There’s nothing more frustrating than when your expectations don’t align with reality regarding your curls. If, instead of seeing perfectly defined and clumped waves, you find yourself looking at frizz, one of these reasons could be to blame. On wash day, dedicate a few hours to achieving soft, smooth, defined curls. Then you leave the shower and let your hair dry while looking forward to scrunching out the crunch and seeing what all your hard work has done–but the reveal is quite lackluster.
If, instead of seeing perfectly defined curl clumps, you look at frizzy hair after drying, one of these causes might be to blame.
1. Breakage is causing a frizz halo.
Image Source: @chroniclesofcurl
If you do not cut off your damaged ends, you may see breakage throughout your hair, especially during wash day. Unfortunately, breakage is one of the causes of frizz that cannot be fixed or reversed, but it can be remedied.
The best way to deal with it is to understand what is causing the damage in the first place: perhaps your hair dye or heat tool usage are to blame. Once you understand this, it will be easier to avoid the problems. Treat your curls to some extra protein or moisture masks.
2. You are brushing your hair after your shower.
Image Source: @belallure
Detangling wavy and curly-textured hair is a must, or you can wind up with mats in your hair; however, after the shower is not the time to do it. Hair clumps best when soaking wet, so once you are out of the shower, getting wavy hair to clump becomes more difficult. By brushing your waves, you effectively remove the definition you had worked so hard for in the shower.
The way to keep your curl definition is to either brush or detangle your hair during your shower when you have a conditioner with good slip in your hair. Because you do not want to cause your hair to stretch or break, finger comb or use a gentle brush that will not snag and pull tangles, but instead, the bristles will bend, and you can slowly get the tangles out over a few brushes.
3. You are not giving your hair enough moisture.
Dry hair is frizzy, so if you experience frizzy hair after drying, your hair is likely asking for more moisture.
This can be done in a few different ways: once a week, apply a deep-conditioning hair mask packed with moisture. You can also try a lasting leave-in conditioner to help lock in moisture and keep your hair happy all day.
4. You are not using a product with enough hold.
Image Source: _saraand_
If you notice frizzy hair after drying and curls falling out throughout the day, you most likely need a styling product with a stronger hold. The amount of hold you need depends on your texture type.
Whatever you do, do not forget to make sure your hair is getting the moisture it needs in conjunction with a stronger hold gel. This type of curl definer can dry out your hair, giving you more frizz.
5. You are using a regular terry towel.
IMAGE SOURCE: @amanduh_panduh5
While some people can use a regular Terry cloth towel and experience no issues, for those of us with naturally wavy and curly hair, Terry cloth is known to draw too much moisture out of our hair too quickly. The abrasive loops cause our curl clumps to deform and cause frizz.
Thankfully, there is another easy fix for this: dry your wet hair with an old t-shirt or microfiber towel, as they are much less abrasive and will not suck out as much water from your hair.
6. You are diffusing with too much heat.
Image Source: @ashleylamarca
For those who use a diffuser, it is important to remember to go low and slow. Using the highest heat or higher blow setting can cause major frizz, even through a diffuser.
Although it may take a little longer, set your diffuser on cool instead of hot or warm. It can help to let your hair partially air dry up to 75% before you diffuse.
7. You are not being gentle enough when removing clips.
Image Source: @senseofbeautybystephanie
For volume on wavy and curly hair, clips can be used to help create lift at the roots and help it dry. If you use this method, you have to remember to be incredibly careful when removing those clips. While this may seem like common sense, sometimes clips in the back are hard to see, and when you get stuck, you could be ruffling up hair and causing frizz.
If you are having trouble getting a clip out, stop what you are doing and either ask for help or find a mirror and gently pull the clip out. In addition to causing frizz, speeding through this process could lead to snags and breakage (hello, frizz halo).
8. You are touching your hair before it is completely dry.
Image Source: @lynnkatee
Natural hair is beautiful and looks so darn touchable, so we have to yell at people to back off all the time. This usually makes us our own worst enemies.
Although it might be difficult, keep your hands off. Give your hair 10 extra minutes after you think it is completely dry before you do anything else to it. Once your hair is dry, quickly tousle your waves before you scrunch out the crunch.
9. You have damage that needs to be cut off.
Image Source: @byspsignature
This is a major cause of frizzy hair. Damaged waves and curls do not clump as easily; therefore, they will try to push away from other strands, causing frizz.
Since the damage will likely be located at the bottom of your hair, get a haircut to remove it and prevent further issues. You may not want to lose length, but it will be worth it to give you the defined curls you’ve been working for.
Looking for more ways to get rid of frizz? Check out: What is Frizzy Hair & How To Stop It!
