Tips to Care for Your Child’s Curly Hair

I have zero skills when it comes to hair care and beauty. So, in a hilarious twist of fate, I birthed a child with hair like this:

PC: Kristina Slaney

Over the course of the last year I’ve spent a lot of money trying different hair care products that promised to keep my daughter’s crazy curly hair from becoming a giant frizz-fest. I’ve found some winners and losers, and now am passing my tips on to you!

DISCLAIMER: Amazon links are affiliate links. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases. This means I earn a commission when you purchase items through these links, but these are 100% the products we use in our home on a daily basis.

The Wet Brush – This is a must-have. There are brushes that look similar and claim to do similar things, but trust me on this one: stick with the name brand. Somehow it detangles with way less pulling than anything else on the market.

Spray Bottle – If your child has curly hair, you should only brush it when it’s wet to keep it from becoming frizzy. This doesn’t mean you have to wash their hair every day, but do dampen it before brushing. A spray bottle works well.

Johnson’s No More Tangles Spray – Chances are, if you’ve got a young child, you’re not shampooing every morning. If you’re like us, baths happen at night (though, for the record, not every night). After bath time it’s critical to brush and get the tangles out. We still use baby shampoo so we follow it up with a detangler spray. If you’re using regular shampoo and conditioner, this might not be necessary if you can brush easily after washing. UPDATE: I discovered Beauty Protector Protect & Detangle Spray and I looooooove it. It’s definitely pricier than Johnson’s but wanted to throw that out there since I was hooked on it after the first use.

Curl Cream – Curl cream is the key to taming frizz and shaping curls. I’ve found two brands that I like, but they work differently. Redken Curvaceous Full Swirl Cream-Serum forms tighter curls. It’s available in salons and beauty stores. Not Your Mother’s Curl Defining Hair Cream is my current daily fave, making curls softer. Even better, it’s super affordable.

Frizz Ease Dream Curls Daily Styling Spray – After using curl cream, you need to find a way to set and keep the curls so they last all day. Hair spray and mousse tend to make hair ‘crunchy,’ which isn’t really the best look for small children. This spray has olive oil which helps keep hair soft and frizz-free.

Deep Conditioning Hair Mask – Sometimes life is busy and you get a rat’s nest. I totally get it. Day after day of messy buns with no comb-outs result in a suuuuuuuuper fun detangling session once you finally psych yourself up to tackle it. This happens on the regular in my house. When that happens, I grab a packet of this hair mask. My daughter has had awful tangles after multiple days of swimming, water play, and summer fun while sporting the same knot-filled pony but after using this mask it brushed out LIKE A DREAM. It says to use weekly, but I just use a packet as needed. For the treatment and performance I find it really affordable when you calculate it on a per-use basis!

Brush Every Day – This isn’t a product recommendation, but more of an essential tip. We all have days where we never leave the house, the kids never get dressed, and hair never gets combed. With curly hair, this is a mistake. Even if you don’t apply product or fully ‘do’ their hair, brushing every day is key to keeping the tangles at bay. Just skipping one day will result in a much more painful detangling session the following morning.

Good luck taming your little one’s crazy hair! Do you have other tips for moms with curly-haired kids?