Tips for naturally curly hair

naturally curly and wavy hair tips

Managing naturally curly and wavy hair is a struggle. One that is worth it, though. I have learned a thing or two during this year of getting to know to my natural hair texture and I’m so happy for the results. Who would have thought beautiful curls are possible without any heating tools?

I have written this longer post about naturally curly hair, where I go through things more, well, thoroughly. But today I wanted to focus on the easy stuff. Tips and tricks that come in handy in managing that frizz and getting the best out of your curls and waves.

Here are some easy things that you should keep in mind if your hair is curly.

TIPS FOR NATURALLY CURLY AND WAVY HAIR

curly wavy hair

Say bye to your hair brush.

In other words, don’t brush your hair. It’s funny when I’m travelling and my friends or sisters are asking me for a brush or a comb. At first they didn’t believe me when I answered: I didn’t bring one. Yes, you can manage without brushing your hair. And no, that doesn’t mean your hair will become this one huge tangle. There is another post coming up about this subject, since it’s so important!

And yes, obviously I still detangle my hair somehow. And that way is wet hair + conditioner. So I “brush” my hair in the shower with my fingers with the help of a conditioner. The best conditioner I’ve found so far is Briogeo Curl Charisma Conditioner*.

why you shouldn't brush curly hair

Here are good (or bad) examples of why you should not brush curly hair. It gets frizzy and shapeless. In all the other photos in this post you can see how my hair looks unbrushed.

Put down your hair straightener and other heat stylers (except a diffusor!).

Once you put them away it’s easier not to think about them. Curly hair is naturally quite dry, so it’s wise to not make the situation worse with heat. Also, not being able to style your hair with heat stylers also give you a motivation boost to work even harder to learn to style your hair naturally.

Oh, and diffuser is your hair’s best friend (assuming you use cool air). Read more about diffusing your hair here!

You can buy a hairdryer with a diffuser – or buy a diffuser to your hairdryer.

Diffusers* $24-> at Sephora 

naturally curly hair diffuserMy hair when it’s diffused.

Use scrunchies instead of hair-breaking elastic hair bands.

I’ve been using scrunchies for years now. They are so much more gentle on my hair than the basic elastic bands and I also like how they look. I also occasionally use invisibobbles, but after switching to scrunchies I have to admit they are not as gentle as scrunchies. But recently invisibobble came out with a scrunchie – perfection, let me tell you.

Scrunchies* $8 at Sephora
invisibobble scrunchies

Sleep in a pineapple.

Sleeping in a high ponytail keeps my curls nice and bouncy for the next day. I sometimes try to loosely tie my hair in a bun, but I always seem to end up with messy curls. Pineapple never lets me down!

Scrunchies* $8 at Sephorahow to pineapple hairHow to pineapple.

pineapple curly hairstyle

Cut your hair regularly.

Ouch,  I know. I used to hold on to my long hair no matter what. To be honest it took quite a long time to realize that the dry ends didn’t do me any favors. Like, seriously. Just cut them – and let your curls live their best life. You already know curly hair is dry and the ends are possibly the first victim in dryness. Keep them fresh and cut, and your hair will look so much better, I promise.

 

Here is a good example:

 naturally curly hair

My hair, when I wanted to keep it long. You can see my ends are so dry they don’t curl, but instead look very straight compared to the rest of my hair.

makeup tips

 And this is how they look cut! Curlier – and better.

*adlink

What is your best tip on managing naturally curly hair?

Natural curls’ best friend: a diffuser!

Collaboration with Lyko.fi

naturally curly hair diffuser

 

My natural curls have received an uplift, because I have learned how to use a diffuser. Ever since I switched to a curly hair routine and started to learn about taking care of my curls, I have wanted to try that interesting tool. A diffuser.

Diffuser is awesome for naturally curly or wavy hairtypes. Especially if your hair is heavy and long – or your curls are waves and you would like some more definition on them.

My curls are a mix of waves and curls and I feel like diffusing them makes the curls even more defined. Diffusing my hair also gives it a lot of volume – although with curly hair, volume is not usually a problem.

 

How to use a diffuser for naturally curly hair

naturally curly hair towel dry

First of all, make sure your hair is about towel-dry. No use in putting wet hair in the diffuser as diffusing already takes a longer time than your regular hair drying.

how to use a diffuser naturally curly hair

Using a diffuser is quite simple. You just attach the diffuser part in your hair dryer and dry your hair with that.

But I have a few tips so that you’ll succeed no matter what.

  1. Work in sections. Don’t try and get all your hair on the diffuser at once.
  2. Be patient. The more you move the diffuser and your hair – the frizzier it gets. The same applies to curly hair anyway, especially when it’s wet. The more you touch your hair the frizzier it gets.
  3. Use low heat. Curly hair is already dry and all that, so let’s be as gentle as possible.
  4. Want to get more definition (=tighter curls)? Use a curl cream or gel and be especially careful to not move the diffuser too much. You want the curls to set.
  5. Scrunch out the stiffness. Sometimes your curls might look weirdly stiff after diffusing them – especially if you’ve used a curl gel. But then you can just carefully scrunch them out. Then they are nice and soft again! You can also separate some sections if you feel like some of your curls are too clumped together.
  6. Want to get extra volume? Diffuse your hair with your head upside down! It also helps to tilt your head even just a little. Like in these photos.
remington diffuser natural curls
Diffused curls!

Using a diffuser helps your curls, because it keeps them up. As you can see from the photos, all I’m doing is lifting my hair on the diffuser and just letting them form their own curl pattern while lifting the diffuser closer to my scalp. When you dry your curls this way, in their natural shape, well, they dry that way. Diffusing your hair even for a short time helps. I usually don’t even dry them completely, maybe about 70% dry.

Here I diffused my hair in four sections. Two on each sides, while tilting my head. When I was about finished, I tilted my head upside down and did a final round to get extra volume. I used aloe vera as my curl gel. Recently I wrote about aloe vera, so if you’re interested to read how it works for naturally curly hair, go check this post out. When I was done, I scrunched out the stiffness to make my hair soft.

before after diffusing curls
Before and after diffusing my hair.

Remington Your Style Dryer Kit 8D5219 151

The blowdryer and diffuser I use is Remington Your Style Dryer Kit. It contains all the parts I need: diffuser, root boost and a concentrator. Though so far, I’ve only needed the diffuser part.

I got my diffuser from Lyko.fi.  Lyko is a Nordic company working in Sweden, Norway and now, in Finland. They have a huge selection of beauty brands including makeup, skincare and hair care products. They have brands, that are not that easy to get here or brands that are not sold online that much. They have Milani, ArtDeco, MAC, The Balm, Collistar, elf and flormar – to name a few.

In these photos I’m wearing a lip gloss also from their site. It’s Burt’s Bees lip gloss in the shade Rosy Dawn. Such a beautiful shade, which I’ve used a lot lately. The consistency in it is nice as well, moisturizing and comfortable.

naturally curly wavy hair blog

Oh – and one more thing about the hair. I’m so happy I cut it. The ends no longer stick out as these straight dead ends, but they actually curl and look healthy.

Have you tried diffusing your hair?

 

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