The Bachelor’s Abbie Chatfield shares her curly hair secrets

Abbie Chatfield charged into the Australian spotlight last year, with her killer confidence and bouncy golden curls taking centre stage in the drama-filled 2019 season of The Bachelor, where she finished in second place.

Despite the negative media attention and online trolls that targeted Abbie throughout the show (and who haven’t stopped since), Abbie has remained true to herself, and we’ve admired her strength and fierce attitude in the face of unrelenting scrutiny. And now that she's set to take on Bachelor in Paradise, we can't WAIT.

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Another thing we’ve always admired about Abbie? That hair.

Her curls are incredible - yet as crazy as it may seem, Abbie didn’t always love her natural bounce. “I only started embracing my curls in 2015 when I went to Europe and didn't have a straightener. My curls were much more frizzy back then with heaps of heat and chemical damage, but that's when I realised I actually liked them”. 

Abbie fans have been constantly flooding her Instagram comments begging her to spill her secrets to the perfect curls. Well, secret no longer. Speaking to beautyheaven, Abbie revealed exactly how she achieves her beautiful ringlets, as well as her top tips for taking care of curls day-to-day... 

Abbie swears by co-washing

For those who haven’t heard of co-washing, it’s when you wash your hair solely with conditioner. Yep that’s right, no shampoo. The method works great for afro, curly and even really dry hair types, as it cleanses the hair without drying out the ends and creating frizz.

Abbie says she co-washes using Giovanni Root 66 Max Volume Conditioner ($13, iherb.com), but for a regular wash she’ll use GAIA Natural Baby Shampoo or Biologika Mediterranean Bliss Shampoo ($9.15, buyorganics.com.au) with Garnier Fructis Macadamia Hair Food - “which I also use as a leave-in.”

She ditches a regular towel for microfibre

As anyone with curls knows, frizz is the enemy of defined, bouncy ringlets. Abbie’s solution? “Use a microfiber cloth or a t-shirt to dry your hair and minimise heat damage as much as possible.”

The material is much gentler on curly hair, resulting in less breakage, while still soaking up lots of moisture.

Abbie’s biggest hair regret? Heat damage.

Since Abbie began embracing her curls she’s “been using heat way less because I love my natural hair and it has made all the difference”.

So instead of reaching straight for the hairdryer, Abbie’s post-shower routine usually starts with a hit of hydration: “I’ll usually put in a leave-in conditioner like Giovanni 2Chic Ultra Revive ($12, iberb.com.au) or Garnier Fructis Macadamia Hair Food”, which she’ll then follow with a gel such as the Giovani LA Natural Strong Hold Styling Gel ($12, iherb.com.au), before leaving her hair to air dry ‘50-70 per cent of the way’.

Only then, once it’s almost dry, will Abbie reach for the dryer and “use a diffuser on cold to finish it off and get it fluffy”. 

Her DIY curl-reviving treatment

Whenever Abbie’s curls are looking a little lank and dull, she makes this homemade remedy: “I put some leave-in conditioner with cold water into a spray bottle and gently brush the top layer of my hair, then spray the watered-down leave-in conditioner and let it air dry”. 

How she goes from curly to straight

When her curls aren’t playing ball, Abbie sometimes wears her hair sleek and straight. 

To achieve this look, she begins with a generous spray of GHD Unplugged Heat Protectant Spray to protect her curls from heat. Then, to get a smooth and straight blow dry Abbie uses the powerful Dyson Supersonic (dyson.com.au, $549). 

To hold the style and achieve a sleek finish, Abbie swaps hairspray for serum, running ‘the tiniest bit’ through the ends of her hair

“To be honest, I need to find a curly-girl friendly serum that won't make my hair oily when straight but am yet to find one”. 

A round-up of Abbie’s favourite curl-loving products

• Giovanni 2Chic Ultra Revive ($12, iberb.com.au)

• Garnier Fructis Macadamia Hair Food, 

• Giovani LA Natural Strong Hold Styling Gel ($12, iherb.com.au)

• GHD Unplugged Heat Protectant Spray

• Dyson Supersonic (dyson.com.au, $549)

• Charlotte's Lab Intense Moisture Hair Mask”(charlotteslab.com.au)

• Boss Curl Kit (bosscurlco.com, $149) - “They have everything you need to start in a box and I am so mad that I have only discovered it recently”.

If you only take away one tip from this, let it be...

“The Curly Girl Method!”.  Abbie refers to the hair washing and styling routine from Lorraine Massey’s book "Curly Girl: The Handbook". The method focuses on swapping out heat styling and over-shampooing for a regimen focused on using conditioner, gel and air drying, rather than traditional styling, for your best curls ever. 

Do you have curly hair? What are you best tips for making the most of your texture?

Image credit: Channel 10

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