On discovering this secret world of curl loving individuals. I have begun to track back to the source of this religion.

Lorraine Massey is a curly girl and hairdresser and devised a curl safe method of caring and styling curly hair of all types.

Her ways became known as the curly girl method or CGM.

I shall sum up her do’s and dont’s as I have understood from reading, listening and learning.

• Avoid shampoo: they are like washing up liquid for hair stripping dry what we naturally need.
• Avoid combs and brushes: they can lead to pulling and breakage of the hair.
• Avoid heat styling: it’s quite obvious. Heating hair with hair dryer or straighteners is going to cause damage.
• Be aware of fragrance: particularly if they are artificial, chemically based scents.
• Avoid sulphates: at all costs! They are drying and damaging. The are stripping leaving prone to frizz.
• Avoid silicones: some use water based silicone but this is not advocated. Silicones coat and penetrate the hair making it hard for moisture to enter the cuticle. They build up over time causing damage.
• Avoid alcohols: they are drying.
• Try to avoid wet cuts: curls curl in different patterns and when wet do not hang the same as when dry.
• Try to not tie hair up tightly: lose is better. Tight, distorts curl pattern. Use scrunchies instead of hair bands. Pineapple hair loosely on top of head to sleep or use a buff or bonnet.
• Do condition: whether a co-wash, which is conditioner only wash alone or a low-poo sulphate free shampoo followed by a conditioner.
• Don’t use towels: they rough up hair too much and can remove too much water. Favour cotton. An old tee shirt or microfibre or paper towels.

It’s been quite overwhelming at times but it soon becomes second nature I think….I hope!

Who doesn’t enjoy a steep learning curve after all!

🌀M🌀