As I mentioned yesterday, Sunday was a henna/indigo day and, let me say, it was long overdue!! The grey roots were out of control and tri-color, calico cat hair was back in full effect! But now, I can breathe an “ahhhhh” of relief as I’m back to two colors ;).

On Saturday, Wei and I had a PhD party to attend (his godbrother, my college friend) and my hair was a wild mess. I was too tired to pre-poo on Friday night, so decisions had to be made. Do I try to do a quick braid-out set or an udpo to salvage old hair or do I pre-poo bun it?! Pre-poo banana clip, big bun it was!!

There was an amazing balloon artist there.
That’s my new coordinating hair flower! LOL!!

Saturday night … I mean, Sunday morning … after arriving home at 3 am … mind you, we left at 3 pm the prior day (ughhh) … I put my oily pre-pooed hair back into eight big twists and hit the sack.

Note: I applied pre-poo to dry hair. The pre-poo was equal parts Aubrey Honeysuckle Rose and GPB conditioners mixed with Vatika Oil.

The Henna/Indigo Rundown (Sunday)

• Shampooed hair in eight twists with Bye Bye Parabens Rosemary Mint Purifying Shampoo.
• Conditioned and detangled with Bye Bye Parabens Rosemary Mint Purifying Conditioner.
• Rinsed twists with lukewarm water.
• Followed my two-step henna/indigo process using previously dye released, frozen and thawed henna.
• Deep conditioned with Sally’s GVP Matrix Biolage Conditioner Balm (overnight).

I ended up deep conditioning overnight and rinsing my hair in the morning (not too thoroughly though as I could smell then henna/indigo all day! Bleh! *lol*) using the cool & seal technique. Then, so I could get out the door, I proceeded to style my hair in a quick Wash and Go using a new product and combo.

Wash and Go (Monday)

• Finger combed hair thoroughly using Bye Bye Parabens Rosemary Mint Purifying Conditioner as a leave-in.
• Lightly finger-combed Samy’s Get Curls Reactivating Lotion through curls and then used “praying hands” to smooth curls.
• Placed hair in 4 big twists and clipped up for the morning.
• Around 11:30 am, released wet/damp twists without disturbing or separating curls and allowed to air dry.
• Once dry, smoothed hair to soften and fluff curls (i.e. grasped hair like forming a ponytail and gently smoothed down the length of the hair).

Quick Review: Samy Get Curls Curl Reactivating Lotion
So, this is a first glance review of the Samy Get Curls Curl Reactivating Lotion. As you may or may not know, another Samy Get Curls product has been a WnG staple for me for years. The Reenergizing Potion gives me firm and defined, but not stiff or dry, curls when mixed with Carol’s Daughter Healthy Hair Butter. However, the Potion was discontinued at least two years ago. Fortunately for me, I was able to stockpile a few at a going out of business sale. That being said, that well will eventually run dry. So, when a Samy’s rep contacted me about trying some of the other products in the Get Curls line, I figured, why not?

Reactivating Lotion (L); Reenergizing Potion (R)

Ingredients
Water (Aqua), Triethanolamine, Propylene Glycol, PVP Carbomer, VP VA Copolymer, PEG 8 Dimethicone, Steareth 10 Allyl Ether Acrylates Copolymer, Methylparaben, Polysorbate 20, PEG 8 Ricinoleate, Fragrance (Parfum), Sodium Benzoate, Acrylamide Sodium Acryloyldimethyltaurate Acrylic Acid Copolymer, Polyquaternium 57, Methylisothiazolinone, Limonene, Geraniol, Alpha Isomethyl Ionone, Amyl Cinnamal.

Now, although this is called a “Lotion,” it really has the appearance, consistency and feel of a clear, thin gel. This is great for my fine strands, which are easily weighed down by heavy gels. However, the lotion may not work well for those with thick, coarse and/or dense hair that needs a gel with a little more “body” to it.

See?

The gel went on pretty smoothly and I had no issues with it blending with the leave-in or sitting on top of my hair. It did take my hair a lot longer to dry than it does with a leave-in only. But, that is to be expected.

At the end of the day, I was very pleased with the results of the Bye Bye Parabens/Samy WnG combo!! Although the Lotion has different ingredients than the Potion, it felt and worked the same. My hair was light, fluffy, defined and flake-free. The conditioner and gel combo played well together and my hair felt lightly moisturized, but essentially product free. Therefore, the Reactivating Lotion shows promise as a replacement for my Reenergizing Potion.

Plans for Day 2
Now, the thing is, my Day 1 hair looks like Day 3 and WnGs have been responsible for the bane of my hair existence, SSKs! So, I placed my hair into 4 big braids using Cream & Coco Curls for Days Hair Pudding last night and sealed my ends with Wonder Curl Polishing Pomade. I’m definitely going into stretched hair and protective style mode and a braid out will help me with the first half.

And that’s that!

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If you use gel, do you prefer thin or thick formulas? Firm, medium or light hold? Which gels have you found to be the most effective?