I’ve had the same handful of hair styling products on rotation for the past several months, so I wanted to switch up my routine after cutting new layers (see how I did that here). After showering and detangling my hair, I usually use the Mixed Chicks Leave-In Conditioner and top with my old favorite La Bella Super Hold Styling Gel + Coconut Oil, but I recently felt like that combination wasn’t giving my curls the all-day hold and definition I crave. A few curly hair girls I follow on YouTube recommended the Not Your Mother’s Curl Talk line, so I thought I’d try testing their Defining Cream and Frizz Control Sculpting Gel. Testing this line is much easier than that of Shea Moisture (my usual in-shower products) or any other popular curly hair brand because their products are reasonably inexpensive and accessible in most drugstores/Targets. In the photo above, my hair isn’t in its best, most curly state because I plopped overnight instead of allowing the ringlets to form naturally, but I also used these products in my “Blending Layers” post. What I want out of my hair styling creams and gels is softness, definition, and maximum hold so I don’t have to worry about accumulating masses of frizz as the day goes on, and I think this combination of products almost accomplishes those goals. I apply about two quarter sizes of cream to each half of my hair and brush through with my Denman brush to evenly distribute. After, I apply the same amount of gel to the halves and brush through again. I worked on testing the products on day 2 hair and freshly washed curls, and it looks like I had the best results on the former application. My curls remained mostly in tact all day and I had far less frizz around the crown of my head while using this cream and gel (as opposed to my old routine). I still struggle with frizz patches around the back of my lengths, but I think I need to work product through my hair as soon as I get out of the shower instead of on damp curls. I would highly recommend this line for any curly haired person who wants affordable hair styling tools that provide medium-strong hold and definition!
