Moisturized, Shiny and Neat Two Strand Twists

Practice makes perfect and I’m far from prefect with doing two strand twists. In fact, I need to work on placement, parting and size consistency. However, I would like to think this is not too bad for my first try. My twist game may be lacking but have you peeped the moisture and shine? That’s what I’m really here to talk about so keep reading to find out what I used to achieve this high gloss shine.

Hard Water Causing Dull, Dry Hair

Hydrated hair (usually) starts with an awesome wash day. However, that did not happen on this particular day. We are in Houston right now for medical treatment and the water is really harsh here. Don’t get me wrong, the water in Florida is not the softest but I use a Sprite Water Filter to filter out most of the impurities. Because I don’t have that luxury here, my hair has been looking dull and parched, even with deep conditioning with the awesomely hydrating Nexxus Humectress Conditioner. After several failed wash days, I knew I needed to focus my efforts on achieving moisture outside of the shower with a good daily moisturizing regimen. There’s just one problem with this idea though. I’m not home and don’t have access to my stash. So now what?

Related: Best Universal Products for All Hair Types

Sally’s Beauty Supply Haul

It is very hot and humid here, much like Florida, so glycerin based products generally work well for my hair this time a year. My favorite glycerin products are S-Curl and Hawaiian Silky 14 in 1. Of the two, I prefer Hawaiian Silky.

From Sally’s Beauty Supply, I purchased Hawaiian Silky 14 in 1 and Camille Rose Naturals Moisture Butter. I purposely chose these two products because I’ve had great results with them on separate occasions. I was not sure if they would work well together but I had no other option. My hair was begging for mercy.

Related: Hawaiian Silky 14 in 1 Product Review

Moisturized, Shiny and Neat Two Strand Twists

Hawaiian Silky 14 in 1 is a creamy, spray moisturizer and doesn’t distribute well. Therefore, you can’t get by with just spraying it on your hair without working it in. As much as I would like to complain about this, I believe this is the very reason it works better than S-Curl, which has a watery consistency. Creamier moisturizers penetrate (my hair) better and evaporate at a slower rate than liquid moisturizers with a watery consistency.

I took down each twist and layered on Hawaiian Silky 14 in 1, Camille Rose Naturals Moisture Butter and Jamaican Black Castor Oil. The result? Moisturized and shiny two strand twists. My twists are so juicy that one left behind a trail of moisture on my eyeglasses after rubbing against it. Now that’s juicy!

I will be relying on this product combination during the spring and summer to keep my hair nicely hydrated. That is, until it stops working (because we know how finicky glycerin based products can be) or something better grabs my attention.

Related: Using Glycerin Based Products to Hydrate Your Hair

Night Time Maintenance

Although I’m no expert at installing two strand twists (yet), the way I’ve kept them moisturized, shiny and neat for almost two weeks has been to 1) use a spray moisturizer that disburses easily, 2) don’t manipulate or roughly handle my twists and, 3) wear a silk or satin scarf at night.

To elaborate on #1, I use Shea Moisture Coconut and Hibiscus Hold and Shine Moisture Mist twice daily. The spray has a watery consistency, thus it distributes really well so there’s no need to massage it in for it to penetrate.

To elaborate on #2, I gently lift my two strand twists as I’m moisturizing my hair to get to the underneath layers. I do not tug at them or manipulate them in any way. I simply lift them with the most gentle touch possible. Some days I’ll skip touching them and just flip my head over so that all my hair is hanging forward and then spray the moisturizer on my hair.

As for #3, I always wear a covering on my head at night.

Related: Shea Moisture Coconut and Hibiscus Hold and Shine Moisture Mist Product Review