Show Your Curls Some Love: How to Diffuse Curly Hair

As a curly girl, you know that maintaining your hair takes tools, gels, and a whole other host of tricks. Everyone has their own method they swear by, but there is one method that most everyone can agree on. That’s using a diffuser to dry your curls into beautiful, defined, and frizz-free ringlets. If you’re not sure how to diffuse curly hair, check out this simple guide, and you’ll be loving your curls in no time!

Spornette has high-quality brushes to keep your curls beautiful and bouncy. Try the Bolero Flared Bristle 9 Row Styling Hair Brush to help curl train your locks before drying. You’ll love using the Swizzle Detangling Brush for wet brushing in the shower to detangle before styling.

Spornette styling brushes are at the heart of every style and are a must-have component of every person’s curly hair care routine!

How to Diffuse Curly Hair

Drying curly hair is a whole thing. If you air dry, you lose definition in your curls. If you blow-dry without a diffuser attachment, you will end up with a big ball of frizzy hair. 

A diffuser is an attachment that is slipped onto the nozzle of your hairdryer, directing airflow through a perforated round cup or bowl. The airflow is then dispersed in a larger area of the hair instead of a targeted stream of air from a typical blow-dryer nozzle. This hair dryer attachment is ideal for keeping your curls frizz-free and bouncy.

But the process of diffusing your curls starts well before you get to the drying stage. 

First Things First

How you wash your hair is also an essential part of the curl maintenance process. You want to make sure you’re using a shampoo and conditioner specifically for curly hair. Many shampoos contain very drying ingredients and strip the hair of all its natural oils. 

For a curly girl, this leads to frizz and undefined curls. 

After you’ve shampooed, use a conditioner for curly hair and brush it through your curls. A Spornette detangling brush is an excellent brush for this purpose and is suitable for use in the shower. Brushing the conditioner through your hair will help keep it healthy and is key for curl maintenance. 

Towel Time

Once you’ve finished washing and conditioning your hair, make sure to use the right towel to dry. Avoiding using a terry cloth towel as it can create more frizz for your curls later. A t-shirt is a great way to dry your hair. Or you can purchase towels specifically made for drying curly hair.

When drying, do not rub your hair with a towel. Squeeze or pat your curls with your towel or t-shirt until they are no longer sopping wet. This drying method will help support your natural curls.

Brush Train Your Curls

Some curly girls want to define their curls more before moving to the next steps. Using a Bolero Flared Bristle brush, wrap sections of hair through the brush and begin to twist. As you rotate the brush, the section of hair wraps around the brush head. 

Once the entire strand has coiled around the brush and down the handle, keep pulling the brush through the hair. As you keep rotating and pulling away from the head, the strand will leave the brush. 

After you’ve completed this process with a few hair sections, you can scrunch them to see the curl that has formed. 

Gel or Mousse?

Choose a curl-enhancing product to apply next. Depending on what you like, you may choose a gel, mousse, or cream product. Gently and generously apply throughout and disperse product into the curls with a scrunching motion. 

A gel or mousse will help create and keep your curls’ definition as you begin the drying process.

Should I blow-dry wet hair?

Some curly girls prefer to start diffusing when their hair is still very wet, while others prefer to wait. You can air-dry your hair for 30 minutes to an hour before you begin diffusing or start right away. Try a few different ways to see which your curls like the best. 

Time to Diffuse!

If your hair is still mostly wet, gently scrunch dry with a t-shirt or hair towel one more time. Begin on a high-heat setting and hover the diffuser over your hair to dry your roots. Don’t touch your hair with the diffuser yet, as the heat setting is too high. Hover-drying like this will speed up drying time a ton. 

Move the diffuser around different areas of your head, and don’t stay on any portion for more than 10-20 seconds. You can also prop the dryer at the edge of a table or bed and if your arms get tired from holding the dryer. 

Once your roots feel dry and your hair has begun to feel “crunchy” from the gel or mousse, you are ready to start the next part of the diffusing process. 

Change the heat setting to medium or low and the speed to medium. You can do this process by bending your head to the side or tilting your head upside for more volume. Begin accordioning a section of your curls into the cup of the diffuser and hold for 10 seconds. Switch to a different area and cup your curls into the diffuser bowl again. 

Repeat this process all over your head until your curls are at least 80% dry. You may want to dry completely, but it depends on your coils, so try both and see which results you like better. 

You can also blow cold air over your roots and curls to help hold the lift you’ve been creating if you want more volume. 

Apply a Finishing Product

Using a hair shine product at the end will help “de-crunch” your curls if they feel stiff from the dried hair product. Gently apply throughout and scrunch your curls to help them soften. Breaking the curl cast will also help with frizz and help your hair look and feel shiny and soft. 

You’re done, Curly Girl!

Now that you know how to diffuse curly hair, your locks should look beautiful, bouncy, and defined. Spornette makes incredible brushes to keep your hair well styled and beautiful. Buy one to help curl train and define your locks today.