Brush Or Comb: What’s Best For Curls?
Curly-haired humans know that your curls are like toddlers: They need special treatments, love, and tools. You don’t put the same size jacket on a 2-year-old as a 22-year-old, and it’s the same with curly hair. Depending on your specific curl type and consistency, your curls might need different creams, gels, serums, and co-washes to feel and look their best.
Brushes and combs fall into this too. While some people swear that you shouldn’t even look at a brush if you have curls, others claim they’re the best way to get definition in your curls. So I wanted to throw my silk scarf into the ring and tell you what I think of brushes and combs for curly hair.
What Are They For?
First, a distinction between the purposes of a brush or a comb. Combs have wide teeth that are usually stiff. This makes them perfect for detangling, but not very good at smoothing or styling. Brushes, with their soft or stiff bristles or in all combinations, are ideal for smoothing and styling but usually don’t detangle your hair. When you get rid of knots in dry hair with a brush, you’re generally just ripping the hair apart at the knot, which is horrible for your hair.
When To Use A Comb
Curly hair just loves to get tangled up. This is when a wide-toothed comb can be our best friend, helping to pry the hair apart and detangle it kindly. This will work great, wet or dry, although curls will always do better if you handle them when they’re damp or soaking wet. Combs are great for distributing products through your hair, and if your hair requires four different kinds of products to retain its shape and bounce, this can be a godsend.
Combs are also great for just before styling. For example, if your curl style tends toward bigger clumps that dry in big fluffy spirals, a comb will help separate those into well-defined bouncy rings.
When To Use A Brush
Experts say never ever, ever brush dry curly hair. You can attest to the curly hair carnage if you’ve ever done it or watched a TikTok. Most people come out looking like they’ve been electrocuted. This is horribly bad for curly hair and should always be avoided.
However, brushing wet curly hair with a wet detangling brush in the shower can help those with fine curly hair. If your hair knots easily while you’re washing and caring for it, brushing when you shampoo and again when you condition can spread products evenly while gently detangling hair.
You can also brush when just out of the shower. Lots of curly stylists will brush wet hair before scrunching product into it. With curls that dry in smaller clumps, this separates strands so the curls can form tighter spirals.
There’s No Right Answer
I know you wonderful people come to me for answers, but I have to be honest and tell you there’s no one correct answer. So explore your curls to find what works best for them, whether you need more definition from more tines or a wide comb to separate big voluminous curl clumps. Is there something you prefer or swear by? Let me know in the comment, and stay au naturalE.