I’ve been following the Curly Girl Method for over six months now and while I certainly still have days when my hair does not cooperate, I think everything is falling into place. I even mustered up the courage to cut 5 inches off my hair and add lots of layers. I do admit, I’m getting much more bounce in my waves and curls now. I’ve certainly made dents in a lot of hair products – but I still bought more, don’t worry – and even finished some of them. Here’s the lowdown:
As I Am Coconut Cowash ($11.99/454g): As someone with a tumultuous relationship with cleansing conditioners and co-washes, my love for this As I Am offering is surprising. It’s silicone and sulfate free with a kind of runny but thick consistency that emulsifies and suds ever so slightly when worked into the scalp. I find it to be slightly more cleansing than typical cleansing conditioners with an excellent amount of slip and moisture. I don’t find myself having to reach for a separate conditioner when I use this co-wash and I don’t find that my roots are flat or my scalp is irritated like I do with other products of this category. I was actually legitimately sad when I finished the tub of the cleanser and have repurchased a new one since.
Shea Moisture Manuka Honey & Yogurt Hydrate + Repair Conditioner ($13.99/305 mL): I really enjoyed using this incredibly thick conditioner because it was fairly inexpensive, really helped to clump my curls and offered sufficient slip for detangling my knot-prone tresses. While the texture itself was thick, I think this is on the lighter end of the spectrum for Shea Moisture in the sense that they add less weight then some other products by the brand. When I’m around a store that actually has this conditioner in stock, I will pick it up again. For those curious, it contains slip agents, fatty alcohols, shea butter, glycerin, honey, yogurt and a few notable plant oils for the most part. It contains a very minimal amount of protein.
AG Re:Coil Curl Activator ($38/355 mL): I can confirm that this curl cream lasts far beyond its expected shelf life. I picked it up a couple of years ago and wasn’t initially overly impressed with this lightweight cream styler. When used on its own and on soaking wet hair, I didn’t find it did much but now when used on my damp hair, underneath a styler with more hold, I like the boost that it gives my finer curls and waves. It contains a film forming polymer, fatty alcohols, a starch to add grit, glycerin and a small curl-enhancing magnesium sulfate. It has a light hold on its own and lends great bounce to the hair and works quite well as a refreshing product. I repurchased on Prime Day happily for quite a discount.
Jessicurl Rockin’ Ringlets Styling Potion ($24/237 mL): Honestly, I’m on the fence whether to repurchase this thin flaxseed based curl enhancer. I used the brown liquid as intended onto soaking wet hair without noticing much of a difference – and creating a bit of a mess because of how liquid-y the product is. It wasn’t until I tried applying the product into my damp hair that it went farther and helped to tighten up droopier curls. It has virtually no hold in my experience, especially when used as directed. My one comment about this product is that it does not help to clump curls in the slightest; instead, it creates defined more separated curls with flaxeed, glycerin, aloe, jojoba oil and magnesium sulfate.
Curls Creme Brule Whipped Curl Cream ($14.99/ 240 mL): At first, I found myself quite disappointed with this product because I bought it thinking it was primarily a styler only to discover that on my hair, it performed more like a leave in or moisturizer. It doesn’t offer any hold – nor does it promise to – and while it decreases frizz, smooths the strands and adds hydration, it doesn’t do too much to help with curl formation and definition. I did quite enjoy reaching for this birthday cake scented medium-weight leave in once I stopped trying to use it as a styler. It contains aloe, glycerin, a few oils and shea butter.
beautylit& ramblings 