All Things Afro

My shopping list for soft, healthy hair that is easy to manage

Meka-Owethu

New naturals can easily get overwhelmed with all the do’s and don’ts of the natural hair world. I discovered this when a colleague, who just went natural, asked for my help to shop for hair products. Her main concern was having an easy to manage Afro, as her freshly washed hair felt hard and dry. Skipping the entire lecture on hair cleansing, I tackled her concern by creating a shopping list that can be fulfilled even in the smallest of towns, or at least I tried to.

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First, quality conditioners like Tresemme Naturals are great for all types of ethnic hair:

  • They are gentle and unlikely to cause an allergic reaction,
  • Can be used daily to co-wash, i.e. washing with conditioner only,
  • Will not cause build-up and block your hair from absorbing moisture,
  • Can be enriched with Lavender, Rosemary and Bergamot Essential Oils,
  • Easily available from Clicks, Dischem and from some big chain grocery stores, and
  • Are affordable, one of my local Pick ‘n Pay stores currently sells the 750 ml bottle for R 55,99.

Second, Coconut and Olive Oils are natural penetrative moisturisers:

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  • That can be used on hair and skin, they also happen to be one of the healthiest cooking oils,
  • Both are available from any store that sells health foods,
  • Do not cost an arm and a leg, a litre of an organic virgin Coconut Oil can retail for just under R 150, and
  • Cost as little as R 80 for a 750 ml bottle of an extra virgin Olive Oil.

Third, Shea Butter and Castor Oils are sealants:

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  • That combat dryness of hair as well as skin,
  • Can be bought from health stores, but in my experience, online stores are cheaper,
  • From Faithful to Nature, a 100 ml of organic Soil Organic Kenyan Shea Butter, which I love to bits, retails for R80, and
  • The very popular Jamaican Black Castor Oil (JBCO), which I sell for R 150, is also a brilliant hair stimulant, but in a pinch a regular Castor Oil from your local pharmacy will do.

There you have it, my shopping list for soft, healthy hair that is easy to manage.

With love and good wishes for the New Year,
Meka-O

10 thoughts on “My shopping list for soft, healthy hair that is easy to manage”

  4. Hi Zee. I am recently natural too – well if a year is considered recently :). This is such a short and sweet list and I have all these products at home but my hair is a great furstration. It is soooooooo thin and dry. How do you use this products and what is your wash day like? When i think of having to wash my hair I want to run away because the hair will dry to be sooooo hard. Please share some of your tips.

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    1. Hello Boity,I know you adressed your comment to Zee, but I am curious, how long is you Afro? And yes, I consider a year recently, but then I’ve been natural for over 12 years 🙂

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  5. So sorry– poor attention span. I was distracted by the Zanele in your last response before my comment. The comments / questions are actually meant for you Meka. 12 years??? WOW! That is quite a fete. If it were possible I would post 2 pics one with my hair stretched a bit and one in its shrunken state – another stressor. Perhaps I can email these to you. But about 10cm when stretched and about 2/3 after washing it.

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    1. Lol, 12 years is easy when you preffer a TWA, growing the afro is another matter though.

      Drop me an email or inbox my Facebook blog page so I can see what you’re rocking.

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  6. Pingback: How To Soften A Freshly Washed Afro – Wooden Mirror

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