The BEST Curly Haircut I’ve Ever Had in Singapore

This review is unsponsored.

If you read my last post on living with curly hair, you’ll know that finding a decent hairdresser in Singapore (or Asia) is near impossible. The overwhelming majority of hairdressers I come across just don’t know how to handle curly/wavy hair. I’ve also encountered too many hairdressers offering to straighten my hair or undergo a keratin treatment.

Imagine how delighted I was to find a hairdresser who specialises in cutting curly hair. I found Viji (@curlyheavensg) while browsing Instagram, and started following her. The clients in her photos and videos all appeared to have amazing, almost Botticelli curls. Their curls didn’t look remotely like the curls I had… so I continued to observe and admire from afar.

But it was time to get a haircut! I put off getting a haircut for a whole year. Partly to avoid spending money, and partly because I didn’t know of a hairdresser that could cut my long hair. My hair had grown into a long, flat mane that appeared most presentable tied up or in a bun. One evening, I got sick of looking at how sad and flat my hair appeared, so I decided to make an appointment with Viji.

Here’s a tip for you: book early. Due to COVID-19 restrictions, and being a home-based business, Viji’s restricted by the number of visitors she can have. So I had to wait patiently for 6 weeks before it was my turn. The booking process is straightforward: book an appointment and complete a bunch of questions in the appointment form. You’ll need to give her information, like which products you’re currently using. After that, make a 50% deposit and pay the remaining 50% when you arrive.

I have 2B/2C waves, fine texture, low porosity, low density hair. Since the pandemic started I read a bunch of things about the curly girl method (I don’t follow it strictly TBH) and I’m still lost. There’s so much information and it’s hard to figure out what’s right for my hair. I’m really grateful that as part of the first-timer experience, Viji took the time to diagnose and explain how to take care of my hair.

What I learned

• One of the things I read was that low porosity hair should avoid protein. But after talking to Viji, I learned that it isn’t necessarily true! She has low porosity hair and it loves protein. She said it adds structure to hair. She tried this Curlsmith Featherlight Protein Cream on my hair, and my curls were beautifully defined. I’ve since bought my own tube on LookFantastic (referral code). She also recommended the ApHogee protein treatment as something I could try once a month. I bought a couple of packets from Amazon but haven’t tried it yet.
• I always thought that my hair was dry and frizzy because it needed moisture. So when I applied creams to it, I would mix in 3 drops of Argan oil to the cream. It turns out that my hair was OVERmoisturised so I should avoid oils! 🤯 She recommended that I clarify my hair at least once a week, and then my hair should appear less weighed down. I had Giovanni’s Triple Tea Treat Shampoo at home, and she confirmed that this was suitable for clarifying.
• You need to hold the curls by using a gel, and the gel doesn’t need to be the hard, crispy kind. She used this Curl Keeper Gel which had a great hold AND my curls were still soft to touch! Again, I didn’t think this was possible, but she proved me wrong…

Before & After

In summary, I highly recommend a visit to Viji if you have curly hair and live in Singapore. I was a bit nervous about whether Viji could handle my hair, after years of bad experiences with hairdressers. I can confirm that she definitely knows what she’s doing, and you’ll probably learn a lot about your hair if you visit her. Follow her on Instagram to see more of her hair transformations with clients!