What do wavy, curly, coily, and mixed-textured (“swavy”) hair all have in common? In a nutshell — they aren’t straight, and they shouldn’t be treated as such. Each type of curl is truly beautiful in its own unique way. I am a proud member of the curly hair club, I love specializing in curls, and creating curly hair dreams with clients at my salon.
The first step in loving your curly hair is to identify your curl type — remembering that it’s normal to have multiple curl patterns on your head. You also need to understand your hair’s texture and density, as well as how your color and styling habits affect your curls. Don’t worry — I’ve got you on all of this!
Density vs Texture — Know the Difference
It is important to understand the difference between your hair’s density and texture.
- Density is the amount of hair on your actual head. Do you have Chewbacca’s mother’s hair, or do you wish your hair was a little thicker? Your answer to this question will depend on your hair’s density.
- Texture in hair can be fine, medium, or coarse — in other words, the diameter of each individual hair on your head. Another way I like to refer to texture is the hair’s “fabric.”
As a stylist, it is very important that I am thinking about my clients’ density and texture. I want to bring out the best in my clients hair, so I need to see it from all angles.
How do density and texture figure into your curl story? Here are some rules of thumb I like to go by: thinner hair doesn’t do well with too many layers, because too many layers can make the hair appear even thinner — which you wouldn’t want. When trying to get away from the dreaded “pyramid” shape — especially with thick hair, don’t be scared of more layering. It helps to create a flattering shape with no “pyramid” in sight! If you have fine hair and are looking for more volume you will need some help getting there. Pin-curl clips added in your part area are great to create height and/or diffusing your hair for added volume will aid in creating this look for you.
Why Curls Love a Dry Haircut
Some stylists preach the gospel of “curls should only be cut when your hair is dry.” Now you might be thinking, “I’ve had my hair cut wet my whole life and my results are fine.” And you’re right — both ways are totally acceptable. But if you work with a stylist who specializes in curly hair, you will find someone who understands the difference between types and textures of curls. Your stylist may not only do dry cuts for curls during my client consultations, we decide which method will work best for each person.
Here’s how to decide:
- A dry cut is done with the hair down, dry, and in its natural state. There can be a little bit of product in there-I prefer that if my client normally uses a styling agent. Each individual curl is cut while dry. That way, because normally there are different curl patterns on the head, each curl can be cut correctly. Here is an example: a client comes in with tighter curls on the top, and in her nap area the hair is wavy. I am going to cut more of the slightly straighter hair, and less of the curlier hair so there is a balance.
- A wet cut would be done after a shampooing and conditioning. Cut while the hair is still wet. It is harder (almost impossible) to see the curl pattern when it is cut wet. A wet cut done on curls is done with less tension, to take the spring factor into consideration.
Whether you get a wet or dry cut is a personal preference to you, the client. Your stylist should be able to guide you, talk through both options with you, and execute the cut that would work best for you and your hair.
Color Techniques to Celebrate Your Curls
Color brings endless possibilities to your luscious curly locks! Are you looking for some pops of color or more brightness throughout? Foils, balayage or pintura are all great options for curls.
- Foils will give you a distinct color placement. It can be customized to look super natural or thicker streaks.
- Balayage is very natural-looking. The surface of the hair is painted, and statured through the ends for brightness.
- Pintura is specifically designed to paint individual curl patterns. It is also, like balayage, painted on the surface then saturated through the ends for brightness.
How to Cleanse Curly Hair
Curls love moisture! If you are just starting out on your curly haired journey, you will need extra moisture in your hair to “catch up” to being at a normal moisture level. Once you have reached a good moisture level in your hair, you may need to change the shampoo (or conditioner) to maintain your hair’s moisture. Pick a shampoo that does that. It can be cream-based or something that suds (just try to get a pH-balanced shampoo when using one with suds). I live in New England, where my clients and I have to use different routines from summer to winter. The atmosphere changes, and so do the products we use. When shampooing, try to really manipulate the scalp area, because that is the dirtiest. If you can, leave the mid length and ends unscrubbed, unless you have a styling product in your hair that you need to wash off. Once you’ve given the scalp a good ole’ scrubbing, rinse rinse rinse. Your curls need to be moisturized and truly clean of shampoo.
Choosing the Right Conditioner
Picking your conditioner is very important. The wrong conditioner can have you thinking ALL conditioners are bad! Not true. There are different types of conditioners that work better on different textures.
If you have fine hair, you are not going to grab the “supa dupa deep conditioner” it will weigh your hair down with too much moisture. No one likes that limpy hair look. If your fine hair is color-treated, you may need something a little more moisturizing to replenish your hair.
Luckily, there are so many options, and your stylist can help pick out just the right one for you.
Once you’ve chosen your conditioner, learn to, apply it correctly!
- Focus on the conditioner on our mid-lengths and ends, because they are the thirstiest.
- Don’t be shy with your conditioner. On sopping wet hair, and I mean sopping wet, apply a good amount of conditioner to the mid-lengths and ends.
- Using your fingers as a comb, or a wide toothed comb, or wet brush, work the conditioner through and detangle the ends. You can do this standing upright, or you can bend down and flip your hair over. I’m an upside down girl myself. I like volume! Think about where your part is normally, and with your fingers (or comb) get the hair sitting the way you want it, with the conditioner still in your hair.
- We are not going to rinse rinse rinse all our conditioner out. We actually want to keep a little in the hair, because there is great benefit to having a little left in the hair. Your hair should feel like a slight silky film feeling. The hair itself will look shiny and smooth.
Style Those Curls
Here is where you can add a styling product OR just leave that little bit of conditioner in. This is a total personal preference to you. Part of helping my clients is keeping their routine at home realistic. If they don’t want to use a styling product I am not going to force them. I am going to teach them their routine with their home life and preferences in mind.
If you want to use a product, choose which category works best for your curls:
- Gels are perfect for hold and definition. But they won’t give you the moisture you need if you are lacking in this department.
- Creams give a soft finish but don’t always have the best holdability. Creams are wonderful for adding moisture into the hair!
- Mousses/Foams are for fullness and helping with frizz. These are great summer products.
It is always good to try new products at the salon to see if they work for you. With your stylist’s guidance, you might find something you would never have known about.
Apply products to your curls in a way that makes them look their best. You do not want to over-handle the hair when it is wet (or ever, really). The hair needs to be sopping wet — I like to do this 3-step hair routine in the shower.
- Apply enough product to your hands and with open palms or “praying hands,” apply it to the hair (front and back). Smooth it all over your hair.
- Scrunch upwards, from your roots toward your scalp. It will make a squishy sound, and the excess water will come out (another good reason to be in the shower — easy clean up!).
- Twist your hair up in an old t-shirt or microfiber towel if you have one handy. Or, you can just drip dry after scrunching the excess water out with a t-shirt or microfiber towel. I like to keep my hair twisted up for about 15 minutes before either diffusing it with a dryer or letting it drip-dry.
If you use a diffuser, only get it 85 percent dry — leave a slight dampness in your hair, because if you over-diffuse your hair, it can get overly frizzy.
When I dry naturally, I like to add pin curl clips to my part area to add fullness, this is an optional step. Depending on your face shape you may want to add the pin curl clips to the sides of your head to add fullness through that area to have a more flattering shape to your hair for your face.
Pro tip: If you choose to dry naturally, it typically takes a little while. Spray your hair with a light layer of hairspray to speed up the drying time.
Curly Hair Talk From The Pros
I asked 5 of my fellow curl specialists their #1 piece of curly hair advice. They didn’t disappoint!
“My advice would be to hydrate, hydrate, hydrate! Curls need a lot of moisture and hydration in order to not look frizzy and sad.”
-Jesica Velez co-owner of J&L Hair Studio (also my business partner)
“I always say especially to new clients — embrace the curl you have. It’s not like anyone else’s and is unique to you. What works for one curly head doesn’t always work for another. Don’t put yourself in a box.”
-Jackie Liakpoulos from SALON INEZ
“Prime your curls just like you prime your face before make-up. That was a game changer for me.”
-Sacha Arenas owner of The Total You Salon
“My number one piece of advice would be to be sure to use a pH balance appropriate shampoo that is in the 4.5–5.5 range!”
-Liz Paola owner of Paola Projects at The Beauty Collective
“I think the main thing I would say about curly hair is that not all curls are the same, work with and love what you’ve got. On the practical side, I’d suggest you letting it air dry and then break up curls from underneath by giving your head a nice massage concentrating on scalp not hair.”
- Maddy Gersh from Salon Marcello
So, you see my curly friends we should all love and embrace what we got! Find yourself a curl specialist to help guide on your curl journey. Remember — your curls are beautiful, and so are you!
