You know how it goes: if you have curly or wavy hair, you want straight hair; and if you have straight hair, you want curly or wavy hair.
I am very much a victim to this all too common whim. Since I have fine, stubbornly straight hair, I’m always on the lookout for products that can add volume and texture and, when I’m on a curl kick, can actually help form and hold curls without turning my hair crunchy.
In my quest for curl enhancement (okay, I guess it’s more curl formation in my case), there are only two products which I can truly rave about. The first is Strictly Curls Curl Defining Lotion from Marc Anthony True Professional’s Strictly Curls line. The second is, for some purposes, even better than Strictly Curls…but you’ll have to tune in tomorrow to hear what it is ;)
For now, I’ll just explain why Strictly Curls Defining Lotion is one of my favorite, if not my all-time favorite, hair products.
The “lotion” actually comes in gel form. However, it doesn’t leave hair crunchy (unless you absolutely load this stuff on). This gel is great for setting hair in rollers (velcro, heated, or those soft cotton twisty kind). It also works extremely well when you work it into damp hair before blowdrying with a round brush.
This lotion also simply acts as an excellent texturizer for hair. Regardless of whether I decide to curl my hair, I always use this lotion before blowdrying to get more volume and movement.
Last, but definitely not least, this gel really outperforms the competition when it comes to getting “wash-and-go” hair to actually look like its been styled. If I’m in a major hurry in the morning or I just don’t feel like dealing with the whole hair-styling sha-bang, I’ll just finger comb some of this gel into my hair and then keep scrunching and touseling it while it dries. The result is super low-fuss hair with minimized frizz and flatness.
Strictly Curls Curl Defining Lotion is available for $7.99 from Drugstore.com.
3 responses so far ↓
1 Karen // Feb 12, 2008 at 2:39 pm
When I read the reviews of this product, I was so excited to try it! Unfortunately, it did not live up to my expectations.
My hair looked AMAZING in the hours just after I used it. I had beautiful curls that were not frizzy or “crispy” from product. The only problem is that this product just doesn’t have the staying power to last all day, and within 5 or 6 hours, my hair looked like a frizzy, fluffy, matted mess. Initially I thought I was just having a bad hair day, so I decided to use the product for one week, but every day it was the same story — beautiful, non-frizzy, non-crispy curls in the morning, and a frizzy fluffy mess in the afternoon.
The best thing I can say about this product is that it smells great!
2 Jazmin // Feb 12, 2008 at 3:43 pm
Hi Karen! Awww, sorry to hear this product didn’t end up working for you!
I actually have super straight hair and I find that this product works well to help set curls and give my hair texture…but it’s really interesting to hear what someone with real curls thinks of this stuff. Thanks so much for sharing your opinion!
For other curly-haired Makeup Moxies out there, do you have a fave curling product that lasts all day?
3 Sarah // Aug 7, 2008 at 8:58 pm
I actually had the same experience with this product. My hair looked great in the morning, but after a day at work I had practically formed dreadlocks. I also stuck it out for a week or so and my hair feels dry and brittle and very tangled up!
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