If your DD has curly hair

[LynnWriter]

My 7yo DD has always had thick, wavy hair, but now it's starting to get really curly as she gets older.

I have no idea what to do with it - right now it looks a mess unless I spend 30 minutes straightening it every time she washes it. She gets really annoyed that she has to sit still for that long. lol

Any suggestions?

[vicky]

My mom used to brush out my curls - as a result I didn't know how to style my hair properly until sophomore year of high school. It was a problem.

Teach her early. Get a good mousse. Have her bend over with wet hair and scrunch it with mousse starting from the ends to roots. It only takes two minutes and it makes beautiful curls. And she will never suffer the teasing I did, lol.

[aMrsin09]

I had poker straight, super long hair until I was 9 and my dad let me cut it. As the hairdresser cut, it got curlier and curlier.

I fought that curl until I was 23 and moved to DC where it was too humid to keep up the fight.

My suggestion is to find a place that can give curly hair a good cut, get Redkin Be Curly (or whatever product you find that works) and help her to embrace the curl!

[LynnWriter]

Thanks for the tips! I love the curl and totally wish I had her hair. I just have no clue what to do with it.

[aMrsin09]

With the cut portion of the equation, just try to make sure her hair doesn't ""pyramid" or "mushroom".

Each curl is different and needs different cuts/treatment.

This site can help
www.naturallycurly.com/

With my curl, the longer it is the looser the curl. Some people are shorter = straighter. You'll have to experiment.

[Deleted]

You're straightening her hair?? Comb through it when wet and she's good to go. I have similar hair and it was just wild and crazy as a kid. It was pulled back or half up a lot.

[firedancer49]

I have to wet it to brush it and then it stays curly for the most part. We deal with the tangles like shit though. Luckily she is only 4 but I need to get my act together. We did get a get leave in conditioner.

[aMrsin09]

OOOOOH and don't use a towel after she washes it.

Use an old t-shirt. I wish I had known this trick 20 years ago. towels dry curls too quickly so they don't curl as intended.

[vicky]

May 18, 2013 7:30:14 GMT -5 @tambcat said:

So I am NOT supposed to be brushing/combing while wet?

comb when wet! never when dry! only comb enough to detangle. don't brush.

[Deleted]

This is what we do with DD.

Shampoo every other night, the off nights we wash with conditioner. Conditioner has enough chemicals in it to clean curly hair.

Use a microfiber head wrap after bath to soak up the water. Don't rub her hair, just wrap it up. I got a two pack at BB&B.

Comb with a wide tooth comb while wet to get tangles out, then spray some leave in conditioner ( homemade 1 part conditioner to 10 parts water). Then braid, doesn't matter how many braids or how well they are done. She takes a bath at night and sleeps in her braids.

In the am take her braids out and run my fingers through her hair. If she has an knots (which she usually doesn't) it's actually easier to rub them with my thumb and forefinger to get them out than to comb.

You can respray in the am with water and the leave in to bring some of the curl back.

[Deleted]

I don't know if this is an option for you, but washing at night, combing with detangler and then letting it dry while I slept was the best way to go. I usually had a t shirt over my pillow to absorb some of the moisture. HTH!

I didn't mean to be snarky in my first post.

[Deleted]

I got the book Curly Girl, which the naturalycurly website is built off of. It really helped me learn to do DDs hair. My hair can't hold any curl so I was lost also. I like the website for general guidelines, but have found it is way too product driven for my liking. The book gives a lot of products you can make yourself, like the leave in conditioner and a lavender sprits for the am.

[LynnWriter]

May 18, 2013 7:50:35 GMT -5 @amoosed said:

I don't know if this is an option for you, but washing at night, combing with detangler and then letting it dry while I slept was the best way to go. I usually had a t shirt over my pillow to absorb some of the moisture. HTH!

I didn't mean to be snarky in my first post.

LOL - we're all good! What I do is comb it out when it's wet (thick comb) and then use a round brush to straighten it out. Every time. Sometimes when I'm lazy, I just let it air dry and then it just looks awful and I feel terrible that I sent her to school like that and the mom guilt and ohmygod let's start over and shampoo it again NOW!

[vicky]

May 18, 2013 8:33:19 GMT -5 LynnWriter said:

May 18, 2013 7:50:35 GMT -5 @amoosed said:

I don't know if this is an option for you, but washing at night, combing with detangler and then letting it dry while I slept was the best way to go. I usually had a t shirt over my pillow to absorb some of the moisture. HTH!

I didn't mean to be snarky in my first post.

LOL - we're all good! What I do is comb it out when it's wet (thick comb) and then use a round brush to straighten it out. Every time. Sometimes when I'm lazy, I just let it air dry and then it just looks awful and I feel terrible that I sent her to school like that and the mom guilt and ohmygod let's start over and shampoo it again NOW!

I'd be afraid that so much heat on little girl hair would damage it. Letting it air dry with a bit of product in it should help. A puff or two of mousse is all I use in my hair. And I usually go for the cheap stuff (suave or herbal essences.) The samy mousse is good, too, just use it very sparingly - a little goes a long way.

[LynnWriter]

May 18, 2013 7:33:12 GMT -5 firedancer49 said:

I have to wet it to brush it and then it stays curly for the most part. We deal with the tangles like shit though. Luckily she is only 4 but I need to get my act together. We did get a get leave in conditioner.

Ya the tangles were the WORST when my DD was about 4, too. It was a battle every time we washed her hair. We finally found a good shampoo and conditioner that seems to work well with her hair, after trying just about everything out there.

[LynnWriter]

vicky - thanks!!

[vicky]

May 18, 2013 8:39:43 GMT -5 @tambcat said:

May 18, 2013 7:34:23 GMT -5 vicky said:

comb when wet! never when dry! only comb enough to detangle. don't brush.

Oh, okay, thanks. It's starting to get harder to detangle. Also, am I supposed to part it when it's wet? Or is it better to just, like, brush it all back? lol. I have no idea what I'm doing here.

Parting it while it's wet is fine while you're detangling, but only if you want to. Use a bit of water/conditioner spray to detangle. No More Tangles is fine, too! I used it all the way into my 20's lol.

[Deleted]

If you are not braiding at night, pick up a satin pillowcase. They really help to prevent tangles.

[AHappierHour]

May 18, 2013 7:49:34 GMT -5 rehabaddict said:

This is what we do with DD.

Shampoo every other night, the off nights we wash with conditioner. Conditioner has enough chemicals in it to clean curly hair.

Use a microfiber head wrap after bath to soak up the water. Don't rub her hair, just wrap it up. I got a two pack at BB&B.

Comb with a wide tooth comb while wet to get tangles out, then spray some leave in conditioner ( homemade 1 part conditioner to 10 parts water). Then braid, doesn't matter how many braids or how well they are done. She takes a bath at night and sleeps in her braids.

In the am take her braids out and run my fingers through her hair. If she has an knots (which she usually doesn't) it's actually easier to rub them with my thumb and forefinger to get them out than to comb.

You can respray in the am with water and the leave in to bring some of the curl back.

This is what I do to my girls. Every morning I just spray, add more product and style. It maybe take me 10 mins to do both girls hair.

[mrsukyankee]

Detangling spray will be your friend as will mousse and a touch of coconut oil for the ends. Spray with detangler, comb, part, put in the mousse, scrunch, air dry if you can or get a lovely attachment like this to put on your hairdryer
www.amazon.co.uk/Hot-Sock-The-Ultralight-Diffuser/dp/B0055TJQY2/ref=sr_1_7?s=drugstore&ie=UTF8&qid=1368890484&sr=1-7&keywords=diffuser

When the hair is dry and seems to be a mess, just spray with a mix of water & detangler/conditioner and the curls will pop back.