Table of Contents Show
Hair is an important part of our body that make us look beautiful. Hairs are of different types including straight hair, curly hair, wavy hair, and others. Getting healthy and vibrant hair requires proper maintenance and care. Following a healthy hair care routine is very important to get healthy and shiny hair. For this, you may need to use different hair care products like shampoos, conditioners, hair serums, oil, and so on. All type of hair requires care but curly hairs have a different texture and requires more effort and care.
So, how to get more defined curls? Defined curls have a bouncy, clear pattern and shape. Most people with curly hair desire defined curls but this is not so easy. It requires a lot of effort, care, and maintenance to have defined curly hairs. Shampoo and condition the right way and cleanse with cold water to get the best results with curly hair. Cleansing your hair and detangling is very important to get a well-formed pattern in your curls. In this article, we’ve shared some tips to make or keep your curls more defined. Follow the tips and get your desired and defined curls.
What are Defined Curls?
Defined curls refer to a shape that is well-formed, bouncy, have a clear pattern and shape. Defined curls can contain some qualities like:
- Minimal Frizz: When the individual hairs get separated from each other, the hair frizz occurs. Because of damage, dryness, or over-manipulation, frizz may occur. Minimal frizz helps to keep your hair nourished and hydrated. This helps to define and show off your curls. Less frizz may provide you with more defined curls.
- Curl Clumping: Clumping refers to the situation when a cluster of hairs together creates a single curl.
- Curl formation: This refers to healthy curls that have a good shape and pattern. For the formulation of curls, you need individual strands of hair. Steady curl formulation is the most common type of curly hair. When your hair is formulated well, they get back into its natural formulation each time when you style your hair. Curl formulation helps to retain the bounce and texture of your hair.
- Curl Separation: Separated and distinct spirals are more desired as defined curls. No one wants just one or two curls rather they want separated and distinct curls.
6 Easy Steps to Get Super-Defined Curls
There are some steps you may follow to get more defined curls. The steps are as follows:
1. Get Your Hair Soaking Wet
Make sure that your hair is soaking wet. When you are done with this, move on to step 2. Get your hair done in the shower to make everything go faster.
2: Cleanse Your Hair with Shampoo
Rub your hands together and apply the shampoo to your hair. Use the fingertips to massage the scalp gently and then move on to the hair strands. Avoid scratching your scalp with nails so that your skin doesn’t irritate or get infected.
3: Condition and Detangle
Conditioning and detangling may vary from person to person as it depends on the hair length. For shorter hair, apply the conditioner to your palms and then rub and spread it over your entire hair. Distribute the products evenly on your hair through your fingers. You can also use a brush to boost your definition. Leave the conditioner for five minutes and then rinse it out with water. For longer hair, take the conditioner on your hand and gently apply your conditioner from root to tip. You can also use a detangling tool like a flex brush or Denman brush. Detangle your hair from the end to the root to remove any shed hair or knots. Once you are done with detangling, wait for 5 minutes and rinse it out with water.
4: Apply Your Leave-In Conditioner or Moisturizer
Rinse your hair thoroughly and apply a moisturizer or conditioner to your hair. Stay in the shower and finger-comb the product thoroughly section by section. Do not rub the product roughly on your hair as it can cause your curls to frizz and make the curls less defined.
5: Apply your Gel Styler (optional)
If you are looking for more defined curls, you need to look for a definition that will extend more than two days by applying a gel. Your gel styler has a strong hold but it is still effective to keep your curls soft and defined.
6: Ready SET, Go!
This is the final step where you need to set your curls. You may let it dry or go for the other option. Using a heat tool or diffuser is also recommended to get more length on your hair or curls. Move the hair dryer from a low to medium setting.
✨ You May like: How Long Does Toppik Last?
14 Tips to Get More Defined Curls
Many people desire curls with a good definition. There are some tips you may follow to get more defined curls:
1. Detangle Thoroughly
You need to wash your hair and get all the tangles out to make your curls more defined. Take your time and coat every strand thoroughly with conditioner. Do not rush this process as it can miss some tangles and your hair may not get the desired definition. Use a wet brush to get a good detangling. Use a minimal amount of conditioner that is needed.
2. Shampoo Sparingly
Shampoo your curls when it is necessary as it helps to maintain the moisture of your curls. Choose a moisturizing shampoo and conditioner to get the best and more defined curls. Your hair type and hair texture are also important to determine which type of curls you can achieve. A nourishing shampoo is not only necessary to cleanse your hair but it helps maintain the moisture of your hair too. After using a moisturizing shampoo, use a moisturizing conditioner that will make the curls softer and healthier.
3. Ditch Your Brush
If you want to have more defined curls, ditch your brushes and tight combs first. If you must use a comb, use one that contains wide teeth. This will help you avoid breakage, damaged or frizzy hair. The gentler way to comb your hair is by combing with your fingers.
4. Be Gentle When Drying Your Curls
Don’t brush your curls ruthlessly for drying out the wet hair. Rather, simply dry your hair to retain the moisture of the curls. Most significantly, it is very difficult to take care of the combination hair and retain its moisture. When drying your hair, avoid less friction and damage from heating. Use a gentle microfiber towel to squeeze excess water from your curls. This will retain the moisture of your hair naturally without possible damage or friction.
5. Use Curl Defining Product While Your Hair is Wet
You may use some products to define your curls while your hair is still wet. Choose products like gel, mousse, cream, or other styling products that are specially designed for curly hair. These products may help your curls to create defined spirals, coils, or waves to your curls. Coat every strand to help curls clump together with a frizz-free look.
6. Don’t Mess with Dry Curls
There are so many styling products that may provide you with soft ad formed curls. But, you should not do the curl-defining work when your hair is dry. If you mess with the dry curls, it may ruin your curls and damage your hair. Apply the styling products to hydrate and smooth the curls when your hair is wet.
7. Protect Your Curls While You Sleep
If you want to get more defined curls, you must protect your curls while you sleep. Pineapple them on top of your head with a loose bun and secure it with a soft scrunch. Sleeping on a silk pillowcase to avoid frizzing curls. When you wake up from bed, nourish your curls with a curl-defining oil.
8. Condition the Right Way
While conditioning your curls, make sure you are getting deeper into the hair. There are contradictory opinions regarding whether you should condition your scalp or not. Many prefer to condition their hair from the hair’s ends and upwards. If your curl texture is loose, you may use a small amount of conditioner in your hair after the shower. But when you have tight curls, you may leave the conditioner for a longer period but don’t forget to wash it completely.
9. Avoid Sulfates
Sulfates are a very common ingredient that is found in almost all shampoos which are bad for your hair texture. Go for the sulfate-free and curl-friendly shampoos that will help you get more defined and shaped curls.
10. Wash Less Often
If you want defined curls, you should avoid washing your hair every day. Look at the hair texture and go for different washing schedules that are best suited to your hair. People with wavy hair should wash their hair once or twice a week while people with moderate curls should wash their hair once a week using only water and conditioner. People with tight curls should wash their hair as little as possible.
11. Avoid “Cones”
Shampoos don’t only contain harmful ingredients. Some conditioners contain silicones. The silicones make your hair silk and smooth. So, when you desire defined curls, you should avoid products that contain cones, especially silicon.
12. Rinse with Cold Water
When rinsing your conditioner, do it with cold water. This will help the curls to clump together more. Also, rinsing with cold water will help you get more defined and sharp natural curls.
13. Section before applying products
Don’t apply the products to your head at once. Split your hair into six sections before applying the products to your curls. Apply the products to one section at a time and repeat this to other sections of your hair. This may provide you with a better definition of your curls.
14. Style Your Curls
There are various gels, sprays, and creams that can help you get more defined hair. Using these products, you can style your hair differently. When using gel or cream, put a very small amount of the product and scrunch your curls. Use your fingers to comb when you have longer hair. When you are using a spray, spray the products all over the area except the hair roots.
Why Is It Difficult to Maintain and Define Curly Hair?
It is difficult to maintain curly and kinky hair compared to other hair types. Curly hair has also different types and characteristics. As a result, they require specific styling products. It becomes difficult to style the curly hair as the curls are not so defined. Lack of hydration is very common for curly hair which creates obstacles in maintaining and defining the curly hairs.
Generally, the curly or kinky hair gets drier so easily as the natural oils cannot travel easily. It is very important to understand the hair type and define or style the hair according to that. The straight hairs are easy to keep moisturized with natural oils while the curly hairs require much effort. The structure, texture, or pattern of the curly hairs makes it difficult to maintain and define the hairs.
FAQs
1. Why are some of my curls not defined?
Some of your curls may not be defined like the others. This generally happens when you do not use enough styling cream or gel in every strand. Another probable reason is; you may not divide your hair into different sections which often leads to this situation.
2. Can my hair become curly?
Hormonal shifts that occur from menopause, puberty, or pregnancy can cause your hair to go straight from curly. Almost half of the women face major changes in their hair during pregnancy or breastfeeding.
3. What hormones make hair curly?
The common hormones named Thyroxine, Triiodothyronine, and Insulin, are responsible to make hair curly. The male sex hormone androgens also cause changes in hair type.
4. How many times a week is it OK to curl your hair?
Generally, the recommended frequency of curling hair is once per week. However, you may do it twice or thrice a week with a curling iron or wand with tourmaline plates.
5. Should I comb my curls every day?
This depends on your hair type and curls pattern. People with tight curls should avoid brushing too often to avoid damage to their hair. Limit brushing your hair to keep the natural texture of your hair.
Final Thoughts
Curly hairs have a different texture from the other hairs. Curly hairs are very common and they have also different types. Some people like curls while others don’t like them. Some People with curly hair desire more defined curls. Curly hairs are a bit difficult to maintain and they require extra care to be defined. Follow the steps as instructed to get more defined hair. Following the tips that are related to detangling, shampooing, conditioning, or washing your hair is very important to get the best definition for your curly hair. Above all, maintaining a good hair care routine that is specially designed for curly hair is very necessary to get defined and the best curls.
Key Points
- Defined curls refer to bouncy and well-formed curls that are separated and have minimal frizz.
- Get your hair wet and follow the other steps like shampooing, conditioning, or detangling your hair properly.
- Be gentle when drying your hair and apply the products to your curls when they are wet.
- Don’t wash too often and rinse with cold water to get more defined curls.
- Curly hair is difficult to maintain because the structure, texture, and pattern of this hair are different from the others.
✨ Next Attraction: I Left My Straightener On for 2 Days
