I began co-washing because the idea of only putting moisture in our hair made complete sense to me. I would go months without cleansing their curls. Here are 4 ways co-washing ended up killing the girls’ curls.
1. Dull
My girls’ curls do not shine as much as they used to. There is probably many reasons for this. No matter the cause, I had to figure out a way to refresh the girl’s hair and restore it’s natural luster.
2. Build Up
Instead of their curls springing up, they started to look like a stretched “s.” There is nothing wrong with s-curls, however this is not their curls' natural shape. The first thing that came to my mind was the strands were being weighed down by our heavy conditioner. I purchased a shampoo and started cleansing their hair once a week or whenever I felt their hair needed it. I also did an apple cider vinegar rinse to strip some of the build up and bring back the bounce.
3. Not as Soft
They both have very soft hair. So luscious that I can’t keep my hands out of their heads. When I was co-washing, it definitely didn’t feel relaxing running my fingers through their hair. Whether it was stickiness or stiffness, I kept trying to figure out what I was doing wrong.
4. Wrong Technique
I can’t blame my failure entirely on co-washing, because I honestly did not do it correctly. Co-washing does not mean you just use conditioner to revitalize the hair, I still needed something to clean the girls’ scalps. I tried one product that was supposed to cleanse the scalp while conditioning the strands and I was not impressed, in fact I was allergic to it. So I chose to use just conditioners thinking they would fulfill the same purpose.
I don’t have any regrets about co-washing for so long because this experience helped me learn more about their delicate strands (and mine too).
Want to learn more about our hair journey. Check it out here.
Until next time...
Peace & Love,
Dominique
