Hair Care for Curly Hair

hair-care-for-curly-hair Hair care for curly hair requires some special techniques in order to keep your hair healthy, growing, and looking good.There are special techniques to know about washing and conditioning your curly hair. Natural curly hair should also be carefully detangled, styled, and dried. Finally, caring for your hair while you sleep can make a big difference in hair care for curly hair.

These tips are specifically for those of you who choose to wear your hair in its curly state whether occasionally or as your main styling choice.

Shampooing & Conditioning

Shampooing and Conditioning takes on a whole new meaning when it comes to curly hair. The biggest tip I can offer you is to not shampoo! (At least not daily.)

Ok, I know what you're thinking: How can I not shampoo my hair?

Well, just hear me out.

Sometimes shampooing can be a little bit drying to curly hair. If you're washing your hair daily, I'd like to encourage you to use conditioner to wash your hair instead.

I still know what you're thinking: How can conditioner clean my hair?

Well, use the conditioner just as you would use a shampoo.

First, rinse your hair thoroughly. Then apply a very light conditioner all over. My ""conditioner-wash"" conditioner of choice is Suave Naturals Coconut Conditioner or Tresemme Vitamin E Conditioner.
The next thing you need to do is massage the conditioner into your hair and scalp. Then get your wide tooth Jilbere shower comb and very gently comb through your hair from ends to roots to detangle it.
Lastly, pin your hair up and finish your shower.
At the end of your shower, thoroughly rinse the conditioner from your hair. Your hair will be soft and ready for styling.

Styling Curly Hair

Styling curly hair actually begins by continuing the conditioning process.

Get a nice thick leave-in conditioner and apply it from roots to ends in sections. Neutrogena's Silk Touch leave-in conditioner is an excellent choice.
After that, apply a small amount of light oil all over. I repeat - a small amount of oil.
Then apply a nice thick styling product. You may choose to use gel or some type of curling cream. My favorite curly styling product is Noodlehead. When applying your styling product, do it in sections to make sure you cover every inch of your hair. Doing this will get you uniform curls and definition.
Black hair that's curly sometimes has different types of curls and textures on one head. While applying your styling products, you can use your hands to help shape some of the curls that need it.
Once you've got your hair looking like how you want it look when it's dry, you're ready to "set" the style.

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Drying Curly Hair

Hair care for curly hair involves keeping it as moisturized as possible. This is why I suggest air drying. However, I know that sometimes this just doesn't fit into our lifestyle. I've always hated leaving the house and having my hair gradually drip onto my clothing. (Your amazing curls are secret holders of water!) The other option to drying hair is to use a blow dryer with a diffuser attachment.

A diffuser should be at the top of the list when embarking on hair care for curly hair. The great thing about diffusers is that they help dry your hair while keeping your hair in place unlike a regular blow dryer.

If you're lucky, you can find an actual diffuser dryer. Otherwise, you may have to get used to the slight klunkiness of an attachment to a regular blow dryer.

I suggest using the lowest heat setting while diffusing your hair. and keeping the dryer moving so that your hair dries uniformly.

Your hair is going to look so good, you're not going to want to go to bed and mess it up!

Maintenance for Curly Hair

Regular maintenance for curly hair should include deep conditioning, trimming ends, and watching fabrics just as for all other styles of hair.

With curly hair, it is sometimes difficult to notice that your hair has become dry or needs trimming. I encourage you to pay attention to your hair and set up a regular schedule for deep conditioning (when you shampoo), and keeping your ends trimmed to eliminate split ends. This maintenance will help you have beautiful, healthy curls that will one day grow into long, healthy curls!

Night-time Hair Care for Curly Hair

Practicing healthy hair tips at night is especially important for curly heads. When ready for bed at night, you should sleep on a satin pillowcase and/or use a satin bonnet. They have large satin bonnets available online, beauty supply stores, and drugstores. You'll need one large enough to tuck in all of your precious curls. You can try using a scarf though it may not work as well with holding in your curls. As much as I hate to break your hearts, I have to tell you that most naturally curly hair styles will not last overnight. That's ok though b/c this advice should make styling your hair all over again a very simple task. Click here to read my article on bed time care.

Conclusion

As you can see hair care for curly hair doesn't have to be that difficult. If you already have long curly hair, these tips also apply. Long curly hair care includes all of what I mentioned above. It may take a little bit longer but that's the price you pay for long hair!