Hair Consultation: How to Find the Right Product for Your Curl Type

For Black History Month I talked with Nathalie from DEINELOCKEN in Stuttgart. She offers personalized hair consultations for all curl types. I was really curious how she finds the right product for which curl type, what her focus areas are during consultations and what her tips are for going "natural".

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Dear Nathalie, what does it mean to you to wear your hair "naturally"?

For me it's about freedom. I want the freedom to decide myself how I wear my hair: down and curly, in a simple ponytail, in braids, etc. Which also means I don't want to fit a prescribed beauty standard. My natural curls are as unique as I am and that's beautiful. They have a mind of their own and don't always sit exactly how I want, but that's not what counts. What counts is that I feel comfortable wearing them and don't have to worry whether someone in a meeting or on the street likes my curls or hairstyle.

My natural curls are as unique as I am and that's beautiful.

And it's also not about the trend that suddenly promotes natural curls as a beauty ideal. The trend helps quickly mobilize and sensitize more people to natural curls and curl care, but it's about much more: identity, confidence, long-term societal change in societies that despite their "progressiveness" still have much to learn about humanity and tolerance. It's about every person not just accepting their hair but being able to find it beautiful, as part of their own individuality and expression, and being able to wear it as is, instead of straightening it, pulling it back super tight or wearing a wig because their own hair isn't "beautiful". If that's a free choice, no problem. But if the decision comes from pressure or a felt need to conform to a beauty standard, that's not acceptable.

It's important to me to recognize and pass on that curls allow a wonderful variety of hairstyles and aren't as "difficult" or "unruly" as we've been told since childhood.

I'd be happy if we reach a point where we still pay compliments to beautiful hair but sometimes also just let hair be hair. What matters is the person, who should simply exist as they are. The reason I'm so committed to "natural curl care" is that unfortunately there's still far too little offer of honestly natural curl care. We need to engage with the topic to create a standard where every hair type can easily find good and working products.

What are the most important focus areas in a personal hair consultation for you?

It's mainly about understanding the individual needs of the person and their hair, to then find the right product set. The products need to fit the individual care routine and work well in everyday life. So ingredients and their effect on hair (moisture, vitamins, proteins, etc.) are just as relevant as the time someone can invest in hair care, how often they wash and care for their hair or the hairstyle they regularly wear. We have to consider all these factors so the routine actually works and is fun :)

How do you figure out which product suits which hair?

A bit of basic knowledge, lots of experience and lots of experimenting!

Many of us know the problem of having tried way too many products and still not being sure which products care for our curls best, especially long term. Or you don't even find suitable care products in the first place.

There's basic knowledge about handling curls, care products and ingredients that everyone should have. That's why we offer workshops and free consultations. Then everyone can decide for themselves how to care for their hair, with the confidence they can make a relatively good choice. Here too I can only confirm:

Natural curl care simply works best and is healthier long term than alternatives with harmful ingredients.

I want to go natural, what's your tip - how do I start?

Step 1 - My hair, my routine

"Every journey starts with a first step." That's true. The decision for your own curls is the first step. After that the journey is very individual. Whether you do a big chop, gradually trim off your straightened ends or simply look for the right products. You have to find your own routine that fits. There's no point imposing an ideal care routine that doesn't suit you. So: use info and videos online but adapt them to your own hair and time constraints. Which brings me to the second point...

Step 2 - Natural care

So much advertising! Unfortunately there's far too little choice in high-quality and natural curl care on the German market. And marketing and advertising don't make things easier. So you have to carefully choose what information to follow. We can't give more specifics here, but if you watch for a few basic rules regarding ingredients and keep a relatively normal routine with natural products for gentle cleansing, enough moisture and sealing, you've done most of the job.

And why must these care products be natural? Because products with silicones, mineral oil, parabens and the like don't work long term and are mostly not healthy for our bodies.

Once you understand the basics of natural curl care, you can search for healthy products that fit you and your daily life (as described above). Take the first step and adapt your hair care as much as possible to your daily routines. That way it lasts longer because it's easier and more fun.

DEINELOCKEN raises awareness so every person in Germany can love their hair and identity and experience them positively. More at: www.deinelocken.de