How I style my curly hair naturally
A few days ago, I styled my curly hair with its natural wave, and received a lot of love. I saw a friend and posted a picture on my curly hair day, and the reaction was enthusiastic. I always forget this, and it’s because I rarely wear my hair curly. There are a couple of reasons for that. First, I only wash my hair twice a week at most, which is a bit harder to achieve when I style my hair naturally, given that I have to use product to get that look, and I am prone to frizz when my hair is styled naturally. This throws off my hair washing game, although, I am experimenting to extend the life. And second, my hair was getting pretty long in the pandemic, and was pretty much all one length. This made it pretty hard to keep from knotting or frizzing or creating a triangular shape that just felt very unstyled.
But I recently got a fresh haircut for Spring, my showed my stylist the very on-trend, longer shag cut with curtain bangs. The inspiration was really from, who else, but Katie Jane Hughes, who has a similar length hair and similar curl shape. While my stylist (always right) persuaded me not to go with such a harsh shag, she cut tons of layers into my hair, including lots of shorter layers around my hair that framed my face, and giving me a curtain bang to bring the look together so that I was able to style my curls more naturally with better shape. This is so key – find a salon and a stylist that understands your hair type, and that knows how to cut curly hair. And, chop off the dead ends that are not really absorbing the products you’re putting in your hair, and weighing hair done. These two things made such a difference in my most recent styling, and has helped prevent my hair from getting knotted together.
If you have curly hair, you probably know the feeling of always being on the hunt for the right product. So my second tip? Start to understand more about your curl type. This is something that I am just really starting to learn more about, but the truth is, it can really help you figure out the best products for your hair. Not every curl is the same – there are loose waves to tight coils – so, we shouldn’t treat those curls the same. Everyone’s hair needs different products, and that’s ok. But if you know the feeling of seeing someone style their curly hair, buying those products to achieve that look, and then feeling super disappointed in the results, it probably means you’re shopping for the wrong curl type.
This article has a great breakdown of curl patterns, with images, for you to identify your curl type, and some aligned products for your needs. I fall somewhere between a 2C (prone to frizz, s-wave curls in most areas) and a 3A (a loose spiral curl – especially in my newer growth hair – that is prone to dryness and should avoid over-shampooing). Turns out, one of the products I recently started using is, in fact, the right type of product for my hair, which is why I have been so much happier with the results.
That being said, there is a method to styling my hair curly, and a couple of things to keep in mind as you go through the styling process. So I figured I would put it all in a blog post to share with you the methods for the most frizz-free curl you can get – the products you can use if you have a similar pattern to me, as well as the washing and styling tips that I think can be helpful for anyone with curly hair. Let’s break it down!
The wash
As I shared above, my hair is prone to dryness, which means that I really work to avoid washing my hair too often. I like to let my natural hair oils build up to bring some moisture back to my hair throughout the week, and have trained my hair to go up to 5-6 days between washes. This has been more a challenge for me when I style my hair with more product, as I do when I wear my hair naturally, but it’s something I am working to build up to now that I am learning more about what my hair needs.
Since I hadn’t washed my hair for about five days prior to my last wash, I go in with a volume-based shampoo from Oribe and really scrub my scalp. I do a base wash, and then I rinse, and go back in with a tiny amount of shampoo again if I am washing my hair after a curly styling, as I really want to get that old product out of my hair so I am working with clean strands. Rinse again.
At this point, my goal is to start hydrating my hair and building the curl as I condition my hair. As someone with dryer, frizz-prone hair, I do not usually use a regular conditioner product. For me, leave-in conditioners and masks serve my hair better, and since I don’t wash my hair as often, I am not going through these products hastily. I’ll start with a leave-in conditioner/mask like this drugstore option, or my color-care mask from Oribe, and just really start at the roots and go down the strands of hair, separating and detangling my hair without raking or pulling my strands. At this point, I want to get any tangles or loose strands out, so I take a wide-toothed comb and gently comb through my hair with the product in it, working from the ends to the roots, gently avoiding pulling my hair.
Now here’s the hot tip – flip your head upside down! At this point forward, move forward with washing your hair only upside down. I take a bit more conditioner at this point, and massage it through my hair as I gently scrunch the product into my hair, more towards the ends. I let that sit for about a minute (you can flip back up at this point, just clip your hair up trying to keep the curls).
Once you have finished the rest of your routine, go back upside down and wash out the product from your hair, avoiding raking or combing with your hands. At this point, the only motion you use should be a scrunching one. Get the product out, and then create fists around your hair and squeeze up to wring the excess water out of your hair. DO NOT use a regular bath towel on your curly hair to dry it, especially if you are frizz prone. Bath towels are meant for your body, and actually create damage for your hair. If you buy one thing from this post, grab one of these Aquis hair towels – they are a huge game changer in your routine, and everyone I know who uses one has noticed a huge difference in their hair. I take my Aquis towel and I gently squeeze the curls upward, soaking up the excess moisture. I then gently take this towel and while my head is upside down, I create wrap my hair in this towel without it being too tight (Aquis sells this easy to twist and button version if you’re not feeling confident), and do the rest of my skincare and body care routine.
The styling
*NOTE: I do ALL of this routine with my hair upside until the very end.
Now, here is where things are going to get more personalized for you, as the two products I use might not work for you unless you fall into the same curl patterns as me – 2C/3A. I highly suggest taking a look at this article to see which products they suggest, but ultimately, you want to find a product that absorbs into your hair, aids your curl pattern and fits your hair’s needs.
Because I have frizz-prone, dryer hair, I start with a curl cream from amika (currently sold out at Sephora, but you can set alerts if you’d rather buy it there), which really just works to tame frizz once I add heat and humidity. I start working a quarter-size amount through the front roots of my hair, massaging and scrunching the product through the rest of the strands. I add a second amount, and go through more of the back roots and overall ends of the hair. Give this a minute to kind of sink in to the stands, gently scrunching the hair upwards with your hands in fists.
From there, I go in with a quarter-size amount of a curl gel – I love this one from amika (Sephora link) because it does not get crunchy – just holds. Again, I do it in two sections, working from roots to ends, scrunching upwards as I go and kind of massaging around the scalp too to make sure you get products where it matters most.
From here, I break out the diffuser. If you are not using a diffuser, you are missing the key to volume with curly hair. Now, I just purchased the Dyson with diffuser attachment, because I have frizzier curls, and I think this is going to help. But if you’re not looking to invest in these tools, then there are great options at every level. I use a basic diffuser attachment with my Conair hairdryer now, and it’s totally fine. I also have had my eye on this hand diffuser attachment from DevaCurl, which I have seen Aisla of @happygocurly use.
I still have my head flipped upside down at this point, and I kind of just switch back and forth from diffusing – a process of laying the hair on the diffuser and bringing the diffuser up into the roots so it dries the whole strand with the curl intact – and scrunching the hair with my hands as I blow dry. I do this until the hair is mostly dry, and then I will stand right-side up. From this point, I just kind of hold the diffuser up towards the crown of the head and make sure the way the hair is laying is where I want it to, gently adjusting with my hands and letting the hair begin to lay where it will.
After my hair is pretty much completely dry, I pin my front bangs with some clips to go about the rest of my routine and let the curls set. For finishing touches, I go in with a 1 inch curling wand – no clamp – and just gently touch up some strands that are flatter or frizzier at the top layer of my hair, and touch up my bangs, as they require a bit more. Truthfully, I want to say my hair is perfect immediately, but it’s not, especially because I still straighten and heat style my hair, which will affect the curls and your overall hair texture. But touching up with the wand takes me no more than two minutes, as I only hold the wand on the hair for 5-10 seconds. This is also a great way to touch up second and third day curls. The looser your wave pattern, the bigger a barrel you will want to get to touch up. I don’t have anything expensive- whatever you can find on Amazon or Target works for me.
Final step? Hit it with a superfine hairspray, like this one from Oribe. You are not looking for crunch, just frizz prevention and light hold. If you plan to restyle hair for a few days, this is key that you do not use a heavy duty hair spray, as this will accelerate tangling. Then take your fingers coming from the bottom, and just kind of shake the curls free to create volume at the roots. This is a great way to break up tangles throughout the day, too.
Preserving + restyling your curls
Now here is the part I am still perfecting, but I have learned a lot of this through trial and error. Because I do not like to wash my hair every day (and if you have a similar texture and pattern to me, you don’t want to for the sake of the curl), I wanted to find a way to help preserve curls while I workout, shower and sleep, as well as a way to get them back into shape when I am ready to style for the day.
The key thing here is never ever use a hair tie. I have not found them to do anything but break down the curl, regardless of the material or type. When I workout, when I shower, and when I sleep, I pin my curls up using one of these incredible clips from Drybar that I discovered recently. They have insane hold, so you can workout in them, and they also don’t crease or dent the hair. I simply kind of pile my hair on my head, scrunching the curls up, gently twist into a pile (do not knot or bun), and then clip, clamping the hair with the curl ends free. You look a bit bird-like, but who cares – it will save your hair. I’ve seen others use silk scarves or bonnets to keep their curls over night – I haven’t tried these, but I am move around a lot at night so I am a bit worried they might slip off my fine hair texture.
When I am ready to restyle, I take the clip down, and use my fingers, with my head upside down, and kind of shake through the curls to unknot and release anything that might have clumped together at the roots, which will loosen the ends. I then take a misting spray – I love this one from Oribe for shine and texture – and I just spray all over the hair; I find this adds moisture and prevents/combats frizz. I scrunch it a bit to get the product all up in the hair, and then flip my head over and let it sit. From there, I take the curling wand, and touch up any curls that needs some new life. I finish off with a little bit of hair oil in my hands and just comb through and scrunch into only the ends of my hair.
So yes, this routine is not for the weary. While it might seem simpler or quicker to style my natural hair, the reality is, it takes just as much time and patience as it does to blowout my hair. The results are just a style so authentic to me that it’s worth every minute. My goal for the Spring and summer seasons is to wear my hear mostly natural, so I am committed to taking that styling and restyling seriously to really maintain the health and improve the curl of my own hair. I hope this helped anyone with curly styled hair out there! You can shop all of the products and tools that I used to style my hair below.
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