Anyone willing to show me their curly hair?

[hoofbeats95]

I have naturally curly hair. I fought it for a long time. Then a few years ago I decided to let it be curly. I have to use lots of product to keep it from just being a frizzy mess. The curls aren''t a tight as some people''s, but it is definitely defined as curly rather than just wavy. It''s just below shoulder length and lightly layered. It ends up in a ponytail most days. I''d like a new hairstyle. Something a bit more "mature" maybe. But still pretty low maintainence. I don''t want to have to straighten it daily. I don''t know what to do with curly hair. So I''m wondering if anyone with curly hair (natural or permed) would post a pic of their hairstyle! I''d surely post what I have right now, but I don''t have a good picture as typically my hair is in ponytails in all pics. I will dig and see if I can find anything.

 

[cdt1101]

I have curly hair. And the key, for me is PRODUCT!! I use Curlisto (link below). The best product for curls in my opinion (and I've used a LOT of different things). I've been to the salon and had a cut there as well, but honestly I don't think a special cut is necessary as long as you have some layers and are using the right product for your hair.

The only pic I have of myself (at work) where you can kind of see my hair is attached. Although, I'm not sure you can really see my 'style', but I don't think I have one anyway, just layers. Please excuse my ridiculous grin, it was a pic taken at my bridal shower last year

Also, I've found when my hair is longer the curls just lay better. Although, I can do up to shoulder length, but it makes my curls tighter looking which I don't like.

http://www.curlisto.com/shop-store.aspx

I use (and this is what I was told to use at the salon for my curls).

Protein Boost (spray on wet hair first)
Structure Lotion
Control 1 Gel

After your spray Protein, you mix a quarter size amount of Lotion w/ dime size amount of Gel and work thru hair. I air dry my hair, but you could diffuse. You may need more product depending on length/thickness. I probably use 2 quarter size of lotion w/ 2 dime size of gel.

Hope that helps!!

 

[Dancing Fire]

sure,but don''t laugh !!

 

[Sparkalicious]

I hear ya ... It''s challenging to deal with curly hair sometimes.
I say that it''s all about a good cut and good product. Once you have those two things - you''re set.

Presently, I am using Graham Webb Making Waves hair gel and I think that its fabulous and I love Fekkai hair products - shampoo and conditioner but have been a long time user of Nexxus products. Any quality hair shampoo/conditioner that is seriously moisturizing/hydrating without being heavy should work well. The better condition your hair is in, the less likely it is to frizz ... especially if you spritz a bit of anti-frizz product on it before facing the elements.

Here is a pic of me and my curly hair. I found that my hair was really easy to manage at this length and super cute. It''s a lot longer right now but I don''t have any pics. ... sorry.

 

[MonkeyPie]

This is the best shot I have of my hair currently, and it''s a little on the old side - about a year. It''s shorter than this now, but looks the same. My curls are not super tight, I''d say they are about mid-way between tight curls and waves.

I will agree with the others, product is your best friend. I shampoo and condition with plain old Suave - the lovely fruity scented kind, my husband loves them - every day and I have never had super frizz or split ends. I blow dry with a diffuser after using a curl activating serum (the brand varies, pretty much any kind I have tried works - right now I am using an Avon brand). If I want bigger curls, I either use big hot rollers or I put curling mousse in it before diffusing. I lightly scrunch my hair up towards the roots as I diffuse.

As for style, what you see in the pic is what I normally do. I put the front back either into two clips or a single one, to keep the curls out of my face.

 

[alli_esq]

ohhh I need help too!! Here is my "hairstyle" if you can call it that! it''s sort of layered...my hair is naturally curly, and it''s layered...but I put a leave-in conditioner in every day to sort of weigh it down...

BUT the leave-in I''ve been using for about 10 years has been discontinued and I''m freaking out!! it is so cheap and great and I''m sooo sad about it, so I need help too...

here are a couple of pics of my hair curly...

 

[alli_esq]

here it is straight--obviously much better, but it takes me FOREVER to straighten it (I have a ton of hair)...

 

[Porridge]

Mine''s not really curly, kinda wavy! I too fight with unruly frizz! And it''s really dry. Nightmare hair

I put serum in it and let it dry on it''s own.
I''ll see if I can attach a pic...past attempts haven''t been very good...

That''s me on the right, with my college roomie. Not to state the obvious but it was a toga party!

 

[Lill_The_Thrill]

I can''t seem to find any good pics showing my curls, so I''ll be back tomorrow with some pics (it''s night time where I am).

 

[tlh]

I''m sooo jealous..

I''d have to dig long and hard to find a picture of me w my 80''s perm... close as I get to any sort of curl.

 

[elrohwen]

I''m with tlh in being jealous of everyone''s lovely curly hair! At least you have the option to straighten - my hair won''t curl to save its life! Haha. Too bad we can''t trade hair for a little while.

 

[squee]

My hair''s naturally curly too, although with the haircut I have now, I straighten it every day. Here''s some pics of when it was curly though. It got REALLY long at one point, as you''ll see, and then there''s some pics of it when it was shorter. Basically, no matter what the length, it always had lots of layers cut into it. I would always ask my stylist to cut lots of layers, but to bear in mind that I liked straightening it too, so he would have to cut it in such a way where it would look good curly or straight. As for drying it, I would hardly ever blowdry it. In fact, I''m positive that it was air dried in all of the attached pics. My curls won''t be well defined and will get frizzy if product isn''t used, so I''m all about adding product and air drying. Usually I shampoo and then put conditioner in at the beginning of my shower, and just leave the conditioner in the whole time I''m showering, then rinse it out just before I get out of the shower. Once out of the shower, I comb through it, and add some Garnier Fructis Sleek and Shine Leave In Cream Conditioner, and then scrunch the heck out of my hair using a towel to absorb any excess moisture. After that, add a bit of John Freida Curl Boosting Mousse or Corrective Styling Mousse (works the same) and finish off with a little bit of Pantene Curl spray just to set it. As it''s drying, I periodically just flip my head over and scrunch it again so it doesn''t get flat. I hope this all helps! Pics attached.

 

[hoofbeats95]

alli_esq - my hair is VERY similar to yours. Though at times it looks a bit looser like Monkey Pie''s. I also have the same cut/stype as alli pretty much. The length varies a bit. I''m lazy about getting it cut. I''d love a super short cut llike sparkalicious - but I think I''d look like I stuck my finger in a light socket! I also straighten my hair at times like alli_esq - but it takes me about 45 mins I think. I also have a lot of hair, though it doesn''t look like it. It''s deceptive. Hair dressers are always shocked. Product recommendations are great! I have been using Loreal Studio Line Tightly Wound Curl Boosting Spray. Bascially a spray gel. I find my hair does better with heavier stuff. But all the stores that were carrying this line don''t seem to be any longer. I haven''t heard of Graham Webb nor Curlisto. I never blow dry my hair. Always air dry. Even with a diffuser I don''t think it would work. I think it would frizz. To be honest I haven''t tried it. But hair dressers like to and if I let them I usually regret it. I think it''s a crime to walk out of a salon with wet hair. At least that is how they react but I usually do it. No matter the time of year. I''m thrilled to see so many curly hair people!

 

[squee]

Another

 

[squee]

When it was mega long!

 

[squee]

Last one. With the boy.

 

[squee]

Hmm... not sure why it''s not working. You get the idea though.

 

[OUpearlgirl]

This picture is old, my hair is much longer now.. But, to get mine like this I use Sunsilk's gel and creme twist. Then I scrunch, scrunch, scrunch! Once my hair dries I attack it with a 1 inch curling iron, to make the ugly curls pretty.

I totally understand your frustrations! I think no 2 days are the same with curly hair!

 

[Linda W]

Date: 3/13/2009 3:03:45 PM
Author: Dancing Fire
sure,but don''t laugh !!

 

[joflier]

I have naturaly wavy hair, but usually straighten it. See if I can come up with a couple of curly pics.....

 

[Skippy123]

Oh my goodness, ALL YOU CURLYTOPS are ADORABLE!!!!!

I use to have permed hair for years because I wished I had curly hair; awww, all you look fabulous!

 

[pinkstars]

When I was younger I had straight hair, but then it got wavier and wavier and now it''s curly. Any regular day I almost always have it in a bun, it''s just so much easier to do that than anything else. But if I do put some effort into it, I''ll usually have half of it back and the rest down. It still takes me a good amount of time to get it under control so that it doesn''t just expand out of control as it dries, as it usually does. What I use daily is Biolage Daily Leave-In tonic, I love it! But then I use a ton of hair spray too. Anyways, here''s a picture of what my hair looks like sometimes on the weekends.
Btw, I love seeing everyone''s curly hair!

 

[trillionaire]

I heart Garnier Fructis'' Curl and Shine shampoo! Makes my hair really silky, then I follow with Brilliant Brunette conditioner. Then I use Cantu Shea Butter leave in conditioner, as well as my moisturizer of the moment. I air dry, and very rarely straighten. I also love Burt''s Bee''s Avocado Pre-shampoo treatment. Great for dry hair!

layers helpfor culry hair, but please find someone who is GOOD with curly hair. Most people aren''t

. also, curly hair can change its curl pattern with the length, so cut it sparingly until you gradually get the desired length.

 

[cellososweet]

This picture is in the middle on the night after a long symphony performance, dinner, drinks (many of them haha), and dancing. In the dead of winter (dry season!) And I think the ''do still looks pretty good if I might say so myself.

My holy grail for curly-ness? No shampoo. Yes, you read that. No shampoo. I haven''t used shampoo in over a year and I have the most manageable, soft, bouncy curls ever. I use a $0.99 conditioner to scrub my hair and a richer conditioner to actually condition. Once every other week I do an "overhaul" day where i scrub with a small paste make of baking soda and tons of water, deep condition with jojoba oil or conditioner, and then use apple cider vinegar with water to restore the ph and get the "bounce" back.

naturallycurly.com has great articles and a fantastic message board on the no shampoo thing. I think there are a couple of other ladies here that are "curly-girl" method users. It''s helped my hair grow twice as fast because I''ve nixed the breakage and it''s so easy to manage in any season or any weather.

It''s not for everyone and you have to make sure you use the right products, but if you do, it can be a life saver.


Cheers!

 

[Sha]

I love curly hair!

I always wonder why people consider it to be a bad thing... compared to straight hair...

Anyhoo...I''d rather not show my pic, but I have short curly hair, similar to cellososweet and Sparkalicious. I''m Afro-Caribbean, so my hair is tightly curled, but I twist it with a curling gel to make the curls more definable. Love it! It suits my natural, carefree, cheery, personaility, I think!

 

[cellososweet]

p.s.- squee, i think we have cat-twins. look at our avatars. Haha!

 

[hoofbeats95]

squee and cellososweet - I wish I had the guts to cut my hair that short. Wow! Very cute.

I have heard of not using shampoo. But I guess I need to get educated about what other products to use in place of that. I''ve also hear to not wash your hair daily, which I tend to do. Thanks for all the pics and tips. I will have to do some research and see if I can find some better products. I''ve used a ton of different brands through the years.

To those that want curly hair - doesn''t it seem like you always want what you don''t have? I''d kill for straight hair!

 

[mrscushion]

I have short curly hair and I love it. It''s incredibly low maintenance. I use DevaCurl products by DevaChan. They are amazing and have made a huge difference for me. The "shampoo" is non-sudsing and very mild. The secret is scrunching the gel into your hair while it''s dripping wet right as you get out of the shower, then absorbing some of the moisture with a paper tower or an old soft t-shirt (no towels -- they frizz you up), then air-drying. Done.


Here''s a pic, it''s not the greatest, but hey.

 

[luvthemstrawberries]

Wonderful thread idea hoofbeats! This is something I''d love to know too. I started the thead a day or two ago about what to do with hair in humidity - mine is naturally curly but I straighten it every day. It''s not really tight curls, but it''s so annoying to try to style curly because it straightens out on top and kinds up in the bottom half. So I end up with hair absolutely FLAT on top of my head, then curling out in kinks starting at my ears. Then frizzy on top of everything else, especially if I try to diffuse dry it with the blow dryer. Argh!!

Straightening it works usually, but when summer and all its Southern humidity hits for 6 months, it''s curl city as soon as I step out the door, no matter how hard I try.

 

[luvthemstrawberries]

Date: 3/14/2009 2:17:15 PM
Author: mscushion
I have short curly hair and I love it. It''s incredibly low maintenance. I use DevaCurl products by DevaChan. They are amazing and have made a huge difference for me. The ''shampoo'' is non-sudsing and very mild. The secret is scrunching the gel into your hair while it''s dripping wet right as you get out of the shower, then absorbing some of the moisture with a paper tower or an old soft t-shirt (no towels -- they frizz you up), then air-drying. Done.


Here''s a pic, it''s not the greatest, but hey.

mschushion your hair is absolutely gorgeous!!! I don''t have the guts to go that short yet, but I''d LOVE to do my hair like that in a few years - after I''ve gotten the "growing it out" phase done for the wedding, and probably definitely by the time I have kids. Low maintenance - I''m THERE!! I think my hair would do like yours if I had it that short. I''ve heard a lot of good things about DevaCurl too.