Everything Girls with Kinks and Curls Should Know About Growing Longer, Stronger Hair

One of the great temptations, once you stop chemically processing, is the desire to flirt with permanent hair colors you might not have been able to try with a relaxer in your hair. But just know that, well, that's a chemical process as well, so it's going to do some things. "You know, I love hair color on natural hair, but it is 10 times drier," Sturdivant-Drew says. "It's pretty, it's stylish, but it definitely dries the hair out so much more."

Waajid recommends wigs if you want to play around with color but says if the allure of hair color is too strong to resist, do not attempt it at home. "I would say hair color done properly won't hurt (your hair) but that means going to a professional, someone who specializes in that kind of thing. Any time you put chemicals in your hair, you need someone who specializes in that particular chemical process so they can analyze your hair and know exactly how long to process your hair. They can also really give you some great advice on how to keep your hair healthy." One of the most important products for natural hair — color-treated or not — is a good hair mask to replace lost moisture, like Hask Coconut Milk & Organic Honey Curl Care Deep Conditioner, $1.99.

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