Ever wondered how to tweak your hair-care routine to suit covered hair? While every head is different, Tamar Adina is here to share her own hair-care journey with you! Caring for curly, long, or thick hair can be a challenge for covered ladies and she’s got the lowdown!
Hi everybody!
I often see questions regarding hair care on the various Facebook groups that I belong to. Everybody has a different solution of what works (and what doesn’t work!) and so I figured that I’d throw my daily routine into the mix. I’m going to preface this by saying that I am not a cosmetologist, a dermatologist, or a specialist. But, I have a method that works for my hair. Will it work for you? I don’t know. But this is what works for me!
My hair is thick, curly, and it almost reaches the middle of my back.
To make matters even more fun, I have horrid eczema on my scalp.
I’ve tried a LOT of different things. I tried “no poo” (shampoo-free method: failed). I tried Head and Shoulders (dried out my scalp). I tried medicated shampoos (some that the insurance refused to cover). I tried the full spectrum of cheap through salon shampoos. I tried Argan oil, amla, zizyphus (sedr), henna, and synthetic leave in conditioners. I tried blow drying and straightening my hair, I tried air-drying it, and I tried wrapping wet.
I found that with my trials came a lot of errors. But…now I’ve got a comfortable working solution where I’m minimally flaky and still comfortable under my wraps.
So how do I care for my hair? Well,
1) I ditched the SLS (sodium lauryl sulfate) from my shampoos and conditioners, and I’ve also ditched the silicone. Both of those ingredients aggravated my scalp and gave me flakes.
2) I wash my hair every day. Yes. Every. Single. Day. Why? Well, I tried the washing my hair every other day (and even every three days). But I work out almost everyday (and not just a brisk walk at lunch either). My hair becomes a smelly, sweaty, disgusting mess when I workout. So I wash it after every workout. In honor of all of the posts on the Internet regaling the wonders of “no poo” I tried going shampoo-free. I tried two months of various options (apple cider vinegar, baking soda, and just using conditioner). In the end, using an SLS and silicone free shampoo daily was the best option. I just never adjusted to the “no poo” method.
3) I wrap my hair when it’s wet or when it’s dry. Why? Well, blow-drying my hair bothers my eczema, and since I exercise in the morning, I don’t have the luxury of waiting the three hours before my hair is dry before heading out too work. Yes, when I wrap my hair I’ll find that at the end of the day, my hair is still wet. At that point I’ll lay out my scarf to dry and I’ll put my hair down to finish drying. I’ve heard people report that having wrapped hair all day leads to a fungal infection or ruined scarves. I’ve never had that. I actually find that having the extra moisture on my scalp keeps me from getting a super dry scalp.
4) I’ve changed what goes on under my wraps according to my hair type. For many Wrapunzel fans, the focus is on creating the illusion of volume.But for me, and maybe for some other very curly/long/thick haired girls out there, I found in the end that I don’t need to create volume – I already have it! Although many women swear by them, I don’t actually wear a volumizer. I’ve discovered that I have enough volume for five women without any extra assistance, and it’s hard to fit all my hair under a volumizer without any slipping out!
At the same time, without a smooth base, some ties are simply impossible. A Double Braid wrap really needs a solid base to wrap around, and tying my hair into a regular bun just won’t cut it. So what do I use to create a smooth base for tichels to lie on? I often wear a simple, lightweight base scarf over a messy bun. This method keeps errant curls from lying in strange and unusual ways and takes some of the pressure off of the back of my neck.
5) I avoid synthetic dyes like the plague. Paraphenylenediamine is not my friend. Neither is developer.
6) Once a month, I treat my scalp with an amla, henna and essential oil hair mask. I leave it on for four hours and then wash it out. The amla helps retain my curls (and cools down the henna), the henna moisturizes my hair and scalp, and the essential oils ‘terp’ the henna (boost its natural staining properties) and also help calm my scalp. I personally find that the henna doesn’t really effect my hair color because my hair has always been very dark with red highlights. But, if you have gray hair or light hair, henna will make your hair red.
That’s all for now – hope my tips will save you trouble and help you give your hair some love!
Love,
Tamar Adina
The Wrapunzel Blog 
I love that you are using more natural ways to treat you hair and found a way to treat your eczema better. I too stopped using SLS and silicone even started making my own shampoo and it has done unimaginable wonders for my hair. ❤ keep looking beautiful!
LikeLike
I just read online this week that we should condition our hair first and then shampoo after. I haven’t tried it yet.
Young Living sells essential oils and they sell good shampoo and conditioner with natural stuff.
Thanks for sharing that.
LikeLike
My hair is also long and curly, but it’s very fine and a little thin (started way before I started covering and hasn’t gotten worse.) My scalp is generally healthy. I’m starting to gray, but I haven’t noticed a change in texture.
I wash my hair every other night. When I do, I use shampoo on my scalp and conditioner below the ears. Otherwise, I just rinse it in warm water. I also use argan oil when I comb my hair, as it tangles easily.
When I cover, I put it in a messy bun. It’s fine enough that a volumizer is useful, but I can get good volume with a velvet scrunchy or by wrapping it with a scarf.
LikeLike
My hair has fine, straight strands and looks greasy and gross if not washed everyday. However, my scalp sounds exactly like this. We moved almost three years ago at the end of my second pregnancy and a couple weeks later, my scalp started itching and flaking. I figured it was the hormones, but it never went away. I tried switching shampoos (so far I like the tea tree and peppermint one from Trader Joe’s), scalp treatments, washing less often (which took months of transitioning before my hair stopped looking like I’ve never washed it before), using a boar hair bristle brush to stimulate the scalp, etc. I eventually decided it was because we moved to an area with harder water. The minerals in the water clog the pores and dry out the skin. I got to test my theory this Christmas when we visited my in-laws, who have a water softener. Within days, my scalp was fine. We can’t afford water treatment in our home right now, but we do have a small rainsoft filter in the kitchen for our cooking/drinking water, so after my shower, I scurry over into the kitchen and stick my head under that tiny faucet and rinse my scalp with the filtered water. It’s working! My scalp is healing and my hair is cleaner, since the rinse also gets rid of the leftover soap residue that hard water can’t clean off. Just thought I’d leave this here, in case it helps anyone else with scalp issues. 🙂
LikeLike
It depends on the type of your hair and scalp. My hair is very thick and long and dry. Washing it every day just makes it drier. My recipe:
– wash it just 1 a week with a soft shampoo + make a natural mask before (olive oil + egg + yeast + carrot juice + honey + essential oil of rose: keep it 2h on your head, then wash it).
– if you use a hair dryer: put it on “cold”.
– use a bit of silicone free conditioner after shampoo: for me: conditioner for African hair (= very curly and dry hair): it works the best!
– every day: a little bit of jasmine-coconut oil (Indian natural recipe: you find it on the web under “Parachute jasmine-coconut oil”): works SUPER with a little scalp massage (5mn) before going to bed!
– if you have very long hair: make a braid to sleep, you will comb it easily in the morning and lose less hair.
– put a very light cotton tichel on your messy bun (I have so much hair that I don’t use a tichel shaper: I just wrap a tichel around my bun, that’s all): the cotton tichel underneath prevents from sweating in the summer sun + protect your beautiful tichels from getting oily!
– on top of the cotton tichel: Wrapunzel you head!
Love, Mirjam.
LikeLike
I love your wrap. It is dignified and very elegant. On the day my best friend died (last month), my hair started falling out at an alarming rate. When I realized my emotions had thrown me into alopecia, the first thing I felt was humiliated and less than feminine. I started feeling nauseated when I would see clumps of my hair sliding down my body. I felt nauseated when I had to shake out my pillowcase. I threatened to shave it off and my husband advised me to wait, that once I shaved it off I couldn’t undo the act.
On the night I disappeared into the bathroom with my dogs clippers……afterward I heard a gentle tap on the door and my husband asked “Can I see it?”
I said “No!”, then realized he – of all people – had the right to enter.
He walked up to me, stared for half a second, then this amazing smile lit up his face and he said “You’re BEAUTIFUL!” He held me while I cried against his chest, but I was crying with relief that it was over, and joy for all my blessings.
Thank you for the opportunity to tell my story. Wrapunzel.com has given me the freedom and the self-esteem I needed to move forward with my beautifully wrapped head held high and regal.
LikeLike
I love your wrap. It is dignified and very elegant. On the day my best friend died (last month), tears did not come, and my hair started falling out at an alarming rate. When I realized my emotions had thrown me into alopecia, the first thing I felt was humiliated and less than feminine. I started feeling nauseated when I would see clumps of my hair sliding down my body. I felt nauseated when I had to shake out my pillowcase. I threatened to shave it off and my husband advised me to wait, that once I shaved it off I couldn’t undo the act.
On the night I disappeared into the bathroom with my dogs clippers……afterward I heard a gentle tap on the door and my husband asked “Can I see it?”
I said “No!”, then realized he – of all people – had the right to enter.
He walked up to me, stared for half a second, then this amazing smile lit up his face and he said “You’re BEAUTIFUL!” He held me while I cried against his chest,
but I was crying with relief that it was over, and joy for all my blessings.
Thank you for the opportunity to tell my story. Wrapunzel.com has given me the freedom and the self-esteem I needed to move forward with my beautifully wrapped head held high and regal.
LikeLike
My hair is sort of fine, wavy/curly, and to my waist. I do an oil treatment every couple of weeks on my scalp and ends. The only thing I wash my hair with is Dr. Bronner’s, usually the tea tree version, and I use an apple cider vinegar/water rinse for conditioner. My hair looks and feels great. Before I wrap it, I put it into a loose ponytail. I braid that and wrap it up, securing it with bobby pins. I try not to twist it into a bun very often, except when I’m in a hurry or feeling particularly lazy. 🙂
LikeLike
Thanks so much for the tips,my daughters both have really long curly hair and so this will give me a starting point to try with them with tips to pass on when they start covering full time.❤
LikeLike