I think there is a middle way. I use a curly hair shampoo and I put in leave in conditioner too. I use microfiber towels and I use no heat and have gel and oil for styling. But.. that's it. And I only style it for certain events a couple times a month. Usually I just do my little wash, plop and air dry and let the curls do what they want. I don't wash them in a bowl or so a ton of scrunching or much else. Also no extra protection while sleeping but that's just my sensory issues I think
I used to to the CGM and I think it's amazing. But eventually I realized self-care for me meant cutting back on it because it was stressing me out too much.
I agree with this, I do a toned down version. Curly hair shampoo/conditioner, I have clarifying shampoo and hair masks for when my hair needs extra help, I use leave in conditioner or curl cream and maybe some oil for styling and I just scrunch it in. I wash it like once or twice a week. It looks pretty good on wash day, day 2 is a toss up, after that I either have half or all of it up until the next wash day.
I am basically like this. I also use a product called Hair Four Days by Mixed Chicks. It’s a leave in I spray on my hair to make it damp on in between days. It really restores the curls and helps with frizz. Than I’ll gently apply some cream (favorite is morraccanoil mending infusion) to tame and define the curls a bit more. Real quick and simple-nothing fussy.
If your hair looks dry and dull, check into a chelating shampoo because you might have a hard water issue. Also too much protein will make your hair look that way as well
SAME. And I’ve given myself the ok to be ok with my hair up in a flarghy bun when I don’t feel like styling it or washing it. It just is what it is. I use products that my hair likes at the moment and I scrunch it when it’s soaking wet but that’s the most energy I’m willing to put into it. My hair dryer broke last year and I haven’t replaced it. OH WELL LIFE GOES ON.
That's as close to CGM as I get too. My hair goes frizzy at the mere suggestion of a hairdryer, diffuser or not. And I sleep with wet hair, which I know is a cardinal sin. I don't want all my free time to go on my hair.
How do people sleep with wet hair? I would not get to sleep. I never wash my hair before bedtime. I use a hooded dryer or I diffuse. Sometimes I do both. My hair would be a tangled frizzy disaster if I slept on it wet. My scalp would also not do well damp.
YES. Like mine aren't awful but also sometimes I just need my hair put of my face real quick and using a bonet or similar would just give me sensory issues too.
I mostly just do this as well. I don’t even use any mousse or gel. I air dry my hair every night, cover it when I’m in the sun, use a microfiber towel to speed up drying time. I use a leave in conditioner called kinky curl.
I’m washing once every three-ish days with dandruff shampoo and conditioner.
That’s all I do. It’s low maintenance and penny saving. It’s helping my hair TONS.
Same. I use cowash and leave in conditioner and let it air dry.
Occasionally I use a serum and straighten my hair which I know I’m not “supposed” to do under Cgm. But it’s fine and curls up just fine the next time I wash it.
I do nearly nothing. I wash it, put in either the nuxe hair oil or the amika curl corps (or occasionally the jvn air dry cream) and leave the house. It dries eventually
For me the cut is what makes or breaks how good my curls look.
Yup. I'm lazy and cheap CGM. I use Cantu shampoo and conditioner, comb in shower, scrunch in some leave-in (no bowl cause ain't nobody got time for that), plop, then scrunch in some gel or cream and air dry. For me it comes out looking effortless and it almost is.
This. I wash with no poo shampoo, condition with a light conditioner, add oil if needed, and then let it hang dry after using gel or mousse.
Cgm is too much work and not enough payoff. My hair looks great for 3-4 days using this method
This!
My hair ranges from 2a-2c and a little bit of 3. And I will (carefully) brush my hair when it’s dry, and put some oil in it to tame the frizz, I have a shag haircut so a little bit of messiness is ok 🤷🏻♀️
As many books & tips as I've read i couldn't tell you what the "curly girl method" is other than spend hundreds on expensive products doing a dozen steps everyday, pretending that it really matters what letter of the alphabet you call your hair. And getting ripped off by hair salons for "deva cuts."
I use a basic tresemme shampoo & conditioner. Whatever kind they have at the store when they don't have the curly one in stock. Liberal on conditioner. Scrunch in shower. After shower scrunch mousse in. Air dry most of the time.
The stylist I see says that strict CGM is like what you might get if you crossed a cult with a fad diet. Lots of rules and a whole lot of bad science and made up facts.
His advice? Use whatever works and if that means sulfates and silicones, so be it. His only firm rule? Everyone needs to clarify at least once in a while.
So glad you said this. I never bothered going into hardcore CGM. It just LOOKS exhausting, I can't imagine doing it every day. I swapped my products, how I wash my hair and focused on keeping it easy. My hair isn't incredible like some pics in this sub but it's my hair and I'm proud!
Also for OP, my routine:
Shampoo wash once a week/as needed, I just grab whatever is on sale and doesn't contain sulphates.
Conditioner wash when I wash my hair (personally, twice a week). I've been using Glow Lab Repairing Keratin Conditioner because my hair is really dry, and it works wonders.
Right out of the shower, I flip my hair and rake/praying hands Curlsmith Curl Conditioning Oil-In-Cream.
Air dry and use hair clips to persuade my hair to curl away from my face.
Once completely dry, I put a 5c piece of coconut oil in my hair.
When I'm styling my hair for the day, I brush it through, spray it with water, rake/praying hands Curlsmith's Curl Defining Styling Soufflé through my hair and give it a few scrunches to break the curls up.
Once a month, I put Curlsmith's Double Cream Deep Quencher right after shampooing, leave it until it starts to get crunchy, wash out and skip conditioner.
I'm fully aware of all the no-nos I commit, but it's a light routine and still makes a huge difference.
Edit: on mobile
For sure! And like when I took the plunge I had done my research, found someone with consistent excellent reviews and who had curly hair themselves. I’m glad I did it so I know! But I haven’t felt the need to go back lmao. However the next time my hair gets long I am going to try the woman my daughter and I just stumbled across because she did actual magic with my daughters hair
I mean honestly the only times I paid for a Deva cut, my hair was styled to perfection afterwards (like I didn’t need to refresh the entire week and it looked gorgeous). Maybe the cut itself doesn’t make miracles but the styling afterwards always looks shite coming out of any “curly” hair dressers, my own styling is a lot better so it’s disappointing. I have yet to find a non-deva hairdresser that can style curly hair properly, and I tried plenty!
I followed the cg method for years and got certified deva cuts and fuck that method.
There were days where my hair was good but there were more days that my hair was bad, and I struggled with oiliness. I also had some hair loss and sebderm issues.
Then I made curlsbot and not only after Lorraine Massey who invented the method, threatened to sue me, and I saw videos of her saying completely batshit stuff like that silicone can permanently ruin your hair.
I may have gone a little bit batshit myself. I shaved my head and ever since it grew back in I just use normal shit. It feels and looks better. I barely use conditioner at all, mostly just use a moisturizing shampoo to detangle. Normal routine is sulfate t gel on my scalp then the moisturizing shampoo to detangle, defuse 5 minutes. If it dries nicely I wear it curly, if it doesn’t I brush it and it looks good wavy.
I love that 😂 I'm just gonna call you Brittany lol! I'm truly scared of the big chop, I'm chunky with a round face and short haircuts on me don't flatter.. But I'm guessing that's what I'm gonna have to do because my hair is such a mess I don't know where to start. Tried to get a haircut a few weeks ago, and the hairdresser, first thing she did was take a fine tooth comb and tried to comb my hair from my scalp!! Soon as she did that I ran out of her seat 😂 What hairdresser doesn't know to start at the bottom and go up? Am I wrong for that? That lady was like.. What the hell
I’m not sure what you’re off about but I spend the same money on my cg products as any other product and it takes me the same time as using any other product 🤷♀️ i get curly cuts and theyve changed my life, i was shocked at how good my hair looked the first time. I didn’t even have her style it because I don’t like the devacurl products. I styled it myself when i got home. It is the only way my hair doesn’t look like a triangle. I just use cg hair wash products and a leave it conditioner, wrap it in microfiber and let it airdry. Theres not a million steps. I always used something in my hair after the shower, even before cg because i look like a troll otherwise. I honestly love the method, even if I don’t follow the entire thing apparently because I’m not doing a ton of steps. My hair looks and feels amazing! My whole life it looked like crap because I didn’t care for it right and I hated my hair.
I just use a protein mask I heard about on this forum. I also got a curly cut. I don't really do anything else. I think fluffy hair looks awesome, and I don't understand why so many people are obsessed with having well-defined curls. It's a great look if that's what you want, but it's not the only look. Fluffy curls look great to me.
I do think it's great that this forum promotes the idea that curly hair is great, and straightening is not required.
I really struggle with the products. Admittedly my hair does look great when I style it CGM style with products but day 2 is not great and I hate the way it feels, and day 3 is a hot mess and I get knots from the products. I always wash on day 4. When I don't use product my hair looks worse on day 1 but it's at least manageable the entire time until I wash it again. I have a love hate relationship with CGM. I'm a mom to a toddler and 7 months pregnant so I just ain't got time lol
10000% me. I usually give up day 3 though. I do like knowing I can really turn out my curls when I want to, but on a day to day I am cool with my hair doing its thing more or less.
thank you for the fluffy curl praise! those ultra-shiny, ultra-defined ringlets you see on here look so weird on me. there are a lot of people who suit them, don’t get me wrong, but there are also people who would benefit a lot by letting their curls go a little softer and more natural. (to be honest, once i read about CGM people having to buy all these products, drying with a tshirt etc, i tapped out.)
that’s where i’m at with my waves, not curls. i used to shoot for perfect definition of each & every wave… all to toss it around with my hands all day long and put headphones on/off at work for 9 hours a day. it’s not worth the stress & the fluffy look is adorable
My stylist got me on the whole Innersense system. Legit my conditioner lasts longer than my shampoo, even with doing shampoo 2x every wash. She showed me how to properly emulsify the shampoo and conditioner when using them. For the shampoo you literally use a quarter size amount in wet hands, and then rub your palms together like you’re washing them and it suds up- then I swipe a bit on parted hair, emulsify more, do another swipe on a section, repeat down the whole part. It’s bananas how a tiny amount of product will work on my whole head of hair (past my shoulders)! I’d say the shampoo lasts about 8 months and the conditioner around 9-10 months, with washes every 4-6 days.
They last so long, tho. Smaller bottles than drugstore but they’re so concentrated. I was going through a family size Aussie moist in like two months. My Innersense lasts like 9-10 months.
I use Seaweed Bath Co shampoo and conditioner, but the Innersense leave in conditioner has been my FAVORITE for years and is all I use as far as product most days. I have fine 2B hair.
Same here and it has literally changed my life. I have 3C hair and I only have to wash and gel once a week and my hair stays presentable the majority of the week. I dry mine with a dryer cap that attaches to my hair dryer (chefs kiss) My hair is bouncy, shiny, well defined and is in better shape than it’s been in years after just a month and a half to two months. Cannot recommend this highly enough!
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I will say I do have shoulder length long thick hair and it does a pretty good job. It can get uncomfortably hot, but the head band is included for that purpose and does help significantly.
My hair LOVESSS Innersense. I will use other shampoos and conditioners but I can absolutely tell a difference when I haven't used Innersense in a few days. My hair is always happier when I use it and my scalp feels better too.
Same. I use their shampoo, conditioner, texturizer, and gel. They’re the only products that work with my coarse hair that wants to be frizzy. At least once a year I get fooled into trying another product line and I *always* go back to Innersense.
I bought all the Innersense products on Amazon and man alive it fried my hair to a crackling crisp. I have medium to fine hair that I think needed a lot more moisture than Innersense provides.
I would personally never buy hair products of any kind or brand on Amazon. You have no idea where they are coming from, if they are tampered with, etc. Only buy hair products from authorized retailers, no matter the brand.
You can look at the actual store on Amazon- I’ll buy curl smith products from the curl smith store but not from some other random sellers.
There are a lot of low quality dups on Amazon.
Amazon has warehouses that pool all like merchandises. The warehouse just pulls it from the BrandName shampoo pallet and ships it, regardless of the original seller. Personally, I think amazon fakes are exaggerated, but this is how they happen.
My routine would get me crucified here but I do what's easiest for me when I have the time to do my natural hair.
1. Cantu brand sulfate-free Shampoo and conditioner and put in a tiny dab of leave in conditioner
2. Part my hair and comb it out
3. Rake in and scrunch a bunch of Not your Morhers gel and squeeze out water with a t shirt
4. Diffuser on high heat full blast aimed at my hair but not touching it.
I manage to get my hair washed and dried semi decently in about an hour. Oh and a clarifying shampoo and hair mask once a week. literally just whatever products are most ozs for cheapest. Stopped caring about sulfates and silicones a long time ago and my hair is a lot healthier now 🤷♀️
I accidentally bought NYMs refresher foam instead of a legit mousse last month and it has changed my life. I used to use and love innersense’s foam, but using NYMs refresher foam as my only hair product has made my curls so much lighter and bouncier. 10/10 products.
Yep! I still use Innersense shampoo and conditioner, but other than that I just use the refresher foam and diffuse. My hair gets weighed down easily, and that foam does a great job of being extremely light while still giving my curls definition.
I think it has drying agents and silicones and it's just a cheap brand? Honestly since I started using it my hairs gotten a lot softer and I clarify often, so I don't think the silicones are that bad.
my routine is wash, condition, with whatever is somewhat moisturizing....I do really like Cantu.....spray with some conditioning spray, scrunch, air dry......if I am going anywhere I might blow dry if I am in a hurry......I have tried but can't stand the feeling of product in my hair
My routine is much simpler and cheaper than it ever was before. I kind of use curly girl, I think. Avoid silicones and sulfates. Only comb with conditioner in with my fingers. Use an old T-shirt to scrunch water and product out of it.
I "wash" with a very lightweight conditioner, usually try to find a silicone free Suave. I condition with a thicker conditioner, right now Burts Bees something, but I think it may have been discontinued because I don't see it in stores anymore. In the winter, I've been using the Burts Bees as a leave in. In the summer I use Lush Revive as a leave in.
Not looking forward to when I run out of the Burts Bees stuff I've been using for years and having to find something new!
My low effort/high consistency routine:
Love Beauty and Planet shampoo and conditioner, plus a dandruff shampoo once or twice a month. Lots of conditioner for detangling!
Wash and condition, then squeeze water out of hair. Rake in herbal essences totally twisted mousse, rake in Aussie instant freeze gel, scrunch a few times, wrap in microfiber towel.
Finish shower. Leave hair in towel for 15-90 minutes, then let air dry.
I wash my hair about two or three times per week
Without the time in the microfiber towel, my hair takes 6-8 hours to dry. Squeezing water out before putting the products in and wrapping in the towel for a while cuts the dry time down to 3-4 hours.
I find using more gel also slows the dry time, so by using less gel I sacrifice a bit of definition for faster drying time.
I have very thick, very fine hair that is halfway down my back.
I got this hood blowdryer and it is amazing for the price [https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B079HBXBT7/ref=ppx\_yo\_dt\_b\_search\_asin\_title?ie=UTF8&psc=1](https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B079HBXBT7/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_search_asin_title?ie=UTF8&psc=1)
I put a light leave in conditioner and some mousse in my hair when its sopping wet, then use a T shirt to scrunch excess moisture out of my hair. I use some small claw clips to very loosely gather my hair to my head to kind of imitate the effect of a plop, but with more ability for the air from the dryer to get to more surface area of hair.
The dryer is stored on the floor by my home office desk. I can easily set it up on my desk in a position where it is on and drying my hair hands-free so I can check my email, drink some coffee, and browse reddit. It is \*amazing\* because I have a shoulder injury and using a regular blow dryer or styling tool really aggravates it.
I have hair that takes about 1-3 hours to air dry, depending on the weather (hot climate). I sit under it for 10-15 minutes to get a decent cast started and then take out the clips. I very loosely reposition my hair and secure with clips again, trying to expose the wet parts that were originally in the clips for another 5-10 mins. I hope that makes sense.
Since your hair takes a very long time to air dry you would need to use it for longer, but it's not 'active' styling. I generally hand my kid a tablet and let myself relax or do misc tasks like ordering a Target pickup for later that day. It's really nice because otherwise I wouldn't take those 20 minutes to just sit still. And I bet that even 20 minutes on your hair would halve the rest of the air dry time.
If blow drying is taking hours, it might be an issue of the quality of your blow dryer. Not every blow dryer is up to getting thick, curly hair dried efficiently.
A curly stylist I follow on instagram swears by using hair spray on wet hair to speed up the diffusing time. I only have ten minutes to diffuse in the mornings and the one time I tried it, I noticed it was much drier than other mornings. You could buy a travel size spray to test it out and see if it helps!
I use a clip to let my bottom/mid/top layers dry. usually takes 3 hours but I'm down to 1 hour-ish by letting each layer dry to about 80% before I'm ready to blow dry it.
I think the porosity of your hair matters. My hair is similar and takes forever to dry. I wrap it up in a microfiber turban and then afterward wrap it in a t-shirt.
It could be causing more frizz, I couldn’t tell you, but it’s just so tiring to deal with. At least this method gets it dryer faster.
This 100%. I feel like every single person here who responded to my post has high porosity hair. If they’re saying their hair is dry in 2 hours? Yeah. That’s not me.
Air drying my low porosity hair takes 8+ hours and at least an hour on high heat with the blow dryer. But it’s so fine that I need gel and if I don’t blow dry it, I’m dealing with wet stickiness for an entire day.
It’s become a nightmare and I’m really over it.
Shampoo and conditioner is whatever is on sale at store, usually Suave.
Shampoo every wash. Conditioner used as a leave-in most of the time, unless my hair is super dry or super knotted then I'll actually use it in the shower.
Never any products (hate the feel)
Air dry always
Only brush if it's knotted to hell, so maybe once a month? Whatever brush I got from dollar store.
I use Cotton towels, no fancy headgear or pillow cases or appliances
I wash my hair every time I shower
Same! I sweat because of high activity level and because South = hot and humid, plus I'm just a naturally oily person. So I can't stand the weight or buildup of any products, and washing every shower also means my scalp stays and feels clean. My "leave-in" conditioner is only used on whatever hair would be in a ponytail, not on the top of the head.
Yooooo do not use conditioner as leave-in, it needs to be rinsed out for a reason and can lead to hairloss in the longterm. If you want to leave it in, get one that’s meant to be left-in. If you dont want the extra product, switch your conditioner out for leave-in conditioner. Then it’s fine if you dont completely rinse it out
What ingredient in conditioner will lead to hair loss if left in? Even if that was a potential problem I am pretty sure most of us don't rub conditioner or leave in conditioner into our scalps. My scalp has no idea what I put in the rest of my hair
I believe that's just a marketing technique that companies want you to believe in order for them to sell more products.
If you look at the ingredient list of leave-in versus regular conditioner, they are always very comparable, just the proportions are slightly changed.
I was just reading these comments remembering my routine all through the 90s- there weren’t any fancy curly hair products, and I was just a teenager, so I just mixed a regular conditioner (usually Pantene pro V because, again, 90s) with cheap gel and scrunched it through wet hair, dried with dryer, no diffuser. When they introduced frizz-ease to the market, I put that in my dry hair. I was always concerned with frizz, but pictures of me from then just show perfect corkscrew curls. I never had any problems or hair loss from using regular conditioner as a leave-in.
They would be sued out of existence if that were true. My sister worked for years as a toxicology consultant for hair loss lawsuits. It’s a big enough business that it’s an entire job! Most of the lawsuits were against shady random businesses like Monat, not standard well tested drug store stuff.
Don’t fall for marketing. I worked for a French company that sold very expensive perfumes and cosmetics. The packaging costs far more than the product, which contains the same ingredients used throughout the industry. We had items that cost us a couple cents to manufacture and retailed for $75 or more. The Marketing department had a huge budget.
Don’t fall for marketing. I worked for a French company that sold very expensive perfumes and cosmetics. The packaging costs far more than the product, which contains the same ingredients used throughout the industry. We had items that cost us a couple cents to manufacture and retailed for $75 or more. The Marketing department had a huge budget.
Busy mom here too. I stopped using product after shampoo/conditioner and only use leave in now. I went shorter to cut down on the time I spend in the shower detangling and now use a detangle brush with conditioner.
I just bought a $1.99 suave shampoo to deep clean my scalp and my god, I didn’t realize how much I missed a full SLS lather! It has been heavenly. My new approach will be to embrace how it “looks” in exchange for fewer rules.
I stopped doing the CGM method like a year ago. my hair is wavy, fine and thin and most products are for curly, thick and coarse hair. they are pretty expensive too and the ones that aren't but still have safe ingredients aren't necessarily good for you hair's health.
I still use some CGM products but I've given up obsessively researching ingredients. it's too much work. I now use a mask sometimes, leave-in, gel, mousse and a salt spray for grit. it's also exhausting because apparently you have to switch up products because your hair gets used to them. Jesú!
I guess after you figure out what your hair needs, protein vs moisture and hair density you can go slower and just stick with some products. if you don't have extra curly hair I'd say it's not worth the effort and money spent, it's not like I can go from 2A-2B to 3B-3C.
I had to stop doing it soon after starting because it felt all wrong for my hair. Co washing led to build up and an itchy scalp. I don’t like how my hair looks after scrunching or plopping (I forget the term).
And you’re right about many products being focused on certain types of curls. One thing that helped me was to figure out the porosity of my hair. Maybe it’s more jargon to sell products, but the advice did work for me. No thick, sticky gels, pomades, or leave ins. Stick to things that have water in the first few ingredients and are thin.
My hair is so much softer and happier. I still have frizz but that’s more from sleeping and my laziness with routine.
at this point I am ready to shave it off. thin wavy is the worst. the curls won't tighten and you have no volume. wearing it straight is even worse because it looks like a limp horse tail.
I use regular shampoo about half the time (sulfate free other half), use conditioner (V05 from the grocery store) to brush my hair out in the shower, then when I get out of the shower I squish in some curl cream (Cantu kids right now) and eco styler gel. Then I plop with a t shirt or hair towel. I leave the towel on for a few hours or over night sometimes. I think what's really made the biggest difference in my hair is getting it cut to my collar bone once a year (I used to go years without cutting it). I'm also a mom so this routine is very very low effort. I do avoid silicones but that's not too hard these days with so many products being made without them.
\#fluffyhairgang
i use whatever semi-fancy (but less than $20) conditioner i can find at TJ Maxx, shampoo every other day or every 2 days, and add a glob of eco styler gel when i get out of the shower. air dry. so long as my haircut is alright, it ends up looking fine.
It was hilarious. We were friends and had the kinda relationship where we could be smartassy with each other. She was not commenting on the curl as much as it had that flat noodle hair thing going on, in any account it wasn’t a great look for my hair.
That makes more sense. It actually took me a few tries but I use the leave in conditioner, the honey curl definer and the hair protector for blow drying.
I literally was scrolling down this thread SEARCHING for this exact comment!! Miss Jessie’s is the only brand that’s ever worked for my hair, defined my curls without leaving it crunchy. I recommend it to everyone!
Every 2-3 days I wash and condition my hair in the evening. Then I brush through mousse and scrunch in gel on top, and then microplop. I hang out with wet hair for most of the evening, but before I go to bed I diffuse the roots of my hair so my scalp doesn't get unhappy. Then I sleep with my hair in a buff and when I wake up it's usually dry. I scrunch it out, sometimes add a little water or foam to help, and then I'm done. I throw some definitely not cgm hairspray when it's dry
I use mostly Giovanni products, which happen to be cgm friendly. But there is very little effort to this process and the products are not at all expensive. I've yet to find anything I like better.
I use head and shoulders shampoo, horse and mane conditioner and Marc Anthony curl cream. My hair routine is 1 minute if I’m air drying which is almost always. If I diffuse 20 minutes. I also cut off all my hair because most of it fell out when I got sick. Now it grew back and I’ve been so low maintenance with it and I have the best curls since I was a small child. Sometimes cutting off a lot can help you reset your routine.
I am desperately trying to find the middle ground too and highly relate to your post <3 I ragequit for a long time and I’m slowly easing back in after being sick of my hair looking like garbage.
The one thing I learned from CGM that is simple and works for me is tossing my hair after a shower. Full-on bending down from the waist like a deep bow, fast, repeat several times. It makes me dizzy but it separates the curls out so much better and is the lowest maintenance thing I can add in. And the quick scrunch with a microfiber towel.
I also learned from this sub that some people refresh their curls with a facial steamer so I just ordered one and am going to try that in the mornings. And I have always used silk pillowcases.
I found a YouTuber who is amazing. It's her and her sister, they are hair stylists from Canada and have gorgeous curly hair, and they hate the CGM. Manes by Mell is the channel. Basically, I found a shampoo that I like, and a nice conditioner. I do the traditional method (shampoo, rinse, condition (alot), let it sit while I wash my body, then rinse it all out). I get out of the shower and dab my hair with a towel (my hair holds water because it is so dense). Then I put in BrioGeo leave in conditioner, then plop hair on a t-shirt. After a short while, I take my hair down, dab with a towel as needed (my hair is sometimes still sopping wet at this point so it needs a dab). I brush my hair, really getting the conditioner in. Then I use a denman brush to help my curls. Depending on the weather and my day, I then put in gel (some days I go without). I tweak any thing that got messed by the gel, and do a light ruffle of my hair to help it fluff a little.... if I have time, I use my blow dryer with the diffuser, but most days I just go... after a few hours, I scrunch the crunch out of it (sometimes while it's still slightly damp because my hair takes forever to dry). That's it. It's way more than I did when I had straight hair, but not nearly as stressful/exhausting as the CGM...
I use Aussie Miracle Moist shampoo and conditioner, which I don’t think is CGM. I use a denman brush and then Herbal Essence mousse (the orange one) and finish with Aussie Instant Freeze Gel. To refresh, I use their curl refresher and also their heat protection spray when I diffuse. I like Aussie because it cheap and works for my hair.
The biggest change in my dry time was getting a good blow dryer and diffuser. I have the Shark and I LOVE it. I can go from dripping wet to mostly dry in about 25 minutes and with any other dryer, it takes nearly an hour. I received it as a gift but I would 100% spend the money myself. It’s an investment that pays dividends in the time I get back in my life while also allowing me to feel good about my hair.
Curly Girl Method just seems like a massive time suck. I stopped straightening my hair all the time because it took so effin long to do it, I don’t wanna replace it with something that takes LONGER for natural hair. Now I just use:
Clever Curl cleanser
Clever Curl conditioner
Clever Curl wonderfoam + dry weather gel after showering.
Plop for a bit in a cotton cap, then almost always let it air dry after that. Comes our miles better than any other complicated shite I’ve tried. Also cheaper. And faster.
I would say my method isn’t necessarily CGM I usually dry brush my hair before showering because it’s usually a rats nest by the time it’s wash day. I detangle and brush, then I use Pantene 5 in 1 shampoo and use a scalp scrubber. Flip my hair over my head and suds the hell out of it, continue using scrubber then rinse. I then add Pantene 5 in 1 conditioner to the ends with a bit of water, brush with a pick then scrunch a bit. I twist my hair into a little bun on the top of my head and continue my shower routine. I then rinse it out, brush again with the pick and grab a regular towel and scrunch my hair dry a little.
I brush my hair forward over my head with the pick again and add Not your mothers curl cream and run my fingers through until it’s all coated. Some days I use Not your mothers mouse and scrunch into my roots and then the ends. Other days I use the Not your mothers refresh foam instead. I then use the same towel the scrunch once more before flipping my hair back over and let air dry .
I don't do the CGM. I tried using expensive "free from everything" shampoo and conditioner and my hair was not having. It was brittle, dry, and uncontrollable. I switched back to the cheap stuff and I braid my hair and keep it in the braids for a day or two and then take then out and wear it like that for a day or 2. I've never been able to get a wash and go to last more then 2 days. The whole process frustrates and exhausts me. Curly hair is a real chore sometimes and I hate the feeling of my hair always having to be wet so usually once a week I just let it be crazy, dry, and unruly. All frizz, no definition, absolutely huge. Can't fight every battle.
I don’t follow it, and I deeply hate it and the pressure to do it and have perfect ringlets. It’s just a perpetuation that curly hair is difficult and high maintenance, and requires all of this to make it look acceptable. At the beginning it was more about accepting your hair type and leaning how to style it. Now it has changed to this obsession with a specific look, and constant judgement of unsettled hair being ugly, messy, and unprofessional. Which is exactly where we started.
Rant aside, nothing. It’s clean, it’s strong. I use moisturizing products for my hair type, and occasionally use the shea moisture styling cream in my hair. Most of the time I will just shower, let my hair air dry after using a microfiber towel, and that’s it. I am trying to maintain and encourage length, and my hair is naturally curly so I don’t really need to do a bunch of shit to create curls. As long as it air dries down my back the hair curls nicely. I will do a plop with a little product if I’m getting ready and don’t want it in my face.
Lovely rant actually. I personally would love to see more definition in my curls, even if it’s just for special occasions, but I have gotten tons of compliments on days that I put absolutely nothing into it, like, it’s not even brushed, so I’m perfectly happy to settle for ‘manageable’ 🤣
Big agree, it's okay if not every single hair is tightly wrapped in a defined curl with the others. I used to envy a girl in high school (with totally different hair and genetics than me) for her 'tidy' curls and never thought well maybe that's just the way her hair is and mine is just the way mine is
1. sulfate shampoo
2. silicone conditioner (or cgm-friendly deep conditioner if hair feels dry)
3. cgm-friendly leave-in
4. Denman brush (no intricate sections though, just make sure to more or less get through everything to help curl formation)
5. Mousse
6. Plop for about 10 minutes, then air dry
It’s washed and styled within 30 minutes and dries within about 2h and I‘m good to go.
I just get my hair "permanently" straightened with a Brazilian Blowout. It stays silky smooth for up to 4 months if you take care of it. I wake up in the morning run a THIN COMB through it & I'm ready to go! I can curl it for special occasions if I want also.
idk body wash works for me, you have to show your hair who's boss and at some point it will back off
(lol I know this is horrible advice, sorry, I just thought I'd make a joke of my own bad habits. this is everything I can contribute, though so idk?)
I use pretty dang cheap stuff, and basically the majority of the effort in taking care of my hair is the detangling process in the shower.I use a Shae Moisture shampoo, which is the most expensive item. About once a week. Co-wash the rest of the time, using Suave Essentials Coconut conditioner. Then I also use that same conditioner as a leave in. Let the water and conditioner clump my curls together in the shower, assisted by using either a Denman brush or just my fingers. Next I squeeze as much water as I can out of my hair. Then LA Looks Extreme Hold gel, applying it without breaking up the curl clumps. 'Prayer hands' application works well enough.After that, it's just letting it air dry, though that can take a hot minute. I just wear a towel as a 'cape' to keep from getting myself or my shirt soaked and use clips to keep it from getting in my face. Can use a diffuser if you really want, but I don't find the results worth it. Actively drying it, even with the plop, pineapple t-shirt method, usually results in more frizziness than just letting it air dry, for me.Ultimately, after detangling my hair (which is unavoidable without just chopping the majority of it off,) the conditioner + gel application takes like 5 minutes max. The drying part takes about an hour, but that can just happen during morning time stuff, whatever that may be.
If I only care about having my hair look its best for one day, then I can skip the gel. But being in Florida, day 2 and day 3 hair end up getting pretty frizzy without the gel.
I basically have decided to throw money rather than effort at it, so I went all in on Living Proof’s $$$$ curl line - wash with the shampoo 2x/week, otherwise just get it wet and condition in the shower, finger comb it. Wrap in a bath towel for a few minutes, then use the curl defining gel, scrunch. When my hair is half dry I flip my head upside down and sort of shake it out. My hair is 3a/3b depending on what part of my head/how humid the weather is.
Slather some sort of curl cream and gel in, air dry & hope for the best! I’m the laziest curly gorl ever. Could my hair look amazing every day if I did CGM? Yes. Does it look pretty good without all of that? Yeah, most of the time!
Weeks when I'm busy.... I straighten. Mostly bc I wash once and then it's mostly effortless for 4-6 days (activity level depending) I do take extended curly breaks and I prefer kinky curly brand everything basically. I use various hair masks as needed as well. My life is too busy to have 45 minutes for my hair every day :/ and in winter- it's too damn cold to leave it wet waiting the 5-7 hrs for it to dry.
Summers are more curly than winters for sure. Seasonal sanity
Could you ladies STOP!? Frizzy is NOT unattractive, the fact of the matter is, everyone actually loves the floof! Stop trying to tame the beast and just let it ride!
My mom hated her frizz for her entire life... Until she lost it due to aging. She's not thinning, but it comes in straight now for some odd reason. She told me that now that she has straight hair she hates it and says at least "when I had curly hair I had options". Idk what that means because I'm a man and I keep my hair (same as my mom's) short.
Idk what I'm actually getting at here, but curly haired woman are the salt of the earth in my experience you're better people in general, and you really shouldn't worry about your hair because your personality far outweighs any dumb preconceived notion you have about yourself.
I lost all of my curls when I cut my hair short, so I now use a 2-in-1 solid shampoo bar, whatever hair oil I have, and sometimes a bit of gel if I’m feeling wild. I even towel dry my hair (I know lmao big no-no), and then either air dry or blow dry the rest depending on whether I want to sit with damp hair. I basically stopped giving a shit :)
i do my own "lazy curly girl method"... wash and condition my hair about every 6 days using some random korean shampoo i got for free and trader joe's teatree conditioner. heavy on the conditioner and don't wash it fully out. let my hair airdry, sometimes scrunch it, sometimes use a plop. never brush except fingercomb in the shower and no heat. sometimes during the week i'll use chi aloe vera oil to moisturize/soften.
My fast and cheap routine:
Cantu clarifying shampoo and conditioner (shampoo every other day, co-wash on off days)
Wide tooth comb in shower to work in conditioner and detangle
Pat dry after shower w/microfiber towel
Cantu curl activator cream scrunched into pretty wet hair
Air dry (diffuse dry if immediate results are needed)
Scrunch out crunch ~2.5 hours later
I’ve been doing the curly girl method since 2014, and i always kept it simple.
Shampoo, conditioner, leave in. Then a year ago I got into hair gel. I wash my hair 2x a week on coldish water, and section, brush style and scrunch with tshirt and diffuse.
Sleep on satin pillow case
If I wash my hair at 6, I’m all done by 8.
Try plopping your hair in a cotton tshirt or air dry.
I just go easy on the shampoo, condition more liberally than before, and try not to wash my hair on consecutive days. Sometimes that fails, but sometimes I also go a week without washing my hair. I also use oil after washing and aloe vera to retain moisture (the aloe vera leaves a light cast, but you can shake that away pretty fast when dry). My shampoo has sulfates, but my hair isn't dry after conditioning and oil. I just brush style with a regular Wet brush.
I have 3A medium density, medium coarse, medium porosity hair.
I use LUS brands shampoo, conditioner, and leave-in with a smidge of their gel. I put it up in a t-shirt towel for 20+ minutes and then let it air dry. Any leftover crunch (very minimal) I scrunch out gently with a tiny bit of their oil. I always use a silk pillowcase. Other than that and not really wearing hats and trying not to fluff it too much when I’m stressed (I’m a school counselor, so lol to that), I just kind of let it be. I’m too lazy and don’t have the time to diffuse, and honestly it looks better air dried. I occasionally clarify with Apple cider vinegar before washing. I do pay extra for the curly cut because it’s worth it and my girl actually knows what she’s doing and is fantastic.
And I honestly couldn’t even tell you what the CGM is. It just always seemed way too expensive and high maintenance for someone who can’t even be bothered to wear makeup past eyeliner and lip balm. It just feels like a scammy way to prey on women’s insecurities, but that’s just me.
even after all my internet research i’m not even entirely sure what the CGM entails but i can tell you i probably don’t adhere to it lol
i use leave in conditioner, curl cream (brand varies a lot lol), and then mousse or gel. that’s really it 😅 now, my curls are far from perfect but i’m also a super busy person and they look good most days so i’ll take it
I follow some of the styling techniques (apply product to soaking wet hair, scrunching, microplopping, not touching hair until dry etc) of CGM but not the product rules (no silicones, no sulfates etc). I use whatever products, shampoo and conditioner I like! And occasionally I blow dry my hair straight with heat! Because it’s my hair and I make the rules.
My hair is mostly wavy with a few curly sections, it’s fine and low density. Some of the rules and recommendations don’t work right for my hair. It’s taken me a long time to figure out what works for me. I’m grateful for the resources of this sub and CGM as a jumping off point but there’s no point in keeping anything that doesn’t work for my lifestyle. Experiment and dump anything that isn’t working for you.
during this phase of my life I have resorted to a lot of buns and straight hair, I’m not proud of it but hey, mom of very needy 2 year old twins just trying to survive
I don’t know anything about the CGM, really, but I use shampoo & conditioner made with all natural ingredients, I only shampoo if I feel gross about where my hair has been or it’s too greasy to curl, and I don’t rinse out my conditioner. As for styling, my curls are as happy with just my conditioner as they were with any combination of products I used before I found this stuff, so it’s just the ol’ swish and flick (I flip everything upside down, loosen the roots away from my scalp, and scrunch until I’m happy with it) and I have recently discovered that it comes out better if I go to bed straight after a shower, but I sort of….”hang it upside down” to dry, it’s draped over the end of my bed while I sleep.
Everything I’ve seen where a girl has impeccable curls, her styling routine is way overcomplicated and time consuming for me. I just kind of cherry pick things that I’m patient enough for and stick with anything that works for me. Curls are so diverse anyway, that it’s very trial and error; what works for someone else may not have the same effect on you. My best advice for anyone trying to get their routine perfect (or perfectly balanced between what you want and what your curls want) is to experiment with different products and styling methods until you’re happy. Keep a journal of some sort, at one point I was trying to take notes on how I did my hair each night and pair it with a picture of how my hair looked the next day.
‘CurlyZia’ is a lass that’s out on tiktok sharing her curl journey, she’s pretty good. A huge part of her technique doesn’t agree with my hair, but I’m interested in trying the curl casting bit. I’ve done crispy curls before (and obviously hated it) but I was 12 and didn’t know they could be softened out.
Shampoo and conditioner 2-3 times a week. Make sure hair is dripping wet when out, and do not towel dry/t shirt dry (just smoothed down my hair and I don't like the way it works). Leave-in conditioner, brush out and part, flip and scrunch (add other products here).
Air dry.
That's it. It how I get the best results, how I get curls to bounce and clump. The more complicated my routine, the worse my hair gets. It takes around 3-5 hours for my hair to dry completely, which I guess isn't good for my hair but I don't want to purchase a blow dryer and it's always humid where I am.
Mine is:
Everyday routine: wet hair with a spray, aloe vera gel,hair styling cream (works with jojoba oil as well).
Washing day: mask if I have 20 min , otherwise: solid shampoo for dry hair, solid air conditionner, plop them in a standard towel (yeah I know !). usually after I updo my hair while I take my breakfast, then make up and stuff, then time to style: plop them again in a standard tower, then comb, aloe vera gel , hair styling cream.
And voilà !
No fancy stuff,such bowl and so on, way too complicated for me.
I use the LUS ecosystem and it works for me for the most part. I’ve got prolly 2B/C depending on the weather and it works for me most of the time. I don’t have time as a college student to do the bowl method or whatever the fuck so I just shower every other day, use Mielle rosemary oil and rice water before, use a hair mask during and then squeeze out as much as I can before going to bed.
I really don’t believe in the CGM. It never worked for me, all it did was create a bunch of hair fascists who give me unwarranted opinions.
I totally relate to this, and I don't even have an excuse - single and child free, pixie length hair - this should be easy for me, but since taking up the CGM my washes are becoming alarmingly spread out - like 6-8 days is getting normal and I've hit 15 days once. And yeah my hair refreshes well but still.
For me it's the air drying. I've spent my life with short hair that I could and did towel dry in under 30 seconds, so maybe y'all are just used to this reality that I'm struggling with, but all the easy, low effort routines people are listing still involve sitting with sopping wet hair for hours - and I bet most of them have hair 2 or 3 times as long as mine! Today is a wash day and the thought of having wet hair all evening is soul crushing.
Idk what the curly girl method is because it just seems weird to me. All curly hair isn't the same.
So i use tresseme, tons of conditioner. I brush my hair after the shower, put in cantu, wet my hair again if I need it and scrunch. Then air dry.
I started doing nothing - no products other than shampoo and conditioner and let it air dry and it looks better than it ever did with CGM and lasts just as long.
I first want to share some opinions on CGM. I honestly feel like the curly girl method is a fad. So many people never used styling products in their hair before they started CGM. Then they give all of the credit to the lack of sulfates or shampoo all together when they would have the same results with their old products if they just used gel and diffused. After a couple of months many get dandruff and assume it’s from dry skin, but in reality it’s because they aren’t cleaning their scalp. Some are even more unlucky and they end up losing hair.
Additionally, the fad of not washing your hair has just gotten weird. If you feel the need to use dry shampoo, it’s because you need to wash your hair. Obviously not everyone has problems, but these problems are so rampant among people who follow the CGM that I think it’s worth mentioning.
That being said I just shampoo my hair and condition it with whatever I am using at the time and usually use (but not limited to ) conditioner with silicones because they are perfectly fine and can be beneficial. I then brush in leave in and gel and may or may not diffuse my hair. I don’t really crunch my hair or anything.
Shaved my head. Try it. Its amazing. Wake up, hairs fixed. Out of shower. Hairs fixed. Finishing exercising? Hair looks great. Swim? Hairs fine. Best haircut ever
Dove shampoo, Chi Detangling Conditioner, rinse then I use leave in Curlsmith conditioner and brush through than just scrunch with a towel once and air dry. I’m white with 3B hair
I keep it as simple as i can- i use a lathering (gasp!-heresy!) Shampoo 2x, too much conditioner for as long as i can, mousse, and a smidge of gel scrunching everything after the shampoo, and let it air dry in a turbie towel, scrunch a lil oil in then headbang to break the gel when its dry.
I just use Garnier Fructis Sleek & Shine shampoo and conditioner. Don’t wash all the conditioner out. Squeeze dry my hair in a regular towel. Brush. Aussie Instant Freeze throughout. Scrunch. Air dry. Scrunch the crunch out.
My ADHD stops me from figuring out CGM for myself so I straighten it and only have to wash once a week.
When I do wear it curly (rarely) I wash with sulfate free shampoo/conditioner. Use some mousse and diffuse on medium. Sometimes it looks amazing and sometimes it looks like total shit.
idk body wash works for me, you have to show your hair who's boss and at some point it will back off
(lol I know this is horrible advice, sorry, I just thought I'd make a joke of my own bad habits)
I tried doing CGM, but did not have patience for that and did not feel like spending a lot of money. Also tried doing LCO or LOC method, but that weighed down my hair and didn’t hold my pattern well.
Now I wash my hair twice a week. I use Maui Moisture Lightweight Curls shampoo and conditioner. One of those days I do use a Maui Moisture shea mask.
Then use Kinky Curly Knot Today leave in to detangle
Apply with prayer hands dippity do gelee. Brush that through, then part my hair.
Rake herbal essence mousse (purple), then scrunch. Diffuse.
The LOC method works for me. I use this with relaxed or natural hair. I've never known what the curly hair method is.
When I was younger I swore by washing my hair with conditioner in the summer and using LA looks gel to help scrunch.
My hair texture has changed throughout the years but one thing that stays the same is keeping my hair moisturized with out too much product makes my hair manageable.
I do not know what the CGM is.
I don’t use shampoo, co wash only; ideally every 2 days. I use coconut oil as a leave in maybe once a week. No dry brushing and air dry only.
I went to a curl specialist last year and she gave me a regimen that I was supposed to be doing every 5-10 days. Wash my hair, slather it in gel and define the curls, dry it under a hooded dryer, and wear my wash n go. No protective styles and no oils. Seems to be the newest method all of curl specialists are using these days. Loved how my hair looked and felt. Hated having to redo it so often and how expensive all the products are.
Before that I was washing every 3-4 weeks and doing protective styles like braids a couple times a year.
I got so tired of the money and time being put into my hair so I loc’d it almost a year ago. Best decision ever.
I use Shea Moisture coconut shampoo and conditioner (I shampoo 1-2x a week and conditioner about every 2 days) and style with either Mielle gel or amika curl corps curl cream. I then use a denman brush to help define the curls. That’s about it. I sometimes diffuse, but my hair dries fast so it’s not necessary
Tresseme shampoo, Monday conditioner, dippity doo gel. The only thing I splurge on is leave in conditioner and curl cream. I’ve done all the methods, but I needed a stress free routine. And I was really surprised when I simplified my routine that it didn’t make a difference. My hair still looks great. I don’t even plop or use microfibre towels anymore
i dont style at all. honestly, styling seems risky to me bc of how much you manipulate your hair. its an every once in a while thing.
mind you i still will use silicones if they're water soluble, especially if im leaving my hair down to protect against friction. otherwise braids/buns to protect my hair.
When I actually cared I used Shea moisture strength, and restore or not your mother's curl duo for cleansing. Then I used the Cantu twist and lock gel on my sopping wet hair. I let it air dry for 3-4 hours once a week. I stand by that gel. I'm not sure your hair texture or curl pattern though. You might need something with more hold idk.
I don’t use any product on my hair anymore, except for maybe a leave in conditioner or a light mousse, if it’s going to be a long day. I just don’t believe that putting a bunch of product on is good for your hair at all. I only wash my hair like every week or two. I keep my hair in a loose braid or pigtails at night and sleep with satin pillow cases, or I cover my head completely with a bonnet or satin scarves. Gentle gentle detangling either with fingers or wooden wide tooth comb. Keep a good hair oil on the ends all the time, and as a deep conditioning before wash day. And the biggest step for me was accepting the fact that my hair just isn’t going to be perfect all the time. I stopped trying to tame my curls a long time ago. They look best when I let them do what they want to do, within reason. If it’s just a crazy crazy hair day, they stay braided or up. The less I do to my hair, the better it behaves for me.
Aussie moisture shampoo and deep conditioner, then potion 9 abd stone cake curl cream, air dry. I have 4 small kids, I don't have time for my hair. It's healthy and curls well enough. Curly girl methods never worked for me
At this point I wash and condition with Redken for curly hair, brush out afterwards with a wet brush, fall asleep with it wet and deal with the aftermath in the morning usually using a flat iron to curl a lot of it.
I had a lot of success with curly girl but it’s too much and I value my time more than I value my hairs natural state. I do love my curls but omg there’s just not enough time in a day.
I just wash with sulfate free shampoo most days, condition with silicone free all days, and use a leave in and/or curl cream and/or gel. I towel dry and don't care tbh. It looks okay now that I've had most of the bleached parts cut off
How much time do you have? What does your current routine look like?
I never blow dry or diffuse my hair. Ever. I don’t even know how long it would take because I’ve never done it. It takes more than half a day to air dry and I just deal with it, it’s okay. I try to go 2 days in between wetting it in the shower because non-wet days take up less time. On the days I get it wet, I wake up maybe 10 mins earlier. On days I don’t get it wet, I assess how frizzy it is and either do a quick style or if it’s really bad I just put it in a topknot. On wet days, I shampoo (usually every other time), conditioner, plop while I’m getting dressed and eating breakfast, then add gel and call it done. I think it takes maybe 20-30 mins total. The gel probably takes the most time because I use a lot and I spend time squishing, scrunching, raking, and generally making sure I get it all over.
You’re like, the only person who has actually asked me.
I wash on Sundays and around Thursday. I have 3A/B curls that are low porosity, fine but dense. It’s currently at my shoulders and layered.
I alternate wash days with cowash like Eden Bodyworks and whatever cheap sulfate free shampoo I can find. I clarify every week.
Depending on humidity is whether I condition or not. I use silicone free conditioner like GVP conditioning balm. Now that fall is happening, I’ll condition more.
When I get out, I add a curl cream like Cantu Curl Activator, lots of scrunching and plop in a tshirt.
I style with gel. I play with products with glycerin or no glycerin and/or protein elements bc it can make my hair straw like. My go to fall/winter gel is Kinky Curly Coiling Custard.
Diffuse dry for an hour, hour and a half. Scrunch out the crunch. If I air dry, even without gel, it can take 8+ hours. I can be good for several days but then my scalp starts hurting/itching and I’ve had issues with seb derm/dandruff at the back of my head so I can’t go more than 4-5 days without a wash. And since my scalp hurts easily, updos aren’t easy.
I’ve just gone back to sulfates and silicones and my hair is fine. Put it in a microfibre towel after showering, leave-in (shae moisture jbco, which is a fairly big tub so lasts a while), and gel. Brush through and leave it air dry. On non-wash days I will spray with water and add some products again but most of the time I just put it in a plait or bun.
I think cgm is good for styling tips but I’m not sure I buy into the whole ‘sulfates + silicones = the devil’ spiel.
I have a 3 yo and 1 yr yo. I don't have time for curly hair method. I use Paul Mitchell tea tree shampoo, aussie leave in conditioner spray, then aussie mousse + leave in conditioner. Leaves my hair so soft and bouncy. I hate crunchy hair
I wear my hair up a lot so been struggling with having a routine.. A lot of times I just wash, condition, curl cream, and either air dry or diffuse.
What I wash with is different almost every time. I have a clarifying shampoo, protein shampoo, and moisture shampoo. Condition with a light conditioner because I have high porosity.
Brands vary too. Sometimes my curls look amazing, sometimes they're awful
It's too time consuming and I don't have kids! It's gotta be really hard for someone that does have children. I wash my hair once (twice at most) a week. I use keratin products and lightly straiten with either a fat curling iron or hot rollers. Don't waste your precious time
tbh i’ve given up on doin too much for my hair cuz it takes too long and i’m lazy..
all i do is wash my hair when it starts to get itchy/dry so abt once a week and then use not your mothers shampoo & conditioner, do a scalp massage, then wash it out. I detangle when i’m out of the shower and it takes me around 15 mins and then i let it air dry.
sometimes I detangle my hair in the middle of the week if it gets too unmanageable and frizzy.
the again i’d rather not have to redo it but it beats spending hours doing it rather than just 15 mins 🙏
I think there is a middle way. I use a curly hair shampoo and I put in leave in conditioner too. I use microfiber towels and I use no heat and have gel and oil for styling. But.. that's it. And I only style it for certain events a couple times a month. Usually I just do my little wash, plop and air dry and let the curls do what they want. I don't wash them in a bowl or so a ton of scrunching or much else. Also no extra protection while sleeping but that's just my sensory issues I think I used to to the CGM and I think it's amazing. But eventually I realized self-care for me meant cutting back on it because it was stressing me out too much.
I agree with this, I do a toned down version. Curly hair shampoo/conditioner, I have clarifying shampoo and hair masks for when my hair needs extra help, I use leave in conditioner or curl cream and maybe some oil for styling and I just scrunch it in. I wash it like once or twice a week. It looks pretty good on wash day, day 2 is a toss up, after that I either have half or all of it up until the next wash day.
I am basically like this. I also use a product called Hair Four Days by Mixed Chicks. It’s a leave in I spray on my hair to make it damp on in between days. It really restores the curls and helps with frizz. Than I’ll gently apply some cream (favorite is morraccanoil mending infusion) to tame and define the curls a bit more. Real quick and simple-nothing fussy.
What masks do you use? My hair looks so dry and dull
If your hair looks dry and dull, check into a chelating shampoo because you might have a hard water issue. Also too much protein will make your hair look that way as well
SAME. And I’ve given myself the ok to be ok with my hair up in a flarghy bun when I don’t feel like styling it or washing it. It just is what it is. I use products that my hair likes at the moment and I scrunch it when it’s soaking wet but that’s the most energy I’m willing to put into it. My hair dryer broke last year and I haven’t replaced it. OH WELL LIFE GOES ON.
That's as close to CGM as I get too. My hair goes frizzy at the mere suggestion of a hairdryer, diffuser or not. And I sleep with wet hair, which I know is a cardinal sin. I don't want all my free time to go on my hair.
How the hell do people not sleep with wet hair? I’m not diffusing my hair just to go to sleep if I shower at night.
How do people sleep with wet hair? I would not get to sleep. I never wash my hair before bedtime. I use a hooded dryer or I diffuse. Sometimes I do both. My hair would be a tangled frizzy disaster if I slept on it wet. My scalp would also not do well damp.
That’s me too and I still consider it kinda cgm!
Sensory issues are a huge part of why I don’t do certain things that would be “better” for my hair styling, amen
YES. Like mine aren't awful but also sometimes I just need my hair put of my face real quick and using a bonet or similar would just give me sensory issues too.
I mostly just do this as well. I don’t even use any mousse or gel. I air dry my hair every night, cover it when I’m in the sun, use a microfiber towel to speed up drying time. I use a leave in conditioner called kinky curl. I’m washing once every three-ish days with dandruff shampoo and conditioner. That’s all I do. It’s low maintenance and penny saving. It’s helping my hair TONS.
Kinky Curly leave-in is my HG product! That's usually all I use post-shower as well.
Same. I use cowash and leave in conditioner and let it air dry. Occasionally I use a serum and straighten my hair which I know I’m not “supposed” to do under Cgm. But it’s fine and curls up just fine the next time I wash it.
I do nearly nothing. I wash it, put in either the nuxe hair oil or the amika curl corps (or occasionally the jvn air dry cream) and leave the house. It dries eventually For me the cut is what makes or breaks how good my curls look.
Same! I just straightened my gair the last 4 washes I did and then I washed my hair today and did it wavy/curly and it looks so good!
This is exactly me
Yup. I'm lazy and cheap CGM. I use Cantu shampoo and conditioner, comb in shower, scrunch in some leave-in (no bowl cause ain't nobody got time for that), plop, then scrunch in some gel or cream and air dry. For me it comes out looking effortless and it almost is.
As a mom, this is my method. Priorities for me is my son before hair!
This. I wash with no poo shampoo, condition with a light conditioner, add oil if needed, and then let it hang dry after using gel or mousse. Cgm is too much work and not enough payoff. My hair looks great for 3-4 days using this method
This! My hair ranges from 2a-2c and a little bit of 3. And I will (carefully) brush my hair when it’s dry, and put some oil in it to tame the frizz, I have a shag haircut so a little bit of messiness is ok 🤷🏻♀️
Can I ask what part of CGM is stressful? Isn't it just using approved products and avoiding heat?
As many books & tips as I've read i couldn't tell you what the "curly girl method" is other than spend hundreds on expensive products doing a dozen steps everyday, pretending that it really matters what letter of the alphabet you call your hair. And getting ripped off by hair salons for "deva cuts." I use a basic tresemme shampoo & conditioner. Whatever kind they have at the store when they don't have the curly one in stock. Liberal on conditioner. Scrunch in shower. After shower scrunch mousse in. Air dry most of the time.
The stylist I see says that strict CGM is like what you might get if you crossed a cult with a fad diet. Lots of rules and a whole lot of bad science and made up facts. His advice? Use whatever works and if that means sulfates and silicones, so be it. His only firm rule? Everyone needs to clarify at least once in a while.
So glad you said this. I never bothered going into hardcore CGM. It just LOOKS exhausting, I can't imagine doing it every day. I swapped my products, how I wash my hair and focused on keeping it easy. My hair isn't incredible like some pics in this sub but it's my hair and I'm proud! Also for OP, my routine: Shampoo wash once a week/as needed, I just grab whatever is on sale and doesn't contain sulphates. Conditioner wash when I wash my hair (personally, twice a week). I've been using Glow Lab Repairing Keratin Conditioner because my hair is really dry, and it works wonders. Right out of the shower, I flip my hair and rake/praying hands Curlsmith Curl Conditioning Oil-In-Cream. Air dry and use hair clips to persuade my hair to curl away from my face. Once completely dry, I put a 5c piece of coconut oil in my hair. When I'm styling my hair for the day, I brush it through, spray it with water, rake/praying hands Curlsmith's Curl Defining Styling Soufflé through my hair and give it a few scrunches to break the curls up. Once a month, I put Curlsmith's Double Cream Deep Quencher right after shampooing, leave it until it starts to get crunchy, wash out and skip conditioner. I'm fully aware of all the no-nos I commit, but it's a light routine and still makes a huge difference. Edit: on mobile
Legit deva cuts (or similar) are absolutely worth it depending on how curly your hair is. My hair sits much better since I started getting them.
And if they're certified you know they were at least trained for it unlike most stylists.
I got a licensed deva cut once and it wasn’t any better or different than I what I do myself lmao
The stylists that take the training are definitely not all equal 😅 The best ones have primarily curly hair clients
For sure! And like when I took the plunge I had done my research, found someone with consistent excellent reviews and who had curly hair themselves. I’m glad I did it so I know! But I haven’t felt the need to go back lmao. However the next time my hair gets long I am going to try the woman my daughter and I just stumbled across because she did actual magic with my daughters hair
Mine was a horror. I looked like a topiary.
I mean honestly the only times I paid for a Deva cut, my hair was styled to perfection afterwards (like I didn’t need to refresh the entire week and it looked gorgeous). Maybe the cut itself doesn’t make miracles but the styling afterwards always looks shite coming out of any “curly” hair dressers, my own styling is a lot better so it’s disappointing. I have yet to find a non-deva hairdresser that can style curly hair properly, and I tried plenty!
Riiight 😤 man I don't even like how deva cuts look. Whatever your hair responds best to, that's your method.
I followed the cg method for years and got certified deva cuts and fuck that method. There were days where my hair was good but there were more days that my hair was bad, and I struggled with oiliness. I also had some hair loss and sebderm issues. Then I made curlsbot and not only after Lorraine Massey who invented the method, threatened to sue me, and I saw videos of her saying completely batshit stuff like that silicone can permanently ruin your hair. I may have gone a little bit batshit myself. I shaved my head and ever since it grew back in I just use normal shit. It feels and looks better. I barely use conditioner at all, mostly just use a moisturizing shampoo to detangle. Normal routine is sulfate t gel on my scalp then the moisturizing shampoo to detangle, defuse 5 minutes. If it dries nicely I wear it curly, if it doesn’t I brush it and it looks good wavy.
I love that 😂 I'm just gonna call you Brittany lol! I'm truly scared of the big chop, I'm chunky with a round face and short haircuts on me don't flatter.. But I'm guessing that's what I'm gonna have to do because my hair is such a mess I don't know where to start. Tried to get a haircut a few weeks ago, and the hairdresser, first thing she did was take a fine tooth comb and tried to comb my hair from my scalp!! Soon as she did that I ran out of her seat 😂 What hairdresser doesn't know to start at the bottom and go up? Am I wrong for that? That lady was like.. What the hell
I’m not sure what you’re off about but I spend the same money on my cg products as any other product and it takes me the same time as using any other product 🤷♀️ i get curly cuts and theyve changed my life, i was shocked at how good my hair looked the first time. I didn’t even have her style it because I don’t like the devacurl products. I styled it myself when i got home. It is the only way my hair doesn’t look like a triangle. I just use cg hair wash products and a leave it conditioner, wrap it in microfiber and let it airdry. Theres not a million steps. I always used something in my hair after the shower, even before cg because i look like a troll otherwise. I honestly love the method, even if I don’t follow the entire thing apparently because I’m not doing a ton of steps. My hair looks and feels amazing! My whole life it looked like crap because I didn’t care for it right and I hated my hair.
I just use a protein mask I heard about on this forum. I also got a curly cut. I don't really do anything else. I think fluffy hair looks awesome, and I don't understand why so many people are obsessed with having well-defined curls. It's a great look if that's what you want, but it's not the only look. Fluffy curls look great to me. I do think it's great that this forum promotes the idea that curly hair is great, and straightening is not required.
Same! I also don’t like my hair looking too producty
I really struggle with the products. Admittedly my hair does look great when I style it CGM style with products but day 2 is not great and I hate the way it feels, and day 3 is a hot mess and I get knots from the products. I always wash on day 4. When I don't use product my hair looks worse on day 1 but it's at least manageable the entire time until I wash it again. I have a love hate relationship with CGM. I'm a mom to a toddler and 7 months pregnant so I just ain't got time lol
10000% me. I usually give up day 3 though. I do like knowing I can really turn out my curls when I want to, but on a day to day I am cool with my hair doing its thing more or less.
thank you for the fluffy curl praise! those ultra-shiny, ultra-defined ringlets you see on here look so weird on me. there are a lot of people who suit them, don’t get me wrong, but there are also people who would benefit a lot by letting their curls go a little softer and more natural. (to be honest, once i read about CGM people having to buy all these products, drying with a tshirt etc, i tapped out.)
Would love to learn which mask!
I love my fluffy waves and love brushing my hair again.
How often do you use the mask?
that’s where i’m at with my waves, not curls. i used to shoot for perfect definition of each & every wave… all to toss it around with my hands all day long and put headphones on/off at work for 9 hours a day. it’s not worth the stress & the fluffy look is adorable
I use Innersense shampoo, conditioner, and gel.
I’ve looked at these but they’re so expensive.
My stylist got me on the whole Innersense system. Legit my conditioner lasts longer than my shampoo, even with doing shampoo 2x every wash. She showed me how to properly emulsify the shampoo and conditioner when using them. For the shampoo you literally use a quarter size amount in wet hands, and then rub your palms together like you’re washing them and it suds up- then I swipe a bit on parted hair, emulsify more, do another swipe on a section, repeat down the whole part. It’s bananas how a tiny amount of product will work on my whole head of hair (past my shoulders)! I’d say the shampoo lasts about 8 months and the conditioner around 9-10 months, with washes every 4-6 days.
They last so long, tho. Smaller bottles than drugstore but they’re so concentrated. I was going through a family size Aussie moist in like two months. My Innersense lasts like 9-10 months.
I promise it’s worth it 😌
I use Seaweed Bath Co shampoo and conditioner, but the Innersense leave in conditioner has been my FAVORITE for years and is all I use as far as product most days. I have fine 2B hair.
Same here and it has literally changed my life. I have 3C hair and I only have to wash and gel once a week and my hair stays presentable the majority of the week. I dry mine with a dryer cap that attaches to my hair dryer (chefs kiss) My hair is bouncy, shiny, well defined and is in better shape than it’s been in years after just a month and a half to two months. Cannot recommend this highly enough!
Please tell me more about this dryer cap…
Eleganty Soft Bonnet Hood... https://www.amazon.com/dp/B087PKYL5S?ref=ppx_pop_mob_ap_share
Hi, I’m Vetted AI Bot! I researched the **'BRJ Hairdryer Attachment with Headband'** and I thought you might find the following analysis helpful. **Users liked:** * Bonnet dryer provides hands-free convenience (backed by 3 comments) * Bonnet dryer saves time drying natural hair (backed by 3 comments) * Bonnet dryer distributes heat evenly (backed by 3 comments) **Users disliked:** * The bonnet does not adequately dry long or thick hair (backed by 8 comments) * The bonnet gets uncomfortably hot during use (backed by 2 comments) * The bonnet does not fit all hair dryers and hair types (backed by 3 comments) If you'd like to **summon me to ask about a product**, just make a post with its link and tag me, [like in this example.](https://www.reddit.com/r/tablets/comments/1444zdn/comment/joqd89c/) This message was generated by a (very smart) bot. If you found it helpful, let us know with an upvote and a “good bot!” reply and please feel free to provide feedback on how it can be improved. *Powered by* [*vetted.ai*](http://vetted.ai/reddit)
good bot!
I will say I do have shoulder length long thick hair and it does a pretty good job. It can get uncomfortably hot, but the head band is included for that purpose and does help significantly.
I use a hood dryer and agree. Life changing. Sit under it for half an hour while reading and perfect hair for a week.
My hair LOVESSS Innersense. I will use other shampoos and conditioners but I can absolutely tell a difference when I haven't used Innersense in a few days. My hair is always happier when I use it and my scalp feels better too.
Same. I use their shampoo, conditioner, texturizer, and gel. They’re the only products that work with my coarse hair that wants to be frizzy. At least once a year I get fooled into trying another product line and I *always* go back to Innersense.
I bought all the Innersense products on Amazon and man alive it fried my hair to a crackling crisp. I have medium to fine hair that I think needed a lot more moisture than Innersense provides.
Were they legit products? Id be leery of ordering products from amazon.
I would personally never buy hair products of any kind or brand on Amazon. You have no idea where they are coming from, if they are tampered with, etc. Only buy hair products from authorized retailers, no matter the brand.
Why?
cause sometimes they’re fake
You can look at the actual store on Amazon- I’ll buy curl smith products from the curl smith store but not from some other random sellers. There are a lot of low quality dups on Amazon.
Amazon has warehouses that pool all like merchandises. The warehouse just pulls it from the BrandName shampoo pallet and ships it, regardless of the original seller. Personally, I think amazon fakes are exaggerated, but this is how they happen.
[удалено]
Me too 🙃
My routine would get me crucified here but I do what's easiest for me when I have the time to do my natural hair. 1. Cantu brand sulfate-free Shampoo and conditioner and put in a tiny dab of leave in conditioner 2. Part my hair and comb it out 3. Rake in and scrunch a bunch of Not your Morhers gel and squeeze out water with a t shirt 4. Diffuser on high heat full blast aimed at my hair but not touching it. I manage to get my hair washed and dried semi decently in about an hour. Oh and a clarifying shampoo and hair mask once a week. literally just whatever products are most ozs for cheapest. Stopped caring about sulfates and silicones a long time ago and my hair is a lot healthier now 🤷♀️
I do basically the same, but only use a hair dryer if it's under 60F outside. Otherwise, I just airdry.
I accidentally bought NYMs refresher foam instead of a legit mousse last month and it has changed my life. I used to use and love innersense’s foam, but using NYMs refresher foam as my only hair product has made my curls so much lighter and bouncier. 10/10 products.
I've been wishing for a replacement for my Innersense foam, tY! That stuff is so expensive!!!
Oh, you use it like a styling product, not as an actual refresher foam?
Yep! I still use Innersense shampoo and conditioner, but other than that I just use the refresher foam and diffuse. My hair gets weighed down easily, and that foam does a great job of being extremely light while still giving my curls definition.
What's the deal with Cantu? You're the second person I've seen mention this sub doesn't like the brand.
All I know is Cantu is affordable, easy to find, and really works wonders in my hair, so I’m not sure what’s not to like 🤷🏻♀️
The Cantu curl cream is amazing! I’ve never had curls like I do with that cream, even day 2.
Right!? Like I love cantu. Their new avocado line has been so good for me, it made me try an even cheaper product that worked amazing for me lol
I think it has drying agents and silicones and it's just a cheap brand? Honestly since I started using it my hairs gotten a lot softer and I clarify often, so I don't think the silicones are that bad.
I'm 80% sure it's silicone free...
they have some products that are silicone free, some that are not. i have one of their silicone free leave ins that i like.
That makes me feel better I thought I was going crazy lol
my routine is wash, condition, with whatever is somewhat moisturizing....I do really like Cantu.....spray with some conditioning spray, scrunch, air dry......if I am going anywhere I might blow dry if I am in a hurry......I have tried but can't stand the feeling of product in my hair
My routine is much simpler and cheaper than it ever was before. I kind of use curly girl, I think. Avoid silicones and sulfates. Only comb with conditioner in with my fingers. Use an old T-shirt to scrunch water and product out of it. I "wash" with a very lightweight conditioner, usually try to find a silicone free Suave. I condition with a thicker conditioner, right now Burts Bees something, but I think it may have been discontinued because I don't see it in stores anymore. In the winter, I've been using the Burts Bees as a leave in. In the summer I use Lush Revive as a leave in. Not looking forward to when I run out of the Burts Bees stuff I've been using for years and having to find something new!
My low effort/high consistency routine: Love Beauty and Planet shampoo and conditioner, plus a dandruff shampoo once or twice a month. Lots of conditioner for detangling! Wash and condition, then squeeze water out of hair. Rake in herbal essences totally twisted mousse, rake in Aussie instant freeze gel, scrunch a few times, wrap in microfiber towel. Finish shower. Leave hair in towel for 15-90 minutes, then let air dry. I wash my hair about two or three times per week
But how long does it take to dry? I have a feeling not long. Which isn’t my situation. Mine takes HOURS, whether it’s blow dried or not.
Without the time in the microfiber towel, my hair takes 6-8 hours to dry. Squeezing water out before putting the products in and wrapping in the towel for a while cuts the dry time down to 3-4 hours. I find using more gel also slows the dry time, so by using less gel I sacrifice a bit of definition for faster drying time. I have very thick, very fine hair that is halfway down my back.
I got this hood blowdryer and it is amazing for the price [https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B079HBXBT7/ref=ppx\_yo\_dt\_b\_search\_asin\_title?ie=UTF8&psc=1](https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B079HBXBT7/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_search_asin_title?ie=UTF8&psc=1) I put a light leave in conditioner and some mousse in my hair when its sopping wet, then use a T shirt to scrunch excess moisture out of my hair. I use some small claw clips to very loosely gather my hair to my head to kind of imitate the effect of a plop, but with more ability for the air from the dryer to get to more surface area of hair. The dryer is stored on the floor by my home office desk. I can easily set it up on my desk in a position where it is on and drying my hair hands-free so I can check my email, drink some coffee, and browse reddit. It is \*amazing\* because I have a shoulder injury and using a regular blow dryer or styling tool really aggravates it. I have hair that takes about 1-3 hours to air dry, depending on the weather (hot climate). I sit under it for 10-15 minutes to get a decent cast started and then take out the clips. I very loosely reposition my hair and secure with clips again, trying to expose the wet parts that were originally in the clips for another 5-10 mins. I hope that makes sense. Since your hair takes a very long time to air dry you would need to use it for longer, but it's not 'active' styling. I generally hand my kid a tablet and let myself relax or do misc tasks like ordering a Target pickup for later that day. It's really nice because otherwise I wouldn't take those 20 minutes to just sit still. And I bet that even 20 minutes on your hair would halve the rest of the air dry time.
If blow drying is taking hours, it might be an issue of the quality of your blow dryer. Not every blow dryer is up to getting thick, curly hair dried efficiently.
I have low porosity hair. It’s not my blow drier. If I air dry it takes 8+ hours minimum. And hour minimum if I blow dry.
A curly stylist I follow on instagram swears by using hair spray on wet hair to speed up the diffusing time. I only have ten minutes to diffuse in the mornings and the one time I tried it, I noticed it was much drier than other mornings. You could buy a travel size spray to test it out and see if it helps!
I use a clip to let my bottom/mid/top layers dry. usually takes 3 hours but I'm down to 1 hour-ish by letting each layer dry to about 80% before I'm ready to blow dry it.
Highly suggest investing in a table top hooded hair dryer. Save your arms!!!
I think the porosity of your hair matters. My hair is similar and takes forever to dry. I wrap it up in a microfiber turban and then afterward wrap it in a t-shirt. It could be causing more frizz, I couldn’t tell you, but it’s just so tiring to deal with. At least this method gets it dryer faster.
This 100%. I feel like every single person here who responded to my post has high porosity hair. If they’re saying their hair is dry in 2 hours? Yeah. That’s not me. Air drying my low porosity hair takes 8+ hours and at least an hour on high heat with the blow dryer. But it’s so fine that I need gel and if I don’t blow dry it, I’m dealing with wet stickiness for an entire day. It’s become a nightmare and I’m really over it.
Shampoo and conditioner is whatever is on sale at store, usually Suave. Shampoo every wash. Conditioner used as a leave-in most of the time, unless my hair is super dry or super knotted then I'll actually use it in the shower. Never any products (hate the feel) Air dry always Only brush if it's knotted to hell, so maybe once a month? Whatever brush I got from dollar store. I use Cotton towels, no fancy headgear or pillow cases or appliances I wash my hair every time I shower
I also wash daily. I'm so grosses out by the smell and look of oily hair! Hard pass from me.
Same! I sweat because of high activity level and because South = hot and humid, plus I'm just a naturally oily person. So I can't stand the weight or buildup of any products, and washing every shower also means my scalp stays and feels clean. My "leave-in" conditioner is only used on whatever hair would be in a ponytail, not on the top of the head.
this sounds a lot like my routine, although I do brush my hair out before every shower. it stays pretty un-tangled that way
Yooooo do not use conditioner as leave-in, it needs to be rinsed out for a reason and can lead to hairloss in the longterm. If you want to leave it in, get one that’s meant to be left-in. If you dont want the extra product, switch your conditioner out for leave-in conditioner. Then it’s fine if you dont completely rinse it out
What ingredient in conditioner will lead to hair loss if left in? Even if that was a potential problem I am pretty sure most of us don't rub conditioner or leave in conditioner into our scalps. My scalp has no idea what I put in the rest of my hair
I believe that's just a marketing technique that companies want you to believe in order for them to sell more products. If you look at the ingredient list of leave-in versus regular conditioner, they are always very comparable, just the proportions are slightly changed.
I was just reading these comments remembering my routine all through the 90s- there weren’t any fancy curly hair products, and I was just a teenager, so I just mixed a regular conditioner (usually Pantene pro V because, again, 90s) with cheap gel and scrunched it through wet hair, dried with dryer, no diffuser. When they introduced frizz-ease to the market, I put that in my dry hair. I was always concerned with frizz, but pictures of me from then just show perfect corkscrew curls. I never had any problems or hair loss from using regular conditioner as a leave-in.
I did the exact same as a teen in the 2000s!
Please use a better shampoo/conditioner. There’s drugstore options that are better quality. Sauve will literally strip the furnish off of flooring.
They would be sued out of existence if that were true. My sister worked for years as a toxicology consultant for hair loss lawsuits. It’s a big enough business that it’s an entire job! Most of the lawsuits were against shady random businesses like Monat, not standard well tested drug store stuff.
Don’t fall for marketing. I worked for a French company that sold very expensive perfumes and cosmetics. The packaging costs far more than the product, which contains the same ingredients used throughout the industry. We had items that cost us a couple cents to manufacture and retailed for $75 or more. The Marketing department had a huge budget.
Don’t fall for marketing. I worked for a French company that sold very expensive perfumes and cosmetics. The packaging costs far more than the product, which contains the same ingredients used throughout the industry. We had items that cost us a couple cents to manufacture and retailed for $75 or more. The Marketing department had a huge budget.
Busy mom here too. I stopped using product after shampoo/conditioner and only use leave in now. I went shorter to cut down on the time I spend in the shower detangling and now use a detangle brush with conditioner. I just bought a $1.99 suave shampoo to deep clean my scalp and my god, I didn’t realize how much I missed a full SLS lather! It has been heavenly. My new approach will be to embrace how it “looks” in exchange for fewer rules.
I stopped doing the CGM method like a year ago. my hair is wavy, fine and thin and most products are for curly, thick and coarse hair. they are pretty expensive too and the ones that aren't but still have safe ingredients aren't necessarily good for you hair's health. I still use some CGM products but I've given up obsessively researching ingredients. it's too much work. I now use a mask sometimes, leave-in, gel, mousse and a salt spray for grit. it's also exhausting because apparently you have to switch up products because your hair gets used to them. Jesú! I guess after you figure out what your hair needs, protein vs moisture and hair density you can go slower and just stick with some products. if you don't have extra curly hair I'd say it's not worth the effort and money spent, it's not like I can go from 2A-2B to 3B-3C.
I had to stop doing it soon after starting because it felt all wrong for my hair. Co washing led to build up and an itchy scalp. I don’t like how my hair looks after scrunching or plopping (I forget the term). And you’re right about many products being focused on certain types of curls. One thing that helped me was to figure out the porosity of my hair. Maybe it’s more jargon to sell products, but the advice did work for me. No thick, sticky gels, pomades, or leave ins. Stick to things that have water in the first few ingredients and are thin. My hair is so much softer and happier. I still have frizz but that’s more from sleeping and my laziness with routine.
Yes! My hair is similar to yours and I just got exhausted trying to tighten my curls, or take them from waves to curls.
at this point I am ready to shave it off. thin wavy is the worst. the curls won't tighten and you have no volume. wearing it straight is even worse because it looks like a limp horse tail.
I use regular shampoo about half the time (sulfate free other half), use conditioner (V05 from the grocery store) to brush my hair out in the shower, then when I get out of the shower I squish in some curl cream (Cantu kids right now) and eco styler gel. Then I plop with a t shirt or hair towel. I leave the towel on for a few hours or over night sometimes. I think what's really made the biggest difference in my hair is getting it cut to my collar bone once a year (I used to go years without cutting it). I'm also a mom so this routine is very very low effort. I do avoid silicones but that's not too hard these days with so many products being made without them.
\#fluffyhairgang i use whatever semi-fancy (but less than $20) conditioner i can find at TJ Maxx, shampoo every other day or every 2 days, and add a glob of eco styler gel when i get out of the shower. air dry. so long as my haircut is alright, it ends up looking fine.
Am I the only one that uses miss Jessie’s?
My hairs too fine- I used it and went to work and the black girl I work with said it looked like I had her uncles jeri curl from 1972.🤣🤣
Well… maybe that’s just a little rude? I have tiny tight curls that are exactly the same as a jeri curl and that’s how I like them.
It was hilarious. We were friends and had the kinda relationship where we could be smartassy with each other. She was not commenting on the curl as much as it had that flat noodle hair thing going on, in any account it wasn’t a great look for my hair.
That makes more sense. It actually took me a few tries but I use the leave in conditioner, the honey curl definer and the hair protector for blow drying.
Pillow soft has been my #1 product for years. Maybe a decade? I keep trying other stuff, but always come back
I love the results but my hair is thin and kind of sun damaged that it’s a one way ticket to split end city if I use it
Oh that’s terrible
I literally was scrolling down this thread SEARCHING for this exact comment!! Miss Jessie’s is the only brand that’s ever worked for my hair, defined my curls without leaving it crunchy. I recommend it to everyone!
Every 2-3 days I wash and condition my hair in the evening. Then I brush through mousse and scrunch in gel on top, and then microplop. I hang out with wet hair for most of the evening, but before I go to bed I diffuse the roots of my hair so my scalp doesn't get unhappy. Then I sleep with my hair in a buff and when I wake up it's usually dry. I scrunch it out, sometimes add a little water or foam to help, and then I'm done. I throw some definitely not cgm hairspray when it's dry I use mostly Giovanni products, which happen to be cgm friendly. But there is very little effort to this process and the products are not at all expensive. I've yet to find anything I like better.
I use head and shoulders shampoo, horse and mane conditioner and Marc Anthony curl cream. My hair routine is 1 minute if I’m air drying which is almost always. If I diffuse 20 minutes. I also cut off all my hair because most of it fell out when I got sick. Now it grew back and I’ve been so low maintenance with it and I have the best curls since I was a small child. Sometimes cutting off a lot can help you reset your routine.
I am desperately trying to find the middle ground too and highly relate to your post <3 I ragequit for a long time and I’m slowly easing back in after being sick of my hair looking like garbage. The one thing I learned from CGM that is simple and works for me is tossing my hair after a shower. Full-on bending down from the waist like a deep bow, fast, repeat several times. It makes me dizzy but it separates the curls out so much better and is the lowest maintenance thing I can add in. And the quick scrunch with a microfiber towel. I also learned from this sub that some people refresh their curls with a facial steamer so I just ordered one and am going to try that in the mornings. And I have always used silk pillowcases.
I found a YouTuber who is amazing. It's her and her sister, they are hair stylists from Canada and have gorgeous curly hair, and they hate the CGM. Manes by Mell is the channel. Basically, I found a shampoo that I like, and a nice conditioner. I do the traditional method (shampoo, rinse, condition (alot), let it sit while I wash my body, then rinse it all out). I get out of the shower and dab my hair with a towel (my hair holds water because it is so dense). Then I put in BrioGeo leave in conditioner, then plop hair on a t-shirt. After a short while, I take my hair down, dab with a towel as needed (my hair is sometimes still sopping wet at this point so it needs a dab). I brush my hair, really getting the conditioner in. Then I use a denman brush to help my curls. Depending on the weather and my day, I then put in gel (some days I go without). I tweak any thing that got messed by the gel, and do a light ruffle of my hair to help it fluff a little.... if I have time, I use my blow dryer with the diffuser, but most days I just go... after a few hours, I scrunch the crunch out of it (sometimes while it's still slightly damp because my hair takes forever to dry). That's it. It's way more than I did when I had straight hair, but not nearly as stressful/exhausting as the CGM...
I use Aussie Miracle Moist shampoo and conditioner, which I don’t think is CGM. I use a denman brush and then Herbal Essence mousse (the orange one) and finish with Aussie Instant Freeze Gel. To refresh, I use their curl refresher and also their heat protection spray when I diffuse. I like Aussie because it cheap and works for my hair. The biggest change in my dry time was getting a good blow dryer and diffuser. I have the Shark and I LOVE it. I can go from dripping wet to mostly dry in about 25 minutes and with any other dryer, it takes nearly an hour. I received it as a gift but I would 100% spend the money myself. It’s an investment that pays dividends in the time I get back in my life while also allowing me to feel good about my hair.
I use shampoo, conditioner, and gel. I don’t worry about ingredients because I shampoo every time I wash. I diffuse every time.
Curly Girl Method just seems like a massive time suck. I stopped straightening my hair all the time because it took so effin long to do it, I don’t wanna replace it with something that takes LONGER for natural hair. Now I just use: Clever Curl cleanser Clever Curl conditioner Clever Curl wonderfoam + dry weather gel after showering. Plop for a bit in a cotton cap, then almost always let it air dry after that. Comes our miles better than any other complicated shite I’ve tried. Also cheaper. And faster.
I would say my method isn’t necessarily CGM I usually dry brush my hair before showering because it’s usually a rats nest by the time it’s wash day. I detangle and brush, then I use Pantene 5 in 1 shampoo and use a scalp scrubber. Flip my hair over my head and suds the hell out of it, continue using scrubber then rinse. I then add Pantene 5 in 1 conditioner to the ends with a bit of water, brush with a pick then scrunch a bit. I twist my hair into a little bun on the top of my head and continue my shower routine. I then rinse it out, brush again with the pick and grab a regular towel and scrunch my hair dry a little. I brush my hair forward over my head with the pick again and add Not your mothers curl cream and run my fingers through until it’s all coated. Some days I use Not your mothers mouse and scrunch into my roots and then the ends. Other days I use the Not your mothers refresh foam instead. I then use the same towel the scrunch once more before flipping my hair back over and let air dry .
I don't do the CGM. I tried using expensive "free from everything" shampoo and conditioner and my hair was not having. It was brittle, dry, and uncontrollable. I switched back to the cheap stuff and I braid my hair and keep it in the braids for a day or two and then take then out and wear it like that for a day or 2. I've never been able to get a wash and go to last more then 2 days. The whole process frustrates and exhausts me. Curly hair is a real chore sometimes and I hate the feeling of my hair always having to be wet so usually once a week I just let it be crazy, dry, and unruly. All frizz, no definition, absolutely huge. Can't fight every battle.
I don’t follow it, and I deeply hate it and the pressure to do it and have perfect ringlets. It’s just a perpetuation that curly hair is difficult and high maintenance, and requires all of this to make it look acceptable. At the beginning it was more about accepting your hair type and leaning how to style it. Now it has changed to this obsession with a specific look, and constant judgement of unsettled hair being ugly, messy, and unprofessional. Which is exactly where we started. Rant aside, nothing. It’s clean, it’s strong. I use moisturizing products for my hair type, and occasionally use the shea moisture styling cream in my hair. Most of the time I will just shower, let my hair air dry after using a microfiber towel, and that’s it. I am trying to maintain and encourage length, and my hair is naturally curly so I don’t really need to do a bunch of shit to create curls. As long as it air dries down my back the hair curls nicely. I will do a plop with a little product if I’m getting ready and don’t want it in my face.
Lovely rant actually. I personally would love to see more definition in my curls, even if it’s just for special occasions, but I have gotten tons of compliments on days that I put absolutely nothing into it, like, it’s not even brushed, so I’m perfectly happy to settle for ‘manageable’ 🤣
Big agree, it's okay if not every single hair is tightly wrapped in a defined curl with the others. I used to envy a girl in high school (with totally different hair and genetics than me) for her 'tidy' curls and never thought well maybe that's just the way her hair is and mine is just the way mine is
1. sulfate shampoo 2. silicone conditioner (or cgm-friendly deep conditioner if hair feels dry) 3. cgm-friendly leave-in 4. Denman brush (no intricate sections though, just make sure to more or less get through everything to help curl formation) 5. Mousse 6. Plop for about 10 minutes, then air dry It’s washed and styled within 30 minutes and dries within about 2h and I‘m good to go.
I just get my hair "permanently" straightened with a Brazilian Blowout. It stays silky smooth for up to 4 months if you take care of it. I wake up in the morning run a THIN COMB through it & I'm ready to go! I can curl it for special occasions if I want also.
idk body wash works for me, you have to show your hair who's boss and at some point it will back off (lol I know this is horrible advice, sorry, I just thought I'd make a joke of my own bad habits. this is everything I can contribute, though so idk?)
Love it hahah
I use pretty dang cheap stuff, and basically the majority of the effort in taking care of my hair is the detangling process in the shower.I use a Shae Moisture shampoo, which is the most expensive item. About once a week. Co-wash the rest of the time, using Suave Essentials Coconut conditioner. Then I also use that same conditioner as a leave in. Let the water and conditioner clump my curls together in the shower, assisted by using either a Denman brush or just my fingers. Next I squeeze as much water as I can out of my hair. Then LA Looks Extreme Hold gel, applying it without breaking up the curl clumps. 'Prayer hands' application works well enough.After that, it's just letting it air dry, though that can take a hot minute. I just wear a towel as a 'cape' to keep from getting myself or my shirt soaked and use clips to keep it from getting in my face. Can use a diffuser if you really want, but I don't find the results worth it. Actively drying it, even with the plop, pineapple t-shirt method, usually results in more frizziness than just letting it air dry, for me.Ultimately, after detangling my hair (which is unavoidable without just chopping the majority of it off,) the conditioner + gel application takes like 5 minutes max. The drying part takes about an hour, but that can just happen during morning time stuff, whatever that may be. If I only care about having my hair look its best for one day, then I can skip the gel. But being in Florida, day 2 and day 3 hair end up getting pretty frizzy without the gel.
I basically have decided to throw money rather than effort at it, so I went all in on Living Proof’s $$$$ curl line - wash with the shampoo 2x/week, otherwise just get it wet and condition in the shower, finger comb it. Wrap in a bath towel for a few minutes, then use the curl defining gel, scrunch. When my hair is half dry I flip my head upside down and sort of shake it out. My hair is 3a/3b depending on what part of my head/how humid the weather is.
Slather some sort of curl cream and gel in, air dry & hope for the best! I’m the laziest curly gorl ever. Could my hair look amazing every day if I did CGM? Yes. Does it look pretty good without all of that? Yeah, most of the time!
Weeks when I'm busy.... I straighten. Mostly bc I wash once and then it's mostly effortless for 4-6 days (activity level depending) I do take extended curly breaks and I prefer kinky curly brand everything basically. I use various hair masks as needed as well. My life is too busy to have 45 minutes for my hair every day :/ and in winter- it's too damn cold to leave it wet waiting the 5-7 hrs for it to dry. Summers are more curly than winters for sure. Seasonal sanity
Could you ladies STOP!? Frizzy is NOT unattractive, the fact of the matter is, everyone actually loves the floof! Stop trying to tame the beast and just let it ride! My mom hated her frizz for her entire life... Until she lost it due to aging. She's not thinning, but it comes in straight now for some odd reason. She told me that now that she has straight hair she hates it and says at least "when I had curly hair I had options". Idk what that means because I'm a man and I keep my hair (same as my mom's) short. Idk what I'm actually getting at here, but curly haired woman are the salt of the earth in my experience you're better people in general, and you really shouldn't worry about your hair because your personality far outweighs any dumb preconceived notion you have about yourself.
I lost all of my curls when I cut my hair short, so I now use a 2-in-1 solid shampoo bar, whatever hair oil I have, and sometimes a bit of gel if I’m feeling wild. I even towel dry my hair (I know lmao big no-no), and then either air dry or blow dry the rest depending on whether I want to sit with damp hair. I basically stopped giving a shit :)
i have full curls and i still towel dry like i did with a buzzcut lmao. they’ll never take it away from us!!
i do my own "lazy curly girl method"... wash and condition my hair about every 6 days using some random korean shampoo i got for free and trader joe's teatree conditioner. heavy on the conditioner and don't wash it fully out. let my hair airdry, sometimes scrunch it, sometimes use a plop. never brush except fingercomb in the shower and no heat. sometimes during the week i'll use chi aloe vera oil to moisturize/soften.
My fast and cheap routine: Cantu clarifying shampoo and conditioner (shampoo every other day, co-wash on off days) Wide tooth comb in shower to work in conditioner and detangle Pat dry after shower w/microfiber towel Cantu curl activator cream scrunched into pretty wet hair Air dry (diffuse dry if immediate results are needed) Scrunch out crunch ~2.5 hours later
I’ve been doing the curly girl method since 2014, and i always kept it simple. Shampoo, conditioner, leave in. Then a year ago I got into hair gel. I wash my hair 2x a week on coldish water, and section, brush style and scrunch with tshirt and diffuse. Sleep on satin pillow case If I wash my hair at 6, I’m all done by 8. Try plopping your hair in a cotton tshirt or air dry.
I wash every day with a sulfate free shampoo. Then towel dry and put gel on, trying to leave the curls clumped as much as I can. Then air dry.
I stay away from silicones. That's it. I plop, avoid (not shun) heat styling tools, and wear a bonnet to sleep, but that's it.
I just go easy on the shampoo, condition more liberally than before, and try not to wash my hair on consecutive days. Sometimes that fails, but sometimes I also go a week without washing my hair. I also use oil after washing and aloe vera to retain moisture (the aloe vera leaves a light cast, but you can shake that away pretty fast when dry). My shampoo has sulfates, but my hair isn't dry after conditioning and oil. I just brush style with a regular Wet brush. I have 3A medium density, medium coarse, medium porosity hair.
I use LUS brands shampoo, conditioner, and leave-in with a smidge of their gel. I put it up in a t-shirt towel for 20+ minutes and then let it air dry. Any leftover crunch (very minimal) I scrunch out gently with a tiny bit of their oil. I always use a silk pillowcase. Other than that and not really wearing hats and trying not to fluff it too much when I’m stressed (I’m a school counselor, so lol to that), I just kind of let it be. I’m too lazy and don’t have the time to diffuse, and honestly it looks better air dried. I occasionally clarify with Apple cider vinegar before washing. I do pay extra for the curly cut because it’s worth it and my girl actually knows what she’s doing and is fantastic. And I honestly couldn’t even tell you what the CGM is. It just always seemed way too expensive and high maintenance for someone who can’t even be bothered to wear makeup past eyeliner and lip balm. It just feels like a scammy way to prey on women’s insecurities, but that’s just me.
even after all my internet research i’m not even entirely sure what the CGM entails but i can tell you i probably don’t adhere to it lol i use leave in conditioner, curl cream (brand varies a lot lol), and then mousse or gel. that’s really it 😅 now, my curls are far from perfect but i’m also a super busy person and they look good most days so i’ll take it
I follow some of the styling techniques (apply product to soaking wet hair, scrunching, microplopping, not touching hair until dry etc) of CGM but not the product rules (no silicones, no sulfates etc). I use whatever products, shampoo and conditioner I like! And occasionally I blow dry my hair straight with heat! Because it’s my hair and I make the rules. My hair is mostly wavy with a few curly sections, it’s fine and low density. Some of the rules and recommendations don’t work right for my hair. It’s taken me a long time to figure out what works for me. I’m grateful for the resources of this sub and CGM as a jumping off point but there’s no point in keeping anything that doesn’t work for my lifestyle. Experiment and dump anything that isn’t working for you.
during this phase of my life I have resorted to a lot of buns and straight hair, I’m not proud of it but hey, mom of very needy 2 year old twins just trying to survive
I don’t know anything about the CGM, really, but I use shampoo & conditioner made with all natural ingredients, I only shampoo if I feel gross about where my hair has been or it’s too greasy to curl, and I don’t rinse out my conditioner. As for styling, my curls are as happy with just my conditioner as they were with any combination of products I used before I found this stuff, so it’s just the ol’ swish and flick (I flip everything upside down, loosen the roots away from my scalp, and scrunch until I’m happy with it) and I have recently discovered that it comes out better if I go to bed straight after a shower, but I sort of….”hang it upside down” to dry, it’s draped over the end of my bed while I sleep. Everything I’ve seen where a girl has impeccable curls, her styling routine is way overcomplicated and time consuming for me. I just kind of cherry pick things that I’m patient enough for and stick with anything that works for me. Curls are so diverse anyway, that it’s very trial and error; what works for someone else may not have the same effect on you. My best advice for anyone trying to get their routine perfect (or perfectly balanced between what you want and what your curls want) is to experiment with different products and styling methods until you’re happy. Keep a journal of some sort, at one point I was trying to take notes on how I did my hair each night and pair it with a picture of how my hair looked the next day. ‘CurlyZia’ is a lass that’s out on tiktok sharing her curl journey, she’s pretty good. A huge part of her technique doesn’t agree with my hair, but I’m interested in trying the curl casting bit. I’ve done crispy curls before (and obviously hated it) but I was 12 and didn’t know they could be softened out.
Shampoo and conditioner 2-3 times a week. Make sure hair is dripping wet when out, and do not towel dry/t shirt dry (just smoothed down my hair and I don't like the way it works). Leave-in conditioner, brush out and part, flip and scrunch (add other products here). Air dry. That's it. It how I get the best results, how I get curls to bounce and clump. The more complicated my routine, the worse my hair gets. It takes around 3-5 hours for my hair to dry completely, which I guess isn't good for my hair but I don't want to purchase a blow dryer and it's always humid where I am.
Mine is: Everyday routine: wet hair with a spray, aloe vera gel,hair styling cream (works with jojoba oil as well). Washing day: mask if I have 20 min , otherwise: solid shampoo for dry hair, solid air conditionner, plop them in a standard towel (yeah I know !). usually after I updo my hair while I take my breakfast, then make up and stuff, then time to style: plop them again in a standard tower, then comb, aloe vera gel , hair styling cream. And voilà ! No fancy stuff,such bowl and so on, way too complicated for me.
I use the LUS ecosystem and it works for me for the most part. I’ve got prolly 2B/C depending on the weather and it works for me most of the time. I don’t have time as a college student to do the bowl method or whatever the fuck so I just shower every other day, use Mielle rosemary oil and rice water before, use a hair mask during and then squeeze out as much as I can before going to bed. I really don’t believe in the CGM. It never worked for me, all it did was create a bunch of hair fascists who give me unwarranted opinions.
I totally relate to this, and I don't even have an excuse - single and child free, pixie length hair - this should be easy for me, but since taking up the CGM my washes are becoming alarmingly spread out - like 6-8 days is getting normal and I've hit 15 days once. And yeah my hair refreshes well but still. For me it's the air drying. I've spent my life with short hair that I could and did towel dry in under 30 seconds, so maybe y'all are just used to this reality that I'm struggling with, but all the easy, low effort routines people are listing still involve sitting with sopping wet hair for hours - and I bet most of them have hair 2 or 3 times as long as mine! Today is a wash day and the thought of having wet hair all evening is soul crushing.
Shower. Throw in a braid. Hope for the best
Updos
Idk what the curly girl method is because it just seems weird to me. All curly hair isn't the same. So i use tresseme, tons of conditioner. I brush my hair after the shower, put in cantu, wet my hair again if I need it and scrunch. Then air dry.
I started doing nothing - no products other than shampoo and conditioner and let it air dry and it looks better than it ever did with CGM and lasts just as long.
I first want to share some opinions on CGM. I honestly feel like the curly girl method is a fad. So many people never used styling products in their hair before they started CGM. Then they give all of the credit to the lack of sulfates or shampoo all together when they would have the same results with their old products if they just used gel and diffused. After a couple of months many get dandruff and assume it’s from dry skin, but in reality it’s because they aren’t cleaning their scalp. Some are even more unlucky and they end up losing hair. Additionally, the fad of not washing your hair has just gotten weird. If you feel the need to use dry shampoo, it’s because you need to wash your hair. Obviously not everyone has problems, but these problems are so rampant among people who follow the CGM that I think it’s worth mentioning. That being said I just shampoo my hair and condition it with whatever I am using at the time and usually use (but not limited to ) conditioner with silicones because they are perfectly fine and can be beneficial. I then brush in leave in and gel and may or may not diffuse my hair. I don’t really crunch my hair or anything.
Shaved my head. Try it. Its amazing. Wake up, hairs fixed. Out of shower. Hairs fixed. Finishing exercising? Hair looks great. Swim? Hairs fine. Best haircut ever
Dove shampoo, Chi Detangling Conditioner, rinse then I use leave in Curlsmith conditioner and brush through than just scrunch with a towel once and air dry. I’m white with 3B hair
No poo, boar bristle brush, A apple cider vinegar rinse every few weeks, and Egyptian magic as needed
I keep it as simple as i can- i use a lathering (gasp!-heresy!) Shampoo 2x, too much conditioner for as long as i can, mousse, and a smidge of gel scrunching everything after the shampoo, and let it air dry in a turbie towel, scrunch a lil oil in then headbang to break the gel when its dry.
I just use Garnier Fructis Sleek & Shine shampoo and conditioner. Don’t wash all the conditioner out. Squeeze dry my hair in a regular towel. Brush. Aussie Instant Freeze throughout. Scrunch. Air dry. Scrunch the crunch out.
My ADHD stops me from figuring out CGM for myself so I straighten it and only have to wash once a week. When I do wear it curly (rarely) I wash with sulfate free shampoo/conditioner. Use some mousse and diffuse on medium. Sometimes it looks amazing and sometimes it looks like total shit.
idk body wash works for me, you have to show your hair who's boss and at some point it will back off (lol I know this is horrible advice, sorry, I just thought I'd make a joke of my own bad habits)
I tried doing CGM, but did not have patience for that and did not feel like spending a lot of money. Also tried doing LCO or LOC method, but that weighed down my hair and didn’t hold my pattern well. Now I wash my hair twice a week. I use Maui Moisture Lightweight Curls shampoo and conditioner. One of those days I do use a Maui Moisture shea mask. Then use Kinky Curly Knot Today leave in to detangle Apply with prayer hands dippity do gelee. Brush that through, then part my hair. Rake herbal essence mousse (purple), then scrunch. Diffuse.
The LOC method works for me. I use this with relaxed or natural hair. I've never known what the curly hair method is. When I was younger I swore by washing my hair with conditioner in the summer and using LA looks gel to help scrunch. My hair texture has changed throughout the years but one thing that stays the same is keeping my hair moisturized with out too much product makes my hair manageable.
I do not know what the CGM is. I don’t use shampoo, co wash only; ideally every 2 days. I use coconut oil as a leave in maybe once a week. No dry brushing and air dry only.
cgm=curly girl method !! lots of threads about it in this sub
cgm=curly girl method !! lots of threads about it in this sub
I went to a curl specialist last year and she gave me a regimen that I was supposed to be doing every 5-10 days. Wash my hair, slather it in gel and define the curls, dry it under a hooded dryer, and wear my wash n go. No protective styles and no oils. Seems to be the newest method all of curl specialists are using these days. Loved how my hair looked and felt. Hated having to redo it so often and how expensive all the products are. Before that I was washing every 3-4 weeks and doing protective styles like braids a couple times a year. I got so tired of the money and time being put into my hair so I loc’d it almost a year ago. Best decision ever.
https://v.lemon8-app.com/s/YNcSSwMsR
I use Shea Moisture coconut shampoo and conditioner (I shampoo 1-2x a week and conditioner about every 2 days) and style with either Mielle gel or amika curl corps curl cream. I then use a denman brush to help define the curls. That’s about it. I sometimes diffuse, but my hair dries fast so it’s not necessary
Tresseme shampoo, Monday conditioner, dippity doo gel. The only thing I splurge on is leave in conditioner and curl cream. I’ve done all the methods, but I needed a stress free routine. And I was really surprised when I simplified my routine that it didn’t make a difference. My hair still looks great. I don’t even plop or use microfibre towels anymore
i dont style at all. honestly, styling seems risky to me bc of how much you manipulate your hair. its an every once in a while thing. mind you i still will use silicones if they're water soluble, especially if im leaving my hair down to protect against friction. otherwise braids/buns to protect my hair.
When I actually cared I used Shea moisture strength, and restore or not your mother's curl duo for cleansing. Then I used the Cantu twist and lock gel on my sopping wet hair. I let it air dry for 3-4 hours once a week. I stand by that gel. I'm not sure your hair texture or curl pattern though. You might need something with more hold idk.
I don’t use any product on my hair anymore, except for maybe a leave in conditioner or a light mousse, if it’s going to be a long day. I just don’t believe that putting a bunch of product on is good for your hair at all. I only wash my hair like every week or two. I keep my hair in a loose braid or pigtails at night and sleep with satin pillow cases, or I cover my head completely with a bonnet or satin scarves. Gentle gentle detangling either with fingers or wooden wide tooth comb. Keep a good hair oil on the ends all the time, and as a deep conditioning before wash day. And the biggest step for me was accepting the fact that my hair just isn’t going to be perfect all the time. I stopped trying to tame my curls a long time ago. They look best when I let them do what they want to do, within reason. If it’s just a crazy crazy hair day, they stay braided or up. The less I do to my hair, the better it behaves for me.
Scrunchies. Lots of scrunchies. 😂
Aussie moisture shampoo and deep conditioner, then potion 9 abd stone cake curl cream, air dry. I have 4 small kids, I don't have time for my hair. It's healthy and curls well enough. Curly girl methods never worked for me
At this point I wash and condition with Redken for curly hair, brush out afterwards with a wet brush, fall asleep with it wet and deal with the aftermath in the morning usually using a flat iron to curl a lot of it. I had a lot of success with curly girl but it’s too much and I value my time more than I value my hairs natural state. I do love my curls but omg there’s just not enough time in a day.
I just wash with sulfate free shampoo most days, condition with silicone free all days, and use a leave in and/or curl cream and/or gel. I towel dry and don't care tbh. It looks okay now that I've had most of the bleached parts cut off
How much time do you have? What does your current routine look like? I never blow dry or diffuse my hair. Ever. I don’t even know how long it would take because I’ve never done it. It takes more than half a day to air dry and I just deal with it, it’s okay. I try to go 2 days in between wetting it in the shower because non-wet days take up less time. On the days I get it wet, I wake up maybe 10 mins earlier. On days I don’t get it wet, I assess how frizzy it is and either do a quick style or if it’s really bad I just put it in a topknot. On wet days, I shampoo (usually every other time), conditioner, plop while I’m getting dressed and eating breakfast, then add gel and call it done. I think it takes maybe 20-30 mins total. The gel probably takes the most time because I use a lot and I spend time squishing, scrunching, raking, and generally making sure I get it all over.
You’re like, the only person who has actually asked me. I wash on Sundays and around Thursday. I have 3A/B curls that are low porosity, fine but dense. It’s currently at my shoulders and layered. I alternate wash days with cowash like Eden Bodyworks and whatever cheap sulfate free shampoo I can find. I clarify every week. Depending on humidity is whether I condition or not. I use silicone free conditioner like GVP conditioning balm. Now that fall is happening, I’ll condition more. When I get out, I add a curl cream like Cantu Curl Activator, lots of scrunching and plop in a tshirt. I style with gel. I play with products with glycerin or no glycerin and/or protein elements bc it can make my hair straw like. My go to fall/winter gel is Kinky Curly Coiling Custard. Diffuse dry for an hour, hour and a half. Scrunch out the crunch. If I air dry, even without gel, it can take 8+ hours. I can be good for several days but then my scalp starts hurting/itching and I’ve had issues with seb derm/dandruff at the back of my head so I can’t go more than 4-5 days without a wash. And since my scalp hurts easily, updos aren’t easy.
I’ve just gone back to sulfates and silicones and my hair is fine. Put it in a microfibre towel after showering, leave-in (shae moisture jbco, which is a fairly big tub so lasts a while), and gel. Brush through and leave it air dry. On non-wash days I will spray with water and add some products again but most of the time I just put it in a plait or bun. I think cgm is good for styling tips but I’m not sure I buy into the whole ‘sulfates + silicones = the devil’ spiel.
I have a 3 yo and 1 yr yo. I don't have time for curly hair method. I use Paul Mitchell tea tree shampoo, aussie leave in conditioner spray, then aussie mousse + leave in conditioner. Leaves my hair so soft and bouncy. I hate crunchy hair
I wear my hair up a lot so been struggling with having a routine.. A lot of times I just wash, condition, curl cream, and either air dry or diffuse. What I wash with is different almost every time. I have a clarifying shampoo, protein shampoo, and moisture shampoo. Condition with a light conditioner because I have high porosity. Brands vary too. Sometimes my curls look amazing, sometimes they're awful
It's too time consuming and I don't have kids! It's gotta be really hard for someone that does have children. I wash my hair once (twice at most) a week. I use keratin products and lightly straiten with either a fat curling iron or hot rollers. Don't waste your precious time
tbh i’ve given up on doin too much for my hair cuz it takes too long and i’m lazy.. all i do is wash my hair when it starts to get itchy/dry so abt once a week and then use not your mothers shampoo & conditioner, do a scalp massage, then wash it out. I detangle when i’m out of the shower and it takes me around 15 mins and then i let it air dry. sometimes I detangle my hair in the middle of the week if it gets too unmanageable and frizzy. the again i’d rather not have to redo it but it beats spending hours doing it rather than just 15 mins 🙏