Curl Junkie Aloe Fix Gel

Curl Junkie Aloe Fix Gel (AFG)

This is a strange gel. As someone on naturallycurly.com posted it reminds one of a sort of neon jelly you get at Chuckie Cheese with 20 tickets. Its smell reminds me a bit of Lemon Pledge. At first you think you got the wrong stuff and you mixed up your Bed, Bath, and Beyond bag with your box of products from Curl Junkie. Never fear wavies!!! This is AFG!

Many is a wavy or curly who got this gel and wondered just what they were supposed to do with it. Use it on wet hair? dry hair? Before a leave-in? In place of one? after like a regular gel? on top or or below CCCC? and the favorite "does it play well with other products"

I'm here to share with you my views only but this is one product that is sort of like Goop--seems to have a different use for everyone! I tried AFG one morning after a nice poo and condish. I did not use a leave-in. It felt plasticy, gunky, gross in my hair. Rinsed out and started over this time using a leave-in (Curl Junkie Curl Assurance) and it was better. I did put a hard hold gel over it. The results: Not for this wavies wet hair. No siree Bob. Nope.

So then I tried it on dry hair. Vive la Différence! I put some in my hands and added some water and then smoothed and scrunched it in my hair. It worked wonderfully and my friend who decided to drop by at the last minute with a 5 minute warning phone call didn't know I'd just spent the last 3 hours laying in bed playing a favorite video game! Woohoo! So for my hair dry all the way to get the best use out of this.

However I feel it warranted to point out that several wavies over on the 2's board on naturallycurly.com love this in wet hair as a curl enhancer and styler. You get a nice big tub for your dollars so you've got a good amount of product to play with to find out the best way it will work for you.


And the smell does not linger. It's not that it is unpleasant it just reminds me a little too strongly of early Saturday morning's when my mom would get me up and thrust a dust rag in my hand and tell me to get to work. Love ya mom!

Curl Junkie Smoothing Gellie

Curl Junkie Smoothing Gellie (CJSG)

CJSG is my *favorite* of all the CJ products so far. I absolutely ADORE the scent. In fact I've been known to just open it and smell it occasionally just cuz. MMMMMM...it's fruity with a hint of citrus and clean scents. It smells like a tropical fruit table to me. Even more this smell does stay with you a bit and every time you get a whiff of it you are transported to that same tropical beach. I better finish this review as I'm getting hungry!

Although it is a gelly it's texture and consistency most resemble a cream. However this is watery once you put it on your hand and it quickly emulsifies (as opposed to CJCCCC which remains a true cream to be rubbed in). So in that respect it is more of a jelly regardless of one's intitial impression of its creamy-ness. You can also tell this if you put your finger in it--with the SG your finger comes away pretty clean vs with the CCCC it comes out with some product on it.

I use this by itself as a combo of leave-in and styler. It most definitely enhances my curls and defines them. It also provides a bit of elongation which I like. Even though normally I am always tryng to get more curls I love the products that even out my curls and get my hair to look uniform.

Other great things about SG: It is very forgiving for me--I've never had a producty mess because I used a bit too much, you do not need to use a lot of product, and it distributes through your hair very evenly. Although it has a hold I found it to be too light to hold my waves all day so I always put a hard hold gel over it.

I have used the Smoothing Gellie with a leave in if I feel my rinse out conditioner just didn't quite cut it. In that case I use about a pea sized amount of leave in and focus on my canopy which is the driest part of my hair.

Updated Dec 09 - Pics above are of me with the CJ Hibiscus and Banana Leave In and Smoothing Gellee in my hair. Nothing else. I get excellent curls and lately I haven't needed a gel over the Smoothing Gellee as the dews are much lower and my hair doesn't need quite the same level of hold. Outstanding!

If you are deciding on what to order from CJ or are doing a mini-product haul I recommend (in the following order)

Smoothing Gellie
Curl Assurance Leave-In
Coffee-Coco Curl Creme

Have a wavy day!

Curl Junkie Sprays

Curl Junkie Sprays

Curl Junkie Curl Assurance Hair Styling Water

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Curl Junkie Curl Fuel Curl Enhancing Spray

Curl Fuel

This is an interesting spray. While the instructions say it provides shine and definition for your curls as well as fly-away taming I actually find the best use to be as a sort of Scrunch-Out-The-Crunch (SOTC) product or immediately thereafter.

It has a floral type smell but it is not really strong. I usually spray it into my hands and then add a few drops of water and then rub my palms together and then scrunch it in. It helps "set" my curls by corraling the stray ones that have their own idea of where they want to go. In addition I do find it provides assistance with clumping as well. A little goes a long way and you don't need too much. My curls don't feel gunky or sticky after use with the Curl Fuel. I do need to say my hands do feel sticky afterwords though. I just wash them.

Spray's tend to be tricky--most refresher sprays are kind of sticky and can leave a residue. Curl Fuel did take a few minutes to sink into my hair but once it does I'm good to go.

If you like sprays for a sort of refresher on second day hair you can give this a try. I don't do second day hair (because I like to experiment too much!) but this would be a good choice for those of you that do. This is not a product for me that adds a ton of moisture so if what you want is a pure moisturizer instead of some curl boosting and enhancing refreshment you might want to try just adding in some of the Curl Assurance Leave-In mixed with some water in your hands.

Curl Assurance Hair Styling Water

When I first got this spray I had no idea what to do with it. I wasn't sure what a styling water was. At first I tried it as a curl refresher. No go. Then I tried it as a hair spray type product and no love with that either.

It wasn't until I fully read the instructions that I realized this was a styler. (Guano: ALWAYS read the directions for products LOL). Once I figured that out I was good to go. I use this before the CCCC to help with curl enhancement and to provide additional hold. It has some holding power. I still use a hard hold gel over it (with or without the CCCC). The smell is citrusy and fresh. It is not sticky to me at all when I use it on wet hair. If I use this and the CCCC I do not need a leave-in. The picture posted with the Coffee-Coco Curl Creme is me with this water and CCCC in my hair. I got a nice amount of curl boosting and the use of the styling water seems to help my hair be more full and thick looking. I also felt it did an EXCELLENT job at helping to clump my hair that is prone to stringlet's.

In Sum: While not everyone likes to use spray's if you do so or if you are curious these are two that are well worth checking out.

Curl Junkie Coffee-Coco Curl Creme

Curl Junkie Coffee-Coco Curl Creme

CCCC has a lotta love all over the spectrum with natural hair from 2's, 3's, and 4's. The pic above is my hair with CCCC as I describe below.

The smell: In a word - YUMMY!

The texture: Creamy, transluscent, not oily or greasy

Properties: Emulsifies in your hands but not to an oil--it remains a true cream.

Thoughts: This works extremely well for my daughter's thicker hair that ranges in texture from fine to coarser. It works well for me but it took a lot of experimentation to get it to succeed. I think my fine and thin hair had me running in circles with this for a while trying to figure out the best combo/amount to use. I am happy to say I did find that combo--for me this includes using the CJ Curl Assurance Hair Styling water on my hair first and then about a nickel sized blob of CCCC smoothed through (not raked) and then scrunched. After this I add some hard hold gel to assure the hold.

Extra: A word regarding Curl Junkie. This is a manufactured line. That means the quality is consistent as are the products. Many more natural or smaller lines are made by individuals in sort of a mom-pop operation and, as such, you can get variation in texture, consistency, smell, etc. This does not mean they are bad--just that the potential is there. In addition it appears more common for the smaller operations to alter their products more frequently--which can be problematic as just when you think you've found something that you like (HG!) the formula can be altered. The reason I chose to start my blog with CJ products are because they are available at multiple locations online and products are consistent. I also think that this is a line of products--therefore it is possible to buy several different items that meet your needs (vs. somewhere that only has conditioners or only shampoo's and so on)

Overall: The vast majority of people who try this find it works exceptionally well for them. The owner of Curl Junkie is extremely helpful if you have questions regarding its use and you can check out her blog as well for other suggestions on her products. If you are wanting to try CJ this is another of her products I recommend are part of your first purchase.

Curl Junkie Curl Assurance Leave-in Conditioner

Curl Junkie Curl Assurance Leave-In Conditioner

Where to start on this great product? Firstly it is a personal favorite. It seems to work equally well on many textures, porosity's, and densities of hair. I like that it does not weigh my fine and thin hair down and that it seems to enhance the nature of curl creme/cream's and gels/jelly's I use after it. I do find a little goes a long way as it is thick and rich with a very creamy texture. It has a very pleasant smell that is not overpowering nor does it stay with you all day. I would describe it as clean citrus type scent.

I have tried it as a rinse-out as well but honestly I still prefer it as a leave-in for my hair. I use about a pea sized amount on my chin+ length hair. I use the same in my son's very thick and medium texture hair. For my daughter it takes a lot more product but her hair is much more dense and much longer.

Overall this is our favorite leave-in conditioner. If you want to try a few CJ products I recommend this one be placed at the top of the list for purchase!

Curl Junkie Curl Rehab Moisturizing Hair Treatment

Curl Junkie Curl Rehab Moisturizing Hair Treatment (CJCR)

CJCR is a very versatile product. It can be used as a daily conditioner, leave-in (LI), and a deep treatment (DT) depending on your hair's texture, porosity, and density. If you have fine and thin wavy hair then the best use is as a deep treatment for which it performs sublimely. It has enough slip to work through your hair, you do not need a ton of product, and your hair will suck it right up and thank you. Those with more medium-coarse textures can use it as a daily conditioner and a leave-in. We've done both a DT and used this as a daily regular rinse out condis as well as a leave-in for my daughter's very dense fine to coarse hair. Our preference on her hair is more of the daily conditioner and leave-in. As a leave-in we have never had a product get her hair as soft and silky as this one. It does not leave her hair greasy, limp, producty, etc no matter how much we use. This conditoner comes in two scents: Strawberry and Gardenia-Coconut. My daughter is fine with either but I prefer Strawberry as I'm not keen on florals. The scent of the Gardenia one does not linger however if you are worried about it. We found the strawberry scent to linger longer in our hair. Highly recommended for all hair types.

The above is a pic with my daughter's hair after using the CJCR

Curl Junkie Curl Assurance Shampoo

Curl Junkie Curl Assurance Gentle Cleansing Shampoo

This is a very nice and very gentle shampoo. It contains no SLS. It has a very floral smell-which you will either love, hate, or grow to appreciate. It does an outstanding job at cleaning your hair. Wavies (as opposed to curlies) often need a good low poo to keep their hair from being limp, greasy, or flat. Not all wavies low-poo or poo but for those that do this is an excellent choice. It is very runny--which makes it easier to distribute but, if you are not careful, that will include distributing it through your hands to the bottom of the tub/shower as well. My advice: use it in small amounts-no more than a dime. If you need more add just another dime worth. It works best to do this in sections on your hair--if you don't section your hair off then just use it on the back, front, and each side each time using a minimal amount. This gets all your hair without the problem of it running through your hands. My daughter loves this shampoo and the smell as well--it cleans her hair that is prone to build up very well. Her hair we have to section to wash and because this is runnier we can get it down to her scalp through her thick and dense strands. Those of you with thicker or more dense hair will appreciate this shampoo's liquidity!

Welcome to the Wavy Tales

Greetings and a big shout out to all my fellow wavies and curlies!

This is my first blog experience!

I'll be spending much of my time talking about the Curly Girl Method products and doing reviews. The methods and the madness. I'm a product junkie and love to experiment with new hair products!

We have 3 wavies in my house-me (fine, thin and wavy hair), my daughter (fine to coarse, thick, and wavy/curly hair) and my son (medium, thick and wavy hair). That's a lot of wavies to experiment on!

So come on in and sit a spell and read about the tales of a wavy..................