Tips for Dealing with Naturally Curly Hair

I love going out and having someone ask how I get my hair so curly. Actually, I don't love it because I have spent most of my life desperately wanting to have perfectly sleek and straight hair. We always want what we don't have, right? When I was little, I was fortunate enough to have more or less straight hair because it was so thick and long that it basically fell straight. Well as straight as it could get on its own which wasn't much. Then one day my mother, sick and tired of fighting with the rats nest in my hair because I was too little to deal with it, cut it all off. That's when I really saw just how curly it was and I hated it, probably more so because I had a boy's haircut. Fortunately it grew out but then it was the 80s and the "Farrah Fawcett" style was still very big. That meant long layers that you blow dried back into what was referred to as "feathers." I must admit that was my favorite look and I still occasionally try to find a hairdresser that can comprehend what I'm asking for when I describe it to them. The sad fact is that no one seems to get it. I have allowed a few people to attempt to cut my hair that way and for some reason, no one can. I end up walking out with long layers framing my face and shorter hair in the back. It looks ridiculous.

I had resolved myself to just letting my hair grow and cutting my bangs on my own until one day I stepped into my husband's salon and was treated to a great cut and the hairdresser was just dying to do my hair straight. Just what I always wanted so I let her and I loved it so much I ran out and bought a straightening iron. For the last year or two I've been going back and forth between curly and straight, especially when it is humid out as the straight hair won't stay for long.

Due to the tightening of funds and the fact that I have gotten use to certain hair care products that aren't cheap, I have a particular regimen to keep my curly hair extra curly and under control and my straight hair soft and supple. I also like to wear my hair straightened because then I can skip washing it for a few days, unlike when its curly as I have to then wash it everyday

My washing habits are always the same. I use Pantene shampoo, the lower cost ones do just fine and if you compare the ingredients, you'll see they are the same as most of their other shampoo products and you won't have to spend more of a small fortune these products already cost. The other shampoo I like is Aussie Shampoo in the moisturizing formula, though it doesn't really matter. I don't see any reason you can't use a product for shampooing such as Suave, though these days everything costs more. Just use whatever you like because the real trick is a good conditioner and I like to use Neutrogena Triple Moisturizer Daily Deep Conditioner as a daily conditioner. The trick is to wash your hair about once every week or two with a good clarifying shampoo and I always use Neutrogena Anti-Residue Shampoo which easily removes up to 95% of the residue left over by regular shampoos, conditioners and styling products. After I wash my hair with this I follow up with Neutrogena Triple Moisture Deep Recovery Hair Mask which brings my over-processed hair back to life and helps put the bounce by in my curls. Since I alternate between curly hair and straight, I don't have to use much of these products and the Deep Recovery Hair Mask is so concentrated, you only need to use about a nickel size amount.

To get the best curls that hold up to the summer heat you don't need to do much. After shampooing and treating my hair to a good conditioner I wrap my hair in a towel and let it soak up some of the moisture, but not too much. I then brush out my hair and then shake my fingers through it to loosen it up. I apply a nickel size amount of Citre Seal & Shine Miracle Anti-Frizz Serum and basically scrunch it throughout my hair and allow this to air dry. If it is an especially humid day, I even like to follow the Citre product with a penny size amount of CHI Silk Infusion and apply it the same way. It smells great and helps to seal in a little extra moisture. If you've never tried CHI Silk Infusion and you often straighten your hair, then you must try some. Unfortunately it is quite expensive as far as hair products go, but to me it is worth every penny and you really don't need to use much of it. I was introduced to this product when I first had my hair straightened as the ceramic heat helps the silk proteins to penetrate deep into your hair and aids in protecting your hair while you straighten it. I found it works just as well on wet curly hair for extra added shine and silkiness. Just be careful when using this product as a little goes a long way and you want to make sure really distribute it over your hands before rubbing it on your hair.

All the above products I mentioned can be found in any drug store or supermarket and have even recently found CHI Silk Infusion in Publix and Walgreens. However, you can snag yourself a bottle of CHI for a little less money if you shop at JC Penney, which often has it on sale in their salon, or at a discount hair product store found in most malls.