Hair Affaire: Curly Hair 101
Collage by Aylea Skye/ Original Images by Unknown Sources
Going Native
There no two ways about it, curly hair is no walk in a park. It is often revered as unmanageable, unruly, untameable; altered (whether that be with a blow dryer, straightening iron or chemicals) to be a straighter, smoother more manageable texture that the western society prefers. Diane von Furstenburg once said,
I used to be very insecure about my curly hair, because I lived in a country where everybody had blonde straight hair.
And this sentiment rings true for many women even in present times. As much as those with straight hair want to touch and fuss over ahead of spiralled tresses, or the #naturalhair movement ensues curly hair girls still struggle to accept and embrace their native hair texture. Part of this is (as alluded to before) due to societies attitude towards less European hair textures; afro and very curly hair is deemed as wild, messy and unprofessional, it’s fondled and fetishized, it’s misunderstood. Afro and curly hair girls are taught to disguise their hair in whatever guise that they can whether that be through straightening it, covering it with weaves, extensions, wigs etc, or simply wearing it is the least obtrusive style as possible. However, it would be deceptive to say that this hasn’t changed at all in the last few years. Curly hair is definitely making a comeback (though it would be a shame if it were simply back in the same vain that flashy designer logos are), and curly hair products are abundant and refined from the crunch inducing products that were on offer not too long ago. There is also a newfangled understanding of what curly hair truly needs, and it’s simply TLC.
Curly Hair Sans Fear
When embracing ones curls there are cardinal points to remember as stated below.
Moisture
If there’s one word to remember it’s moisture. Moisture is too curly hair what water is to plants (and humans come to think of it), essential. If you keep curly hair moisturised it will radiant with health and therefore it will grow with ease. There are two ways to moisturise your hair; the first is with water, the other is with oils. As we all know water can’t penetrate oils so your haircare routine should consist of applying oils or oil-based products onto wet hair, this acts as a seal, locking the moisture in. Natural oils like argan, olive and coconut oil or complex oils like Davines' Oi Oil works well as a leave-in on wet hair, while Rahua’s Condition, Curl Cream or Finishing Treatment and Graydon’s Hair Smoothie are a perfect lightweight leave-in for all hair curly hair textures.
Stay away from sulphates
Sulphates are simply a no for curly hair. One factor of all curly hair is that it is drier than it’s straighter counterparts by nature, and so sulphates, which are salts or sulphuric acid will dry and frizz curly hair types. There are many shampoos and conditioners that are free from sulphates from a multitude of companies and in varied price ranges as exemplified here, however, Graydon and Rahua reign supreme when it comes to natural ingredients, and zero animal testing and by-products.
Deep condition
This step oddly falls into place with Face to Face: Face Mask 101, as with face mask, hair mask should be part of a hair care regime, used at least once a week to keep your hair in en fleek. Hair mask can be made at home with little, and cheap ingredients as showcased in the previous Hair Affaire, however, of course, we don’t all have time for that, so great premade alternatives are Davines’ Nounou Hair Mask and Sachajuan’s Hair Repair.
Oils, Oils, Oils
I know that oils were mentioned previously as a leave in, but in fact, oils should also be used as a treatment. Coconut, almond and castor oil can sometimes weigh down curls as a leave-in treatment (particularly castor oil), and so using them as a pre-wash treatment will allow your hair to seep in all that goodness without a greasy head. To up the ante apply the oils into your hair as a hot oil treatment, meaning that you apply comfortably hot oils into dry hair, apply a hair wrap or shower cap, sleep in it and wash it out the following morning.
Curl Definer
Lastly, you need to find a leave-in curl treatment, that enhances and keeps your curls on pointe. Skimdo’s Original Cream will hold curls for days on days whilst moisturising and adding sheen to your hair, plus it comes in a sleek tub that looks good on your bathroom shelf.