1. Reduce hair washing to once a week.
Curly hair has natural oils that get stripped away when hair is washed too frequently. By washing once a week and keeping your hair moisturized throughout the week will maximize your hair and make your curls better than ever.
2. Avoid using Shampoos
Shampoos strip away your natural hair oil more than anything else. Shampoo is completely fine for people with straight hair, but for us curly beauties we need to avoid at all costs. You might be thinking how will I wash my hair. When you do wash your hair I suggest using shampoo maybe once a month to clean away the buildup of product. By not shampooing constantly your hair will respond better to it when you do use it. If you HAVE to shampoo I recommend using a Sulfate free shampoo, because those don’t have the bad chemicals inside that strip your hair of the oils.
3. Never comb/brush your hair dry.
Contrary to popular belief it is not beneficial for us curly gals to brush/comb our hair dry. This will create serious breakage in our hair. I recommend finger coming in the shower. This is the best way to detangle hair and to maintain your curl pattern. If you have to comb your hair in the shower the best way is to start from the bottom of the hair and work your way up, making sure the hair is heavily conditioned before combing.
4. Resist the urge to towel dry
It can be hard to break this habit, but when you realize how much it can affect your curls its so worth it. Instead of using a towel to dry your hair which will cause your curls to frizz, try using a old t shirt. The t shirt will still absorb the moisture, but it won’t allow your hair to frizz, because there is less friction. I also recommend when drying to scrunch your hair dry.
5. Get rid of your cotton pillowcase
Who knew what pillowcase you sleep on would have such a big impact on your curls. When you sleep on a cotton pillowcase, it causes friction when you toss and turn throughout the night. When you use a silk or satin pillowcase, the amount of friction is reduced dramatically, and you will wake up the next day with your curls looking fab!
6. Avoid the blowdryer
I regularly air dry my hair. I avoid blowdryers because they completely ruin my curl pattern, and they create so much frizziness. The blowdryer also puts heat onto your hair which causes damage overtime.
7. Moisturize Moisturize Moisturize
Curly girls no matter what curl pattern they have NEED to moisturize their hair much more frequently then their straight hair sisters. Reason being that since our hair is curly most of the time the natural oils that your hair has does not make its way all the way to the bottom of the curl. This is a reason why so many curly girls have dry, or dead ends. By keeping your hair moisturized with leave in conditioners, and oils, your curls will look amazing!
8. Trim and seal your ends
Every curly girls worst nightmare is the scissors. I think its because it takes a while for hair growth to be noticeable to the naked eye. Getting your ends trimmed is extremely important because it insures that your hair will stay healthy. Curls look more defined and better when the ends are healthy. Sealing your ends with a serum, or product after a trim is good because it ensures that the newly trimmed hair is healthy and strong.
9. The Pineapple is your best friend
Putting your hair into a hair pineapple will allow you to go days with the same curls and they will look better each day. I have managed to keep my curls going for even 5 days by using the pineapple to sleep. All you have to do is grab all of your hair and a loose hair tie and have all of your hair be on the top of your head. This allows you to sleep on the hair that doesn’t get seen and your curls are protected at the top of your head. When you wake up the next morning and you are in front of the mirror, all you have to do is real ease your hair and shake it out and fluff it up and you will have the big volume full hair that you desire, sometimes looking better and bigger each day. You can also tone it down if you want if you have a water bottle, and you spray areas down .The pineapple to me is the most important step in having the best curls possible, because without it, your will wake up to hair that is crazy and matted up and difficult to style.
10. Avoid products with alchohol
When you are a curly haired diva you want to avoid hair products that have alcohol, and chemicals. Instead look for hair products that their main ingredients are oils. The best oil is always debatable, but I think products with coconut oil, argan oil, moroccan oil, are all great. I even recommend buying pure coconut oil for the supermarket and using it as a deep conditioner for your hair. Just be careful, it can make the shower floor extremely Slippery
