Imagine someone asking you on the metro or the street randomly with awe-
Is your curly hair natural?
Imagine feeling so confident in yourself, skipping the blow dryer and flat iron and rocking your natural hair at the next party you go to. Watching everyone’s heads turn and ask you what you have done to your hair to make it so healthy and shiny.
This can be you, and only by following a few simple tricks and hacks. If you’re a beginner, you NEED to read this post. I promise it will change your world, your hair & how you accept yourself.
This Post is for you if:
- You have always had a love-hate relationship with your natural waves and curls.
- You think you have ‘frizzy’ hair and not wavy and curly hair.
- You don’t feel confident in your natural hair, so you end up using the flat iron to straighten it every day or for important functions.
- You are ready to start your curly hair journey but don’t know where and how to start.
- You have read many posts and seen video tutorials but are still confused. Information overload!
- You don’t know what products to buy first.
- You can’t afford to buy expensive products all at once to start your natural hair journey
- You think the right shampoo will stop frizz & hair fall.
- You don’t have support from your parents yet to buy different products for your hair (if you’re in school)
- You are tired of spending on Keratin and smoothening treatments that have made your hair damaged and lose so much hair.
To make it really simple and easy to get started on your natural hair journey, I’ve made this checklist for you below.
I want you to start with the below steps, the same steps that transformed my hair from dry, frizzy, rough hair to bouncy, defined curls, with affordable + minimal products.
Remember to read through FIRST before thinking – I can’t do this. You CAN & I’ll help you if you have more questions. Don’t worry!
PS: If you currently have chemically treated hair (keratin, smoothening), I also suggest you read this post: Transitioning from chemically treated hair to curly hair
Too lazy to read? Check out my video below:
10 Wavy and Curly Hair Tips For Beginners
1. Stop combing curly hair daily when it’s dry
This is a one-way ticket to FRIZZ!
Wavy and curly hair is naturally dry and tends to group or clump together. When you separate individual strands by combing your hair when it is still dry, you separate the clumps forcefully, causing it to poof and frizz up.
This is why it is best to avoid combing or brushing our natural hair daily.
This doesn’t mean you’ll never comb your hair!
Keep reading to find out when you should actually comb naturally wavy or curly hair.
2. Use a gentle shampoo
Some shampoos have ingredients as harsh as those in detergents, like strong sulphates (sodium lauryl sulfate and sodium laureth sulfate), which can strip our hair of its natural oils.
These ingredients open up our hair’s cuticle to clean it well, but they leave it feeling ‘squeaky clean’ and almost hay-like (dry) after rigorous shampooing.
While scalps need a dose of deep cleansing now and then, using such shampoos regularly will lead to dry hair, excessive frizz, and painful detangling sessions.
Instead, use a shampoo that is gentle and cleanses without leaving your hair rough. Such shampoos have milder cleansing ingredients (Cocamidopropyl betaine or decyl glucoside) and will set the stage for better results when hair dries.
Can’t get a new separate shampoo? Simply dilute the one you have in a mug with some water and apply most of it to your scalp. You don’t need to apply too generously on the lengths unless you’ve oiled them or they’ve become dirty.
In the natural hair world, there are some shampoos called CG Friendly or Curly Girl Approved that are formulated only with mild cleansing ingredients. If you don’t want to spend time reading ingredient labels, you can just use such shampoos.
Here’s a list of CG Friendly shampoos across budgets in India
Lastly, you need to understand that shampoos are NOT the most important product for our type of hair. They are only meant to clean your hair and scalp.
Our hair cuticles, which were forced open after shampooing, need to be pushed back down to bring back shine and softness. That’s what the conditioner is for!
3. Add a Conditioner & Leave in Conditioner
I can’t stress how important these two products are for waves and curls.
After shampooing, your hair needs conditioning or lubricating, to smooth down those cuticles I’d mentioned in the previous step.
Any product with conditioning properties, or ‘moisturising’ (marketing term to imply the product will smooth, soften hair) is necessary
As a result, such products will TRANSFORM your wavy and curly hair.
A conditioner will help in providing moisture to your dry hair, soften frizz and make it so easy for you to detangle your hair in the shower! A leave in conditioner, that you apply once you’re done showering will keep your hair hydrated and defined until you wash it the next time.
If you have chosen a shampoo without sulphates, you need to make sure your conditioner and leave in conditioner do not have silicones in them. If you spot dimethicone, amodimethicone in the ingredient list, don’t use it on your hair as it will cause build-up. The only way they can be removed is by using a sulphate shampoo. Can you spot the cycle?
Read this to understand more on other ingredients to avoid: CG Friendly Method
Ps- If you are starting a CG Friendly routine, remember to do a last shampoo with Pantene Lively Clean to remove build-up of previous hair products.
4. Comb After Conditioner & Leave in Conditioner
- In the shower, saturate your hair with a LOT of conditioner. Make sure it has a good ‘slip’ (it should make your hair slippery).
- Use your fingers to comb out the big knots gently and then use a wide-toothed comb. This will ensure the product is distributed throughout the hair uniformly. You will see beautiful curl clumps forming.
- Once done, rinse the conditioner out.
- If you don’t have a separate leave in conditioner, you can choose to leave some of the same conditioner in.
- Have a leave in? Apply it on wet hair once you’re done showering.
- Make 2-3 sections of your hair and apply the product for better application.
- Again use your fingers first, then a comb. I personally prefer the Denman brush. Once you’re done combing, take a t shirt and scrunch up your hair in the way I’ve shown below.
5.Use styling products (Curl Cream, Gel) for more definition & bounce
After applying your leave-in conditioner, you should ideally follow up with a curl cream and a gel. This will seal your hair strands so that they don’t lose shape too soon. This also reduces frizz on day 2,3 of not washing your hair.
If you have wavy hair, using only a leave in conditioner will also work.
In my product recommendations below, I have included the link to Cantu Curl Activator, my favourite curl cream and a DIY recipe for a gel that works amazingly on wavy & curly hair so don’t miss that!
Watch the video below to see how I style my curly hair.
6. Avoid Heat
Imagine frying dry bread. It’s going to get even drier, no? Same thing with curly hair. Avoid heat in all forms, as much as you can. Which means, stop using a blow dryer on heat mode, without a diffuser. Keep aside your straightening iron, curling wand, yes, even for the bangs. I’m not saying never temporarily straighten your hair again – that’s your call. But it’s essential to avoid it in the beginning of your curly hair journey.
7. Deep condition your hair once a week
What’s the difference between a conditioner and deep conditioner, you ask? A deep conditioner, also called ‘Hair Mask’, ‘Deep Treatment’ or even ‘Hair Spa’ is like a conditioner on steroids (figuratively speaking). It’s stronger and more intense. Applying this to your hair once a week will drastically reduce frizz and dryness over time. It will also make your hair shiny. I have a easy video tutorial below on how to deep condition your hair!
And you can choose/switch between store bought deep conditioners or make them at home! I have included a recommended list of products some paras below so definitely check that out.
8. Switch from a towel to a t-shirt
Using a normal towel will make your natural hair frizzy. Instead use a special, microfiber towel or a basic, plain tshirt! Use it to wrap your hair when you leave the shower and when you’re scrunching up after applying your products outside the shower.
9. Protect your curls when you sleep
When you toss your head around while sleeping, you may mess up the definition and cause more frizz. Instead, watch my video below to see how I make my curls last longer by protecting them by ‘pineappling’.
10. Refresh your curls in the morning
I usually wash my hair twice a week only. Between those wash days, to revive my curls I simply spray my hair with a mix of some water and conditioner. Please watch the video below to see how I do it.
Product Recommendations For Beginners
- Choose any of these from each category to build a basic routine. I have included mostly CG Friendly products. Those that are not have (NOT CG FRIENDLY) written against them.
- Shampoo For Curly Hair: Wow Organics Apple Cider Vinegar Shampoo, Himalaya Baby Shampoo, Suchi Shampoo, Inatur Monoi Oil Shampoo
- Conditioners For Curly Hair: Loreal Smooth Intense Conditioner, Matrix Biolage Hydrasource Masque, Mamaearth Argan Oil Mask, Suchi Conditioners, OGX Conditioners (NOT CG FRIENDLY)
- Leave in Conditioner: As I Am leave in conditioner, Loreal Smooth Intense Conditioner, Kinky Curly Knot Today, Garnier Smooth Intense (NOT CG FRIENDLY)
- Deep Conditioner: Matrix Biolage Hydrasource Masque, Mamaearth masque or try DIY hair masks
- Curl Cream: B Blunt Curl Cream (NOT CG FRIENDLY), Cantu Curl Activator
- Gel: DIY Flaxseed Gel, Taft Gel, Set Wet Gel (Blue), Ecostyler Gel
Benefits of Taking Care of Your Natural Hair
- Bye Bye Dry Hair & Frizz
- Hello healthy, shiny hair
- Growing your hair faster
- No more split ends
- Keeping your hair open without stress
- Feeling confident in yourself
- No more wasting hours everyday straightening hair
- Break the cycle – teach your kids to love their hair instead of passing the hate to another generation
- No more treatments- Saving money AND time. Win Win!
Don’t let these stop you
But Pallavi, my mom doesn’t want me to use a conditioner, she says it will cause hair fall.
Explain to her that if you use a good quality conditioner, it will actually make your healthier & softer. This will in time reduce hairfall.
I can’t spend so much, my parents won’t let me and I’m still in school.
That’s okay! Buy products that can multitask! Start with any shampoo that I’ve recommended and use either Loreal smooth intense conditioner or matrix biolage hydrasource masque as your conditioner, leave in conditioner AND deep conditioner! For a gel, make DIY Flaxseed gel at home. It’s easy and super cheap.
It sounds like too much effort.
More than spending hours everyday straightening it? Hating it? It may sound long & tedious but it hardly takes more than 25-30 mins to wash and style my hair. You’ll get used to it!
You won’t always have great hair days & that’s okay. Your hair is only a part of you. Don’t let that get bigger than yourself.
And frizz? A little bit will ALWAYS be there. I have it too. Make it a friend you’re okay chilling with. 😉
If you have any more questions, DM me on my Instagram (@thecuriousjalebi) or drop me an email at pallavijuneja92@gmail.com!
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