IS SEALING REALLY THAT IMPORTANT?

Hey y’all!
I hope you’ve all had a fabulous and productive week! It’s been a pretty tiring one for me but that’s life! So one of the most common questions I get in emails is “what is sealing?” or “do I have to seal?” (or something along those lines lol!) So I’ve decided to do a full post about it and answer any questions you may have!! So here we go ladies…

What is sealing?
Sealing is when you apply an oil or butter (or even aloe vera juice but more on that later!) to your hair after moisturising your hair with water or a water-based moisturiser. The intention is to lock the moisture into your hair so it doesn’t get dry. When I was in school, I did that experiment in chemistry where we put water in two jars and we added a layer of oil to one jar. By the next class, half of the water in the jar without oil had evaporated whilst the jar with the layer of oil was still nearly full. This is the logic behind sealing your hair!

My hair after being freshly washed, moisturised and sealed (the white stuff is just the leave in I used – my hair was still wet)

What can I use to seal?
So there are multiple products you can use to seal your hair. Any sort of oil will do the job to be honest. These include lighter oils (such as coconut oil, jojoba oil, grapeseed oil etc) or heavier oils (such as avocado oil, olive oil, castor oil etc) – I tend to use oils when it’s warm outside. In the same vein, you can use butters, such as shea butter, mango butter, avocado butter etc! Butters are obviously heavier than oils so they’re better suited to people with thick hair or when it’s cold outside. I ALWAYS seal with a butter during the winter – for me, when it’s cold, oils just don’t cut it! But there is an alternative for my fine hair sisters! ALOE VERA JUICE! Aloe vera has COUNTLESS benefits for natural hair (if you want a post on aloe vera, comment below). I learnt about using AVJ as a sealant from watching Hey Fran Hey‘s video on it (hey girl!!).

Some of my favourite things to seal with – coconut oil, sweet almond oil, jojoba oil, shea butter, mango butter

So do I really need to seal?
Well after you’ve spent a whole day pre-pooing, shampooing, cowashing, deep conditioning and moisturising your hair, the last thing you want is to end up with dry hair because you didn’t lock all that lovely moisture in! So I always recommend sealing your hair ESPECIALLY if you have thick hair. I noticed a HUGE difference in the health of my hair when I started sealing my hair. Apart from the fact that the sealants lock the moisture in, many of the oils/butters used as sealants are highly beneficial for your hair. Sealing can also help reduce frizz, reduce tangling, increase length retention and soften the hair. That being said, I follow a few naturals on Instagram who don’t seem to seal their hair (they are in the minority though!). As we all know, everyone’s hair is different and responds to different things but for the vast majority of people, sealing is and should be a necessity. Remember that when it comes to hair, health is the most important thing, regardless of if your hair is natural, relaxed or transitioning. Sealing will improve your hair’s health!

So overall, I will say that YES SEALING REALLY IS IMPORTANT! Of course, different things work for different people but I am yet to actually meet someone who thinks sealing is not beneficial. Seal your hair ladies and watch your hair grow and grow!

I hope that was helpful!!! If you have any other questions, email me or comment below. Follow on Instagram and Twitter. Share on social media.

Also, I have just created the Nature’s Locks Facebook page so PLEASE go and like it!!

Tara xXx