Manissa starts with the Curly Girl Method

I’ll start with my current curly hair routine. I wash my hair once a week. Ideally, I’d like to stretch it to nine days, but that also depends on whether I’m doing anything fun outdoors. So wash day = planning. Generally, I try not to do too much with my hair during the week. Occasionally, I’ll half-up it with a hair clip or put it in a bun. On the days I wear my hair down, I refresh it a bit by wetting it and applying some conditioner.

I wash my hair with shampoo and comb it out in the shower. Once a month, I use a hair mask and leave it in for a day or two. On those days, I simply tie my hair back in a bun. On days when I don’t use a hair mask, it’s basically the same. I comb my hair in the shower and wash it. Once out of the shower, I tilt my head forward and comb it from the hairline downward. This creates more volume.

Then it’s time to scrunch! First, I scrunch—still bent over—without any product in it. When I see nice curls forming, I use some mousse and continue scrunching. While scrunching, I tilt my head to one side and then the other. With an old T-shirt, I do one final scrunch, and then I’m ready to blow-dry.

I use the Dyson hairdryer with a diffuser attachment. I lean forward again and blow-dry my hair that way, scrunching it. I often do this in two sections because I also want to be gentle on my back and neck.