{Kid Tips} Stress-free detangling on natural hair

My youngest afrobabe.

Hair day in my house is once a week and it’s intense.  I allot about a couple hours for each girl to dedicate to doing hair; we also use that time for bonding and catching up.  For parents with multiple kids, sometimes it’s hard to divvy up your time for one-on-one attention with your kiddos.  You’d be surprised how excited kids are to get just a few hours of your attention.  So it’s important to me that I don’t waste that hour with a screaming child, dreading to get her mane tamed.  I will admit, I have one child who’s super tender-headed and overly dramatic (there’s a Disney contract out there somewhere with her name on it, I just know it), so our hair time can get quite stressful.  But over the years I’ve relied on a few tricks to help keep doing hair as stress free as possible.

1. Be prepared–Nothing is more frustrating than having to get up and down for supplies.  Have your products, tools and conversation started ready.  It makes for an focused and effcient experience for your child.  Have convo starters ready, as your kiddo may become antsy while sitting.
2. Separate the hair–Save yourself the frustration and time by separating the hair into smaller more manageable sections.  This will also help keep more tangles and knots from forming.
3. Moisturize–I never comb my girl’s hair without adding some type of moisture, creme or oil to it.  Put some water in a spray bottle (can be purchased from your local beauty supply store) and try this combing mixture: coconut milk + melted shea butter + aloe vera gel + jojoba oil (this DIY detangling cream was shared on twitter and has worked wonders on detangling my girl’s very coily/curly type 4 hair)
4. Use the proper tools–Afro-textured hair is extremely resilient but if mistreated will result in breakage and damage.  It’s important to use the right techniques so that you don’t hurt your child or damage her hair.  Don’t yank and pull the hair.  Not only will you create a negative and traumatic experience for your child, you could also damage her hair.  Finger detangle is great, but for me it’s difficult to detangle my daughter’s hair with my fingers.  My go to is a wide tooth comb, I’m a huge fan of  Ouidad Double Detangle.  It gets through the knots and tangles easily without repetitive strokes which reduces our combing time.  Start combing at the ends of the hair and gently work your way to the root.  I purchased my comb at my local Sephora store.
5. Use the right products–Check the ingredients on products you use.  You should be using gentle, all-natural products as often as possible.  But most importantly stay away from products that use harsh chemicals or anything promising to “soften” hair like texture softeners like Just for Me Texture Softeners, as these products are similar to perms which will chemically process your child’s hair.

Do you have any tips or tricks that work well when it comes to doing your little afrobabe’s hair.  Are there any must-have products out there.  Leave a comment below of your own tips in creating a stress free experience for kids while detangling their hair.