Northwest Scents Blog

There are so many choices for hair care and hair routines available on the web, that sometimes it can get confusing as to what you should actually be doing with your hair. If you jump around frequently from one product to another, or from one hair routine to another, you may not actually know what is working for your hair and what isn't. The best way to find out what is actually benefiting your hair is to keep notes on what you are doing. Write down the products you use and how often you use them, the methods you use, and when you use them, and any other information that relates to your hair. This is where a book like My Hair Journal can help you. Inside this book you will find pages to help you keep track of the products, tools, and methods that you use on your hair today and in the future. There is also space to write down your hair's progress over time. Store pictures and personal thoughts as you work towards achieving your hair goals. For more information visit http://www...

Question: Do you have any tips for softening and styling my 6 yo's hair? She does not sit still for long. Thanks. Answer: If your daughter's hair needs softening, I recommend that you try Northwest Scents shampoo and conditioner on her hair in the citrus ylang-ylang scent. Sometimes commercially available baby shampoos can actually dry out the hair. You can also put a little pomade in her hair after washing it, while it is still damp, to add softeness to her hair. Just put a little pomade in the palm of your hands, rub your hands together to warm up the pomade, and then gently grab her hair and rub the pomade in from scalp to roots. As far as styling goes, for a 6 year old, braids and/or twists are probably the easiest natural styling option. When I say braids, I don't mean hundreds of tiny braids all over her head. Just one or two that are done as cornrows. One easy braided style is to just part the hair in two sections, by taking a comb, and gently parting it down...

Question: Hi. I'm 17 and i do my own hair. I would really love to see it actually lay down when its pressed. When ever I get it pressed or I press it people have a hard time getting it to lay down. My hair is really thick and hard to manage. What would you guys recommend I do about it? Answer: Hi. You need to use shampoos and conditioners that soften your hair, and hair oils and/or pomades that seal in moisture without causing heavy buildup and stickiness. If you are using products that contain mineral oil or petrolatum, or shampoos that contain sulfates, these products may be drying out your hair and causing it to be stiff when you press it. Thick heavy mineral oil and petrolatum based hair grease will cause your hair to be stiff and will also dry out your hair. Stay away from that and use a natural hair oil or natural pomade when you press your hair. Northwest Scents products are free from mineral oil, petrolatum, sulfates, and parabens, and are formulated to soften and ...

Question: I really need help growing my hair! My hair is really short in the back. What can I do to make it all even? Answer: Many people have hair that varies in texture on their head. Some people have soft hair in the front, coarse in the back. Some people have thicker hair on one side that the other. It sounds like your hair is probably softer, or at least more sensitive to your hair care methods, than the rest of your hair. I would pay close attention to how to you take care of your hair, especially in the back, and try to eliminate anything you think that could be causing damage to the hair at the back of your head. Avoid tight braids, extensions, harsh chemicals, excessive heat. Use moisturizing hair care products , and be really gentle with all of your hair, especially the hair at the nape of your neck, and it should grow back.

Question: I just wanted to know if it is natural for hair to come out a lot when you comb it? Answer: It is normal to lose 50 to 100 hairs a day. If you don't comb your hair every day, then when you do comb it, you will see more hair than that. You should look at the hairs that are coming out. If they have a root attached to one end of the hair, then the hairs are coming out normally. If there is no root at the end of the hair, then it is breaking. A few hairs will break, because of your hair texture (black hair varies from thick to thin along the hair shaft). However, if most of the hairs you see are broken, then there is a problem, either with the way you are combing your hair, or the products and methods you are using on your hair, and you will want to change that.

Question: I have a 6yr old daughter with extremely kinky hair and is very dry and brittle. I believe I may be harming her hair by blow drying, pressing and the heavy oils I put into her hair to try and prevent it from reverting so quickly. Please tell me which products I should use on her hair. because after reading your tips I know I am doing a lot wrong to her hair. Answer: I would like to encourage you to try natural, unpressed styles with your daughter, and possibly go back to pressing when she gets older. I recommend as pressing a chemical-free technique for black hair care, , but for young girls, who can be wiggly, who like to swim and play and do things which would make pressed hair difficult to maintain, I recommend natural, unpressed styles. Dry, kinky hair can be softened easily with the right shampoos and conditioners . Please visit our site at http://www.nwscents.com and take a look at some of the articles. One way to dealing with black hair naturally is ...

Question: How often do you recommend that someone can safely press their hair? Weekly? Every 2 weeks? or How often? Answer: I recommend that you only press your hair after washing it. If you wash your hair weekly, then I would press weekly after washing. If you wash twice a month, then I would press bimonthly, after doing your hair. Pressing in moderation is fine, but when it is done too frequently, or at too high of a temperature, it will take a toll on the hair. If you have time, we have some more tips for hair pressing at http://www.pressing-hair.info . If you have any other questions, please let me know.

Question: I need u to give me tips on how i can grow my hair VERY LONG and please tell me what to do and what to use. Answer: Hi. You didn't tell me exactly how you are wearing your hair now, so I will give some general tips which you can use for growing longer hair. For most people, hair growth comes when they stop doing the things to their hair that are causing breakage. For us as black people, it is not that our hair doesn't grow, the problems we face with our hair are usually due to doing too much to our hair. The things that we do usually cause hair damage, which causes hair breakage. For example: If you are using chemical treatments of any type (relaxers, texturizers, dyes, etc.) I would recommend that you stop using them. Chemical treatments work by altering the natural structure of your hair. This causes the hair to weaken over time. For some people it happens right away. Others don't see the damage until years later, and by then it is often irreversible. So...

Question: Is it safe to press colored treated hair? - I was thinking about pressing my hair, but not straight. I just want to loosen up some of my hair, because it feels so thick at the roots. I know too much heat is not good for any type of hair. I was just going to press my hair only after I wash it, like my mom use to do when I was a child. Thanks!! Answer: I wouldn't recommend pressing hair that has been treated with a permanent color. If what you are looking for is loosening the roots, I would recommend using a moisturizing shampoo and conditioner, and detangling your hair in the shower when it is wet and saturated with conditioner, and loosely braiding your hair while it dries to keep the roots looser. I've got tips for how to do this at http://nwscents.com/detangling-natural-hair

Question: Can towels cause hair breakage? Answer: It depends on how you use them. The best way to use a towel after washing your hair is to blot your hair to remove excess moisture. The towel may cause breakage if you rub your hair dry with it. Blotting is best. Microfiber towels are an option. Towels made from microfiber are supposed to absorb more moisture than regular towels, which in turn helps your hair to dry faster.

Question: My hair is natural and I want to press it. I have used everything to press it and nothing holds the press. What should I use? Answer: There are a couple of things that might affect how well your hair holds a press. These are: 1. The quality of the tool that you are using. I recommend using an electric pressing comb or a true-ceramic flat iron with a temperature regulator. These allow you to control the temperature while you are pressing. 2. The products you use on your hair before you press your hair. Believe it or not, the shampoo and conditioner you use on your hair before you press your hair will affect the ability of your hair to hold a press. If you are using a shampoo that is drying to the hair, and either not using conditioner, or using one that doesn't properly moisturize and condition your hair, it is much harder to get a decent press, and your hair will revert. I recommend that you try our products ( http://www.nwscents.com ) to see if they help you in this a...

Question: do you have any tips for tying up you hair at night? I wrap mine and it seems like one side is not as full as the other. Answer: You might want to try switching the direction in which you wrap your hair. If you wrap it from left to right, maybe try the opposite direction, from right to left.

Q. How do i clip the ends of natural hair? A. If your hair is long enough, separate it into a few sections (6 to 10), braid each section (not a cornrow, just a braid from scalp to the ends of the hair), and use high quality hair scissors to clip the ends of each braid. If you hair is not long enough for braids, separate your hair into sections. Use a plastic comb on a section. With one hand, hold the comb, and insert the comb into the section of hair. Gently pull up the comb until only the ends of the hair are sticking out of the teeth of the comb. With the other comb se high quality hair scissors to clip the ends of the hair. Repeat for each section. You may want to have someone help you with this second method.

Q. I live on the east coast of florida with medium to high humidity. Is there any thing special that I can do to keep my hair from reverting back to natural after pressing it? Pressing last less than 48 hours. A. Hi. It is tougher to keep hair straight in high humidity. What I recommend is that you try using a good quality flat iron instead of a pressing comb (if you aren't using one already) because a flat iron will help reduce moisture absorption by helping the cuticles on the shafts of your hair lay down flat. I also recommend that you use moisturizing hair products (like the ones we sell at http://www.nwscents.com ) . If the products that you are using on your hair are drying, they will dry out your hair, causing your hair to want to absorb moisture, which will make it more difficult for you to achieve the results that you want.

Northwest Scents™ hair conditioner is a multi-use product that can help you in many ways with your hair. Here are some tips for how to use it. 1. Use as a regular conditioner. Use your bottle of Northwest Scents conditioner the way you regularly use conditioner. Apply a small amount to your hair after you have washed and rinsed it. Let it sit in your hair for several minutes, and then rinse. 2. Use as a deep conditioner. If your hair is extra dry you can use Northwest Scents hair conditoner as a deep conditioner. To do this, wash and rinse your hair. Dry partially (blot out some of the extra water), but don't let your hair dry completely. Apply some conditioner to your hair and work it into your hair from the scalp to the ends of your hair. Put a plastic bonnet (like a shower cap) on your hair and leave it on for 30 minutes. The heat from your head to warm your hair. This will enable the oils and conditioning ingredients in the conditioner to penetrate your hair giving i...