Care guides you can actually use.

The exact five-step wash-day sequence we use in the studio, condensed into one repeatable routine.

• Pre-poo with two tablespoons of warm olive or avocado oil for twenty minutes.
• Cleanse the scalp only, using shampoo diluted one-to-one with water.
• On soaking wet hair, apply leave-in conditioner in small sections.
• Seal the ends with a pea-sized amount of shea butter.
• Dry without touching the hair — no combing, no fluffing until fully dry.
• Repeat every 7 to 10 days, and refresh mid-week with water and a light cream.

Print it, tape it inside the bathroom cabinet, and stop forgetting a step halfway through.

• Detangle dry hair first, in four sections, before any water touches it.
• Rinse with lukewarm water — never hot.
• Shampoo the scalp, condition the lengths, never the other way around.
• Deep condition for 20 minutes under a plastic cap.
• Apply leave-in while the hair is still dripping wet.
• Air-dry or use a diffuser on the cool setting only.

How long to keep each style in, how to prepare your hair before install, and how to take it down safely.

• Never install a protective style on dry, unwashed hair.
• Keep the first two centimetres of every braid or twist loose.
• Twists and cornrows: 2 to 4 weeks. Faux locs and long braids: up to 6 weeks maximum.
• Moisturise the scalp weekly with a few drops of jojoba oil along the part lines.
• Take down with conditioner and fingers, never a dry comb.
• Give your hairline at least one week of rest between installs.

A four-week plan for flaking, itching and tight-feeling scalps — before you buy another deep conditioner.

• Week 1: clarify once with a diluted apple cider vinegar rinse.
• Massage the scalp for two minutes every evening with fingertips only.
• Apply a few drops of jojoba or grapeseed oil along the part line three times a week.
• Stop every new product except your cleanser and one leave-in.
• Week 4: reintroduce products one at a time, a week apart.
• See a dermatologist if flaking spreads or comes with pain.

What humectants, proteins, silicones and sulphates actually do — and when to avoid each one.

• Humectants (glycerin, honey) pull water in — great in humidity, drying in cold air.
• Proteins (hydrolysed wheat, keratin) strengthen — use monthly, not weekly, on low-porosity hair.
• Silicones coat the strand for shine — they need a clarifying wash every few weeks.
• Sulphates clean deeply — fine for a monthly reset, too harsh for every wash.
• Butters (shea, cocoa) seal — they do not moisturise on their own.
• If it is in the first five ingredients, the concentration is real. Below that, it is marketing.

Temperature ceilings, heat protectant rules and how to recover hair that has already been fried.

• Never exceed 175°C (350°F) on natural or coloured hair.
• Always use a heat protectant on damp — never dry — hair.
• One pass per section. Do not go over the same strand twice.
• Keep the iron moving; never let it rest on the hair.
• Limit direct heat to once every six weeks.
• For damaged areas: protein treatment, then a moisture deep condition, then rest.