Summer Hair Rituals from Bali: What I've Learned About Tending to What You Love

A letter for the woman whose hair tells the story her words don't.

There is a woman I see at the warung near my house every morning. Long hair, always tied up when the heat is at its peak. By evening it is down, moving in the sea breeze like something wild. I asked her once what she puts in it. She laughed. She said: coconut oil, on Thursdays. That is all.

"Your hair holds your history. Tend it the way you tend everything that matters."

Bali teaches you to simplify. The heat here is relentless at its peak and then gentler but still present, still asking something of you, through the softer months of mid-year. Your skin knows it. Your hair especially knows it. The sun, the salt, the humidity — all of it strips. And the temptation, I understand, is to compensate with more: more products, more masks, more serums, more steps.

But here, where every grandmother has hair down to her waist and the answer is always something from the garden, I have been learning to do less — but to do it deeply. What follows are the rituals I have come back to, season after season, the ones that have made the most difference not just to how my hair looks but to how it feels — and by extension, how I feel.

Start With the Scalp — Always

Everything begins at the root. Not metaphorically — literally. A neglected scalp produces hair that is thin at the root, weak at the shaft, brittle at the ends. If you have been applying product after product to your lengths and wondering why nothing is working, turn your attention upward. Before you do anything else, massage your scalp with your fingertips in slow, deliberate circles for five minutes. Not your nails — your fingertips. This stimulates circulation, loosens any buildup, and wakes up the follicles. Do this before you even think about oil, before you shampoo, before anything. The massage itself is the medicine. It is free, it takes five minutes, and it works.

The Oil Ritual

In Bali, coconut oil is not a trend. It is infrastructure. You will find it in every kitchen, every salon, every ceremony. I use it warm — just a few seconds in a small pan until it is body temperature, not hot. I part my hair into four sections and work the oil into the scalp first, then smooth the excess through the lengths. I leave it on for at least one hour. If I have the time and the presence of mind to plan ahead, I sleep with it wrapped in a thin cloth and wash it out in the morning. I shampoo twice to remove it fully — once to lift the oil, once to clean. The difference after even one treatment is remarkable. Hair that was dull becomes luminous. Hair that was snapping becomes flexible. In summer, I do this once a week. Not twice. Not every day. Once, deeply, with full attention. That is the whole ritual.

What the Sun Actually Does

The sun bleaches the melanin in your hair. If you have colour, it fades it. If your hair is natural, the UV oxidises the outer cuticle layer, making it more porous and prone to frizz and breakage. I am not suggesting you stay out of the sun — I live in Bali. But I am saying: protect on the long days. A light leave-in conditioner with UV filters, a silk scarf over your crown when you are at the beach for hours, a rinse with cool water when you come in from the heat. These small acts compound. Over a summer, over a year, they are the difference between hair that ages beautifully and hair that quietly surrenders.

What You Eat Shows in Your Hair

I notice this constantly. When I am eating well — eggs, tempeh, leafy greens from the market, papaya, coconut water straight from the tree — my hair is thick and grows quickly. When I am travelling and eating irregularly, drinking more coffee than water — it shows within weeks. The hair becomes dull, grows slowly, sheds more than usual at the brush. Your body is always communicating. Your hair is just one of the languages it uses. Feed it as well as you feed anything you love.

The One Thing Most Women Skip

A cold rinse at the end of a shower. I know. I resisted this one for years in a tropical climate — the water is already barely lukewarm and a cold rinse feels like a small act of aggression. But here is what it does: it closes the hair cuticle. When the cuticle lies flat, hair reflects more light, feels smoother to the touch, and holds moisture better throughout the day. It takes ten seconds. I do it every time, and I notice immediately when I do not. Smooth, glossy hair is not always about expensive products. Sometimes it is just the last ten seconds of a shower, done with intention.

These rituals are not complicated. They do not require a full cabinet of products, a weekly salon visit, or an elaborate routine you will abandon by Tuesday. They require consistency, presence, and the kind of slow attention you give to the things you actually value.

That is, in the end, the whole practice.

With love from Bali,
Myrah.

For the Evenings When the Oil Is In Your Hair and the Night Is Yours

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