Do I need a gel??

This is just a short post to talk about a topic I've been asked about and have been reading a lot of questions about...

So recently, I have been noticing a lot of people getting confused on this topic or wondering why cremes may not be enough for their hair. I've been thinking about this question and I've noticed that there are certain categories of hair that do better with gel. Now, you have to take this with a grain of salt, because again, it depends what your ultimate hair goals are...do you like definition and don't mind some crunch (from the hard hold gel) or do you just want softness and volume?

Let's take a product like our CoffeeCoco Curl Creme...If your hair is in the 2's (wavy) or 3a (loose curls) or 3b (classic curly hair with smaller curls), then you may want to pair up using a little of the Curl Creme with a gel on top (like our Aloe Fix Gel or a hard holding gel of your choice). This will help give you the benefits or enhanced curl definition with the "durability" and hold factor of the gel.

3c (tight curls) and 4a (tight curls/coils) type hair would most likely only need to use the Curl Creme. This is because this type does not really need something to prevent the curl from falling/coming out of their hair. This type is usually more concerned with moisture, shrinkage and then definition. A small amount of Curl Creme usually will do and adding a gel on top can lead to product overkill and not much added benefit. This hair type also tends to suffer more from white balls or flakes forming when they use a creme/leave-in under a gel. I think in order to combat this, you have to be sure that whatever product used under the gel is almost completely absorbed/dispersed through the hair before adding the gel product. A combo I like for my hair is the Hibiscus & Banana Deep Fix Conditioner rinsed out and then followed with the CoffeeCoco curl creme. This usually provides enough moisturization and hold for the day. This is a winning combo for my hair (3c/4a). When I want to combat shrinkage and get definition, then I'll just use the Aloe Fix, rake it through my hair and add more water to disperse the product. Another good combo is the Hibiscus & Banana Honey Butta or Curl Assurance Leave-in Conditioner, followed by our Smoothing Gellie. These combos work very well to provide moisture and definition with a light hold.

Lastly, all hair types should watch out for using too many conditioning products which can lead to frizz and over-conditioning. Using a rinse out conditioner and then a leave-in and then a creme and then a gel and then a pomade, can be a bit much for the hair and using all these products at once can lead to bad interactions as they may not work together chemically. I usually recommend to choose between using a leave-in or a curl creme because using both at the same time can cause frizz.