The Curl Girl Guide to a REAL Curly Hair Detox (Malibu C Crystal Gel, Hard Water, Undo-Goo + Hydration Reset)

I used to hear it constantly:

“My curls are so dry.”

But behind the chair, that was almost never the real problem.

Curly hair doesn’t usually get dry.
It gets blocked.

Over time, curls accumulate layers of things that don’t fully release on their own — product residue, conditioner buildup, oils, gels, minerals from hard water, chlorine, copper, and environmental buildup. Add natural sebum into the mix, and you end up with hair that looks thirsty but won’t actually accept moisture.

Once buildup gets thick enough, curls stop responding.
Definition falls apart. Texture goes chaotic. Hair that behaved beautifully a few weeks earlier suddenly won’t cooperate at all.

I saw that shift constantly — sometimes in less than a month.

And no, there isn’t a styling product that fixes it.

No curl cream fixes buildup.
No co-wash fixes buildup.
“Clarifying once a month” doesn’t fix buildup.

What fixes it is a proper chelation reset, done in the correct order.

That’s how curl detoxing was handled long before it became social media content. And it’s exactly how I worked behind the chair when I was known as The Curl Girl.

Not as a protocol sheet.
As an actual service.

Here’s how I did it.

When I needed curls to reset and respond again, I always started by removing product film first. Product residue has to come off before minerals can move. That meant beginning with Malibu Undo-Goo as a true first cleanse. Oils, stylers, conditioners, leave-ins, co-wash residue — all of it needed to be removed.

If I skipped that step, chelation wouldn’t touch what it needed to.

Once the hair was free of product film, I moved into chelation using Malibu Crystal Gel or the Malibu Hard Water packet, depending on the client and their water exposure. Hard Water was my default in mineral-heavy areas where calcium, magnesium, copper, and iron were common. Crystal Gel was reserved for deeper resets — well water, discoloration, or stubborn buildup that didn’t release easily.

This is the step people describe as “magic,” but there’s nothing mystical about it. It’s chemistry doing what it’s designed to do.

After chelation, I rinsed thoroughly. Mineral removal takes longer than product removal, and this is where shortcuts cause problems. I didn’t rush this step. If minerals aren’t fully released and flushed away, they can settle right back onto the hair.

Once everything that needed to lift was lifted, I shampooed again with Undo-Goo. That second cleanse mattered. It removed what the chelation loosened and prevented minerals from re-crystallizing on the hair fiber. Yes, I shampooed twice. And yes, curls handled it just fine. I wasn’t stripping moisture — I was removing barriers.

Only after the hair was actually clean did hydration come into play.

That’s where most curl routines go wrong.

Once buildup was removed, I followed with curl-safe hydrating treatments — rich conditioners or moisture masks appropriate for the curl type and porosity. I made sure hydration was evenly distributed, detangled gently with real slip, combed through, and allowed the hair time to absorb instead of rushing the process.

When hair is actually clean, hydration works without being forced.

After that, I rinsed, styled, and let the curls do what they naturally wanted to do.

No gimmicks.
No excessive routines.
Just clean hair and proper hydration.

The reason this order works is simple: curls deal with two different types of buildup.

There’s organic film from products and oils, and there’s inorganic buildup from minerals. Organic film blocks moisture from reaching the hair. Mineral buildup blocks moisture from entering it. If you don’t remove both, hydration can’t do its job.

That’s why clarifying alone doesn’t work.
Chelating alone doesn’t work.
And co-washing doesn’t solve buildup.

Swimmers were always handled with extra care. I didn’t chelate constantly or strip hair chasing the idea of “clean.” We used lighter resets more often and reserved full chelation for when it was actually needed. Chlorine exposure may be frequent, but chelation is a reset — not a routine.

Porosity mattered, too. Low-porosity curls often felt waxy or coated because minerals sat on top of the cuticle, making hydration difficult to absorb. High-porosity curls often felt rough or stiff because minerals settled into gaps in the cuticle, disrupting curl pattern and flexibility.

Chelation addressed both — for different reasons — which is why it was always the foundation of my curl detox work.

Curl Detox & Chelation Reset

Service Protocol Sheet

Purpose:
Remove product film and mineral buildup so curls can properly absorb hydration and return to natural pattern and responsiveness.

Products Used:

• Malibu C Undo-Goo Shampoo

• Malibu C Crystal Gel or Hard Water Packet

• Curl-safe hydrating conditioner or moisture mask

STEP 1 — Product Film Removal

Cleanse: Malibu Undo-Goo
Purpose: Remove organic buildup (products, oils, conditioners, co-wash residue)

• Thoroughly saturate hair

• Cleanse with Undo-Goo

• Rinse completely

This step must be done first. Chelation will not effectively remove minerals if product film is still present.

STEP 2 — Chelation (Mineral Removal)

Treatment: Malibu Crystal Gel or Malibu Hard Water Packet
Purpose: Remove inorganic buildup (minerals, metals)

• Choose based on exposure:

  • Hard Water Packet: calcium, magnesium, copper, iron

  • Crystal Gel: well water, discoloration, stubborn or long-term buildup

• Apply according to manufacturer directions

• Process as directed

STEP 3 — Thorough Rinse

Purpose: Fully release and flush lifted minerals

• Rinse longer than a standard shampoo rinse

• Do not rush

• Ensure hair is fully cleared of treatment residue

STEP 4 — Secondary Cleanse

Cleanse: Malibu Undo-Goo
Purpose: Remove minerals lifted during chelation and prevent re-deposit

• Shampoo a second time with Undo-Goo

• Rinse thoroughly

Double cleansing is intentional. This removes barriers, not moisture.

STEP 5 — Hydration Treatment

Treatment: Curl-safe hydrating conditioner or moisture mask
Purpose: Restore moisture once buildup is removed

• Apply evenly to clean hair

• Detangle gently with adequate slip

• Comb through for even distribution

• Allow hair time to absorb

STEP 6 — Final Rinse & Style

Purpose: Allow natural curl pattern to return

• Rinse as appropriate for curl type

• Style using curl-safe products

• Observe improved softness, definition, and responsiveness

Key Notes

• This is a reset, not a routine service

• Chelation should be used only when mineral buildup is present

• Swimmers or frequent chlorine exposure may require lighter resets more often, with full chelation used as needed

• Proper order is critical: product film must be removed before mineral removal