Straighten Your Hair Without Chemicals

If you have wavy, curly, or otherwise hard to tame locks, you may stare at people with straight hair enviously and think you’ll never be able to have such easy-to-manage hair. Fortunately, straightening your hair without using damaging chemicals and other unnatural products is easy! You just need to learn some tricks for straighter hair and create some simple at-home hair straightening products.

Steps

Blow-Drying Hair Straight

1. Detangle your hair. Brush your wet hair with a wide-toothed comb, a boar bristled brush, or other gentle, soft bristled brushes. These types of brushes allow you to remove tangles without breaking hair. Curly hair tends to tangle as it dries, so continue to brush throughout the drying process.
2. Part hair into three sections. Place one section on either side of the head and one in the back. It’s best to dry the lowest layer of hair, closest to the head, first. Use hair clips to keep the upper layers of each section of hair separated. Brush each section gently taking care not to snap hair strands in order to remove tangles before you begin drying.
3. Blow dry each section. While brushing with one hand, follow your brush with the electric dryer. Move the blow dryer to-and-fro from the top to the bottom of each section in even motions. Once each section of the bottom layer of your hair is dry, let down another layer of hair from each section. Continue this process until all the layers of your hair are dried.
   • You may also want to consider using cool air to straighten hair. This takes a little longer than blow drying with heat, but it prevents potential damage to hair that occurs with the application of heat.

Using a Flat Iron

1. Choose a flat iron. The most important element to choosing your straightening tool is to find one that feels natural and makes straightening easier for you. However, a good rule of thumb is to select flat irons that are thinner for short hair and thicker for long hair. Before choosing a flat iron, consider the thickness or type of your hair. Thicker hair may require a wider flat iron to straighten a relatively small section, as this hair type makes it more difficult for heat to penetrate the layers of hair. If you have very dry hair, choose a lower heat setting to avoid frying hair.
2. Set your iron to the right temperature. Flat irons can heat up to 400 degrees Fahrenheit (204 Celsius) or higher. If your hair is thick or coarse, you’ll want to choose a high heat setting between 350 and 400 Fahrenheit (176 to 204 Celsius). If your hair is fine or damaged, use lower heat between 250 and 300 Fahrenheit (121 to 148 Celsius).
3. Start with dry hair. You can either blow dry or allow hair to air dry as you wish. Many people are under the mistaken assumption that blow drying damages hair. If you use a protectant spray, blow drying can actually make your hair healthier and easier to manage. This is largely due to the fact that blow drying prevents tangling that may occur when hair is allowed to air dry, and by brushing as you dry, the cuticles of hair are flattened making hair appear sleeker.
4. Separate hair into layers. Make sections on both sides of the head and down the back. Lift and separate the top layers of each section, and clip them to your head, leaving only the very bottom layer of hair free in each section.
5. Iron each strand. Starting with the bottom layer, select strands that are slightly thinner than your flat iron. You don’t want hair to get pulled or broken by attaching to other parts of the iron. Gently move the iron from the top of hair, as close to your head as possible, all the way to the tips of hair. Continue until each strand is straightened. Typically, you'll need to go over each strand at least three to four times, depending how curly your hair is.

Mastering Hair Straightening Tricks

1. Wrap your hair around your head. This may seem like an unlikely way to straighten hair, but it actually works very well. Allow your hair to air dry almost completely. Then part hair into four or five sections. Pull each section tight and wrap it around. Then, pin it in place. Allow your hair to dry for several hours or overnight. When let down, hair will be dramatically straighter, and you can use a flat iron to straighten further, if you desire.
   • Depending on length and thickness you may need more or less sections, but the goal is to have a section you can wrap and pull tightly around your head and hold in place with a single pin.
   • Use bobby pins or other straight clips to avoid making kinks in the ends of your hair.
2. Brush your hair dry. Like blow drying or cool air drying, this technique relies on pulling the curls to gently straighten them. Brushing hair dry does not offer a perfectly straight finish, but it does significantly relax curls without heat or chemicals. Directly from the shower, pat hair dry with a towel. Once you’ve absorbed most of the excess moisture from hair, use a wide-toothed comb to brush out tangles. Then, brush hair continually until it dries.
3. Avoid a round brush. These types of brushes were often recommended for styling in the past, but unless you want to add a curl under or out to the ends of your hair, they don’t really deliver a straight, flat look. Instead, use a paddle brush with lots of soft bristles. These types of brushes are available in most pharmacies, beauty supply stores, and even in the big-box stores. They can range in price from ten to fifty dollars, but the quality tends to be fairly even. Save a few dollars, and buy the ten dollar model.
4. Use oversized rollers. Find hair rollers that are large enough to accommodate the length of your hair. If you have shorter hair, use a smaller roller, and if you have long hair, an extra-large roller will be necessary. The goal is to pull the hair tight over the roller without twisting or wrapping. Let the hair dry naturally, use cool air, or a blow dryer. When you take hair down, you’ll have a sleek, manageable locks.
   • You can start with damp hair or dry hair. If you put dry hair in the rollers, you will need heat to break the curls.
   • Brush any tangles out, and separate hair into three sections, one to each side of the head and the back.
   • Depending on the size the rollers, further section hair to lay flat against the roller, and clip or pin each roller in place.
   • Allow to air dry, cool dry, or use heat to straighten already dry hair. If you air dry, the process will take an hour or more. Cool drying typically cuts that time in half, and heated blow drying will usually only take ten or twenty minutes.
5. Dry your hair in a bun. This method works best with long hair. Like pinning hair around the head, this technique helps keep hair from kinking as it dries. The results are not as straight as some of the other techniques, but this is a great option for travel or to save time. You’ll wear damp hair in a bun until it dries, and when you let it down, your hair will have soft, manageable waves.
   • Pat dry hair with a towel, and gently brush it out with a comb
   • Brush hair back. Holding the hair like a ponytail near your scalp, twist it with the other hand. Then, roll the twisted hair into a bun.
   • You can hold hair in place using an elastic or several pins depending on preference.
   • Wear the bun to allow your hair to dry on the way to work, on a plane, or overnight.

Making Natural Treatments for Straight Hair

1. Apply milk for natural sleekness. This simple, one ingredient treatment will add moisture to hair and make it easier to straighten. You’ll need whole milk, a spray bottle, and a way to heat the milk. You start by boiling milk to release preservatives. Then, you’ll cool the milk before applying to hair. By leaving this treatment on for thirty minutes once a week, you’ll see significant improvement in the overall condition and manageability of your hair. If you have wavy hair, using a milk treatment may completely straighten it. For tighter curls, the milk provides a more relaxed wave, and improves the effect of other straightening methods.
   • Boil milk and pour into a spray bottle. Then, place the spray bottle in the refrigerator to cool.
   • Section damp hair and spray milk evenly covering every strand, and comb through hair.
   • Let the milk sit on hair for half an hour to 45 minutes. Then, wash and condition hair.
2. Use a coconut milk and lemon treatment. These two ingredients are added to numerous products to improve shine, clean oil and buildup from the scalp naturally, and help hair retain moisture. A simple at-home treatment that combines the two will turn kinky, frizzy curls into sleek, manageable tresses.
   • Start with enough coconut milk to completely coat your hair. Overestimate to make sure you have enough.
   • Mix the fruit of one lemon into the coconut milk. Let the mixture cool in the refrigerator for about 20 minutes.
   • Starting with damp or dry hair, coat thoroughly and leave in for about an hour. Then, wash and condition as usual.
   • Lemon juice can also lighten your hair, so this may not be an ideal treatment, if you are trying to maintain your dye color.
3. Try a castor oil leave in treatment. Castor oil is a great natural treatment for a number of health and beauty concerns. From dry skin to upset stomach, castor oil does it all. It’s also a simple way to relax curls. Castor oil seeps into hair follicles and naturally reduces kinks and curls, leaving hair sleeker and straighter.
   • Apply castor oil to damp or dry hair, and wrap hair in a towel. Use pins or clips to hold the towel in place.
   • Leave on at least an hour, but let the product sit over night for best results.
   • Wash and condition as usual.

Finding the Right Styling Products

1. Use a heat protectant. Even if you’re trying to avoid using chemicals, there are excellent products available to help you achieve the sleek look you’re after. One of the most important aspects of styling hair of any type is protecting it from the damage of heat. Heat protectants are available in a variety of forms, but they all coat hair and allow you to style without damaging your locks.
   • If you’re blow drying and flat ironing, you may need to reapply your protectant before you begin ironing.
   • Curly hair typically responds best to a cream-based or moisturizing heat protectant.
   • If your hair is frizzy, look for heat protectants that add weight to hair and avoid volumizing products.
   • You can even make your own protectant spray at home to ensure the product is 100% natural.
2. Apply smoothing serums after heating. These are great products to keep hair smooth and shiny after styling, but it’s very important that they not be used to protect hair from heat. In fact, serums will boil when heated, and they can significantly damage hair. Instead, choose a natural smoothing serum that utilizes mineral oils to avoid adding unnecessary chemicals to your hair.
3. Choose the right shampoo and conditioner. In most cases, curly haired people need to find a shampoo that will clean their hair without drying it out. Look for shampoos that use gentle cleansers. The right conditioner is essential when it comes to straightening hair and maintaining a sleek, natural appearance. The chosen conditioner should add weight to hair, so the style holds. Look for shampoos and conditioners that are specifically geared toward straightening hair.
   • It’s best to find two shampoos that provide the result you’re looking for. Overtime, hair chemistry changes. When you notice your hair no longer feels better after cleaning, switch shampoos to reset your hair’s balance.
   • If your hair is very damaged, consider adding a deep conditioner to your hair care routine once a week or every other week.
4. Research keratin treatment ingredients. Some of these products claim to be natural, but they contain harsh, damaging chemicals. However, if you choose keratin products with the right ingredients, they can offer easier to manage hair. Most of these treatments don’t actually straighten hair, and those that do typically rely on the harsh chemicals. However, keratin treatments do make hair more manageable, significantly reduce frizz, and soften curls that are kinky or tight. Essentially, keratin products make it easier to straighten your hair.
   • Before you buy, make sure the keratin treatment does not use formaldehyde, ammonia, peroxide, or thioglycolate.
   • Find products with silicone polymers. These will not damage hair, and they help the keratin lock onto the strands of hair for improved effect.
   • Many keratin products contain amino acids that are also great for hair. These are natural and preferable to chemical solutions as they improve your hair’s health while making curls more manageable.

Tips

• Using a shampoo and conditioner meant to tame your hair will help keep a straight style longer.
• For guys who want to straighten their hair, it's better to use one of those clamp brushes that fold up. It has a bristle side and then a comb on the other. Clamp your hair about two cm from your scalp and then blow dry.
• Don't straighten your hair when it's wet. It can fry your hair.

Warnings

• Make sure not to straighten too much on the ends because this causes them to become damaged.
• Use a heat protectant spray to prevent damage, if you straighten with heat.

Related Articles

• Keep Hair Healthy when Using Irons Daily
• Protect Your Hair from Heat in a Straightener
• Flat Iron Hair
• Make a Hair Protectant Spray
• Straighten African American Hair
• Look After Your Hair
• Have Great Hair
• Tame Unruly Hair
• Blowout and Straighten Kinky Curly Natural Hair

Sources and Citations

See also

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• Straighten Your Hair Without Heat
• Straighten Your Hair Overnight
• Straighten Hair Without Frizz
• Straighten Your Hair
• Straighten the Back of Your Hair
• Straighten Your Hair With Hair Bands
• Make Hair Straight with a Curling Iron
• Straighten Hair Quickly
• Have Smooth and Silky Hair

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What links here

• Straighten Your Hair
• Get Straight Hair Without Using Irons
• Blow Dry Hair Straight
• Care for Hair Extensions
• Keep Your Hair Straightened
• Make Hair Straight with a Curling Iron
• Make Your Hair Straighter Without a Straightener
• Straighten Curly Hair
• Straighten Hair Quickly
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