Broken hair brushes, goopy gels, frizz, tangles, and maintaining any kind of textured hair is an uphill battle. When I was in middle school I remember brushing out my curls every night and then carefully braiding my hair so that it would look nice the next day. I had no idea how to properly style my curls, so, for a long time, I lived in a kind of poofy hair limbo. Around 8th grade, I finally got some layers cut and took a much-needed trip to CVS for some hair product, and voila! My curls slowly began to reemerge after years of being flattened and brushed. I’ve now been proudly wearing my hair in its natural form for the past six years, so I’ve tried almost every curl trick in the book. Today I’m going to tell you some of my favorite methods to achieve the ringlets and waves of your dreams.
First things first I only wash my hair once a week. Sometimes, I even go up to 10 days without a wash. This allows my hair to maintain volume and shine, and this routine has also lessened the damage to my hair. I know the thought of grease buildup is scary for most people, but once your hair becomes used to this procedure oiliness slowly reduces.
In the mornings when I wake up my hair usually resembles a lion’s mane. To tame this beast I usually take a spray bottle of water, or just rewet my hair in the sink, and then take some moisturizing hair lotion or gel and scrunch it into my hair. If there are any large tangles in my hair I just finger comb them out with a bit of leave-in conditioner. I never brush my hair when it’s dry. If you’d rather wake up with your hair in a calmer state than mine I have heard that sleeping with your curls in a silk bonnet or even a t-shirt should help preserve your hair overnight, but I’ve never tried this myself.
On days that I do wash my hair I try not to use any harsh shampoos, rather I prefer gentler curl cleansers. Recently I’ve been loving “Davines LOVE Curl Cleansing Cream”. This product is an all-in-one shampoo and conditioner. When my hair is super wet in the shower I massage the product into my scalp and then slowly work my way through my roots. I then let the cleanser sit and soak in my hair for at least five minutes and finally, I brush my hair with a wide toothcomb and rinse the cream out. When I get out of the shower I never use a towel on my hair. While my hair is still soaking wet from the wash, I begin to add in whatever products I’m using that day. Honestly, I bounce around between various gels and lotions. Some of my favorites are “Miss Jessie’s Pillow Soft Curls Lotion”, “Miss Jessie’s Jelly Soft Curls Gel”, “Not Your Mother’s Curl Talk Sculpting Gel”, “Not Your Mother’s Curl Talk Activating Mousse”, and “Paul Mitchell Sculpting Foam”. I take the product and apply it to the midsection and ends of my hair, and then flip my whole head over and scrunch more product into my hair. If my hair is still super wet, sometimes I will take a t-shirt and gently use it to scrunch my hair. In terms of drying I usually just air dry my curls, but I’ll often clip parts of it up to help the shape. However, when I have the time, diffusing my curls will give me the best results.
Having textured hair of any kind is truly a gift and so much fun. Whether you use my tips or not, I wish you all the best in finding the best way to make your curls shine! Everyone deserves to look and feel their best.