by: Cristina Rivera

Hey curly girls, Winter is here! It is brick cold out there and I don’t know about you, but the thought of walking outside with my hair wet doesn’t exactly appeal to me. I’m trying to embrace my curls, waves and random frizz and stay away from the hair straightener. We’ll see how that goes, but for now, I’m really doing my best to care for my tresses while staying on a budget.

I’ve tried so many things on this mop of hair and sometimes I wonder if it’s just time to cut it. That is just a passing thought of course as those of you that know me know that there’s no way I’ll go short. Like evah!

Being that my hair is down to my waist, the amount of product I need to use is kind of a lot. I mean if I want to get everything covered and not have one patch of uncontrollable hair. My blow dryer and diffuser usually help me out around this time of year, but if I’m being honest, it’s not something that I really enjoy. I’m more of a full face of makeup top knot kind of girl, you know, a la everybody. Thank goodness that top knot hasn’t gone out of style because lately, it’s all that saves me lately.

So, here’s me trying to enjoy my hair before it starts to change with age. Going through different products to see which one will hold true to their promise and hold up with my mane.

I recently worked a wedding where I was doing a bridesmaid’s makeup and her hair was very similar to mine. She walked in with wet wavy curls and said she was only getting her makeup done, not her hair. She was waiting for it to air dry. Here was my chance, I can pick another curly top’s brain about what she loves in the world of coils.

She smirked at me and said, “have you ever heard of Not Your Mothers”. I HAD in fact seen the brand pretty much everywhere but never thought to try it. Though she had only tried the mousse, she assured me that there would be no “dandruff” left behind by this product. She told me she’d show me when she finished scrunching, so I can see how her hair turned out. She said, “it’s soft and shiny, not crunchy like a lot of others.”

When it was time for the bridesmaids to leave, she came out from putting her dress on and her hair looked AMAZING! It was just as she said, shiny, bouncy and perfect. After I finished up with the bridal party, I packed up my gear and I couldn’t wait to find a can of my own.

I found one at Walmart and was happy to see that it wasn’t very expensive at all. The next time I washed my hair (dry shampoo and I have a deal you see, so I don’t have to wash that often) I used the mousse. It felt light and airy, but it left my hands feeling sticky. Who cares?! Not me if it’s going to deliver on its promises.

I let my hair air dry while I went about my day (I didn’t go out so no wet head outside in the cold) and was already impressed with the shine. Then came the scrunching. With each fist full of hair my tresses were separated, bouncy, curly and soft. As I got closer to my crown, it got fuller and looked more styled. Looking in the mirror I was so excited to see it live up to what I had been told. For kicks, I washed my hair again and used the mousse, this time using my hairdryer and diffuser and was legit amazed at how good my hair looked. Not dry, no static or flyaways, just shiny, bouncy, curly hair. Did I just purchase the best curl booster ever from WALMART?! Shut Up!!

The next morning when I let my hair down from the crumpled top knot I shoved it in the night before, I watched as my curls fell right into place. They didn’t kink or bend as they had with some other products I’ve used. They looked as though I had just done my hair. Are you kidding me right now??? The next day with a head full of curls and waves that look freshly done?!

I kid you not, my hair has found its new best friend.

Have any of you used this mousse before? Have you tried any of the other products in this line? If you have, how’d you like ‘em? Let me know in a comment below.