Help with hair

[Icannotcook]

Hi everyone!
I'm mixed race and have always known my hair is not naturally straight but I've always straightened it because that was the only way to stop the frizz (to my knowledge)
Since having a baby I have less time in mornings and thought I want to try and embrace my natural hair but I have no idea how! I slept with it wet last night and wrapped it in a tshirt, this morning it is alot more defined than normal however still quite frizzy.
Can anyone recommend any routine/products I should be doing or using to help it look smoother and more defined?
I have long thick hair, some curls are defined and some are loose.
Thanks in advance.

My daughter is mixed race and has curly hair. I was a bit stuck and a friend with similar hair recommended Cantu products. Not very expensive and really effective...

@Tooshytoshine will have a look thank you

I second Cantu. I use the kids range for my daughters hair, so imagine the adult stuff is also good. The curl cream really defines and moisturises.

Just to add, I spray her hair with water before the curl cream to help with the definition.

Last one I promise! Mixed Chicks are also good, you can find them on amazon as they are an American brand.

My son's girlfriend is black with hair that sounds very similar to yours, and she uses a silk hair wrap and silk pillow cases. They are on Amazon and very inexpensive.

I understand you shouldn't really brush your hair if it's curly. How would I go about detangling it? Would I dampen my hair every night and apply curl cream then wrap in a tshirt? And in the morning if it still needs managing apply some refresh spritz? I have bought the cantu curl cream and the refresh come back curl spritz

What about using a wide toothed comb in the shower to work conditioner through your hair, and then after you gently towel dry you could use some detangling or curl spray/cream and comb that through as well?

@Aquamarine1029 I'm assuming I wouldn't do this every night though as I don't wash my hair every night. How about the days Inbetween washing my hair would I just leave it untouched or dampen and style?

My son's girlfriend washes her hair every 3 days, (unless it really needs it), and she mists with water and then uses some kind of conditioning curling spray.

@Aquamarine1029 thank you for the info! Will have to have a play around for a while, trail and error see what works

Whilst still in the shower saturate your hair and cover in conditioner then detangle with a large paddle brush, I find this quicker and more gentle than wide tooth combs. Rinse, then apply a leave in to still wet hair (cantu or Shea moisture are good brands to start with), comb it through, then most importantly if you want to hold your definition for at least a few days you need to apply a small amount of gel (again cantu and Shea moisture do reasonable ones). Then air dry or diffuse, once dry your hair will be hard and crunchy just scrunch it out to reveal nice defined bouncy curls. To reduce frizz try sleeping with silk/satin headscarf or pillow case.

I refresh every other day by using a small amount of curl cream with wets hands and smoothing down curls with the praying hands method (google it).

Google curly girl method. There are loads of tips on how to embrace your natural curl. I used to spend a fortune on shampoo and conditioner, but I have now stopped using shampoo mostly and wash with a conditioner that costs £1. Scrunch it in whilst in the shower, finger comb it and rinse. When her is soaking wet, scrunch in product (there are loads to choose from) and leave to dry or diffuse. Don't go to bed with it wet or the curls don't get chance to form/set. It's easy once you get the hang of it and not expensive. Good luck

@donttouchmyhair thank you for that. I'll see how my hair looks over the next few days!

Hair is such an odd thing, isn't it? By that, I mean how some products work brilliantly for some, awfully for others, even when they have very similar hair types. My cousin and have seemingly identical hair, both in type and colour, and once I commented on how lovely her hair looked so she told me what shampoo, conditioner and products she used. Great, I thought, and I purchased the exact same ones. Truthfully, my hair had never looked worse and I gave it quite a go to make sure some adjustment time wasn't needed. Makes me want to throw my hands on the air and give up!

@Aquamarine1029 it really is isn't it! One brand of shampoo makes my hair greasy, the other dries it out, the other is too expensive you can never win

Do you know what type of hair you have? If you are always comparing it to straightened hair it will seem 'frizzy' to you. Knowing and understanding your hair type will help you to know what you are aiming for in terms of curl definition etc. if you have chemically straightened your hair it might take a while before you can see your true curl structure.

@Icannotcook

It's soooo frustrating. The products my cousin used made her hair absolutely gorgeous. When I used them my hair was greasy, lank and horrid. Like I hadn't washed my hair in 2 weeks.

My daughter is mixed race. Her hair didn't like Cantu products, but Boucleme and Twisted sista stuff has worked really well on her mass of curls. We went to a hairdresser who specialises in curly hair last year. She gave dd a dry cut, curl by curl. The results were amazing and paired with the products she recommended, have lasted really well.

Before and after.

@skippy67 your daughters hair is absolutely beautiful!

I've looked on curl type and I'm a 2c so technically classed as waves which I didn't know! My hair is really thick and long. Since I can remember I've always used standard shampoo conditioner, then blow dry and straighten. If I didn't blow dry and straighten this is when it starts to frizz and matt together. Ive done everything under the sun that damages your hair.

Bought a range of different products (don't mind splashing out until I find what suits me) so we'll see how I go!

Skippy, your daughter's hair is beautiful.

Thanks both.