| Black hair needs adequate moisture to maintain its | | | | the hair with the towel but rather gently press the |
| health. The ability for hair to absorb moisture | | | | towel against the hair. |
| depends on how porous the hair is. Generally | | | | Dry the hair in sections using clips to section off the |
| speaking, fine hair is usually more porous than coarse | | | | hair. Start at the bottom and work your way up to |
| hair. | | | | the top of the head. |
| To see how porous or damaged your hair is, try this | | | | Keep the blow-dryer moving across the hair and do |
| simple test. Take a small section of hair and tease it | | | | not keep it directly pointed on one section of the hair |
| by back-combing it. If the hair bunches up very | | | | for too long as this will help to keep the heat |
| quickly it is either porous or damaged. | | | | damage to a minimum. |
| Here are some tips for blow-drying African-American | | | | Dry the hair in a downward motion as this will help |
| hair. Keep in mind the particular needs of your specific | | | | the cuticle to lay flat and will help provide shine to |
| hair when judging how much moisturizing treatment | | | | the hair. |
| your hair needs. | | | | After drying a section of hair, use a blast of cold hair |
| Start off with a good moisturizing hair lotion, keep | | | | to close cuticle as this will help to seal in moisture. |
| the heat on low, and keep the blow-dryer about 2 to | | | | Use a diffuser on the blow-dryer if you would prefer |
| 3 inches from the hair. | | | | to keep your hair in its naturally curly state. |
| First use a large-toothed comb to detangle the hair. | | | | The very curly African-American hair has fewer |
| Start combing the ends first and work your way up | | | | cuticle layers than wavy or straight hair and this |
| to the scalp. This method will reduce damage and | | | | makes it more fragile and vulnerable to heat and |
| breakage. | | | | chemical damage. Each time heat is applied to your |
| Use a lightweight leave-in conditioner or anti-frizz | | | | fragile hair, some of the moisture is lost which |
| serum to help protect against the heat. This will also | | | | affects the softness and manageability of the hair. It |
| help close the cuticle. | | | | is important to reduce damage and moisture loss by |
| Gently towel-dry the hair real well to remove as | | | | considering the tips as mentioned above. |
| much excess water as possible. Do not vigorously rub | | | | |
