Sponsored by Suave
How many of you have ever felt personally victimized by humidity? Living in New York with naturally curly hair (I know, why do I do this to myself?) it’s a daily reality for me to have decent-looking curls—until I step outside and Mother Nature has its way with my hair. Because I don’t enjoy looking like Monica Geller in Barbados year-round, you can bet that I’ve tried basically every product on the market and every “life hack” to fix dry, frizzy hair. And I’m here to impart my wisdom on you, because I’m generous like that. So here are some strategies and products that actually work and will give you sleek, smooth hair all summer long, even when it’s so humid outside you feel like you’re walking through a cloud. And the best part is none of these methods cost like, a million dollars because we know you’re not made of money.
1. Don’t Wash Your Hair Every Day
Look, I know. Clean hair is great, but let’s be real, it’s a lot of work to style it every day, and by over-washing, you’re stripping your hair of natural oils it needs. If you have dry hair, it’ll be more likely to frizz up, especially if you’re also causing heat damage by blow-drying, straightening, or curling every day. In the summer, you’re probably also exposing your hair to chlorine, salt water, and sun, all of which cause drying and frizz, so try to only wash once or twice a week at most. If you need a refresher in between, get a good dry shampoo to hold you over, like Suave Professionals Natural Refresh Dry Shampoo.
Suave Professionals Natural Refresh Dry Shampoo
2. Don’t Skip Conditioner
Conditioner is soooooo important to moisturizing your hair follicles, thus weighing it down so you don’t get swallowed alive by the humidity hair monster your dry af hair creates. Use conditioner with every wash, or if you insist on rinsing your hair every day even if you’re not shampooing, use it then too. The Suave Professionals Avocado + Olive Oil conditioner leaves dry, frizzy hair touchably soft and smooth. When used with the Avocado + Olive Oil shampoo and leave-in conditioner, your hair will stay smooth for up to three days and be protected from frizz—even in 95% humidity. Blessings.
Suave Professionals Avocado + Olive Oil Conditioner
3. Use Anti-Humidity Hairspray
To further combat frizz and keep it from ruining your blowout, spray your hair with an anti-humidity hairspray to seal it and keep it from expanding. When I lived in Texas, we used to use this horrible orange sticky gel to keep our hair from the humidity. My hair was sticky for like an entire 9 month period, but it wasn’t frizzy. Don’t be like me. After you finish styling, there are sprays like Suave Professionals Compressed Micro Mist Natural Smooth Hairspray, which is flexible and not sticky, and controls frizz for up for 48 hours.
Suave Professionals Natural Smooth Hair Spray
4. Brush Your Hair Often
Hey, remember the oil that we talked about not washing out every day? That is really important to your hair health, and ensuring it’s not being taken over by frizz. Brushing your hair doesn’t just remove tangles, it also spreads the oil from your scalp to the rest of your hair, keeping your ends from drying out. If you listen to me—WHICH YOU SHOULD—and stop washing your hair every day, then you want to continue to keep the oil moving away from your scalp so you don’t look like a wet rat on day three. Brush your hair twice a day at minimum to keep it shiny and frizz-free.
So the next time you’re strolling through the hair care aisle at your drug store, don’t sleep on Suave. Just because the price point is cheap doesn’t mean the products are—the opposite, actually. Just trust me on this. Suave is one of those things that’s not too good to be true.
Images: Ayo Ogunseinde / Unsplash; Suave (3)
People with straight hair think they have it rough this time of year and I’m not sorry, but curly hair is really the worst of all time in the summer. On a good day (which I can’t even remember when that was), big bouncy curls are what make me feel like a talentless celeb, whether it’s because I dared to let my natural hair show or I worked my magic with a curling wand. However, when bittersweet August rolls around, my so-called curls literally spiral out of control—sort of like, IDK, my fucking life? They frizz before I can even leave my bathroom and if I don’t have time to straighten my hair when I’m already “late” for meeting my friends out, I look like Mia Thermopolis before the glow-up. Yeah, it’s that bad. Since I rarely ever have time to straighten my mop and I ran out of excuses to bail on going out, here’s the solution to non-frizzy curls so you don’t have Monica hair from here on out.
You’ll thank me when this isn’t you:
1. Use Curl-Enhancing Shampoo And Conditioner
The dictator of how good your hair day will be starts in the shower. You want to find a curl-enhancing shampoo and conditioner duo like Briogeo Curl Charisma Rice Amino Avocado Hydrating Shampoo and Shea Curl Defining Conditioner. The formula is everything you could want for your curls and more because it not only defines your curls 10x more (duh), but it locks out frizz-causing enemies and provides tooooons of body without making your hair heavy af.
2. Detangle And Brush Your Hair While In The Shower
Not after you get out because this is what like, separates your curls and causes them to frizz out like a Chia Pet. Find a detangling brush made for thicker, coarser hair types like Tangle Teezer Thick And Curly Detangling Brush. Its bristles keep your curls intact and prevents cuticle damage so half of your hair doesn’t fall out or nearly break the brush like this:
3. Deep Condition At Least Once A Week
By the time Wednesday rolls around, you look as good as your hair: lifeless. For an extra pick-me-up and hydration bonus mid-week, try to use a leave-in conditioner such as Living Proof Curl Leave-In Conditioner that offers the best frizz control ever and keeps a hold on your voluminous curls all throughout happy hour and bar hopping.
Them: Your hair looks so good today.
Me: Ugh omg stop, my hair’s totally all over the place.
Also Me:
4. Add Oil After Drying
When you’re done drying your hair by *lightly* dabbing with a towel (not rubbing, for god’s sake) or using a blow dryer with a diffuser, seal in your hair’s natural oils by applying a light oil like Bumble And Bumble Bb. Curl (Style) Anti-Humidity Gel-Oil. This blocks out the humidity and provides a fab natural-looking shine. Plus, if you’re day drinking under the sun, UV inhibitors will prevent your curls from drying out so you won’t look electrocuted.
5. Finish With A Defining Cream
When you’re done perfecting your look, add a cream like the Drybar Velvet Hammer Hydrating Control Cream to hold your style so annoying-ass fly-aways don’t kill your vibe and get in the way of your drink and your two-step. This cream will prevent frizz all night long as you make your way through sweaty nightclubs so your hair still looks as smooth and radiant as ever. It will add an amazing gloss and intense definition for extra perky ringlets. Can I, um, put this on my chest, too? Asking for a friend.
