I have no scientific proof, but I think that frizz may be genetic. I assume this must be true because my hair has no natural curl or bend to it. Humidity has no real effect on it. But no matter how careful I am with the stuff on my head, I have the frizziest of frizzy hair. It’s straight, it’s long, it gets conditioned every day…and it’s just full of frizz. This is a story about how I keep on battling it (because I refuse to let it win).
The Scrunchies
When your hair always looks fuzzy no matter what you do, it’s easy to fall into a cycle of just saying forget about it . So in my teens, I got to the point where I just brushed it out and balled it up into a sort-of bun. I wrapped this knot with a scrunchie, and that was it.
This went on for years .
Envy and Momentum
It wasn’t a lasting solution. I found myself staring at hair everywhere I went. While watching TV with other people, I was constantly making comments about hairstyles. I was even going up to strangers who had nice hair, and asking them what they were doing to make it look that way. Finally I came to realize that all this weird obsession wasn’t about other people’s hair. It was about my own.
I decided to do something about it. So I went to a stylist and I picked out a hair cut I can live with. Then, I embarked on a journey to banish the frizz from my life. The system I’ve devised may not work for everyone, but it does work for me.
Goodbye, Frizz
I’m a modern girl, so I’ve already been all over the Internet reading about home remedies and hair masks and frizz treatment recipes. I’ve tried the mayonnaise masks and the lotions and the creams and even no-heat styling (the pictorial evidence of which has been painstakingly deleted). What I’ve learned is that banishing frizz isn’t something you can do just once with a simple miracle mayonnaise cure. It’s something that I, at least, have to work at every single day.
I still begin the day with shampoo and conditioner. After my hair is clean and moisturized, I rinse it thoroughly in cold water. The cold water helps smooth the hair. This used to be the end of my hair routine, during my scrunchie days. Now, it’s the very beginning.
I don’t rub my hair with a towel or even my hands. I squeeze it out and wrap it in a towel, then I’ll squeeze the towel a little. Rubbing hair just roughs it up and makes frizz more likely. Once the towel has absorbed some of the moisture, I remove it. My hair is dyed so it’s even more prone to getting dry. This is why I treat mine daily with moisturizing oil. It’s a leave-in product, one of many that I apply. Once the hair oil is applied, I treat my damp hair with anti-frizz serum. I use small amounts of both products, because too much leaves a visible residue.
I allow my hair to dry with the product on it. This is because I’ll be applying more before I style it. Specifically, I spritz all of it with thermal protectant (something my stylist tells me everyone should do before applying heat to hair) and add more of the anti-frizz serum. I comb it thoroughly after applying product to evenly disperse it. Then, I use a flat iron to straighten my already perfectly straight hair. People, mostly men, find this amusing. But a flat iron isn’t just used to remove curls, it’s also very useful for smoothing hair. Working slowly and deliberately, I can flatten down all the frizz. I end up with hair that looks sleek and smooth instead of frizzy .
Finally.
