fashiontakemyheart: How to Maintain Your Curly Hair

If you are like me with curly hair that has a mind of its own, then you know it's annoying to maintain... ESPECIALLY in the summer when its hot & humid. These conditions mean only one thing for your hair: Frizz. Damn that frizz, taking over my life and all.

Never fear, Crisanta is here to tell you how to maintain your out of this world locks. First things first, shampoo and conditioner. It's important to find the right one for you, everybody is different, so where as one product may work like a charm for you it may not work as well for other users. The trick is to constantly experiment with different shampoo's and conditioners. Personally, once a bottle has run out I go for a new brand; I never use the same shampoo type twice in a row. Experiment, experiment, experiment. Especially when there is a shampoo sale at Shopper's Drug Mart. *CUTE-TIP: A sale is the perfect time to stock up on lots of different shampoo's and conditioners.* Here are a few of my experiments that really paid off:

Ojon Tunu Elastic

The best, and I mean THE BEST, shampoo and conditioner I have ever used is Ojon Tunu Elastic. They use nuts from the Ojon tree in the rain forests of Central America. After the first time using this product I instantly found that my hair was softer, shinier, smoother, healthier and most of all curlier. But it was a nice "curly", curls I wished I could make with a curling iron. It was amazing. The best part is that you only need a little dollop of it and it will cover your entire head.

Another amazing thing about these products is after rinsing out in the shower, all that's left to do is style & go; No additional styling products necessary. The only downside to all this awesomeness is that it's really pricey. Both the shampoo + conditioner total about $50 (CAD), and I've only seen it sold at Sephora and various hair salons. However, if you are able to get yourself into a MAC/Estee Lauder warehouse sale, they go for a total of $12 (CAD) which is totally worth it!

For details on other products by Ojon check out http://www.ojon.com/products/search/esearch.tmpl?search=ojon+tunu .

Garnier Fructis Pure Clean Fortifying

Now if you can't afford to buy Ojon shampoo and conditioner don't worry there are so many more products out there. Garnier Fructis Pure Clean Fortifying shampoo and conditioner for example, is great because it takes away most of the frizz, and once I'm out of the shower I rarely need to put any product in.

However, I have noticed that my hair gets very oily after using this shampoo and conditioner duo and then straightening my hair. I start looking like a Greaser or Severus Snape. (If you don't know who they are, go read a book or at the very least watch a movie. Hahahah just joking.) But anyway, that was the only real issue I had while using this product; Other than that it's pretty great. As a bonus it is 92% biodegradable... Woo! Go Green!

For product details visit http://www.garnierusa.com/_en/_us/fructis/index.aspx#products|PureClean|PureCleanShampoo .

Herbal Essences

My next favorite product line is Herbal Essences; These products have never done me wrong. If you have long hair the Long Distance Relationship shampoo and conditioner will work wonders. I have long hair myself, but I prefer to use shampoos that are targeted for curly/wavy hair like the Tousle Me Softly and Totally Twisted shampoos and conditioners.

Tousle Me Softly is a good choice for a naturally soft and wavy look, where as the Totally Twisted will play up your curls; Both are amazing products that I alternately use on a regular basis. Once I'm out of the shower, I use the corresponding hair mousse dedicated to that line for styling. If you have really frizzy hair the None of Your Frizzness shampoo and conditioner is a great buy! All of the Herbal Essences products do exactly what they tell you, and they smell amazing which is another reason I love them!

For details on all the Herbal Essences products take a look at http://herbalessences.com/en-US/hair-products .

SO FRESH AND SO CLEAN

Once you've washed your hair using the shampoo and conditioner that fits your hair needs, the next step is deciding which products to use for leave-in or styling. You don't want to drench your hair in a bunch of products because that will weigh down your style and over treat it. So again you need to find what products work for you! Like I've mentioned before in a previous post, {Check out Can't Be Tamed: How To Tame Unruly Hair"} my favorites are Lush's R&B, Chi Silk Infusions, Macadamia Natural Healing Oil, and Marc Anthony Moisture Gloss. Other good products are Sunsilk Captivating Curls hair cream, TRESemme No Frizz Shine Spray, and as previously mentioned the Herbal Essences Tousle Me Softly and Totally Twisted mousse.