8 Hair Care Essentials Every Black Girl Should Have

It's a no-brainer. Every girl wants perfect hair.




We want the "Is that your real hair?" questions, while people stare in disbelief and envy. We want the type of hair that puts Instagram and YouTube influencers to shame.
Unfortunately, we can't wish perfect hair into existence (I know, bummer right?), but we can work towards having healthy, moisturized and hopefully, long hair. We see hair tutorials everyday, with so many different products, tools etc. It could be overwhelming sometimes because we don't know where to start. You probably wonder, "I know conditioner, brushes, leave-ins, waxes, rollers, serums, creams, mousses and butters are nice and all, but what do I REALLY NEED?"
Well, your worries are over! You've come to the right place. I have painstakingly researched and gathered everything you need to know and so here are the 8 most essential things every black girl needs for her hair. Note that this applies to both relaxed and natural hair.


1.) Wide Toothed Comb

For detangling and styling. The idea that you need smaller toothed combs for 'effective' detangling is a myth and you will just end up with an unnecessary headache and hair breakage. Don't forget to finger detangle first

2.) Shampoo (Sulfate-free)

Well, duh. For washing and getting rid of dirt, dandruff and oil buildup. The importance of a quality shampoo cannot be overemphasized. Just a word of caution; too much of shampoo will strip the hair of its natural oils, leaving it dry, brittle and prone to breakage. Try as much as possible to buy sulfate free shampoos, as these are less drying. Check for sodium laureth sulfate in the ingredients. It is less drying and a much better cleanser, especially for black girls.

3.) Shea Butter

This African beauty miracle should be owned by every black girl. Apart from the amazing skincare benefits, shea butter can turn your entire hair routine around. It is rich in Vitamin E, reducing hair breakage, strengthening the hair shaft, it repairs follicles, promoting hair growth, can be used for anti-dandruff treatment, to repair damaged hair, as a heat protector and to moisturize. Don't forget to use it on your skin too!

4.) Conditioner.

Perhaps the most important to a lot of hair enthusiasts. The perfect conditioner will soften, treat, repair, moisturize and tame your hair. Don't forget to deep condition every month, and find a good and reliable brand to meet your demand.

5.) Hair Moisturizer/Cream

Moisture is everything. You will never achieve your hair goals if you cannot maintain moisturized hair especially for those who always use the LOC (liquid oil cream) method as a go to. The perfect hair cream will provide slip, making the hair easy to detangle and manage. Luckily, there are a ton of quality brands and creams to choose from. Check the ingredients and look out for products with moisture retaining alcohols like cetyl, stearyl, cetearyl, myristyl, behenyl and lauryl. Avoid products with alcohol denat, ethanol, SD ethanol 40, propanol, isopropyl and propyl, because they are drying in nature and will dehydrate your hair

6.) Oils

Coconut oil, Olive oil, avocado oil, jojoba oil, carrot oil, peppermint oil, almond oil, neem oil, castor oil etc. Nature has blessed us with a variety of oils to choose from, and its up to us to figure out which one works best for our hair type. 

Some people might be upset because they believe some of these oils have gathered a huge reputation and shouldn't be grouped with the others (we all know its coconut oil I'm talking about), but some hair types don't sit well with some of the oils I mentioned above and our hair can be very picky at times. There are so many uses and advantages of these oils, each one unique in properties and purpose. It varies from enabling easier hair penetration, repair damaged hair, hair softener, scalp treatment, adding shine to hair, and so many other benefits, hair oils should be a part of every girl's hair care routine

7.) Scrunchies/ Elastic hair bands

For holding and styling your hair. Avoid rubber bands, they may be more common and easier to find, but I suggest you stick to using them for other purposes, because they can become your worst nightmare. They pull out hair and cause breakage

8.) Hair bonnet, wrap, scarf

Especially for night time, and since some of us sleep like we're reenacting war scenes in our dreams, these are practically life savers as they stop your hair from getting ruined and maintain your hairdo while you enjoy your(not so much) beauty sleep.  Silk or satin are the preferred material. 

I hope this helped! Have a Lovely Week ahead! Kisses!