This was a brand-new client who was referred to me. She was very nervous, but after studying my website she decided to trust me with her hair. Wow, did she have some hair!

If you look carefully, you can see the curl through the frizz! Val has worn her hair like this her whole life and knew nothing else. Can I help her, she had asked me.

Frizz, my friends, is just a curl waiting to happen! It is lacking moisture, and once properly hydrated can live to its full curl potential. For more about frizz, click here.

Val was beside herself with shock afterwards, never having seen her hair make actual curl formations like this. It was a beautiful moment to be able to introduce her to her hair! 

In following up with her, she is adjusting to her new haircare regimen well, and having good results. (Unfortunately, she hurt her wrist, so right now her hair is taking a back seat as she heals!)

I cannot tell you the amount of joy I get to experience every day doing what I do. I love the moment a new curly flips her hair back at the end of her appointment to see the results for herself in the mirror. Thank you, Val, for your courage to step out and trust me!

Do you know someone whose hair resembles the "before" picture above? Send them my way! Let's work together for the curly good and help Olympia bring curly back!

Frizz is an anomaly for most people. It is the difference between a good day and a bad day for curlies. What products to use? Why are rainy days my worst enemy? How to tame it? These are the questions that plague the the curly mind.

1. Rid your hair of silicones. Silicones will choke the life out of your hair by sealing it in a mighty shield of plastic. Moisture cannot penetrate this barrier, so your curls will get drier and drier and drier. Read up on the 5 Worst Recommendations for Curly Hair, then get rid of all your silicone-laden products in your bathroom. How do you find them? Read the ingredients. Anything ending with the suffix "cone" is a silicone. Easy to spot.

2. On rainy days, leave in more conditioner. Silicone-free conditioner, that is. I recommend DevaCurl One Condition; it does a great job of rehydrating the hair. Keep in mind that the more conditioner you leave in, the longer it takes your hair to dry.

3. Apply a water soluble, silicone-free styling aid. They come in various forms: cream, gel, or foam. Avoid alcohols; they are drying. After applying your styling aid, DO NOT TOUCH.  If you mess with your hair before it is completely dry, you will cause it to frizz. After it is dry however, you can shake and scrunch to achieve soft, touchable curls.

A curl-by-curl dry cut can enhance your curly or wavy hair. This and using the proper products will help you to achieve the same awesome curly results at home as in my chair. If you haven't seen me yet for a curly appointment, be sure to visit my booking site and come on in! My door is open for ya! 

Most traditional shampoos are terrible for curly hair. They will strip your natural oils and leave your hair dry and frizzy. Why is that? They have Sulfates in them.

Sulfates (Sodium Lauryl Sulfate, Sodium Laureth Sulfate, and Ammonium Lauryl Sulfate ) are surfactants that are found in shampoos, cosmetics and even industrial cleansers and degreasers. They are the bubbling and lathering agent in these cleaning products, and we all know that bubbles are the way to clean, right? Wrong! 

Many studies have shown Sulfates to be dangerous! Products that are absorbed through the skin are much more potent and they go right to our bloodstream. They have been shown to possibly cause cancer, reproduction problems, and hair loss as well as many other ailments. You can read more about Deadly and Dangerous Shampoos here.

We can have clean hair without putting ourselves at risk!  More and more companies are recognizing the dangers of sulfates and are developing Sulfate-Free Shampoos. If you cannot find one, DevaCurl of course, as a line, is free of this harsh chemical; hence the name of their cleanser: No-Poo.

Since cleansing the hair is achieved by the friction of your finger pads on your scalp, you can actually cleanse your scalp with a good conditioner. In the curly world this is called Co-Washing. If you really can't give up the bubbles, ask me about Sulfate-Free Lo-Poo by DevaCurl that does have a chemical-free lathering agent.

What is your interest in curly hair?


I have had so many people ask me to troubleshoot their curly hair and lament about their hair, that I started to wonder why curly hair was so different and how can I help my friends who are beyond frustration? One time someone asked me if I could do curly hair I was at a home-party where the consultant was of mixed European background and she had a pile of hair wrapped up on top of her head. She said it is constantly dry and hard to comb out and she couldn't find any products to keep it from becoming a big ole frizz bomb. I so wanted to give her answers! 

The very next week I went to a trade hairshow in Seattle and was introduced to DevaCurl, a product line that was developed by a hairdresser who after a lifetime of suffering her curly hair discovered some methods that worked best for her curl type and has since started a Curly Revolution. Lorraine Massey wrote the book, Curly Girl: The Handbook, and has changed the lives of millions of Curlies around the globe. 

At this hairshow I was mesmerized by the before and afters that were done right before our eyes on stage. We had opportunity to visit other booths and educators but I stayed the whole day observing and soaking in the Deva 3-Step. This was when I decided I wanted to be a curly hair specialist.

Do you have curly hair yourself?


Yes and no. I have what we call a s'wavy curl pattern. S'wavies have straight/wavy hair and can go either way. I am half Caucasian and half Japanese so my hair is a little on the coarser side. When I was a teenager I had very thick straight hair. As I have matured, my hair has thinned out quite a bit which has left room for volume and curl. I am able to achieve curls with proper hydration and scrunching. Left to its own, my hair will just lay straight. Of course, people with straight hair long for curly and curlies long for straight hair. I say, embrace what you have! Personally I think it's all fantastic. I am jealous of my curly counterparts who have so much personality to their heads, and I love that straight-haired gals can always look freshly groomed.