I have been embracing my curly hair for two years now, and after following the curly girl method very strictly for the first year, I now break several rules, and here’s why!
My hair is 2c/3a, fine, medium density and high porosity, due to this it gets weighed down pretty easily. So, the first CGM rule that I no longer follow is...
CO-WASHING
In the beginning, I tried only co-washing my hair and although it did make it feel more moisturised, I also had the feeling that my hair was never really squeaky clean and felt full of product all the time. I think if you have denser, curlier or more coarse hair, co-washing is probably a fantastic method for you, but it just didn’t work for me.
So, I now use a shampoo! It is a sulphate free shampoo (I use Maui Moisture), and it makes my hair still feel hydrated while also giving me the proper clean feeling. I also use a sulphate shampoo every month or so, this is to remove any hard-water build up.
The second rule I break is...
DEEP CONDITIONING
I never deep condition my hair.. sacrilege, I know! When I first started the CGM, every article and video I saw said deep conditioning was essential at least once a week.. so that’s what I did. I thought because my hair felt dry and frizzy, it obviously desperately needed to be deep conditioned, right? WRONG! It is so, so important to get to know your hair and understand the way your hair works. I absolutely did not need more moisture, I actually needed protein. High porosity, fine hair tends to need protein more than other hair types, and if I had known this in the beginning, I would have saved myself many a bad hair day!
The third and final rule i break is a biggie, and it’s...
USING HEAT
I found it so hard to get used to seeing myself with curly hair - and I know that sounds very dramatic but I just didn’t recognise myself with tight ringlets around my face. After a couple of years of trying to force myself to love it, I came to the realisation that I just didn’t. I suit (in my opinion) a much more relaxed wave, and unfortunately (and annoyingly) the hair round my face is really curly, and the hair towards the back fo my head is more wavy. So, I now blow-dry and add a wave the front section of my hair to match the curl pattern towards the back of my head. Doing this has made me love my natural hair so much more. Even though it is only a tiny section that I use heat on, it makes all the difference and makes me feel so much more confident.
Sure, I would love to have hair that is the same curl pattern all the way round my head, and a curl pattern that I feel suits me, but I just don’t. I gave it a good go, but life is too short to try and convince yourself you like something when you don’t, so I feel like I’ve compromised and I am very happy about that!