PART 2: JUST THE TIPS, With Curly Hair Expert Kia Fay

By Chelsea Woody

THE TIPS:

We are always in the ocean, what advice do you have for us about day-to-day moisture retention?

One easy thing you can do is get your hair wet prior to getting in the ocean. If you fill your hair with clean water, it will absorb that water so there won’t be as much space for salt water. Using a good daily conditioner and sticking to a simple routine, we shouldn’t think of hair care as triage.  I don’t want anyone walking around their house for 2 hours with a mask on when they could just figure out what conditioner works well for them and use that for a brief period.  We should not have to add time.

If you're using oils they should really be very water soluble, ones that can get into the hair and heal the hair but also be easily washed from the hair. We don’t want to use things that are very heavy that lay on the hair and increase dryness by preventing the hair from getting and staying hydrated.

If you are going into the ocean daily using a clarifying shampoo once a week is important to remove excess mineral buildup or debris from the hair, both of which you will be exposed to due to salt and little fun creatures and things in the ocean. Curlies that do not regularly go into the ocean may only need to use a clarifying shampoo every three weeks or so depending on their water quality.

Kia Image by Daniel Garcia

Since we are surfers and water women we care about the health of ocean and what comes off our hair, can you recommend any natural products?

That’s a great question.  I really believe it is possible to use botanically based products to get beautiful results.  Anytime that is getting washed off whether it is into the watershed or the ocean we want this to have the lowest biological impact as possible. I tend to default to products that are aloe driven. They slough easily off of the hair but they also bio-degrade in a lot more efficient ways. I also gravitate towards products that are vegan and cruelty free.  You can be very conscientious about the chemicals that you are exposed to and still have low maintenance beautiful hair. Those two can go hand in hand.

How do we reduce the amount of water we are using when we style our hair?

I think that having a really comfortable to use spray bottle is actually one of the best investments that you can possibly make as someone who has textured hair. I like the kind that create a mist, because they tend to be less messy and also use less water to work more efficiently. You don’t have to do your hair in the shower. You can use humectants that prevent water from evaporating from your hair. If we find products that truly work, you don’t have to use mass quantities.

Any advice to make products last longer when we travel for surf trips?

All you really need is a cleanser and conditioner if you’re rocking a truly protective style.

Some folks gravitate towards protective or alternative styles for travel, what are your thoughts?

Because they have been taught that this type of styling will effectively allow them to go on autopilot while traveling, it seems like a very interesting proposition.  In actuality I’ve  found in my work you can’t completely neglect your hair care routine. When you do this you’ll suffer negative effects down the road when that style comes out.  

How do you feel about combs?

Hands are the most effective tool you have because they have sensors on them. So if something is not feeling right, or needs more attention you can feel that long before you would get that indication with a comb. Most commercial brushes and combs are not made for our hair. If I do use a tool I recommend Felicia leatherwoods detangling brush. Also the Tangle Teaser does a really nice job and allows for deeper saturation of product. That way you are not using as much product so you’re saving money and conserving resources. Shampoo brushes can also make sure our scalps are extra clean. Wide tooth combs doesn’t really detangle at all, they only catch on the hair and tear the hair. 

How can we find stylists that understand our hair and active lifestyles?  Are there resources out there?

Things like Instagram can be helpful when you search by hashtag in your area.  Yelp doesn’t usually differentiate between a braider/weaver/straight style specialist and those who work with natural textured hair. There are websites like Naturally Curly, Black Curl Magic and Deva Curl that have stylist finders.  Whatever method you use to find people, make sure you cross reference to ensure all their ducks are in a row.

Any products good for tying hair up?

Snapee is a fabric based set of hair ties that can be snapped together to increase size. You can extend the sizing so you don’t put as much tension on the hair. So that could be a really good option if you’re in a position where you need to put you hair up. I also like the Puff Cuff and large Invisibobble hair ties. Silk is less damaging but be very careful using those old school nylon drug store hair ties, because the hair tends to wind around them and end up breaking. I also encourage everyone to at least have a couple of head wraps in their arsenal. The Wrap Life is my favorite brand, they offer tons of styles and also great online tutorials about how to tie your wrap in a low impact and beautiful way.