12 Protective Summer Hairstyles for Women of Color

Twist-outs and wash-and-gos aside, the best part of having natural hair is being able to morph your mane into a bevy of styles: bantu knots, cornrows, braided updos, high-puff ponytails. But when those styles become a bit redundant, there’s no better way to refresh your look than with a protective style.

Protective styles help to protect your natural hair from excessive tugging and manipulation, heat, and other environmental terrors that come along with the summer season. If your current Instagram feed of knotless braids and twists weren't enough to convince that protective styles are the way to go this summer, allow me to show you 12 gorgeous styles that IG grid-worthy.