Curly hair has always had a bad reputation growing up and being born with curls didn’t seem like a blessing! It instead felt like a curse to most. Whether it be the movies or TV shows you saw, the before and after shampoo advertisements on your screen and billboards, most women were either evil or unlucky to have curls.
Today, however, the reality is quite different with the wave of acceptance for the curly beauties that we see around us. This is apparent from the world of hair care especially crafted for curly locks, which is readily available everywhere. This saves you from giving in to the pressure of unhealthy beauty standards which dictate that only straight hair is beautiful. People have slowly realised that curls need extra care to look, feel, and stay healthy rather than for them to be manipulated by harmful treatments.
Here are a few ways you can begin to take care of your curls, embrace them, and love them!
The Channel 46 caught up with Anshita Mehrotra, Managing Director at Fix My Curls, who advises you on how you can take care of your damaged curls.
1. Switch from cotton towels – to microfibre!
Roughly drying your hair with your bath towel? Stop! Switch to a microfiber towel to reduce frizz and quickly dry your curls without disturbing them. What’s more, this will also reduce breakage on your towel. Microfibre is known to be great for quick drying, without causing friction and, therefore, controlling excess frizz and hair fall.
2. Stop dry brushing your hair!
When you dry brush your curls, you go against their natural pattern and usually cause them to poof up and look bigger and less manageable. Dry brushing with no moisturising agent to help with slip, can cause your hair to break into pieces, and forcefully be tugged off your scalp. This can be painful and affect the quality of your curls. Instead, begin detangling your curls in the shower! Detangle them using your fingers, or a wide toothcomb while your hair is wet and has conditioner in it. The soft slip from the conditioner will help your hair un-knot and detangle with ease.
3. Invest in a leave-in-cream.
Hair cream is an essential ingredient to the perfect hair day. If you experience frizz, dryness, and an overall lack of moisture after you shampoo & condition your hair, you most likely have a hidden curl pattern that needs moisture to bind naturally and form your curl pattern. Once your curl pattern has enough moisture, it won’t feel frizzy or dry, and will automatically become much easier to deal with on a daily basis! A leave-in-cream is an easy addition to your hair care routine.
Simply apply the cream on your freshly shampooed hair after you leave the shower, make sure your hair is wet or damp, and rake this in. Once raked in, scrunch to reveal your natural texture. Let your hair air dry for the nicest results!
4. Avoid heat tools.
Heat tools like straighteners, blow dryers, curling irons and other such hair appliances that use heat to dry and manipulate the natural shape of your hair. These are often the easier method of curbing frizz or oily scalps but are a short-term solution that harms your hair further in the long term. Most people with dry hair need moisture, not more heat! This heat, coupled with UV rays from the sun, causes your hair to feel dry, brittle, and lacklustre. Leave the heat behind and embrace your natural texture instead.
5. Sleep on satin/keep satin accessories.
If you have curly/textured hair, frizz, frizz, and more frizz aren’t alien to you! Ever slept at night on your cotton pillow, and woken up with hair strands all over your pillowcase? This can be the worst feeling. It happens due to the friction between your hair and cotton, the static causes friction. This, in turn, causes tangles and knotting that further lead to your curls having unnecessary breakage. Ditch your usual cotton pillow, especially if you want to preserve your curls and the moisture in your hair, and meet satin! Satin is softer, easier on your skin, scalp & strands, and even has anti-ageing properties.
6. Humid climate? Don’t skip a gel.
Perhaps the most taboo product of all, but the most important if used with the right ingredients – gel! Hair gel is often used to set or keep hair in place. It is vital for curls/waves to keep them intact, protected and safe from having moisture sucked out of your hair and into the air due to the humid climate. Your hair needs protection from not only humidity, especially during the months of June-September but also UV rays and even pollution. Gel, if made without waxes, drying alcohols, and parabens can actually be very beneficial in helping maintain your curl clumping, and therefore, the overall appearance of your hair.
Give these tips a try, and give your curls a chance! Once your curls are treated right, they flourish and your overall hair health will be the best it’s ever been!
Open up like never before and participate in conversations about beauty, entrepreneurship, mental health, menstrual & sexual health, and more. Desi women, join our community NOW!
