I picked up this combination at Wal-mart sometime in January after a failed run with Garnier Fructis’ Triple Nutrition shampoo.  When I say failed attempt I mean that although the shampoo worked well in the cleansing department, it left my hair very dry and in need of tons of oil daily.  I blame this on the fact that apparently my hair does not fair well with gel based shampoos so I needed something creamier.  Anywho, being in the market for a new shampoo as it were, when I saw the Wonder Waves duo, which claims to be formulated specifically for “wavy hair” I decided to try it out since I couldn’t find the Hydra Curls line which is formulated for curly hair.

Upon first inspection there’s very little difference between this line and the Moisture Works I’ve used before.  The shampoo has a very light, lemony fragrance to it and requires only a small amount (approximately a half dollar sized dollop) to work up a good lather, even with the hard water we have here.  The difference came in once I worked up that later and my coils seems to spring to life.  Now normally my curls become more defined when I add water to my hair, but with the shampoo they felt bigger, somehow silkier and tangle free.  This, and the fact that it rinses “clean” away with very little effort leaving behind smooth strands, made me fall in love with it instantly.

On to the conditioner, which is also a cream based product which is highly recommended for detangling and nourishing curly hair.  The same variation of lemon as the shampoo is present but not as potent.  The solution is “light” and like the shampoo, coats the hair with a small amount but I think that’s relative to my hair being so short.  I applied the conditioner and again my curls were hyper defined while not tangled, allowing my comb to glide through them.  After the allotted conditioning time (two minutes) I was able to rinse the product away  in one cycle, and my hair came away soft and curlicious!  After blotting I applied a bit of coconut oil to my tresses and allowed it to air dry.  The only problem I have with the conditioner is my hair did not stay very soft and untangled after a night of sleeping on it so more oil needed to be applied to keep my hair from appearing dried out in appearance.  I may be able to avoid that by adding the oil directly into the conditioner to see if that changes the effect any.

Coming in at $2.75 each, this duo is as economical as it is a great cleansing/conditioning combination.  It should be noted that the shampoo does contain sodium laureth sulfate, a small amount of sodium hydroxide and a few other ingredients that are on the “do not use” list, but that doesn’t bother me much since I only use the products every other week and they’re only on my hair for less than ten minutes.

So what’s the JB2M rating?

Garnier Fructis Wonder Waves Fortifying Shampoo 

Garnier Fructis Wonder Waves Fortifying Cream Conditioner  

Both products do what they promise, clean and condition, and I have noticed my curls are more defined and my hair is less frizzy and more manageable.  Combined with a moisture product my coils stay defined for longer than when I used other shampoos, and I’ve experienced less scalp build up than with the Triple Nutrition shampoo.  Suffice it to say, this duo comes highly recommended.

Healthy Hair Wishes,