You find it annoying when your hair looks messy and dry in almost every photo you take.
You can’t understand how some girls have healthy curly hair while your hair looks frizzy and always out of place.
You want your hair to look neat and beautiful. But you don’t know where to start.
I have curly hair and I want to talk about how I went from having very messy hair, to having beautiful curls I am so proud to wear out.
Let’s begin.
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13 reasons why your curly hair looks so messy and dry + how to fix them
1. Your hair isn’t moisturized before leaving the house
Having curly hair has many perks like hair volume and the ability to hide bald spots as we grow older but curly hair requires maintenance.
It can look a little frizzy if your hair isn’t moisturized or styled before going out.
Before leaving the house, spritz some water on your hair using this spray bottle (it has a uniform mist and is made especially for curly hair) and run your fingers through your hair to detangle your curls, and then use a curl cream.
I have been using this Cantu Cream for years now and it’s my holy grail.
Make sure you add some water to the cream (to create an emulsion) and then with the preying motion add the cream to your hair while coating all your hair strands.
This will give you beautiful, moisturized, and defined curls.
Your hair doesn’t need much time to dry if you don’t weigh it down with too much water.
But if you don’t like leaving your home with wet hair, you can diffuse your hair with a diffuser on the lowest setting.
2. You are suffering from heat damage
I used to straighten my hair a lot in college – especially my bangs.
This damaged my hair immensely.
According to Dyson, high heat changes the shape of your hair’s keratin strands. Temperatures over 300°F convert the ⍺-keratin to β-keratin. This means the entire structure of your hair changes and becomes weaker – which eventually leads to dry and brittle hair strands and eventually hair loss.
If you are recovering from heat-damaged hair, it will take time.
But eventually, it will get better.
So if you want healthy curly hair, please avoid heat as much as possible.
If you have to use heat, make sure you do it rarely and use a heat-protection spray.
3. Your hair needs more moisture
If your hair is always dry no matter what you do, perhaps you need some moisturizing treatments.
The best way to moisturize your hair is to do a hair mask at least once a week.
After I started deep-conditioning my hair once a week or bi-monthly, I noticed a significant change in the way my hair looks and feels.
It’s softer, shiny, and smoother. My frizz has decreased significantly.
I am currently loving the SheaMoisture Intensive Hydration Hair Mask and I am going through a tub every month thanks to my hair length.
This hair mask contains Manuka Honey which is an ingredient that heals and repairs damaged and dry hair intensively.
You’ll find your hair extremely soft and smooth after you use this mask.
Shampoo your hair before using the mask and leave it on your hair for 5 minutes.
Rinse after 5 minutes. Don’t shampoo your hair again.
4. You haven’t had a haircut in a long time
Hair grows from the root and not from the ends.
So if you don’t trim your ends at least once in six months, you are going to end up with split ends and dry tips.
These split ends can rise further and further up your hair shafts which will end up drying and damaging the rest of the hair strands.
That’s why it’s very important for curly girls to get a trim at least once in 4-6 months.
You just have to trim the split ends, you don’t need to cut off inches.
5. You are towel-drying your hair
As a curly girl, it is important that you never, ever towel-dry your hair.
Towels have rough fibers that split up curls and cause a lot of frizz.
So, use a microfiber towel (specially made for curly hair) like this or a large tee shirt.
And instead of using the rubbing motion to dry your hair, gently pat down your hair so that you don’t disrupt your curl patterns.
6. You’re touching and styling while it’s still wet
Once you’ve applied your styling products to your hair, avoid touching your hair and trying to style it.
If you have to make changes to your parting or change something, spritz your hair with water and then style your hair.
The more you touch your hair, the more you’re disrupting your natural curl patterns and breaking apart your curl clumps.
7. You’re not protecting your curls when you sleep
As your hair gets longer, you need to care for it more.
Curls are more prone to dryness because it takes the sebum (produced in our scalps) longer to reach the tips.
That’s why we need to care for our curls more.
So, when you’re sleeping, use a satin pillowcase or put your hair up in a pineapple using a satin scrunchy.
Make sure that your bun is very loose so that you don’t feel pressure anywhere on your scalp and keep your bun on the top of your head to avoid friction on your pillow.
8. You’re brushing your hair
Never, ever brush your hair if it’s curly.
If you need to detangle, then use a lot of conditioner while you’re still in the shower and gently run your fingers through your hair to detangle your curls.
Brushing not only breaks and damages curly hair strands but also causes very dry hair.
If you need to comb your hair in the shower, use a wide-toothed comb like this to help spread the product in your curls and gently detangle your hair.
9. Over-shampooing your hair
Straight hair gets very greasy fast because the sebum and oils produced in the scalp spread throughout the hair quickly.
But curly hair doesn’t work that way.
Because of our hair structure, it takes longer for the sebum to move through the strands and reach the ends.
So, if you over-shampoo your hair too frequently, you’re going to wash away all the protective oils from your hair that is keeping your hair strong.
Over shampooing will lead to dry and frizzy hair.
10. You’re using regular scrunchies
For most of my life, I’ve used regular cotton bands as scrunchies.
It not only used to pull out a lot of hair every time I took it out, but it would cause severe detangling.
I switched to using these satin scrunchies and my hair loss reduced significantly – your hair won’t get stuck in this scrunchy and it’s much smoother for your hair.
I noticed less detangling and hair loss, so I highly recommend them. They’re a game-changer!
11. You’re blowdrying your hair
Many salons after cutting your hair or doing a hair mask will offer you a complimentary blow-dry.
Say no, always.
Blowdrying damages curls severely. And I highly recommend staying away from heat altogether.
If at all you have to use heat, please use a heat-protectant spray like this.
12. You’re not wearing protective hairstyles when going out in the sun
Because curly hair is more prone to dryness and damage as compared to other hair types, it’s always preferable to protect your hair when you’re going to be out in the sun all day.
If you live in an area with a lot of sun and humidity, then chances are you’ll experience more frizz than normal.
Humidity and salty hair dry up curly hair very quickly and you’ll find your hair getting very messy and dry within a matter of hours.
So, whenever you do go out in this hot weather, please wear protective hairstyles.
You can tie your hair up in a bun and use a silk scarf over your bun to keep your hair protected.
13. You’re dehydrated
Unfortunately, I cannot for the life of me remember to drink water unless I have a glass in front of me.
And your skin, hair, and nails are the first to show signs of dehydration.
If you find that your hair is dry no matter how much you are moisturizing it, chances are you are just not getting enough water.
Try drinking more water and healthy juices and changing up your diet so that you are including more protein in your food.
Food that is good for hair includes avocado, salmon, nuts, etc. to help nourish your hair from within.
Conclusion
Please understand that even if your hair is damaged from heat and chemicals, the effects are reversible but it takes time.
It took me 2-3 years to fully recover from my chemical straightening. I also chopped off a lot of the damaged hair so I could start from scratch.
If however, you don’t color your hair or apply heat, then getting to smooth curly hair is doable if you follow these tips to a tee.
