Inside: 6 tips for managing fine curly biracial hair to enhance those curls.
I mostly talk about thick, more coarse textured biracial hair because that’s what kind of hair my daughter has.
However, several people have asked what do you do to take care of fine curly biracial hair, or they want to know if there’s a difference in how you care for fine, curly hair versus thick, coarse, curly hair.
Or if you have more than one kid and they have different hair textures, perhaps you’ve mastered your oldest’s hair care, but now you’re struggling to figure out what to do with your fine haired child.
Fine curly mixed hair and coarse thick curly mixed hair are two different “species” of curly hair.
While some curl rules remain the same, there are several differences in how you’ll care for each curl species.
Fine curly hair is finicky and in a way is harder to care for because you have to put more effort into keeping the curls defined and not weighed down.
My son’s hair is more of a fine texture than my daughter’s and in the past, I’ve made the mistake of treating it the same as my daughter’s, which meant limp curls for him, or his hair looking perpetually wet.
So if you have a child with fine curly hair, these tips will help you make the most of their curls!
6 Tips For Beautiful Fine Curly Biracial Hair
1. Consider a shorter hair cut
You may notice that as your child’s hair gets longer, it looks straighter.
This was the case for my son. When his hair first grew in, it was very curly from the root down. As his hair grew longer, his hair on top looked more straight and the bottom was curly.
If fine hair gets too long, the weight stretches the curl and the hair will look much straighter.
To prevent that from happening, try a shorter hair cut. Keeping it shorter enhances the curls by allowing them to spring up.
Once I got my son’s hair cut, his curls were closer to the top of his head again.
If your child has long hair and you don’t want to cut it short, you may want to consider layers so the curls aren’t weighed down.
2. Avoid using too much product
While thick, coarse curls can handle having several products on them with no problem, fine curls can’t handle a bunch of product, because it’ll will weigh them down.
This is another issue that led to my son’s limp curls. I used way too much product on his hair.
Fine curls don’t need an oil, leave in conditioner, cream, gel, etc.
Too much product pulls their curls down and leaves it looking greasy or wet. Plus it can cause buildup on their scalp.
Start out using one product to see how their hair reacts to it. If you want to try adding another product, wait until the next time you’re styling it, use the first product, and add one more. Then you can see how their curls react to both of the products at the same time.
Doing it one at a time like this helps you figure out what products work with your child’s curls, and which ones to stay away from.
Also, you want to make sure you’re not heavy handed with whatever product you do use.
For example, if you’re using a gel you don’t need a big dollop because again, you’ll get crispy curls that are weighed down.
It’s always best to start with a little bit and add more if need be.
3. Consider the goal when choosing hair products
When you use hair products for yourself, you always have a particular goal in mind. So consider your goals when deciding what products to use in your child’s hair.
Do you want to moisturize? Define the curls? Reduce frizz? Add volume? Detangle?
If you’re looking to moisturize, (which is always a good idea) you should try using a leave in conditioner for biracial hair. (Some leave ins are also fantastic detanglers).
Mousse is a lighter product and gives curls more volume, but it can make fine curls more frizzy.
Gel defines curls, but some can be too heavy for fine hair.
Heavy creams can define and moisturize curls, but these will probably leave fine hair looking greasy or stringy.
These curly hair products for biracial babies can also work really well for fine curly hair.
4. Avoid touching it after styling it
Really for any type of curly hair you want to avoid touching it after you’ve styled it because it’ll cause frizz. However fine curly hair will frizz faster especially if you’re touching it after you’ve styled it, and you’ll lose the definition of the curl.
If your kids are little, you can’t really get away from the frizz cause they’ll roll around on it, sleep on it, or touch it. Your best bet will probably be to put their hair up in a cute hairstyle, if you don’t want it to be frizzy.
See other curly hair mistakes you may be making and how to fix them!
5. You may need to wash fine curly hair more often
For my daughter, I wash her hair about twice a week, but I wash my son’s hair three or four times a week, depending on how much outdoor playing he does, (he always ends up with mud, sand, or sticks in his hair!).
Beyond getting the dirt out of his hair, I also make sure I’m getting the old product out.
Too many days of layering on product without washing it will cause the same issue as #2.
Because fine hair isn’t usually as dry as coarse curly hair, your child’s hair may benefit from more frequent washing.
I cleanse with both a co-wash and a clarifying shampoo. I use a clarifying shampoo for mixed hair once every few weeks for my son, and I use co-wash in between those shampoos.
6. Protect it at night
Fine curly hair will still benefit from being protected overnight with either a satin cap or satin sheets. Cotton sheets will suck the moisture out of your child’s curls, creating frizz and tangles.
Read this for more overnight biracial hair tips.
Final thoughts
Although there are some similarities in how you care for fine curly biracial hair and thick coarse curly biracial hair, there’s several main differences.
Fine curls are prone to becoming frizzy and they can easily become weighed down, which means they’ll lose their definition and look straight or wavy.
But these tips will help prevent your child’s hair from becoming weighed down and enhance their curls!
Get the entire mixed hair care routine, tips, and management below!
Related Reading
Can Mixed Hair Get Lice? Yes! Here’s How To Treat It
6 Protective Hairstyles For Biracial Hair
The Best Brushes and Combs For Detangling Mixed Curly Hair
This is the exact article I needed! My son’s hair is dry but all the products I’ve tried are way too heavy. Do you have any recommendations for what I should use?
Hi!
For my son, who also has fine hair, I use a little bit of cantu curl activator cream or I use a little shea moisture curl enhancing smoothie, (not both at the same time though). If that’s too heavy, you can try just using a leave in conditioner. My favorite right now is Aunt Jackie’s Quench leave in conditioner!