Getting the GinaCurl vs Jheri Curl: What’s the Difference?

If we can count on anything in life, we can count on humans wanting to change up their norm. From our clothes, to our diets, to our makeup routines, we seem to have this innate discomfort with the status quo. This need for change is apparent when we look at hair trends over the years. Whether you have straight or curly hair, from as early as the late 1900s people have paid good money and gone to great extremes to change their hair in the name of beauty. 

History of Hair Altering

Perms, relaxers, texturizers, these are chemicals that have been used and popularized throughout several cultures and races. The first manufactured hair wave was credited to French stylist Marcel Grateau who invented the method of curling hair with heat (somewhat of a curling iron) for Parisian sex workers, but the process was grueling. Then in 1906 Karl Nessler created a longer lasting curl by combining heat and chemical processing to the hair. This involved caustic chemicals, and the heating of metal rods which inevitably caused damage to the hair.

With the obvious trend of altering one’s hair structure on the rise, Arnold F Willett sought a more permanent solution and created the first perm by using rods and ammonium thioglycolate to open the keratin structure and reseal it with another chemical solution. 

Jheri Redding reinvented the perm and it was coined the “Jheri Curl”. This look used even narrower rods to achieve a tighter curl. It’s known for its glossy and wet appearance. Comer Cottrell, a black hair care business owner popularized the Jheri Curl in the black community. Celebrities like Lionel Richie, Ice Cube and Michael Jackson all rocked the loosened curl. Since then, there have been several reinventions of the Jheri curl including the Wave Nouveau, Wave by Design, Carefree and the GinaCurl. The GinaCurl seems to stand out amongst the other curly perms as Gina Rivera, the creator of the GinaCurl, markets it essentially as a healthier curly perm that limits damage to the hair. This is why I decided to try it! But after my treatment, I was very curious about the details that made the GinaCurl so different from the other curly perms. I interviewed Gina herself to get those answers. I also speak in length about my first time experience and my opinions on the Gina Curl!

Treatment Process

The Jheri Curl (there are several variations of the jheri curl/curly perm process)

1. Involves dividing hair into sections
2. Uses ammonium thioglycolate perming based formulation which softens hair bonds in order to break down the natural curl pattern. Can be applied in various ways but typically is eventually applied to the whole hair (even with retouches) and smoothed into the hair with a fine tooth comb.
3. Hair is washed once it has the looser texture
4. In some variations, a thio booster solution is applied after initial wash which softens the hair and furthers the processing so the hair can take the shape of the perm rods when applied. Different perm rod sizes may be chosen. {According to Gina, this is a major difference between the other curly perms and the GinaCurl as this step in most curly perms cause overprocessing if hair is being retouched as “there is no way to isolate the previously treated hair.” So every time you go for a retouch the already processed hair gets processed over and over again causing breakage.}
5. After desired curl pattern is attained, the hair is washed again
6. The neutralizer (hydrogen peroxide) solution is then applied to the hair to reform the disulfide bonds originally broken down by the thio solution. The hydrogen peroxide locks in the shape of the curls. Typically left on for a few minutes, this chemical also has the ability to lift color in the hair.
7. The neutralizer is thoroughly rinsed out of the hair when ready
8. When perm rods are removed and final results are down, moisturize hair thoroughly with curl activator.

GinaCurl

1. According to Gina the Ginacurl uses a milder ammonium thioglycolate along with other specialized ingredients which take longer to process in the hair. They have different formulations to cater to different porosity levels. For example, if the ends are bleached there’s a formulation that can be used on the non-damaged hair and the bleached hair for uniform results without over processing. This softens the curl pattern without causing extra damage.
2. The ammonium thioglycolate is washed out after hair is loosened.
3. A proprietary shaping solution and heat protectant are applied to the hair. According to Gina, unlike the like the other curly perms, this shaping solution does not contain thio or a chemical that further processes the hair. Instead it has many conditioning agents to protect the hair.
4. Specifically sized rods are chosen based on curl desire and placed in hair.
5. Hair dries for 1-3 hours under hooded dryer which works to “activate and set the curl” in the shape.
6. According to Gina, the neutralizing solution the GinaCurl uses is milder than the hydrogen peroxide used in the Jheri curl or other variations. It’s meant to be a gentler way to lock in the curls.
7. leave-in conditioner and moisturizing curl cream applied to hair for nourishment

Note: During my GinaCurl, the thio chemical was left off of my roots and only applied for about 2 minutes. So the roots and edges aren’t as processed as the rest of the hair but it’s processed enough where there’s not a noticeable difference between the two textures and the scalp is left feeling completely fine. 

Another thing to note is with the GinaCurl you can bounce back from the GinaCurl to the Straight Variation (straight hair) back to the GinaCurl!

Aftercare for Jheri Curl vs GinaCurl

Jheri Curl aftercare depends on applying an activator to the hair everyday to maintain curls and applying water and moisturizers to keep hair from drying out. However this process is still less tedious than maintaining thicker, tighter curled hair. Deep conditioning is necessary. Historically it was known to be common for people to sleep with a shower cap to maintain constant moisture in their hair.

Gina curl also requires moisturizing your hair with a leave-in conditioner, possibly also a curl cream. Some may find it’s not necessary to moisturize everyday with the Gina curl. Typically moisturizing depends on dryness but reapplication can be done about every two to three days depending on how generously you apply moisturizer. Deep conditioning treatments are also warranted. Immediately after getting a Gina curl, you want to avoid washing the hair so the curls can set. It’s imperative during this time you don’t stretch your curls at all or the curls will set to the stretched state. No tying hair back. Use water to spritz up curls to your liking as the longer the curls are in their defined state, the more likely they will stay defined after washing.

Price And Time

 The Jheri Curl treatment can last about 2-4 hours and typically ranges in price from $50 to $200 as the product can be available for home use too. May be more pricey in salons.

The Gina Curl can only be done in a salon by a trained GinaCurl certified stylist. The treatment can last anywhere from 5-8 hours or more. Price is determined by length of hair, condition and whether hair has had previous chemical treatments. At Hairstalent, the location of the original GinaCurl in East Haven, CT, the Ginacurl starts at $650 and the straight variation starts at $450. In LA I paid a whopping $950 for the Gina Curl due to the location!

My Opinion On The Gina Curl

$650-$950 is very pricey for a hair treatment especially if you have to retouch every 6 months but this is definitely not the treatment for everyone and that’s okay. The process itself calls for a higher price point as there was a great deal of precision and maintenance involved in the application. From the continuous application of solutions, the several stops to wash the hair, and the rolling of the narrow rods all over my hair, it’s a tedious process. The stylist can maybe take one additional client during the drying process but even that would have to be timed out perfectly. This process took 7 hours for me, I was there at 9am and left at 4 pm so that’s nearly a workday. So while the price is high, I can see why, as the stylist will basically only have that one client in a workday. 

In my research I have seen very successful stories with the GinaCurl maintaining people’s lengths and cutting the time it takes to wash their hair. The difference truly is night and day. I’m excited to go on this new journey and so far I don’t regret one thing about this treatment. For me, the purpose of getting this treatment wasn’t to fit into any social norm or even for aesthetic reasons. I love my natural hair texture but can no longer do the 6-hour wash/detangling days. For now the GinaCurl is my solution and I’m excited to see what it entails. After all, hair will grow back (typically) and so I want to change my style as much as possible until I find what works for me!

So far, I’ve spritzed up my hair with water and let the curls do their thing. Today, Sunday 1/21/24, I’ll have to wash my hair and see how the curls will be sitting. Updates will be provided in terms of maintenance, wash day, shedding, etc., so I can provide a more rounded review on the GinaCurl.

Also Read: Lessons Learned From My First Gina Curl: A Second Gina Curl Update

References

https://historydaily.org/permanent-wave-facts-stories-trivia/2

https://www.npr.org/sections/codeswitch/2014/10/11/354931324/comer-cottrell-creator-of-the-peoples-jheri-curl-dies-at-82

https://medium.com/@la.belle.cleopatre/relaxers-no-lye-vs-lye-explained-73a3bff5e155

https://hairstalent.com/official-ginacurl-homepage