Good Hair versus Bad Hair-curly mama baby photo

This photo is me as a baby...  I love this photo, it makes me laugh.  This photo is a good example of a curly girl with really out of control hair-yes, I was victim to the dry brush out every day.

Yes it's cute, but as an adolescent I remember going through my baby photos and thinking "bad hair"!
Funny how we assign labels like good and bad to something like our hair!

My hope is that curly girl doesn't think of her hair as good or bad.. rather instead uses words like beautiful and is proud of her hair as she grows up.  It's something I'm still working on myself.

Or more likely she will laugh at photos of herself when she was a baby and say "oh mom, what were you thinking"...

Curly girl hairstyles

Our curly girl wears a number of different hairstyles regularly.

I'll preface this post by saying I'm not the expert and there are a lot of curly mama's who can do curly styles better than I can.  But here are some examples of what I've been doing and working with.

Since curly girls hair isn't too curly (3b/3c) I find it falls out of some styles by the end of the day, so for example, twists and individual braids need to be taken out at the end of the day (1 day hairstyle).

So far I've only found a couple hairstyles that last more than 1 day.

The style we choose each day also has to do with what we are planning to do and our timeline.  So when we are rushed she may get braids and ponies, or a single cornrow on the front of her hair, or sometimes just a headband.  When I have more time I may do little braids and beads all over her head, or cornrows.

When I know we are planning on swimming I try to do cornrows that are full of coconut oil to protect her hair- but this style which usually last 2 days only lasts one on a swim day.  I also have to consider how much time we are spending in a car.  If we have a drive into town where I think she may pull off her sleep cap then I try to do a style that won't get too knotty from rubbing on the carseat (like small braids).

Her hair is also quite short (chin length), so if I have done a style with beads she may not nap well, or may be uncomfortable in the carseat if there are beads pressing into the back of her head.  Hopefully this will change when her hair gets a bit longer.

Here are some photos and a summary of how many days each style lasts.  I think this may also have to do with my skill at placing tight braids (not so skilled yet), as well as that she has a number of small, short finer pieces of hair that don't stay in the braids very well at this point.  Hopefully as her hair grows longer it will stay in longer.

I've also been experimenting with loose hairstyles a bit more.  I think with the right product to hold the curl and keep away the fuzz/ tangles, her curls look amazing loose.  Certain styles like locks/ coils tend to get very matted- particularly when she pulls off her sleep cap in the car or during nap time.  I think until she gets older I may avoid coils.  The last time I did coils her hair was a mess to detangle that evening.

1 day hairstyles:

Easy fast/ styles:

(The one braid off the forehead)- I use this style when we are in a rush, or when we will be playing outside a lot.  I like that it controls the hair in her face but allows her curls to fly free :)

When I do this style usually I use some shea butter cream to hold the braid, and then use a detangler/ leave in conditioner and then curl sealer in the back to prevent fuzzes.

This is a 5 minute hairstyle.

This style is ponies' and twists (or ponies and braids).  I'll need to find another photo closer up.  This style takes about 15 minutes, sectioning the hair into ponies, then twisting or beading.  I can add beads or just snaps to the end.  Looks cute, keeps the hair off her face but the braids/ twists tend to fall out by the end of the day.

The product I generally use is a shea butter on the braids and a locking serum to hold the rest of her hair flat and try to prevent fly aways.

We usually do between 5-7 ponies and she can sleep quite well with this style as long as there aren't beads on the ends.  When the beads are on the ends it's a bit too pokey for her head.

She wore this style a lot when she was little, just pulled up into a barrette.  Only takes 5 minutes.  The back is conditioned and then curl sealer is added to help control the fuzzes.  This is a "daddy" hairstyle (lol). I find the sides may fall out a bit, so sometimes to hold them a bit better I'll do a small braid on either side of her head and clip the braids up into the barrette.

Another easy style is just 2 pony tails at the top her her head.  Easier now her hair is longer.  She actually really likes this style. 

I don't have many photos of her hair in coils (aside from some blurry ones on my iPhone).  I'll try to take some better photos next time. I love the look of this style, but it tangles so easily sometimes I'm not sure it's a great style to use.  It gets really really tangled when she's in a carseat or stroller if she pulls off her sleep cap.  This style pictured below took a long time to gently detangle at the end of the day.

This is her hair au-natural with a headband.  I love this style- but it is much more prone to tangles and fuzzes.  Shows off her beautiful curls though.

2 day hairstyles:

This cornrow to puffs style is quite easy.  It only takes about 20 minutes to do and it looks cute.  Occasionally this can last more than 2 days, but generally it's a 2 day hairstyle.  The hair is moisturized first, detangled and then a shea butter is applied to each section before braiding.  The back of the hair which is loose is moisturized and curl sealer is applied to help with fuzzies.  After day 1, I usually have to wet down her hair and re-apply the curl sealer to the back.  Sometimes I'll apply a bit of curl sealer on top of the braids to help with the fly-aways.  This is why it's important to find a non flaking curl sealer. 

This style will really depend on what we are doing.  If the braids are place correctly I may get 2 days out of this style.  But if they are creating pressure on her head it may only last a day.  Sometimes I can remove the beads and leave the braids in, and then re-bead them the next day.  

I love cornrows in her hair.  This is small or short cornrows into little loose braids.  When she gets older I'd expect this style to last more than 2 days, but for now we are only getting 2 days out of the braids before it becomes too fuzy/ unkempt. 

This photo was the end of day 2, after we'd gone swimming.  You can see some of the shorter/ finer hair is starting to fall from the braids.  I can do cornrows at an angle-which seem to work a bit better on the natural part of her hair (not sure why), or you can do them straight back.  I will sometimes add beads to the end, and finish the underside of her hair in beads.  Depending on how much outdoor play she is doing that day this style only lasts 2 days.

3 day hairstyles:

So far I've only found 2 hairstyles that can even sort of last 3 days, but partway through day 3 I start to feel it's looking unkempt.  This is fine for at home, but if we are going out I'd generally re-do the style.

The first hairstyle that is a multi-day hairstyle is the diamond ponies with and without beads.  This is a very easy style and you can make it more fun by adding different coloured elastics or beads to the sections.  It lasts for 2-3 days and works really well for swim days.  It's also a very dad friendly hairstyle.

This is one of my favorite 3 day hairstyles.  Cornrows to the crown of her head, with beads on the ends, then loose and natural at the back.  It looks pretty, it stays in really well for 3 days and only requires a bit of attention to the back curls on day 2/3.  This is a great style for when Daddy is taking care of curly girl, since he only has to detangle and moisturize the back of her hair.  When her hair is in this style we usually use a cleansing conditioner on the back when in the bathtub. 

This was day 3 of the hairstyle above.  You an see it's  falling out of the braids by this point.

Darcy's Botanicals Daily Cleansing Conditional Cream

Overall summary: I ordered this product because we were getting low on conditioner and I like the styling cream (also made by Darcy's botanicals) so I thought I'd give it a try.

The first time I used it I was initially impressed by the thickness of the product and it felt like it would go a really long way.. but it didn't make curly girls hair slippery enough.  It was definitely cleansing.. but it couldn't be used alone.  After using this I had to condition curly girls hair with a thicker conditioner to make it smooth and slippery enough to comb out the tangles.  

Price: $$ ($15.00). I'd say this is a bit of a pricier option because of it's consistency and the fact you actually need to use quite a bit to make the hair slippery/ soft enough.

Consistency: The consistency of this product is vert thick, like a thick whipped butter

Scent: Vanilla, smells delicious.

Recommended for: 2+ curly hair in place of shampoo but doesn't really seem to work for 3b/3c curls as a conditioner on it's own.  Consider using this in place of shampoo a few days/ week.. for us the full verdict is out on whether I'd order this product again...

Madagascar Vanilla Styling Creme

Product Review: Madagascar Vanilla Styling Creme

Overall summary: I like this product for braiding and twists, I find her hair feels really beautiful when I take it out of the cornrows or braids and it does hold the moisture all day.  But I do find this product is for styles, not natural hair.  It doesn't seem as great to help with frizz when her hair is down and loose- it seems the hair has to dry in the style with the product in order to achieve the full benefit.
I also find this product works best when you use a lot of it, and moisturize the hair first.  Particularly for the parts off hair that have tighter curls.  When I do braids with this product I scoop about an eraser size portion of the cream for each braid.  When using this product my hands do get a bit greasy, so I wipe them off and have to clean them with a dry cloth between every 2-3 braids.

Price: $$ ($15.00). A medium priced option.

Consistency: The consistency of this product is quite thick, like a thick shea butter cream.  

Scent: Like vanilla cupcakes.. yummy!

Recommended for: 3+ curly hair in lock, braids, twists or other styles.   


I've also been asked where I usually buy my hair products.
I have a few places, but my go to right now is Nandi Kids: http://nandikids.ca/
I find the owner is really responsive and able to make quick changes to the order etc. She also ships things really quickly which I like.  

India Arie..

Love this song.. go India!

Woes of curly hair and traveling

One of the things I've always hated about having curly hair is trying to manage my hair without access to a shower or water.
This means managing my hair when we travel can be very difficult.  I can't leave my hair for a few days in between showering.  What I end up with is a tangled, matted and horrible mess- when I finally do detangle I'm pulling clumps of hair from my head.

Growing up this made camping also difficult.  I remember making sure my dad hauled a shower bag over the entire West Coast Trail to make sure I would be able to wet down my hair and put some conditioner in it.

To this day, one of my only conditions for staying at hotels/ hostels is that they have running water.

Yes, of course 1 day doesn't really hurt.. but 2 days without doing my hair, or "gasp" 3 days.. impossible.

What are your tips for managing curls when traveling or camping?

No Poo Shampoo.. what's the fuss about?

If you start browsing curly hair blogs and websites you'll hear a lot about "poo" and "no poo" shampoos.

The poo in the shampoo is referring to sulfates.  In most shampoos this is called Sodium Lauryl Sulfate or SLS.  It's a cleaning agent, or surfactant found in most shampoos.

Other sulfates you find in shampoos include:

• Sodium Laureth Sulfate (SLES)
• Ammonium Lauryl Sulfate
• Sodium Myreth Sulfate
• TEA Laureth Sulfate
•  Sodium Lauryl Sulfoacetate

Arguably less damaging sulfates include:

• coco-babassu sulfate 
• palm based sulfate

(For example, the palm babassu or coconut based sulfates are found in many Aveda shampoos)

So why does this matter?
Firstly, sulfates remove oil- just like a sulfate based cleaning supply.  Sulfates are the detergent portion of shampoos.  The more sulfatees in a shampoo, the more it foams up and bubbles.  Somehow we equate foam or bubbles to cleanliness, so this is generally a desired quality in shampoo.

However sulfates or poo can damage curly hair and strip the hair of natural oils, so hair can dry out more quickly, is potentially more prone to breakage and possibly lead to the thinning of your hair.

I'm not saying you shouldn't use sulfates.  In fact, for my own hair I'm not convinced. I've used some great sulfate based products and some pretty bad sulfate free products- But I completely agree that sulfates are harmful to the environment and by extension likely harmful to our health.

But my hair and my curly girl tend to do ok with some sulfate based shampoos (just not every day).

Here are a list of common curly hair and salon brand shampoos divided into Poo vs. No Poo shampoos.

No Poo Shampoos

Mixed Chicks sulfate free
Shampoo- One I haven't tried yet

Sulfate free. and lasts a long time

This next "No Poo" list was found on a few other websites, so I'd recommend checking the ingredients:

Abba Pure Gentle Hair shampoo

Abba Pure Moisture Hair shampoo

Abba Real Fundamental Hair shampoo

Abba Pure Color Safeguard

Abba Pure Curl Hair shampoo

AG Hair Cosmetics Color Savour Sulfate-free Hair shampoo

AG Hair Makeup Recoil Curl Initiating Shampoo

Alba Botanica Cocoa Butter Dry Restore Locks Clean

Alba Botanica Coconut Milk Extra Enrich Locks Clean

Alba Botanica Gardenia Hydrating Hair Clean

Alba Botanica Honeydew Nourishing Hair Wash

Alba Botanica Mango Moisturising Locks wash

Alba Botanica Plumeria Replacing Locks wash

Alba Botanica Daily Hair shampoo (additionally clarifying hair shampoo)

Alterna Color Maintain Restore Shampoo

Alterna Color Hold Sparkle Shampoo

Alterna Colour Maintain Straight Hair shampoo

Alterna Scalp Treatment

Alterna Making clear Hair shampoo

Alterna Color Maintain Repair Hair shampoo

Alterna Volume Recover Hair shampoo

Anita Grant Babassu Rose Rose Shampoo as well as Bath Club (UK)

Anita Give Peppermint Babassu Shampoo Club (UK)

Anita Give Organic Algae + Ylang Babassu Hair shampoo Bar (UK)

Aubrey Organics BGA Protein + Conditioning Hair shampoo

Aubrey Organics Silk Henna Shine-Enhancing Shampoo

Aubrey Organics GPB Glycogen Protein Managing Hair shampoo

Doctor. Bronner’s Almond Fluid Soap Almond

Dr. Bronner’s Citrus fruit Lemon Fluid Cleaning soap

Doctor. Bronner’s Eucalyptus Liquid Cleaning soap 

Dr. Bronner’s Rose Liquid Soap 

Dr. Bronner’s Pepper mint Fluid Cleaning soap 

Dr. Bronner’s Flower Fluid Soap

Doctor. Bronner’s Teas Tree Essential oil Fluid Cleaning soap

L’Oreal Everstrong Hydrating Hair shampoo

L’Oreal Everpure Sleek Hair shampoo

L’Oreal Everpure Volumizing Shampoo

L’Oreal Everstrong Rebuilding Hair shampoo

L’Oreal Hair Expertise Everstrong Sulfate-Free Build-up System Bodify Hair shampoo

Neutrogena Triple Moisture Lotion Lather Hair shampoo

Organix Reviving Cherry Bloom Ginseng Hair shampoo

Organix Revitalizing Pomengranate Green tea extract

Organix Removing Shea Butter Hair shampoo

Organix Soft as well as Smooth Vanilla Silk Hair shampoo

Scruples Whitened Teas Sulfate Free Restorative Hair shampoo

Shea Dampness Uncooked Shea Butter Moisture Preservation Shampoo

Shea Moisture African Black Cleaning soap Heavy Cleaning Shampoo

Silk Components Colour Care Sulfate Totally free Hair shampoo

Softsheen Break via Fortifying Moisturising Shampoo

Alba Botanica Every day Shampoo 

Alterna Making clear Shampoo

Artec Texturline Every day Making clear Shampoo

Carol’s Child Rosemary oil Mint Purifying Hair shampoo

Waves Pure Waves Clarifying Hair shampoo

Elucence Volume Clarifying Hair shampoo

Giovanni Tea Sapling Triple Treat Shampoo

Giovanni 50:Fifty Well balanced Hair shampoo

Locks Rules Aloe Grapefruit Purifying Hair shampoo

Jessicurl Gentle Lather Hair shampoo

Kenra Clarifying Shampoo

Kiss My personal Face Aromatherapeutic Shampoo

Ouidad Clear & Mild Important Daily Shampoo

Poo Shampoo's (Note, even products designed for curls can contain sulfates.. look for sulfate free versions if you can), here are some curly hair shampoos that have sulfates.  You still may love them.

Mixed Chicks. Love the shampoo
But there are sulfates.  They do offer
sulfate free versions of other products.

Contains
Sulfates

Contains sulfates
(although not the kind
that stings the eyes)

Boasts a lower amount
of Sulfates.. but not
Sulfate free