Natural Hair Blowout Before and After + Products & Maintenance Tips

Don’t you just love the versatility of natural hair? I love a good natural hair blowout but I only do it once a year to keep the chance of heat-damage low. It took me a while but I finally got around to my annual blowout and trim session. I’m gonna take you along with me in this post. Let’s talk shop! I’ll explain how to do a blowout on natural hair, how to keep your curls healthy, and most importantly, how to preserve a blowout so it lasts as long as a few weeks!

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What is a Blowout?

A blowout on natural hair is a hairstyling technique used to temporarily straighten and elongate the tightly coiled or curly texture of natural hair. This is achieved using some sort of heat. I’ll explain how it’s done and its benefits.

To achieve a blowout on natural hair, the process typically involves several steps. First, the hair is washed and conditioned to ensure it’s clean and manageable. Then, a heat protectant product is applied to safeguard the hair from heat damage. This is the one I used. Next, the hair is sectioned into smaller portions for easier handling.

The main tool used in a blowout is a blow dryer with a concentrator nozzle attachment and a round brush. The hair is stretched and straightened section by section as hot air from the dryer is directed onto it. The round brush helps in smoothing and straightening the hair as it’s dried. The process continues until all sections of the hair have been straightened, resulting in a temporary straightened look.

Blowouts offer a few benefits for those with natural hair. Firstly, they provide a different styling option, allowing individuals to change their hairstyle for a while. Secondly, they can make it easier to detangle and manage the hair, reducing the likelihood of breakage. Lastly, blowouts can be a step in preparing the hair for other styles like braids, twists, or updos.

However, it’s crucial to note that excessive heat or frequent blowouts can lead to heat damage, which can weaken the hair’s natural curl pattern. So, it’s essential to use heat protectants and not overdo blowouts, especially for those who want to maintain their natural curls.

How Long Does a Natural Hair Blowout Last?

A blowout on curly hair lasts at least two weeks, depending on humidity conditions and your level of physical activity. This is why my sisters up north prefer to do their blowouts in the winter when the air is crisp and dry and humidity levels are low.

Because my hair is so fine, my blowouts usually last more than 2 weeks, can you believe that? In fact, if I’m really careful, I can push it to a month with a bit of maintenance. But then it’s time to wash my hair. I did this last time I went to New York for the New Year’s holiday and was surprised that it lasted so long what with being caught in the slight rain/snow a few times.

You can see in this pic my roots were about over it but my ends were still holding on:

And yes, a blowout will show up how badly you need a trim. Trimming our ends is so important for growth and just maintaining the health and shine in our hair because those old ends look real trashy and tired no matter how you style your hair.

If I let these split ends start traveling up the shaft of my hair, that’s a wrap. Especially with colour in my hair that makes it dry and vulnerable to damage, extra care and the occasional trim is essential. That’s why I ensure to use my DIY Deep Conditioner whenever I finally do wash out a blowout.

How to Do a Natural Hair Blowout

I can’t offer a tutorial on this because my hair is too long to try that mess on myself. I saved so much time and money by going natural and doing my hair myself when it’s curly that I splurge and get a blowout done properly at the salon.

Even when it was shorter, and you’ll see those pictures below, I still went to the salon because the few occasions I tried to do it myself were a hot mess. Which is hilarious since when I was relaxed I could wash and straighten my hair myself with ease.

However, I will offer these tips if you’re going to DIY:

• Blow dry your hair on a low heat setting after it is shampooed and conditioned.
• Flatiron after for a sleeker look.

Avoid the temptation to use high heat to get it over with quickly. The amount of heat necessary to blow out your hair from wet to dry with high heat on a blowdryer is asking for heat damage. Even with the best heat protection, all that tugging on your hair with high heat is a no-go for me. To each their own, though.

Products to Use on Your Natural Hair Blowout

You’ll want to apply a product to your hair before you blow dry it or flatiron it to help protect it from any possible heat damage. We naturals are afraid of heat damage particularly because when our hair is damaged it means the coils and curls won’t come back. A straight, sleek look is great for a switch-up and to get a break from styling natural hair but we want it all to bounce right back after.

The Paul Mitchell heat protectant is popular in the community but you know I love natural oils and products as much as possible.

I use actual oils in my hair to protect it in an effort to stay away from all the other ingredients and this works out pretty well for me. Try pure natural argan oil as a heat-protectant or even grapeseed oil. They’ll do the job. I use these oils to add shine to my hair while it’s straight as well and do any touchups with my iron if needs be.

It’s always fun to see everybody else’s reaction to my straight hair. I laugh at the guys who always try and get me to keep my hair straightened. SMH.

I will admit to doing it more often this year than usual because I’ve been bored with my hair and it’s just so much easier to manage straightened.

It is always a welcomed break. On this occasion, I braved a soca party with my hair straight and you know soca parties mean endless dancing and the place was hot! The back of my hair did start to revert but it was fine for the most part. Here I am a full two weeks later when I decided to wash it out because it was looking greasy and starting to itch. My hair is used to being washed every week.

Still so sleek and straight! And it was still fairly light and had movement too. But I was over it! The last time I blew out my hair prior to this was a year and a half ago. Here’s what my natural hair blowout on short hair was looking like back then:

Got me some inches! I’ve come a long way, my hair is pretty much black now after all of this colour and I am itching to colour it again. Sometimes I feel the decision is length or colour, it’s very hard to maintain both! My natural hair adventures continue.

Have you straightened your natural hair? How long does your natural hair blowout last and what products do you use to maintain it? Here’s a 2023 update, my daughter’s 4c hair after a blowout! Talk about inches.