to keep the style in for as long as I could, I decided to wash the hair... but when I remembered how much hair I lost the last time. Hm, no one told me to take it off.

Take down:

Since I did not hold on too tightly to my roots, taking off the extensions was not as difficult.

NOTE: The twists were plaited loose using the Urbanbushbabes loose twist technique.This technique  helped in making take down easy and faster.

After removing the extensions from the hair, you’ll notice that your hair strands are clumped together. You might also notice buildup at the roots of your hair. Now this is where you need PATIENCE.

Detangling after take down:

detangling in sections

DO NOT COMB DRY HAIR AT THIS POINT. Rather, apply olive oil or coconut oil to your hair (in sections) and patiently detangle. 

I detangle the little sections just loosened. This might take some time, but it reduces knots and breakage.

NOTE: Instead of raking your fingers through the clumped hair strands, twist/roll the hair in the opposite direction of how it was first twisted (using your thumb and index finger) and you’ll see how easily it would unravel. Then you can finger detangle. If you have buildup at the roots, patiently detangle using your fingers.

I ADVICE THAT YOU DETANGLE YOUR HAIR USING YOUR FINGERS FIRST BEFORE USING A COMB.  I have not been combing my dry hair for some time now and you can see the results… a good reason why we must not hold too tightly to what we grew up knowing (more about this in another post)

Finally, properly detangle your tight coils before washing…trust me, I lost some length to learn this lesson.