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Beauty

Why You Should Be Swimming With Your Hair In A Braid

June 20, 2016 by Justine Schwartz
shefinds | Beauty
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Women Are Swapping Their Boring Water For This Ice Pop Electrolyte Mix!

I have really tangle-prone hair. I was one of those little girls that would cry and scream and demand more No More Tears spray when my mom would brush my hair. Now, as an adult I have color-treated hair which makes the situation so much worse. Pretty much any time my hair gets wet–after a shower, after swimming–I have to deal with mucho tangles. I don’t cry about it *as much* anymore, and I have picked up a few tricks for dealing with the issue:

One trick is to use a square paddle brush. This is especially great if you have long hair. This wooden one from Aveda is good, or you can get one like a $4 Conair one at the pharmacy. You’re good either way.

When it comes to swimming in a pool or an ocean–the trick is to wear your hair in a braid. Learning to do this was a complete game changer for me. I used to literally bring a hair brush to the beach–now what I do is just quickly braid my hair before jumping in, usually in a side braid like this because I’m a really bad braider (and yes, tangly hair runs in my family!):

https://www.instagram.com/p/BFJliiJNJi8/?taken-by=nycnewlywed&hl=en

It really does the trick. That way, when you get out of the water, you just take out the braid and run your fingers through your hair. You won’t have any tangles and your hair will have perfect beach waves by the time it dries.

Or you can do boxer braids or french braids or pigtail braids–whichever you prefer/are able to do fairly quickly:

https://www.instagram.com/p/BG4oL2VyT09/?tagged=braids&hl=en

These girls know what I’m talking about:

https://www.instagram.com/p/BG4mzbbFoyY/?tagged=braids&hl=en

Even Kylie Jenner knows:

https://www.instagram.com/p/BG4plx1tLiI/?tagged=braids&hl=en

Author:

Editorial Director

Justine Schwartz is a veteran women's lifestyle editor; she's written extensively about style & beauty tips, health advice and wedding planning. Her work has appeared in New York Magazine, Huffington Post and New York Weddings. Justine has been with SheFinds since 2010; you can reach her via email at Justine@shefinds.com.

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