Love Your Curly Hair With These 5 Tips
The beauty and natural volume of curly hair is enviable, but keeping waves and ringlets soft and frizz-free comes with its own set of unique challenges. Hair care in Toronto can also be demanding for curly types- with the humid summers and cold, dry winters. If you want to spend more time loving your curls rather than fighting with them, remember these tips and your curls will reward you with bounce, softness, and shine.
- Moisturize, then Moisturize Some More
Curly hair is the driest and most fragile of hair types, making it more prone to breakage and frizz. The first step to setting your curls up for success is by keeping them in tip-top shape with regular deep conditioning and trims. Unlike straight or wavy hair, curly hair doesn’t get frequent brushing, which is how natural oil from the scalp is moved down the shaft of the hair. For these reasons, a deep conditioning treatment should be a part of every curly girl’s hair routine.
You can also boost your hair moisture and reduce frizz by applying an oil or serum to help lock in moisture all day. This will be especially helpful to the ends of your hair, or when wearing hair down in dry weather.
- Dry Curly Hair with Care
Every time you take a shower is a like a fresh start for defining your curls, so you’ll want to get off on the right foot by drying the best way possible.
Towel drying and curly hair don’t mix, even wrapping your hair up in a towel can cause your hair to stick to the terry cloth and cause a frizzy mess. If you need to wrap your hair, try a t-shirt or fine cotton cloth instead.
The best way is to let your hair air-dry with minimal touching. If you need to speed up the drying process, always use a diffuser on your blow-dryer. That odd-looking attachment plays a crucial part in protecting your curly locks from the forceful jet of hot air. Without a diffuser to act as a buffer, your blow dryer will dry out and separate your curls, causing frizz and tangles. Make sure that you are drying your hair evenly rather than spending too much time on one spot. To avoid over drying. only dry your hair to the last ninety percent or less, and let the rest air dry.
- Define (Don’t Hide) Your Curls
Continuing to tame your curls with hot irons or chemicals will eventually weaken and break your strands, making it harder for your curly hair to look nice in its natural state. Rather than trying to force curls into submission, try embracing their voluminous texture by defining them.
You can help define your curly hair in a number of ways, from styling products to treatments. Getting highlights is a fun way of brightening and defining curls: they’ll draw attention to and distinguish individual spirals and ringlets.
Another tip is to collect your curls and pin them to the top of your head while drying – this keeps the weight of water and gravity from pulling out the curl.
You can also apply a holding product and scrunch it in your curls after showering and then help it set with your diffuser. Just remember to always section off your hair when applying products to ensure even coverage, and handle hair gentle to avoid pulling your curls apart. The amount of product used should depend on your curl type, usually a quarter of the size works well.
- Brush Curly Hair Using the Right Tool
There’s a myth that you can’t brush curly hair, but the truth is you can, just under different conditions and with the right tool. For starters, throw out your hair brush and never look back- what you’ll need is a wide-toothed comb instead. The best time to comb through curly hair is in the shower after putting in your conditioner. Using your comb, slowly and gently work your way through your curls, starting from the ends and working your way up top. You can also do this once you’re out of the shower, right before pinning hair up to dry or using your dryer.
- Wash Curly Hair Less Frequently
Because we’ve already established dryness as the main enemy of curly hair, you don’t want to backtrack by over washing or washing with shampoos that strip away protective oil. For your hair type, look for a gentle, moisturizing shampoo. As tempting as it might be, don’t get too crazy with tousling your curls everywhere to create a big lather, remember, you’ll have to detangle all that afterwards!
If you’d like more tips on how to wash curly hair, then come take advantage of our promotion this month: buy 9 wash and styles and get the 10th one free. This is a great chance to pamper your curly hair while learning the best techniques for washing and styling it. Schedule your appointment today!
