We all love that just fresh feeling that makes our senses come alive and get us ready for the start of our day. We also feel that way with freshly washed hair. There is no better feeling than when my hair is completely cleansed and I’m adding conditioner to my shiny coils. I love it! The only problem is my hair never looks that great that day. My hair and scalp are clean and I love it, but when it comes to style, I often get a look that is just ok. What gives? Well, I call it lack of character, because while my hair is at its optimal cleanliness without frizz, it is almost too perfect.
I call it lack of character, because while my hair is at its optimal cleanliness without frizz, it is almost too perfect.
What is the reason for this craziness? Shouldn’t hair look the best when freshly washed? I disagree, and here are five reasons why second or even third-day hair is better than freshly washed hair.
1. The volume
Hair can be a tad too perfect and sometimes flat on that first day, but touching it while it drives can lead to a frizzy nightmare. It is best to leave freshly washed hair alone after you have conditioned and added your styler. Our fine-haired curlies know that freshly washed hair needs to be completely dry and then fluffed to add volume, but trying that on first-day hair is not the answer. The great thing about second-day hair is your hair gains volume without disturbing the definition too much.
2. Hair is no longer wet
Many curly girls have super thick hair and those curls, coils, and waves are bound to take hours to completely dry and form their natural pattern. First-day hair is usually wet and forming definition while second-day hair is completely dry and can be fluffed or altered to get your desired style.
3. The perfect cocktail
Second-day hair has a combination of product and the natural elements to give hair a better feel and look. This unique combination gives hair hold while allowing natural movement – the perfect balance between definition and volume. This is not to say that full-blown dirty hair is better, but that second-day hair has been set with products and lived in, giving hair better styling options.
4. Bedhead can work wonders
Bedhead is hated by many, but curly girls know that bedhead helps with our hair. Washday hair is too uniform and one night sleep with a satin pillowcase and/or satin scarf helps to add fullness or even stretch curls if one is wearing hair up in a pineapple. I often do nothing to first-day hair and opt for second-day hair to fluff and enjoy my defined, yet fuller curls. Many times pineappled curls keep their definition and I merely have to fluff to create amazing hair without adding product.
5. Styles get better with time
If you installed a roller set or flexi rod set, the hair is very cute on the first day but has an impossibly perfect curl pattern. Second-day hair has a more natural look that often gets mistaken for a natural curl or wave and not the use of curlers or rollers.
