Let me start by admitting that I am a product junkie. I am always searching for the latest and greatest ones out there. I have tried to tone it down some since these products are not cheap. People always ask me what products I use, and so I figured I would share here. I have a true love-hate relationship with my hair, I am working on it just being all love, but it is a struggle. It has changed a lot over the years, I guess due to color, the occasional flat ironing and I think the biggest contributor to the change is hormones.
There are quite a few products that I LOVE, but I am providing the ones that I use on a regular basis right now in this post.
Let’s start with shampoo…oh wait, I do not use shampoo. Well very rarely, like every other week. I do not have one that I love, so let’s actually not start with this one.
Let’s try this again…conditioner, currently I am using DevaCurl One Condition. I like it because it smells good, helps to ease detangling, and you can leave some of it in. This is not in my starting line-up, but if you are looking for a good conditioner that REALLY helps with detangling, the best I have found so far is Paul Mitchell Detangler conditioner. It works wonders! Anyway, back to DevaCurl. I use this 2 times per week. I apply it and comb it through my hair using a wide tooth comb first then followed by a Denman brush. I used to only use the Denman brush, but my hair has been extra tangled. I rinse most of it out, but not all, then move on to the next step.
For deep conditioning, I like to use the Aphogee Texture Treatment coupled this with a steam treatment. I apply this in sections, comb it through, then sit under the steamer for 15-20 minutes and then rinse it off thoroughly. I switch up my deep conditioners quite often over the years and there are a lot of good ones out there. I think this could be a whole blog post on its own. I like the smell of this one and it also restores the elasticity to my curls or waves or whatever you want to call them. (It is not as curly as it once was.) I do not deep condition enough, I wish I could do it weekly, but it’s been more like 1-2 times per month. This is my goal for this year, to do this more regularly, my hair needs it more than ever.
A good leave-in is MAJOR. Although, I am no expert, I am pretty sure conditioning is more important, this is everything to my hair. If I forgo this, which I have before, then it makes a huge difference, major puff ball. I like my leave in to help define my curls, moisturize, and control them. My holy grail leave-in is Mixed Chicks Leave-in. I rarely go anywhere without it. My next favorite is DevaCurl Super Cream. This one is fairly new for me to use, so I cannot bump it up past Mixed Chicks just yet. In the humid summers, I am guilty of using both of these. I have high porosity hair so my hair soaks up products. I apply my leave in conditioner when my hair is soaking wet, before it starts to frizz up. Ideally it is applied in sections, or from back to front. The smaller the sections, the more chance for every strand to get the product, which means less frizz. If your hair dries super-fast, a good water spray bottle may be worth the investment or you can apply it in the shower and re-wet the sections you have not put leave-in conditioner in.
A good gel is the cherry on top of the cake, especially if you live in a humid climate like I do. I like my gel to hold and even to crunch a little. I may be alone in this, but I want my wash and go to last a few days. It may be hard the first day but by the second and third, it is perfect and there is no more crunch. I interchange between both DevaCurl Arc Angel gel and Uncle Funky’s Curly Magic. Why you may be asking? Well Uncle Funky’s Curly Magic gives a stronger hold. I use this in the summer months and on rainy days. Arc Angel, which is the stronger gel of the 3 in the DevaCurl line (light and ultra are the others), gives me the perfect amount of hold on a regular day. It is also slightly less sticky and glides on to the hair very nicely.
On some occasions, due to the dryness of my hair, I will use Re-Do Pre-Poo by OrganicGrow Hair Co. It is a combination of flax seed oil, avocado oil, and castor oil. You apply the oils in sections saturating the hair, leaving it on for 6-12 hours before wash. Following this you shampoo and condition. I noticed using this, it helps combat some of the dryness. I am in the process of trying out the entire OrganicGrow Hair Co High Porosity Line, but cannot give it a full review at this time.
Bonus: If your summers get terribly humid or you want to stretch out your wash and go, a wonderful product to use is the Curl Keeper Original. It is hands down the best frizz control I have used to date. It is a clear thin liquid that you apply to your hair after you have added the leave-in and gel (should you choose to use). It seals in everything.
Thanks for reading my blog post. I’d love to hear your comments and what products you love! Drop a comment below or on my Instagram (@ashleylillyOTM).
XOXO