When most of us think of Kerry Washington, we think of Olivia Pope, the gladiator and number 1 fixer of problems with her hair never out of place and a corporate wardrobe to die for. So it always comes as a shock, a good shock when we see her rocking her natural hair. 

In 2016, she appeared on the Primetime Emmy Awards red carpet wearing a big natural crown with curls that earned her a lot of praise. It us all talking about how inspired we felt to embrace our natural curls and rock our kinks proudly. In November 2017, she graced the cover of Allure magazine wearing effortless and authentic cornrows and we couldn’t be more inspired.

When asked about her crown in her Allure cover story, the Confirmation star revealed that she was embracing her natural curls now more than ever because she wants to inspire her children: Isabelle Amarachi, 3 years old and Caleb Kelechi, 1 year old with her husband, Nnamdi Asomugha.

“I like to wear my natural texture, especially now because I have children and I want them to know that their hair is perfect as it is. They don’t have to change it or straighten it. They can, but they don’t have to,” Washington explains. 

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Kerry Washington has beautiful curls, no doubt. Although the starlet used relaxers in her hair for most of her childhood, she admitted going natural in her early twenties. At first, it was a test to see what her hair would be like without the creamy crack but eventually she fell in love with her curls. She says they are healthier now and going natural has saved her a lot of time.

Getting healthy and gorgeous curls like Kerry Washington isn’t rocket science. But if you’re having a tough time maintaining the health of your hair, we have some tips to remind you how to keep your curls, coils and kinks healthy.

Cleanse

A clean scalp is a healthy scalp. Don’t go months without cleansing your scalp because when buildup accumulates on your scalp and then it doesn’t get a chance to breathe. Also product applied would no longer permeate your hair but would sit on top, no thanks to the barrier caused by the buildup of dirt and products.

Regardless of how often you cleanse your natural hair, it should be done with the utmost care. Shampoos, especially those containing sulfates strip the hair of its natural oils. To prevent this, you should opt for milder shampoos that are sulfate-free or co-wash.

If you find that your hair only gets clean enough with sulfate shampoos, try prepooing to minimize the harshness of the cleanser.

Moisturizing 

Natural hair styles need moisture. If your hair is lacking moisture, it gets dry and breaks off. Keep your hair moisturized by occasionally spritzing your hair with a spray bottle filled with water, oils and a good homemade leave-in conditioner. Seal in the moisture with a cream or your favorite sealing oil. Also, deep condition frequently.

Protect Your Hair At Night

After a long day, the first thing on your mind is likely not your satin or silk scarves. But they are important if you want to minimize breakage and reduce breakage.

Cotton sheets cause friction that lead to tangles and moisture loss. But satin or silk scarves or pillowcases protect your hair, especially your edges from breakage.

Avoid Heat

Heat tools are not the devil but they could be harmful to your hair when used to frequently. Excessive heat tools could lead to breakage and heat damage. As a preventive measure, always deep condition and do a protein treatment before using a heat styling tool.

Heat protectants are also necessary as they prevent your hair from getting fried. As much as possible, have a professional stylist straighten your natural hair as opposed to doing it yourself. However, if you must do it yourself, invest in good heat styling tools preferably those with ionic technology.

Protective Styling

Constantly manipulating your hair into different styles could pose more harm than good in the long run. As a result, you need to occasionally give your hair some breathing space to recuperate by indulging in protective and low manipulation hair styles.

Protective and low manipulation hairstyles like wigs and clip-ins allow you to wear your hair or something similar to it while your hair recovers and gets a break. Other protective styles include braids and faux locs.

Embrace Your Crown

Caring for your natural hair in no way means you have to omit the fun. Takisha Sturdivant-Drew, who styled Kerry Washington's hair for years has shared that Washington wears her natural hair consistently and hasn't used a weave in 10 years. However, she uses clip-ins to add variety to her look for color, volume and length.

At the 2016 Met gala she added clip-ins for color and in at the 2016 Primetime Emmy's hair style she used them for volume and length. The celebrity hairstylist also mentioned to Refinery29 that she's beginning to experiment with wigs on Kerry. Healthy hair is always about balance and taking care of your natural crown.