CURLS AND COCO: STRINGY, DAMAGED CURLS TO HEALTHY, SOFT CURLS!

I've tried many things in the past to make my curls easier to handle instead of embracing the knotty, time consuming challenge that I was naturally blessed with. I put hundreds of dollars of relaxing treatments in my hair for about 3-4 years! It loosened my curls so it was easier to manage, but I could not help but notice that my hair would break much easier and my curls were not looking quite curly anymore. I was so upset about how my hair looked as I entered high school because I had every intention to look good with my relaxed, easy to straighten hair...but I just ended up with a stringy, frizzy mess. And when I wanted to wear my hair curly, it did not look healthy at all!

I wanted my curl back! I was ready to embrace the blonde curly mop I had...but it was not looking very good...so please keep reading to find out how I transformed my hair and to see my before and after!

Deep Condition

Deep condition once a week! I usually did it every Friday or Sunday because it just worked for my schedule that way. If you can fit it in every 3-4 days thats great too, depending on your hair's need for hydration and how it's reacting to the conditioning. Make sure you focus a lot on your ends, but make sure you put product through your whole head of hair. Then I like to put it up in a lose bun or braid it while it sits in my hair for an 30 mins to an hour depending on how much time I have. Then rinse out in shower with warm water. When I get my hair professional deep treated at Ouidad (Westport, CT), they put my hair up in a plastic hair cap and put me under the dryer for a while. I don't do that on my own though and found that the product works just as well when I do it at home as well.

My favorite deep conditioners: Aussie 3 Min. Miracle ($7), Briogeo Deep Conditioning Mask ($36),

Ouidad Deep Treatment Restoration Therapy $52, Loreal Advanced Total Repair ($6).

Curly hair specialized hair cuts

This is extremely important but also very, very scary for a girl like my who loves her hair long! BUT it's so important to cut off the dead ends and layer your hair properly to help hair growth and the overall appearance of your hair. Trust me, your hair will look so much better once it is trimmed and taken care of. Look at my before and after pictures below to see why I should've trimmed mine while I was transitioning back to my curly hair!

The best tip I can give you is going to a place that is approved and specializes in a DevaCurl haircut or Ouidad curly haircut. Make sure you always do your research before booking an appointment to make sure they have cut curly hair before. Also look for websites with before and after pictures!

Detangling with Less Damage

Do not, I repeat, DO NOT detangle your hair when it's dry or wet without conditioner or detangler in it. You will cause more harm than good by doing that! I also would advise purchasing a wide tooth comb to keep in the shower. Put conditioner that has a good slip to it by starting in the middle of your hair and working it downward. Then put it toward the scalp being mindful to not completely coat your scalp in conditioner. Section off your hair into three parts if it long like mine. Start by detangling your ends and working your way upward! Finger combing works just as well but sometimes I don't get all the knots with my hands so a wide comb works good for me. Then I rinse out most of the conditioner from my scalp but half way rinse out everything else, trying to leave in some conditioner in the ends.

A good basic one is this large tooth detangle comb ($4), or a more heavy duty one that looks like a weapon is this Ouidad double detangler comb ($26).

Cleansing Conditioners / No-Poo

Cleansing conditioners/co-washing are great to make sure your hair is maintaining it's natural oils and not being stripped of nessecary nourishment it needs to grow and be strong. It is great to do a full wash that really cleanses everything every week and a half to 2 weeks depending on how much you are sweating. Otherwise, no-poo / sulfate free shampooing is a wonderful way to keep curly hair soft and moisturized. I found that Devacurl's No Poo Shampoo was awesome and I loved using it because of how soft my hair was and brought the curls back to life.

Wen Cleansing Conditioner ,I used this for a few years because it was a cleansing conditioner and really brought the bounce back into my dead, stringy curls. First, scrub your scalp with the Wen with your fingertips, but do not use as much as you would when conditioning. Second, rinse scalp free of the product. Third, condition and detangle middle and ends of hair as normal.

Protective Hairstyling

I am a big beach girl, love the pool, and workout almost every day. I found that the chlorine absolutely ruined my hair as a kid, I had a pool at my house and swam almost every day in the summer. The trick was for me, before i got into the pool I brought my conditioner outside with me, hosed down my hair in the grass and put a few pumps of conditioner in my hair. Then I pulled my hair back into a bun or braids to ensure that moisture would stay somewhat locked in. You cannot go wrong with braids ever!