Wednesday, March 18, 2009

Weird Product Wednesday: Biosilk Rock Hard Gelee


There's a tendency among products to overstate their properties: creamy, rich, glossy, light, refreshing, and so on. We buy these products hoping they will be and do what the label says but we always know that they will probably fall short of their promises.

When Biosilk tells you that its gel is rock hard, however, you may believe them. This product stiffens faster than a corpse on CSI. You can read about Jaime's experience or that of A Girl and Her Curl, but now I'm going to give you the skinny on this crazy product we affectionately refer to as BRHG (Biosilk Rock Hard Gelee).

Yes, it's a little pricier than most of the other gels at the drugstore, but note that it is in the drugstore nonetheless, so it's still in the ballpark of affordability. I find that it's usually $8 or $9 most places I've seen it. Yes, L.A. Looks gels are cheaper but they can't keep Dorothy Gale's pigtails in place during a tornado like BRHG can.

I know what you're thinking. "Sheesh, I don't need that much hold!" Uh huh. Sing it sister. Then talk to me again after you get caught in a windstorm or a sudden rain shower. Who you gonna call then, huh?

In my experience, using BRHG straight is overkill. You don't need this kind of hold unless you're headed for the drive-thru car wash in a convertible. But if you're currently using a gel -- or the much-revered Kinky Curly Curling Custard -- that isn't quite delivering what you need in terms of hold, guess what? You can add of wee bit of BRHG and voila! you get improved performance from your tired old gel.

Here are a couple of ways I use it:

* Three parts Kinky Curly Curling Custard to one part BRHG. For me, it is the perfect combo. I get softness and clumps from the KCCC, and frizz control and smoothness from the BRHG. And scrunch-out is just crunchy enough to let you know that you'll have decent hold. (I promise to post a photo of my hair with this combo soon. There are days I can't believe it's really my hair, it looks so good.)

* Three parts TheraNeem Leaf and Aloe Gel (or just regular aloe vera gel) to one part BRHG over an application of Boots curl creme. Wow. This is another reliable combo for me. Boots delivers the clumps, the aloe vera offsets the tiny bit of alcohol in the Boots, and the BRHG holds it all together. In warmer weather, this combo is surprisingly great.

But there's no reason you couldn't mix this with a host of other products, such as:

* Dilute it with conditioner (probably something along the lines of something from the Suave Naturals line but hey, use your imagination!) and scrunch it into wet hair.

* Mix it with Aubrey Organics Mandarin Magic Ginkgo Leaf and Ginseng Root Hair Moisturizing Jelly (that just rolls off the tongue, doesn't it?). Kathymack recently mentioned that she mixes AOMM with lots of different products and I suspect that BRHG would be an absolutely perfect addition. That whole clumps + hold formula, you know?

BRHG is a product that's easy to overdo. It begs to be cut or diluted with something else because it is just too powerful on its own. Unless you've got some thick, unruly hair, you might want to find ways to lessen the hold that BRHG provides.

4 comments:

DEL said...

Well I have thick unruly hair and in the Summer BRHG goes under my CK and over a Honey Rinse for super duper hold. LOVE my BRHG!!!

Girl with Curl said...

This product is definitely rock hard. I felt like my hair would have shattered like glass if it got hit when I mistakenly used it like I use my Herbal Essences set me up gel.

Susan said...

This is my go to gel to mix with other gels/products. I can always count on it to boost them up to give my wimpy curls the hold they need. And because of that - it's cost effective - for me anyways. Also, I have been finding the 'old' version around here which is less sticky and easier to distribute

Unknown said...

This stuff is crazy...super rock hard. my hair is really thin and when I use it, I look like some freak show from the 80s lol..which can be a good thing for most people. At least my hair doesnt move. Whenever I use (and dont ask why) Biosilk's Cure Soyeuse, which is my favorite silk hair product and Rock Hard Gelee, it turns my super thin hair into hard pieces of string lol. This stuff is really cheap at the stockn'go website, which i just came across through ebay. Haven't heard of them before but seems great. I bought 6 of the gels off their site..they have savings as you purchase more. Susan - Have you tried out the Tigi Catwalk Curls Amplify? My friend uses it and it works really well to boost those curls!