problems-with-styling-curly-hair.jpgTaking care of curly hair can make us dizzy. Waves, curls and coils don’t always allow us to detangle them painlessly, smooth them perfectly or create a flawless hairdo. What should be done in such situations? If you have problems with styling curly hair, keep reading this article to find out which cosmetics, haircuts and tricks you might find useful.

Curly hair. Do you know it well?

Hair is built in 85% from keratin, in 10-15% from water as well as minerals, pigments and lipids. Of immense importance are sulphur amino acids that bind keratin fibres. Each hair shaft is covered with cuticles which, in the case of waves, curls and coils, are risen. Actually, this is the most important feature of curly hair – high porosity. High porosity hair equals matte and dry strands with the tendency to frizz and static. What’s interesting, there are a few types of hair curl. There are wavy, curly and so-called coily hair. Each of these types feature other subtypes that are characterized by different texture and the level of curl.

This is what your curly hair doesn’t like

There are some treatments and cosmetics that won’t work on curly hair. Therefore, if your hair is curly, you shouldn’t:

  • wash it in hot water because this encourages the cuticles to open wider, and the strands become matte;
  • detangle it when dry because this encourages static and frizz;
  • use a fine tooth comb because this can lead to hair breaking and hair pulling out;
  • towel dry hair vigorously;
  • use hair dryers and flat irons that contribute to hair dehydration;
  • expose hair to intensive styling procedures;
  • apply cosmetics containing alcohol and other detergents that dehydrate hair and the scalp.

The best cosmetic ingredients for curly hair

When buying curly hair cosmetics look for three types of ingredients which task is to moisturise and nourish the strands. They are:

  1. Humectants – moisturising substances which lock in moisture and replenish hair with water. Humectants are: hyaluronic acid, glycerine, aloe juice, honey, urea and panthenol.
  2. Emollients – create a protective layer that restores natural lipid barrier and reduces water evaporation. This group of substances includes: linseed oil, argan oil, olive oil, Shea butter, jojoba butter, silicones, paraffin.
  3. Proteins – regenerate damaged hair. You can find them in: eggs, yoghurt and kefir. Hydrolysed proteins are: silk, keratin, royal jelly, collagen and l-cysteine.

Bear in mind, silicones that belong to the emollient group don’t condition curly hair at all. Indeed, they gift hair with neat look and natural shine because they create an non-porous layer on each hair. The advantage of this solution is that urban pollution is unable to penetrate hair shielded by emollients to harm it. On the other hand, silicones impede penetration of nourishing substances. So what should be done? Don’t use silicones that aren’t water-soluble and can be rinsed off only with SLS shampoo.

How to wash and dry curly hair?

Curly hair has to be washed gently with the use of a matching shampoo. What’s important, cool or lukewarm water should be used for the last rinsing in order to help hair cuticles close. Strands have to be dried with a towel by applying delicate motions. Refrain from rubbing scalp or hair hard. After that, apply a conditioner and detangle hair using a wide tooth comb. If you can’t leave hair air-dried, use a blow-dryer with ion technology and set cool air stream.

Cosmetics for curly hair

Curly hair shampoo should cleanse hair delicately and have light formula that won’t overburden hair. Such cosmetic prevents frizz and static. Also, it controls curls and restores waves and coils natural bounce. This kind of product should contain among others: bamboo extract, proteins and vegetable oils.

Curly hair conditioner should contain emollients that deliver lipid barrier reinforcing and smoothing properties. Furthermore, such cosmetic prevents dehydration, weakening and excessive falling out of hair. Also, conditioner for curly hair leaves hair glossy, improves its condition and helps the strands be more resistant to external aggressors. Similar properties are displayed by natural oils. A popular and effective hair conditioning treatment that requires vegetable oils use is hair oil treatment. If you want to treat your curly hair with oils, you should reach for: sweet almond oil, coconut oil, olive oil.

How to weigh down curly hair?

There are many ways to weight down curly hair. Thanks to this, strands will be gifted with trendy and neat look. The way curly hair look after being cut depends on: your natural hairstyle, thickness of curls and curl type. Therefore, the best and the safest solution is a visit paid to professional and experienced hair stylist. A hairdresser will give you advice on how long your hair should be to match your face. Also, they will give you a few hints on how to take care of curly hair and which cosmetics to use.

Curly hair styling

This isn’t an easy task. Curly hair is fairly hard to tame but, luckily, it can be managed with the aid of matching cosmetics and accessories. Therefore, you can reach for mousses and creams of light formula. Distribute the cosmetics along your hair using a wide tooth comb. A fairly useful curly hair styling tool is a blow dryer that goes with a diffusor. However, if you don’t feel like styling hair professionally, let it style itself.