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hair thursday makeover 42

This week’s participant is Mir from Woulda Coulda Shoulda.

The girl has some curls.

Mir’s hair:

Dark mahogany brown rapidly going gray
Colors to cover the gray, prefers dark brown
Dry – rinses/conditions every day, and washes occasionally
Batshit curly, out of control, frizzy (her words, not mine)
Is open to all lengths, but hasn’t found a short hairstyle feminine enough
Went though a period of straightening every day, but is not willing to spend that kind of time now (THANK GOD)
Uses a salon quality shampoo and conditioner, de-frizzing serum, and curl-enhancing lotion
Wears ponytails frequently

I’m not even going to pretend that I am a curl expert. (Wave expert? Maybe.) The curl experts reside over at this fantastic website, which EVERY SINGLE curly girl (and boy) should visit.

On Naturally Curly, a classification system developed by Andre Walker is used to explain the different kind of curl patterns, as well as what products work best for each kind.

It seems like Mir is a 3b, and the folks at Naturally Curly have some great tips for this type.

What to try for 3b hair: For Type 3b hair, gels, styling creams and puddings work best. Curl & Tonic is our Curly Cocktail for 3b hair. Or, try some of these:

Curlisto Structura Lotion
Curlisto Control Gel II
Innersense Quiet Calm Curl Control
AG Hair Cosmetics Re:coil
Curly Hair Solutions Curl Keeper
Cutler Curling Cream
Long Lovely Locks Coco Light
Alagio Crazy Curl Curl Enhancer Balm
Miss Jessie’s Curly Pudding
Devacurl Arc Angell
Curl Junkie CoffeeCoco Curl Creme
Cutler Specialist Definition Cream
Curl Junkie Curl Fuel
Mixed-Chicks Leave-in Conditioner.

Tips for 3b hair : This hair type needs extra moisture and products that define curls and fight frizz. Let hair air dry or use a diffuser. Use duckbill clips at the crown of your head to lift top curls as needed. Once curls are dry, rub a little pomade into the palm of your hands and smooth over your hair. Please do not brush or comb your dry curls. Sleeping on a satin pillowcase is recommended to reduce tangles.

Oooh, satin pillowcase. Fancy.

First off, I’m glad Mir doesn’t want to deal with straightening her hair. EMBRACE THE CURLS, I SAY!

While I was looking at the tips, I noticed a photo of Juliana Marguiles and realized Mir’s hair has a very similar curl pattern. In my honest opinion, the length of Mir’s hair looks a little bit like a curly helmet. She has such great curls, but the slightly-below chin length really isn’t doing much to showcase them.

I truly think Mir needs to grow out her hair. Why?

1. I’ve seen Mir’s hair at even shorter lengths than this, and the thickness of the curls looks a little rigid.

2. It doesn’t need to be as long as the photos below (maybe brushing the shoulder or a little longer), but length will keep her hair from looking too stiff and boxy.

3. Her hair will actually be easier to style and she’ll have many more options for getting it off her face, if need be.

If you look at the first photo of Juliana, you’ll notice that Mir has a similar hairline. That type of hairline will give her a nice lift as her hair grows longer. I included the second photo as an additional styling option for Mir to keep her hair off her face during the warmer months, which still looks super polished.

(And that’s the thing, my friends. Sure, a shorter and trendier hairstyle might seem more stylish, but for curly hair like Mir, the longer the hair, the more styling OPTIONS will be available to her.) Ponytails will look prettier, barrettes will look prettier – it will just be a bonafide Festival of Pretty.

I know a Hair Thursday post about g r o w i n g   o u t   t h e   h a i r  might seem a little boring, but Mir needs to trust me on this one. Trims every 6-8 weeks and she’ll be there in no time.

No voting, as this is my FINAL WORD. Go forth and spread the hair love.

Happy Fourth!

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21 comments
  1. Heather B.

    July 6, 2008 at 4:58 pm

    Duuuuuude, Miss Jessie’s curly pudding is the most amazing thing ever. I cannot talk about it enough.

    Sarah, you’ve seen me without it (the night we went out for drinks in OKC when my hair looked like HELL but I didn’t care because I didn’t know anyone there) and the night that you were in NYC (it was down and curly and didn’t look like I stuck my finger in a socket). Obviously it does wonders.

  2. Deputy's Wife

    July 11, 2008 at 9:31 am

    From one batshit curly girl to another, do an “updo” for the wedding. After showering I use my spray on curly gel stuff and let my hair air dry for awhile. With almost dry hair, I run my fingers through it to get that curly pouffiness. (You know what I am talking about… that thing we curly girls usually try to avoid.) Once you have some volume to your hair, pull it all back and twist it up. Secure it with some bobby pins. While twisting it up, make sure that you have curls coming out of the top of the twist. (Does that make sense?) After it is all secured, pull some tendrils out around your face.

    This is the hairdo that gets the most compliments for me. Have fun at the wedding!

  3. kate

    July 11, 2008 at 11:53 pm

    I just wanted to say that I have a friend with ringlet-type curly hair like this, who colors to cover grey as well, and her hair is long. It looks GREAT. I learned today that she can even tie it into a lovely bun at the base of her head, by itself (no rubber bands) and I was probably a silly amount of impressed. It was just so cool! So let that persuade you to grow it out! Hah.

    PS <3 WCS!

  4. mary

    July 15, 2008 at 4:21 pm

    I want to find a site called naturallycowlicky.com!