Go-To Summer Curly Hair Routine

Happy Summer let’s talk about how to transition from spring hair to summer hair!

Like I’ve mentioned before, my styling routine does not change drastically from season to season, mostly because my hair likes consistency no matter what the weather is outside. Although I don’t change much about my routine, I do change the number of products I use and how often I use them.

For example, when it’s colder out, I tend to use a leave-in conditioner and/or a styling cream/gel to give my curls moisture and keep them as defined as possible (and of course brush style with my Denman brush). However, in the summer, because I know I’ll be in the water often and sweating from the heat, I tend to forgo any extra styling products outside of my leave-in conditioner. This helps me retain my moisture and still gives me enough hold to style my hair if I choose to! My current favourite leave-in conditioner is the Go-2 Hydrating Leave-in Hair Milk by Up North Naturals.

The next product I limit the use of is shampoo. While this isn’t a new thing for me, I try to do this all year round, limiting how often I shampoo my hair during any given week has really changed the game for me. I typically try to stretch my wash days to once every week or once every ten days. I do this by using dry shampoo or a co-wash in between! Not only does doing this keep my hair from drying out but I’ve noticed that the overall health of my hair has increased because I am not stripping my scalp of its natural oils. Pro-tip: when shampooing your hair, use a scalp scrubber to really massage your scalp to promote hair growth and removal of any excess buildup.

As for drying my hair, I used to be a strong proponent of air drying in lieu of diffusing because I thought it was healthier for my hair (i.e., less heat damage). However, thanks to the amazing Manes by Mell on YouTube, I now know that to be untrue. In fact, hovering the diffuser approximately 15cm away from your hair is less damaging than letting your hair sit soaking wet all day. I won’t bore you with the entire study done on this debate, but if you want to read more on this you can find the article here: https://anndermatol.org/DOIx.php?id=10.5021/ad.2011.23.4.455

Finally, in the warmer months especially if you’re planning on traveling to any hot destinations, I highly recommend sticking to moisturizing products (bonus points if they include UV and heat protection). I cannot stress this point enough. Don’t let your hair get damaged by the elements! And by products I don’t just mean hair stylers, I mean sleeping on Satin or Silk pillowcases, using Satin/Silk scrunchies instead of those tiny elastics and using silk scarves to protect your hair as often as possible.