A Quick Guide to Plopping Curly and Wavy Hair
Attention all wavy and curly haired beauties, if you haven’t yet heard of plopping, take a seat. We are about to change your life. When it comes to living with textured hair, a gentle care routine is key. Hair with any amount of bend in it is generally drier and more fragile than straight hair. This makes how you handle your hair, really important.
Plopping may just change the game when it comes to handling your hair at its most fragile state: when it’s wet. Read on to learn all about the curly hair care world’s best kept secret.
What is Plopping?
Plopping is by far the gentlest way to handle your hair, post wash. It involves setting your sopping wet hair in a very large, long sleeve t-shirt. Generally speaking, the fabric used to make most bath towels is pretty rough. The exception to this rule is if you are using a microfiber towel, in which case you get a gold star in Curly Hair Care 101.
However, what most people miss when drying their hair is how damaging the actual process can be, regardless of the type of towel that you are using.
Any kind of rubbing or squeezing motion is rough on the cuticle and can lead to serious damage, even breakage. A good rule to keep in mind is that you want to handle wavy and curly hair as little as possible, that goes double for drying.
What Are the Benefits?
Besides greatly reducing the opportunities for damage, plopping delivers more defined curls and waves, with less frizz. This is because curls have a chance to rest and dry in their natural pattern, without being weighed down by water. And since the hair is completely covered, it's not being handled at all. Also, 100% cotton t-shirts are smooth and soft, perfect for gently handling fragile hair. This means the cuticle stays nice and smooth and your chance of frizz is next to nil.
How to Plop Your Wavy Hair
The first thing that you will need to plop is a large t-shirt. Preferably with long sleeves. There is some debate about whether you should use styling product before or after plopping. In general, if you are looking for more curl definition, apply product on soaking wet hair, before you plop. If you are more interested in getting volume, then plop first, product second.
- First, lay your t-shirt down on a flat surface, upside down. Meaning, the neck of the t-shirt should be closest to you.
- Next, with your head hanging upside down, slowly lower it, resting your curls onto the t-shirt. your curls should lay in their natural pattern.
- Once your head is completely resting in the shirt, pull the bottom of the t-shirt towards the nape of your neck. When you stand upright, this should form a “hat” over your hair.
- Finally, use the sleeves of the shirt to wrap the shirt around your head and tie them together. Now your t-shirt is secured.
You can leave your hair up in your plop while you do apply your makeup (anywhere from 5-15 minutes) and then release to air dry the rest of the way.
Some people choose to plop for longer (even overnight!), but this approach doesn’t work for everyone. Experiment with different time intervals until you find what works best for you and your hair.
After your plop, mist hair all over with milk_shake Lifestyling Amazing curls and waves. This fine mist spray coats each strand of hair evenly, increasing manageability and reducing frizz. It also protects hair color and delivers a lasting shine.
