Simple routine with 4 products for curly & wavy hair

briogeo products curl charisma

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Simple routine for curly & wavy hair

You can easily get the best out of your natural curls or waves with a simple routine. It’s not rocket science to tame and define those natural waves or ringlets!

I know that a lot of people don’t even give their curls a chance, once they get overwhelmed by the information overdose regarding The Curly Girl Method. I understand. But for now, forget about all the rules and intricate techniques.  Simplicity works and here’s a four product routine to prove that. I urge you to try this.

My sister Jasmin’s before and after this routine. I applied gel to wet hair and a bit more after drying it with the turban.

ennen jälkeen luonnonkihara briogeo tuotteet
My sister Annika’s before and after using the 4 product routine mentioned in this post. I applied gel after drying the hair with the turban.

Simple four product routine for naturally curly or wavy hair

I washed and styled my hair using the methods and products of this post. Furthermore I tested this routine on two of my sisters, who have wavy hair (and who normally don’t treat their hair like this). The results are amazing, as you can see. It really doesn’t take that much more for the curls and waves to appear. You might be surprised!

4 products for naturally curly hair:
*Briogeo Be Gentle Be Kind Replenishing Shampoo
*Briogeo Be Gentle Be Kind Replenishing Conditioner
*Briogeo Curl Charisma Gel
*Aquis Rapid Dry Turban

+ a satin *Invisibbole sprunchie for style and night

briogeo be gentle be kind replenishing shampoo conditioner review

 

1.Wash with Be Gentle Be Kind Apple Replenishing Shampoo
This shampoo is gentle, yet cleans well without drying out the curls. Really massage your scalp and rinse out the shampoo.

If your scalp feels oily or your hair has some product leftover, shampoo twice. Double shampooing might be good technique for anyone who struggles with scalp problems. I swear it’s not too much, especially with this shampoo.

 

2.Condition with Be Gentle Be Kind Apple Replenishing Conditioner
Be Gentle Be Kind conditioner is ideal for different hair types, because it offers a good slip to the hair, smooths down any tangles and is very lightweight. Work the conditioner in the lengths of your hair and untangle any knots so that your hair feels sleek. Rinse out the conditioner.

If your hair is very dry, you can rinse out the conditioner lazily, leaving a bit of conditioner on the hair.

 

3.Dry your hair using Aquis rapid dry turban
After shower, scrunch out excess water from your hair. Then dry your hair using Aquis rapid dry turban. Using this special towel really makes a difference, because it absorbs water from the hair faster than a regular towel, it’s more gentle on the hair, gives the hair more shine and helps define those curls! I know it all sounds too good to be true, but Aquis turbans are actually awesome. I have raved about them multiple times here. Ever since I started using these towels on my hair, it has become shinier and healthier. I’m never going back to regular towels.

How to dry your hair to bring out the curls: Scrunch out water from your hair with the narrow side of the turban. It’s all about squeezing and scrunching, no rubbing. Then gather your hair in one pile on the wider side of the turban and wrap it up to let your hair dry inside the turban for 10-30 minutes.

4.Scrunch in gel to either wet or towel dried hair
The best styling product for waves and curls is a gel. Briogeo’s Curl Charisma gel is a trusted product, which I’ve used for years. I’m pretty sure this is my fifth tube already. The gel is easy to use, because it’s so lightweight yet it offers a nice, soft hold. I love that, because I like my hair to feel like there’s not really product in it.

If you notice your curls forming better when they’re more wet, you might want to try adding the gel to wet hair, instead of towel dried hair (so before wrapping up your hair in the turban). If the curls are fine towel dried, then add the gel then. My waves seem to like it more that I add a bit of gel to quite wet hair. And then after drying my hair in the turban I add a bit more. That’s how I did my hair for the photos in this post.

How to add gel for curls:
To add the gel, flip your hair upside down and to the side, and scrunch in the gel. You can also carefully slide your hands on the hair to get it evenly on the hair. And then, either let air dry or diffuse. Once your hair is dry and the gel is dry, you can just fluff up your hair and break out the curls a bit, whatever your preference.

 

invisibobble slim ballerina sprunchie

+ Satin sprunchies for style & night

I’m not the best at hairdos, but I love styling my hair with beautiful scrunchies. A soft fabric is the most gentle for your hair. So at the same time, you can preserve your curls and look fabulous! I love Invisibobble’s satin sprunchies.

*Sprunchie Slim Ballerina Ribbon
This has to be the prettiest sprunchie I own. It comes with a detachable ribbon.
*Sprunchie Slim True Golden
Black & golden satin sprunchie set. I really like these for half updos.
*Sprunchie Swim With Mi Simply The Zest
This cute sprunchie is made from swimwear material. It dries quickly making it ideal for swimming/wet hair.


For night, I recommend tying your hair in a high loose ponytail to save the curls!


Briogeo + naturally curly or wavy hair = perfect match

I’m very happy that I got to do this post with Briogeo. Every once in a while I try different products, but I always go back to this brand. Briogeo uses a lot of natural ingredients (90-100% depending on the product) and the products are gentle and moisturizing on the hair. My hair feels luxurious after using these, like I had just used professional hair care products. Briogeo is also cruelty free and vegan.

Be Gentle Be Kind Replenishing products are awesome, because they work for different types of curly hair. They look like delicious green smoothies and actually do have a lot of fruit extracts in them. The line also includes *Moisture Superfood Mask, which I like to use every once in a while to pamper my hair. The products have a fruity scent, that is not too strong for my (sensitive) nose.

My sisters also liked the products. Jasmin was amazed how little conditioner was needed even for long dry hair.

Basically all the products work with the curly girl method, since they don’t contain sulfates or silicones. So they are an easy option for anyone with curly or wavy hair. The shampoos wash the hair well, without harsh sulfates. With the conditioners, you don’t miss the silicones, because these make the hair feel wonderfully sleek. I know that washing your hair can feel like such a task, especially if your hair is long, but these help by really smoothing any tangles and making the hair soft.

A few of my other Briogeo favorites

Briogeo has a big selection, so there is something for everyone.

*Be Gentle Be Kind Aloe + Oat Milk Soothing fragrance-free
Fragrance-free line! I’ve tested these a few times and compared to this post’s products, these are lighter.
*Scalp Revival Micro Exfoliating Shampoo
I deep cleanse my scalp with that about once a month. The fresh clean feel it leaves on my scalp is super satisfying.
*Don’t Despair Repair Treatment Oil
Sometimes I scrunch and fluff up my curls with a bit of this oil in my fingers. Oils are tricky for fine hair, but this actually seems lightweight enough to work. I used a drop of this for Jasmin’s hair also.

I might have said this before, but I think natural waves and curls are so beautiful. Yes they’re unpredictable and they don’t look like they’ve been made with a curling iron, but that’s the point! I love how soft and bouncy my waves feel. I like how they represent my personality. And best of all, ever since I started to take care of my hair, my hair became so much healthier and longer.

Scalp problems, seborrheic dermatitis & the curly girl method

curly hair scalp problems

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For the longest of time, I struggled with scalp problems. That also caused me to struggle with my curls, which I didn’t even realize until now. Suddenly my waves were not as curly as they used to be and my usually dry hair seemed to be waxy and shiny. Nothing was working and I was struggling with dry, oily, itchy scalp. And bad hair days. I feel like I was also losing more hair than usual.

I felt like a failure and a fraud with my horrible hair. Especially since my post about curly girl method and curly hair routine is still one of the most read post on this site. I couldn’t understand why suddenly the things I used to do for my hair didn’t work anymore.

After quietly suffering with it for several months, I finally realized something. The kind of dandruff and scalp problems I had weren’t normal. Having a flaky dry scalp, that also felt oily and waxy, even right after washing, wasn’t normal. I remembered hearing about this scalp eczema called seborrheic dermatitis and after reading about it online, everything made sense.

Seborrheic dermatitis & how I fixed my scalp and curl problems

[Note: I’m talking about my scalp problems honestly and it can be gross. Also, I have not been diagnosed by a doctor and this is all based on my own research and experience. Also, getting a doctor’s appointment at this crazy time and going to a doctor is not my priority.]

Seborrheic dermatitis is a very common skin condition that causes dandruff and over production of sebum. It might also have a little something to do with the curly girl method, since you’re not washing your hair regularly. That might allow the oils and natural yeasts to profiliterate in your scalp. (Source.)

Seborrheic eczema is also linked to acne, which I’m all too familiar with. Luckily right now my skin otherwise is in a pretty good shape.

Here you can see how my scalp and hair looked like at its worst. This was after my first wash with the ketoconazole shampoo. Hadn’t had that fresh and airy hair in months!

In my case, it’s like having all the scalp problems at once. I had dry scalp and dry dandruff. I also had oily scalp with this weird sebum-dandruff. A shampoo did nothing to it and even right after washing my hair my scalp felt flaky and oily. If I touched my scalp, my fingertips felt oily. I just couldn’t clean my scalp with a regular shampoo. I realized that it also affected my hair and curls, since the sebum got built up in my hair. No wonder my hair felt alien to me. Hair loss is not common with seborrheic eczema, but I’ve also had hair loss. It could also be hormonal in my case, though.

The best treatment for seborrheic eczema on your scalp is simple: wash your hair every day. UV-light also apparently helps, so all the more reason to love summer. Depending on the severity of your problem, you also need a special shampoo. I read that *shampoos containing ketoconazole are pretty effective, because they get rid of yeast, so I bought that.

And you know what? I felt like my problem went away with one wash! Already I felt the itching ease and my hair felt airy and voluminous again. (That is when I had to share my revelation on Instagram stories, so if you follow me there, you probably saw my excitement. You can check out the clips from my Highlights.)

seborrheic dermatitis curly hair

My new hair routine

I’ve now been on my new hair wash routine for about a month and I can say that the problem is pretty much gone. I mean, I understand the condition is probably gonna stay with me, but I have it under control. It feels amazing. (IT FEELS AMAZING!)

I have used my ketoconazole shampoo 1-2 times per week as instructed. Other than that, I can use my normal shampoos. I try to wash my hair every day, but sometimes, if my scalp feels okay, I can get away with skipping one wash.

Besides the shampoo, nothing has really changed. I use my curly hair approved conditioners and gels. So if you have scalp problems, you can still take care of your curls! It just means washing your hair hair more often, which is a bit more work. That is why I don’t always feel like applying gel and I might just use shampoo and conditioner and call it a day. Currently just having clean hair feels amazing.

I’m so happy that I managed to find help for my hair problems. I’m so happy that I got my curls back too! It honestly felt like it did when I first started the curly girl method. I had curly hair! I had curls! It was the same excitement all over again.

New curly hair products

Since then I have tried some new products and I have some new curly hair product recommendations. I listed all the products I used for the curls you see in these photos. (You’ll find all my other recommendations from the curly hair 101 post.)

1-2 per week *
*Ketoconazole shampoo – the specific one I use is Ratiopharm Ketoconazol shampoo

Daily:
*Loreal Source Essentielle Shampoo
*Loreal Source Essentielle Balm
Noughty 1 Hit Wonder Cleansing Conditioner
*Ecostyler Olive Oil Curl Gel
*Aquis fast dry hair turban

The shampoo I’ve used is Loreal’s Source Essentielle Shampoo. It’s sulfate free and feels gentle, but effective on my hair (since a very clean scalp has become a priority!). For conditioners, I use both the Loreal Balm and the Noughty Cleansing Conditioner. The 1 hit wonder cleansing conditioner is actually made for co-washing, but it works fine as a conditioner for me. It’s lightweight, but gives some moisture and shine to my hair. I feel like using both of these has worked great. Sometimes I use a heavier conditioner and sometimes a lighter one. That way my hair doesn’t get too overwhelmed, since my long wavy hair can’t take too much nourishing products.

That’s it. It feels like a stone has been lifted from my chest! I’m sure I’m not alone with my scalp and curl problems, so it felt important to share. Have you experienced something similar?

 

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