How to Care for Curly Hair

Hi L.,
I'll have to agree the the one who said she is jealous. I'm a redhead and I have very curly hair. I have 4 kids and not a one have curly hair. I have 3 grandkids and not a one have curly hair. I don't even have any redheads so i'm doubly jealous. I ordered a book from Amazon.com called Curly Girl by Lorraine Massey and Deborah Chiel. It's basically about embrasing your curls not fighting them. Very important, don't brush curly hair, it makes it friz. use a comb or your fingers. I use my fingers. I can't remember the last time i brushed or combed my hair
and it's long and I have alot of it.
I bought the book at Amazon.com for like 8 bucks I think. It does have a section for kid's hair. I highly recommend it. Also, here's a great link.

http://www.wikihow.com/Follow-the-Curly-Girl-Method-for-C...

I have been following this method for several weeks. My hair don't feel or smell dirty, I don't use a bunch of product in my hair, I don't blow dry it or use a curling iron. My curls are more defined and more bouncy. I have got alot of complements on my hair and people asking me what have I done differently. My husband has even commented on how he likes the way my curls bounce. He never notices anything. I love love love it.
Good luck to you.
jae

1 mom found this helpful

Get a spray bottle, and every morning spray her hair down until it's wet. It will do the trick because it will dry just like after a bath. Curly hair gets frizzy at night because it's being rubbed against the bed all night.

My daughter's hair sounds like it has the same issues. We like the leave in conditioner as previously suggested (it also makes brushing far less painful for both of us) but we also really like the new Johnson's and Johnson's no more tears for curly hair. It is in a green bottle and since it is from J&J, it really is for kids. The Mango Tango from Revelon kids line seems to work well too but I liked the J&J better. Hope that helps.

Hi L.,
I love Avon dry end serum!! it is the best de-tangler I've ever found.

L.

Just rewetting it in the morning and scrunching it should do the trick. My daughter has the same kind of hair and I just rewet it in the morning, use a pick to comb through it and a tiny amount (just enough to take out the frizz) of mousse to scrunch it up to give it body. I use Suave mousse from Wal-mart.

As a curly girlie myself, I can tell you that all curly hair is a mess in the morning. The best thing to do is to spritz it with a mist of water after combing or picking through it to remove the tangles.

There are some good de-tangling mists that you can try too. They won't put too much product in her hair, but they will help to prevent tangles and keep her hair well conditioned.

You don't want to comb or brush curly hair after it's been misted. Just give it a lift with your fingers, or use a wide toothed pick to arrange it.

Just re- wet it and the curls should come back and the frizz leave. I was born with naturally curly hair, Love it. When all the girls Moms were putting curlers in thier hair I thought how cool that I didn't have to go through that pain.

First of all, let me tell you how jealous I am! ;) I have very fine, curly hair but my husband obviously has the dominant gene there. All of my kids have very straight hair. I just wanted one curly head!

Anyway, try spritzing her hair with plain water and finger combing it. Do not comb or brush her hair when it is dry. If the water itself doesn't work, maybe try adding a little baby oil or gentle conditioner or detangler to it.

Ah, the joys of curly hair:) I have very curly hair and my 2-year-old got it (10-month-old still has very little hair, bu I think it's going to be curly as well). I recommend getting a squirt bottle and putting 1/3 conditioner and 2/3 water in it. Spray her hair with it in the morning. It will help with the frizz. You can get calming "balms" and other various natural products from companies like Burts Bees if you want more than just the conditioner solution.

A fine spray from a water bottle and smoothing/scrunching her little curls with your hands will do the job nicely.
Hopefully it will stay curly, sometimes after it is cut the first few times the curls go away just as they can as she gets older the weight of her longer hair can pull the curl out.

Hi L.,
I have a bi-racial daughter and have been battling with her hair for a long time. Her hair is not dry or kinky, it is quite soft, and it makes the perfect little ringlets when it's wet. She has the same issues - it looks adorable when it's wet, but frizzes once she's moved around a bit.
When she was about 1, I finally gave up with the toddler or baby products. I know you want to avoid it, but you'll probably have the best results by switching. On her hair I use herbal essences "None of your Frizzness" Shampoo and Conditioner. Here's the real trick that I've learned to keeping it curly... When it's still damp, comb it and then put moose in her hair with your fingers and scrunch it up - don't comb it again. I'll then put it in a headband or take the top section and clip it back and just leave it like that. It looks adorable and doesn't frizz like it used to! Good luck!

I have curly hair and so does my daughter. Ours however is very thick and very unruly! I know you don't want to use styling products, but I have found that a leave in conditioner first thing in the morning really helps the dryness. I also braid her hair after a bath, so in the morning it is not in too many tangles.
I found that Aussie leave-in works great.

When my daughter with curls was younger we used "no more bedhead." It was like a detangler, just spray and scrunch. It worked like a charm. I've found with curly head #2, that not bathing everday helps, I only wash her hair about twice a week. The natural oils make it shiny and keep the frizz down. She's just about to turn 2. This summer we'll have to do more baths because she'll be active and sweaty, but for the winter months it seems to be working.

Hi L.. My daughter has fine curly hair too. She is 4. In the mornings we spray her hair with the detangler spray from johnsons and that brings back her curl! We keep her hair pretty short too, because when it is longer all the curl comes out since her hair is so fine! I hope that helps!

S.

A friend of mine from India uses Jasmine Oil on her daughters curly hair to keep the frizz down. You can buy it for only a few dollars at an Indian grocery store.

My daughter has the same kind of hair and her hair does the same thing...super curly-cute after the bath, frizzy mess in the morning. When I know we're staying in, I just let it do what it does (after I've GENTLY run wetted down hands through it to get out any tangles). But if I know we'll be going anywhere, I'll try to get the curls back by running wet hands through her hair (I would probably use a little spray bottle instead, if I could remember to buy one!) and then use a little bit of her baby lotion to keep it curly. I know it sounds crazy, but it actually works. At the moment, I use Aveeno Baby lotion, on both her body and her crazy, curly hair. Again, I don't use it everyday and when I do, I don't use a lot of it, so I don't know what it would do to her hair on a daily basis. But for that special occassion, it works very well.

I'm not sure about a brand, but I would go on Vitacost and see if you can find a natural, leave-in conditioner and just use a dab of it. I have curly hair that is frizzy in the morning, so I use smoothing goop, but that would be too much for a toddler's fine hair. Try putting a little more of the leave-in conditioner on it in the morning, and then lightly mist it with water to spring the curls back. Curly hair does best air-dried, but in the cold winter, at least blow it dry with a diffuser (it won't blow around or frizz so much) at the roots after washing it so she doesn't get chilly.

L.,

I too have fine curly hair, and my baby looks to have the same, so I'll be encountering this problem soon too! I know you said no products, but would try just a little bit of leave-in conditioner to smooth out the frizzies and reshape the curls. Rub a tiny bit in your hands and work it through, then scrunch with your fingers to bring back the curls. That should do it, and they may even make it for toddlers, but I'm not sure. Good luck!

C.

Hi L.,
My daughter had the same issues with her hair when she was a toddler. I didn't want to use products on her either. So, almost every morning I would spray her hair with water in a spray bottle and let it air dry. It took care of her frizzy look. Some mornings it didn't get done because we were in a hurry. Good luck,
T.

L.,

I don't know how long Mia's hair is, perhaps not very since she's only 1, but usually just scrunching curly hair with a little bit of water will re-awaken the curl and tone down the frizz a bit. Another pointer, once the tangles come, comb from the ends - don't start at the roots - and I use a wide-toothed comb. I also use the No More Tangles or any shampoo that has added conditioner (NMT is made for kids). Good luck! Growing up with curly hair and now having a little one with curls as well, I know how challenging they can be, but at the same time I wouldn't trade them for anything because my morning routine is easier than many straight-haired women I know! And they are way cute!

A.

just spray a little water on it and run your fingers through it.

As long as you use something gentle like baby leave in conditioner you can spray it on her hair when she wakes up, my granddaughter has the same issues, just like her mom. I made the mistake of cutting (my own daughters) it all off when she was about 4, she did not have curly hair again until she was pregnant.