My hair is fine in texture and has yet to meet a protein that it didn't like, so I do a pretty strong protein treatment once every week or two and use very protein heavy conditioners regularly.

For styling I get very consistent results with leave-in (my go-to is Cure Care from Sally's. It's got good slip, it's got protein, and it's super cheap), curl cream (this I still play with- I'm partial to Curls Rock Amplifier, which is not CG, and Re:Coil, which is), and a hard hold gel (I haven't tried HESMU but I use something along those lines). I rinse all conditioner from my hair and apply LI separately so I can control the amount, I use a combo rake and scrunch technique for curl cream and gel, then I very carefully use a microfiber towel to squeeze out extra water. I plop with a flour sack towel for a few minutes, just to keep my hair out of my way while I get dressed. When I take my hair down from plopping I scrunch a little more gel into my hair, focusing on the ends, to make up for what got lost while towel scrunching. Most days I air dry because I'm too lazy to get up 20 minutes earlier to diffuse. Some days I'll diffuse partially, focusing on my roots since they take longest to dry.

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