Kids Natural Hairstyles: How to Wash & Style with a Twist Out

I remember praying to God when I was younger, maybe a teenager. And I said, ” God, when I have a daughter I want her to have curly hair and dimples!” When my daughter was born I was amazed because she had beautiful curly hair with two dimples in her cheeks and one in her chin! It was only then, years later that I remembered my request. Coincidence it may be, but I believe God intended to give me the desires of my heart. Now that I have this child with curly natural hair, I need to know how to care for it. If you want to learn how to care for your child’s natural hair, read on for a step by step process or watch Kids Natural Hairstyles: How to Wash and Style with a twist out full video below.

Kids Natural Hairstyles: Wash and Condition

First thing I do is wash my daughters hair. I wash and condition her hair in sections to make it easier to manage and detangle. I use a sulfate free shampoo and conditioner by Shea Moisture called Raw Shea butter restorative shampoo and conditioner . During this particular wash I used Shea moisture’s Raw shea butter restorative shampoo and conditioner. I detangle her hair while it is wet and while the conditioner is still in her hair.

Kid tip: Set up a tablet or phone with some sort of entertainment while washing and detangling, the more hair your child has the longer it will take.

Kids Natural Hairstyles: Moisturize and Style

To Moisturize and Style her hair I use the following steps:

Step 1: Finger detangle the section. As I am preparing to twist I will spray with water and finger detangle as needed to get rid of any remaining tangles.

Step 2: Apply Coconut oil. I apply coconut oil which also helps with detangling and moisturizing and gives her hair a nice curl.

Step 3: Detangle with wide tooth comb. I use a wide tooth comb to detangle the section further.

Step 4: Apply Shea butter. I apply shea butter to the palm of my hand and smooth it in my hand until I have an oil consistency.

Step 5: Apply Castor Oil. Castor oil is applied as the sealant and also helps strengthen hair.

Step 6: Apply Gel. Eco Styler Gel is the gel that I use, but use any gel that works for your hair.

Step 7: Twist. Two strand twist that section all the way to the ends and twirl end around your finger to close.

Step 8: Repeat. Repeat in each section until entire head is twisted. About 10-12 twists.

Kid Tip: Let your child take breaks periodically. Give them their favorite snack and praise them for doing such a good job at being still while you do their hair.

Kids Natural Hairstyles: Dry and Untwist

Once her entire head is twisted I let it air dry for about a day to a day and a half. I untwist each twist and carefully separate the hair. At night I retwist in big sections to keep her hair in this style for as long as possible and she sleeps in a satin scarf or bonnet. If a scarf or bonnet does not stay on your child’s head try a satin pillowcase.

I hope this has been helpful. I use a very similar process for my own hair. You can also read my Natural Hair Journey Wash day routine post. This works for children as well as adults. Depending on your type of hair this could be a long process. It can easily take 3-5 hours or more to complete washing and styling my daughter’s or my own hair. Be patient, be kind and take breaks when you need to as well. A nice treat for the both of you at the end couldn’t hurt either!