Deal Breaker / Curly Girl Problems

So, a long-ass time ago, when I just another pissed off kid going through puberty, I used to blog. I've talked about blogging on and off since then, but it has never made it too high onto my priority list. At least until today. The deal breaker? My hair. Of all the interesting things I could chose from to blog about, my fine, curly, damaged, color-treated, obnoxious hair won. Let's get something straight (no pun intended), I'm not a beauty guru, expert, or even well-practiced at hair care, skin care, or make-up application. I have, however, done some ridiculous shit to my curly hair to keep myself from shaving it all off.

I have watched countless youtube videos about curly hair routines and wasted hundreds of dollars on hair products. I've no-poo'd, co-washed, air-dried, heat-styled, and hair gelled my ass off. But I am STILL looking for a reliable routine that works for my thin, fine, 2C/3A curl pattern. I can't be the only one, right? So, here I am.

A little hair-history...
Eight to ten years ago, I decided to grow out my hair, which at this point in time, had spent years being bleached all to hell and cut incredibly short. I stopped bleaching and dying it all together. Once it had gained some length, I realized that my hair was much curlier than I remembered and I had NO idea what the hell to do about that. For a few years I managed to stick to the LITFA (Leave It The Fuck Alone) method, which was entirely due to my laziness and apathy. I used whatever shampoo and conditioner happened to be around and let it air dry and the results weren't too bad. 

2007. I was drunk. Don't judge me.

As my hair grew, it became more unruly and some one suggested going no-poo. So for just over a year, I used only baking soda and apple cider vinegar in my hair (which still hadn't been colored or highlighted). Knowing what I do now, I should have kept this up. But, I eventually wanted, even NEEDED, to change the color of my hair. So, like a total asshole, I went blond and bleached the shit out of it for two, or so, years. 

2008. Check out that frizzy halo.

Since then I have dyed my hair at least a dozen shades of brown or red. Let's be honest, ladies, the vast majority of us are guilty of the same curly hair crime. Even though my hair was much curlier, less frizzy, more manageable, and infinitely more forgiving before I started coloring it again, we all know I'm not going to quit hair dye any time soon.  So, here I am trying to figure out how to have my cake and eat it too.  

2009

2010

2011

2012

2013

My hair as of lately...
Having learned a little more about sulfate and silicone, I decided to try (again) to quit shampoo and go silicone-free with all my hair products. Reading all the ingredients on every product I own was a kick in the balls, seeing as they ALL contained silicone in some way, shape, or form. (Evidently, this is why I failed miserably at my last few attempts to go sulfate-free.) 

Two weeks ago...
I started looking for silicone-free conditioners that at least sounded like a decent idea for my hair situation. I had heard a lot of good things about Shea Moisture's products, so I figured I'd give it a go and I stopped at CVS and grabbed their Restorative Conditioner. Since I was over-due to color my roots, I decided that after dying my hair, that would be the last time I used a sulfate-containing shampoo (at least until the next time I colored my hair). Up until today, I hadn't used shampoo at all. However, over the last week my scalp became increasingly flaky and itchy (which has been a reoccurring problem for a couple years now, with or without shampoo). I had to cave in, I had to buy shampoo. 

2 weeks ago. Selfie fail.

Today...
At 5am, I stopped at CVS again and grabbed Shea Moisture's Moisture Retention shampoo, drove home and hopped in the shower. It went something like this...
Shea Moisture's Moisture Retention Shampoo
-applied liberally, concentrating on scalp
-scrubbed/massaged scalp for 3-5 minutes
 Shea Moisture's Restorative Conditioner
-saturated hair root to tip
-let sit while finishing up my shower business (5-10 minutes)
Flax Seed Gel
-flipped head upside down and applied liberally by raking and scrunching
Plopping
-used a t-shirt
-let sit for 1 hour
Blow-dried
-Revlon Iconic/1875W with diffuser attachment
-medium heat, low air until 85% dry
Curly Hair Solutions' Curl Keeper
-applied quarter-sized amounts to problem areas until dampened
Blow-dried
-same blow-dryer, no heat, high air, until 95% dry
LITFA for at least another hour, or my curls turn to shit.

Not too shabby.