Embracing Ur Shrinkage
Posted on 21 November 2018
If there’s one thing all curly girls can agree on, it’s that our kinks, curls and waves are amazingly dynamic!
Just think about it. You can do the same exact wash and style routine and end up with a miraculously different set of dry curls. It’s as if each of your curls has a mind of its very own. Not to mention, you can blow-dry even the wildest curls straight, add some water, and watch them recoil in seconds!
While celebrating every inch of your curly hair can feel glorious… sometimes even the most confident curly girls can get caught up on shrinkage.
What is Shrinkage?
1. Take Ur Time With Step One
If you’re giving your head a super quick lather and moving onto the next step, you’re not doing your new products any justice. To ensure that our shampoo was super gentle we kept those harsh, stripping agents known as sulfates and other harmful ingredients away from our formula.
1. Take Ur Time With Step One
If you’re giving your head a super quick lather and rinse before moving on to the next step, you’re likely not getting the most out of our sulfate-free shampoo. As with any sulfate-free shampoo, you need to WERK to break up oil and dirt at the roots. Reason being that normal shampoos (the ones that contain sulfates) are full of harmful, drying agents that foam and strip the hair.
Since we did away with those, you’ll need to give your entire scalp a solid massage to get your roots nice and clean. @craft_and_mane does an awesome job of showing you how it’s done here.
Our curly hair goes through many different phases during the wash, condition and styling stages. You have probably noticed that your wet, freshly styled curls naturally stretch and hang lower.
Gradually, as your curls begin to dry, their curl pattern will tighten and each curl will begin to spring and coil up. "Shrinkage" is the reason that curly hair can appear to be shorter than it actually is.
For some curlies, their stretched curls can come down to their bust, but fully dry and styled hair may appear to come down only to their shoulders or even jawline, depending on the curl type.
Who Gets Shrinkage?
Every curly girl sees a little shrinkage, but the amount of shrinkage experienced by someone with wavy or curly hair will be vastly different to that of someone with kinky-coily hair. In fact, someone with type 4 hair can shrink down to as much as 90 percent of their actual hair length.
Why does shrinkage tend to be so much more noticeable with type 4 curly hair? Well, type 4 curl patterns are much tighter and smaller in diameter. The tighter the curl pattern, the more shrinkage you're likely to experience.
Fighting the Shrink
Even though we know shrinkage is inevitable for anyone with curly hair, a lot of curly girls try to fight it by finding ways to stretch their hair. These methods can unwittingly change the pattern of our curls over time as it makes it harder for them to recoil back to their natural state.
2. Rinse Out Step Two
Raise your hand if you’ve ever finished your shampoo and conditioner at the same time?
(Ha! We didn’t think so.)
It’s no secret that curly girls can go through a lot of conditioner, and we’re not knocking you for that. Conditioned curls retain more moisture, more moisture means less frizz, and less frizz equals more definition.
However, as curly girls ourselves, we didn’t want our customers to have to use TONS of conditioner to get the uber-hydrated curls they desire. Like the other two steps in our line, our conditioner is also activated by water and requires a lot less product than you think. It’s a concentrated formula that’ll still give you all the detangling and slip you desire, without requiring boatloads of product to do so.
But why are curly girls so stressed about shrinkage?
#LengthGoals
It's hard to separate ourselves from the notion that beautiful hair equals long hair. Often times we hold on to dead and damaged hair for the sake of retaining length, simply because we fear that a short haircut could take away from our appearance.
When we experience shrinkage, some of us can’t help but see our shorter hair length as less beautiful or desirable than curls that appear to be longer.
But it’s important to love and celebrate EVERYTHING about your naturally curly hair, and yes, that includes shrinkage! So before giving it a bad rap, we should consider all the good things that come with it. 🤗
The Benefits of Shrinkage
When it comes down to it, shrinkage is actually a sign of healthy hair!
Don’t believe us? Here are three facts that prove shrunken curls are actually healthy curls.
The Benefits of Shrinkage
When it comes down to it, shrinkage is actually a sign of healthy hair!
Don’t believe us? Here are three facts that prove shrunken curls are actually healthy curls.
Less product = even better results (at ALL stages of the LUS application!).
It’s also important to know that the LUS conditioner should not be used as a leave-in conditioner.
While it’s chock-full of amazing hydrating ingredients, the formula was designed to do all its work in the shower; when you choose not to rinse it out, you risk clogging your hair follicle and dulling your shine.
Bonus: Rinse out your conditioner with cool water to close up the hair follicle and seal in moisture.
3. Detangle In the Shower
We strongly advise doing all of your dirty detangling work IN the shower! Why? You’ll handle your curls less as they dry, reducing frizz and preserving all of your glorious definition. Many of our curlies actually find it easiest to detangle after letting their conditioner sit for about 5 minutes. You can see our founder demo this here.
Add a bit of water (try sticking your whole head under the running water for 1–2 secs) and then slowly detangle using your fingers or curl-appropriate comb, a bit more water, a bit more detangling, until ahhh—you’ve got a silky smooth, tangle-free mane.
4. Less Product, More Water
Our All-in-Ones are activated by.... you guessed it, water! So, you’ll want to apply them to soaking wet hair. Since lots of us aren’t accustomed to working with more H2O than product, many curlies go overboard with our products their first time around. Even though it may be scary, try a lighter hand with your All-in-One and be generous with the amount of water you use. Keep in mind that this may change depending on your curl type and porosity level.
Someone with 2A curls, for example, will have hair that easily retains moisture so adding water after applying your All-in-One might not be necessary. Someone with 4B curls, however, may need to use a spray bottle to add water throughout their application process.
You’ll know you’ve used the right product-to-water ratio when you can easily start to rake your fingers through your hair without a ton of excess product coming off in your hands.
The application really is the key to a great finish (our founder proves this here), so take your time to really work in the product. Not only will you experience better results, but you will also find that you can last longer between washing and styling your hair. Who would have thought that one product could do all that?
Elasticity
Think of each and every strand of your hair like a rubber band. A good rubber band is one that can be stretched without breaking and then snap back to its original form. Well, it’s the same thing with your hair.
When you style your hair, you are momentarily pulling or stretching out the curl pattern like you would with a rubber band. Your hair’s ability to recoil when it shrinks shows that each strand is strong and healthy.
Volume
One of our favorite things about curly hair is that it has tons of volume. Everyone knows limp, fragile hair is a sign that your strands may need a little extra TLC. Healthy curly hair is voluminous. Remember, as curls shrink, each stretched coil will not only become shorter, but the barrels of each curl will get fuller, thus creating an insane amount of enviable, voluminous curls.
photo by @littlewithbigcurls
Moisture
At LUS, we believe that the key ingredient to styling healthy curls and kinks is to use tons of moisture. In fact, our favorite moisturizing agent is simply H20!
When styling your naturally curly hair, you will not only want to add moisture but also lock it in once you are done styling.
Shrinkage is the process of your hair drying and locking in all of that moisture; without it, your hair will become weak, brittle, and susceptible to damage.
It's Time to Embrace It
Shrinkage is all a part of being a naturally curly goddess. So instead of fighting it, learn to embrace it! It’s a sign that your curly hair is healthy and well taken care of. Without it, our curls wouldn't be what they are!
Sometimes on this journey of embracing our curls and shaking off the way we’ve been told to perceive them, we fail to recognize when other stereotypes and ideas (like the false notion that beautiful hair = long hair) can hinder our journey to true self-love and acceptance.
So try not to forget that curls are supposed to shrink. It’s a huge part of what makes them so vibrant, fun and dynamic. Take the time to learn to love every inch of your curls, whether they are fully stretched and elongated, or they are tight and springy ringlets. Simply....love ur curls!
