Control Biracial Hair

Little girl with biracial hair
Photo: Gelpi/Shutterstock
Q: I have a 3-year-old girl. Her hair is out of control. She is biracial (black and white) and her hair is so curly and frizzy it's really hard to manage. She doesn't want to keep it done and if we do get it brushed and styled as soon as she lies down her hair just goes to hell.
 
She is actually getting embarrassed about it to the point that she insists on wearing shirts and sweatshirts with hoods to cover her hair. She said she wants to cut it, so I need some ideas on how to cut it so she doesn't look too boyish but it is easy to manage. She has had her hair cut previously and now that it is growing back it seems to be growing out instead of down. Help!
 
A: The biggest recommendation I can make is that you need to make sure that you are conditioning your daughter's hair properly. She needs to have a rinse-through conditioner used in her hair after every shampoo, and she needs to have a spray-on, leave-in conditioner used on her hair every day. This will help to keep the hair manageable and soft.
 
Many parents of biracial children opt to have their children's hair (especially daughters' hair) braided, or they learn to braid the hair themselves in order to save money. These braids can often be worn for weeks at a time and proper care techniques can be learned from the stylists in order to keep the scalp and hair clean and healthy.
 
Before you shear the child's hair off, I would recommend starting a deep conditioning regimen, using a daily spray-on, leave-in conditioner and check into the braiding options. If these don't work for you, you might as a last resort look into one of the relaxers designed for use on children's hair. These are extremely gentle formulas and are designed to soften and tame the unruly hair in children and leave it smoother and easier to manage.
 
Then, after trying and or dismissing these options, you may want to speak to your local salon stylist about his or her recommendation for a cut that will leave your daughter's hair feminine but manageable.
 
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See also:
 
Smoothen mixed race hair
 
How can I style my mixed-race hair to keep it more manageable?
 
The special needs of African-American hair
 
How to braid hair