Curly hair is a journey. Everything you do and don’t do will affect the health of curls. Creating a healthy routine will help to improve the overall health of curly hair. A quality curly hair regimen improves moisture retention, detangling time is minimized, and hair growth increases due to less damage. The following regimen below is a recommendation. Adjust as necessary to fit your child’s specific needs.
- When developing a schedule, keep in mind:
- what style and products you want to use
- time (how long to do that particular style)
- events (birthdays, holidays, or family photos)
- weather: humidity, the weather will create frizz; makes straight hair go curly
- give curly hair breaks from manipulation and tension
- Daily:
- Refresh Curls with Water (Mister Spray bottle is the best!) and a leave-in Conditioner
- Wear a Satin Bonnet to bed
- Weekly:
- Main Wash Day
- Wash Curly Hair with a cleanser once a week (Sunday)
- Focus on washing the scalp and removing build-up
- *Make sure cleanser is a sulfate-free shampoo
- Condition Hair
- Use a rinse-out conditioner. Be sure to section hair to be able to reach all strands
- *Make sure conditioner is silicone-free
- Leave-In Conditioner: apply on wet/damp hair
- Detangle curls while wet with a conditioner or detangler
- Style: Braids, ponytails, twists, bantu knots, etc.
- * If tangles and dryness are an issue, do not wear curls down often.
- Wash Curly Hair with a cleanser once a week (Sunday)
- Mid-Week Wash
- If needed and not already in a protective style;
- Wash Curly Hair with a Co-Wash mid-week (Wednesday)
- Main Wash Day
- Bi-Weekly
- Do a Deep Conditioning Treatment
- Leave deep conditioning mask in for 15-20 mins with a plastic cap; rinse out
- Do a Deep Conditioning Treatment
- Monthly:
- Wash Curly Hair with a Clarifying Shampoo
- Removes all of the product build-up
- If your clarifying shampoo contains sulfate, you must add lots of extra moisture afterward (leave-in conditioner, deep conditioning treatment, etc)
- Wash Curly Hair with a Clarifying Shampoo
- 4-6 Months:
- Trim dead ends. This can be a full-out cut, or “dusting” to snip off the split ends. DIY cuts are better than no cuts at all! Try to do box braids and then snip off the ends with these scissors.
Style Regimen:
- Alter between styles each week. Using a variety of styles will help protect hair, allowing it to grow healthy and prevent breakage. Here’s an example:
- Week 1: Box Braids (depending on the size, this can last 2-3 weeks.
- When removed, the scalp needs to rest at least a week before putting in more braids.
- Week 2: Refresh box braids with moisture (spray water and leave-in conditioner); oil the scalp as needed
- Week 3: Wash and Go for 1 day; followed by Braided Pigtails or Space Buns
- Week 4: Cornrows (should last about 2 weeks)
- Week 5: Refresh Cornrows (braids should be re-moisturized every 1-2 days with water and a leave-in conditioner) Scalp should be oiled as needed.
- Week 6: Wash and Go for 1 day; followed by a Rubberband Style for the remainder of the week.
- When removed, do not use rubber bands in the same spots for another week or two to prevent breakage/tension in the same area.
- Wash and Go
- Leaving curls down will lead to dryness and tangles. If you choose to leave hair down, only do so for a day or two. You know your child’s hair best. If leaving it down is not an option due to tangles, skip leaving it out.
- Week 1: Box Braids (depending on the size, this can last 2-3 weeks.
- Silicones and Sulfates are not good for Curly Hair.
- If you use a silicone product, it blocks moisture from getting into the hair strands.
- If you use a silicone, you must use a sulfate to remove the silicone. Sulfates are extremely drying, so this must be followed by a deep conditioning treatment.
We hope this advice helps you on your child’s curly hair journey. If you need further tips and advice, please subscribe to our newsletter:
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