Winterize Your Hair Regimen With These 4 Tips From Our Fav YouTube Hair Gurus
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!
ItGirl 100 Honors Black Women Who Create Culture & Put On For Their Cities
As they say, create the change you want to see in this world, besties. That’s why xoNecole linked up with Hyundai for the inaugural ItGirl 100 List, a celebration of 100 Genzennial women who aren’t afraid to pull up their own seats to the table. Across regions and industries, these women embody the essence of discovering self-value through purpose, honey! They're fierce, they’re ultra-creative, and we know they make their cities proud.
VIEW THE FULL ITGIRL 100 LIST HERE.
Don’t forget to also check out the ItGirl Directory, featuring 50 Black-woman-owned marketing and branding agencies, photographers and videographers, publicists, and more.
THE ITGIRL MEMO
I. An ItGirl puts on for her city and masters her self-worth through purpose.
II. An ItGirl celebrates all the things that make her unique.
III. An ItGirl empowers others to become the best versions of themselves.
IV. An ItGirl leads by example, inspiring others through her actions and integrity.
V. An ItGirl paves the way for authenticity and diversity in all aspects of life.
VI. An ItGirl uses the power of her voice to advocate for positive change in the world.
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Have You Heard Of The 4B Movement? Here's Why It Matters.
Depending on what side of TikTok you’re on, you’ve been seeing an uptick in content about the 4B Movement. In response to South Korea having the world’s lowest birth rate, TikTok user @denimchromosome gave a brief synopsis of the movement on February 16. “Korean women are so done with Korean men that they’re literally just deciding to die out," she said in her post.
While the video is only 30 seconds, this user broke the movement down to its essence and sparked a broader conversation for people to fully dive into knowledge about the movement and why some Korean women have decided to fully commit to this push for gender equality and social justice.
What Is the 4B Movement?
The 4B Movement gained notoriety and prevalence in 2019 when a collective of Korean feminists decided they would no longer marry men (비혼 bihon), have children (비출산 bichulsan), date men (비연애 biyeonae), or have sex with men (비섹스 bisekseu). The name of the movement came from all four agreements, starting with the letter B in Korean. The women who have chosen to participate in this movement are doing so as a result of the blatant misogyny that exists in their society.
They are challenging the cultural norms of their country by removing themselves from the dating scene, ignoring the beauty standards and consumerism propagated toward women, and calling out the pay disparity in the Korean job market.
Go Min Hee, a political professor at Ewha Women's University in Seoul, told NPR, "Gender gap in education has disappeared with the declining number of children and growing attention to education.” As of 2003, women’s college enrollment rates in the region have surpassed men’s.
“But the income gap in the post-education labor market hasn't closed," she continued. South Korea has the largest gender pay gap in the developed world, as of 2022, women still made 31% less than their male counterparts.
In the same report, Jeong Han-Wool, head of the Research Institute of Korean People, shared “For a long time, patriarchal norms governed South Korean society. But those social norms dissolved with democratization, and I don't think we have established new norms that can fill the vacuum.”
Han-Wool said the 4B movement was ignited by the Me Too movement here in the U.S., which he said sparked a new wave of young feminists in South Korea.
While others don’t connect it directly to the movement, they doacknowledge that 4B emerged after multiple incidents of high-profile murders of Korean women, a rampant culture of revenge porn, and spy cam sex crimes were at an all-time high.
Additionally, there is blatant discrimination against women in the workplace; married women are often subjected to gender-based violence, and women are expected to take on the majority of household and child-rearing responsibilities.
Tackling Gender-Based Bias
Digital creator Ryan Carriger said, “Through amplifying the voices and the experiences of the movement, it can illuminate the far-reaching nature of gender-based bias and challenge the social structures that reinforce inequality.”
However, some, such as Anna Lee, have said that the Western media is sensationalizing this movement in South Korea. Despite the fact that reports from the country’s Ministry of Education support the quickly diminishing juvenile population, which many argue is a direct result of feminism. As of February 2024, 157 elementary schools throughout the country will have zero first graders. The lowest reported since the ministry began keeping records in 1970.
Likewise, because of the uptick in feminist voices, young men have shared their feelings of “reverse discrimination” and want the government to get rid of the Gender Equality Ministry in large part because it’s making the job market even more competitive.
Yet, this government entity focuses on more than career equity. One of its main purposes is to protect Korean women who are victims of gender-based crimes such as sexual assault and rape. Opponents of the government’s desire to dismantle this ministry believe it is a dangerous idea and will only lead to more harm toward women in the future.
As the online dialogue continues to build around the 4B Movement, many women from across the world are standing in solidarity with the women of South Korea. Some American women online are sharing a similar sentiment that they’ve already committed to the agreements of the 4B Movement in their personal lives without knowing it was associated with any deliberate social activism.
@wtfaleisa Replying to @user9720585462941 ♬ original sound - wtfaleisa
Decentering Men and Toxic Patriarchy
As many women’s studies scholars have found throughout history, to truly gain gender equality, you have to destabilize patriarchal systems and institutions. Activist, feminist, and author bell hooks once wrote, "Feminism is a movement to end sexism, sexist exploitation, and oppression. Decentering men is a central aspect of this movement." Judith Butler, a gender studies scholar, has further added that decentering men "does not mean erasing men or their experiences, but rather acknowledging that our social and political structures have been built around a narrow understanding of masculinity."
Yet, in true social media form, some of the discussions that are emerging online are demonizing, shaming, and insulting women who are choosing to distance themselves from men, that are collectively harmful to their overall well-being. Proponents of the movement are providing counterarguments to these videos.
Some people can’t seem to wrap their heads around the fact that there are women who would rather be single, have full autonomy over their bodies, and build a life that they want for themselves. Many naysayers of the 4B Movement are calling these actions misandry.
Carrieger disagrees with the notion that the movement is discriminatory against men and says, “Just as Black individuals have long fought against systemic racism and oppression, women have faced their own battles against gender-based discrimination and inequality.” He continues, “The 4B movement's call to challenge traditional gender roles and advocate for the empowerment of women reflects the struggle for equality that resonates within the Black community.”
Finding Common Ground for Social Justice
Historically, any oppressed group looking to gain equal citizenship in a society is always met with pushback, violence, shame, and blame. We saw it with America's civil rights and women's suffrage movements. We saw it with the anti-apartheid movement in South Africa and, most recently, with the women’s movement in Iran. This conversation could continue for hours upon hours, and the debates on whether women hate men could rage on for millennia.
The one piece of the conversation that some people are failing to address is that women, not only in Korea but globally, have decided they’d rather be single, child-free, and at peace than have to be subjected to constant trauma, discrimination, and abuse.
It goes without saying that not all men fall in line with patriarchal beliefs or disagree that there are toxic men in the world. However, this conversation is about a collective experience women around the globe share when it comes to their roles in a misogynistic world.
Even women who are in loving relationships and happy to be mothers have shared their understanding of why women would not want to have anything to do with men. Women standing up for themselves and not wanting to feel like second-class citizens isn’t an attack on men, but a call for them to be held accountable for their behavior, both past and present.
And for men to acknowledge that women play just as important a part in society as they do.
I’ll leave you with this quote from activist and scholar Angela Davis: "Decentering men is not about diminishing men or their contributions, but about recognizing that true liberation requires challenging all forms of oppression, including patriarchy."
This quote fully embodies the essence of the 4B Movement and similar movements that aim to decentralize men in our global society.
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Featured image by Delmaine Donson/Getty Images