So you’ve got curly hair, but don’t know how to care for it or style it the right way? Don’t worry, because we’re sharing with you the ultimate curly hair routine, and the most important basic steps that will give you the best hair days. We’re also going to recommend the right products, and you can shop them on our website, ZYNAH, right away.

Your Curly Hair Care

First: Washing your hair with the right shampoo

Curly hair tends to lose moisture faster than straight hair, so the first step in a curly hair care routine is to cut down on shampooing your hair, as it strips the hair of the natural oils it is producing. We recommend you wash your curly hair with shampoo once a week, twice at most, and it's preferable to use shampoos that are free of sulfates and chemicals.

 You might have noticed or even seen all the curly hair bloggers talk a lot about how to style your hair. With curly hair, styling your hair requires a lot of styling products, so it's important to wash your hair once a month with ‘clarifying shampoo’ to get rid of any product buildup that may occur in your scalp.

Tip: If you can’t find clarifying shampoo, you can rinse your hair with diluted apple cider vinegar. It’s a great natural alternative, as it helps remove accumulated oils and dirt from the scalp, and increases hair shine.  

How to Use Apple Cider Vinegar on Your Hair:

• After washing your hair with shampoo and conditioner, add a quarter cup of apple cider vinegar to a full liter of water.
• Spray this mixture onto your scalp and rinse your hair. Don’t worry about the smell, it’ll fade away.

Step 1: We recommend the following range of natural, sulfate free shampoos to use in your curly hair routine:

1. Norshek Berry Nice Shampoo
2. Bless Shampoo Sulfate Free
3. Raw African Argan Oil Shampoo

Step 2: Choose the conditioner that is suitable for your hair.

It is very important to know your hair type (low porosity or high porosity) in order to pick the right products for your curly hair routine.

Hair Porosity Test:

Low Porosity Hair:

For hair with low porosity, choose products that are light in density, moisturize the hair and contain ingredients like avocados, jojoba oil, natural glycerin, sweet almond oil and argan oil, as they are all light on the hair.

Unfortunately low porosity hair does not absorb moisture easily, which is why curly hair experts recommend using water during the styling process, as it will help the product get absorbed.

Tip: Low porosity hair usually need more moisture than protein. Make sure to use alkaline-based hair products, as they will help with the absorption of products and your hair.

We recommend: Raw African Raw Maya Hair Mask with Avocado

Hair with High Porosity:

With high porosity hair, it can absorb water and products very well, but does not hold them for long, which sometimes may leave your hair feeling dry and brittle. High porosity hair need protein masks from time to time, along with moisturizing hair masks. We recommend you go for products that deep condition your hair and contain ingredients like shea butter, olive oil, coconut oil and castor oil.

Tip: With high porosity hair go for a protein mask at least once a month and a moisturizing deep conditioning masks once a week. We recommend not washing your hair with super hot water as it causes hair follicles to open.

We recommend: Jevan Soya Richey Protein Hair Mask

Step 3: Hair Gel

Hair gel is one of the most important and useful products in a girl’s curly hair routine, because it helps shape and define the hairdo you are going for. After applying the styling cream to your hair, apply a layer of gel to your hair from top to bottom.

You can shop for the perfect gel online or make a natural gel at home such as flax seed gel and aloe vera gel.

We recommend:  Norshek Hairitated Hair Gel

 The Hair Adidct Frizz Off Papaya Hair Gel  

Step 4: Drying Your Hair with a Diffuser

The next step in the curly hair routine (after applying your styling products and gel) is to use a diffuser. The diffuser is one of the useful tools for curly hair gals, because it helps distribute the hot air in the hair, making it less harmful than a regular blow-dryer. Also if you’re looking to add some volume to your hair, the diffuser is the way to go.

Tip: If you don’t want that added volume to your hair, just use the diffuser from the top to bottom, if you are looking for volume use the diffuser from the ends and move upwards.

We recommend: Bless Diffuser

Step 5: Add Some Moisture to Your Hair.

As we said before, curly hair loses a lot of moisture quickly, which is why it's important to moisturize it from time to time with hair masks. Make masks at least once a week to keep your hair hydrated and moisturized.

We recommend: Raw Shea Hair Mask

Rhea Hair Mask

Curly Hair Care Tips:

1. The best way to protect your hair when sleeping is to use a satin bonnet. It will preserve the moisture in it and avoid hair frizziness. If you don’t have a satin bonnet, you can shop it here, or you can use a satin silk pillow case.
2. Use brushes designed for curly hair in your curly hair routine, as these brushes will really help define your curls.
3. Avoid very hot water and excessive shampooing.
4. Make sure to cut your ends regularly to keep your hair healthy, and curls luscious.

We’d love to hear from you any curly hair care tips or tricks you’ve tried. Share your tips or curly hair routine in the comments below. Also, enjoy 10% off your first order when purchasing any of the skin, hair or makeup products available on Zynah using the promo code, "zynah1".