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Learning About Curly Hair Care Before Your First Perm

March 10 2023

When you have lived all your life with straight hair, curly hair can be a great new endeavor to try out. Curls are beautiful and worth getting- but before you try to get them you need to know what is best for taking care of them. Different textures of hair require different care, so we want to help you learn how to take care of curls, so you can confidently try getting a perm this year.

Determine Your Curl Type

First and foremost when you get a perm you have to determine what kind of curls that you want to have. There are nine curl types, from 2A to 4C, 2A being the least curly of the curls. Typically, this is characterized by slight but obvious waves. 4C is the curliest of all, lying in tight coils. In getting a perm, determining the curl type that you want to have is important to both getting what you want and knowing what to expect. In between are 2B, 2C, 3A, 3B, 3C, 4A, and 4B curl patterns, each one more curly than the last. 

Detangling Your Curls

To detangle your curls, there are a couple of different options. The most important thing to keep in mind is that you will need to use a good detangler. Detangling your curls requires slip- otherwise, you risk tearing and breaking the strands. You will want to use a wide-toothed comb when you do this, or even just your fingertips, to detangle your hair. Wide-toothed combs help to ensure less breakage, as well as reduce the amount of frizz your hair will get from detangling. Using your fingers provides those same benefits but with the addition of being able to feel the hair. You can control it, and feel when a piece of hair is being strained. 

Washing Your Curls

Curly hair textures don’t tend to need to be washed as often as others. You can still wash every so often and use dry shampoo to keep things fresh, but you can avoid washing your hair as often to take care of your curly look. This will result in healthier hair overall as well because the natural oils on our scalps are important to our hair health. When they aren’t being stripped away every day, we allow our hair to thrive. 

Avoid Heated Styling Methods

Heated styling can really cause some problems with excessive use even on straight hair. Heated styling is okay once in a while, but when you do use it you will still want to make sure to use a heat protectant on your hair to ensure optimal hair health. Using heated styling on curls makes them more prone to potentially drying out. 

Leave In Conditioners And Hydration

With curls, hydration is a must! The oils from your scalp don’t always get to the ends of your hair, especially with curls, so you want to ensure that your hair gets all the moisture it needs! You can do this with regular leave-in conditioner treatments and deep conditioning of your hair every so often. If you find that your hair is becoming particularly frizzy, you can even opt for a hot oil treatment to really nourish it and restore the natural glamor. 

The best perms are given by our stylists at Meraki Hair & Makeup Studio. It’s time to try out curly hair! You can find us at 1281 Arthur Kill Road in Staten Island and call us at 718.966.6601 to book an appointment. You can also try our Meraki Hair & Makeup Studio mobile app instead, available for free on iTunes or Google Play.