help a newbie troubleshoot...

velouria · 05-12-2009, 07:37 AM

So I've been doing the CG thing for about a week, and I'm definitely getting curlier and healthier tresses, but I'm still having some problems and was wondering if I was missing anything...

Goals:
More even curls-- some areas, like the underlayers and sideburns wind up straight I'm kind of a wavy (2c/3a), but unlike most wavies, my curls don't start on the ends/longer layers. Instead, my shorter layers spring up in ringlets and my longer layers are s-shaped.

Less frizz and fluffiness! In general, my curls are pretty fluffy, and not shiny. I have to admit, I really miss my shine serum! There's also LOTS of frizz going on and I'm not really getting the best clumping.

Current Routine:
-cowash with Sauve Naturals Waterlily and Aloe
-when still soaking wet, add Deva One Conditioner and Herbal Essences Totally Twisted Gel (or some combination of HETT and Deva AnGell and KY Jelly) and scrunch in shower, leave in
-plop with t-shirt for about 15 minutes
-diffuser... still learning how to use this well!
-usually at some point in the process, add more gel and/or KY jelly
-when dry, smooth on a tiny amount of olive oil or spritz with Deva Set it Free to add shine

Possible Culprits:
For evenness, I was thinking I could try to use more gel and less leave-in on the longer areas and then try to pixie curl them? Maybe try plopping overnight?

For frizz/bushiness, more gel in general (I'm not getting any crunch at all even before the Set it Free)? Getting better at diffusing? Plopping longer? Trying to touch it less (though I don't think I do touch it a lot, really)? More time letting my hair adjust to CG?

Any suggestions would be deeply appreciated!

Jess the Mess · 05-12-2009, 09:50 AM

Are you using the Deva OneC as your rinse-out condish or just a LI? I'm a little confused about that one. I'll give you what I would do with the products you already have from one wavy to another.

1.Cowash with Suave
2.Use OneC as you normally would any condish, detangle if necessary, and rinse out
3.Scrunch a little OneC or Suave as a leave-in on soaking wet hair
4.Scrunch in a few puddles of KY
5.Scrunch in your gel
6.Scrunch a little excess moisture out and plop
7.Clip and pixiecurl diffuse

The gels you are using aren't necessarily hard hold gels so you might want to try something stronger such as BRHG or HESMU. Also for help with your problem areas look up the "scrunch and pump" in the google search bar. That technique seems to help unevenness. And for clumping I'm still standing by the icequeen method if you want to give that technique a try. As your hair gets more moisture your shine should get better but I find that using Sally's GVP conditioning balm as my rinse out condish and homemade flax seed gel really give me tons of shine.

It is going to take experimenting and time to find exactly what works for you so don't get discouraged this early on. Experimenting is half the fun

velouria · 05-14-2009, 08:11 AM

Hey Jess! Thanks so much. Just wanted to let you know that I tried this routine and it worked really great. I got some of the best clumps-n-curls I've had yet. That really is a better use of products than I was using.

I did do one thing differently... I plopped overnight and then sprayed it out Set it Free then pixie curled.

I still have the curly curly canopy and straighter underlayer, though.

Jess the Mess · 05-14-2009, 09:39 AM

I'm so glad that routine helped you. Sometimes there is so much info here and with all the terms and abbreviations it's like we speak another language. Even the basics can get confusing. Plus the experimenting seems to never end. Almost a year CG and I still don't have it completely down. Happy I could help