Whether you are natural or relaxed, maintaining healthy hair should always be your first goal. “Good hair” isn’t inherently long, wavy, or straight – it is instead hair that retains its length, its moisture, its elasticity, its sheen, its smoothness, and healthy ends.
In addition to what we believe are quintessential methods on how to winterize your hair regimen, we spoke to popular YouTube hair and beauty gurus of all different hair textures to get their input on some of the tips and tricks of their winter hair care regimens. Whether you have locs, rock your natural curl, or keep it sleek and chic with a relaxed hair look, look no further, your winter hair routine adaptions are below.
Consider Changing How Often You Make it a Wash Day
“I wash my locs once a month and the amount of times I wash doesn't change throughout the seasons. Wash day is a long process for me and I like to minimize the amount of times I have to do it! My hair has been loving rosemary infused water. My dermatologist found that rosemary leads to the stimulation of follicles and thus promote hair growth.” – Jasmine Rose | @ms.jasminerose, Natural Hair & Beauty Vlogger
The frequency of how often you wash your hair should be cut during winter months. Your strands may crave the extra washes in the summer, but excessively wetting your hair might not be as necessary with less humidity, less sweating, and less direct heat from the sun. Fade out wash n’ go styles to hibernate until spring and summertime. Practice trial and error and address your hair care needs accordingly.
Don’t Be Afraid of Heavier Products
"I use an oil mix that consists of different oils with varying weights including, jojoba, olive, avocado, and Jamaican black castor oil, and I use this on my hair throughout the year after every single wash. It helps to seal the moisture into my hair, and it provides essential nutrients to keep my hair strong, shiny, and healthy. After it sits on my hair in the shower, I'll just give my hair a quick rinse to remove that 'oily' feeling, and what's left over is soft, moisturized hair. This is something that I find benefits my hair throughout the year, so I keep it in my routine regardless of the season. I do, however, like to apply more to my scalp in the colder months, as it can get really dry." - Whitney White | @naptural85, Natural Hair, Beauty, & Life Vlogger
Hair loves heavier products in the winter time, so don’t be afraid to gravitate towards pomades, shea butter, mango butter, butters in general, or even cholesterol products. That goes for oils as well! As beauty guru Megan says, gravitate towards heavier oils like Jamaican black or avocado oil, or even a moisturizer that is oil-based. This not only provides moisture to your strands, but, as moisture sealants, also acts as a layer of protection for your hair from the cold.
Step Up Your DC Game
"During the winter months I deep condition weekly. I also use heavier moisturizers; my favorite being Cantu and Shea Moisture creams. I’ve found that as a natural with my hair type, my hair responds best to water based products.” – Sadora Paris | @sadoraparis, Natural Hair & Beauty Vlogger
Deep conditioning is an important step in any hair regimen but as we emphasize moisture again and again, it becomes increasingly significant to do them in the colder months. Moisture is constantly playing a tug and pull game on your strands with the extreme differences in environments between indoor heat and the outdoor cold so it’s important to have layers on layers on layers of moisture. Deep conditioning is the foundation for that. DIY it with a homemade concoction or use a store-bought one – just be sure to use it with heat for a minimum of half an hour (our favorite is the heat cap). For an added moisture bonus, do a hot oil treatment for 20 minutes.
Protect Yo’ Self
“Protective styles during the winter help with dryness and breakage. Braids, wigs, protective braids under wigs, buns, and sew-ins are styles that help with over manipulation and aid in retaining length during the cooler/dryer months.” – Megan | @ulovemegz, Relaxed Hair & Beauty Vlogger
Protective styles do wonders when it comes to protecting fragile ends and can be just the alternative the weather demands because brittle cold weather can be just as damaging to hair as the excessive summer heat. Wear your hair up in buns, sweater hats (lined in satin), underneath scarves or head wraps, in synthetic braiding weaves, or even underneath sew-ins or wigs. If you’re doing less with your hair and protecting your ends, you’re promoting growth, which is quite the win-win.
How do you switch up your routine for the cold months to achieve healthy hair? Leave your tips below, sharing is caring!
In a xoNecoleexclusive, the iconic actress opens up about embracing this season of her life, new projects, and overall being a “bad motherfucker.” Gabrielle reveals that she was 37 years old when she was diagnosed with perimenopause and is still going through it at 51 years old. Mayo Clinic says perimenopause “refers to the time during which your body makes the natural transition to menopause, marking the end of the reproductive years.”
“I haven't crossed over the next phase just yet, but I think part of it is when you hear any form of menopause, you automatically think of your mother or grandmother. It feels like an old-person thing, but for me, I was 37 and like not understanding what that really meant for me. And I don't think we focus so much on the word menopause without understanding that perimenopause is just the time before menopause,” she tells us.
Gabrielle Union
Photo by Brian Thomas
"But you can experience a lot of the same things during that period that people talk about, that they experienced during menopause. So you could get a hot flash, you could get the weight gain, the hair loss, depression, anxiety, like all of it, mental health challenges, all of that can come, you know, at any stage of the menopausal journey and like for me, I've been in perimenopause like 13, 14 years. When you know, most doctors are like, ‘Oh, but it's usually about ten years, and I'm like, ‘Uhh, I’m still going (laughs).’”
Conversations about perimenopause, fibroids, and all the things that are associated with women’s bodies have often been considered taboo and thus not discussed publicly. However, times are changing, and thanks to the Gabrielle’s and the Tia Mowry’s, more women are having an authentic discourse about women’s health. These open discussions lead to the creation of more safe spaces and support for one another.
“I want to be in community with folks. I don't ever want to feel like I'm on an island about anything. So, if I can help create community where we are lacking, I want to be a part of that,” she says. “So, it's like there's no harm in talking about it. You know what I mean? Like, I was a bad motherfucker before perimenopause. I’m a bad motherfucker now, and I'll be a bad motherfucker after menopause. Know what I’m saying? None of that has to change. How I’m a bad motherfucker, I welcome that part of the change. I'm just getting better and stronger and more intelligent, more wise, more patient, more compassionate, more empathetic. All of that is very, very welcomed, and none of it should be scary.”
The Being Mary Jane star hasn’t been shy about her stance on therapy. If you don’t know, here’s a hint: she’s all for it, and she encourages others to try it as well. She likens therapy to dating by suggesting that you keep looking for the right therapist to match your needs. Two other essential keys to her growth are radical transparency and radical acceptance (though she admits she is still working on the latter).
"I was a bad motherfucker before perimenopause. I’m a bad motherfucker now, and I'll be a bad motherfucker after menopause. Know what I’m saying? None of that has to change. How I’m a bad motherfucker, I welcome that part of the change."
Gabrielle Union and Kaavia Union-Wade
Photo by Monica Schipper/Getty Images
“I hope that a.) you recognize that you're not alone. Seek out help and know that it's okay to be honest about what the hell is happening in your life. That's the only way that you know you can get help, and that's also the only other way that people know that you are in need if there's something going on,” she says, “because we have all these big, very wild, high expectations of people, but if they don't know what they're actually dealing with, they're always going to be failing, and you will always be disappointed. So how about just tell the truth, be transparent, and let people know where you are. So they can be of service, they can be compassionate.”
Gabrielle’s transparency is what makes her so relatable, and has so many people root for her. Whether through her TV and film projects, her memoirs, or her social media, the actress has a knack for making you feel like she’s your homegirl. Scrolling through her Instagram, you see the special moments with her family, exciting new business ventures, and jaw-dropping fashion moments. Throughout her life and career, we’ve seen her evolve in a multitude of ways. From producing films to starting a haircare line to marriage and motherhood, her journey is a story of courage and triumph. And right now, in this season, she’s asking, “What’s next?”
“This is a season of discovery and change. In a billion ways,” says the NAACP Image Award winner. “The notion of like, ‘Oh, so and so changed. They got brand new.’ I want you to be brand new. I want me to be brand new. I want us to be always constantly growing, evolving. Having more clarity, moving with different purpose, like, and all of that is for me very, very welcomed."
"I want you to be brand new. I want me to be brand new. I want us to be always constantly growing, evolving. Having more clarity, moving with different purpose, like, and all of that is for me very, very welcomed."
She continues, “So I'm just trying to figure out what's next. You know what I mean? I'm jumping into what's next. I'm excited going into what's next and new. I'm just sort of embracing all of what life has to offer.”
Look out for Gabrielle in the upcoming indie film Riff Raff, which is a crime comedy starring her and Jennifer Coolidge, and she will also produce The Idea of You, which stars Anne Hathaway.
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Feature image by Mike Lawrie/Getty Images
Taylor founded Mastermind MGMT, an agency that represents some of Hollywood’s best “image architects” like Roach, Kellon Deryck, and Kollin Carter, who are responsible for creating unforgettable style and beauty moments for celebrities like Zendaya, Megan Thee Stallion, Taraji P. Henson, and more. Taylor and her company possess an array of functions, but her biggest role is to be her client’s advocate. We hear endless stories about how creatives aren’t paid or underpaid in the entertainment industry, but Taylor ensures that her clients get their piece of the pie. The entrepreneur opened up about her company and her non-profit, Mastermind Matters, in an exclusive interview with xoNecole.
“I always say that I'm an artist advocate first, deal closer second. So my primary focus is to just make sure that the artist is getting everything that they deserve, whether it's compensation or, you know, certain accommodations, but just making sure that they have everything that they need to be able to show up and provide the best service that they're hired for,” she explained.
“So you know, in the beginning, it was hard because I didn't have any experience, and the artists who I was working with at the time–we were learning together, meaning neither of us had assisted anyone. We didn't have mentors in our specific fields. So every deal was like a new learning experience for us from the styling side and also from the business side, and so it took, you know, doing some research, using some very creative tactics, to find out information in the industry and just starting to request accommodations that I knew other artists were granted, who maybe didn't look like my artists.”
Photo by Christopher Marrs
Ten years later, there’s still not many people who are doing what Taylor is doing. However, things have gotten easier thanks to the research and connections she made in the beginning. During Mastermind MGMT’s ten-year anniversary celebration, she announced her non-profit, Mastermind Matters, which is a 501(c)(3) non-profit that focuses on helping young entrepreneurs through a 12-week program. The program is divided into “two routes.” The first route is for aspiring creative artists who want to start a business from their talent and all the things they need to learn about business, such as taxes, life insurance, etc. The second route is for practicing creative artists who are already in the industry but need resources such as how to plan for retirement or how to sustain themselves if they can’t work for a short amount of time, i.e., the pandemic.
“I just feel that I'm able to have a business and be successful because of their art as well. And so there are things that I know, I tried to teach it to them but understanding that I can only do so much because I'm not a subject matter expert in those fields,” she said. “So I at least want to be able to provide the resources, and then if they make their grown decision not to do it, then that's on them. But you know, I could be guilt-free and taking advantage of the resources that I'm also providing to them.”
Taylor continues to be an innovator in her industry by always pushing the boundaries of creativity and thinking one step ahead of everyone else. The Chicago-bred businesswoman is moving into the tech space thanks to a new invention created with her clients in mind, and she is looking forward to bigger collaborations in the future. Follow Mastermind MGMT on Instagram @mastermind_mgmt for more information.
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Feature image by Christopher Marrs
