As the entire United States dries up under the last Hades-inspired month of summer, we may all die of thirst, but at least my hair will be fabulous.

Because I live in the semi-desert, the absence of moisture in the air is murder on my strands unless I moisturize and seal like crazy. But with this heat wave we’re having, the water bottle and coconut oil are not cutting it. So I’m co-washing. Er…when I say, “co-washing,” I don’t mean I’m using actual conditioner, like how the folks on the hair boards do. I tried that once and my scalp hated me for it. Worse, all that moisture made my hair too spongy, which caused breakage. Like with most things online, you take what you need and leave the rest. The basic principal of co-washing is lack of harsh surfactants and suds that dry the hair.

Co-wash = No-poo

So after years and years and years and years of hearing about Chaz Dean and his Wen, I finally tried it last week. All I can say is, I feel like a fool for waiting so dang on long.Wen is a 5-in-1 shampoo, conditioner, leave-in, deep conditioner and styling product. So far I’ve used it for everything except a deep conditioner, but OMIGORSH I love it. I’m now using it on Maxi-Me’s hair, The Babster, and Clo Clo. Far superior to any moisturizing shampoo and conditioner I’ve tried to date. Better than Bellagenza. Shea Moisture. L’occitane, Curlz, Kinky Curly, Miss Jessie’s–all of it. I’ll admit I feel like a fool for buying what could stock a small ‘hood beauty supply in my bathroom, which lends to annoying The Hubster who just uses Pert and calls it a day. In my defense, there are four curly heads in this house of different textures and different needs. That’s my story and I’m sticking to it.

For $39 at Sephora, you can buy a full size of Wen Almond Mind cleanser/conditioner, a deep conditioner and a style spray. I’m a little “meh” about the deep conditioner add-on, and the spray is just “ok” for me, but I do use it to spray and seal on the days I’m not co-washing. Truly the star of the show is the actual cleanser. For $29, you can order a set directly from the Wen site, too.

A close second is a new-ish line Sally’s is carrying, called As I Am Naturally. I believe this company is trying to bridge the gap between cheapo drug store hair care brands and the absurdly expensive brands like Miss Jessie’s and Carol’s Daughter. It’s not cheap, nor is it horribly expensive, and their ingredients are top notch.  They’re doing a great job. Because I’m sick and really, really need help, I’ve bought the following:

The Coconut CoWash (great for kinky hair, not so great for fine, curly hair like The Babster’s. It left it way too limp.)

Cleansing Pudding ( I thought this was a good compromise between shampoo and co-washing when I start to feel too much build up and need to get a clean head so I can deep condition. But at almost $20, it’s pricy. The tub is huge, though so you get a lot for your dough)

Double Butter Cream (At $30, I say give this one a pass. It works…okay. I use it daily, especially on my ends, but it’s just pretty much the same as all the rest of the stuff out there. It’s comparable with Shea Moisture.)

Smoothing Gel (I LOVE THIS!! I’m wearing buns and it lays down my hair and gives it such a nice wave. It’s thicker than most gels and has some “oompf” to it. I threw out all the other styling gels I had after I used this one. Key ingredient is aloe vera gel glycerin, and wheat protein.)