Deva Deva Deva -- Love, Hate, Love, Eh, Hate, what???

Most Curly girls and guys know that the mother of the curly girl method is Lorraine Massey who wrote the Curly Girl book. She was the one who started it all.

She also developed a line of products called DEVA. There are two kinds of Deva--DevaCurl and DevaCare. My understanding is that the Care products are for processed or color treated hair. She has a few other products like shampoo/condish for blondes, redheads, etc but I haven't tried them.

She's also spawned her own trademarked DevaCut for stylists that is a specific method for cutting curly hair.

I've had a few questions on why I haven't mentioned Deva products or Devacuts. I think the title of the blog post says it all.


To start I have had two "DevaCuts" from two different stylists. The first was a local stylist and came highly recommended. She was o.k.---nothing super special. Then I got a cut from Tiffany of "Live Curly Live Free" fame (her blog is linked on the side for you) and it was FABO--simply awesome. Overall I'd say there is a benefit to a Deva Cut (or dry cut) since they can see how your curls lay when they are cutting. Since I can't go to Florida to Tiffany's regular salon (I lucked out and had her cut my hair on a roadshow to CA) I'm still looking for that perfect stylist. One thing: Because of the way Devacuts and styles are done it is *possible* that you will end up with way less curl than you normally have if you let them style your hair. Don't worry--you'll get to restyle when you get home. I think it comes from using the bonnet dryer (gives me straight hair) and the fact that there is minimal scrunching. Or for me that seems why.

On to Deva products

DevaCurl No-Poo

I do not like the smell of this. I guess it is supposed to be roses but really it's just kind of, well, icky. Strong. And it lllliinnnnggggeerrrrsss fffoooorrreevveeerrrrrrr. Get the drift?

It does a good job cleaning and is heavy enough so that I don't have to use a rinse out conditioner if I don't want to. I do find that it leaves my hair with some sort of "coating" no matter how much I rinse. I'm not keen on that. If I mix Deva products I will end up with dry hair so I usually try to use only one at a time. This I didn't find drying. It's not a repurchase for me.

DevaCurl One-C conditioner

 I LOVE LOVE LOVE the smell of this. Like lemony sweet tarts. I sometimes just pick up the bottle to smell it. Yes I'm weird. I like how this goes on my hair and it is easy to distribute. You don't have to use too much. I find it pretty conditioning but occasionally it seems like it is drying my hair out. I've no idea why. It is an occasional use product. Not sure yet if I'd repurchase since I have so much other stuff I love.

DevaCare Low-Poo

We like this at my house. It works well and it does not strip my daughter's hair but leaves it pretty well moisturized for a shampoo. The smell is o.k. I'm not keen on the whole orange creamsicle smell of the DevaCare products but we can live with it. It works as well with both my son and I. We don't encounter the dryness from this poo that others seem to.

Deva Set It Free:

For the life of me I do not see the draw of this outside of a curl emergency. Everytime I use it all that happens is that my hair sticks together (or my hands do if I put it on my hands first) and its gunky. It also seems to attract every speck of dust and dirt in the atmosphere to deposit on my hair. Reserved for a Code Blue situation ONLY.
Deva MirrorCurl: Another ish. Just ish.

Deva Set Up and Above: While this gave me shine it turns out I'm horribly allergic to it. I have not yet identified the substance inside that is causing this but I gave it away real quick when the hives showed up.

DevaCare ArcAngell: Made my hair drier than the Sahara. Took a week to get it back to normal. Unbelievably awful experience. Could not get rid of it fast enough.

DevaCurl Angell: Seems like this is the one they always want to use on me when I get a haircut. I'm not fond although its not as drying as the ArcAngell stuff. It just does not have enough hold for me and I end up with barely any wave.

So there you have it. My love to hate relationship with Deva. The end.

P.S. I only put pics of the products I still have.

Donna Marie Products

I've only tried a few of the Donna Marie products that are currently on the market. I've used a few that are no longer made. Her curling jelly is AMAZING. Full stop.

The Mira Curl Curling Gelly smells sweet and looks a lot like homemade flax seed gel but more substantial. It's slippery but not slimy and its consistency allows you to spread it through your hair easily. This is a curl enhancer--on it's own it did not have enough hold for my 2C hair. I'm pretty used to that though so it's o.k.! It is a very nice sized bottle for the money and it seems to work equally as well on all hair types. Both the above pic's are with this product in (two different days). You can clearly see the curl enhancing. If you are looking for a good curl enhancer you should try this one out! Be warned though she sometimes gets sold out of stuff so if you see it and want it I recommend you buy it right away!

Gekko422 on naturallycurly.com says "I used DM Mira Curl and really liked it" if you need a second opinion :)

I absolutely adore the Mira Curl Detangler and Conditioner. I use this is a leave in an it never fails to give me a good amount of moisture without being too much. I've used it as a rinse out but honestly it works best as leave in for me. That's a very high compliment from me as leave ins are much harder for me than rinse out conditioners. The smell is sweet with a very very light citrus undertone. I don't have a pic since I'm using some from another curly and it's not in the right bottle. Excellent!

Mira Curl Moisture Mist comes in a spray bottle. It's primarily aloe juice with some other things. I've used it a couple of times. Overall it is o.k. but if I'm not careful I can get oily and stringy hair really quick with this. The smell is sweet. I suspect that medium to coarse wavies and curlies would like this better than fine haired peeps. T liked it just fine and she has mixed textures.

The Coco Hemp Buttermilk is a styler. I've used it as a conditioner to great success. As a styler/leave in I think it's too heavy for my hair. It smells just like the old Coco Hemp Buttercream which I LOVE to use to Scrunch Out the Crunch (SOTC). I simply adore the smell. This is another one that I only have a smaller sample of so it's not pictured. I'll update this post once I use it in the lower dews and humidity we've been having as I think it is a much better winter product as it is very very rich. You have to watch how much you use or you will end up a bit oily if you have fine hair. T didn't like the smell so we didn't use it on her hair but I'm betting it's another product that works better on med/coarse hair.

Darcy's Botanicals

I love Darcy's Botanical Products!

I originally thought the line wouldn't work because there were a lot of heavy products which seemed more aimed at things like twist outs and braids--none of which I can do on my fine and thin hair. Turns out her products work well for ALL types of hair!

My first and still favorite product is the Natural Coils Curling Jelly. This is one of my HG curl enhancing products and it consistently gives me awesome curls! I love everything about it--the smell (Citrus), the texture (gel but not super slimy) and the color which is a sort of yellow brown. It has lots of ingredients my hair loves like coconut and protein. I use about a dime sized for each side of my hair then another dime on the back and canopy. I use a hard hold gel over it and pixie diffuse or scrunch while diffusing. You can see how awesome this works by viewing my PikiStrip above--the "After" front view is with DB NCCJ! VERY Highly recommended!

Daily Leave In was my next product to try and I have it in the Peach scent. The smell, like all of Darcy's other products, is yummy. It does have some emulsifying wax in it so if you are sensitive to waxes you'll have to take that into account. This is very similar in my hair to fairly heavy hair milks. A little dab will do you if you've got fine and/or thin hair. In my daughters thick hair that's more medium texture we use about a Tsp on each of 7 sections. It works equally well in her hair. I do have to watch humidity and dew point as this has glycerin which can be problematic during one of SoCal's dry spells but otherwise it's an all season styler and moisturizer for me. Lovely!

The Detangling Milk comes in a spray bottle but I found it too heavy to use that way so I just pour some in my hand. I love the vanilla smell (you can chose a scent) and it does a good job of providing moisture and detangling should you need it. I find it very comparable to the Daily Leave In--interchangable for me.

Another of my favorite products is the Coconut and Aloe Moisture Pudding. This is my GO TO product for moisture particularly on DRY hair. If I've used a product with mag sulfate OR my hair is really dry that day or the humidity is in the teen's I break this out and use about 2 tsp and scrunch it in. It never leaves my hair oily or greasy--in fact my hair's two favorite things (outside of the main love which is protein) are Aloe and Coconut--so this was an easy choice. I was out all day today in 14% humidity--normally that would mean my hair would be a dry hot mess when I got home. Not so now--it's after 6pm and my hair is STILL soft and bouncy. Yeah Darcy's!

The last product is Peach Kernel Nectar (not pictured because I used it all up!). OMG the scent..oh lawdy the scent. It REMINDS me of the South and summer days out fishing and coming in to my Grandma's peaches with FRESH cream on top. Melt in your mouth goodness. This is just an amazing oil--it's not heavy and it absorbs into your hair very well. I use it in my hair as a kind of Pre-poo when I'm going to take a bath. The scent envelopes me while I'm relaxed and enjoying a hot soak. Heavenly! You simply MUST try it!

Look for more reviews from Darcy's Botanical's later this month or early next year-I'm waiting on a shipment of a couple of the new products right now! I can't wait to try them! Also the owner of Darcy's is outstanding--she replies to emails promptly, ships promptly, and is always willing to work with you. A wonderful company!

www.darcysbotanicals.com

Sweet Nature by Eddie Shampoo, Condish, Spray

I discovered Sweet Nature by Eddie products via youtube. There are several really excellent and fun reviews of her products there--so first go check them out!

Now that you've seen the reviews I'll add my thoughts.

First a word--I am very committed to supporting female owned businesses whether they be for a more mom and pop operation or whether they are manufactured products. The owner of SNBE has also gifted us with inspiration and uplifiting stories and quotes that are actually on her product labels. It's a little something that is greatly appreciated and gives her a unique niche in the world of natural hair care.

So on to the products:

Inspiration Shampoo--this is my favorite "low-poo". It doesn't have any SLS in it. The smell is divine--like juices and berries and fruit. It does lather but not as much as a shampoo with SLS in it. It gets my scalp clean and does not strip my hair at all. In fact after shampooing my hair does not feel as if I shampoo'ed it at all. Many low-poo's can still make my hair feel a bit stripped but not this one.

Love Deep Conditioner--I like this conditioner. It smells like other minty scented hair products. The scent to me is not that special. When I first tried it I didn't use any form of heat and considered this to just be an o.k. product--but nothing special. After reading a couple more reviews I realized that it's true use was really as a more deep conditioner and that the application of heat was essential to obtain the full benefit from the product. So I tried it. WHAT A HUGE DIFFERENCE! Not only did my hair feel unbelievably soft but I could feel the peppermint tingle working! So if you first use it without heat and don't think it's anything special do yourself a favor and add the heat element (put it on and put a hot towel on top of your cap or run around to generate body heat or sit under your dryer and so on).

The consistency is not thick which frankly was very surprising to me in a product labeled a deep conditioner. Normally they tend to be ultra thick and hard to distribute. This is not one of those so don't dismiss it without trying it.

Growth Spray--now we come to my very first love for any spray product for my hair. I have no idea how this spray works this well--by all accounts it should weigh my hair down as it is composed of many oils--but it doesn't. The spray comes out in a very fine mist that distributes evenly without saturating your hair. It smells scrumptious and it does linger a bit--so you might have folks telling you how good you smell. This is a very moisturizing spray that can also be used as a leave-in. I don't use this as a refresher spray as I don't really do second day hair (I need to experiment with my products!) but we use it frequently on my daughter's hair to tame frizz by putting moisture in her hair.

All three of these products are staples for me and in my main product rotation. I highly recommend giving them a try. You can order a small sampler pack to you don't need to invest in the full size products right away. She also ships quickly--so for those of you that know how long you sometimes have to wait for natural hair care products from other businesses I can say I've never waited longer than a week for shipment from Sweet Nature by Eddie. You can find her products on www.fabulousblackwoman.com

Enjoy!

Curl Junkie Sprays

Curl Junkie Sprays

Curl Junkie Curl Assurance Hair Styling Water

&

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.