It’s so easy to get overwhelmed by the volume of information on the internet these days concerning curly or wavy hair. There are a lot of rules and strong opinions out there!

In my opinion when it comes to styling any hair, simple is often best. I will never recommend a whole shelf full of products, and I really believe you should be able to style your curls or waves with one product, maybe two.

So let’s start at the beginning, in the shower with cleansing. I recommend either a detergent free cleanser such as New Wash, or a low foam cleanser like Clever Curl. The reason I don’t recommend shampoo is that in my experience it’s just too drying for curly or wavy hair, which is already prone to dryness. (If you love shampoo and you’re happy with the results you’re getting that’s totally ok. But if you’d like to experience more hydrated hair, there are other options out there)

So once you’ve cleansed your hair in the shower and you’re about to get out, it’s time to reach for your styling product of choice. I have four favourites depending on your texture and desired effect.

Option 1 is Clever Curl Gel (generally I use the humid version as we are here in Auckland):This is great for getting a good cast that will add mega definition to your curls, and lock out frizz. If you find your curls don’t last past day one, it’s worth trying a gel. This has the most hold out of the products I recommend, but don’t worry it won't feel stiff. Once completely dry just squeeze and scrunch out the stiff cast and your curls will be soft and luscious.

Option 2 is Dressed Up by Hairstory: This is actually a heat protection serum that has a light hold. It works great for air drying if you need something to lightly hold your texture, reduce frizz, but a regular gel might feel too much for you. Another benefit of Dressed Up is it’s gorgeous used as a blow dry lotion, adding gentle volume and hold. So if you switch back and forth between sometimes blow drying smooth and sometimes air drying au naturel, then Dressed Up could be perfect for you.

Option 3 is Clever Curl Wonderfoam: This has less hold than the above but gives nice definition, shine and frizz reduction. Lightweight and very soft, definitely helps create springy bouncy texture.

Option 4 is Hair Balm by Hairstory. If you are used to using a curl cream or a leave in conditioner you’ll love Hair Balm. It’s quite concentrated, so you should start small as you learn how much you need (fine hair needs even less). Hair Balm adds moisture, definition, frizz reduction with pretty much no hold. It’s very soft and supple. My favourite use of Hair Balm is on dry hair when I need a little extra frizz control.

So now that you’ve chosen your product, let’s move on to application. I recommend applying a gel to soaking wet hair. That might sound counterintuitive but this will considerably help reduce frizz and enhance your texture. Once you’ve applied it to your soaking wet hair, feel free to flip your head over, rake the product through for thorough distribution and then scrunch/squeeze the excess water out. For Dressed Up, Wonderfoam and Hair Balm you can either apply to soaking wet, or lightly towel dried, but don’t remove too much moisture if you’re trying to avoid frizz.

Next instead of reaching for your favourite fuzzy bath towel I recommend using a microfibre towel or (even better in my opinion) is just a plain t-shirt! You can flip your head over and wrap the t-shirt around your hair like a towel turban and let it sit that way for 10+ minutes while you continue to get ready for your day. This technique is called “plopping” (what a name!) and again, I do feel like it makes a significant difference to your texture definition and frizz, if those two things are a concern for you.

Really all of this is about what you’re trying to achieve, what are your concerns with your hair if any. Personally at the moment I prefer my hair to feel longer, with defined texture, and I’m less concerned with how curly it appears. So I prefer to brush my hair straight after the shower, add either Dressed Up or Wonderfoam and let it air dry.

Finally the decision between air drying and diffusing can be based on a few factors. How much time do you have? Is it too cold to go about your day with wet hair? Do you prefer lots of volume?

Diffusing can add a lot more volume if that’s what you’re after, especially if you tip your head upside down or side to side. It can create a little more frizz, but that does kind of help with the volume so maybe just embrace it. Air drying certainly is the easiest option, but perhaps too time consuming for some. You can also do a hybrid, let it dry naturally for as long as you can stand it and then diffuse. One final tip about diffusing is that it can be helpful to just “hover” the diffuser over your hair while sitting upright, without touching your hair at all with the diffuser for at least 5-10 minutes (depending on density and length). This will help create more of a cast that will ensure great definition and less frizz. After this hovering period feel free to flip your head over for more volume.

I hope these tips have helped. There are countless ways to style naturally textured hair and there is no right or wrong way, just what works best for your hair and lifestyle, and sometimes its helpful to experiment with different techniques or products to find what works for you.

Feel free to ask any questions: info@studiobluehair.com