michym...very important question

Now I have to find where she posted so I know what your talking about...

She posted on the AKATHY picture thread.  Very cute picture BTW.

You are all too sweet. Honestly, that was a bad hair day so I especially appreciate the nice comments.

I make my own hair gel with marshmallow root and flax seeds. You can google "flax seed hair gel" and lots of tutorials will come up. It's super easy!

I've tried the deva curl products and my hair doesn't really care for them, and making my own gel is ridiculously inexpensive. I have had my hair cut at their salon several times when I've been out in NYC, totally worth the splurge in my opinion.

I'm on my way out. Prod me later (please) and I'll type out the whole speal. <----- I think I just killed that word spelling wise

Meridon....I get my deva cut in Lawrenceville, about 3-4x year. He used to be at the Atlanta salon. WORTH EVERY PENNY. I'm not sure where you are but maybe that's a little closer. He's on the deva site.

how much do you use?
My hair is currently shoulder length and very full and thick. I use between a half and 3/4 of an ounce per use. I make a finished 32 ozs at a time, add a preservative, pour into 8 oz bottles and freeze the extra. I end up making a batch about every two months.

do you let your hair dry naturally?
I blow it dry with a diffuser. If I let it dry naturally it would take half the day in the summer and all day in the winter. That said, if you can air dry your hair of course that is the best for your hair!

do you use specific shampoos and conditioners?
I "wash" my hair with conditioner most days (I use Aubrey Organics Honeysuckle Rose conditioner). Once a week I wash it traditionally with Aveda Color Conserve shampoo.

I'm adding some specific into about how I do my hair because it's already typed up. I had a stranger really interested in my hair and gel last month so I gave her my email address and sent her the following info when she contacted me....

GEL INFO:

I start with a half gallon of distilled water. Pop it into a pot with 1 cup marshmallow root (I buy mine from Vitacost.com). Simmer for ten minutes, stirring occasionally. Then turn off the heat, cover, and let it steep all day.

In the evening I drain the marshmallow mixture, put the liquid back in the pot with 1 cup golden flax seeds, stir, cover, and let sit overnight.

Sometime the following day I cook the mixture. I slowly bring it to a boil (at a 7-8 on my stove). Once it's boiling I turn it down to a simmer and cook for 4-5 minutes stirring nearly constantly. I then drain through a colander and let it cool.

At this point you can call it good and be done, however I do a couple more things. I add essential oil for fragrance, a preservative called Optiphen. If you opt to add a preservative make sure to do some research about how much to use, you need to be careful not to overdo it. Then I mix it all for a half minute with an immersion blender. It helps to break up some of the long strands that can occur when cooking. I end up with 32oz (give or take) of gel. Bottle it up and voila!

As far as application goes, this is what I do (and I do it IN the shower on very wet hair). First, the only time a comb touches my hair is after the conditioner has been sitting on my hair a bit. I gently comb through to get out tangles with the widest toothed comb I could find.

After I've rinsed out the conditioner I wring out my hair really well and then apply the gel without drying my hair at all. I'll flip my head upside-down after applying the gel and gently scrunch it into my hair from tips to roots (do not run your fingers through your hair) to work it in and encourage the curls to form clumps. Then I'll gently wrap it up in a microfiber towel (never ever rub your hair) while I do my makeup, etc. Then take it out and using a diffuser attachment I'll blow dry my hair. Until it's COMPLETELY DRY try not to touch your hair. When it's dry it's got a gel "cast" to it giving it a slightly wet look, so I flip over and again gently scrunch my hair to remove the gel cast. I use a few drops of Jojoba Oil in my hands when I do this, but you can do it with or without.

Flip back upright, move the curls into place, and I'm done.

This is probably more info than you ever wanted Please keep in mind that everyone's curls are different, so what works for me may not work for you. That said, if you have any questions just give a holler. Also, Naturallycurly.com is a great resource for us curly girls. It can be completely overwhelming at first, so be prepared!