➿ Fantastic Haircare: Making Sense and Science of the Curly Girl Method

[botemp]

Offshoot from the Fantastic Skincare threads to document the trials and tribulations in order to make sense and science of the curly girl method. We don't necessarily follow it to the letter and are even critical of it in places. Nor are we especially knowledgeable at this point but we're learning as we go. Feel free to join in (especially if you have superior knowledge) as we attempt to approach this with an interest in ingredients and try to not buy everything that promises us magical things…

Useful blogs:

Curly Cailín
Science-y Hair Blog

Bit confused by your photos Pupsie as looks like back and side to me (not front and side - or have you put all your hair over your face?). Anyway your hair does look smoother than the 2 weeks ago photos and you can see more waves forming plus you don't have straggly ends which is great.

I think you may have the same issue as me with halo frizz. I think you said you are also going to start doing upside down washes?

Una, yes rice is a good protein treatment but if you do a plain protein treatment like rice (as opposed to a deep conditioning mask which contains protein and moisturising ingredients or even rice mixed with a deep conditioner) then I understand it's important to do a deep conditioning afterwards so that your hair doesn't dry out from the intense protein injection.

Doh Sophie. Is side and back. Yes, frizz needs sorting. Trying not to worry too much as very early days but will be reading up on how to deal with that. I upside down washed this morning and that too layer is a lot better than yesterday's top layer (posted upthread).

Windy here today. I guess the weather and curly hair is an entire topic all by itself

I need to make or get myself a silk scrunchie, I've never gotten on with an invisiboble. I use really stretched out old elastics 😬

I know a fair bit about food and supplements in relation to hair but you do have to realise that it only influences new hair growth as hair is dead. So not sure how interesting it is to everyone and it basically comes down to the standard advice of a healthy varied balanced diet with oily fish and lots of colourful food.

Haha Pupsie, I'll probably owe Sophie one too at some point as I refuse to acknowledge I am curlier than I am right now. I find the whole curl type confusing as you'll see one person who you think is much curlier and then they're the same as you and then doubt sets in. The only thing I have to go on is that I have S curls and not full ringlets which should put me in 2 territory 🤷

Washed my hair yesterday with the Jessicurl spiralicious as a new addition. It was weird, Client, how much do you use? I think I was too conservative but a little but spread very far (my current gel (Aveda confixor) is very liquidly so I use fistfuls in comparison) but it dried odd. It had a very light cast but for the life of me it would not budge when I tried to scrunch it. I combed out the roots a bit and then I just left it, slept in a pineapple (woke up with a light headache and strained neck ) but I know this breaks up any cast that's left over where a braid keeps it intact. It's very floofy now, no frizz though but very soft, not limp, it has bounce but a bit boring, maybe, I don't know. It's what I call good girl hair, it's a bit childlike on me, probably because the baby hairs (new hair growth) are sticking up. I didn't realise it but with the exception of the wave spray (of which I used very very little) the entire routine was glycerin free so I did several experiments in once. Roping method made my hair clumpier but I don't think it suits me, it's adding to the good girl vibe.

Who thinks up these product names? I would not start a name with "con"

@botemp I use quite a lot but my hair is v thick!
Interesting about the roping, I was on Instagram last night and saw a technique I'm going to try today which is head upside down and glazing product over then squishing, and mousse after plopping
Be cautious with the orange marmalade try, I used too much the first time and when SOTC my hair was practically laughing at me

That's what I normally do client, with or without the foam. Sometimes I do an additional glaze of gel after plopping with a little water added to the gel. Glazing was a game changer for me.

Orange marmalade isn't here yet, she indicated about a week delivery (she's a small one woman type of thing). I'll experiment with the spiralicious amount as it was about a 1/4 of what I'd usually use. This is a closeup, I do like the shine it delivers, the barrel curls I really accredit to the roping method and is probably preferred if you have a lot of density but it's a little Little Bo Peep on me.

I'll report back! Today's experiment is with shockwaves mousse and boucleme gel (yellow and purple mixed)

Gah this is what CGM and all the weird names does to me, I was about to Google shockwaves thinking that was the name of the glazing technique with mousse on top 🤣

Another delivery lol. Collapsible defuser (didn't want to pay too much and didn't want a Parlux one). Looks good and has a rubber end so doesn't need to be a perfect fit. Just waiting for my spray water bottle now as I can see that adding water is potentially useful and tbh the boys' hair is so long now I think we'll all get some use out of it.

I really want to try one of these but they're out of stock.

www.simplymoi.uk/collections/puffcuff

I do get headaches when my hair is up using a normal hair tie. I'm fine with high or low ponytail with an invisibobble but as I said before it makes my scalp really tender for a few hours the next day.

Not doing anything to it today. I will probably run in the morning and wash, deep condition and try the diffuser ahead of a work team video call on Monday.

Your hair looks lovely and soft Bo. Have you only recently started leaving it curly? I'm wondering if you've had it cut to allow for curls? I know you've had a couple of bad cuts in the last few years. Just wondering what to ask my hairdresser for. She's got 30 years' experience and I've never had a bad cut or colour in 5 years and I certainly don't want to patronise her by telling her what she should do.

I've gone from thinking I'm a 2a to a 2c with a smidging of 3a. I do see some flashes of ringlets.

(I saw the Puff Cuff on powerdomi's sleep IGTV btw):

www.instagram.com/tv/B27UdXlIxuH/

Today's line up

I'll write properly later as feeling a little under the weather but think your hair looks lovely Bo. Not sure I fully understand the problem with the gel (you weren't sure you used enough but then couldn't get the cast out?) but will re-read.

Question: Do you think one should squish in a deep conditioning masque too (before you put it in the thermal cap)?

Sophie, yes, you read correctly that's why I was so confused by the product. The cast was light but would not budge 🤷

No I've always worn my hair curly (or wavy really) Pupsie, and I've always had the standard wavy cut (layers at the front from the chin down) unless it was short (thanks to crap hairdressers). I've had one curl cut specialist cut and it was really bad. It was cut in the round sort of, I think that's the Deva curl technique and with a great amount of product it looked 3a/3b but it dropped pretty much within an hour to my normal looser pattern. It didn't really bother me until I washed and air dried, the amount of funk in my hair bothered me more. I had to blow dry it from then on until it could be cut into my preferred cut (at the right length, this seems to be my contention with hairdressers, they think cutting is the same as with straight hair, so they take more off and it's a huge amount once it's dry just from the bounce of the waves). It used to be pretty self sufficient but medication and hairloss has upset the balance. I'm really lazy with my hair and ideally I'd get back to my usual routine of being able to just wash condition and be done with it. I also have a preference for messy French girl hair so I'm not aiming for perfect curls either.

Soft probably is a bit of the grass is greener thing if you're on the coarser side. My hair is quite smooth, that's not something I have to work for all that much but soft usually means a bit limp and lacking volume on the upper third of my head for me as my hair doesn't curl from the root (another wavy thing as I understand it). I need a bit of texture that's not frizz basically.

I'm not sure about the need to squish with a thermal cap, I think the heat gets the cuticles to open up or the hair swells (one or the other) to allow for better penetration, the squishing method seems to be a less efficient mechanical version of it.

Pupsie I think there's something similar to that band called the zazzi band or something like that, without the claw thing but same idea.

Hair partially dried with my dyson. Will air dry now as I CBA

How much Spiralicious did you use Bo? I've got it on order so it would be handy to know how much is needed. I thought your hair looked good - no frizz whatsoever.

Is glazing just smoothing a product over the outside of the hair?

I'm doing a deep condition right now with Hairfinity protein mask. I squished to condition first - it seemed sensible to make sure everything was covered. Powerdomi also makes reference to (presumably) another instagramer who has a method for deep hydration and deep conditioning but couldn't find it - anyone come across this? My thermal cap not arrived so heating a damp towel in microwave (which is a pain as it cools down and needs reheating).

Nice curls Client Did your hair used to be redder? Do you like the Dyson? I need to buy a new hairdryer although rarely diffuse as always seem to be short of time. Sometimes do the roots only in winter

Yes there is a band called a zazzy. saw it on the naturalistic site. Looks like a pair of sunglasses but without the glasses part.

I do like the Dyson, it's nice and light and easy to use. And yes! I had a massive amount of baby highlights put in it plus it's lost a lot of red as I get older

It's still a gorgeous colour Client but I have a real thing for red hair and green eyes (think you have green eyes too?). I would love to dye my hair red but don't think it would match my eyes or skin tone at all!

Wash day taking ages today (deep conditioned for 45 mins). Following power domi's product application technique and now wet plopping for 10 mins. I'm not going to bother diffusing though...

Yes, green! Still a fair bit of red in it

❤️❤️Client

Bo, I've been reading about soy protein and the Giovanni leave in (in a bit out out as one of the reasons I got the Giovanni was because I thought it contained protein) and I believe from what I read that soy is still protein even if not hydrolysed (hydrolysed are maybe broken down protein molecules). Could you explain to me why you think that's not the case?

I will be annoyed if I bought a leave in without protein .... Bit of a waste

Client did you get your microblading redone? I've not. They're at the slightly fuzzy growing out stage.

Sophie, I used about a €0.50 coin but it spread into an oval so it looked a bit more and I had cupped my hand a bit but I think that's the amount I was aiming for. Generous 50 cent coin.

WRT soy protein it has to do with size. When they're hydrolyzed they're much smaller and they do different things. The medium sized seem the most versatile as parts of it can still be smaller sized so they have qualities of small and medium sized molecular weights. Large sized (hydrolyzed) protein only really act as film formers where the medium and small sized do the things we associate with protein as 'improvers' of hair conditon. Small enter the hair shaft as they're the only ones small enough (even hydrolyzed soy is to big for this, but parts of it may, as I understand it) and give elasticity and moisture deeply. Medium gives slip and detangling quality and help prevent hair breakage. Large are film formers that give body and shine. That's for hydrolyzed protein (and keratin and amino acids), my understanding is that the extracts are much larger so they'd act as film formers, probably, which isn't a bad quality in a leave in. I think when something is considered a protein product it usually has two or more hydrolyzed proteins, amino acids and/or keratin with a mix of weights to get multiple benefits, although that's not a set rule. Innersense products tend to have one in most of their lineup but those are designed as a balanced product rather than an 'improver'. You can usually recognise a protein product as they tend to be marketed as reparative or restoring in name or description.

I'm green with over your eyes Client, gorgeous!

My hairdryer is giving up the ghost too but I've been able to air dry since lockdown really easily so it's not been much of a priority. I have considered the Dyson but I'm not a fan of Mr Dyson so I'm conflicted but I've yet to find a really good alternative, I don't want something crazy hot and powerful like a Parlux as I think that would be wasted on diffusing.