Curls 4a, 4b and 4c: complete guide on how to care for and finish curly hair

Frizzy hair

Want to know how to take care of and finish curly hair? Check out the guide with tips for 4a, 4b and 4c curls (Photo: Instagram @nat_stowe)

Type 4 hair is one of the curly hair types that most needs nourishment (Photo: Instagram @curlelia)

Night wetting is a great 4c hair treatment (Photo: Instagram @tayloranise)

Texturing helps give curly hair more definition (Photo: Instagram @jd_winters)

To get the finish right for 4a, 4b and 4c hair, the choice of styling cream makes all the difference (Photo: Instagram @istina.manners)

Curls 4a, 4b and 4c, or just curly hair, are the narrowest on the curly hair chart. This makes them less natural oil, which makes them drier, easily frizzy and have less definition than other types of curls. Because of these characteristics, some curly divas feel that their strands are more difficult to maintain, when in fact the secret is to find the right routine and products for their needs. To help you with this task, we've prepared this complete guide on how to care for and finish type 4 hair. Check it out!

Essential treatments for hair type 4: nutrition and hydration are more important

Whether it's 4a, 4b or 4c hair, one thing all curly hair has in common: they lose water easily, are drier - especially at the ends - and tend to form frizz. Due to this, these curvatures need to be hydrated and nourished regularly. Both treatments help fight dryness and dullness, but while hydration will make the locks softer and more manageable, nutrition will give balance, shine and help control frizz.

A hydration it will be the base treatment of your capillary schedule, and can be done once or twice a week. Look for masks rich in vitamins and other highly moisturizing actives, such as flaxseed or goji berry.

After hydration, the nutrition it is the most important treatment to have healthy curly hair. Therefore, be sure to do it at least once a week, using masks rich in vegetable oils and butters, such as coconut oil and shea butter, which will provide all that healthy oiliness that this hair does not have naturally.

And in reconstruction? Well, in healthy hair, reconstruction can be done at a lower frequency than hydration and nutrition, since the excess of reconstructive actives in strands that don't need it can damage them. Therefore, our tip is to do one reconstruction per month. If your curly hair is damaged by coloring or excessive use of the dryer or diffuser, the frequency can be increased to once every 15 days. For this stage of the schedule, bet on masks rich in assets such as keratin, argan oil or vegetable whey protein.

A post shared by Vanessa Sha'ni (@nessashani)

Moisturize for deeper nutrition of curls 4a, 4b and 4c

Night moistening is also an ally in the curly hair care routine. The name says it all: it has the function of moistening the wires and must be done overnight, to act overnight.

The oil bath will replenish the nutrients that the hair loses during the day, making it softer and brighter, as well as helping to control porosity and frizz. Therefore, wetting is a great treatment for type 4c hair, which is generally the least shiny and defined among the three. But all curly divas can include wetting in their routine, see?

To do the night wetting, you will need to apply vegetable oil on dry hair before going to bed. We recommend betting on a product developed especially for this, as cosmetics have smaller particles with greater penetration capacity into the hair fiber. The next day, just wash your hair with shampoo and conditioner and finish normally.

A post shared by Lesley (@freshlengths)

Hair schedule suggestion for curly hair

After all these tips, you must be wondering how to reconcile all these treatments in a single capillary schedule. But it's much simpler than it looks. We put together two tables as a suggestion, but you can adapt it according to your hair needs and your availability of time to take care of it, okay, diva?

Hair schedule for healthy curly hair

1st week: hydration, nutrition and hydration

2nd week: nutrition, hydration and nutrition

3rd week: hydration, nutrition and wetting

4th week: hydration, nutrition and reconstruction

Hair schedule for damaged curly hair

1th week: hydration, nutrition and reconstruction

2nd week: nutrition, hydration and nutrition

3rd week: hydration, nutrition and wetting

4th week: hydration, nutrition and reconstruction

A post shared by Rosie | Natural Hair Blogger (@rosie_curlycrown)

Shampoo and conditioner for curly hair: learn how to choose and apply

Every treatment starts with shampoo and conditioner, diva. And for those with curly hair, paying attention when choosing these products is even more important, as a shampoo that is too astringent can dry out the locks, as they are naturally lacking in oiliness. Look for a specific line of shampoo and conditioner for curly hair or that are rich in vegetable oils, such as linseed oil, coconut oil and argan oil, for example.

Another tip is to give preference to shampoos with a milky and pearly texture, which are usually more moisturizing. A little secret to ensure that your curly hair doesn't dry out during washing is to pre-shampoo by applying a few drops of hair oil to the length and let it act for about 15 minutes before washing.

The frequency of washing is also very important: those with type 4 hair should wash their hair a maximum of 3 times a week so as not to dry it out, unless there is a need for more washing (if you practice physical exercises and perspire a lot, for example). During application, only the conditioner should have direct contact with the ends. The shampoo only goes to the scalp and roots and the ends are cleaned by the foam that runs through the hair during rinsing.

A post shared by Naturally Melaninn Hair (@naturallymelaninn)

How to finish type 4 hair and get more definition or volume according to your curl

To finish curly hair, it's important to consider not only the texture of your strand, but the result you want to achieve. While some divas are looking for more definition, others prefer to enhance the volume of the hair. For each case, there is a hair finisher and an ideal technique.

When finishing hair 4a and 4b, the secret is to bet on a combing cream rich in oils, like the one from the Cachos do Seu Jeito line, by Niely, and make the fit, applying the product strand by strand for well-defined curls.

As for finishing curly hair 4c, our suggestion is to bet on products whose formula has the proposal to give more definition to the strands, such as the Curl Definition Pudding do Seu Jeito. As 4c curls tend to be more difficult to define, it is worth betting on other texturing techniques in addition to the tape, such as twists and little buns.

If you want more volume, the secret is to loosen the curls with your hands, squeezing the locks from bottom to top after they are completely dry. It is also worth replacing the combing cream and definition pudding with Volumão Jelly, which will enhance this feature of these strands even more.