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Your porosity is your hair strand’s ability to absorb and retain moisture, kinda like a sponge. If you fall into the type 3 and 4 hair categories, you absolutely can't just hop into bed with loose hair and hope for the best in the morning. That is unless you enjoy tangles and nightmarish snarls that look like you did battle in your sleep. With curly hair, you need to prep it at night so that it looks just as good the next morning.
Limit Silicone Products
"Silicones can enhance shine and flexibility in the short term but can exacerbate hair conditions and [compromise] overall health in the long term."
Styling Tips for Defining Your Curls and Reducing Frizz
Letter A denotes the widest diameter in a given category, C is the narrowest, and B is somewhere in the middle. In accordance with the Andre Walker guidelines, 3A hair is the first and loosest of the curly hair types. Whether you plan to air dry or blow dry your 3A curls, it’s a good idea to apply any products you’ll be using while your hair is still soaking wet.
Minimal Products Needed
And it gets even trickier when you’ve got a mix of curl types, like a smattering of 2c waves (hi, me), or some tighter 3b curls. Basically, curly hair can be hard to decode—which is where I come in. So incorporating moisturizing products into your hair care routine is going to be important.
Mousse Vs. Curl Cream: Which is Best for Natural Hair? (
"There are four basic curl types ranging from 1 to 4," shares Yates. Instead of going with any regular conditioner, which typically lacks the cleansing agents needed to properly remove buildup, try Function of Beauty’s custom co-wash. You can formulate it to suit your unique 3a curls, whether it’s to maintain natural curl definition or combat frizz.
This Lotion Will Get Your Skin Smooth & Silky In No Time — Reviewers Agree
And as a bonus, focusing on moisture can make it easier for you to enhance your curl definition. While humectant-rich products are a great go-to for thirsty curls, don't be surprised if you have to experiment a bit. “3A hair is made up of well-defined and springy curls that have a loopy, ‘S’ shaped pattern. The texture is usually fine to medium and typically doesn’t have much natural body or volume,” says Branch. You have the loosest curls of all three curly types, but they still respond to outside elements the same way that tighter curly types do. Humidity in the air can lead to frizz and fluffy curls, just like in other curly hair types.
This will help enhance your natural curl pattern (which may look like waves when it’s wet). We recommend air drying your curls whenever possible to keep your hair healthy and make heat damage less likely. But it’s perfectly fine to blow dry with a diffuser when you’re short on time or want a perfectly-styled look.
If you have naturally low-porosity hair, products have a hard time penetrating your hair strand, so they end up building up on the surface and weighing down your curls. If you have high-porosity hair products absorb really easily, but also evaporate even easier, leaving your hair perpetually dry. This of this ~milk~ as a cross between a leave-in conditioner and a curl cream. You can use it on its own to moisturize and smooth your curls, or layer it under another curl cream, mousse, and/or gel for even more definition and hold.
Mind the heat.
The Curly Girl Method is a guide for people with wavy, curly, and coily hair types to get their best curls using specific products and styling techniques. The specifics will vary- someone with super-tight coils won’t likely follow the same routine as someone with fine waves- but the idea is the same. By using the best cocktail of ingredients and application methods for your exact curl type, you’ll enhance your natural 3A curl pattern while reducing frizz, dryness, and breakage. Curly hair comes in all different shapes and sizes, and it's important to customize your routine to your hair type and curl pattern.
The 14 Best Hair Dryers for All Types of Curly Hair, Tested and Reviewed by Editors - WWD
The 14 Best Hair Dryers for All Types of Curly Hair, Tested and Reviewed by Editors.
Posted: Fri, 24 Nov 2023 08:00:00 GMT [source]
Following these tips will ensure that you cleanse and maintain proper hydration levels on both scalp & strands without stripping it off its essential oils. This option works to melt through even particularly stubborn tangles, while also infusing hair with much-needed moisture. If you prefer to have your hair out of your face, Bibb recommends trying an undone updo. “Gather the hair at the top of the head and pull out a few ringlets to gently frame the face.” This is an easy, effortless style to do. Learning all the ins and outs of managing your type 3A hair can initially feel overwhelming.
Type 2 denotes wavy hair with no discernible curl, type 3 is curly, and type 4 is coily. Subcategories of A to C further break down the texture and patterns of the strands on the head. 3A curly hair is characterized by loose spirals about the size of a piece of sidewalk chalk, and can be straightened easily.
Because of the curl pattern of type 3A hair, natural oils from the scalp have a hard time making their way to the ends. Using drying hair care ingredients like sulfates and parabens can worsen the issue. But type 2C hair has a zig-zag pattern and 3A hair has an S-shaped spiral pattern.
Type two is reserved for curly hair and is broken down further into 2A, 2B, and 2C. Type three is for curly hair with that stereotypical corkscrew curl and is also divided into three subtypes, including this one as well as type 3B and 3C. And type four is for coily hair (also referred to as kinky-curly), where you'll have type 4A, 4B, and 4C. To protect your curls, use a heat protectant, like TRESemmé Thermal Creations Heat Tamer Spray. Using this product before blow-drying your hair helps guard it against the damaging effects of heat-styling tools.
