Three Ways to Make Brushing and Styling Your Little Girl’s Hair a More Pleasant Experience
If fly-aways, knots and tangles have become a part of your daughter's vocabulary when it comes to her hair, then she's probably not very cooperative when it comes to hairstyling time. It can be difficult, even with the most compliant kid, to get them to sit still long enough to brush their hair, let alone fix it into something worth looking at.
If shaving your daughter's head has crossed your mind during one of your tear-laden hair brushing sessions, don't give up hope just yet. Here are some suggestions to not only rid your child's hair of tangles, but also get them excited about trying new hairstyles.
1. Use a distraction
When my daughter was still small enough to sit on the counter in front of the bathroom mirror, I would plop her in front of her own reflection and go to town brushing and fixing her baby hair. At the time this was enough of a distraction, but as she got older I had to find new ways to distract her. This could be anything from educational apps on my phone, books, toys, or in desperate instances, the TV.
The mom behind simplysadiejane.com offers up bathroom trinkets to her little one while creating toddler hair masterpieces. Floss, contact cases, rubber bands and sometimes even her makeup make hair brushing and fixing a much less dramatic experience. She also offers some
adorable toddler hairstyle suggestions that will make even the smallest amount of hair look great.
2. Detangle, detangle, detangle
Nothing is worse than listening to your daughter scream while you brush through the tangles in her hair. The best way to avoid the pain and sadness that goes along with the hair-fixing process is to make those tangles easier to tame.
I've found that brushing my daughter's hair right after she gets out of the bathtub makes combing through knotted hair a more pleasant experience. If she hasn't just had a bath, I use a spray bottle and wet her hair before brushing it. After wetting the hair, I will use a detangler or leave-in conditioner, which also helps with the tangle-taming.
You can find detanglers at pretty much any grocery store or pharmacy, but if you would rather skip the chemicals and make your own, then here's a
DIY natural hair detangling spray that will do the trick as well.
3. Make hair-fixing a fun and silly experience
Many school districts have weeks of themed events where kids can dress like their favorite super heroes, wear mismatched socks and even create crazy hair creations. Toni from Blue Skies Ahead made
crazy hair day even more fun when she added spiraled pipe cleaners to her daughter's hair.
While not every day calls for pipe cleaners and crazy hair, adding a little silliness and fun to the average hairstyling day can make the experience fun and memorable for you and your child. Why not add some ribbons or recreate a Disney hairstyle? Here's a tutorial on how to
style your daughter's "do" like Elsa's (from the movie Frozen, as if you didn't know).
There might still be some tears (from both of you), but stay the course. Someday they will be too old to sit in front of you while you play with their hair. Try to enjoy it, even through the screaming.
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About the Author
Jessa is the Editor-in-Chief of Hooray for Family and the mom of three energetic children. She has a BA in Mass Communication/Journalism from the University of Mary Hardin-Baylor, and is a long-time resident of Central Texas. When she isn't writing and editing, she enjoys playing board games with her kids, teaching Sunday school and channeling her creativity into craft projects.
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