Welcome to the curly club! After a trip to your favorite salon, you finally seized the opportunity to get a perm and now rock those fabulous curls you’ve always wanted.
Have fun flipping your hair and taking cute selfies for now, because you’ll soon realize that maintaining permed hair isn’t all fun and games.
There’s a wide range of perms you can get nowadays, from spider-like digital perms to the more comfy cold perms.
Whatever new innovation there is in the world of permanent curls, the rules remain the same: Don’t wash your hair until three days after, don’t wear tight ponytails. We’ve heard all those before.
But one of the biggest yet casually overlooked rules to keep your curls looking great is to keep them moisturized.
Hydrated hair is the key to keeping your waves and spirals look shiny, lush, and healthy.
Moisture is your curls’ lifeline, so you need to keep it in your list of hair care priorities.
Ever wondered how to moisturize permed hair? Then you’re at the right place.
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What Happens To My Hair When I Get A Perm?
Getting a perm means chemically setting your hair into a different texture.
While the term “perm” connotes a permanent effect on the hair, your curls won’t actually last a lifestyle.
You’ll enjoy your new tresses for at least a few months to maybe even a year.
There are all kinds of different perming methods all around the world.
The more traditional corner parlor might use perm rods or fabrics to roll up your hair into curls, while high-end salons in other countries like Korea use innovative digital perms.
Perming your hair breaks down what are called disulfide bonds – a part of your hair that helps give it its shape and structure.
When these are broken down and the cuticle is lifted, it’s easier to give the hair a new curl pattern.
That said, getting a perm can deal some damage to your hair.
Although it’s not as harsh as relaxers or bleach, perming is still a chemical treatment, after all.
So don’t be surprised if you’re left with dry, fragile, overprocessed hair that doesn’t feel as soft and silky anymore for a while.
Proper hair care is crucial to restoring your hair’s health.
One of the many ways you can care for your locks and bring them back to life is by replenishing them with much-needed moisture.
Why Moisturize My Permed Hair?
Now that you’re sporting gorgeous curls, you have to get used to the fact that curly hair is typically more dehydrated than straight hair.
The natural oils in our scalp can’t travel as smoothly down your spiral-patterned curls as they can on straighter hair strands, leaving your locks quite dry.
Couple that with the damage from your perming session, and you’ve got parched locks in need of intense moisture.
Restores Your Hair’s Health
Moisturizing your hair helps restore its health from the damage of your treatment.
The chemicals used during your perm can dry out your hair because they tend to strip natural oils and nutrients from your hair.
Keeping your locks hydrated can help revitalize your hair and slowly nurse it back to health.
An adequate amount of moisture will condition and repair your locks, allowing them to be stronger, plumper, and more resilient against damage.
It’s a surefire way to bring your locks back to tip-top shape.
It also allows your curls to look more natural.
Permed hair that isn’t cared for can look dry and straw-like, but when you keep up with moisturizing your tresses regularly, no one will even realize you had your hair professionally done.
Defined Curls
Properly moisturizing your hair is also an excellent way to keep your curls bouncy and defined.
The key to letting your spirals and curls shine through (literally!) is ensuring that they are nourished and moisturized.
This enhances your curl pattern to bring out those waves and coils and allows them to have a healthy bounce as well.
Smooth, Shiny, And Frizz-Free Hair
Lastly, keeping your hair hydrated ensures that your locks look smooth, shiny, and frizz-free.
After any chemical treatment, the hair can look dull, lifeless, and frizzy.
And since your hair is now curly, it can also look poofy when it’s parched.
Moisturizing with a leave-in or serum can add luster and shine back to your hair, making it soft and touchable.
It also tames stubborn frizz, flyaways, and poofiness by sealing in all the hydration in your locks.
So if you want glamorous, photo-ready hair, moisturizing is the way to go.
How To Moisturize Permed Hair
Here are some tips and tricks you can incorporate into your hair care routine to ensure your permed hair stays moisturized, defined, and healthy.
Follow these to a T so you can show off your new curl pattern with confidence.
Don’t Wash Your Hair Everyday
Waiting a few days before washing your hair after a perm is already an age-old rule we all know.
But more than that, you also shouldn’t wash your permed hair too often.
Shampooing your hair daily is already bad for natural hair because it’s so stripping and irritating on the scalp.
But it’s even worse on permed hair that already struggles with staying moisturized.
Give your natural oils a chance to coat and moisturize your curls by not washing them off for a few days.
Plus, because curls soak up more oils without leaving your hair feeling greasy, you won’t feel the need to wash so often anyway.
Switch Over To A Nourishing Shampoo And Conditioner
While clarifying shampoos are great once in a while to remove all the product build-up in your strands, your regular shampoo and conditioner should be moisturizing to keep your curls happy and healthy.
Look for shampoos and conditioners with rich and nourishing oils, like coconut oil, argan oil, and shea butter.
It’s a great way to inject some moisture back into your hair as you wash it.
Conditioning with ingredients like these also makes detangling knotty hair a breeze.
It’s also a bright idea to look for shampoos and conditioners formulated particularly for curls.
These are usually the ones that provide moisture, definition, and curl enhancement.
Use A Leave-In Treatment Daily
Using a leave-in conditioner, serum, or finishing oil is perfect when your hair seems dry and uber-stressed.
It’s also a fantastic way to keep your curls hydrated, shiny, and defined before dashing out the door on your way to work.
You can choose between creamy leave-ins or ones that come in a spray bottle for a quick and effortless spritz to replenish moisture in your locks.
You can also consider something like argan oil for extra shine and definition.
Recommended Post: Best Leave-In Conditioner For Permed Hair
Deep Condition Every Other Week
Switching your regular conditioner out for a more intensive hair mask at least once every two weeks is a great way to add deep moisture back into your locks.
Treating your permed hair to a deep conditioner brings it back to life, restoring its silky smoothness.
Sometimes, even if you use leave-ins and nourishing conditioners in the shower, permed hair can still feel excessively dry and damaged.
Using a deep conditioner once in a while can help strengthen your strands, nourish them properly, and add a healthy gloss back to your curls.
Style Your Hair With Moisturizing Curly Hair Products
Your regular combing cream and finishing serum won’t cut it anymore.
You need stylers designed to enhance your curls and tame frizz, and those always scream moisture.
Look for mousses, hair gels, and curling creams that contain nourishing ingredients like coconut oil, avocado oil, honey, and aloe.
These make your curls look more defined with the help of some essential moisture.
Keeping them moisturized will also protect them from being fragile against the elements.
An anti-frizz serum may also do the trick since it works to fight frizz and poofiness even against humidity.
Avoid Heat Styling
Don’t expose your hair to too much stress by using harsh curling irons.
Not only will hot tools dry out your hair, but they can also destroy your new curl pattern.
Using a super hot iron on your hair can fry your locks, zapping away every bit of hydration your curls are clinging on to.
If you must use hot tools for a special occasion, make sure it’s set relatively low at around 300ºF, never above 400ºF.
You should also be wary of washing your hair with scalding hot water in the shower.
This strips your hair of natural oils that make it shiny.
Opt for warm water instead.
Conclusion
Keeping your locks moisturized is crucial for all hair types, but with permed hair, it’s a golden rule you can’t afford to miss out on.
If you do, it might just be a waste of a perm – you can’t rock gorgeous, sultry, healthy-looking curls without nourishing them.
Do your new ringlets and waves a favor by keeping tabs on moisturizing your hair.
The only way to keep them looking lush and perfect is to keep up with maintaining them.
Don’t expect to wake up with flawless curls if you don’t carve out time to put in the work.
Trust the process and commit to pampering and moisturizing your permed hair with a nourishing regimen, and you’ll enjoy luscious curls that will never look dull or dry again.
So, if you’ve been wondering how to moisturize permed hair, there you have it!