Dear Ouidad: I recently got engaged and am longing for my dry, coarse and kinky curly hair to be more soft, healthy and looser ringlet-like curls before the wedding. (Much like Taylor Swift’s”> Any suggestions?

A: Deep treatment intensive conditioning is the key to getting softer, healthier curls. After that I recommend a softening to loosen tight curls, but make sure that the softening process uses a calcium hydroxyl base, not a sodium hydroxyl base. This should be used months ahead of time, though to make sure you like the outcome. For special occasions you can use a Climate Control gel to control frizz and add moisture to loosen your curls.