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jessseadoesstuff's review against another edition
3.0
Quick read and has good advice. But I still felt lost after finishing. Luckily, there are lots of resources online that provided additional information.
With how quick this read is (and the inspiration stories), I'd recommend reading it before looking at online resources.
With how quick this read is (and the inspiration stories), I'd recommend reading it before looking at online resources.
lindsayallison's review
4.0
This was a good primer on taking care of wavy/curly hair and how to stop trying to fight it. I've gone back and forth between embracing my wavy hair and trying to keep it smooth and straight since I first got a flat iron in junior high. Several years ago I truly started embracing it more, but since becoming a mom, I decided I need to go even further. I just don't want to devote much time to styling my hair, so I wanted to find a more "wash-and-go" method that makes my hair look good. Most of the time when I haven't blow dried or straightened my hair in a while, I feel lazy or sloppy. I am hoping that giving this method a shot for a few months will help further define my waves/curves and make me feel more confident and put-together with my natural texture.
Warning: the author is snobby and a little ridiculous/judgmental about anyone who uses sulfates, brushes or heat on her hair (she calls blow driers "blow fryers..." *eyeroll*), but I think you can try her method without being as strict/extreme as she is. She's convinced even one blow dry can set your curl definition back months, but I'm more skeptical.
This is the woman who invented DevaCurl, so she probably knows what she's talking about, but I was a little skeptical of her tone that implies all her methods are proven facts. I just don't think she can be that certain without hair studies (is that even a thing? Double blind hair study?? lol)
My main goal is to be more ingredient conscious in my products and their application and hope that helps give my waves more definition so I can wear my hair wavy on purpose, rather than looking like I just ran out of time in the morning. I also appreciate the general sentiment that we should embrace our natural beauty rather than trying to conform to certain popular standards. I think it's an important message to pass down to our children. Plus I do think she's right in that people in general just do not know how to treat their curls! It's not taught or common.
This book is skimmable -- you can skip to the chapter that pertain to you (like I skipped all the chapters about super curly hair care because my hair isn't that texture). There is a decent amount of time devoted to particular up-do styles and homemade hair potions. The main chapter I found helpful was the one pertaining to the daily care and styling of my particular type of hair.
People in this community of "Curly Girl" go even more in depth online, but I found the book to be fairly straightforward and simple in it's "rules." So we'll see what happens once I keep trying it!
Warning: the author is snobby and a little ridiculous/judgmental about anyone who uses sulfates, brushes or heat on her hair (she calls blow driers "blow fryers..." *eyeroll*), but I think you can try her method without being as strict/extreme as she is. She's convinced even one blow dry can set your curl definition back months, but I'm more skeptical.
This is the woman who invented DevaCurl, so she probably knows what she's talking about, but I was a little skeptical of her tone that implies all her methods are proven facts. I just don't think she can be that certain without hair studies (is that even a thing? Double blind hair study?? lol)
My main goal is to be more ingredient conscious in my products and their application and hope that helps give my waves more definition so I can wear my hair wavy on purpose, rather than looking like I just ran out of time in the morning. I also appreciate the general sentiment that we should embrace our natural beauty rather than trying to conform to certain popular standards. I think it's an important message to pass down to our children. Plus I do think she's right in that people in general just do not know how to treat their curls! It's not taught or common.
This book is skimmable -- you can skip to the chapter that pertain to you (like I skipped all the chapters about super curly hair care because my hair isn't that texture). There is a decent amount of time devoted to particular up-do styles and homemade hair potions. The main chapter I found helpful was the one pertaining to the daily care and styling of my particular type of hair.
People in this community of "Curly Girl" go even more in depth online, but I found the book to be fairly straightforward and simple in it's "rules." So we'll see what happens once I keep trying it!
coraleeq's review against another edition
4.0
Immensely helpful books like this one make me wonder how it could be possible that not a single hairdresser I went to in my first 29 years of life had any idea how to treat my hair.
leahnoel's review against another edition
1.0
Unfortunately this book reads like a teen mag for girls who hate their curly hair. Curly Girl is written by a hair stylist that speaks confidently about the best ways to manage curly hair without actually providing much (if any) science behind the claims. "I estimate that 65 percent of all women have wavy or curly hair..." Based on what? Does it include all women in the whole world? How many men? Baseless claims like these are rampant.
Her homemade hair treatments are mostly rubbish. Having had curly hair for over 30 years I can say with certainty that the author's advice never to use shampoo on curly hair is not good advice for most curly hair. I've spent considerable time using only conditioner, baking soda and apple cider vinegar, and just water. None of those methods work for me, although the baking soda and cider vinegar were decent. In this book however, the author mentions using baking soda but leaves out cider vinegar, which is necessary in cleaning and conditioning your hair because the science of pH levels actually works. Anyway, it's not true that conditioner cleans your scalp- it actually clogs your hair follicles and causes your hair to suffocate and stop growing.
The whole book should be discarded; there wasn't enough salvageable material in this book to glean even 2 stars.
Her homemade hair treatments are mostly rubbish. Having had curly hair for over 30 years I can say with certainty that the author's advice never to use shampoo on curly hair is not good advice for most curly hair. I've spent considerable time using only conditioner, baking soda and apple cider vinegar, and just water. None of those methods work for me, although the baking soda and cider vinegar were decent. In this book however, the author mentions using baking soda but leaves out cider vinegar, which is necessary in cleaning and conditioning your hair because the science of pH levels actually works. Anyway, it's not true that conditioner cleans your scalp- it actually clogs your hair follicles and causes your hair to suffocate and stop growing.
The whole book should be discarded; there wasn't enough salvageable material in this book to glean even 2 stars.
kisjdmls's review against another edition
4.0
I should reread this periodically because I really do forget parts. I wish elements of the plan were prioritized though, because there are some things that just aren’t going to happen at times.
ashleymk44's review against another edition
3.0
Grabbed this on a whim at the library - although it gets a little too preachy and "learn to love yours curls" for me, it does have some good advice. You could probably shorten the actual advice to 20-30 pages though, and I skimmed through quite a bit. She makes some good points about caring for curly hair, and I'll definitely give some of her techniques a try.
bargainsleuth's review against another edition
2.0
For more of my book reviews visit www.bargain-sleuth.com
I'm not sure what I was expecting when I picked up this book. I'm not even quite sure why I picked up the book as I've always embraced my curls. The information provided is stuff my hairdresser told me years ago to take care of my hair, and some of the advice is wrong for my hair (I need a diffuser to make maximum curl, but the author is against them except in certain conditions). The anecdotes are nice, but they give the impression that everyone's life sucked while they fought their curls, and then miraculously, through embracing one's curls, all their problems went away and they live the perfect life.
I'm sure if I looked, I could find this information on the internet for free. As it was, I only paid $1.99 for the Kindle edition, so I'm not out a ton of money.
I'm not sure what I was expecting when I picked up this book. I'm not even quite sure why I picked up the book as I've always embraced my curls. The information provided is stuff my hairdresser told me years ago to take care of my hair, and some of the advice is wrong for my hair (I need a diffuser to make maximum curl, but the author is against them except in certain conditions). The anecdotes are nice, but they give the impression that everyone's life sucked while they fought their curls, and then miraculously, through embracing one's curls, all their problems went away and they live the perfect life.
I'm sure if I looked, I could find this information on the internet for free. As it was, I only paid $1.99 for the Kindle edition, so I'm not out a ton of money.
glitterdystopia's review against another edition
4.0
Reads a bit like a curly hair religion and my rating may change based on whether or not this process actually works with my hair (it's only been a day, so we'll see!), but contains a lot of interesting details... very instructive and the facts are formulated in a way that really makes sense. One thing I really enjoyed were the testimonials from other curly haired people and what they'd been through. There's a section on taking care of a curly haired child that I thought was great for those who have straight hair and may not to know what to do with it.
ETA: As of 6/11/12 I've been doing the "method" and I've noted an improved in my hair so much so that I've not only been wearing it curly all the time, but down. This is huge for me. Still leaving the book at 4 not 5 stars, because if I feel like straightening my hair again, I will not feel guilty about it. So officially about 4.5. Great reference book for curly haired individuals.
ETA: As of 6/11/12 I've been doing the "method" and I've noted an improved in my hair so much so that I've not only been wearing it curly all the time, but down. This is huge for me. Still leaving the book at 4 not 5 stars, because if I feel like straightening my hair again, I will not feel guilty about it. So officially about 4.5. Great reference book for curly haired individuals.
mrs_rock88's review
5.0
The Basics
This is a good jumping point for my new journey but will definitely have to experiment to figure out what really works for me.
This is a good jumping point for my new journey but will definitely have to experiment to figure out what really works for me.