FAQ: How To Style Curly Fragile Hair?

Question:
My hair is curly, yet fragile. When I use any product on my hair it becomes limp and almost straight. How can I make it curly and non-flyaway and non-frizzy?

Answer:
If you color your hair, you need to take all precautions of correct color applications, so the hair does not get damaged on the hair shaft from over-application of harsh chemicals. When shampooing your hair, apply your shampoo to your scalp and with fingertips massage your scalp in such a way that you do not rub the hair shaft - imagine you are putting your hands under the hair when dry - and that's the way you should shampoo your hair when it is wet in shower. The less you rub your hair, the healthier it will be. You probably wonder, but how do I clean my hair shaft (entire hair)? After cleaning your scalp, just pretend that you are gently sliding your fingers down your hair (in the direction of growth) - sort of like you would "milk your hair". Then gently rinse your hair until the shampoo is all out. Apply your hair conditioner half way down the hair shaft and "comb" your hair with fingers very gently. The hair conditioner is slippery and therefore you should not rip your hair yet you will untangle your hair. Then rinse your hair very well. Wrap your hair in towel and gently squeeze the towel to get the moisture out of your hair. Again - no rubbing.
At this point, I usually put a tiny amount of conditioner into my palms and scrunch it into my curly hair (my hair looks sort of like the model in the image above). I comb my hair with a wide tooth comb. Then I start "scrunching" my hair into a style. If your hair is extremely fine, you may want to use a leave in hair conditioner instead - you can make your own by mixing a little of your hair conditioner with water in a spray bottle.
Then I usually spread a hair gel all over my palms and "scrunch" it into my hair on top of my hair conditioner. Most of the time I let my hair dry naturally, but I get very firm ringlets if I use a hair diffuser to dry my hair. I heat up an area and then scrunch" the hair. Then again, and again - I alternate the diffusing and scrunching.
If a gel is too heavy for your hair, use just half of the amount and mix it with water in your palm. Now the wetness and gel will make your hair create ringlets. With the diffuser and scrunching you should be able to encourage your ringlets stay put.
You could also try to diffuse and scrunch your hair with only leave in hair conditioner.
Also - the longer your hair is, the straighter your hair will appear from your scalp half way down. The weight of your hair ends will pull on the hair. You just need to encourage your curls to stay in by scrunching.

The flyaway hair can be tamed too. Spray leave in hair conditioner on your palms and just scrunch it into your hair.

Credit: The image above is from THIS website

Below is the example of a diffuser.