The Curly Girl Method, CGM/MCM or Curly Method in its short form, is becoming increasingly popular. Let's find out together what this method is and how to do it with organic and sustainable cosmetics branded La Saponaria.

Think about someone who has defined and glossing curly hair. Did you know that you can achieve the same result by following the Curly Girl Method? Now you do! The CGM is a method designed to naturally take care of curly hair and it is aimed at:

• gently treating the hair, thus reducing cuticles' damages to the minimum;
• keeping the hair hydrated, since curly hair tends to dry more than other kind of hair;
• enhancing one's own kind of curly hair. 

How to start following the Curly Girl Method

When first approaching the Curly Girl Metohd, it might seem rocket science to go through all the steps. It is actually easy to follow, since the method consists of a host of tricks that people with curly hair may already follow unknowingly, like using the diffuser exclusively in cold/medium temperature and at a low/medium speed.

Whether you decide to follow the CGM or not, the most important thing to do is to choose the right products to use: it is crucial to learn to read the INCI list of the ingredients so that you get to know what products to avoid, such as all those that contain silicons, parabens, waxes, and alcohols, since they make the hair heavier and jeopardize the final result of your styling.

This is true for all the products you use, starting from the shampoo, going on with the hair mask and the conditioner, and ending with styling products. To find out more about INCI list, read our article here. 

Curly Girl Method: tips and tricks

The method suggests: 

• preferring gentle washes using a cowash or a lowpoo, that is a wash with a gentle shampoo.
• Using the diffuser (which is obvious for all those with curly hair) and drying the hair at a low temperature and a low speed. 
• Getting rid of hair straighteners and irons that may damage the flux of the hair because of their warmth.
• Avoiding drying the hair with a sponge towel, and more importantly, avoiding dabbing the hair to prevent frizziness. Try instead to use microfiber towels or cotton t-shirts, but make sure to do the microplopping movement and not to rub the hair within the towel. Microplopping consists in tightening wet hair from the bottom to the top within either a microfiber towel or a cotton t-shirt.
• Styling the hair when it's wet so as to keep it more hydrated and more defined rather than more voluminous.
• Refining styling techniques and using the right hairbrush. Here there are some suggested styling techniques:
  • ranking: apply the product using your fingers by sliding them through the lenghts;
  • praying hand: apply the product with clasped hands and let the locks slide through;
  • scrunch: gather the hair in the palm of the hand in a bottom-up motion;
  • finger coil: roll up the locks around your fingers.
• Protecting the hair at night by going to bed wearing a towel to prevent frizziness, or by using a silk/satin pillowcase, which reduces friction against the pillow more than a cotton pillowcase does.

Curly Girl Method is something that enhances one's own natural beauty: it may happen that girls with curly hair want to straigthen it to feel better, but by following the CGM they will look akways tidy and elegant, and even more beautiful than usual! Taking care of ourselves is learning to enhance, accept, and love our qualities, including rebel and curly hair!

Curly Girl Method: what you need to start it

Let's now find out what the steps of the CGM are to properly follow the method with using organic and sustainable cosmetics branded La Saponaria: 

• the first step is called Final Wash: isn't it weird that the first step is called "final"? This name comes from the idea that you can do a final wash whenever you feel the need to start all over. In particular, you can do the final wash when you approach the CGM for the first time, because it will wash away all the product residue that might have accumulated onto the hair over time. You can also do it as a purifying treatment between light washes, in other words when you feel the need to purify the scalp because of the build-up effect, that is the accumulation of products onto the hair and that fails to be washed away by water. In this case, you should dilute the shampoo with water. As to this passage, we suggest you use our Sunflower and Sweet Orange Shampoo, our Sage and Lemon Shampoo, or our Purezza Solid Shampoo - Purifying and Anti-dandruff.
• Shampoo: the shampoo you use should be a Lowpoo, which is a gentle shampoo, or a cowash, which is a washing conditioner. Both of the products should be for frequent use and should be alternated every 3/5 washes to a purifying shampoo or to a final wash. Our Extra virgin olive oil Shampoo to be diluted in 1 part of shampoo and 3 parts of water. In the case of a cowash, you can opt for our Leave-in Organic Conditioner with Moringa and Flaxseed oil.
• Hair mask: to be done before the shampoo or instead of it once a week, by leaving it on for at least 10/15 minutes. Once in a while, you can apply a hair mask before applying the shampoo and leave it on from 30 minutes up to 2 hours. Our Luce, Forza, or Volume Hair Wondermasks are perfect to take care of curly hair! Luce Hair Wondermask has brightening and moisturizing effects, Forza Hair Wondermask has restructuring and stimulating properties, while Volume Hair Wondermask has rebalancing and anti-pollution effects. Wondermasks contain precious moisturizing and soothing oils, such as babassu oil, lemon essential oil, linseed oil. Each Wondermask has also specific ingredients that make it unique and different from the others thus satsfying the needs it is supposed to. You can pick your favourite one or alternate them according to your needs!
• Conditioner: to be used after the hair mask or instead of it, the right conditioner moisturizes and detangles the hair. It has to be applied from the half of the hair to the lenghts, avoiding the scalp. Make sure to brush your hair from the tips going up to the lenghts as the CGM suggests, and not from the scalp to the tips, as you may be used to do. Our Organic Conditioner with Moringa and Sunflower is perfect and approved from the Curly Girl Method.

Let us suggest you some styling products: 

• Leave-in: leave-in conditioners are half way between wash and styling products. They are conditioners without rinsing that have two functions: keeping the hair hydrated while washing and making the hair easy to brush, thus allowing a better use of the brush during the styling phase and a more uniform distribution of the products. As to this step, our Leave-in Organic Conditioner with Moringa and Flaxseed Oil is perfect for taking care of curly hair because it has an anti-frizz effect and it makes the hair soft and silky. It also contain shea butter and lavander and geranium essential oils.
• Protective and volumizing spray treatments: thanks to their light texture, they do not cause the build-up effect, but on the contrary they protect and strenghten the hair. On damp hair, you can use our Vegetable Keratin, which was formulated with ingredients approved by the Curly Girl Method, to restore the hair flux and to prevent it from breaking. Vegetable Keratin makes the hair thicker and brighter. Moreover, on damp or dry hair you can apply our Fruit Acids AHA, that is an anti-frizz and glossing spray treatment with anti-limescale and anti-salt effects. Thanks to its slightly acid pH, this treatment tightens hair flakes and makes the hair tidy and silky.
• Styling: as to the last step of the styling, you can choose your favourite product with the right texture according to your hair type (cream, mousse, or gel) and apply it with either raking or praying hands techniques, and finish the styling with scrunch and finger coil techniques to discipline more rebel locks. Our Curl Reviving Cream is a must-have in your styling routine because it is formulated both to naturally shape and fix the curls, while counteracting frizziness. It contains Babassu oil and natural hydrosaccharide to moisturize the hair, as well as Vitamin E, Aloe Vera Gel, Lavender, Chicory Prebiotic, and fenugreek to make the hair glossy and silky. At the end of your beauty routine, you can apply a few drops of Plant Crystals on almost dry hair using the scrunch technique. Applying an oil at the end of the beauty routine is aimed at sealing moisturization. 

 
The only thing left to say is to wish you a good Curly Girl Method with organic and sustainable products branded La Saponaria! 

This article was written in collaboration with @gingerenry