BEAUTY // the girls with the curls (part ii)

Recently I've gotten a few emails asking me to do an update on the girls with the curls: how to love your curly hair, a post I did back in February about naturally curly hair.

So here it is. A slightly disorganized but always sincere update on what I've learned in the last six months. Which is kind of a lot. There's a lot of things you just need to learn as you go along.


get a real hairdresser.
I've been scarred too many times by Supercuts hairdressers who haven't a clue how curly hair works. Seriously, people, it's just not the same as straight hair!

When looking for a haircut, you'll need to spend a few extra bucks if you have curly hair. Unfortunate, I know, but in my opinion absolutely necessary.

Look for these three things:

ONE, a salon exclusively for curly hair. These are more common in big cities.

TWO, a salon that's all-around awesome with very well-trained staff. If you're in Maine, Greater Portland area, go to Akari and ask specifically for Dee. She is magical. My grandmother, mother, and I all go to her and she's fantastic. Plus she has cool tattoos. I'm going myself on August 30th, the day before school. See you there, lovelies. ;)

THREE, a hairdresser who has curly hair herself. Even in aforementioned awesome salon (with the exception of aforementioned Dee), ask for a hairdresser who has naturally curly hair. She'll know better what to do with your locks.



if you're using Pantene, stop right now. 

I know, I know. I have upon occasion gushed about Pantene loving my curls. But... it doesn't.

What it actually does is coat each strand with wax, which will initially be great and make your hair look super-shiny. But after a couple months, your hair gets dull and frizzy because the cleaning power can't get through the wax buildup.

As Dee puts it, Pantene is like McDonald's for your hair. Junk food. Bad. Will probably last for a thousand years unchanged.



on the other hand, Moroccan Oil is amazingly fantastic.
If I could afford it I'd get every Moroccan Oil product ever made. Every single one. Even the wrong ones for my hair. It's that amazing.

But I can't. *weeps* So I use their Hydrating Styling Creme. It's the best thing that has ever happened to my hair! Plus it smells amazing. The original oil is also great for a little added shine and frizz control.

I've also heard good things about the Intense Curl Creme but I can't vouch for it.



stop using shampoo.

Seriously. Stop right now.

If your hair is dry (and if your hair is curly than in all likelihood it is also dry, it's a fact of nature) then overshampooing will make it worse. I cut shampoo out of my routine altogether, except after swimming in the ocean or a chlorinated pool (and even then sometimes not). My hair is so much better for it!

I once experimented with my hair. I didn't wash it for a week (I took my regular showers, but I put up my hair and didn't wet it). At the end of the week it wasn't greasy or knotty or anything. It actually looked pretty good.

I'm not saying to stop washing your hair — ew. But instead of washing it every day (even without shampoo) wash it, say, every other day. Find the right schedule that lets your hair's natural oils shine « Heehee. I made a pun and your hair will be way less frizzy. Overshowering strips your hair and leaves it dull and fuzzy.

frizz is not always your enemy.

I know girls with curls (including me, at one point) who are so afraid of frizzing up that they load their hair with product to keep it down. Guess how your hair turns out? Crunchy and stiff. Those two problems arise when you overthink your hair.

Just like good makeup, curly hair should be natural but somehow better.

Need proof that soft is better than totally unfrizzy? Look on the red carpet. Taylor Swift, one of my curly-hair icons (though my hair has smaller ringlets than hers) definitely has some flyaways and bits of hair that escaped the main curl (look at this picture). BUT, that's what makes her hair look so gorgeous.

So it's okay if your hair doesn't look like this all the time (hint: she got those curls with an iron, not genes). It's better to not kill the frizz with product. If you feel über-self-conscious about it, pop a hat on.

Fuzz is cute. Seriously. And plus, invite everyone to touch your hair. It'll be soft and you won't care if it gets frizzier!



"ethnic"/African-American/black hair is totally awesome.

I'm lost as to what is politically correct nowadays so I'm just going to say WHATEVER YOU WANT TO BE CALLED, I LOVE YOUR HAIR. Seriously. Big poofy hairdos are amazing. I wish I could pull it off. But... I'm Irish. Fate did not favor me.

So girls, don't relax or straighten or treat your hair. Everyone thinks it's gorgeous when it's natural. Really. They do.

PS: What IS the correct term? I have a friend who is half Indian and she's chill with "black" but I live in a saddeningly overwhelming white community where there is no diversity and so I am utterly clueless.

QUESTIONS OF YOURS

Go ahead and ask, I won't bite you. There's a lovely little comment section just for you.

I was wondering what you think of long curly hair with straightened bangs?

I think it depends on your hair. If you have Taylor Swift hair then it will probably work. You know, more relaxed. If you have my hair it will just look weird.
As a rule I say no to bangs with curly hair, even side bangs. Too much work, and straightening them every.single.day will make them really dry and wrecked.

Do you have a fav conditioner that I can find easily and is cheap?

I use L'oreal Vive Pro Hydra Gloss, you can get it at the supermarket. I'm going to ask Dee when I get my hair cut whether it's okay or McDonald's-y, but I've been using it a couple months and it seems okay.

What are your feelings about getting perms?

No. Just no.

When I comb my hair it takes forever because it's so knotted. Any tips?

Hmm, I'm afraid not. My hair never gets tangled because it's always in these defined ringlets/chunks that don't mix with each other. If it gets tangled more towards the nape of your neck you would probably be okay brushing there... in the shower I'd just put a couple million gallons of conditioner on it. Have you tried detangler? That might make things easier.

What can I do to give my hair less volume?
Don't brush it, definitely. Also try putting oil (like the Garnier Shine Serum) on your hands and smoothing it down. I'd recommend getting layers so it's an evenly distributed volume, though, because volume is one of the great things about curly hair!

Do you know any good non-drying shampoo for swimmers?
Hey, swim sister! If I do use shampoo, I get Organix Moroccan Argan Oil Hydrating shampoo. It's like knockoff Moroccan Oil and it works great. Also, when you wash your hair after getting out of the pool, rinse with cold. It makes your hair shinier.

If you don't use shampoo in your hair, what DO you use?
Just conditioner in the shower and a little pump of my Moroccan Oil when it's damp. Honestly it is totally clean. Smells good, too.


xoxo.

the girls with the curls: how to love your curly hair

My hair is curly. Very curly. And in magazines and online I've found surprisingly little info on how to style, care for, and generally love curly hair. I've had to work at it myself (gasp... what did people do before Google?) and find what works best for me. And now I'm going to share it with you lovely ladies... with the girls with the curls. Rock on, hair sisters.

Before we start... not all curly hair is created equal. Some have big ringlets, others tiny ones. Some people have hair that is almost straight in bottom layers and very curly on top layers. Some curly hair is fuzzy, other is oily. My hair falls in pretty bouncy ringlet-y curls that are all over the place, and it's dry and prone to frizz. If this is you, read on.

Section One : The Haircut.

You have to start with something good. In this case, a good haircut is a must.
Curly hair will naturally fall into what one of my haircut girls once put as "triangle-head". This happens especially if your hair is long, since more weight is put on the bottom — this makes the top of your head very flat. Hence... a triangle. (See photo, left side.)
Unless your barber-slash-hairdresser is untrained or exceptionally stupid, she will probably know this already. But it's good to tell her. What you want — well, what I want, I don't know about you — is for your hair to be shaped and curly all over. So you want lots of layers, pretty blended (but it doesn't much matter because your hair is curly anyway and will naturally separate), with the shortest ones, at the crown of your head, a couple inches long. About four, for me. I know it sounds extreme, but since curly hair puffs out what you get is a nice teardrop shape. (See photo, right side.)

Very rough, very smudged sketch... ahem.

Section Two : The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly.

Curly hair is in some ways easiest to take care of and in other ways a real pain in the neck. Here's the good, the bad, and the downright annoying:

THE GOOD
- most girls with curly hair don't have to dry their hair in the morning — just shower, scrunch in a little moisturizer (more on that later), and go.
- natural curls don't lose their shape during the day.
- curly hair is unique and — to be frank — gorgeous.
- you have way more options with curly hair — waves, straight, messy buns with cute little curls on top — than other hair types.

THE BAD
- putting your hair in a ponytail spells death to curls for the rest of the day. Your head is now flat — you have to keep it in a ponytail. Same with wearing a hat. {How I fix this: see Quick Fixes and Straightening}
- fee, foe, fuzz: curly hair is much drier than normal hair. That means that when it can absorb moisture, it literally laps it up. Unfortunately, this means — you guessed it — frizz. Ew. {How I fix this: see Frizzasaurus}
- sleep on it... or not. If I sleep on my hair it is flat. That means a shower for Olivia every. single. morning. {What I do in mornings: see Hello Morning}
- the downright annoying: people pulling on your hair and saying "ohmygod, it goes right back to a curl!" Wow. I had no idea. {Just had to put that in there...}

Section Three : Hello Morning

OK, so you wake up, take a shower, go out the door. Eh. Not that simple.

SHOWERING
I use Pantene Medium-Thick shampoo and conditioner. It's very moisturizing and helps with frizz.

DRYING
I normally just towel-dry, but sometimes you need hair dry fast. Use a diffuser on your hair dryer, scrunching and twisting as you go.

STYLING
I put in some Garnier Fructis Shine Serum or leave-in conditioner. Not too much, just enough to make it happy, moisturized, and bouncy through the day.
What not to use: hairspray and anything with alcohol in it (check your ingredients). Hairspray makes curls crunchy and alcohol-based products will dry it right out.

There are, of course, days when I just scrunch right out of the shower and head out the door. But to make it a little nicer I like putting a tad of product in.

Section Four : Gym Class.

Whoever designed PE class obviously did not have in mind the girls with the curls. Ponytails are required, and as I mentioned in Section Two this presents a problem.
So what do I do? Simple: Either straighten it on days I have gym (see Section Five) or slap a hat on it. The bottom of my head is still curly and fine. A hat quickly fixes the yucky on top and looks oh-so-cute.

 example of a cute outfit including a hat. strategically planned for gym class that day.

Section Five : Straightening.

And I'm a hard girl
Loving me's like straightening curls...
-Lady Gaga

Even Lady Gaga knows it: straightening curls is a pain in the neck. Frankly I dislike straightening. One, why straighten such beautiful curly hair? Curly hair is to-die-for. And Two, heat damage to your hair is no fun.
Unfortunately (see above Section Four) sometimes straightening is necessary. So here's how to make it safe and simple for best results:

• Apply product to your hair before you straighten (or blow-dry, for that matter). A heat protectant is best but really anything you can put between your hair and the heat is good.
• Straighten a little bit at a time, in layers. Use a clip to put it up. (See below photo, on the bottom right)
• I like to leave a little wave so it looks natural. That's a personal preference, though.
• Don't straighten too often, and put some moisturizing product in if you do. Curly hair wants moisture even when it's straight.
• Finally, this is for everyone... pleasepleaseplease make sure your straightener is turned off before you put it away. Mine was not. It went in a wicker basket full of flammable blankets and such. It was not good. (Nothing burst into flame, thank God, but a bit of my yoga mat got singed.)

^^^ please ignore the red tint to my eyes. not sure how that happened. probably due to editing.

Section Five : Frizzasaurus.

As I mentioned many times before, curly hair needs more moisture. The moisture it can get is quickly absorbs — the hair swells and hello, frizz.

To combat frizz, there's a couple things you can do.

One, use product to moisturize. Not too much, mind — about a dime-sized amount will do. Comb with your fingers so it's distributed evenly — best to do this when it's damp.

Two, never brush your hair. Ever. Comb it when there's conditioner it in while you're in the shower, but when it's dry or damp all a brush will do is make is fuzzy and poofy. Curly hair rarely tangles since it's already separated by ringlets, so a brush isn't usually needed anyway.

Three, don't sleep with your hair back. Or let it dry in a ponytail or bun. This makes little wispies that aren't very helpful or attractive.

ack. frizz.

Section Six : Quick Fixes.

Finally, a quick problem-and-solution section...

• I have a {insert big event here} coming up, what do I do with my hair to make it look really special? I suggest using some sort of hair oil to make your locks really shine. Moroccan Oil is very popular right now (my mother has some) and it is really awesome.
• My hair gets flat as the day goes on, what do I do? Try blow-drying it upside down in the morning. This will give you extra body that should last the day.
• My only problem is that I need to actually find some gel. What kind do you recommend? Hmm, I don't really know. I don't gel my hair... look for gel without alcohol, because alcohol will damage your hair.
• How did you get your hair the way it is in section 4? I left most of my hair naturally curly, then used a 1" barrel curling iron to get the front pieces in nice sweeps.
• Do you really use shampoo? Yep. I'm really paranoid about dandruff since my hair is dark, so I scrub into my scalp and rinse all the way, then put in the conditioner and let it sit for 5-10 minutes before washing it out.
• I have curly hair just like yours only it's short (above my ears). Have you got any tips? I had a pixie cut when I was about 10 and growing it out wasn't too bad because it was wavy rather than curly — it only got really curly about a year and a half ago, oddly. Anyway, that's off topic... I think the best idea get layers so you don't get mini-triangle-head.
• Do you have any tips for girls who have fairly curly hair (actually, more like just a step above wavy) in the back of their head and stick straight hair at the very front? That sounds like my mother's hair. Try scrunching your front pieces with mousse while your hair is damp, and if you want to look extra nice either straighten the back or curl the front.
• For most of my childhood, I've had super straight hair. When I turned 14, it began to get curly. Do you have any idea why my hair suddenly changed? Same here. My hair was in ringlets as a toddler, then wavy as a preteen, and once I hit about thirteen it got curly. It also changed from blonde to dark brown. I'm guessing it's some weird bodies-changing thing... whatever it is, I'm not protesting! I did a little research and found that this change most often occurs with people whose mother has straighter hair and whose father has curly hair. That's my situation, so it looks like it's genetics.
• I am considering perming my hair, but I don't know if this is the right choice or not. I'm still contemplating it. Do you have any suggestions? Ack, please don't perm your hair. Love the hair you have!
• What happens half-way through your day when your hair is tangled and starts to feel rough? I brush my hair right when I get out of the shower and after that, I try not to brush my hair again, but, eventually, towards the end of the day, I am fed up with the knots, I brush it and then it's poofy for the rest of the day. First, it's not a good idea to brush your hair right out of the shower — that makes frizz go crazy. Comb it while you have conditioner in. As for snarls... look for a leave-in conditioner that isn't too greasy but has anti-tangle in it. You can even buy just plain anti-tangling spray; try using that and a wide-toothed comb instead of a brush. It will define your curls and make your hair poof out less. Or, just finger-comb your hair when you're bored... that's what I do.
• I need your questions... ask away and I'll answer here!