My Bad, Yo: A Second Look at As I Am Coconut CoWash

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Back in March 2013 (seriously, almost two years ago...wow time flies) I wrote a review of As I Am Coconut CoWash. I remember my eagerness to try the product, especially because I caught it on sale for $5.99 at Sally's. You can read the full review here, but if you're not interested, I'll save you a click: I pretty much hated it. At the time, I was just over a year into my transition. I'm sure as plenty of you can attest to, detangling long-term transitioning hair is the stuff nightmares are made of. I had read so many positive reviews about the Coconut CoWash and its magical detangling properties, I just knew I was going to be in for the wash day of a lifetime. Wrong, wrong, and more wrong. After my horrible experience with the one jar I had, I never purchased Coconut CoWash again. I never even glanced in its direction.

Until this week.

Over the past few days, a tiny voice in the back of my head has been urging me to reconsider -- to give the Coconut CoWash another try. After all, detangling transitioning hair and natural hair are very different. And it did clean well...and at $7.99, I wouldn't be squeezing my pockets dry to purchase it...and I was just being a product junkie looking for an excuse, so I caved in. I was at Sally's making a return (unused cutting shears), and I decided to just go for it. I needed to wash my hair anyway, and 6 day old wash and go hair seemed about as good of a test as any.

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 Armed with my previous knowledge about the Coconut CoWash, I created a bit of a game plan for myself. Recently, I had been using water and coconut oil to start my detangling process, but I was fresh out. So I hopped in the shower with a handful of products -- Aussie Moist to detangle, As I Am Coconut CoWash (for my experimental cleanse), and Bee Mine Avocado Cream Balancing Conditioner. Worst case scenario, if As I am and Bee Mine fell flat, I could use Aussie Moist to cleanse and condition. I twisted my tangled hair into 8 sections (2 more than normal, because I've learned that smaller sections = less breakage), and section by section, I soaked my hair in water and Aussie Moist. I used Aussie Moist to detangle and remove shed hairs, just like I would any other wash day. Even though the jar and several other blogs told me I could use As I Am Coconut CoWash to detangle, I was pretty certain that my hair would be having absolutely none of it. In fact, before I used Aussie Moist, I took one small section and added Coconut CoWash to it just to see if anything had changed from my last experience. Nope, nope, and more nope. So I fully detangled my hair, and cleansed section by section with the Coconut CoWash.

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Freshly rinsed from the Coconut CoWash. Yes, I have CoWash on my face. Don't ask.
I was pleasantly surprised. The CoWash was phee-nomenal. Detangling my hair prior to using it made a world of difference. It was almost like the CoWash said to me, "Christina, just let me be great. I'm not here to detangle. I'm here to cleanse, fight frizz, smooth, and add shine. Let me do what I do best!" For me, this was a total game changer. One simple switch (which really wasn't a switch, since it's something I do on a normal wash day anyway) caused me to do a complete 180 on how I felt about the product. I couldn't believe it. As I rinsed my hair out in the shower, I literally said, "my bad, yo." I felt like I owed As I Am some sort of apology. 

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Today's wash confirmed that for me at least, As I Am Coconut CoWash was most certainly worth a second look. Although I was initially misled to believe that I could really detangle with this stuff, the results are great enough for me to forgive the lack of slip. Honestly, it's not even that the product doesn't have slip -- it does a wonderful job at working through already detangled hair (or getting out minor tangles), but 6 day old wash and go hair needs something with a little more oomph to tackle it first. And I don't know what I was tripping on back then, but $7.99 for 16oz of any product is a great deal in 2014 going on 2015. At this point, virtually all is forgiven. Will As I Am Coconut CoWash become a holy grail? Maybe, but only time will tell.

All I can say for now is, my bad, yo. We good, fam?

New Product Rating: 4 stars. A super solid product. If it had more slip, easily in 4.5/5 star category! The jar is a bit clumsy in the shower, but I'd rather scoop out product than have to constantly pump or squeeze a bottle.

If you're curious about ingredients and all that jazz, click here to read up on my previous review where I break it down.

Have you ever re-tried a product and completely reversed your opinion on it? Share in the comments below!

18 Comments

  1. Hey Christina,
    I'm not sure if this is the most appropriate place to ask a question, but here goes. I recently revisited the Trader Joe's Nourish Spa conditioner and, while I love it as a rinse out/detangler, I cannot seem to work with it as a leave-in because it doesn't give enough moisture. Do you have any suggestions for a leave-in with similar slip and thickness?

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  2. Hi Christina,
    I'm a newbie to your site. Just subscribed to your youtube channel and added you to google plus. :) Let me just say I love the content and your recommended products. You're now one of my fav bloggers, along with a few other honorable mentions.
    Now on to my experience with As I Am cowash: This was the first cowash I ever tried when I started following the CG method Jan 2012. It was introduced to me through a Mahoganycurls video. I think it was the first one she ever did debuting the product. Anyway, I was excited to try it after reading many raving reviews and seeing her success with it. I didn't just purchase the cowash, however, I purchased the entire As I Am line. Now, I don't even touch the cowash, but opt to use the cleansing pudding in lieu of that product. Why you ask? I had my entire family using this product. Minus my husband who can not do cowashes at all, I noticed after about of month of cowashing with As I Am, my son and I developed severe buildup on our scalps to the point they were gray. Yes I was finger massaging and doing all the necessary deets. short of irritating my scalp. I now use VO5 Moisture Milks conditioner for my son and Suave Naturals conditioner for me (because it's thicker and can remove the goop better from my hair). I no longer stretch my shampoos for a month, but I can do it (if needed) with those conditioners with no bad consequences.
    Concerning revisiting products. Yes I have! I just did that this month after reading your experiences with some products that I threw out :-). One of them was the Shea Moisture JBCO leave in. That thing smelled like pepto bismol to me so I I didn't even try it and just chucked it in the bin. I plan on repurchasing it to see how it goes. Also, I repurchased Curls coconut colada conditioner after reading good reviews from another blogger. Unfortunately I don't think I'll be repurchasing. It just isn't that special for my hair. Fortunately the other Curls products I purchased had become staples, like the control paste, gel-les-c, and goddess curls.

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  3. Hi Christina, this post made me chuckle out loud! Just last night I revisited Shea Moisture Coconut & Hibiscus: Curl & Shine Shampoo, Curl Enhancing Smoothie, and Curl Gel Soufflé...and I owe Shea Moisture an apology! LOL The first time I tried this line was when I was transitioning and like you, I had unrealistic expectations of what these products were supposed to do. Fast forward one year later (and my all natural head of hair) and these three products gave me the softest, bounciest twist out I've ever had! MY BAD Shea Moisture!! :)

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  4. The As I Am coconut cowash is a definite staple for me. I hate the As I am cleansing pudding it makes my hair so dry. but you are right the trick is to pre-poo and detangle first. I also leave it on for 5 minutes and massage it into my scalp to loosen the debris. It depends on the hair type too. I have to shampoo every 2 weeks . A product that will work for one might not work for someone else. My hair hates shea butter why some people love it. But your curls are always popping Christina

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  5. Thanks boo!!! I tried the cleansing pudding and hated it too. Dry and crispy stripped hair. Lol

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  6. MAN! I need you to crack the Shea Moisture code for me cuz uhhh I can't get curl enhancing smoothie and the souffle to work for nothing!

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  7. First of all, thank you. From the bottom of my heart, I appreciate all of your support. It still seems surreal when people call me one of their favorite bloggers. This is a labor of love and I appreciate you.

    Second, wow thanks for the cautionary tale about Cowashing! It is so important to make sure the hair AND scalp are clean -- and a lot of people miss that. The JBCO line just smells period. I wish they would change the smell. And thank you for reminding me to revisit Goddess Curl!

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  8. Hmmm, when taking slip and thickness into consideration, Eden Body Works Coconut Shea Leave-In, TreLuxe Untie The Knot, and the Camille Rose Holiday Collection leave-in come to mind. Also check out Shea Moisture's Raw Shea Extra Moisture Detangler. Sorry for the late reply!!!

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  9. Lol, Christina the code for me was using the Curl and Shine Shampoo (got my hair and scalp clean without stripping), then spritzing with my homemade leave-in (water/glycerin/aloe Vera juice). Then comes the fun part! :) While my hair is still mostly damp I take small scoops of the Curl Enhancing Smoothie and apply it to a small section that I'm preparing to twist. Next, I dip my fingers into the Curling Soufflé n and spread it on my hands before smoothing it onto my hair. Then I twist the section and wrap it into a bantu knot until I have completed all of my twists. Once all my twists are done, I follow Naptural85's tip and Bobby pin each twist to the opposite side of my head. I think that helps with the twists drying overnight as well as stretching the hair. But I think the overall key is not overdoing the Curl Enhancing Smoothie so the hair is not weighed down. Hope that helps! This is a picture of my day 2 twistout that posted on my instagram @briboo77. (I forgot to take a pic on day 1, lol)

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  10. Thank you for this -- that twistout is FAB!!!! I need to learn moderation -- because every time I *think* I'm using a little bit of product, it turns out to be too much. Definitely the case with Curl Enhancing Smoothie and the Souffle. But you give me hope -- thank you!!!!

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  11. Ive used the As I Am twice while I was trying the no poo way of taking care of my hair and I didnt feel like my hair was all that clean,I use alot of stylers and oils on my hair and I don't believe I even preepoo'd when I first tried it but the second time around I felt like I had to also use ACV to clarify and really feel like my hair was clean. It has decent slip but that's really it. I think that its more suited for people who are less heavy handed with product.

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  12. Im going to try your method of detangling and prepooing before using it.

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  13. I like the Shea Moisture Gel Souffle but its really sticky and you really have to be light handed with it or you run the risk if hair that is too hard in some spots. When I wasnt as heavy handed, the curl definition was good.

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  14. I agree with ladylanita. I am obsessed with your blog! I found it two days ago on the natural hair directory and not only have you inspred me to be better to my hair(been transitioning three years,not read for the BC) and really get back into my blog the way I used to be. Check me out if you'd like @ www.mommyincolor.wordpress.com. keep up the good work!

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  15. I love how your curl popped out using the cowask.I love it!

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  16. Thank you!!!! This means so much. I will definitely check out your blog :)

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  17. Your site is surprisingly interesting, thanks for your work and desire to share your knowledge with others.

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