What am I looking for in a mousse/gel?

Trooper

For the umpteenth time I'm trying to learn to control (and love!) my natural curly hair, but this time I want to think more about the products instead of putting anything on my hair in desperation.

After a lot of research I decided to try co-washing with Dr Organic Moroccan Argan Oil Conditioner, washing it all out and applying a small amount of groundnut oil. So far so good?

Today though the curls very quickly went poofy with some frizz, so I think I'm being told I need mousse/gel to hold the curl, especially with it getting hotter?? Does this sound about right? In a conditioner I know I'm avoiding silicones, sulfates, polyquats and in general alcohol, is this exactly the same with mousses/gels and can anyone recommend me something I can get on the high street?

I'm a 3a/3c, so I think I'm looking at mousses.

CurlyShorty3405

I used to use Sebastian Whipped Cream, it was very conditioning and held my curls pretty well. I just didn't like the amount of volume it gave me.

KaZenner1990

In my opinion mousses would give you little to no hold/more volume. From your post I understand that you want not poofy hair right? Also do you know if you have fine or coarse hair? What about your porosity?

If you are us based everyone here loves LA Looks line of gels. They considered inexpensive.

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claudine191

I was going to say what's already been said: the issue with mousse is getting hold without extreme volume. I also find that mousse tends to anchor my hair, and almost freeze it, so that there's little motion or "give." As a wavy, this doesn't work too well.

Some people here have said good things about Deva Foam. I haven't tried it, but perhaps someone has some for re-sale so you could get a sample less expensively?

Trooper

Here's some pictures thought it might help. The first one was after a professional had had his hands on it, this is the dream! The second is after co-washing last night myself and applying the oil. I'm just getting confused with products and what my hair needs - there's leave ins, mousses, deep treatments, curl definers ahhhh! So I'm updating my regimen product at a time.

I think what I want to know is, is the next step to get a gel/mousse, the co-washing and oil is not enough is it? And based on your recommendations, I'll go for a gel.

tengoRizos

If you dont mind paying too much, I would call the professional to see what he used.

Otherwise based on the goal picture, maybe LA Looks wet gel.

Trooper

He used nothing but the Devarange! I just can't afford that and living in the UK, the shipping costs make it worse!

As great as the Devarange is, I think (or at least I'm hoping!) more of the problem is learning what types of products to use on my hair and how to use them.

KaZenner1990

Trooper wrote: »

He used nothing but the Devarange! I just can't afford that and living in the UK, the shipping costs make it worse!

As great as the Devarange is, I think (or at least I'm hoping!) more of the problem is learning what types of products to use on my hair and how to use them.

Look up their ingredient and try to find something similar then.



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claudine191

I think there are threads called "Drugstore Dupes" somewhere around here.......

Eilonwy

Trooper wrote: »

Here's some pictures thought it might help. The first one was after a professional had had his hands on it, this is the dream! The second is after co-washing last night myself and applying the oil.

I think your problem is more about technique than products (although your products may be at issue too). Check out this page, especially the section called "Define." A quirk of hers is that when she uses words like "wavier" and "looser" curls, she's actually talking about your hair type. (The site is called Tightly Curly, after all!)

FYI, her approach to hair products is pretty different from yours: she shampoos regularly, loves silicones, and doesn't use any styling products. I think it's really useful to learn about different product and styling regimens. That way, you can take the best aspects of each one and adapt them to your own hair needs.

Eilonwy

By the way, a very basic styling regimen for hair that's curly, kinky, or in between, is to apply the following products in this order:

1. A water-based leave-in conditioner. This layer reinforces the water content of your hair. It doesn't have to be labeled as a leave-in, and just how heavy or watery it is will depend on what your hair needs.
2. An oil-based sealant. This layer creates a "seal" that makes it harder for water to leave your hair. It should be applied sparingly. Oils/mixtures range from very light to very heavy, so again it depends on your hair. If your hair gets weighed down easily, you may need to skip this step.
3. The actual styling products! IMO, I think the most basic one is a moisturizing, flexible-hold gel. However, the types of products out there are limitless

Again, this is basic, generic advice to get you started. Don't worry about adhering to a certain product line or strictly following a regimen that worked for someone else. Plus, the price and quality of hair products are way out of whack: inexpensive products are often better than their pricier counterparts.

Just do what works for your hair

CGSince2002

The first thing I noticed is that you wrote you washed all the argan oil CO out... You probably need to leave some in or reapply as LI, how much is really a matter of trial and error. Eilonwy's advice may work for you as well.

In the past, and again quite recently, I've been very successful in using only a LI to style my curls and I've been getting up to 3 days of wear by just "refreshing" the curls either with distilled water of a home-made spray using a CO diluted in water plus a few drops of coconut oil. This "method" didn't work perfectly the first time or two, but as my hair became more moisturized I started to go longer between co-washes or rinses.

Trooper

Eilony and CGsince2002 thank you thank in particular for your replies! I think I'm just starting out and naturally confused in some places so the general help is really useful. I got to wash my hair again last night (leaving it to around once a week) and the results so far are MUCH better. I worked on clumping and curling when washing, used some diluted conditioner as a LI after and luckily found some CG gel in the house. Its dry now and tonnes better!

I've been on a product search based on the basic regime you wrote Eiloy and I'm super excited! I've been straightening for over 6 years though so I think my hair really needs product.

CGSince2002

Trooper wrote: »

Eilony and CGsince2002 thank you thank in particular for your replies! I think I'm just starting out and naturally confused in some places so the general help is really useful. I got to wash my hair again last night (leaving it to around once a week) and the results so far are MUCH better. I worked on clumping and curling when washing, used some diluted conditioner as a LI after and luckily found some CG gel in the house. Its dry now and tonnes better!

I've been on a product search based on the basic regime you wrote Eiloy and I'm super excited! I've been straightening for over 6 years though so I think my hair really needs product.

Glad to "hear" things are getting better, with practice you'll soon be a "pro" at it.

CurlyInTheFog

My first thought when looking at your picture was that you weren't using a leave in, and that was confirmed when I read the post through. So good to hear you're trying one out. Don't be afraid to keep adding more, and undiluted; tighter curls typically drink up leave in, and you may be able to use a considerable amount. So just experiment until you find the right amount for you. My hair is looser than yours, and I CO, RO, and LI. My hair just seems to need all three. Please post pics of your progress!

Morgan_Adcock

Here is a good list of British products which are CG.

I'd also recommend your getting a copy of the book, Curly Girl: The Handbook.

Blueblood

@Trooper the information below will probably help, but you will need to use Google to find the sites.

1. There is a British Curlies site linked to an online store. The site also has a forum and if you explore it you will easily find a thread that lists high street products.

2. There is a shop in SE London called Beauty by Zara which has an online store. (They also sell their products on Amazon UK)

3. There is a shop with branches in North/West London called Paks Cosmetics which has an online store.

The first two sell curly hair product lines with Beauty by Zara having a slightly bigger selection. Due to the postage it's not worth just buying one product.

Paks Cosmetics sells more ethnic hair products at a cheaper price than the other two. The postage is much more reasonable even so you probably want to buy more than one item at a time.

Trooper

Hi everyone! Wanted to give you all an update.

So I'm starting to get a hang of this more and more, I'm in supermarkets looking at all the products, reading the ingredients, researching products on the internet if I'm unsure about them and overall getting quicker at figuring out what is and isn't cg. I've always had massive hang ups over my curly hair but very slowly I'm going from always in a bobble to walking around with it down (which is a BIG step!).

I'm now using conditioner, leave in, curl creme, oil and a light gel.

The first pic is first day hair and the last two are today, 4th day hair (put an extra one as the first was too flattering ). Definitely still room for improvement but, progress!

My next step is fine tuning my products, getting it to dry in the position I was it to and just being comfortable with it down and out. All your help has been invaluable!

CGSince2002

Thanks for the update! You are definitely a quick study, those pics look good, congratulations!

CurlyInTheFog

Your first day hair looks amazing! So much improvement already. Subsequent days are a challenge, and I think a lot of us are still looking for the perfect technique. Mine gets better and better, but I'm still learning. You'll also find that as your hair becomes more conditioned over time, better hair will be easier to achieve, but your hair already looks 100% better. :thumright:

AmyShort

I think I need to add a gel to my regimen but I really don't like the 'crunchy' look that I get with LA looks and some other products that I've tried in the past. I was using Samy Get Curls but I don't know if it's cg but I'm thinking not.

Any other gels I could give a try? I'll pay the money if I need to.

CGSince2002

AmyShort wrote: »

I think I need to add a gel to my regimen but I really don't like the 'crunchy' look that I get with LA looks and some other products that I've tried in the past. I was using Samy Get Curls but I don't know if it's cg but I'm thinking not.

Any other gels I could give a try? I'll pay the money if I need to.

Most gels dry out "crunchy", you just have to scrunch out the crunch (SOTC), only when you apply too much the crunch may not be broken. You can post the ingredients here if you like and we'll tell you if it's CG or not.

Trooper

Yup, last time I tried cg the gel made my hair super crunchy and I got frustrated, but my hairdresser showed me I just need to scrunch it out (and maybe use less!). Gel makes all the difference with my hair, without it my hair just looks ratty, as you can see with the pics.

My gel was just something cheap lying around the house, eilonwy is right I think, inexpensive products are often better than their pricier counterparts, or at least do a good enough job.

CGSince2002

Trooper wrote: »

My gel was just something cheap lying around the house, eilonwy is right I think, inexpensive products are often better than their pricier counterparts, or at least do a good enough job.

It all depends on the ingredients, there are some really bad cheap gels too. But most people on CG end up learning quite a bit about ingredients. I began learning many years before thanks to Paula Begoun's books, it was very freeing to no longer be trying out stuff blindly!