My curl defining techniques after shower

I received positive feedbacks as to my last article about how I style my curly hair on a daily basis (here) so I thought it wasn't a bad idea to share with you some curl defining techniques I always do after I wash my hair. Step by step, I am going to tell you how I proceed and why.

Step 1: Leave-in and styling gel

Right after shower, I remove the excess moisture in my hair with a towel. It should just take few seconds as we need wet hair for the following steps. Then, I apply Kinky Curly leave-in conditioner by sections, all over my hair. A leave-in is an absolute go-to product for every curly girl. It's hydrating and hydration is what your curls need the most.
I also like to apply a small amount of Kinky Curly Custard styling gel at the end of the hair only. Don't apply too much product so you don't end up with a greasy finish. I feel like adding the gel is nice to add more definition.

I purchase both of the Kinky Curly products I use on Iherb.

Step 2: Scrunching

At this stage, what I like to do is scrunching my curls to add even more definition. As explained on my previous post here, you just have to gently crump a handful of hair from the ends towards the scalp. Proceed gently so you don't mess up your curls. It is very important at this stage.

Step 2: Plopping

Here is a drawing found on Google to help you understand:


The plopping technique is the highlight of the whole process. What you need is a 100% coton-made t-shirt or a microfiber towel. I personally use my husband's t-shirts because of my long hair. This technique is really amazing as it gives volume and definition to curls but if you have simple wavy hair, plopping will give you large sort-of curls and a nice long-lasting volume as well. I personally keep the t-shirt over for one to two hours and then allow my hair to dry naturally but you can even keep it the whole night if you want. If you are in a hurry, you can air dry the hair over the t-shirt so they dry out faster.

Once it is time to release the hair, be gentle so you don't mess up the curls. At last but not least, once the hair is completely dry (or almost), I like to apply a tiny amount of oil on the lengths so as to seal the hydration. I will never repeat it enough: hydration is the key for beautiful curls.

Here is my hair after two hours of plopping:

My hair after the whole process, once completely dry and before sealing with an oil: super defined curls, volume ++ and soft hair.

How my hair look like the next day with my daily routine previously shared on the blog:

Other curl defining technique

Finger coiling

Whenever my hair doesn't want to cooperate (like, everyday), I simply use my finger by wraping sections around and holding for a few seconds. That way, I kind of make the hair get more defined. When it really doesn't work, I do it again with a small amount of aloe vera gel or styling gel.