Curly hair isn’t high maintenance, it’s just high information. Once you understand what your curls actually want, the frizz and the flatness both start to disappear. Half my curly clients come in thinking their hair is difficult, and it never is, they’ve just never been told the rules.
These are the twelve I hand every one of them.
Detangle Only When Soaking Wet
Dry detangling breaks your curl pattern before you’ve even started. Load your hair with conditioner slip and work through it with your fingers or a wide tooth comb while it’s completely saturated.
Skip the Sulfates
Sulfates strip the natural oil your curls need to stay defined. A co-wash or a sulfate-free cleanser gets your scalp clean without leaving your curls dry and confused about what shape to hold.
Scrunch Instead of Rub With Your Towel
Rubbing a cotton towel roughs up the cuticle and creates frizz on contact. A microfiber towel or an old t-shirt, used to scrunch upward, keeps the curl clumped instead of fluffed apart.
Apply Product on Soaking Wet Hair
Product applied to damp hair sits on top. Product applied to soaking wet hair distributes through the strand as it dries. Layer leave-in, then oil, then cream while your hair is still dripping.
Diffuse on Low Heat, Not High
High heat blasts your curl pattern flat before it sets. Low heat with a diffuser, hair cupped and lifted at the root, dries curls in their shape instead of fighting it.
Sleep on Silk or Pineapple Your Curls
Cotton pulls moisture out overnight and flattens whatever side you sleep on. A silk pillowcase, or a loose high pineapple with a silk scrunchie, protects the pattern until morning.
Complete the Routine: More Hair Care Ideas
Want the exact order to do all this in? Walk through 12 curly hair care routine steps. Which rule are you skipping right now?
