We’re going to cover all the things you need to know about hydrating your curls including what water means to a curl, where frizz comes from, tips so you don’t drive yourself crazy, and a few common terms and techniques you can use to get water and moisture into your hair. And, last but not least…I’ll give THREE THINGS you can start doing TODAY to prepare yourself to SET YOUR HAIR FREE!

I truly want you to walk into this journey truly understanding how important it is to learn how to properly hydrate your hair, and how to maintain and protect that hydration. I almost want you to obsess over this.

What I DO NOT want you to do is think you have to master hydration and all of the information and terminology presented in the post before you start…I just think it will help you AS YOU START on your journey to be somewhat familiar with the concept, and to have at least seen the terms. The Curly World is FULL of jargon that makes ZERO SENSE if you’re new to it!

It’s not so much that it’s an important concept to focus on during your final wash (we will be coving that next week), but it might be something helpful to think about and consider while you are going through that process of washing your hair with regular shampoo (with sulfates) for the last time.

WHAT WATER MEANS TO A CURL

Random confession: I remember years ago my stylist said something something to the effect of my hair being dryer from coloring it would make it curlier…like dryer hair would be curlier. I remember being a little confused by that, because how can dry hair be good for any reason? That should have been my red flag to dive deep into curl research. I was tired. I didn’t really care. I just moved on about my life.

The opposite is actually true. A truly hydrated curl is one that is going to seriously pop, shine, and do it’s thing. Curly hair is naturally dryer than straight hair. Also, when hair is brushed, this distributes the natural oils from your scalp throughout your hair…when was the last time you REALLY brushed your curly hair? That’s what I thought…

Moisture is what helps a curl to take it’s shape. Without it, nothing is going to hold. If you struggle with frizz, consider this:

So…if you have frizz, your hair needs more water. That doesn’t necessarily mean that you need to just pour more water on your head…we’ll talk more about frizz and how to lock in moisture later…In the meantime, here are some things to consider that might help you retain moisture in your curls as you begin your curly journey:

• Spend time working water and conditioner into your hair when you cleanse and condition. (See techniques for this below)
• Locking the moisture in is one major key to success. (We will cover this later)
• Hydration starts from the inside: DRINK LOTS OF WATER!

Here’s are some things I want you to remember about water as you walk this road:

• You will think you have moisture figured out… then something will change.
  • the seasons/weather
  • your hormones
  • product ingredients
  • your day to day life.
• You will think you have it figured out and not be thrilled with your results.
  • Give it more time. You’ll figure something else out next week…or maybe even tomorrow.
  • Just because something works for someone else, does NOT mean it’s going to work for you.
  • Your curly journey will evolve over time…that’s part of the fun!
  • What happened with your hair today, might teach you what NOT to do tomorrow.
• Water WILL become your friend.
  • You WILL learn what truly hydrated hair feels like on your head.
  • You WILL no longer be afraid to go in the rain.
  • You WILL be able to SWIM – in POOLS AND OCEANS – without fear!

Below, you’ll see little snapshot into my hydration journey…what I thought was hydrated has changed so much over the last two years. I share this because I want you to understand something: NO ONE is expecting this go perfectly for you from the gate! You will learn, you will get better, it will make sense. I didn’t understand much of the terminology used to describe curly hair until I actually achieved them…so, please don’t drive yourself crazy. Take things one day at a time and enjoy the ride!

Strategies and Terminology to help you achieve true hyrdation:

Water Temp: Water at too high of a temperature is not your hair’s friend. That doesn’t mean that you have to use cold or even cool water. LUKEWARM water is best throughout the cleansing/conditioning process. You’ll see in the presentation of terms that a ‘cold blast’ is covered – it’s not necessary. It doesn’t hurt, but it’s not necessary. I think we call agree it’s not our favorite idea, anyway. CLICK HERE to see a post about basic hair care, with Brad Mondo’s advice on washing ALL hair types.

We have not discussed here how to KEEP the moisture locked in – when we get to styling techniques, we will cover that, if not sooner! Again, main goal here is for you to understand hydration as well as understand the following terms and techniques.

THREE THINGS YOU CAN START DOING TODAY

1. DRINK LOTS OF WATER! Make this your NORMAL. It’s not an overnight or temporary fix. The more you stay hydrated, the healthier your hair will be over time, and for the rest of your life!
2. LOOK AT YOUR HAIR while it’s dry, and while it’s wet. Start thinking about how it looks and feels throughout the day, while cleansing, and before and after conditioning.
3. PAY ATTENTION to all of the things to touch and rub against your hair throughout the day…all of these things cause friction, and loss of product and/or moisture, which leads to frizz and (sometimes) to damage. You don’t need to change anything right now, just start thinking about them.

This is your homework!

Come back and tell what you learned about yourself and your hair.

Subscribers to this series will be entered to win a hair care package from me! Details coming soon!

Much Love to you and yours!

Cindi

^{Self proclaimed Godmother of the Messy Bun Mafia.}

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