Do you have naturally curly hair?  Has it felt like a curse or a blessing?

If your curly hair has felt like a curse, keep reading to find out what you can do to turn it into a blessing.

In the picture above you can see my mass of wavy, curly hair at age five.

I envied my friend Penny because she had very straight hair and long braids that went way past her shoulders.

I had a tangled head of  hair that grew wide instead of long.  I longed for straight hair so I could have long braids.  

Have you ever wished you had straight, smooth hair?

I can remember when I was 4 or 5 years old, going for rides with my family on Sunday afternoon by Lake Michigan and tugging on my pig tails, hoping they would grow long like my friend Penny’s.  My pig tails never got longer than 2 or 3 inches.

What kinds of things have you tried to straighten your hair?

Have you tried smelly perms that burned your scalp?  Have you ever tried ironing your hair?

In my twenties, I ironed my hair to straighten it and ended up burning the ends of my hair.

If you are over a certain age you may remember Dippity Doo, a gloppy lotion used to set hair.  I used Dippity Doo and set my hair every night, using larger and larger rollers.

I even used empty orange juice cans as rollers, in my effort to calm down my curly hair.  At night I would sleep on my nose, so I did not disturb the rollers in my hair.

Does any of this sound familiar to you?

Has all of your hard work to get smooth, sophisticated hair disappeared when the weather is wet or humid? 

I didn’t realize I was blessed to have naturally wavy, curly hair until my mid 20’s.

That’s when I got my “million dollar haircut.”  It didn’t cost a million, but it was the perfect hair cut for me.  It was very short and I could wash it, run my fingers through it and let it air dry and it looked fabulous.

I still have this same basic haircut.  As I have gotten older, my hair is more wavy than curly and because I keep it short, it looks straighter than it did when I was young.

Here is a recent picture, right after I washed my hair.  It’s still wet.  All I did was wash it with conditioner and run a wide toothed comb through it.

I use my fingers to comb it when I want a more relaxed, wavy look.  With the right haircut, your curly or wavy hair will actually look even better when its humid or wet outside.

There is a “million dollar haircut,” waiting for you.

You need to  find a hairdresser who knows how to cut curly hair.   Your hair dresser should also have some understanding of face shape or be open to learning about it.

Face shape is not just the outline of your face, it includes the shape of your eyes, eyebrows, nose, and mouth.  Face shape is the overall impression of your face.

Your face shape will be either more curved or more straight.

(My face shape is more curved.  Notice the natural shape of my lips, my eyebrows, even my nostrils are more curved than angular.)

There are various levels of curly hair from kinky curly to wavy curly.  Curly and wavy hair is dryer than straight hair and needs different care than straight hair.

A few years ago, Wendy Cooper, one of my image clients with beautiful, corkscrew, curly hair,  told me about the book “Curly Girl,” by Lorraine Massey.  Lorraine wrote this book in 2001 and since then she has written an updated version called The Curly Girl Handbook.

Lorraine has revolutionized the care and treatment of curly hair.

Ever since I read the book, I have been washing my hair with conditioner instead of shampoo and I have followed some of the other suggestions in her book and my hair has never looked better.

Another  suggestion for you naturally curly girls is only using a wide toothed comb and never comb when your hair is dry, only when hair is wet and well conditioned.  There are lots more suggestions in the book.  There are even web- based support groups for curly girls.

An industry has grown up around the Curly Girl book.  Here is a link to a great article from WikiHow, How to Follow The Curly Girl Method for Curly Hair, 15 steps.

So please don’t despair if you have naturally curly hair.  You are truly blessed.

The “Curly Girl method” will enable you to love the way your curly locks look.  

When you learn the “Curly Girl method,” you won’t have  to torture your locks into submission.

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How can you decide what your best hair styles are?

The first step is understanding your face shape.  Are you more angular or more curved?  When you get a face and body shape analysis from “The Wardrobe Wizard,” you will get the best styles of clothing for your body as well as suggestions for flattering hair styles.

Call or e-mail today for more information about an on-line virtual consultation.

“The Wardrobe Wizard,” is available to work with you, no matter where you live.

If you live in Baltimore, Maryland, or surrounding areas she can work with you in person.  If you live other places, she can work with you on-line using digital pictures.

Nancy Goldblatt, “The Wardrobe Wizard,” is a Color1,Personal Image Consultant who specializes in working with mid-life women whose size or shape has changed and who have too many clothes and “nothing to wear.”

After a woman works with “The Wardrobe Wizard,” she will have a wallet of her best colors and styles, and a pared down closet.   She will learn how to mix and match her best looks so she can get dressed “lickety split,” and look great everyday.

“The Wardrobe Wizard,” also works with younger women and is available to work with men.  She was trained by Joanna Nicholson, founder of Color 1 Associates, an International Image & Style Company.

e-mail Nancy for more information on how to get started with an on-line consult.  Nancy@WardrobeWiz.com,     410-513-9496

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