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June 3, 2013 6:02 AM Subscribe
My thick curly hair needs to look good for a family event. Complication: high temperatures and humidity. Ideas?
I am travelling to the tropics for a family occasion, and I really want to have nice hair on the day.
My thick, curly shoulder-length hair frizzes terribly in high temperatures and soft water. In my experience, even serum doesn't cut it in this situation.
My usual routine is washing daily and putting regular conditioner into the ends and not rinsing them off. In the UK and other western countries, this works very well for me. In Asia, not so much; it goes much softer, but also bigger/fluffier and the curls become less tightly defined, even if I put product into it and sit absolutely still for two or three hours after a shower to let it air dry.
My options are:
(1) Wear it natural with LOTS of serum and leave-in conditioner, and keep fingers crossed. Minus: High chances of frizz.
(2) Blow-dry it straight. Plus: This looks quite good. Minus: High chances of frizz. Even with serum. Frizzy straight hair is an even worse look for me than frizzy curly hair.
(3) Put it up. Plus: I don't have to worry about it. My neck will be cool. I can wear dangly earrings. Minus: I have round cheeks, and whenever I tie my hair up I feel that it makes my face look even rounder. Also the dreaded halo of frizz effect.
It is an all day event. We won't be outdoors the whole time but there is an outdoor element. It will not be windy, but very hot. As mentioned before, I have a round face. I am happy to go to a salon to get my hair done, I just don't know what to ask them for. In past experience, they can blow dry my hair straight very nicely but it gets frizzy quite quickly.
My hairtype is "Curly Twirly" according to this website.
I am travelling to the tropics for a family occasion, and I really want to have nice hair on the day.
My thick, curly shoulder-length hair frizzes terribly in high temperatures and soft water. In my experience, even serum doesn't cut it in this situation.
My usual routine is washing daily and putting regular conditioner into the ends and not rinsing them off. In the UK and other western countries, this works very well for me. In Asia, not so much; it goes much softer, but also bigger/fluffier and the curls become less tightly defined, even if I put product into it and sit absolutely still for two or three hours after a shower to let it air dry.
My options are:
(1) Wear it natural with LOTS of serum and leave-in conditioner, and keep fingers crossed. Minus: High chances of frizz.
(2) Blow-dry it straight. Plus: This looks quite good. Minus: High chances of frizz. Even with serum. Frizzy straight hair is an even worse look for me than frizzy curly hair.
(3) Put it up. Plus: I don't have to worry about it. My neck will be cool. I can wear dangly earrings. Minus: I have round cheeks, and whenever I tie my hair up I feel that it makes my face look even rounder. Also the dreaded halo of frizz effect.
It is an all day event. We won't be outdoors the whole time but there is an outdoor element. It will not be windy, but very hot. As mentioned before, I have a round face. I am happy to go to a salon to get my hair done, I just don't know what to ask them for. In past experience, they can blow dry my hair straight very nicely but it gets frizzy quite quickly.
My hairtype is "Curly Twirly" according to this website.
As a fellow curly twirly (thanks for the diagnosis!) I feel your pain.
I think an up-do would be the best bet as you won't have to worry about it. If you're like me, the more you try to smooth it down with your hands the frizzier it gets, and the temptation is too great when it's down.
What about a "messy" up-do like these? It means you can show off some of the curl in your hair, you won't need to worry about the halo of frizz (as it's kind of part of the softness of the look) and if you ask for some height on top it should elongate your face shape.
Have a great time at the event and remember that the only person really looking at your hair is you!
posted by billiebee at 6:27 AM on June 3, 2013 [2 favorites]
I think an up-do would be the best bet as you won't have to worry about it. If you're like me, the more you try to smooth it down with your hands the frizzier it gets, and the temptation is too great when it's down.
What about a "messy" up-do like these? It means you can show off some of the curl in your hair, you won't need to worry about the halo of frizz (as it's kind of part of the softness of the look) and if you ask for some height on top it should elongate your face shape.
Have a great time at the event and remember that the only person really looking at your hair is you!
posted by billiebee at 6:27 AM on June 3, 2013 [2 favorites]
I think the product you might be missing is gel. I have wavy/curly/frizzy hair and only recently learned how to style it properly. Serum does absolutely nothing for me, but learning about gel, in particular, was a godsend! But you need the right kind of gel: it should be liquidy but strong holding. I love this one. It’s not pricey (around $10/bottle). Here’s the process:
1. Wash hair, use lots of conditioner.
2. Rinse out hair. Apply a quarter-size of conditioner to wet hair as a leave-in.
3. Turn head upside down. Squeeze out excess water so that hair is still soaking wet but not dripping.
4. Apply gel while hair is still soaking wet. It’s very important that the hair be SOAKING wet! Use lots of gel. I use 3-4 handfuls for my hair, which is about 4 inches past my shoulders.
5. Scrunch the gel throughout the hair, pushing up on the curls rather than raking down. Do not forget to put gel on your roots!
Optional step: If you have time and have a diffuser, stay upside down and dry your curls with a diffuser, cupping them in the bowl and handling them as little as possible. When 80% dry all around, flip back up. Arrange the top to fall properly, but otherwise DO NOT TOUCH YOUR HAIR. If you don’t have a diffuser, you can air dry, but this might take a long time.
After hair is completely dry (it should be crunchy), flip over again and scrunch upwards, “breaking” the crunchiness (this is called scrunching out the crunch). Flip back over and voila, lovely defined curls.
Now I’m not sure how well this will work in the tropics, but if you apply enough gel, it should be enough to protect you from the humidity. Here's a more detailed account of the above. And you're already familiar with the naturallycurly website, so you'll find lots of similar advice there. Good luck and enjoy the event!
posted by yawper at 7:26 AM on June 3, 2013 [5 favorites]
1. Wash hair, use lots of conditioner.
2. Rinse out hair. Apply a quarter-size of conditioner to wet hair as a leave-in.
3. Turn head upside down. Squeeze out excess water so that hair is still soaking wet but not dripping.
4. Apply gel while hair is still soaking wet. It’s very important that the hair be SOAKING wet! Use lots of gel. I use 3-4 handfuls for my hair, which is about 4 inches past my shoulders.
5. Scrunch the gel throughout the hair, pushing up on the curls rather than raking down. Do not forget to put gel on your roots!
Optional step: If you have time and have a diffuser, stay upside down and dry your curls with a diffuser, cupping them in the bowl and handling them as little as possible. When 80% dry all around, flip back up. Arrange the top to fall properly, but otherwise DO NOT TOUCH YOUR HAIR. If you don’t have a diffuser, you can air dry, but this might take a long time.
After hair is completely dry (it should be crunchy), flip over again and scrunch upwards, “breaking” the crunchiness (this is called scrunching out the crunch). Flip back over and voila, lovely defined curls.
Now I’m not sure how well this will work in the tropics, but if you apply enough gel, it should be enough to protect you from the humidity. Here's a more detailed account of the above. And you're already familiar with the naturallycurly website, so you'll find lots of similar advice there. Good luck and enjoy the event!
posted by yawper at 7:26 AM on June 3, 2013 [5 favorites]
Hah! I just came from a wedding that was at the beach. It was 90 degrees F outside, humid and the wind was blustering around like crazy. My hair is curly like yours and I had the exact same fears. Having been on the beach severals days prior to the wedding, I had tested out several hair keeping methods, like putting my hair up in a pony tail, using tons of hair product, using a million clips to keep everything in place, or even to the point of straightening my hair with a straigtening iron.
None of it worked. Even with the hair straightener, I sweated so much that my hair curled right back up. The wind was too strong and the air was too hot and humid.
The best part was that *all* the other wedding guests were in the exact same boat as I.
At the beginning of the wedding, everyone had nice, primped hair, and by the end, no matter what they did to their hair, it was all a frizzy mess. On top of that, since everyone had been at the beach for the last couple of days, everyone had horrible sun burns or awkward tan lines. It gave the look that everyone was worn out and beat up, despite being in their best dressed clothing. Even the poor bride was frazzled-looking, even though I'm sure she had two cans of hair product in her hair. But I'm sure she still had a lot of fun.
My advice to you? Don't sweat it. Everyone else will be in the same boat as you. However in the end, the best technique that worked for me in the end was using tons of conditioner and hair gel. My curly hair is long and if apply a lot of it at the tips of my curls, it keeps them from unraveling easily. Also, don't use hair cement or super strong gel, otherwise the tips of your hair will appear "wet" and the rest of your hair willl look dry. Instead, use a mild-strength gel.
Good luck.
posted by nikkorizz at 9:26 AM on June 3, 2013 [2 favorites]
None of it worked. Even with the hair straightener, I sweated so much that my hair curled right back up. The wind was too strong and the air was too hot and humid.
The best part was that *all* the other wedding guests were in the exact same boat as I.
At the beginning of the wedding, everyone had nice, primped hair, and by the end, no matter what they did to their hair, it was all a frizzy mess. On top of that, since everyone had been at the beach for the last couple of days, everyone had horrible sun burns or awkward tan lines. It gave the look that everyone was worn out and beat up, despite being in their best dressed clothing. Even the poor bride was frazzled-looking, even though I'm sure she had two cans of hair product in her hair. But I'm sure she still had a lot of fun.
My advice to you? Don't sweat it. Everyone else will be in the same boat as you. However in the end, the best technique that worked for me in the end was using tons of conditioner and hair gel. My curly hair is long and if apply a lot of it at the tips of my curls, it keeps them from unraveling easily. Also, don't use hair cement or super strong gel, otherwise the tips of your hair will appear "wet" and the rest of your hair willl look dry. Instead, use a mild-strength gel.
Good luck.
posted by nikkorizz at 9:26 AM on June 3, 2013 [2 favorites]
This would depend on the length of time between your leaving your home for the destination, and the day of the actual event, but have you considered a Keratin treatment before you leave home? From what I understand, Keratin treatments last for different lengths of time depending on your hair and the type of treatment, but if the event is soon after you arrive, it may work. I had one in a similar situation (a wedding in Goa -definitely hot and humid!) , and it worked great - my hair was easier to manage, nowhere near as frizzy as on previous trips, and the treatment lasted about 4 weeks
posted by darsh at 10:56 AM on June 3, 2013
posted by darsh at 10:56 AM on June 3, 2013
I have similar hair - coarse, thick, wavy, curly & frizzy, esp. in humidity and heat. I wouldn't leave in conditioner unless it's designed to be leave-in. Use lots of shine serum and extra control gel. My hair is a bit longer than shoulder length, and I use about a nickel-sized blob of serum(about 5-6 squirts of spray) and a big blob of gel, close to a palmful. I let it dry, finger-comb, and then don't touch it. Even in heat and humidity, it will get volume, but doesn't get horribly frizzy. Another option is a professional blowout with shine serum, gel, and lots of hairspray. Wearing it up is a great option in the heat, and long dangly earrings help elongate the look; I'll bet it looks great - most of us are far too critical of our looks.
posted by theora55 at 11:13 AM on June 3, 2013 [1 favorite]
posted by theora55 at 11:13 AM on June 3, 2013 [1 favorite]
Get a blowout the day of and ask them to finish it with the flat iron. Or bring a flat iron with you and finish it back in your room if you think they might not have one. I've had blowouts in Japan and Thailand that lasted several days. Bonus: I find that having pin straight hair makes your head feel less hot.
Putting a lot if product in your hair to try and make the curls work is going to feel gross in the humidity.
posted by fozzie_bear at 11:18 AM on June 3, 2013
Putting a lot if product in your hair to try and make the curls work is going to feel gross in the humidity.
posted by fozzie_bear at 11:18 AM on June 3, 2013
Best answer: I have super curly hair that would behave just as wildly as you're predicting if I were in your shoes.
The ONLY trick that ever works, 100% guaranteed in these situations (and now I just do this all the time) is I gave my hair one last wash to rid it of all product, then use regular old Suave Naturals conditioner (not special expensive leave-in conditioner or anything like that) that I rake into wrung-out but still very wet hair with my fingers in the shower. Then I either make a loose bun or loose mermaid braid.
In a few hours, undo your hair and gently shake it out. You should have very soft, loose curls that won't get puffy or frizzy because of the conditioner.
Experiment first. I found that I needed an entire handful of conditioner to make and smooth and shiny and not at all greasy. A small amount of conditioner did nothing.
Like I said, I do this all the time now. I wash my hair once a week or less, but rinse out the conditioner and do it all again whenever it's really hot or I've been running a lot and my head feels gross. No more gel, products of any kind.
Just regular Suave conditioner. And bonus...your hair will smell amazing.
posted by kinetic at 2:15 PM on June 3, 2013 [2 favorites]
The ONLY trick that ever works, 100% guaranteed in these situations (and now I just do this all the time) is I gave my hair one last wash to rid it of all product, then use regular old Suave Naturals conditioner (not special expensive leave-in conditioner or anything like that) that I rake into wrung-out but still very wet hair with my fingers in the shower. Then I either make a loose bun or loose mermaid braid.
In a few hours, undo your hair and gently shake it out. You should have very soft, loose curls that won't get puffy or frizzy because of the conditioner.
Experiment first. I found that I needed an entire handful of conditioner to make and smooth and shiny and not at all greasy. A small amount of conditioner did nothing.
Like I said, I do this all the time now. I wash my hair once a week or less, but rinse out the conditioner and do it all again whenever it's really hot or I've been running a lot and my head feels gross. No more gel, products of any kind.
Just regular Suave conditioner. And bonus...your hair will smell amazing.
posted by kinetic at 2:15 PM on June 3, 2013 [2 favorites]
This really depends on what you want to invest in the situation. I'd say wear it up for your event. That way you can at least not be futzing with your hair all day/night. If you are invested in wearing your hair down, sadly, you have to find product that works for you specifically. I use the new l'oreal and love it. Serum weighs my hair down. I condition once a month with coconut oil (slop it on, leave it for an hour, wash it out). I do use the Ever Curl curl definer and I live in a super humid place; I don't have any issues (and my hair is in a messy asymmetrical bob that isn't giving that way).
posted by syncope at 3:23 PM on June 3, 2013
posted by syncope at 3:23 PM on June 3, 2013
You need to use gel, not just serum and leave-in. I use Biolage Gelee, and it is awesome. (My sister and i both use this gel, this is what our hair looked like during a wedding in the tropics of Taipei on a rainy day.)
Technique: Wash your hair, and condition your hair. Brush it while you're in the shower. Blot your the excess moisture out of your hair (don't rub your hair with the towel, that will frizz it up.) Then, while you're hair is still wet, rake the gel through your hair with your hands. Be generous, it's humid out! Let it air dry. Done! Nice, non-frizzy curls!
posted by Kololo at 4:42 PM on June 3, 2013
Technique: Wash your hair, and condition your hair. Brush it while you're in the shower. Blot your the excess moisture out of your hair (don't rub your hair with the towel, that will frizz it up.) Then, while you're hair is still wet, rake the gel through your hair with your hands. Be generous, it's humid out! Let it air dry. Done! Nice, non-frizzy curls!
posted by Kololo at 4:42 PM on June 3, 2013
Argggh! Don't brush your hair! Ever! Comb it while you're in the shower.
Otherwise, I agree with Kololo completely.
posted by saveyoursanity at 5:45 PM on June 3, 2013
Otherwise, I agree with Kololo completely.
posted by saveyoursanity at 5:45 PM on June 3, 2013
Response by poster: Thanks for all the awesome answers! However, I best answered kinetic's answer because this worked wonderfully for me on my holiday. I showered in the morning and braided my hair while still wet, with conditioner in it - in the evening I had basically perfect hair and as a bonus, it kept me cool during the day because my hair was off my neck.
posted by Ziggy500 at 2:33 AM on June 26, 2013
posted by Ziggy500 at 2:33 AM on June 26, 2013
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I have wavy hair and I live in a humid area. Frizz is part of life. When I iron my hair, it can look good for a couple of days I can put some serum or oil on it in the morning and it's okay for the rest of the day.
Try special shampoos and conditioners for smoothness and don't shampoo daily.
For the rest of the trip, put it up. Slick it back with serum or hair spray.
posted by Ruthless Bunny at 6:06 AM on June 3, 2013