Got Fairy Knots?

Honestly, who doesn't? And if you don't....Imma need photographic evidence. :P

Seriously speaking though, one thing that comes with being natural are those dastardly fairy knots. How do they happen? Well, our hair coils and curls and sometimes they coil and curl around each other to the point of creating knots around individual strands or creating a knot on a single strand. If you wear your hair loose(as a WnG), or don't cowash daily or gently finger detangle, you WILL see them. It just comes with the territory. But there ARE ways to minimize them.

• Minimize wearing your hair loose. If you want to wear your hair out the majority of the time, expect to see them. It's not an indicator of hair health per se, so don't get too worried. BUT if you see them, cut them off. Don't hold onto it because of length.

• Utilize protective styling. The less chance your hair has to coil/curl around each other, the less likely you'll experience those knots. Less manipulation is the key. It's not 100% effective, so don't expect a miracle because I've learned that the hair will do what the hair will do. But it will cut down on instances of seeing them.

• Cowash more frequently. One of the things I've noticed is when I'm able to cowash or just run water over my hair(under the stream of a shower-head...:)), it loosens any tangles I have. They seemingly melt away. The longer you go without cowashing, the higher the chances of you experiencing knots and tangles. I know this may sound like the opposite of "less manipulation", but cowashing, at least on MY end, is a gentle process. You have to treat your hair like lace so while it is manipulation in some capacity, it is still considered low(to me) when it doesn't involve utensils and styling aids that cause friction, which can potentially result in damage.
  

• Cut those knots out when you see them. The longer you keep them in, the more likely they're to cause damage to other strands by creating MORE knots, or causing rips/tears on healthier strands by getting stuck on/around them. And let me tell you....those rips are the ugliest you could ever see. To see frayed rips in the MIDDLE of a strand is something else. And if the knot isn't completely a lost cause, you can use a fine needle to unravel it. It's pretty easy for looser knots. For tighter ones, you'd do better just snipping them off.
  

All of this to say if you have fairy knots, it's not the end of the world or the end of you having healthy hair. Just stay vigilant and utilize measures that minimize instances of them. :)

Natural Urbanista