Step 1: Section your braid extensions in 1-4 sections. Loosely secure each section with a hair tie leaving enough leverage to work for fingertips between your extensions and your scalp. 

Step 2: Saturate the entire head with water from roots to ends. To discourage frizzy roots, rinse sections in the direction of gravity the way the naturally hang. (The shower or in a shampoo bowl are ideal for keeping strands the neatest,  with gravity hanging your braids behind you, your head tilted back, and your eyes and nose facing away from the water.) Continue this process until entire head is saturated.

Step 3: Using a mild shampoo, (or chelating shampoo if swimming in hard or chlorinated water on the scalp only.  Apply shampoo by dispensing an amount approximately the volume of 1-2 average-sized grapes into one hand.

Step 4- Rinse 1: Leaving your extensions in sections, Dip the fingertips of the opposite hand, into the dispensed shampoo and paint it onto your  scalp, section by section, until the entire scalp, edge line, and nape have been lightly coated.

Step 5- Concentrating on the front hairline and itchy areas, gently exfoliate your scalp with the pads of your fingers and your fingernails as if you were stratchin a regular itch on the top of your hand. If your scalp is particularly prone to flaking and oil, this first round of shampoo will show little to no lathering. This is a good sign that the shampoo is breaking down the oil and build up. Thoroughly exfoliate your scalp this way until all sections of the scalp have been addressed.

Step 6: If you are washing your own hair, position your face and head in the water stream so that you can both rinse your hair and safely open your eyes to observe the water coming off your scalp. Rinse your hair, while still in the sections thoroughly with water. Observe how the water is murky, milky, or translucent. Notice if you still observe suds in the water.

Step 7- Rinse 2:  Shampoo your hair twice if it has been over 2 weeks since your last shampoo or if you swam in chlorinated water. On the second rinse, repeat steps 4-6 only using one average grape size of shampoo or less. If using shampoo that lathers, you notice the lather is not only immediate but there will be way more bubbles and suds. This is a sign that the shampoo has detected no more oil and build up to break down and absorb into. For this round of shampooing, use a more satisfying pressure amount for your scrub. you can also extend this ample lather to the length and ends of your braids if they are soiled or have an unwanted odor. Rinse your hair again paying attention to the water clarity & color. If the water is not clear when you have rinsed, repeat steps 4-7 until it runs clear.

Step 8: Following your thorough rinse, dry your scalp & braids using an absorbent, plush towel until your hair is damp and no longer dripping water. Apply a thin layer of leave-In conditioner and/or a conditioning oil to the entire  surface, and massage using your finger pads and then follow with a blowdryer for a more thorough and speedy drying process.