question for the curly haired amongst us

[woodenchair]

I want to buy some straightening products for my neice who has very curly hair. She's got the straighteners but I'm worried she'll knacker her hair by not putting anything on it first to protect it.

I'm thinking frizzease, but was wondering if there was anything better?

No, frizease is greasy. I use the Trevor Sorbie straightening balm.

if i were you i'd help her work with her curls rather than against them. get her a decent curly hair cut and some good products. better than a life of straightening.

as longas she conditioning somewhere like boots or the hairdressers should be able to advise you on a protection for her hair

What ruddynorah said. I wasted way too long trying to have straight hair and it never looked quite right. I'm much happier now I've accepted my curls.

I love paul mitchell heat seal. It is a light mist spray that I put on damp hair befor blow drying and straightening. I like the fact that it doesn't make the hair feel loaded up with products

i've never straightened my hair but i do subject it to a lot of chlorine and hair dye. nothing beats good conditioner and most styling products just sit on top. what's her hair like generally? a lot of curly hair is actually quite delicate and fine so it is easy to damage it causing worse frizz.

blimey that was quick. Thanks.
I don't think she will use them all the time, she's got too much hair.
Her dad, my db is her hairdresser, no he's not trained, just tight, although as she's just turned 12, I'm not sure how long he'll get away with it.
So Trevor Sorbie or Paul Mitchell are good. I might see if there's a gift set and get it for her for chrimbo.

I should add that I use the trevor sorbie straightening balm on my hair when it is curly. I rarely straighten it but it makes the curls less frizzy.

And do see if you can get her a haircut. Curls are much easier to manage if your hair is cut well.

Hi I have VERY curly hair and have been straightening it for a few years now. I have found that the frizzease serum is the best although you only need a very small amount otherwise your hair can go greasy as overated said.

You can get a version now that is specifically designed to protect from a lot of heat.

I think frizzease is great, but you have to mix it with something else to make it work best - either a dab of leave-in conditioner or just some ordinary conditioner seems to work fine.

Or else some curl lotion. I usually mix frizz ease with the Paul Mitchell curl lotion.

But obviously this won't make your niece's hair straight - I agree with all those who say you should work with your curls instead of wasting time flattening them out. BUt if she is determined to straighten then at least the frizz ease and conditioner should help keep it healthy.

Hi,
Ive got curly hair-I occasionally straighten it and use GHD ironing oil spray but now mostly I let it hand curly-by drying naturally-it is best to work with curls and not damage hair too much.For my curls I use Be curly by Aveda-it is brilliant-leaves hair soft and bouncy and not at all frizzy.

Just tried the Umberto giannini straighteneing spray also which was fab too.

this site has a load of information about curly hair products, (although its American) its very against straightening though! Lol...militant curlyheads! But it is great, and if it teaches you one thing, its that Frizz ease, and other such silicone based products are really very bad/drying on your hair, and shouldn't be used all the time! Which bummed me out totally, cos its the only thing that will make my hair straighten, that doesn't cost the earth..

Can I hijack & ask curly haired people to help me choose a new hair sytle - Sorry Woodenhair - hope your neice sorts it all out (& when she does can you let me know how to sort it)

I've used an excellent product "Curl Calmer" by a company called Original Little Sprout. They are a bit expensive but they are entirey natural, smells beautifully and favoured by celebs such as Angelina Jolie! I bought them from here: www.littlebabycompany.com

whats your budget? some salons sell a specialist product called 'Kerastase' its the poshest L'oreal stuff you can get, a little expensive but is the best product i have ever used, i am a hairdresser myself and use this every day for clients and myself!!!