Product Review: Miss Jessie's Curly Pudding

 

Let me preface everything I am about to write by saying that I really tried to not pre-judge Miss Jessie's products before trying them. I really wanted them to work for me. With all the drama of one of the founders of Miss Jessie's having a "silkener" aka halfway done relaxer, their products costing more than a dinner date for me and my man at Lucille's, and the sus product bases they use, I tried hard to approach this product review with an open mind. I think I was relatively successful at maintaining objectivity, but at the end of the day it's all about how the product performed or didn't. Keep reading to see why Miss Jessie's Curl Creme didn't live up to the hype.

When I learned from my sister that Miss Jessie's was giving away product samples online, I jumped on the opportunity to try some of their products out. I've been wanting to do a Fresh Feature on Miss Jessie's products for a while now, but I just couldn't bring myself to pay $40, $50, or $60 for anything in a jar or bottle that I could hold with one hand. For those prices, I better need a forklift. If you are still interested in getting some free products, head on over to : http://www.missjessies.com/shop/Free-Samples and grab up to 2 for free (sidebar: it used to be 3 samples... I certainly got 3 in the mail).

I first gave Miss Jessie's Curly Pudding a try during me and my babe's 2 year anniversary weekend. During our weekend out of town, I wanted to try something that would elongate and stretch my new curls, and give my hair a longer look. Fresh off a co-wash, I figured a clean slate would be the ultimate gauge of Miss Jessie's curl power. Keep reading to see how it fared.

Ingredient List: Water, Paraffinum Liquidum, Glycerin, Fragrance, Triethanolamine, Carbomer, PEG-12 Dimethicone, Dipropylene Glycol, Silk Amino Acids, Aloe Barbadensis Leaf Extract, Avocado Oil, Shea Butter, Sweet Almond Oil, Jojoba Seed Oil, Macadamia Seed Oil, Oleth-5, Ethylhexyl Methoxycinnamate, Disodium EDTA, DMDM Hydantoin, Ext. Violet 2

Ingredient Analysis: After revisiting how I go about my fresh features, and really understanding Jc's rule of the first five ingredients, I will no longer (unless by request) go through each ingredient. Of course, there will be exceptions (like harmful ingredients). But for the most part, I will stick to the first five or six (excluding water). Just to paraphrase the above reference to Jc's work, only the first 5 ingredients in shampoos, conditioners, leave-ins, and styling aids are going to affect your hair. All the exotic oils, and super ingredients are more of a marketing tactic (read: BS) than anything else -- if they fall outside of the top 5. With that being said, let's continue....
  • Paraffinum Liquidum: Mineral Oil. An occlusive agent that creates a barrier between the hair and the air, acting as a sealant.
  • Glycerin: Humectant; absorbs and retains moisture.
  • Fragrance: To make the product smell good, or counteract the peculiar odor of ingredients. I personally find it a little, um, curious that fragrance is so high up on the list of ingredients. What ya'll tryna cover up?
  • Triethanolamine: Strong alkaline substance used as a surfectant, emulsifying agent, and pH adjuster.
  • Carbomer: Chemical composed of acrylic acid monomers that acts as a viscosity controlling agent (thickener)
Availability: Available at Target, and online. Pretty accessible for those that are interested!

Affordability: Their 16oz jar (the only one I've seen in stores) is $38, which to be frank, is way too much darn money to spend on something with a cheap mineral oil base. Online, they do have an 8oz ($22) and a 2oz ($7) -- making things a little more manageable for those who aren't committed to the big jar. Of course, you can always get the free sample! Nothing beats free.

Product Claim/Description: Finally the first curl creme created for naturally curly, kinky and wavy hair. No more frizz. No more curl shrinkage. No more dull curls. This ultra conditioning curl creme maximizes curl length and makes your curly styles last longer. Curly Pudding adds superior shine and healthy luster. Curly Pudding does not get hard! Weighted aloe polymers deliver amazing plump curls and shea butter pumps up the moisture factor. Curly pudding transforms frizzy fros to super shiny stretched out curls.

Day 2 hair
Performance/Delivery: Like I said earlier, I started on a clean slate. My hair was freshly co-washed and still damp when I applied the Curly Pudding throughout my hair. Stretch, it did do. De-frizz, it did do. Even on my second day hairdo. My hair wasn't dull, but as the night wore on it became...dry. Not dry as in air-dried, but dry as in crunchy. Ouch. Perhaps it just needed a refresher -- so on day 2, I spritzed with water and applied a small amount to my hair. Sure enough as the day wore on, dry and crunchy again. My hair wasn't weighed down, but I certainly didn't get any of that aloe polymer plumpness, or shea butter pumped moisture. Maybe that's because those ingredients are 10th and 12th, respectively. All in all, the product stretched my new natural stuff, elongating my hair. My hair looked great. But did it feel great? Nah, son.

Drawbacks: When I first tried the product, I thought to myself -- why is it purple? I don't agree with color additives to hair products...for what? What are you trying to cover up? My second thought was, they need to go back to the drawing board on this fragrance thing. It smells like a bad Bath & Body Works spray. Thankfully online, they offer the product unscented.

Bonuses: It was free, and came with a cute paper bag. Did I mention the free samples online?

Bottom Line: If Miss Jessie's works for your hair, then more power to you. But for me, this stuff was a total miss. I'm glad I was able to try it for free.99, because I would be hiiighly upset if I paid almost $40 for a product that made my hair feel fried. My poor tresses, I had to apologize to them and make up for it with another co-wash and a deep conditioning.

There's a lot of controversy surrounding Miss Jessie's founders and products. I'd love to hear your thoughts. Weigh in!

3 Comments

  1. Girl, you are not the only one that would've like to try the product but would not pay an arm and a leg for it. I will not pay that much for hair products with a whole bunch of nonsense in it.

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  2. I would NEVER pay that much for a product with mineral oil as its base. I think many of her products are over rated.

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  3. I agree with you both. I'm still trying to rationalize the hefty price tag and ingredient list. If Shea Moisture is able to use a base that consists mostly of water, shea butter, and coconut oil and charge no more than $12 for any given product... what's Miss Jessie's excuse? Last time I checked, a bottle of mineral oil cost $2 at Target.

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