Why is my curly hair always so frizzy?
Curls tend to be naturally dry, even when you take care of them. Due to their spiraled shape, it's harder for the natural oils produced from your scalp to travel down and coat the strands, which is why they can get so frizzy.
- Shampoo Only Your Scalp.
- Dilute Your Shampoo with Water.
- Switch to a Shampoo WITHOUT Sulphates & Use a 'Co-Wash'
- Use a Creamy, Moisturising Conditioner.
- Don't brush your curls DRY.
- Use a Leave in Conditioner/Curl Cream.
- Deep Condition your Hair.
- Protect your Curls at Night.
by Pattern Beauty
While many people despise frizz, natural hair can embrace the fullness of frizz with curls, coils, and tight textures that are healthy and hydrated. When frizz is the result of dryness or breakage, that's when moisture and a good trim come into play.
"Make sure your hair is moisturized enough — dryness is typically what causes frizz," said Roszak. So, if your ends are frizzy, it's probably due to a lack of conditioner. As for products, steer clear of heavy oils or anything that contains wax, Kimble told us.
- Give Your Hair a Cold Water Rinse. ...
- Opt for a Conditioning Shampoo. ...
- Use a Microfiber Towel or Cotton T-Shirt to Dry Hair. ...
- Detangle Hair With a Wide-Tooth Comb. ...
- Use a Blow Dryer With Ionic Technology. ...
- Hair Serums are Key for Removing Frizz. ...
- Use a Hair Mask to Nourish Hair and Get Rid of Frizz.
The hair strand test
Take one strand of wet hair from your head, pinch each end with your fingers, and gently pull at it. If the hair stretches and then returns to its original length, it's healthy! (Nice). If it stretches but doesn't return it's dry.
If your curls tend to look inconsistent - defined in some places, frizzy in others - you may not be using enough gel or styling cream to coat every strand. Try dividing hair into four sections (nape of neck, crown of head, and both sides) and then applying product to ensure you don't miss a single curl.
Type 3B - This type of curly hair is characterized by bouncy ringlets the circumference of a Sharpie marker. Type 3B curls are often dry and frizz-prone, so look for hydrating, strong-hold styling gels that'll keep your ringlets perfectly defined all day long.
Sometimes, our hair can become over-moisturised. Yes, that's right, curls can reach optimal hydration and beyond. Over-moisturised hair ('hygral fatigue') will feel very soft, lack definition and may experience a lot of wet frizz. This will then translate into soft, mushy frizz when hair is dry.
Curly hair is dominant, so someone is more likely to have curly or wavy hair if at least one of their parents does. Recent research points to trichohyalin, a protein in hair follicles, as having primary influence over hair curl. However, there are many genes contributing to hair curliness, most of them unknown.
Does frizzy hair mean your hair is unhealthy?
While these terms are often used interchangeably and have similar symptoms, there is a common misconception that frizzy hair means damaged hair and this is simply untrue.
Do some people have naturally frizzy hair? In short: yes. Some people have naturally curly hair, which is drier because the natural oils produced by your scalp can't travel down the hair shaft as well as it can on straight hair.

If you notice your hair is frizzy after you apply conditioner, this may be because you haven't applied it on soaking wet hair. Your hair may also feel frizzy due to a lack of moisture, so you want to apply a deep conditioning masque that will help to prevent dryness.
There are a lot of products out there — conditioners, serums, shampoos — that promise to heal and restore dry, damaged hair. Sadly, there's really no way to heal damaged hair.
Type 2C hair waves start from the scalp and are thicker than other Type 2 subcategories. This coarse hair type is the most prone to frizz and forms an “S” shape when dry.
What Does Frizzy Hair Look Like? Words used to describe frizzy hair include: dry, damaged, stiff, straw-like, and rough. Not exactly the kind of adjectives you want used to describe your mane. While certain causes are out of our hands, such as the weather, there are other ways to keep frizz under control.
Shiny and Smooth.
If hair looks silky, it's a safe bet that it's healthy too. That shiny—and sought-after—texture is the result of a smooth, flat-lying cuticle.
The two primary reasons why your hair gets curly when it's wet are (1) water alters the hydrogen and disulfide bonds in your hair and (2) water weighs the hair down.
- Find a Curly Hair Routine That Works for You. ...
- Don't Overwash. ...
- Detangle Gently. ...
- Start Styling When Hair Is Wet. ...
- Scrunch Those Curls. ...
- Use a Diffuser or Air Dry Your Hair. ...
- Use a Heat Protectant If You're Going To Blow-Dry or Use Hot Tools.
- Color Damage.
- Over-Washing.
- Mechanical Damage.
- Using the Wrong Hair Products.
- Heat Damage.
- Shampoo.
- Conditioner.
- All-In-One.
What damaged curly hair looks like?
Stringy, straight ends and looser curl patterns. These sorts of noticeable changes in texture can be a red flag. Excessive heat is usually the culprit, but bleach/color damage, dryness or over-manipulation can be contributing factors as well.
The finger coil test is probably the easiest. Curl your a small section of your wet hair around your finger. This is a tension test that will identify where your hair lost its curl pattern. Damaged hair lacks elasticity and won't curl as easily as healthy hair.
Less than 20% of people have naturally curly hair. The percentage gets even smaller when you consider the scores of guys out there who don't embrace their curls.
"I think allowing your hair to breathe from any heat tools and applying a little mouse or curl cream and scrunching and letting it air dry will allow you to see how much wave or curl your hair actually has," he explains.
Coily Curls
The last, but most rare type of curl is the coily curl. This curl type is similar to that of an afro and when observed carefully, looks like the angular letter 'Z'. These curls require the most amount of moisture, as the hair type is much thicker than the other curl types.
Yes, only 11% of the population have curly hair.
Lots of traits are statistically rare: Left-handedness (just 10 percent of the population!), curly hair (11 percent!), and blond hair (4 percent!), to name a few.
It depends on your curl type. Loose and classic curls can lather up two to four times a week. Coily curl types can co-wash weekly, and deep cleanse with shampoo once a month. Tight curls fall somewhere in between - shampoo or co-wash every few days to a week.
The question then becomes: Why is curly hair so attractive? In my opinion, curly hair is attractive because it is spontaneous and unpredictable. There is something beautiful about it's independence. Your curls will not conform to societal pressure and they will not acquiesce to any attempts to tame them.
- Use a silk or satin pillowcase. ...
- Put your hair in a 'pineapple' ...
- Do twists or braids. ...
- Use a silk or satin bonnet or headscarf. ...
- Try a spritz or two of product.
Is curly hair the stronger gene?
Curly hair is considered a “dominant” gene trait. Straight hair is considered “recessive.” To put that in simple terms, that means that if one parent gives you a curly-haired gene and the other parent gives you a straight-haired gene, you'll be born with curly hair.
It is associated with the newly emerged alleles in both the TCHH gene and EDAR gene. The distributions of these straight hair related alleles (see figure) support the hypothesis that our human ancestors had curly hair; the straight hair found in East Asians and Caucasians likely developed independently.
Lots of traits are statistically rare: Left-handedness (just 10 percent of the population!), curly hair (11 percent!), and blond hair (4 percent!), to name a few. But of the more than seven billion people on the planet, only 2 percent can claim to have this one special trait.
Harsh shampoo, hair treatments, styling products, and excessive brushing contribute the most to poor hair health. However, other culprits include: overconsumption of alcohol. low-calorie and crash diets.
Frizzy hair is often damaged due to colouring, heat, chemical treatment or colouring. Too much shampooing can further lead to dry cuticles and split ends. You can wash your hair twice or thrice a week with natural shampoos. Also, try to use chemical-free products which can further damage your hair.
Over scrunching your hair and touching your hair too much actually causes frizz and breakage. When your fingers touch your hair too much, they can actually steal away essential oils, leading to dry and easily broken hair strands.
Genetics
The genetic makeup of your hair can cause frizzy hair. Curly hair and wavy hair tend to get a lot more frizzier when compared to straight hair. Your hair type is determined by the shape of your hair follicle. If you have a rounded follicle, your hair grows straight.
Hair can be overly porous: Hot water can dehydrate the scalp and strip your hair of its natural oils, which can lead to breakage. Frizz: Since the hot water strips the natural oils in your hair, the escaped moisture can leave your hair frizzy and dry.
Dry hair typically looks rough, frizzy, and lifeless. If your hair is damaged and dry, either your sebaceous glands don't produce enough sebum, or it gets ripped off by external factors.
Hair that's suffering from moisture overload can become frizzy, limp, and struggle to hold your curls.
How do you control frizzy curly hair naturally?
- 1 Don't brush your curls dry.
- 2 Don't shampoo everyday.
- 3 Switch to a moisturising conditioner and leave in conditioner.
- 4 Increase quantity of conditioner and leave in conditioner.
- 5 Switch to a CG friendly routine.
- 6 Check for glycerine & alcohol in your products.
But the best way to tell is by looking at the shape of your hair closer to the scalp. Hair that is wavy tends to have S-shaped strands, either tight or loose, and usually lays closer to the head. Curly hair has more corkscrew pattern and the curls have more 'lift' from the scalp.
Even for healthy hair, high humidity environments can lead to frizz when your hair absorbs excess moisture where an anti-frizz moisture hair barrier spray can help. Over-styling damaging the hair cuticle and causing frizz. Heat damage and styling is another common culprit of frizzy hair.
There are many visible signs of dry hair, such as: brittle, lifeless hair, frizz, flaky scalp, itchy scalp, split ends etc. If you are experiencing any of these, your hair is probably dry.
Damaged hair looks dull, breaks off easily, is extremely thin and does not retain moisture. In addition, you can tell that your hair is damaged if you notice a texture and color change. Another important indication of damaged hair is excessive tangling and split ends that won't go away even after a trim.