Hello there, it's month two of me convincing my hair that it's curly. We ended on a bad note last time, I applied too much everything and my hair was just awful to touch and to work with. But it's a brand new month and I'm looking forward to all the May washdays. If you didn't see my first post, I recommend checking it out, because there's a lot of information about me starting with the curly girl method that you may want to know. That post is a lot more in-depth than this one. In this post, I want to experiment more with methods and approaches and different products.
Speaking of products, I purchased some new things into my CGM collection. I got the Aquis hair turban, some root clippers and a hair oil to loosen up the crunch at the end of the wash day. I used to use hair oil all the time, I'm not sure why I stopped, but I really like it.
Just to avoid questions and to make everything clear, here is the list of products I own/use on my wash days:
Black Professional Rouge Color Lock Shampoo (CGM approved)
Black Professional Rouge Color Lock Mask (contains 1 silicone)
Black Professional Rouge Color Lock Hair Milk (contains 1 silicone)
Garnier Fructise Hair Food Aloe Vera Conditioner (CGM approved)
Garnier Fructise Hair Food Papaya Conditioner (CGM approved)
Balea Conditioner (CGM approved, but the exact one is not available anymore)
Subrina Hair Code L Wonder Mousse (CGM approved)
Giovanni LA Weightless Moisture Direct Leave-in Conditioner (CGM approved)
Shea Moisture Manuka Honey & Yoghurt Multi-Action Leave-in Conditioner (CGM approved)
Balea Blow Dry Spray (CGM approved)
Cantu Define & Shine Custard (CGM approved)
Shea Moisture Curling Gel Souffle (CGM approved)
Some of these are approved with caution, but as I mentioned in the first post, I'm not commiting fully, I'm just trying to see what I can do.
I also got myself a bonnet sometimes this month. Well, I actually got 2 because I have a very big head so I wasn't sure any of them is really going to fit me. They both fit at the end, which is nice. One of them is more light and has an elastic band around the head but it slides off my head more easily. The other one is more tight, is has a wider band and that one stayed on the whole night. Both of them are quite comfortable but I'm just not used to sleeping in a hat to be honest. I used them about three times now and honestly I think that the frizz is reduced a lot when you sleep in a bonnet compared to sleeping in a high ponytail. I have to try it on freshly washed hair though to really see the difference.
Another purchase I made are a couple more Cantu products because these really seem to work well for my hair. I got the Comeback Curl Next Day Curl Revitalizer because I could really use something that will help me revive the waves the next day. Also I got the Moisturizing Curl Activator Cream because I really wanted to use a curl cream to see if its any better for me than the gels I use quite regurarly now.
Assumptions
I want to make some observations at the start of each month to see what is changing in the whole scheme of things. Right now, I feel like the Cantu Custard suits my hair better and that the Shea Moisture is a little too holding and I shouldn't use it with a styling mousse. I also think, that my hair is a bit too frizzy because it's too dry. That's why I feel like getting more oil will help them for sure.
Next thing is actually the diffusing, which I am very new to and I cannot do it properly. I watched some Manes by Mells videos and I want to try diffusing the roots first and then the lengths of the hair and see if it works for wavy hair too.
I also hope to get some use of my hair turban. I saw some people use it instead of a plop. I don't think I should be really drying my hair up in any form, because it's pretty short, but we'll see if it effects the curls in any way.
Moisture vs Protein
I couldn't figure out for the longest time how to tackle this moisture-protein balance. Until I washed my hair with just moisturizing products and I saw that there was no wave forming, no definition, the hair just looked like straight crap. That's when I started doing the stretch test in the shower after washing my hair with a shampoo (since I only have one shampoo) so I could adapt the routine accordingly.
There's a lot about stretch test online, but I was working according to this image I found on google. Apparently, some of my hair was perfectly balanced and some of it was lacking both moisture and protein. So I just added both moisture and protein. And I could clearly see that it's working well. The Cantu products have protein in them which is great, but they also have a lot of moisture, since they contain shea butter. They are a perfect mix for my hair from what I can tell so far. Some people say that Cantu is too heavy for their hair but it suits my hair really well.
This month's wash days
I probably won't do this all the time and this might be the last month where I really document each and every wash day. However, it's nice to see the difference and to compare the results when using different techniques and products.
Wash day 1
Today I wanted to start with testing out how much styling I actually need and with finding out which products work well for my hair. My hair was very frizzy since the last wash day and from what I found online, it was lacking moisture. I also ordered a hair turban since the last wash day and some clips for root clipping, so I want to try all these out as well. Those are my wash day goals.
I used my shampoo as usual, with the shampoo brush and did 2 washes. Then I applied mask on lengths of my hair, leaving it for about 5 minutes. Then I started squishing in my GHF Aloe Vera Conditioner, which made my hair feel very nice and hydrated. That was it for the shower part, now the styling.
Right after I got out of the shower, I squeezed excess water into a microfiber towel and applied leave-in conditioner. I went for the Giovanni Weightless Moisture this time. I also tried using a comb on my hair and parting it as I used to do a lot. It was looking a little flat. Then I applied the blow dry spray from Balea and my Cantu Define & Shine Custard. I decided to skip on the mousse, because last time I used both gel and mousse my hair didn't feel great. After applying the custard, I did some root clipping along the parting and on the sides of my hair and I put the hair up in a Aquis turban.
After about 15 minutes, I took it out and started diffusing. I applied advice I learned from Manes by Mells channel. So first I did high speed and high heat on my roots. Then I went medium speed and medium heat on the middle sections of my hair and partially the end. And ended it off with medium speed and low heat, because I don't like heated scapl. Then I waited for the crust to form and the hair to dry to 100%.
I took my Isana hair oil to help loosen up the crunch. But to be honest this was a very underwhelming washday. My hair is almost at its pre-CGM state. That's just sad. I like how the roots feels and that the hair is very movable now, but I don't like the waves at all. There are like none compared to my previous wash days. However, even though I don't like the curls, I love the frizz. Because there's no frizz at all.
Wash day 2
I usually wash my hair every Sunday, because once a week is honestly enough for me. However, this weekend I'm visiting my family, so I have to wash it again before I go. I also have a little conspiracy theory. I think I over-hydrated my hair the last washday and that's why it looks like garbage.
Don't get me wrong, there's no frizz and it feels healthy and smooth but it doesn't hold a curl at all and the pattern is wanishing on me. I don't like that. So, I'll try to go for more protein and more holding products and we'll see if the curls make a comeback or not.
I washed my hair with the shampoo I use on the regular, I applied my mask and waited for a couple minutes. Than I took the most protein containing conditioner I own and started squishing it in. After I could see the product almost coming out of the hair when I twisted it, I rinsed it off. I never leave any product from the washing period in my hair, just because it feels super heavy if I try it. I then put my hair into the turban to soak up the excess moisture. I found out that wet styling suits me a bit more than damp styling.
I started the styling with the Giovanni Leave-in I mentioned before, I apply it with praying hands all over my hair and squish it in to support the curling a bit. Then I took my hair mousse from Subrina and applied it all over my hair. I mostly apply the mousse for more hold. Then I took the Cantu Custard and applyed quite a lot to my hair, squishing it in. When I was sure, that there's enough product in my hair, I put my turban back on to help the drying process and went about my day. After about 30 minutes, I started diffusing. First I was hovering over the roots, when the roots were dry, I started with the ends. Overall, I was very happy with the results, it looked quite bomb. The volume was lacking a little bit, maybe I need to move my head more when I dry it. However, the curls were bomb and they were very well defined, so I assume that my hair really needs more protein than I thought. At the end I just scrunched out the cast from my Cantu Custard and that was it.
In the photos, the first one is right after washing, the second one right after diffusing and partially breaking appart the crust and the third one is me trying to style the hair a bit.
Wash day 3
I couldn't resist and I dyed my hair pink-blonde today just for fun. I really don't enjoybeing blonde for any longer period of time. I just don't like it. So I used a L'Oreal Colorista Paint in the shade Rose Blond and of course I had to wash my hair afterwards.
I used the shampoo and mask as usual but the hair was very thirsty...that's nothing surprising since it had a not cgm approved dye on it for 30 minutes. So after that I did the GHF Papaya Conditioner because it's a very nourishing conditioner and I wasn't sure about using too much protein on freshly colored hair. Then I put it in my turban, waited until it was just damp, wet it a bit more with a water spray and started styling phase.
I used a mixture of my two leave-ins, the Shea Moisture Manuka Honey and Yoghurt one, because it has protein and the Giovanni Weightless Moisture one because it's a very hydrating one. I didn't want to skin protein entirely. Then I applied my hair mousse, Cantu Custard and put it in the turban for another 10 minutes.
Then I started drying, first the roots as usual and then the end, everything done with the diffuser. Because my hair was so thirsty today, I used oil to get rid of the cast and it worked like a charm. The waves are great but they're a little less clumpy, which might be cause by the coloring process. Overall though, I love the results today.
In the photos, there's me with dried crust and then me after scrunching the crust with a little bit of hair oil.
Wash day 4
Today I received my Denman brush and several hair goodies, so I decided to go and try them out because I wanted to wash my hair anyway. I did the usual using my shampoo, mask, and the Aloe conditioner. Then I dried out the excess water with my hair turban and worked in leave-in with my hands and distributing it with the Denman brush. I think I put in too much leave in, because a lot of it was left on the brush. Then I applied the Cantu Curl Cream and started defining the curls with Denman brush.
At first I wasn't really sure what I was doing, I did a bit of Denman coiling here and there and the classical brush-jiggle-scrunch kind of thing. I am still not sure how much it really helped. I could see my hair curling well when it was really wet still but the end results seems very usual to me. I'll have to keep using it to see how much it helps. Anyway, I worked in three sections, taking a couple centimeters wide portions around the whole head. This took a little longer than I'd like but I think I got the hang of it now.
Then I applied the mousse and the gel, because I decided to go for the cream-mousse-gel technique and I put it all up in the turban again. After about 30 minutes I started diffusing as usual. I first dry the roots and then the rest of the hair up to about 80-85% and then wait for it to dry fully. I didn't have much of a cast today, so I just strunched it out with my fingers.
I would say the curls are a bit more clumpy than usual and way better defined. I think that there's going to be some improvement all the time because my hair is pretty damaged, especially the front parts. But I can see a lot happening and I love it.
Wash day 5
Today, I wanted to give the Shea Moisture Curling Gel Souffle another shot. I used my usual products, I tried Denman again and I used the Cantu cream once again. The souffle is just not my jam, I don't get it. My hair is curling like crazy when I scrunch it in, but it doesn't dry at all. It's the next day now, and it still feels sticky like crazy. I don't understand. I might have to give it another shot and then send it away, because I cannot figure this product out. Except for the sticky hair, the waves are pretty sick, I even found a really nice curl!
Closing this month
I really need to figure out how to use the Shea Moisture Curling Gel Souffle. I also need to work more with my Denman, because I think it works well but I'm just a little too lazy. I also want to try more techniques of styling on my hair, but this cream-mousse-gel one really seems to work well for me. I also need to figure out refreshes more, because I don't really enjoy wetting my hair all the time and it's not good for the hair either.
Also, I really like sleeping in my satin cap, it's a great way of getting rid of frizz. But it's not that comfortable to sleep in. However, I found one that sits on all night, which I'm stoked about. I also need to buy more hair accessories, because my bangs just won't cooperate with me until it's restored again.
Final thoughts
Since I won't be washing my hair anymore this month, I want to end this post here. I am really starting to like my hair, y'all. The waves hold for about 4-5 days, then I can pretty much get the pre-CGM look with no comb and a half-updo. I really enjoy this journey and it's really a lot of trial and error.
If you're thinking about starting as well, just do it. Don't spend weeks thinking about it, just get a t-shirt, conditioner and a gel and try your best. If it works, that's great, you can add more fancy schmancy products later but at least you'll see that it makes sense and that your hair has some progress. My hair feels so much better after the two months. Sure, the styling can be a little fail sometimes, but overall I feel a lot more confident with the hair I have now. I used to curl my hair as often as I could and now I just scrunch some water into it in to morning and I'm ready to go. I feel like I don't have to care about it that much, just one throughout wash day with all the products, care and time and then I have a week worth of great hair on my head. Yeey!
Have you tried the CGM method or at least some of its tricks? Let me know how they worked for you and thanks for reading!