How to Perfect Your Naturally Curly Hair

If you have naturally wavy to very curly hair, you know that those to-die-for ringlets do not necessarily come "naturally" as well. Some of the problems associated with having natural curls are frizz, kinks, flat-top and pouffy hair. Using styling tools, products, and precision is an absolute must when achieving professional curls that others will envy. The following steps are the perfect prescription for quality ringlets.

Difficulty: Moderately Easy

Instructions

Things You'll Need:

• Hair dryer, preferably ionic (optional)
• Small-barreled curling iron (optional)
• Styling products--mousse, serum, curl/hair lotion

1. Your first step begins in the shower. Wash your hair with high-quality salon shampoo, or a top drug store brand such as John Freida. Rinse.

2. Condition with a moisturizing conditioner--curly hair tends to be dry and needs the extra moisture and nourishment. Rinse with COLD water, but do not rinse conditioner out fully. Leave a little in hair to help with styling and continual moisturizing.

3. Towel dry hair very gently by blotting with a special moisture-absorbing hair towel. Do not ring or twist or pull on hair. Once hair is towel dried, comb it out very carefully and delicately. Getting it "straight" is not the goal; you just want to ensure that all tangles and kinks are out. This can be done using your fingers instead of a fine-toothed comb.

4. Squeeze a dime-sized dollop of hair serum (such as John Frieda's Frizz-Ease) into your palm. Pull through hair, lightly scrunching and being sure to apply evenly across strands. Concentrate on ends, not roots. Applying serum to roots can cause greasiness.

5. It's mousse time. Choose your favorite medium to light hold mousse (such as John Freida Frizz-Ease Mousse). Squeeze a very generous ball of mousse into your two palms and begin to lightly scrunch into hair. Use more than you think you may need, with your total mousse ball looking like the size of a very large apple. Make sure to distribute mousse evenly throughout curls.

6. Now, squeeze a quarter to half-dollar sized amount of hair or curly hair lotion (such as John Frieda cream) into your palm. Evenly scrunch and distribute through hair, using this to twist any misbehaving ringlets or troublesome spots.

7. Let hair air dry or use a diffuser on a low setting to dry curls. Do not comb or aggressively crunch hair. Lightly crunch and twist as needed throughout drying, but minimally as possible to prevent frizziness. Add more lotion or mousse throughout drying process to problem areas--frizzy spots, pouffs or kinks.

8. Finally, once hair is dry, you may want to use a small-barreled curling iron to perfect any still misshapen ringlets, especially around your face (which will be most obvious). Spritz with some hair spray for hold and some shine spray for extra glisten and gloss.