Need to simplify how you style your curls? Here’s the easy curly hair routine I follow just about every day.
Changing things up
Since becoming a mom, I’ve totally changed up my hair routine. For most of my life, I’ve used some sort of heat styling. But between air drying my hair; continuing to take prenatal vitamins and algae omega; and cutting waaaaayy back on hair dye (I’ve only gotten it highlighted once since June of 2018), my hair is healthier and longer than ever.
Prior to becoming a stay at home mom, I worked full time as a television reporter. For the sake of ease, I typically blew my hair straight and left it for a full week before washing. It takes a long time for my hair to feel greasy so it’s easy for me to go sans washing. At the time, I would use a curling iron to restyle my hair daily into loose waves (Oh how I miss having time to get ready in the morning.)
It takes a bit of time to blow my curls into submission – 45 minutes at the least. But before baby arrived, when I was still working, keeping it straight for the week was overall more efficient. Plus, I felt straight hair looked more polished on TV (although curls will always be my signature). I typically can’t go more than a day with curls because my hair becomes a frizzy, tangled mess. It’s just not a good look. So straight hair was just easier.
My new curly hair routine
Now that I’m a mom, I’m back wearing my hair curly because I’m too lazy to spend the time it takes to blow it straight. Yes, I’d only need to do it once a week, but by the time I put Grace to bed, I’m wiped. All I want to do is take a shower and possibly watch Netflix. Not do my hair. Plus with coronavirus floating around, I’d rather wash it every day.
In the past, styling my hair curly took more work than I’d like to do now. But if I let my hair dry without intervention, it doesn’t result in gorgeous ringlets. Case in point is the picture below. If you’re wondering what my hair would look like if I was on a deserted island, that’s it. Just note, this photo was taken back in summer of 2018 so it’s not my current hair color or length.
In the past when I styled my hair curly, I would shower in the morning and start with towel dried hair. I would apply product, twist my curls into nice ringlets and then using a diffuser to blow dry them.
Now as part of my easy curly hair routine, I shower at night, pull my hair in a bun and let it dry most of the way while I sleep. The next morning, I take my hair down, apply a product or two, scrunch it and am done. Simple as that.
Depending on the product(s) I’m using, I’ll sometimes dampen my hair with water before applying a cream or gel or combination of the two (I explain more about how I use products below). To dampen, I just put my hands under running water and run my fingers through my hair. On the rare occasion, I’ll give my hair a quick blow dry with a diffuser, which I feel gives it a little more volume and structure. However, more often than not, I let my hair dry naturally.
As a mom, there’s not much more time for anything fancier, especially considering my 13 month old daughter likes to wake up anywhere between 4:30-5:30. I just can’t seem to muster up the energy to wake up before her to get ready.
My current favorite curly hair products
Throughout the years I’ve also altered the products I’ve used. When I first started styling my curls in middle school, my go to product was the orange Dep gel (hello 1997).
Now I try to use products that are on the cleaner side, although some are definitely cleaner than others. I’m including the EWG score below, with 10 being the worst and 0 or “EWG Verified” being the best.
Here are my favorite products as of late:
Renpure Tea Tree & Lemon Sage Refreshing Moisture 5-in-1 Treatment. EWG Score: Not listed but similar Renpure products score 4. I sometimes use this spray to dampen my hair before styling. It makes it feel so soft and the tea tree scent is so refreshing.
The Good Stuff Curl Definition Jelly. EWG Score: Not listed but other products from this brand range from 3-6. This stuff is seriously amazing. I think this jelly, combined with the Marc Anthony product below, is my favorite combo. It’s not strong enough to use solo on my hair, but it creates a nice base to layer on other products. My hair definitely needs to be dampened a bit before applying though.
Marc Anthony Strictly Curls Curl Envy Curl Cream. EWG Score: 5. This is my ultimate go-to curly hair product. It adds just enough moisture to rewet and style my curls in the morning. I also don’t find it to be greasy whatsoever like some other products I’ve tried. It also adds control without making my curls crunchy — a style I used to love in middle school but not so much as an adult.
Not Your Mother’s Curl Talk Defining Cream. EWG Score: 4. When it comes to styling my curls, I tend to gravitate towards creams versus gels. I like the scent of this cream (which makes it score less on the EWG scale). It’s a bit stickier than the Marc Anthony Curl Cream, which can be a pro and a con depending on how I style my curls. I find this cream adds less moisture to my hair so I have to wet it a bit before applying. But I do like the way it holds my curls.
Shea Moisture Curl Enhancing Smoothie. EWG Score: 3. Use this product sparingly as it definitely adds a bit of a greasy feel to hair. I find it’s best to apply this to my hair when its on the wetter side. It tends to sit on top of my hair if I apply it when it’s dryer.
Shea Moisture Daily Hydration Styling Gel. EWG Score: 3. This gel provides the most control out of all of the products listed here. That said, it can also lead to crunchy hair if too much is used, so apply sparingly. I like it for high humidity days.
Curly Hair Styling Tips
If you’ve just discovered you have curly hair (which is something I hear more often than you think) or just need some help in the curl department, here are a few styling tips I swear by.
Never brush your hair when it’s dry. The result is just a frizzy mess. I only brush my hair in the shower with a wide tooth comb and most of the time I don’t brush it at all. I just use a lot of conditioner and run my fingers through it.
Always use conditioner (and lots of it). Also, make sure it’s a super moisturizing conditioner because curly hair tends to be on the drier side.
Use more styling product than the bottle recommends. That dime size amount of product? Yeah, it’s probably not going to be enough unless you have short, short hair. I run product through my hair and then some more until I feel the frizz is tamed.
If you blow dry your hair, use a diffuser. Diffusers are the holy grail of curly hair styling. They basically diffuse the air so it’s not blowing a concentrated amount over your curls. While I don’t have time to dry my hair every, I feel a diffuser makes my curls look more put together.
I hope you’ve found this easy curly hair routine helpful. Have a curly hair product you swear by? Let me know what it is in the comments below. Bonus points if it’s a “clean” product!
