My Pabebe Waves

My Pabebe Waves -- and I am not even talking about #aldub. (Sorry for the pun, I am just a fan! Oh- it rhymes! Silly me.)

Anyways, I am referring to my curls and how I respond to their "pabebe" nature.

You see, ever since I decided to just let my curly hair shine through, I've been getting a lot of questions as to whether I had a perm . They're a bit shocked when I answer them with a resounding "NO" and revealing them of the truth I have once concealed...that is,  I am born with curly hair.

I admit I hated my curls before. I was one of those traditional Filipina who has the feels for long black straight hair (blame it on shampoo commercials.) So, for more than ten years, I did my best to conceal my curls by diligently going to the salon to have my hair rebonded. I have become successful in hiding my own curls. You see, I did deceive the people around me, even my boyfriend.

This is a selfie I took a day before I chop my hair off. At this point, the virgin hair is about up to my shoulders that I need to resort to  hair iron to hide the waves...

But then, ten years is but long enough to wear the same hair. I eventually got bored and unaatached to my straightened hair. Also, Ive been dreaming of a bad ass hair cut. Something that will give me a bit of personality, edge, and yes, a bit of style.

So, one day, I snapped, went to the salon and had a medium length haircut, letting all the curly virgin hair shine through, and all the straightened rebonded hair off. It felt like a dramatic separation from my chemically treated straight hair and going back to my very roots--curly hair. 

To be specific, I am a Type 2A wavy hair (according to naturallycurly.com). I know my hair aint as curly as other girls, but it is still curly for me.

Surprisingly, I am loving my curls now more than ever. I missed my curls so much. I guess I am finally starting to embrace my real hair - or the real me for that matter-- because even though how much I love my hair straightened, in my very roots, figuratively and literally, I will always be the curly girl.

Now, after finally embracing my curls, I am slowly trying to improve my hair care routine. Curly hair is soooo HIGH MAINTENANCE especially if you want to keep your hair in its luscious phase. I don't know where did the conotation of curly hair being so low maintenance came from. Maybe it's the tought of "no comb" thing. But the truth is, there is more to being curly that just "wash and wear."

For a month of wearing my hair curly, I've discovered some tricks to keep the frizz at bay. I realized that you really need to "baby" your curls (masyado sila pabebe) because they "react" to whatever you apply in your hair. May it be mousse, hair spray, oil. Plus it is also dependent to frequency of washing your hair, humidity, length and style of your hair, etc. To tell you honestly, for a month of wearing my hair curly, I've used five-six different hairstyling product, and they all have different effect. One product has different efffect on different day depending on the condition of the hair prior to the application. 

After washing hair with a bit of mousse

my second day hair
the curls has loosen this time

Now, I just want to share some tips how to take good care of your curls. These are just some of the things that I follow myself to keep my hair looking decent and fab.

1. Moisturize your hair to the best of your ability. If you have curly hair, you need to condition your hair to make it bouncy and full of life. Dry hair is a no no because it makes the curls look freakishly dull. You want to be hermoine- not hagrid.

2. Always search for products that are formulated to cater to the needs of your delicate hair. That label "For curly hair" is your magic word.

3. Choose a day or two without washing your hair. I know this is kinda hard, knowing how humid and polluted our country is, but this will prevent your hair from getting dry. The natural oils in your scalp will moisturize your hair.  What I do, I just choose a day (or two) wherein I will just stay at home and wont mind wearing an unwashed hair the whole day.

4. Use hair mask or hair treatment every week. I love hair mask even when I was still a rebonded girl. I realized that it nourishes my curls and it also lessens the "buhaghag" kind of thing. It's kind of tedious, I know, but it is a treat I do for my hair and for myself. I am currently using the Maru Silky Straight Hair Treatment (for wavy frizzy hair). This keeps my hair really moisturized.

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5. When drying out your hair, use a cotton T-shirt. Avoid using towel cloths for they stimulate frizz on your curls. 

6. Avoid applying heat on your hair as much as possible. If you must, use heat protectant. Again, this is to avoid your hair getting fried and dried out. 

7. Use leave on conditioner or hair vitamin to keep your hair moisturized. Again, moisturizing your curly hair is the best way to keep it healthy and beautiful.

8. Use wide tooth comb. There are two things I bought first right after choppin my hair. One is the hair mousse for curly hair. The second one is a wide tooth comb. Since curly hair is obviously swirling by group of strands, it is def prone to tangle. So, to prevent hair breakage, use wide tooth comb or your fingers. As much as possible be gentle when detangling your hair.

To end this article, my last advice would be just enjoy your hair. Try out different products and experiment on different hairstyles (I will be reviewing a series of curly hair products on my next posts). Curly haired people are unique such that they don't really go with the norms. Even curly people have different types of curl so each has their own unique quality. My advice is to love your hair better just like how to take care of your body. After all, it is not called "crowning glory" for nothing.

I will be writing more about curly hair so stay tuned!

Love you all MarvellousPeeps.

Till my next post. Mwah!!