Despite having curly hair my whole life, it was only 3 years ago that I really paid attention and care for it. I invested in curly hair products specifically the Curly Girl Method and I have been using them since then.
They were really good for my hair and I have been using them consistently (more specifically the Cantu products) but then after my bleached hair grew longer, healthy hair was already growing as well... and I have noticed my hair feels like it's being weighed down still. I can compare my hair from maybe 5 years ago vs. today and I noticed there was a decline in volume. It also feels "less curly" if you know what I mean.
Of course, hair can change in years especially for curly hair which can change in curl pattern as well. But I have noticed that it might not be that, and my hair still feels a bit down when dry despite the healthy hair already grown out.
When I did my research, apparently I was not using the right products for my hair haha.
Hair type matters in choosing products
My hair is very fine but also curly and if I'm using products that are heavy, my hair obviously won't hold up well since it's fine... haha. Resulting in a flat looking curls. Okay not really flat, but stretched out and not bouncy.
The Cantu products that I have been using since 3 years ago has oils in it, and overall really heavy for my hair. Which makes sense why it feels a bit greasy when I used it but I thought it was normal and also cos my hair was damaged.
To bring out the best in fine curly hair, I have to use lightweight products that don't have oils. Besides, I don't have a lot of hair density and my hair only looks thick because it's curly. So volume is important to me. :D
Lightweight products were not easy to find apparently. Hair products mostly have oils in them. Luckily, I found this brand Curlsmith that has the products that I need.
I have detangled my hair in the shower (which is also sooo important) since you can't detangle while it's dry. You also have to apply the products when the hair is damp.
I applied the Curlsmith Weightless Air Dry Cream as my leave in conditioner for the moisture my hair needs. Curly hair needs a lot of moisture to bring out the best in them and also to prevent damage. I don't think I've ever had a time where I didn't put any leave in conditioner cos aside from the hair being so frizzy without it, it gets really itchy for me. Imagine having a tumbleweed on your head.
I also have to be mindful not to put too much product on my hair because even if it's lightweight, it can still weigh down hair if it's too much.
Then, I'm adding a Curlsmith Full Body Thickening Lotion for extra volume for my hair. I don't really know the science of that, but it works. Lol.
I've noticed that when I use this, it really gives my hair more volume and bouce
Lastly for hair to hold, it needs a gel (or a mousse if that's what you prefer). I'm using Curlsmith Hydro Style Flexi Jelly that is also lightweight. I have found that this gel is really good because compared to the other gel I have, this feels like "nothing". I feel an occasional stickiness when I get my hair wet for whatever reason but it's less sticky compared to the curl cream I have on the same brand.
I layer all my products like this and I think it's also important to have them in order. This is just based on what I've researched from fellow Curly haired as well.
After applying my gel, I scrunch my hair just to "unstretch" my hair since I've been stretching them to apply products lol. This also sort of "groups" the hair and make the curls curl in a more defined way than in some random directions.
I then use my blow dryer with diffuser to dry my hair without disturbing them. It's very important not to touch or disturb the hair while drying because once it dries that way, it's gonna stay THAT way. lol. I'm also been using the blow dryer that I bought in 2021 and it's still working fine!!
Yup, diffusing hair takes such a long time. Sometimes it takes me 20 minutes to diffuse my whole hair but it's still 80% dry. I then have to wait maybe another hour to air dry my hair.
After diffusing, the gel will leave a cast in the hair so it makes it crunchy. I don't like that crunchy feeling so I scrunch my hair again to get rid of the cast.
This is after an hour from diffusing and it's now 100% dry. My hair is visibly more volumized and it looks bouncy as well. It doesn't even look greasy, doesn't feel greasy as well and I really like these products. They are quite popular for fine hair which I understand well now.
I'm really happy with the results and in the video that I took, you can see how it bounces. :D This brand unfortunately is quite expensive so I try to save as much as I could as well and maybe use the other creams if I'm just at home, no reason to showcase my curls haha. But really really worth it. :D
I have posted a video of my hair routine on Instagram and Tiktok so if you want to see the hair in motion, you can view it here: