Don't Blame the Curls

You can have pretty hair, too.

We'll let you in on a secret. Curly hair is not the problem. The problem is that most people, including many stylists, just don't understand the curls. And that often results in bad hair cuts, ineffective styling techniques and products that just don't work.

So we turn to flat irons and blow dryers and chemical treatments and anything, anything at all that we think will control the frizz. That all leaves our hair dry and damaged. So we spend more money on products. It's a vicious, expensive cycle. And the only winners are the product manufacturers.

It doesn't need to be that way. As impossible as it may sound, when you have the right cut, the right type of products, the proper styling techniques, and the understanding of curly hair basics, your curls will  change from frumpy, out-of-control frizz to shiny, healthy, frizz-free curls. The results are almost immediate. 

Ready to be in on the rest of the secret?

Live Curly, Live Free, The e-book, is available for Kindle, iPad and Nook formats. In it, Curl Whisperer Tiffany Anderson-Taylor tells us all we need to know to have healthy, happy curls.

Vacation!

Live Curly Live Free the salon will be closed Thursday, July 19 through Monday, July 30. We will re-open on Tuesday, July 31 at 10:00 a.m.

Curly Girls' Public Enemy No. 2

A few weeks back we wrote about sulfates, which may be in fact be every Curly Girl's Top Enemy.

A close second on our Most Wanted List are silicones, particularly non-water soluble ones. 

For the prettiest of curls,
keep away from silicone!

Now, Curly Friends, take a deep breath. We know silicones seem innocent, perhaps even like they should be our friends. They smooth down the hair shaft and make the frizz go away.  But they're just a temporary fix. Worse yet, they also suck out the moisture from inside the hair, dehydrating curly locks and creating more frizz in the long run.

And because they can't be rinsed away with water, they also build up on the hair shaft and generally require a surfactant (detergent)-based shampoo to remove. Which leads to boring, dry hair. And dry hair won't hold the curls. Yet another vicious cycle in the minefield of curly hair health. In our book we explain more about how all this works, and how to keep curly hair beautifully frizz-free.

Top rule here: You absolutely, positively must use a conditioner that's silicone-free or has acceptable, water-soluble silicones in it to condition your hair. No exceptions, no substitutes. And don't be skimpy when it comes to shampoos. Apply liberally, and let it sit for a few minutes so your hair can absorb what it needs. Rinse out any excess with cool water. Cool water, like acid-based products, will shut your cuticle down and help keep all that healthy product inside your hair shaft where it belongs.

 

Live Curly, Live Free, The e-book, is available for Kindle, iPad and Nook formats. In it, Curl Whisperer Tiffany Anderson-Taylor tells us all we need to know to have healthy, happy curls.

Disney Adds Another Curly-Haired Heroine

Major kudos to Disney and Pixar on their summer blockbuster Brave. 

10,000 Curly Points for Disney-Pixar!

The heroine, Scottish Princess Mérida, is a spunky, fiery and passionate teenager, armed with a bow and arrow and her trusty horse, Angus. Mérida is defiant, yet kind; unruly, yet caring. She's ready to take on the world and set her own fate.

And she has brilliantly red, incredibly curly hair. If Mérida’s curls were straightened, according to the Disney Wiki, her hair would be four feet long and reach the middle of her calf. We here at Live Curly Live Free, of course, are loving the heroine's healthy, bouncy curls. We applaud Disney's and Pixar's efforts to make it happen: It took six research engineers and artists more than three years to bring the groundbreaking strands to life onscreen, movie officials told USA Today.

And we absolutely LOVE the scene in which Mérida sits, against her will, awaiting her suitors. Mérida is looking miserable, her hair bundled under a cap. But then when she releases a curl, she starts to set herself free.

Mérida is expected to join the Disney Princess franchise, and if she does she will be the 11th princess, and only the second with curly hair. (The first, Tiana from the Princess and the Frog, was introduced in 2009.)

* * * *

"We've never seen anything like Mérida's curly hair," Claudia Chung, the movie's simulation supervisor, says in the USA Today article.

We invite Chung to take a seat at our salon, or grab a copy of our book. We'll help release her inner curls.

Live Curly, Live Free, The e-book, is available for Kindle, iPad and Nook formats. In it, Curl Whisperer Tiffany Anderson-Taylor tells us all we need to know to have healthy, happy curls.

It's OK to Jump In!

It's officially summer, which means it's officially Swimming Pool season. And that most often means chlorine, which, as we all know, is not very hair-friendly. 

Go ahead. Take a dip! Yes, you can get your hair wet.

So what's a Curly-Haired Girl to do? Skip swimming and sit there, sweating away, in the 95+ degree heat? No way! Let's jump in! But first things first: Rinse your hair with plain water. That will help prevent chlorine water from penetrating into your hair shaft and doing some real damage.

OK, so you got caught up in the excitement, and -- gasp! -- forgot to rinse? Here's a quick at-home treatment that can help reverse the damage. 

 

Chlorine Buster
This remedy will help reverse any chlorine damage to unprotected hair.
 

Combine:
1 egg, beaten
2 tablespoons olive oil
1/4 cup pureed, peeled cucumber

Massage well into hair from scalp to ends, then cover with a plastic processing cap. Process for 30 minutes hour at room temperature, then cleanse hair with a non-sulfate cleanser.

Want more at-home tips and tricks? Make sure to pick up the latest edition of Live Curly Live Free: Unlocking the Secrets Behind Beautiful Curly Hair.

Live Curly, Live Free, The e-book, is available for Kindle, iPad and Nook formats. In it, Curl Whisperer Tiffany Anderson-Taylor tells us all we need to know to have healthy, happy curls.

Corkscrew or Ringlets? It Doesn't Matter

I have clients with corkscrew curls and I have clients with wavy curls.

As for me, I've always been told mine are spiral ringlets. 

Drop the labels and start
understanding your hair.

We could go on and on, talking about curl patterns and classifications, even giving our curls fun names and descriptions. But you know what? None of that matters.  None of that is going to help you care for your hair. The "kind of curl" has nothing to do with which products you should use or which styling methods you should embrace.

The only thing that matters when it comes to the care of curly hair, like we explain in the book, are your particular hair properties: texture, porosity, elasticity and density. Your wave pattern has absolutely nothing to do with any other hair property. 

Our curls, after all, need to be free. They won't be ruled by labels.

That means knowing if you have “corkscrew” or “spiral” curls, or you are a “5K” or “9T” means a big fat nothing when it comes to the big picture.

Live Curly, Live Free, The e-book, is available for Kindle, iPad and Nook formats. In it, Curl Whisperer Tiffany Anderson-Taylor tells us all we need to know to have healthy, happy curls.

The Problem with Sulfates

Does this belong in your hair?

Sulfates are harsh, drying cleansers found in most regular shampoos. They are extremely damaging to curly hair because they strip it of its natural moisture, making it frizzy and unmanageable.
 

The biggest problem with sulfates is that it is very difficult to rinse your hair and scalp completely clean of them, and that means you leave behind a heavy detergent deposit. In Live Curly Live Free we explain how over time, this continues to build up and damages your hair follicles. Bottom line: This can result in hair loss, comedone (blackhead) formation and irritation.

The good news is that over the past several years, sulfate-free shampoos have become more and more popular. The bad news? Many manufacturers are replacing the sulfates with such things as sodium cocoyl sarcosinate, which can be just as drying to curly hair as sulfates are. 

What this all means is that for happy, healthy, shiny hair, it's not just grabbing a sulfate-free shampoo.  We'll be digging deeper into all this in future blogs.

Live Curly, Live Free, The e-book, is available for Kindle, iPad and Nook formats. In it, Curl Whisperer Tiffany Anderson-Taylor tells us all we need to know to have healthy, happy curls.