Curl Talk...

One of the things I love about being an Innkeeper is the fact that I get to meet so many wonderful people when they come to stay with us. I love to learn from them and I also get to share some things in return.

A frequent topic of conversation is...you guessed it....my curls. Living on the lake means I get to go for a swim almost daily, well in the summertime anyway, so I've been forced to embrace my inner "curly girl". We've had many "curly girls" come to stay with us. Inevitably we do some "curl talk" and they ask me how to get curls like mine. So I tell them. Then I insist they take a look at my book about curly hair (see below) and check out my curly hair products stash....no really....I insist!! :). What's great is they always end up leaving their straightening irons in their bags and embracing their curls - at least while they are here. I have to say - it's like watching these ladies AND their curls spring to life. It's liberating - to let loose, go wild, be a curly girl.

I resemble that remark! That's lil ol me ("shirly temple") on the left...pictured here in front of the Inn. I had just enjoyed an evening swim and was getting ready to have dinner with my "sissy chrissy" (Christine). She has two curly girls of her own. I call her "fro bro" - I don't know why actually. But I'm thinking she is NOT the one with the fro...ya think?! My favorite nickname for her is "Deenie Weenie in the Polka Dot Bikini" but I digress.

Anyway...I figure since God gave me curls I should celebrate them and stop spending time straightening my locks; especially when I was just going to go "jump in the lake" at any moment. So I set out to find the best way to care for my girls. P.S. - this is the only place I will allow my Beach Bum hubby to tell me to "go jump in the lake" cuz I know he means that in a loving & refreshing way....right Babe!?! You do don't you?!?

Okay - back to the "curl talk". My tips - for starters, I found a great book by Lorraine Massey called CURLY GIRL - A Celebration of Curls: How to Cut Them, Care for Them, Love Them and Set Them Free. It is loaded with "how tos" for taking care of your curly hair. The biggest "aha" is that we curly girls should not use shampoo. They refer to this as the "no poo" method for cleansing our hair. I know, you are thinking "that's just gross"...."won't my hair be greasy and yucky". Those are technical terms for "my hair looks like crap". Well guess what - it works. It really, really does. Curly hair is more fine than non-curly hair. Using shampoo on it is like washing your delicates or dry clean only garments at the laundry mat with harsh soap. Yuck! Shampoo strips the natural oils that keep curly hair looking its best. So, trust me will you. Give it a week. PLEASE. Just try it for a week. Just use a silicone free conditioner (or use the WEN products I've noted below) for a week - no shampoo. If you must, you can shampoo once/week but use a shampoo that is silicone free. Stear clear of silicone containing hair care products as they will start to build up on your hair and give you limp curls. Now that IS yucky.

The second thing I found was a website http://www.naturallycurly.com/. It is loaded with photos, tips, products, etc. It also has a way to determine what "type" of curls you have and the best products for your hair type. A great resource overall.

So what's a curly girl to do? Well, here is my regimen. I use WEN http://www.wenhaircare.com/ conditioning cleanser, style gel and leave in conditioning treatment. I put the products in my hair when wet, wrap my curls around my finger for definition, let it air dry and go! If I'm in a hurry, I just flip my head upside down and use the diffuser attachment on my hair dryer. The key is to then LEAVE YOUR CURLS ALONE...DON'T TOUCH THEM. If you do - you WILL be a frizzy "fro bro".

So all you fellow curly girls out there...I hope this helps. I encourage you to embrace the curly girl within you. Embrace your curls. Care for them, Love them, Set them free! Come see me, I'll insist on you going curly. No REALLY, I'll INSIST. Cuz you see, it's more than just hair.....it's an attitude!!

Love,

The Lady of the Lake