Baton Rouge hair stylist and influencer Ashley Williams shares her beauty tips

In 2009, Ashley Williams completed the “big chop” and cut off all of her chemically straightened hair. At the time, there wasn’t a large online platform for women of color to learn how to take care of their natural hair. Williams knew she couldn’t be the only person struggling to explore their natural hair texture, so she wanted to document her own journey and inspire others to embrace their curls.

By 2014, the licensed hairstylist started posting natural hair tutorials on YouTube and reviews of her favorite beauty products on Instagram. Women all over the world now watch Williams’ videos for advice on how to style their kinks and curls. At 32, the stay-at-home mother of four has more than 46,000 followers on Instagram and 165,000 subscribers on her YouTube channel.

Since having her youngest child, Lavender, in April, Williams’ beauty regimen also involves maintaining a fresh face. She focuses most of her beauty regimen around moisturizing to prevent aging lines, dark circles and the appearance of loose skin.

In between her 2-month-old’s quick naps and heartwarming yawns, Williams shares her in-depth skincare routine with 225. Find her on Instagram at @ashleynwilliams_

ON HER BEAUTY SHELF

KEY TERMS

Natural hair: Hair untreated by chemical straighteners or texturizers

Wash-and-go: A hairstyle in which the natural curl pattern is worn after being washed without any manipulation, stretching or styling tools

Twist-out: A hair styling technique that involves twisting the hair to produce more defined and elongated curls

FACE

My favorite thing to do in the morning is splash cold water on my face to close my pores and not get rid of any natural oil. After that, I apply the Fresh Rose Deep Hydration Facial Toner. It smells just like roses and doesn’t dry out the skin. It moisturizes my skin, plumps it up and gets it ready for makeup. For moisturizer, I like using this Vitamin C Glow Serum by Breedlove Beauty Co. It’s so concentrated, velvety and has a matte finish.

Before bed I love to precleanse—that’s what I preach. Precleansing typically involves some type of oil. I like the Dermalogica PreCleanse, or I’ll just use coconut oil. You rub it into your pores, and it melts off your makeup. I recently discovered the Breedlove Beauty Co. Vitamin C facial cleanser. It removes your skin’s excess oil but doesn’t strip it dry. I wash my face with that, use the Fresh Rose Deep Hydration Facial Toner and then the Fresh Rose Deep Hydration Face Cream.

Once a week, I use Fresh Rose Deep Hydration Sleeping Mask. You apply its gel first, then its cream. So it’s like double the moisture. When you wake up, you have a literal glow.

MAKEUP

I love Make Up For Ever and Fenty Beauty. They’re my favorite foundations. Fenty’s formula and coverage are awesome. As far as lipsticks and eyeshadows, I’ve really been loving ColourPop because it’s affordable. Kat Von D eyeliner is like no other. I have allergies, so my eyes water all the time, but her liquid eyeliner never irritates me. For mascara, I use Pixi by Petra’s.

I love Milk’s Hydro Grip primer; it’s like a gel. It’s kind of cool on the skin, and it gets tacky but not heavy when you apply it. When it dries, your foundation will stay on all day. It’s great because it doesn’t make me oily or make the foundation transfer.

BODY

I have a jar of the Brazilian Bum Bum Cream in every room. It smells so good and tones the skin. That’s my lotion of choice.

Fenty Beauty Body Lava is amazing. It’s basically makeup. It adds the best glow to your skin ever. Whenever you’re in the sun, you can literally see your skin glistening. I have the “Who Needs Clothes” and “Trophy Wife” shades. I use these every single day.

NATURAL HAIR

A lot of people don’t know you can damage your hair with moisture if you don’t add protein into your regimen. I alternate my protein and moisturizing treatments weekly, so protein one week, moisture the next. I’m a wash-and-go type of girl. That’s my thing. I use The Mane Choice Tropical Moringa Oil and Honey Daily Moisture and Sealing Cream as my moisturizer, then I’ll apply the Wet Line Xtreme gel to hold the curls.

I swear by DevaCurl. Its One Condition Decadence line is for tighter curls, so it’s more concentrated and moisturizing.

For twist-outs, I don’t use the same products as I do for my wash-and-gos. I love Soultanicals; I use the Knot Sauce Coil Detangler as my leave-in conditioner to soften my hair and then the Can’t Believe it’s Knot Butta as the twisting product. Then I seal the curls with gel. Throughout the week, I like to use the Mielle Organics Pomegranate & Honey Curl Refreshing Spray to keep my hair fresh.

I don’t like to manipulate my curls too much, because once water is on the hair it can poof up.

I always wear a satin cap when I’m sleeping. Cotton is rough on the hair and soaks up all the necessary oils.

PREGNANCY

This pregnancy, I didn’t really have to worry about stretch marks because I already had them. But to prevent more from coming, I used shea butter, coconut oil and any types of oils. I also used the Pomegranate & Pumpkin Seed Stretch Mark System by UK skincare line Pai. It included a mixture of oils that you rub on your belly, then a moisturizer that you put right on top to seal in that moisture. It’s really awesome because the products are made for sensitive skin.