Curly hair asks for a routine built around moisture and a light touch. Wash gently, and less often than you might wash straight hair. Condition generously and leave a little care in. Apply a curl cream or gel while the hair is still wet, then let it dry with as little handling as possible, in the air or under a diffuser. Between washes, a mist and a scrunch bring the shape back. Below is each step, and what we would choose for it.
Why Do Curls Need a Different Routine?
The scalp's natural oil travels easily down a straight strand. On a curl it has bends to pass, so the lengths and ends of curly hair often feel drier than the root. The outer layer of a curl also tends to lift a little at each turn, which lets moisture escape and gives frizz its chance. So curls are happier washed with care, and most of what you put on them is there to keep moisture in and help each curl hold its shape.
A Gentle Shampoo or a Co-Wash
How often you wash is yours to judge. Many people with curls wash once or twice a week; if your scalp feels oily sooner, wash sooner. When you do, put the shampoo on the scalp, massage with the fingertips, and let the rinse carry through the lengths rather than rubbing them together. A co-wash, a cleansing conditioner, is the softer alternative: it cleans with very little lather, and some people use it on alternate wash days.
Rene Furterer's Sublime Curl Shampoo is made for wavy and curly hair, with acanthus extract and evening primrose oil, and is massaged into the scalp before rinsing. Goldwell's Dualsenses Curls & Waves Hydrating Shampoo includes milk protein, and the house highlights colour protection, which suits curls that are also coloured. Wella Professionals' Nutricurls Curls Shampoo is a micellar shampoo for curls with medium nourishment. Milk Shake's Curl Passion Shampoo is made for curly hair, in a pump bottle.
- Sublime Curl Shampoo
- Dualsenses Curls & Waves Hydrating Shampoo
- Nutricurls Curls Shampoo
- Curl Passion Shampoo
Conditioner, Then Something Left In
Conditioner is where a curly routine does most of its work. Smooth it through the mid-lengths and ends, then detangle while it is in, with your fingers or a wide-toothed comb, starting at the ends and working up. Leave it for a moment before rinsing. A leave-in conditioner or cream then goes on damp hair and stays there, so the curls begin the day with a layer of care before any styler.
Phyto's Hydra Curl Complex Curls Hydration Conditioner is made for wavy and curly hair, with illipé seed butter, and is applied to the lengths and ends, left briefly and rinsed. Alfaparf Milano's Semi di Lino Curls Enhancing Conditioner is a creamy conditioner for wavy and curly hair, focused on definition. Bumble and bumble's Bb. Curl 3-In-1 Conditioner can be used three ways, as a rinse-out conditioner, a leave-in or a co-wash, a sensible single tube for a simple routine. Kativa's Keep Curl Definer Leave-In Cream is applied to damp hair and left in, for definition and softness.
- Hydra Curl Complex Curls Hydration Conditioner
- Semi di Lino Curls Wavy & Curly Hair Enhancing Conditioner
- Bb. Curl 3-In-1 Conditioner
- Keep Curl Definer Leave-In Cream
Curl Cream, Gel or Mousse, on Wet Hair
Stylers work best on hair that is still wet, before the curls have started to separate and frizz. Squeeze out the excess water gently, then apply in sections. Rake the product through with your fingers, or smooth it over the hair between your palms, and scrunch upwards towards the scalp to encourage the curl. Then leave it alone.
- A curl cream gives softness and a gentle, touchable definition. It suits drier curls and anyone who prefers a natural finish.
- A gel gives more hold and keeps curls grouped for longer. As it dries it can leave a slight firmness, often called a cast; once the hair is fully dry, scrunch gently to soften it.
- A mousse is the lightest of the three, spreading easily through damp hair for definition without weight, suiting finer curls and waves.
- Many people layer them: a cream first for softness, a gel on top for hold.
Eleven Australia's Keep My Curl Defining Cream is a lightweight cream for defining curls and waves and taming frizz. Maria Nila's Weightless Curl Definer is a light curl defining gel that pairs light moisture with light hold. Olaplex's N°10 Bond Shaper Curl Defining Gel brings the house's bond-building technology to a gel made for definition and frizz control. Shu Uemura's Kaze Wave Curl Mousse gives a flexible hold and a soft finish; shake it well and work it through damp hair.
- Keep My Curl Defining Cream
- Weightless Curl Definer Light Curl Defining Gel
- N°10 Bond Shaper Curl Defining Gel
- Kaze Wave Curl Mousse
Drying: Diffuser or Air
However you dry, blot rather than rub. A soft cotton T-shirt or a smooth towel pressed gently against the hair removes water without roughing up the curls. Air drying is the gentlest choice when you have time: keep your hands out of your hair until it is completely dry. A diffuser is the quicker route. It spreads the dryer's airflow over a wide bowl, so the curls dry without being blown apart. Use a low heat and low speed, cup sections of hair in the bowl, hold for a moment, then move on. For the dryer itself, our guide to choosing a hair dryer for your hair type covers heat settings and attachments.
Refreshing Curls Between Washes
By the second or third morning, curls can flatten. There is no need to wash again. Mist the hair lightly, with water or a refreshing spray, scrunch upwards, and let it settle. A few drops of oil smoothed over the ends can calm any frizz. At night, a loose, high ponytail on the crown or a smooth pillowcase helps the shape survive until morning.
Parlux's MagicSense Special Diffuser fits most Parlux dryers, with a vented head and prongs to spread the airflow, and the house suggests a low heat setting. Redken's Refreshing Curl Mist, with squalane and jojoba oil, is misted through dry curls from mid-lengths to ends to bring back shape between wash days. Phyto's Hydra Curl Wake Up Curls Spray can be used on dry or damp waves and curls, then scrunched to revive the pattern. Bouclème's Curls Redefiner Revive 5 Hair Oil is a blend of botanical oils: warm a few drops between your palms and smooth them over the mid-lengths and ends.
- MagicSense Special Diffuser
- Refreshing Curl Mist
- Hydra Curl Boucles Curls Wake Up Curls Spray Hair Spray
- Curls Redefiner Revive 5 Hair Oil
The Routine at a Glance
- Wash when your scalp asks for it, with a gentle shampoo on the scalp or a co-wash.
- Conditioner through the mid-lengths and ends; detangle while it is in, then rinse.
- A leave-in conditioner or cream on damp hair.
- A curl cream, gel or mousse on wet hair, raked through and scrunched.
- Blot, then air dry or diffuse on low heat, hands off until fully dry.
- Between washes, mist, scrunch and smooth a little oil over the ends.
When to Ask for Advice
Curls change with the seasons and over the years. Change one product at a time, so you can see what your hair responds to. If your scalp is itchy, flaking or sore, ask a pharmacist or doctor before changing products.
If you change only one thing this week, make it the moment you style: apply your curl cream or gel while the hair is still wet, then leave it alone until it is dry.
