How I Refresh My Type 4b/4c Natural Hair

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By Jascmeen Bush · Updated September 12, 2016

Every morning usually starts with me humming a little Erykah Badu to myself in the mirror. “Pick yo Afro, Daddy, because it’s flat on one side.”

Oh Erykah, my hair’s not just flat. It is dry, dull and lifeless.

My morning curl routine actually starts the night before. Without the proper bedtime routine, there’s just no saving my hair in the morning.

Before bedtime

I oil my scalp with JBCO and mist my hair with a mixture of equal parts Cantu and a little water. Then I put my hair into a pineapple with a silk bonnet on top.
What happens next all depends on my style and how quickly I need to get out the door.

The next morning

On a normal day where my objective is to preserve a twistout or a wash and go, I do an abbreviated version of the LOC Method:

I mist with water.
I apply the Eden BodyWorks Curl Defining Creme.
I seal with a bit of Cantu Gel Oil.

As the week progresses and my curls get harder and harder to revive, I go for a high poof.

When I’m in a hurry

I’m a night owl and a serial snooze button abuser so most mornings I have to do my hair in a hurry. This is when I reach for my arsenal of sprays.

I start with a little Dark and Lovely Moisture LOC Super Quench Leave-In Spray.
I try to give that a minute to dry before I spray the Cantu Comeback Curl Next Day Revitalizer.

On days like this, I make sure to throw an extra large elastic and edge control just in case I have to make a poof while I’m stuck in traffic.

When I’m protective styling

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Recently, I have been relying on wigs as my go-to protective style and braiding my hair into chunky braids. That doesn’t mean I can neglect my hair in the morning, though. I don’t use my water mixture on my braids because it gives me some bad knots on the ends of my hair.

I simply slather a leave-in cream over my braids and then seal it with an oil. My combo of the moment is the Cantu Shea Butter Leave-In Conditioning Repair Cream paired with coconut oil or Marula Oil Rare Oil Treatment. Bonus: This treatment works well on the skin, too!

To sum it up

No regimen will give you results if you don’t stick to it. No matter what you do for your hair, make sure it is gentle and works consistently. In my experience, this has given me my healthiest, bounciest curls.