curly hair help needed! can it really survive a week without brushing?

[indigosky]

DD (3.5 years) has fine, curly hair that forms ringlets on its own on humid days. My hair is straight, so I'm still figuring out how to best care for her hair. It gets lots of knots and she finds having it brushed very painful.

I've been reading past Mothering threads about curly hair care, and everyone says never to brush, only to use a wide-toothed comb when the hair is wet and conditioned.

My question is, I typically give DD a bath only about once a week. I'm having a hard time imagining that we can go a week without brushing/combing her hair -- won't it become a knotted mess that's even more painful to try to detangle the next time? I guess I can take a deep breath and give it a try...

Also, can you do 'up" hairstyles like two ponytails, or part of the hair into a small ponytail (we call that a "water fountain" on top of her head) without brushing?

[brennan]

I only brush dd's hair once a week, but it does turn into a rats nest, though just at the back.  I really don't find it any harder day to day than once a week.  I sing while I untangle it and that really seems to help dd stay calm.  Plus I also hold her hair at the roots so there's not as much tugging..  Brushing curly hair when its dry will cause it to break and get super frizzy.  It will then tangle easier because of its frizziness.  When you brush it when its wet leave the conditioner in while brushing, and rinse it after.  I can do up-dos without a brush, I just use my fingers kind of like a wide tooth comb, and work around her knots.  I'm fine with her hair being wild though, so maybe you like a more "polished" look and this wouldn't work for you.  I have curly hair and I brush my hair every 3 to 5 days and do up-dos the same way.   

Good luck!  

[Alenushka]

I never use a brush. I use Aveda Curly line of products

[34me]

I have a boy with tight tight strawberry blond curls. But I have a girl with looser ringlets. Dd combs every day with a wide tooth comb, ds has had his hair combed probably 4 times a year. We have been known to use Aveda but it is pretty pricy. I take a glob of conditioner and spread it on my hands and then work it through his hair with my hands/fingers.

[lovepickles]

Just get a squirt bottle, set it on mist and dampen the hair every morning and at night to comb it out. I think it is a bad idea not to comb hair twice a day. The scalp needs to be exfoliated and hair can trap bugs and dirt. Also you might consider washing 2-3 times a week, at least with water and and scrubbing scalp with a washcloth. Oil and skin can get trapped very easily with curly hair.

We don't use shampoo but wet and scrub scalp with water and a washcloth every night. If we have sunblock to get off we use Dove Sensitive soap on the hair and skin ... works like a charm.

DD has beautifully clean curly hair. It is very easy to maintain. Just go very slow and start combing from the end of the hair and work up to the scalp.

[hildare]

my dd at 20 mos still doesn't have ANY hair... but my own is pretty curly. 

when your kid's hair is longer, braids are hands-down the answer to this.  braid it in the morning and go all day.. take it down and brush and braid again at night.  when it's braided at night, you avoid the rat's-nest-syndrome.

i agree with pickles.. if it's short, you can get a spray bottle, wet it and comb through twice a day for the reasons mentioned (& also, if you live in a tick riddled area, it's always good to check!)

leave in conditioner is also very helpful... you can use just the tiniest bit combined with water to tame it and make combing easier. 

[alegna]

Honestly when dd was a baby the curly hair is what pushed us to baths every night.  But I second the spray to comb/brush in between.  When I fix her hair in the morning I wet it with detangler (have tried conditioner and water- detangler works better for us)

[crayfishgirl]

I stumbled on this just yesterday!  My daughter has curls (I do too so I know how to care for them, but she must grind her head into the pillow at night because wakes up matted every. single. day. And fights combing and detangler).

http://alphamom.com/parenting/hair-care-101-for-curly-haired-tots/

[insidevoice]

Originally Posted by crayfishgirl 

I stumbled on this just yesterday!  My daughter has curls (I do too so I know how to care for them, but she must grind her head into the pillow at night because wakes up matted every. single. day. And fights combing and detangler).

http://alphamom.com/parenting/hair-care-101-for-curly-haired-tots/

For this, get a protective pillowcase.  I finally did and OH MY GOSH- there are no longer hair fights in the morning with dd!  She had ringlets as a baby and toddler, but it is straight, super-thick, and baby fine as an older kid.  It tangles more easily now than it did when it was curly.   My own hair is very curly and I try not to brush while dry.  If I do it gets frizzy and poofy and while that does come in handy for 80's nights, it's not what I want on a regular basis. 
 

[indigosky]

This is helpful! So it sounds like I should spray with water each morning, and maybe detangler, too. Then comb with a wide-toothed comb? Or just spray without combing so it gets re-wetted?

[Birdie B.]

With my daughter's super curly hair, I use leave in spray conditioner (detangler) while it's wet, after washing. Then comb with a wide tooth comb and scrunch lightly with my fingers.  After she sleeps, it's usually all matted and tangled, so I either wet it with water or spray more detangler in it and finger comb it.  This works pretty well. 

I have just started to be able to put it into pigtails - I do two because it's only long in the back and shorter on the sides so it looks better that way. It's really cute and keeps it from getting more tangled during the day.

[tessie]

Originally Posted by Birdie B. 

With my daughter's super curly hair, I use leave in spray conditioner (detangler) while it's wet, after washing. Then comb with a wide tooth comb and scrunch lightly with my fingers.  After she sleeps, it's usually all matted and tangled, so I either wet it with water or spray more detangler in it and finger comb it.  This works pretty well. 

I have just started to be able to put it into pigtails - I do two because it's only long in the back and shorter on the sides so it looks better that way. It's really cute and keeps it from getting more tangled during the day.

Exactly this!

[fizgig]

Oh man, this brings back horrible memories of my childhood.  I have very curly hair and my mom has straight.  I remember her chasing me around the house with a brush - which I HATED.

I do not ever use a brush or comb on my hair.  I agree with all those suggesting conditioner/detangler and run your fingers through it on a regular basis.  You can get all the knots out that way and there is no real need to wash it all the time.  Unless her hair is also oily, washing it more often will just make it drier and more prone to knotting.  If you still want to comb it out, I would only do it after you wash it, just put a ton of conditioner and use a very wide tooth comb while its still wet.  

Hope that helps!

[mom2lucy]

DD1 also has really curly hair, that she twirls all day long (it's her comfort mechanism).  I've tried the spray detangler/water with wide tooth comb and leave-in conditioner, but it was still so painful for her when I combed it.  I found a brush called the Tangle Teaser at Sally Beauty Supply and I would have paid a thousand dollars for that thing-it's amazing!  I spray with water every morning (I really hate to use detangler daily due to the chemicals, but with the brush I don't need anything stronger than water), comb through it and usually put it into pigtails or something off her face. We still do the leave-in conditioner after combing in the morning.  Her hair looks really good and there's no pain for her.  I HIGHLY recommend the Tangle Teaser to anyone with curly haired kids, it REALLY helps!!

[BrightLights]

My niece hates having her hair get wet with the fury of a thousand suns. So it gets washed maybe once every two weeks. They brush it every 3 days or so and it is just as soft and ringlet-y as ever. But she doesn't have tight curls, when her hair goes to ringlets they are about an inch in diameter.

They use one of those big square brushes.  http://styletips101.com/wp-content/uploads/2008/10/paddle-brush.jpg

[MadiMamacita]

Originally Posted by mom2lucy 

DD1 also has really curly hair, that she twirls all day long (it's her comfort mechanism).  I've tried the spray detangler/water with wide tooth comb and leave-in conditioner, but it was still so painful for her when I combed it.  I found a brush called the Tangle Teaser at Sally Beauty Supply and I would have paid a thousand dollars for that thing-it's amazing!  I spray with water every morning (I really hate to use detangler daily due to the chemicals, but with the brush I don't need anything stronger than water), comb through it and usually put it into pigtails or something off her face. We still do the leave-in conditioner after combing in the morning.  Her hair looks really good and there's no pain for her.  I HIGHLY recommend the Tangle Teaser to anyone with curly haired kids, it REALLY helps!!

is it this?
http://www.tangleteezer.com/default.aspx

[springbride]

DD and I both have rather curly hair.  For her I agree with the squirt bottle set on mist.  I use a comb on her hair every morning and most nights.  If you want to get around combing it every day I'm a big fan of pigtails, depending on how active of a sleeper you have they need some reshaping, but it gets you around the tedious combing.  

 

[neonalee]

My sis and I both have naturally curly hair and grew up hating it because it was brushed daily and frizzy, etc.  It wasn't until I was out of high school that I found naturallycurly.com and learned to work with and LOVE my curly hair.

[JBaxter]

Originally Posted by MadiMamacita 



is it this?
http://www.tangleteezer.com/default.aspx

Tangle Teezers ROCK  seriously its amazing.   I have a curly headed boy and he no longer SCREAMS when I brush his hair.   My friend said it wonderful on her little boy with african-american tight curls also.   

[NiteNicole]

I have curly hair.  I wash mine pretty often.  I know there's a lot of stuff about just washing once a week or whatever, but I would be an oily mess.  My daughter's hair would stink if we only washed it once a week.  I guess mine would as well, it's pretty hot down here!

For my own hair, I detangle in the shower with conditioner and my fingers.  For hers, I use a spray detangler  for kids and wide tooth comb through on days I don't wash it, starting at the bottom and working up in sections.  After I wash and condition it, I use a leave in detangler.  It seems to help.  Her hair is long (to her waist) and sleeping in braids seems to make hers tangle at the scalp instead of on the ends.  It's easier to detangle the ends so I don't have her sleep in braids anymore.