I haven't used Deva Curl products in a while so I can't attest to the recent uproar. I feel like I'm in a constant battle with my hair only because I never seem to really love it unless it's just been washed. I tend to wear it in a lot of pony tails because that's how it is when I'm teaching or when it's really humid. Of course when I go to wear it down afterwards I have to basically re-wet my whole head in order to tame the best.
I've gone to see a "curl specialist" named Scott Musgrave a few times in Cary, which is about 25 mins from where I live. He helped me tremendously to learn how to actually enjoy my curls, but I hated that every time I visited him I was shamed for continuing to highlight my hair. Maybe there's truth to his words that the bleach ruins the curls and therefore I have no reason to complain, but I see lots of girls with curls who highlight their hair and it looks beautiful. I tried growing the color out for about 8 months and I hated it. Was it silver? Was it brown? Was it dirty blonde? It's anyone's guess. So I went and re-highlighted it. I honestly don't think it makes a damn bit of difference. If I wet my hair enough and add a sealer or gel or leave in conditioner I'm happy. I just hate the concept that I have to douse my hair with water in order to take it out from a pony tail and look halfway decent.
That was a lot of rambling that had nothing to do with Deva Curl products. :-D
I totally sympathize with the "post pony tail" hair when it's textured. I have waves more so than curls, but it's still an issue for me. If I don't follow up my wash and condition with some sort of product, I end up with a frizzy poofy mess. Girls with straight hair have no idea what the struggle is like for wavy/curly girls! LOL
Back to the ponytail.... Have you tried Invisibobble hair elastics? They look like a telephone cord. They are the only thing I can put my hair up with and not get the crease from.
The other thing that I like to do when I wear my hair up is to French braid it rather than do the pony tail thing. I find the french braid doesn't destroy my wave as much and might even add to it slightly
Wow, @sunshine. I had forgotten about that. I see the post now. I never liked any of their shampoos and conditioners, maybe luckily. I ordered some Biotera products this week. I will report back.
Yup.
I was an early victim.
Remember my comment back in 2018 about my terrible hair after using DevaCurl shampoo and conditioner? Well that progressed to worse than a bad hair day. I ended up with scalp irritation, sores and hair loss. Not as bad as some of these poor women, but issues none the less.
It's too bad this didn't blow up back when I was having issues. Now people are getting free returns and full refunds. I got the run around when I asked for a return and refund. They wanted a doctor's note to "prove" that it was the shampoo and conditioner. Then when they finally agreed to my return they made me pay return shipping. I lost close to $30 or $40 of my refund (which was about half of it) on shipping.
My scalp hasn't been the same since.
I continued to use the Light Defining Gel and Curl defining cream for a long time after that without any issues.
I've read some of the more rationale opinions of the DevaCurl issues and I have to agree that people are "jumping on the bandwagon" with this. I don't think the issue is necessarily JUST Deva Curl as there are still PLENTY of women in the curl groups I'm in on Facebook who use it and have been using it for YEARS without issue. So if they are going to cite formulation as the cause that doesn't explain the people who are still using it without issue.
I know for me at least part of the problem with Deva Curl shampoo was that it didn't cleanse enough for my sclap AND I have issues with cocamidopropyl betaine which is the primary cleanser in the shampoo. I get the same hair loss and scalp issues any time I use a cleanser where cocamidopropyl betaine is high in the ingredient list. It's a known irritant so it wouldn't surprise me if at least some of these people are having reactions to it as well. There is also the issue of how high the protein content is in some of those products. Protein can be drying on certain hair types which can cause all sorts of issues as well.
Anyway I'm not convinced this is 100% a Deva Curl problem, but I could be wrong.
Is anybody else following the "Deva Curl destroyed my hair" drama unfolding on YouTube? Apparently, the company has been sold a couple of times and something has changed with the products, something that is causing scalp burns and hair loss. It started out a fringe thing, but now even Deva Curl's own models and influencers are tearfully warning people not to use it. I can't decide if this is mass hysteria or if there is something to it. I'm still using a couple of Deva Curl products (Light Defining Gel and Set It Free) with no problems, but they're huge bottles that are a year or two old, maybe older than the problem. Now, I'm a bit paranoid about buying more!
I’ve also found that when I use regular shampoo and conditioner, my hair looks good every day. It may look varying levels of good, but I never need to wet my hair and start over. That happened multiple times during my curly girl experiment. It would get so greasy, or fuzzy, or flat that I couldn’t leave the house like that.
I need some frizz for my curls to be soft and bouncy and touchable. I think where I go wrong with curly girl is all those tricks to create a frizzless, perfectly defined curl helmet. That takes A LOT of product, and fine hair doesn’t like a lot of product.
Well, I've learned my lesson again. I get so excited about curly girl methods and products. They usually boost my curls at first, but after a month or so of using them exclusively my hair always starts to look dirty and limp. I busted out the sulfates and silicones this morning and my hair is so happy! It loves suds and chemicals. 💕
In the curly girl groups I'm in on Facebook they'd say just to do a clarifying (sulphate) wash and continue as before.
I want to find a product line up that doesn't require clarifying.
I just tried this Curly Susie method to eliminate frizz. https://youtu.be/4Vt560wPBWA It totally worked! My whole head was frizzed. The humidity has been nuts lately. I had assumed the situation was hopeless today, but I tried her method using little drops of the conditioner, oil, and gel I already have. It worked beautifully without weighing my hair down. I'll be using this trick all summer!. I feel like I'm really stepping up my curly girl game lately.
I actually got some wave in my hair yesterday!
After getting some wave back on a very humid day I thought maybe my hair just needs some moisture. So I've deep conditioned it a few times, and skipped shampoo a few times. I saw slight improvements. Then yesterday I used aloe, leave in and an essential oil spray on my hair after washing and out came the waves. They weren't strong, but they were there.
Day Whatever of testing my new products - I am reminded that co-washing (shampooing with conditioner) is not my thing. It starts off promising. Shiny coils, good definition, smells great, feels soft and clean(ish), but then a few hours later my hair always looks greasy and dirty. I think my texture is too fine for that. My hair likes shampoo. Today, trying to get the greasy, itchy co-wash feel out of it, I used Head & Shoulders Repair and Protect shampoo with the TXTR moisture masque in the tub. Not bad, but I think the curls looked better when I used the TXTR shampoo and conditioner together. I'll do that next time. They have a legit foaming shampoo with no sulfates that was very nice. It says, "Color treated hair + curls, cleansing oil shampoo, gentle conditioning cleanse. Color safe and sulfate free." Good stuff. Now I know not to use that rinse-out / leave-in conditioner by itself, or not to use as much as I did. A few drops mixed with gel might make for a good refresh. I have many more experiments to try.
It's only been one day but early impressions of the TXTR by Cantu products are good. They smell nice and are super moisturizing without weighing down my hair. I had shiny ringlets when it dried. I'll have to use it for a couple of weeks though. You never know if something is going to build up, or dry your ends, or fall flat. Plus, I have to try all the combinations. Shampoo, conditioner, and treatment. Using the conditioner as a co-wash. Just the shampoo and conditioner. See what it does on the second day. I will get back to you with any new developments.
@sunshine Humidity has a huge impact on my curls. My hair is inches shorter in the summer humidity because it curls much more tightly. In the winter when it’s dry and cold, it’s longer and more wavy. I could probably wear it straight then with no frizz. I think the mineral content of water can affect curl too, like whether the water is hard/soft. Our tap water changes when the river floods. It had a really high mineral content this spring and is back to normal now. I think hard water can change the way products work as well.
@sunshine I wonder how much impact hormones have on hair texture. They must have some. I had very straight hair as a kid. Puberty hit and it and so did the curls. I know women have talked about hair changes during and after pregnancy. I can definitely see how age and menopause change things. Maybe the hard exercise of race training affected it in some way?
I just ordered some TXTR by Cantu curly hair products from Target. I will report back.
ya, I had thought about the role of hormones. The weird thing is the difference day to day though. For example, the first weekend in May I had AMAZING curls and waves all weekend. Then I washed my hair and did everything the same and had nothing. Or I'll go weeks with my hair not curling at all and then it rains (like today) and BOOM! curls/waves.
I guess I just didn't think hormones could have such immediate and random effects, but heck, anything is possible.
Curly Susie used the TXTR by Cantu!! I saw it in Sally's today and was going to pick it up but with my hair not curling I didn't think it made sense to buy it.
I don't know what's up with my hair, but it's the straightest it's ever been without my manipulating it with heat to get this way. It really strange. I am in curly hair groups and facebook and have been recommended several things to try in order to get my hair to start curling again, but it's just not working. I'll randomly get a few good curl day and then nothing. Right now my hair is air drying straight but frizzy. I'm not even bothering with styling products because they are a huge waste of time.
I have the same problem with wet hair in winter months. I have to grudgingly admit that diffusing a little bit, although terrible, is not as bad frizz-wise as my wet curls actually freezing solid.
I completely understand what you mean about changing one little thing and curls going haywire! So a couple of years ago I went to see a curly haired specialist in Cary. He's the first person in my life that I've ever met who actually knows what he's talking about when it comes to curls. He helped me learn how to style my hair and showed me what products to use (and what not to use). It's similar to the Curly Girl method but they call it MAP (can't remember what it stands for) but it's pretty cool. They actually released a whole online course for it (that I had to pay for) and I now belong to a fb group that's been really helpful. With all of that being said, I feel like I still struggle with my hair. It's always been fine and thin and I'm starting to think that years of highlights, bleaching, processing, and occasionally straightening has done number on it. To the point where I think I'm finally going to let my highlights grow out or dye my hair to whatever it's natural color is. Which is what - I have no idea..LOL. But I'm hopeful that this may help the health of my hair. I use Innersense Color Radiance Conditioner and leave most of it, followed with Innersense Quality Curl Control (a filler) and finish off with some kind of sealer (like a gel). I apply all of my products in the shower and have discovered that my hair has to be absolutely soaking wet to get good results (hence the reason why I apply products in the shower). My only issue now is letting my hair air dry, which means leaving it soaking wet in the cold winter months. So I've tried diffusing but that still takes forever. I may invest in a better diffuser but for now I attempt to dry it somewhat and then hope for the best. Then when it dries I SOTC (scrunch out the crunch) and cross my fingers!
Do not ask me why I just posted all that...I guess I got a little carried away on this stuff! :-D
Curls are so fickle. It’s funny how you change one thing and disaster unfolds. A few months ago, I tried Garnier Whole Blends, the coconut one. It seemed great at first, but in pretty short order it started stripping my hair color and making my hair look greasy and dirty. I think there was actual coconut oil in it. I had a similar calamity with Aveda Cherry Almond, which smells AMAZING but weighs my hair down and makes me look like I don’t shampoo at all. My curls really don’t like natural oils and plant essences. I have to stick with sulfates and silicones, which are supposed to be horrible, but work great in my case. You never know!
I'm still struggling with my waves. In early May my hair was amazing. I was getting ringlets Then I decided to try DevaCurl shampoo and conditioner. Wow, what a disaster. And things haven't been the same since. I thought I had tried everything, until I realized the other day that the only thing I haven't tried is to go back to what I was doing when my hair/waves was happy. So I order some more of the DevaCurl Curl Cream and Light Defining Gel and I bought the Live Clean shampoo and conditioner I was using. Fingers crossed that i can restore what I had.
I haven't used Deva Curl products in a while so I can't attest to the recent uproar. I feel like I'm in a constant battle with my hair only because I never seem to really love it unless it's just been washed. I tend to wear it in a lot of pony tails because that's how it is when I'm teaching or when it's really humid. Of course when I go to wear it down afterwards I have to basically re-wet my whole head in order to tame the best.
I've gone to see a "curl specialist" named Scott Musgrave a few times in Cary, which is about 25 mins from where I live. He helped me tremendously to learn how to actually enjoy my curls, but I hated that every time I visited him I was shamed for continuing to highlight my hair. Maybe there's truth to his words that the bleach ruins the curls and therefore I have no reason to complain, but I see lots of girls with curls who highlight their hair and it looks beautiful. I tried growing the color out for about 8 months and I hated it. Was it silver? Was it brown? Was it dirty blonde? It's anyone's guess. So I went and re-highlighted it. I honestly don't think it makes a damn bit of difference. If I wet my hair enough and add a sealer or gel or leave in conditioner I'm happy. I just hate the concept that I have to douse my hair with water in order to take it out from a pony tail and look halfway decent.
That was a lot of rambling that had nothing to do with Deva Curl products. :-D
Wow, @sunshine. I had forgotten about that. I see the post now. I never liked any of their shampoos and conditioners, maybe luckily. I ordered some Biotera products this week. I will report back.
Yup. I was an early victim. Remember my comment back in 2018 about my terrible hair after using DevaCurl shampoo and conditioner? Well that progressed to worse than a bad hair day. I ended up with scalp irritation, sores and hair loss. Not as bad as some of these poor women, but issues none the less.
It's too bad this didn't blow up back when I was having issues. Now people are getting free returns and full refunds. I got the run around when I asked for a return and refund. They wanted a doctor's note to "prove" that it was the shampoo and conditioner. Then when they finally agreed to my return they made me pay return shipping. I lost close to $30 or $40 of my refund (which was about half of it) on shipping.
My scalp hasn't been the same since.
I continued to use the Light Defining Gel and Curl defining cream for a long time after that without any issues. I've read some of the more rationale opinions of the DevaCurl issues and I have to agree that people are "jumping on the bandwagon" with this. I don't think the issue is necessarily JUST Deva Curl as there are still PLENTY of women in the curl groups I'm in on Facebook who use it and have been using it for YEARS without issue. So if they are going to cite formulation as the cause that doesn't explain the people who are still using it without issue. I know for me at least part of the problem with Deva Curl shampoo was that it didn't cleanse enough for my sclap AND I have issues with cocamidopropyl betaine which is the primary cleanser in the shampoo. I get the same hair loss and scalp issues any time I use a cleanser where cocamidopropyl betaine is high in the ingredient list. It's a known irritant so it wouldn't surprise me if at least some of these people are having reactions to it as well. There is also the issue of how high the protein content is in some of those products. Protein can be drying on certain hair types which can cause all sorts of issues as well. Anyway I'm not convinced this is 100% a Deva Curl problem, but I could be wrong.
Is anybody else following the "Deva Curl destroyed my hair" drama unfolding on YouTube? Apparently, the company has been sold a couple of times and something has changed with the products, something that is causing scalp burns and hair loss. It started out a fringe thing, but now even Deva Curl's own models and influencers are tearfully warning people not to use it. I can't decide if this is mass hysteria or if there is something to it. I'm still using a couple of Deva Curl products (Light Defining Gel and Set It Free) with no problems, but they're huge bottles that are a year or two old, maybe older than the problem. Now, I'm a bit paranoid about buying more!
I’ve also found that when I use regular shampoo and conditioner, my hair looks good every day. It may look varying levels of good, but I never need to wet my hair and start over. That happened multiple times during my curly girl experiment. It would get so greasy, or fuzzy, or flat that I couldn’t leave the house like that. I need some frizz for my curls to be soft and bouncy and touchable. I think where I go wrong with curly girl is all those tricks to create a frizzless, perfectly defined curl helmet. That takes A LOT of product, and fine hair doesn’t like a lot of product.
Well, I've learned my lesson again. I get so excited about curly girl methods and products. They usually boost my curls at first, but after a month or so of using them exclusively my hair always starts to look dirty and limp. I busted out the sulfates and silicones this morning and my hair is so happy! It loves suds and chemicals. 💕
I just tried this Curly Susie method to eliminate frizz. https://youtu.be/4Vt560wPBWA It totally worked! My whole head was frizzed. The humidity has been nuts lately. I had assumed the situation was hopeless today, but I tried her method using little drops of the conditioner, oil, and gel I already have. It worked beautifully without weighing my hair down. I'll be using this trick all summer!. I feel like I'm really stepping up my curly girl game lately.
I actually got some wave in my hair yesterday! After getting some wave back on a very humid day I thought maybe my hair just needs some moisture. So I've deep conditioned it a few times, and skipped shampoo a few times. I saw slight improvements. Then yesterday I used aloe, leave in and an essential oil spray on my hair after washing and out came the waves. They weren't strong, but they were there.
Day Whatever of testing my new products - I am reminded that co-washing (shampooing with conditioner) is not my thing. It starts off promising. Shiny coils, good definition, smells great, feels soft and clean(ish), but then a few hours later my hair always looks greasy and dirty. I think my texture is too fine for that. My hair likes shampoo. Today, trying to get the greasy, itchy co-wash feel out of it, I used Head & Shoulders Repair and Protect shampoo with the TXTR moisture masque in the tub. Not bad, but I think the curls looked better when I used the TXTR shampoo and conditioner together. I'll do that next time. They have a legit foaming shampoo with no sulfates that was very nice. It says, "Color treated hair + curls, cleansing oil shampoo, gentle conditioning cleanse. Color safe and sulfate free." Good stuff. Now I know not to use that rinse-out / leave-in conditioner by itself, or not to use as much as I did. A few drops mixed with gel might make for a good refresh. I have many more experiments to try.
Looking forward to hearing more, even though my hair is more frizzy than curly these days. Maybe that's because I need a new product :)!!!!
It's only been one day but early impressions of the TXTR by Cantu products are good. They smell nice and are super moisturizing without weighing down my hair. I had shiny ringlets when it dried. I'll have to use it for a couple of weeks though. You never know if something is going to build up, or dry your ends, or fall flat. Plus, I have to try all the combinations. Shampoo, conditioner, and treatment. Using the conditioner as a co-wash. Just the shampoo and conditioner. See what it does on the second day. I will get back to you with any new developments.
@sunshine Humidity has a huge impact on my curls. My hair is inches shorter in the summer humidity because it curls much more tightly. In the winter when it’s dry and cold, it’s longer and more wavy. I could probably wear it straight then with no frizz. I think the mineral content of water can affect curl too, like whether the water is hard/soft. Our tap water changes when the river floods. It had a really high mineral content this spring and is back to normal now. I think hard water can change the way products work as well.
@sunshine I wonder how much impact hormones have on hair texture. They must have some. I had very straight hair as a kid. Puberty hit and it and so did the curls. I know women have talked about hair changes during and after pregnancy. I can definitely see how age and menopause change things. Maybe the hard exercise of race training affected it in some way?
I just ordered some TXTR by Cantu curly hair products from Target. I will report back.
I don't know what's up with my hair, but it's the straightest it's ever been without my manipulating it with heat to get this way. It really strange. I am in curly hair groups and facebook and have been recommended several things to try in order to get my hair to start curling again, but it's just not working. I'll randomly get a few good curl day and then nothing. Right now my hair is air drying straight but frizzy. I'm not even bothering with styling products because they are a huge waste of time.
I have the same problem with wet hair in winter months. I have to grudgingly admit that diffusing a little bit, although terrible, is not as bad frizz-wise as my wet curls actually freezing solid.
I completely understand what you mean about changing one little thing and curls going haywire! So a couple of years ago I went to see a curly haired specialist in Cary. He's the first person in my life that I've ever met who actually knows what he's talking about when it comes to curls. He helped me learn how to style my hair and showed me what products to use (and what not to use). It's similar to the Curly Girl method but they call it MAP (can't remember what it stands for) but it's pretty cool. They actually released a whole online course for it (that I had to pay for) and I now belong to a fb group that's been really helpful. With all of that being said, I feel like I still struggle with my hair. It's always been fine and thin and I'm starting to think that years of highlights, bleaching, processing, and occasionally straightening has done number on it. To the point where I think I'm finally going to let my highlights grow out or dye my hair to whatever it's natural color is. Which is what - I have no idea..LOL. But I'm hopeful that this may help the health of my hair. I use Innersense Color Radiance Conditioner and leave most of it, followed with Innersense Quality Curl Control (a filler) and finish off with some kind of sealer (like a gel). I apply all of my products in the shower and have discovered that my hair has to be absolutely soaking wet to get good results (hence the reason why I apply products in the shower). My only issue now is letting my hair air dry, which means leaving it soaking wet in the cold winter months. So I've tried diffusing but that still takes forever. I may invest in a better diffuser but for now I attempt to dry it somewhat and then hope for the best. Then when it dries I SOTC (scrunch out the crunch) and cross my fingers!
Do not ask me why I just posted all that...I guess I got a little carried away on this stuff! :-D
Curls are so fickle. It’s funny how you change one thing and disaster unfolds. A few months ago, I tried Garnier Whole Blends, the coconut one. It seemed great at first, but in pretty short order it started stripping my hair color and making my hair look greasy and dirty. I think there was actual coconut oil in it. I had a similar calamity with Aveda Cherry Almond, which smells AMAZING but weighs my hair down and makes me look like I don’t shampoo at all. My curls really don’t like natural oils and plant essences. I have to stick with sulfates and silicones, which are supposed to be horrible, but work great in my case. You never know!
I'm still struggling with my waves. In early May my hair was amazing. I was getting ringlets Then I decided to try DevaCurl shampoo and conditioner. Wow, what a disaster. And things haven't been the same since. I thought I had tried everything, until I realized the other day that the only thing I haven't tried is to go back to what I was doing when my hair/waves was happy. So I order some more of the DevaCurl Curl Cream and Light Defining Gel and I bought the Live Clean shampoo and conditioner I was using. Fingers crossed that i can restore what I had.
Thank you! That's funny. I did receive my giant salon-sized bottle yesterday, so I'm all set. Ringlet crisis averted.
I might have some of that! I’ll check my cabinets and see. If so I’ll send it your way!