You know what I love about the curly community? People are so generous with their information. If someone discovers an amazing DIY deep treatment or invents a new styling technique, they share it with the world! My Instagram feed is a never-ending source of personally tested product reviews and tutorials. When I asked Sanne, aka @curlsandblondies on Instagram, how she manages to achieve such defined, frizz-free curls, she was more than willing to divulge what she’s learned. Here’s what Sanne had to say:
Frizz, it’s the No.1 thing I’ve been afraid of since I started my curly hair journey. To be honest it’s an anxiety-inducing threat that is on my mind almost 24/7, like a mosquito that keeps buzzing around your head during the day. I find frizz can be especially problematic during the warmer months — the struggle is real for a curly girl. One upside to my frizz obsession is that I have been able to find some essential steps to prevent most of it, and of course I will share it with you so we all can have frizz-free curls. Well, almost.
Soaking wet
When I style my hair, I make sure to start on soaking wet hair. I style in the shower because the weight from the water helps to clump the curls together, and this makes a huge difference when it comes to “in-the-curl frizz.” Just take a look at your curls when you’re in the shower: perfect, well-defined curls. When styling on soaking wet hair, we’re kind of trying to catch that perfect curl with our styling product. When you’re not able to put on your styling products in the shower or bathroom you can put on a shower cap after you’ve rinsed your conditioner or mask, get dressed, and go to the room where you can style your hair. This way your hair stays as wet as possible.
Second-day hair
I restyle my curls with a moisturizer and a tiny bit of gel mixed with water in my hands. I always make sure to use a minimal amount of product because I want to keep the volume. Last week I shared a video on Instagram how I restyle my hair using my smoothing/scrunch method. This method really helps to reduce frizz, especially that halo frizz on the surface of the hair. I mix the products and water in my hands. Next I smooth my hands over my hair in sections and then scrunch in an upward motion. Smoothing really eliminates the frizz while the scrunching helps to activate my curls and get back the volume. I finger-coil the curls that lost definition.
Products
Healthy hair is the key for definition and frizz free curls. But besides that, products can help you just as well. Moisturizing is the key and DevaCurl Supercream never lets me down with that. Even though my hair isn’t wavy, the DevaCurl wavemaker does magic for the definition of my curls. In the warmer months I use it on its own and if my hair needs some extra moisture I mix it with the Supercream. I love using hard hold gels such as Giovanni styling gel. If I want extra defined curls, I mix a tiny bit with my holy grail gel Bouncecurl. Custard also works wonders when it comes to frizz, and Kinky Curly Curling Custard is definitely my favorite. I only use a pea-size amount per section and it gives me absolutely frizz-free results every time. When I want extra volume to avoid flat first day curls, I love using a mousse. The Mane Choice mousse gives me amazing volume! For a glycerine free option I would recommend DevaCurl Frizz-Free Volumizing Foam.
My favorite budget-proof curl definer is my flaxseed gel. It’s not only very cheap, it’s also moisturizing, promotes hair growth, and nourishes your hair and scalp with omega 3. It’s the best curl enhancer I have ever used. I shared my recipe on my YouTube Channel.
Diffusing
I’m not a hype-type girl — actually I’m more an anti-hype kinda girl. In general hype makes me skeptical. But this time I couldn’t resist joining the hype train — I can’t keep this to myself in good conscience because it changed my life.
As curly girls we know that drying are curls can be a day job. The Dyson supersonic gives me the freedom to do things I love instead of drying my hair for hours. I really cannot compare it to my old hairdryer. I was shocked at how much power it has. It is not only fast as getting defined results, but it’s also kinder to my hair because of the self-regulating microprocessor that keeps the temperature in check so your hair doesn’t suffer from heat damage. And we curly girls care about the health of our hair, especially when you just started your journey and your hair is still damaged and fragile.
Honestly, it’s the most powerful thing I’ve ever used, it dries my hair in 35 minutes and 20 seconds, versus the usual 60 minutes it takes to dry. Sixty minutes of doing that thing where you flip your head upside down and diffuse all over it then flip it back over and keep going. And my hair still wasn’t completely dry by the end.
No device has ever managed to dry my hair in less than an hour, but the Dyson Supersonic cuts down my diffusing time almost in half. The Dyson Supersonic really has blown me away and is a game changer in my world of curly hair.
I only diffuse my hair until 80% dry and let it air dry until it’s fully dry, so I get less frizz and more definition. When my hair is not fully dried yet, I always apply a tiny bit of product mixed with water to the curls that lost definition due the diffusing process.
I make sure to diffuse my curls starting at the the roots down or from the bottom in an upwards motion, not from the side. This method may be a bit more time consuming but gives me the best results.
Humidity
Humidity can be a killer for my hair. My goal is to prevent moisture from the air getting in and puffing up my curls and causing loss of definition and a frizzy mess. In the warmer months I always look for styling products low in humectants. Humectants can kill your definition on humid days. Especially when you are transitioning and your hair is high porosity, humectants like glycerin swell up strands and make it poof and frizz as soon as you step outside. If you are someone who struggles with frizz like me during the hot, humid months, glycerin-free products can become your best friend. I love the CURLS Blueberry Bliss leave in and Giovanni direct leave in on humid days.
Proteins
Although humidity can be tough for my curls, I love summer. Because the days are warmer I spend a lot more time in the sun. But because the sun breaks down the proteins in my hair, I make sure to do protein treatments more frequently. This way I keep my protein/moisture balance in check.
Our curly hair has a raised cuticle. Because of this raised cuticle, moisture in the air sneaks in through those holes, where it expands the hair shaft and causes curls to frizz up. I love using products with hydrolyzed proteins because they temporarily fill up the holes in the cuticle of your hair so the cuticle is flat. Bye-bye frizz.
Besides a monthly protein treatment like Aphogee Two-Step Protein Treatment, I really advocate for using Olaplex. Olaplex is a reconstructor that repairs broken bonds. If I were to recommend my fav reconstructing treatment it would be an Olaplex stand-alone treatment — especially when your hair is truly damaged. I recommend you find a salon where you can get an Olaplex stand-alone treatment. It made such a difference for my hair!
Embrace it
Since I started my natural hair journey there have been times I was obsessed with frizz. This even resulted in staying at home on humid days, wearing protective styles all day and checking my hair in every window I walked by. It was a serious obsession. Frizz can be a struggle. And although I just gave you my favorite tips to eliminate it, I found out one of the best ways to fight it is actually not to fight it. I started to realize that I can’t fight my hair so I learned to love my texture and embrace the frizz. Your hair is who you are, loving it is easier than fighting it. Make your frizzy fro your trademark. I love to enhance it and make my hair even bigger. The bigger my hair the more compliments I get! And I can tell, life is a lot easier when you just go with the fro.
You can watch my updated routine here.
Embedded content: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wK7JIjCb8e4Thank you, Sanne, for sharing the lessons you’ve learned!
To see more from Sanne, subscribe to her YouTube and follow her on Instagram.
