If you have 2 C hair, how do you style it and what products do you use?

[LobeliaBaggins]

Fed up of my 2 C hair, which if you know what that means, is neither straight nor curly, but wavy, coarse and very frizzy. I have it in a wavy layered bob. Most days I have no time to fuss over it and need to wash and go. I would like it to have ore defined curl, or be straight, not an undefined mess.

Please don't say curly girl method; it's just too much work and using sulphate free shampoos all the time makes my scalp itchy, though I try to use sulphate free once a week and an itchy scalp shampoo the other two times. ( wash 3 times a week).

CBA to take a picture of my own hair- just got back from travel- but my hair is very much like this, except much thicker and poufier and with less defined curls. I could grow it but it is a pain to have long as well. in.pinterest.com/pin/1970393575396439/

I have 2a and got so sick of straightening to just end up with bushy straight frizz.

I'm persevering with a version of curly girl. There's a fb group for uk wavy hair who will look at your hair pic and prescribe you a routine with inexpensive products. It's not too bad, just 3 products per wash.

Mine looks great at first with big loose curls but descends to a birds nest quite quickly. Can't face going back to the straight frizz though so still trying. Luckily mine is long enough to tie back in a sort of "this looks messy in purpose" way (maybe)

Meant to say- I'm happy to share my products or the fb page name if you're interested.

i'd love to know the fb group please!

and products :) thank you

I have 2a/3b hair and going by that picture you might have that odd mix too that can swing both ways but isn't really easily tamed into either.

I know you said no curly girl and I'm not a huge fan either but I've sort of whittled it down to its bare bones by using a curl cream and then a mousse. Mousse instead of gel was a game changer for me as it does the same thing just not as strong a hold and I'm not waiting a day for my hair to dry. You can just squish in both wet while still in the shower, use an old t-shirt to absorb excess moisture and go about your day.

It's not as perfect a result as the CG purists seek but I personally find that a bit stupid looking on me anyhow (like some weird stiff perm). I have a mix of fine and coarse hair that builds up easily so I don't think the exact products I use would be helpful as I suspect you'll want heavier products, bounce curl clump and define cream is good for most though, just don't use too much of it, like a rice grain or two worth, maybe even less, a little goes a really long way. Then a mousse/foam with good hold.

If you want to loosen the curl, salt sprays do that job as salt loosens curls but it does dry out your hair over time so don't use it too often. I also look out for salt (usually listed as natrium chloride) as an ingredient in other products when the goal is curlier definition. Sulphate shampoos often have salt in them to thicken the formula so I actually think that's why sulphate free shampoos work well for CG method so maybe check your sulphate shampoos for salt if you want to continue using those.

Deep conditioning also helps, whenever I think my hair is being annoying it turns out it just needed a deep conditioner and then it behaves as expected again.

I have 2c hair and if mine looked anywhere near as good as that picture I'd be over the moon

It's called Curly girl for UK wavies. It's run by someone called Charlotte and she tells you what to do with your specific hair.

She's got me on a sulfate wash with garnier shampoo/ garnier hair food conditioner/ mousse or gel (she's very strict which ones are allowed- you'll see on her page) and then the other washes are sulfate free and she's told me to use umberto banana shampoo and faith in nature conditioner and mousse/ gel to style.

It's a faff with the styling, you have to put loads of the product onto dripping wet hair and scrunch and air dry, but it's v exciting when you see the curls spring up.

Sorry OP- I know you didn't want curly girl.

I use a low sulphate shampoo for dry hair, then ogx argan oil conditioner. De tangle in shower before rinsing out conditioner.
squeeze out excess water then add a little cantu curl activator cream. Wrap in a t-shirt while I get dressed. Unwrap then scrunch in some umberto giannini scrunching jelly. Air dry.
this gets a reasonable result for me but still looks crap the next day!

Are you me? I’ve tried curly girl, but my highlighted hair turns into a dry frizzy mess the next day, I just can’t get nice waves or curls after day 1 and I hate the feeling of the products in my hair after first day too. . Mine is way curlier underneath annoyingly. I’ve got merwave products which seem quite good, just need to persevere with them. I usually ending up blow drying straight and straightening as it’s easier and more consistent. But just come back from holiday and it absolutely wouldn’t be straightened, - went very curly due to seawater/sun etc. I basically looked a frizzy mess all week.

I use any shampoo and conditioner (but silicone free) then mousse and gel. My hair wants protein so I make sure to use something with it in
Diffuse or air dry and then scrunch it when dried

Mine is 2C. I do a very low-effort, low product version of CG. The main principles being - lots of moisture and leave it alone as much as possible.

I co-wash twice a week with lightweight silicone free conditioner then use a richer mask (Garnier food). My hair only gets shampooed every 3 months when I go to the hairdresser!

Wash 1 early in the week - air dry into waves, add some more Garnier to define the waves and to get rid of flyaways.

Wash 2 ahead of the weekend - partly air dry, oil based heat protector, Revlon hot brush it into a mostly straight but bouncy do, bit of Garnier food to smooth it if needed.

I use a microfibre towel to dry, and sleep on a silk pillowcase, with hair piled up on top of my head on wavy days so I don't flatten it.

You need to try every product going to find the right one.

Second day hair is the thing all curly haired people want to get right and it's not easy.

Styling your hair when it's sopping wet can help.

Types of products: gels and creams that leave a cast. You apply to sopping wet hair, scrunch and let it dry. Then the gel leaves a cast that you scrunch out. Don't be tempted to scrunch as it dries, this will leave frizz. A good example is the cheap pink pot on boots curl creme.

Lighter products that don't leave a cast.

Heavier products designed to get moisture into the hair. Like cantu custard. With hair like yours, this can feel heavy and greasy and weigh ot down.

I like trepadora products (not cheap), a super cheap pot of strong hold gel (an olive oil one), and a surprise one is Umberto ginanni scrunch gel. This is cheap, light and effective.

For second day curls, you can fill a spray bottle with a mix of conditioner and water and spray till it's quite damp and refresh that way, scrunching.

Sleeping in a silk bonnet or on a silk pillowcase can help, but I don't find this does really help.

Finally, can you get to a curly specialist? Look at spring in Birmingham. Or trepadora in Maidenhead. Lots of salons are now training people in the curl by curl method.

Thanks for all the responses. @Christinatheastonishing I might be able to manage a modified CG routine like you do. I also swim which complicates things! Gosh, who knew hair could be so complex.

I am in London so will search the forum for curly specialists. My hair is just different very day.

I swear by Cantu and my hair always smells lovely as a bonus. For those struggling with 2nd day hair, this is what you need.

Sorry my image won’t post, it’s Cantu Comeback Curl.

I have curly hair and I do a modified version of cgm. I use a sainsburys conditioner, then an asiam cowash and a gel mixed with water in my hands. Sometimes I leave my hair to dry in a T-shirt.

Anyway my main thing for good hair in days two to three is to keep a spray bottle of water with some conditioner on just to spray it. I know CGM seems like hard work but I’m on the ‘United curls’ Facebook page. I only use products they recommend then I do my own thing. Life’s too short for plopping and scrunching out the crunch.

I have similar hair.

Never liked the silicone free GC products/method etc.

First things first you need a dry cut with someone who knows curly hair. Going to be life changing! Will likely need to travel to one of the big cities - London or Birmingham. Dry cuts last longer than a normal haircut - 6 months minimum as opposed to 6 weeks.

Big fan of Moroccan oil products.

Also big fan of researching into the protein vs moisture dryness vs dehydration.
That’s huge. I will be honest I do struggle to understand it but when I manage to pick the right one hair turns fabulous in a matter of washes - until I go too far and need to add the opposite lol. Moroccan oil products, Pantene 3 minute miracle is good and olaplex.

Wonder water great for the frizz.

Having a natural oil bath for your head is also really good for your hair. Don’t wash your hair for as long as possible - like 3-4 days minimum if you can. Get a natural brush like a mason Pearson and smooth all the oil from the roots to your ends. Plait so it gets the frizz from brushing in control ( I like to do in small sections) and you can massage the oil down in each section. Repeat and repeat for as many days as you can stand before you want to pull your scalp off. Wash and the difference will be visible. Repeat as often as your social schedule is compatible with oily head.