Do you love to spend your summers on the lake?
Me too! Boating is really fun, relaxing, and a great way to unwind. However, the wind and water can be rough on your hair, especially if you have hair extensions. If you’re like me, you don’t want to worry about your hair while on the lake- you want to relax and have fun while still ensuring your hair is healthy.
In July 2020 I had a traumatic hair incident while boating. Like always, I tied my hair up with a scrunchie while wakeboarding. When I went to take the scrunchie out, I discovered that it had gotten badly tangled with both my natural hair and my Natural Beaded Row extensions.
After I returned home, I cut the scrunchie out of my hair and spent over two hours detangling. When I didn’t make much progress, I enlisted the help of my boyfriend. We washed my hair twice, added a ton of detangling product, and thought we were able to fix the worst of the mess.
At my next hair appointment, my stylist discovered that my hair was far more damaged than I had thought. She had to cut several inches off of a few sections of hair. She also had to remove half of my natural beaded rows- which meant I was losing over $600 of hair extensions. Plus, a large chunk of my natural hair was 6 inches shorter than the rest of my hair. I was lucky I didn’t lose all of my extensions. Heck, I was lucky I wasn’t left with a short bob!
My very expensive mistake inspired me to learn how to properly take care of my hair while out on the lake. After hours of research and asking a few different stylists, I compiled this list of how to properly care for your hair and prevent tangles during a day of boating.
Best part is? I’ve tested all of these tricks on the lake, and they work!
1. Thoroughly brush your hair.
Before applying any products to your hair, ensure that your hair is tangle-free. Thoroughly brush your hair from your scalp to your ends. If you have any areas that are particularly susceptible to tangles, give them a little extra love!
If you need a good brush, I strongly recommend picking up a Wet Brush or another brush specifically made to target tangles.
2. Apply leave in conditioner.
Next, dampen your hair and apply a leave-in conditioner or mask. This will hydrate your hair and ensure that your hair won’t absorb the lake water.
I like to apply a 50/50 mixture of Olaplex No. 6 and Verb Reset Mask. Apply generously to your hair. Comb through to ensure even application.
3. Braid your hair.
Now for the fun part- put your hair in braids!
Braids will ensure that your hair “stays put” and isn’t whipped around by the wind or water. Less movement = less tangles!
If you’re bad at making braids (like me), ask a friend or female relative for help.
4. Remove braids and brush hair.
As soon as you exit the boat, immediately remove your braids and brush your hair. Make sure to be as thorough as possible when brushing to ensure you have no tangles.
If your hair is especially prone to tangles like mine, brush your hair a few times over the course of the next couple of hours. I brush mine after getting off the boat, after getting into the car, and as soon as I get home.
I may be a little paranoid after my traumatic hair incident, but hey- it’s better to be safe than sorry!
5. Wash your hair!
When you arrive home, make sure to immediately wash your hair! I outline my usual hair washing routine in this post. After a day on the lake, I make sure to spend a little extra time rinsing just to make sure I fully remove the mask from earlier and any lake water.
Now that you know how to take care of your hair on the lake, you can head out on your boat worry-free!
Note: This post was originally published on Ciao by Shay on August 17, 2020. It was migrated to Happy Health Stylish upon my blog’s rebranding.
