Hair

I Tried A $30 Curl Elongator On My 4C Hair

I love being a 4C girl. Our hair is so versatile with all of its kinky, coily glory.

I am always on the lookout for a new product to make my curls pop. I have been a longtime fan of DevaCurl, but haven't used it since I've grown all of the relaxer out of my hair for a couple of reasons: the price point and most of the women I saw in their advertising at the start of my natural hair journey (2011) didn't have my hair texture.

When I saw that DevaCurl released five products for "super curly hair," I was intrigued. The line has a no-poo shampoo, conditioner, a leave-in, a cream "curl styler" for definition, and a cream that elongates.

I decided to give the Super Stretch Coconut Curl Elongator a try.

Since I'd given up on creams in favor of gels, I thought this thirty-dollar option would be worth a try since it claims to elongate coily curls and create definition. I personally don't mind my hair's shrinkage, but I know that for many of us shrinkage can deter us from just washing our hair and letting it do its thing.

Before I tried the cream, I washed my hair with the line's No-Poo Decadence Zero Lather Ultra Moisturizing Milk Cleanser and conditioned with my go-to conditioner from Shea Moisture before styling. Moisturized hair is the key to getting my hair to look and feel its best. To keep things consistent, I used their Set It Free Moisture Lock Finishing Spray, that I've had for a while, but didn't really love for my hair type to see how all of the products would work together.

The one thing I loved about the shampoo was that my hair and scalp felt clean even without the lather. I have stayed away from no-poo shampoos because my hair rarely feels clean after washing.

Now that my hair was clean, I got to work smoothing the Super Stretch from root to tip. Since I hadn't used a cream product in nearly two years, I honestly wasn't sure what to expect. As I applied the cream, I could immediately see it elongating and defining my curls — with very little product.

It took about thirty minutes to run the product through the eight sections of my hair. Once I finished, I shook my hair out like a Deva stylist taught me and let it air dry.

My reason for taking the time to stretch my curls was to get it into one of the high puffs I spend hours watching YouTubers achieve. I've tried a puff when my hair is stretched with a blow dryer, but I don't like that I can't see any of my natural hair texture. But, when I try to achieve a puff with my hair in a wash and go state, I end up with a baby puff I hate.

Let me tell you something. DevaCurl came through.

My hair had the moisture and elongation it needed to get the perfect puff. I was so pleased, and I received so many compliments. We all know how important it is to find products that work, even if they cost us $30 bucks.

As a 4C girl, I love that DevaCurl added products for my hair type and I see that they're also speaking to us in their marketing.

Featured image by Bianca Lambert/Instagram

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