1b Curly Girl Method Results - Surprising!!

[tambalina]

When I condition my hair in the shower, I am always surprised at how much my hair curls. I thought I was a 1a until just recently when I typed my hair using Fia's Hairtyping. Even then, I was only a 1b. Seeing those curls everytime I washed, I decided to try the "Curly Girl" method to see if my hair could be coaxed into curls.

Using Garnier's Long and Sleek conditioner, I CO'ed for about ten minutes. Then I rinsed using cool water and scrunched, scrunched, scrunched in about a quarter-sized dollop of the same conditioner into my ends only. Then I dried using an old T-Shirt and "plopped" my hair for about 20 minutes. Here are my results:

Before taking out the "plop," a single corkscrew curl came out by the nape of my neck:

http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y154/drummergrrl/IMG_0191.jpg

Here it is still wet:

http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y154/drummergrrl/IMG_0192.jpghttp://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y154/drummergrrl/IMG_0195.jpg

Here is my Before (Left) and After (Right):

http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y154/drummergrrl/IMG_0143.jpghttp://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y154/drummergrrl/IMG_0197.jpg

Can I call myself a WAVY finally?! :happydance: Perhaps my hair needs an overdose of moisture to bring out my waves . . . I am completely okay with that!

[novemberfoxtrot]

Your hair is gorgeous both ways!

[Knotted]

Your hair is gorgeous both ways!

Agreed! You have beautiful hair!

[faithsdaisy421]

I learned the same thing!! I am A-MAZ-ED at what my hair does when I condition only and "plop." I Have learned, that with CO washing, I am becoming closer and close to a 2A then a 1C! Have fun, and your waves are lovely!!

[tambalina]

novemberfoxtrot & Knotted, you are so sweet!


I learned the same thing!! I am A-MAZ-ED at what my hair does when I condition only and "plop." I Have learned, that with CO washing, I am becoming closer and close to a 2A then a 1C! Have fun, and your waves are lovely!!

Thank you!! This plopping is crazy! How long have you been doing the CG method? What have your experiences been like?

[ratgirldjh]

I think your hair is wavy! And it will probably continue to get wavier if you keep treating it like wavy hair! And you have beautiful hair :)

Mine is a tiny bit more wavy than yours but when I used shampoo or even some soaps or indian herbs all of them made my hair almost straight.

Recently I tried co-washing again with cones and found out my hair was REALLY wavy! I was shocked!!! Now even if I use soap to wash I finish by squishing in some aloe vera gel or conditioner or something... and I have WAVES!!! wow! Keep it up and it gets better and better!

[katfemme89]

That's really cool! Maybe I should try this... Hmmm...

[tambalina]

I think your hair is wavy! And it will probably continue to get wavier if you keep treating it like wavy hair! And you have beautiful hair :)

Mine is a tiny bit more wavy than yours but when I used shampoo or even some soaps or indian herbs all of them made my hair almost straight.

Recently I tried co-washing again with cones and found out my hair was REALLY wavy! I was shocked!!! Now even if I use soap to wash I finish by squishing in some aloe vera gel or conditioner or something... and I have WAVES!!! wow! Keep it up and it gets better and better!

I'm excited to keep this up!! CG said it could take up to 6 weeks for hair to reach its full potential. Here's to the next 6 weeks!!


That's really cool! Maybe I should try this... Hmmm...

My hair is soft and bouncy . . . I would totally recommend this to ANY hair type!!

[torrilin]

Perhaps my hair needs an overdose of moisture to bring out my waves . . .

Or... perhaps what you've always thought of as "enough" moisture is not nearly enough. Watch how your hair handles as you experiment with more conditioner. Garnier stuff mostly has a lot of silicone derived ingredients, and sometimes that works fine with conditioner washes, other times it doesn't. A lot depends on your hair and the way the ingredient works. (for me, it's irrelevant, coz I'm allergic to a lot of fragrance ingredients, and my fragrance free stuff is cone free as well... but most people have more choice of products)

Also, keep in mind you don't have to be religious about never using shampoo again. There are lots of curly haired folks who for one reason or another need to use shampoo, yet they still have nice hair. The goal is not no shampoo ever but healthy, comfortable hair. (same goes for every other "good hair" rule... if following the rule is making your life a living hell, stop)

I'd guess if you retype after a year or so, you'll come out as a 2a.

[akilina]

Can anyone super simply tell me about the curly girl method?
I am a semi wavy...but it would be so nice to see what my hair can do!!
:)

[tambalina]

Also, keep in mind you don't have to be religious about never using shampoo again. There are lots of curly haired folks who for one reason or another need to use shampoo, yet they still have nice hair. The goal is not no shampoo ever but healthy, comfortable hair. (same goes for every other "good hair" rule... if following the rule is making your life a living hell, stop)

I'd guess if you retype after a year or so, you'll come out as a 2a.

Sage advice . . . I'm excited to see if my hair will change. I've *always* wanted wavy hair. It's sad that it's taken me this long to see that I had the potential the whole time.


Can anyone super simply tell me about the curly girl method?
I am a semi wavy...but it would be so nice to see what my hair can do!!
:)


Here are some links for you!

WikiHow (http://www.wikihow.com/Follow-the-Curly-Girl-Method-for-Curly-Hair)

Curly Hair Problems (http://thecurlyhairproblems.tumblr.com/cgmethod)

And some Before and After Pics that motivated me to try the system:

Naturally Curly (http://www.naturallycurly.com/curltalk/general-discussion-about-curly-hair/47609-post-your-before-after-cg-pics.html)

[minxe]

Your hair looks so beautiful!

[Aqua Gal]

Love the waves! Your hair is so pretty like that.

[Rufflebutt]

I'm really tempted to try this, since I've hair-typed myself as 1b/1c. I can't help but wonder if I could be wavier than I think.

[akilina]

Sage advice . . . I'm excited to see if my hair will change. I've *always* wanted wavy hair. It's sad that it's taken me this long to see that I had the potential the whole time.



Here are some links for you!

WikiHow (http://www.wikihow.com/Follow-the-Curly-Girl-Method-for-Curly-Hair)

Curly Hair Problems (http://thecurlyhairproblems.tumblr.com/cgmethod)

And some Before and After Pics that motivated me to try the system:

Naturally Curly (http://www.naturallycurly.com/curltalk/general-discussion-about-curly-hair/47609-post-your-before-after-cg-pics.html)
Wow! I love that last link!
So basically...it seems I already do all of this accept for the plopping part.
Do you plop while in the shower? Or do it after your hair has gotten the excess water out? Then loosely put it into a towel?
I think that sounds right...I will have to try tomorrow :)
Those results in the last link are seriously amazing.

[tambalina]

minxe & Aqua Gal: You are so sweet to say so!!

Rufflebutt: Please let me know if you try it. I'd like to hear what others' experiences are. :)


Wow! I love that last link!
So basically...it seems I already do all of this accept for the plopping part.
Do you plop while in the shower? Or do it after your hair has gotten the excess water out? Then loosely put it into a towel?
I think that sounds right...I will have to try tomorrow :)
Those results in the last link are seriously amazing.

I love going through those pictures!!

To plop:

After CO, rinse hair with cool water. Gently squeeze out excess water. Using a leave-in (I just used some of the same conditioner I CO'ed with,) spread small amount evenly in hands, bend at waist and start "scrunching" the conditioner up encouraging the natural curl. Blot hair with t-shirt or microfiber towel.

Lay an old t-shirt on a flat surface with sleeves facing you. Bent at the waist again, put your head down directly on t-shirt. Roll t-shirt like a sausage completely covering your hair. Secure in back and let dry 15 - 30 minutes. You can also sleep in this plopping if you would like. After you take t-shirt off, scrunch some gel in curls and let dry.

[Vanilla]

I tried this last night myself, but my plopping attempt didn't turn out so well. Instead, after scrunching, I put my hair up in a cinnamon bin, and the waves kept appearing :)

[Babyfine]

Yes you are a wavy! Beautiful hair!
When I first joined LHC I considered myself a 1c, but with following a modified CG routine for about the last five years(I do have to shampoo 2X a week due to SD but I do everything else the CG way) I am now a winter 2a /summer 2b!!
Sadly, I don't think I can ever do anything to bump myself up into the 3 catagory but i really like my hair wavier, as it gives it much needed body.

ETA I also need some length to get maximum waves, as the CG book states, cutting to short makes it look straighter.

[Ocelan]

I've gotten similar results from CO washing my hair! I don't properly plop though and don't use leave-in, only sometimes just a bit of aloe vera gel scrunched in wet hair. So maybe today I'll try the leave-in way and add aloe vera after the plopping. :) However there must be some wave there and I'm not just imagining it since my DBF also has commented on how curly I am when my hair is wet.

I'm what I would call a straightie since if I brush my hair when it's wet and let it dry like that, it won't be wavy at all. And like you, I used to think my hair was stick straight before. If I've sort of plopped and dried my hair and then I brush it ( I know curlies shouldn't, but my hair won't go "poof" from it so I do), it will have slight wave left, but not much. If I then put my hair up or braid it no wave (other than bun or braid waves) will be left afterwards until I wet my hair again.
Is this a normal "problem" among wavies or is it just me or just the straightie-wavies? I also go to sleep with my hair still wet and loose so some of the wave will go away while my head is pressed against the pillow.

Well today is wash day, so I might just try what happens with a proper plop with leave-in and perhaps do it even overnight! I'll add pictures if I remember to take them :)

[Babyfine]

I've gotten similar results from CO washing my hair! I don't properly plop though and don't use leave-in, only sometimes just a bit of aloe vera gel scrunched in wet hair. So maybe today I'll try the leave-in way and add aloe vera after the plopping. :) However there must be some wave there and I'm not just imagining it since my DBF also has commented on how curly I am when my hair is wet.

I'm what I would call a straightie since if I brush my hair when it's wet and let it dry like that, it won't be wavy at all. And like you, I used to think my hair was stick straight before. If I've sort of plopped and dried my hair and then I brush it ( I know curlies shouldn't, but my hair won't go "poof" from it so I do), it will have slight wave left, but not much. If I then put my hair up or braid it no wave (other than bun or braid waves) will be left afterwards until I wet my hair again.
Is this a normal "problem" among wavies or is it just me or just the straightie-wavies? I also go to sleep with my hair still wet and loose so some of the wave will go away while my head is pressed against the pillow.

Well today is wash day, so I might just try what happens with a proper plop with leave-in and perhaps do it even overnight! I'll add pictures if I remember to take them :)

Ocelan my hair is like that it can be straightened very easily, if I brushed it wet.
That's why when I am done drying my hair (with flour sack towel) I put in my product ,comb through, scrunch ,and then clip up the roots, and don't touch it again for maximum wave formation. I tried putting in product in soaking wet hair but that didn't seem to make a difference for me.

[Babyfine]

I tried this last night myself, but my plopping attempt didn't turn out so well. Instead, after scrunching, I put my hair up in a cinnamon bin, and the waves kept appearing :)

I've tried plopping I can't get nice results. I think my hair might just be too fine(or maybe too long)

[tambalina]

I tried this last night myself, but my plopping attempt didn't turn out so well. Instead, after scrunching, I put my hair up in a cinnamon bin, and the waves kept appearing :)

Yay!! My hair loves cinnamon buns, as well!


I'm what I would call a straightie since if I brush my hair when it's wet and let it dry like that, it won't be wavy at all. And like you, I used to think my hair was stick straight before. If I've sort of plopped and dried my hair and then I brush it ( I know curlies shouldn't, but my hair won't go "poof" from it so I do), it will have slight wave left, but not much. If I then put my hair up or braid it no wave (other than bun or braid waves) will be left afterwards until I wet my hair again.
Is this a normal "problem" among wavies or is it just me or just the straightie-wavies? I also go to sleep with my hair still wet and loose so some of the wave will go away while my head is pressed against the pillow.

Well today is wash day, so I might just try what happens with a proper plop with leave-in and perhaps do it even overnight! I'll add pictures if I remember to take them :)

I *always* brush my hair wet. ( :blueeek: ) Now I am putting my brush away on wash day to see what waves I can get. My hair between washes is usually up in a ponytail or in a braid of some sort. I had TONS of volume when I brushed out my hair last night. Who knew?! I would LOVE to see your pics!!!


Ocelan my hair is like that it can be straightened very easily, if I brushed it wet.
That's why when I am done drying my hair (with flour sack towel) I put in my product ,comb through, scrunch ,and then clip up the roots, and don't touch it again for maximum wave formation. I tried putting in product in soaking wet hair but that didn't seem to make a difference for me.

Really? How do you do this? I am very intrigued to see what my hair will do if I treat it like a wavy!! I am so excited to join the club!!

[Babyfine]

Yay!! My hair loves cinnamon buns, as well!



I *always* brush my hair wet. ( :blueeek: ) Now I am putting my brush away on wash day to see what waves I can get. My hair between washes is usually up in a ponytail or in a braid of some sort. I had TONS of volume when I brushed out my hair last night. Who knew?! I would LOVE to see your pics!!!



Really? How do you do this? I am very intrigued to see what my hair will do if I treat it like a wavy!! I am so excited to join the club!!

Hi Tambalina-I haven't brushed my hair wet in years as it is so fine and fragile it would cause breakage for me. I do brush it dry sometimes on the night b/fore I wash it with a boar bristle brush. But brushing pulls out my waves. I mainly do it for the scalp stimulation.
I use a microfibre towel or a flour sack towel after I get out of the shower to dry my hair by scrunching upside down and then put in my mouse or gel. After that I put in some tiny claw clips(I really haven't mastered this well so my hair doesn't dry flat and I let it air dry, not touching it. When it's completly dry I sometimes comb through lightly for a bit of volume but a lot of curlies don't do this as it might disturb the wave.)

[tambalina]

Hi Tambalina-I haven't brushed my hair wet in years as it is so fine and fragile it would cause breakage for me. I do brush it dry sometimes on the night b/fore I wash it with a boar bristle brush. But brushing pulls out my waves. I mainly do it for the scalp stimulation.
I use a microfibre towel or a flour sack towel after I get out of the shower to dry my hair by scrunching upside down and then put in my mouse or gel. After that I put in some tiny claw clips(I really haven't mastered this well so my hair doesn't dry flat and I let it air dry, not touching it. When it's completly dry I sometimes comb through lightly for a bit of volume but a lot of curlies don't do this as it might disturb the wave.)

Awesome!! Thank you, Babyfine!! I appreciate your insights!! :D

[Ml001]

Yes, you are a wavy lol. I discovered my waves after giving up shampoo as well. In the CG book she does say wavies often always believed they had straight hair.

[IndigoOptimist]

Wow, I really need to do this! My hair is wavy when it's wet, but straight when dry and combed. I have a feeling that I might be a 1c, but I have no idea how to take care of wavy/curly hair as I was always told mine was straight!!

[Asprettyasme]

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[Vanilla]

I've tried plopping I can't get nice results. I think my hair might just be too fine(or maybe too long)

The damp bunning works well for me everytime. I was surprised that my scalp and hair even tolerated a CO wash. Normally my scalp revolts by throwing off flakes or pieces of skin, but with the leave in conditioner and mineral oil, my hair isn't tangling hardly at all (and I left it down most of the day!).

[Ocelan]

I did remember to take pics of my trial so here it is all laid out. :)


This is my hair from March clarified (still conditioned a bit though since I don't trust my hair not to snap off when I don't condition it after clarifying) and air dried. Doesn't look too wavy there. I couldn't find newer pictures of air dried hair so this'll have to do.

http://forums.longhaircommunity.com/picture.php?albumid=9854&pictureid=129527


Then last night I sort of CO washed. In fact it was really an SMT (lots of conditioner, a teaspooon of honey and maybe a bit less than a teaspoon of aloe vera gel) I had in my hair for 10 - 15 minutes and then almost half an hour of sauna. Then I rinsed that out and did a lemon-ACV rinse (I only got 1 teaspoon of fresh lemon juice so I added 1 teaspoon of ACV into 3 dl water), rinsed that out lazily and put a dollop of the same (cone-free) conditioner I used in the SMT into my soaking wet hair, scrunched and blotted dry with a towel (bent from the waist with my hair hanging down and blotting up against my head). I only lightly detangled under flowing water in the shower but otherwise not at all.

Then I plopped for 10-15 mins with a regular bath towel by lowering my head upside down into the towel so that it all laid against my head and securing the towel in place. After I took it out I put a little squeeze of aloe vera in it and scrunched. This is how my hair looked after these steps when towel dry:

http://i278.photobucket.com/albums/kk102/Ocelan/plopping_wet1.jpg
http://i278.photobucket.com/albums/kk102/Ocelan/plopping_wet2.jpg

Then I put my plopping t-shirt on my head and let it be there until the morning. (I had some problems sleeping with it on so this isn't something I'll do often unless I manage to make some kind of a fitting plopping cap.) My hair was still slightly damp in the morning, or atleast so the t-shirt was. Here's what my hair looked like right after I woke up and took down the t-shirt:

http://i278.photobucket.com/albums/kk102/Ocelan/plopping_after_night.jpg

Then I quickly had to take out the puppy so he wouldn't pee all over the appartment... so after 10 minutes of walking in the very humid outdoors my hair wasn't as wavy anymore but there was some wave still left. My hair goes flat when it's humid at all. I also fingercombed a bit when I got back in. This is what it looked like:

http://i278.photobucket.com/albums/kk102/Ocelan/plopping_after_humidwalk.jpg
http://i278.photobucket.com/albums/kk102/Ocelan/plopping_after_humidwalk2.jpg

Then I went to run some errands for a couple of hours with my hair down. It still had some wave left after I got back but I was annoyed by the tangliness of my hair (I could not live without combing or brushing my hair!) so I brushed it so I would be able to braid it and this is it after the brushing. A bit of wave left but it's pretty straight:

http://i278.photobucket.com/albums/kk102/Ocelan/plopping_after_hoursandbrushing.jpg

So that's my plopping experiment. I don't think I got much better results than I would when I plop with the towel for 15 minutes and then let the hair air dry in place, but I almost always wash my hair in the evening so I won't be able to do that very often.
Atleast this experiment has showed me that my hair doesn't hate leaving in conditioner. My hair is still smooth, although largely I "blame" the SMT for that. :)

[Babyfine]

Awesome!! Thank you, Babyfine!! I appreciate your insights!! :D

You're Welcome! My own routine is still evolving so I'm still looking for ways to get better waves.

[Babyfine]

The damp bunning works well for me everytime. I was surprised that my scalp and hair even tolerated a CO wash. Normally my scalp revolts by throwing off flakes or pieces of skin, but with the leave in conditioner and mineral oil, my hair isn't tangling hardly at all (and I left it down most of the day!).

Thanks Vanilla-I just started experimenting with damp bunning and so far it works well.
I'm going to have to try mineral oil!
Full Co doesn't work for me, I got patches of cradle cap on my scalp, although I may not have been doing it right,so I shampoo 2X a week alternating between Nioxin(which has an antifungal) and a gentle low sulfate shampoo. this seems to work well.

[twoLs118]

beautiful hair!!

[tambalina]

Ml001, IndigoOptimist, Asprettyasme, twoLs118: Thank you!!


Then I put my plopping t-shirt on my head and let it be there until the morning. (I had some problems sleeping with it on so this isn't something I'll do often unless I manage to make some kind of a fitting plopping cap.) My hair was still slightly damp in the morning, or atleast so the t-shirt was. Here's what my hair looked like right after I woke up and took down the t-shirt:

http://i278.photobucket.com/albums/kk102/Ocelan/plopping_after_night.jpg


:agape: GORGEOUS hair, Ocelan!!

Maybe I should try plopping overnight, too. Your results are beautiful!! I guess there are some people that say plopping with floursack towels is easier. While I LOVE experimenting with my hair and its various toys, my wallet is getting tired from overuse, lol!! Perhaps next paycheck . . .

[Ocelan]

Thanks, tambalina :)

Plopping overnight definitely can enhance the waves more than shorter time plopping, but also when the hair is left to dry completely or almost completely in the same tight form against the head, there may be some kinks and deformed curls where they didn't happen to lay just right and to their natural curling direction. I definitely did get a lot of those. When I only plop for 15-30 mins there will still be time and water for the kinks to straighten, but sadly also the waves might do that of course.