Angel-Waves asks: I have tried so many shampoo & conditioners for long, thick curly hair over the last 25+ years and have yet to find one that I can use and it work for more than a few washings. Ojon worked okay as long as I used their $55 stuff in the jar a full night before each washing. It does not last long with me because I have a ton of hair! It is too expensive to keep up that ritual, I just think there has to be a shampoo and conditioner out there that will not dry out my hair and at the same time not weigh it down. Please post a comment if you have any suggestions. 
The Mid Brain responds:
Hi Angel. The ladies in our Forum did a great job of providing suggestions on products for you to try, but I thought I’d post your question here on the blog for the rest of the curly-haired community to see. It also gave me a chance to a quick recap on some of the other curly quips we’ve made. Follow the links to learn the answers to the ones you’re most interested in.
Jessicurl and other curly questions
- Is Jessicurl Good For Curly Hair?
- Can Bumble and Bumble Curl Conscious Really Reshape Your Hair?
- Are Curly Hair Styling Products Really Different?
- Does Curly Hair Need Special Ingredients?
- Are Living Proof No Frizz Products Good For Curly Hair?
- Flat Iron or Relaxing – Which Damages Curly Hair More?
- Do Curling Shampoos Really Work?
- Will Phytodefrisant Fight Frizzies?
- Do Sulfate Free Shampoos Stop Hair From Being Curly?
- Can Conditioners Make My Hair Curly?
The Beauty Brains bottom line
Does anyone else have any product suggestions for Angel-Waves? Leave a comment for her and the rest of the Beauty Brains community.
{ 13 comments… read them below or add one }
I hadn’t mentioned in that thread the one site that I’ve found that ROCKS for long, curly hair: http://www.biracialhair.org. It’s for anyone with very thick, very curly hair, so if you’re not biracial don’t sweat it. It’s just that the woman who runs the site is, so that’s what she called it.
Her hair is MINDBLOWINGLY gorgeous, and she has a number of really great tips for how to take care of very curly hair, some product recommendations, but mostly handling and care and how to not try to make curly hair act like straight hair. She does give shampoo and conditioner recommendations, though — but what she doesn’t say is that if you use Miracle Product X, your hair will magically be “cured.” It’s a fabulous resource for anyone with very curly hair.
Deva Curl products have worked well for me. I don’t use all of them…I use the AnGell, Set Her Free, and Mister-Right. All after-shower products. They have shampoo and conditioner and a leave-in product as well but it’s too much for me.
I have used many curly haircare products, but I have loved and have stayed loyal to the Jessicurl line for over a year now. I’m completely hooked and cannot go back.
But what works for me might not be for you, the naturallycurly.com website is an excellent resource that will help you determine your specific hair curl type and direct you to the products that will work best with it.
Here’s to beautiful Angel-Waves and curls of every kind!
How about asking your hairdresser to layer your hair, effectively thinning the hair heaps, making it much easier to keep?
I do that with my long very thick hair (not curly). A trip to hairdresser always made my head feel much lighter, like sheep that has just been shorn.
I also use avocado oil as conditioner.
Hey….I’m 43 with curly hair and I also have a daughter with curly that is very thick. We both use the WEN hair products. They are the best that we have found that keep our hair from drying out. Also ,never comb your curls after you wash, this just messes up the natural flow of the curl. I only gently squeeze my hair dry with an old t-shirt. Never ever rub your curls dry with a towel, this will give you fuzz top.
Check out naturallycurly.com. They’ve got a lot of good resources. I’ve got long, thick curly hair and the 2 lines that have worked best for me are Devacurl and Moptop. You just have to experiment to see what works for you.
Dear Angel-waves,
I have very dense African-American curly textured hair and have tried a zillion products to soften and cleanse my hair. I tried the Ouidad salon and products. Had the worst hair cut by their stylist and tried my best with the goopy product line. Too pricey for the results. I turned to the Devachan salon and product line which I liked much better. The sulfate free cleanser and conditioner are great but pricey and available only at select outlets which can be a pain to find when not in NYC. I don’t use the rest of the line because the gels and styling products are not moisturizing enough.
I decided to troll some of the Black hair care blogs and found I could get similar results for half the price by just shopping for products with the right ingredients. I use conditioners that are silicone free to wash my hair. Conditioners like VO5, White Rain or Suave. They are a dollar a bottle! I do a pre-shampoo conditioning treatment every week with a mix of coconut oil, wheat keratin, silk amino acids, vegetable glycerin,and collagen. Mix it up in my kitchen, put it on, place a plastic shower cap over it, and sit under a hooded dryer for 30mins. I even sleep with it over night if I feeling super lazy. All really cheap easy to find at you health food store or on-line. My hair needs lots of moisture so cleansing it at least once a week is necessary. And my favorite cheap deep condition is Queene Helene cholesterol conditioner which is tops $3-4 in the drugstore. Best of luck!
I only recently decided to embrace my curls. My hair isn’t tight curls, but it’s thick. Anyway, the first thing you need to do is make sure you’re getting your hair cut by someone who knows how to cut curly hair. I went to a salon that specializes in curly hair, and it revolutionized my life. Seriously. They introduced me to Deva products, which work really well for me. I use the shampoo and conditioner, AnGell (sets the curl), Set Her Free (just started using this, it de-frizzes), and Mister Right (to re-curl hair a day or two after you wash). Everything works really, really well together.
But seriously, it all starts with the cut.
Even if you do not use the Deva Curl product line, you should go to their Deva Curl site: http://www.devaconcepts.com/about. You can find info there about how to take care of your curly hair without damage. For instance they do not recommend using a towel wrapped around your head to dry hair, instead use paper towels or a tee shirt to squeeze moisture from hair. I do like their No Poo and Low Poo shampoos and their conditioner, plus they have a line of products for curly-colored hair.
This is another good site to find curly hair tips and products. I am not bi-racial, but I use their leave in conditioner on my curly hair.
http://www.mixedchicks.net/instructions.html
Where can I get Alexander Sprekenhus products in the U.S.? I need it desperately…
you mean these? http://www.alexandersprekenhus.com.
Looks good:p
I really like the pantene med to thick frizzy to smooth conditioner and the med to thick creme for styling. I still have frizz but they both make my hair feel conditioned and soft. If I use the pantene styling creme on wet hair it does work better than if I put it on my hair once it is dry. Once my hair is dry I have used the smooth n shine heat protect with a flat iron and that helps with the frizz. Either way my hair feels soft and conditioned but only flat ironing helps the frizz which never really goes completely away. Before I shampoo, while my hair is dry, I coat my hair with olive oil to condition the hair as well. I leave it on for about an hour. Then I shampoo the olive oil out with pantene or john frieda moisturizing shampoos and condition with pantene. Not sure if it is better to use olive oil on wet or dry hair but I have posted this question to the beauty brains recently so I hope to find out soon. Also I hear coconut oil is a great conditioner too although I have never used it. And I have heard rave reviews about terax creme conditioner but have never tried it due to the price. The pantene does work well and cost much less so I have not wanted to spend more to try the terax creme.