I’ve been following African Pride for years and I received the African Pride Moisture Miracle collection and other extra goodies! When I was transitioning from relaxed to natural, I faithfully used African Pride’s Olive Miracle Leave-in Conditioner.
This leave-in conditioner was one of the reasons I was able to successfully transition for over two years and gain confidence in starting my natural hair journey. African Pride has been in the Black hair game for over 30 years. I also love African Pride because their products have always been reasonably priced.
Although the African Pride name has been around for a while, the brand was revamped when it was acquired by Godrej Consumer Goods in 2016. The company is currently operated and controlled by Black women and Brown people of color. They also have boosted their community presence by donating $500K to disaster relief in the last year and weighing in on important topics, such as the representation of Black women in the boardroom and voting rights. They currently offer over 25 products addressing the needs of various hair types from natural to relaxed, straight to coily.
The African Pride Moisture Miracle collection is available at select Walmart locations, Dollar General, and local beauty supply stores. Our collection is naturally crafted for the specific needs of coils and curly textures. Now, let's dive into a detailed look at some of the key products in this line.
Read also: Is African Pride Moisture Miracle Worth It?
Pre-Shampoo: Aloe & Coconut Water Detangle & Condition
The Moisture Miracle Aloe & Coconut Water Detangle & Condition Pre-Shampoo is designed to detangle the hair in preparation for styling, which also aids in preventing breakage. 12oz. The pre-shampoo “instantly softens and detangles hair with the natural healing and soothing benefits of aloe vera, combined with the hydrating properties of coconut water.”
This Pre-shampoo has a jelly-like consistency and a pleasant scent that seems equal parts fruity and perfumy. This pre-shampoo is a GAME CHANGER! I tried this first when I was taking down a set of twists after four weeks. It was absolutely amazing.
The consistency feels almost like a gel, which I think is because of the aloe vera. While it’s a very runny product, it interestingly feels heavy. The detangling properties were immediately evident upon application. It made detangling and prepping for wash day a breeze as the product just melted into my hair.
After rinsing, not only was my hair tangle-free, my curls were separated and defined. My shampoo process was definitely easier after using this product. This will be added to the list of my favorite products and will probably be my primary pre-shampoo product.
Shampoo: Honey & Coconut Oil
This shampoo says it, “gently cleans hair of dirt and build-up without stripping the follicles of their natural oils. The humectant and reparative benefits of honey and coconut oil combine to deeply penetrate and hydrate coils and curls.”
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This shampoo is the ONE! Just like the pre-shampoo, this shampoo will be a staple product in my routine. It does an amazing job at cleansing my scalp, without leaving my hair dry afterwards. In fact, my hair felt incredibly soft throughout, and after, the process. It was easy to detangle my hair with this shampoo.
Conditioner: Honey & Coconut Oil
The conditioner says it, “restores moisture by combining the nutritive properties of honey and coconut oil with the restorative benefits of chocolate (cacao) to strengthen, transform, and repair dry coils and curls.”
In all honesty, this conditioner didn’t WOW me like the pre-shampoo and shampoo. I actually feel like the shampoo was more moisturizing and had better slip than this conditioner. Interestingly, this conditioner is fairly watery in consistency. Which I wasn’t too crazy about because I like my conditioners to be on the thicker side.
Masque: Moroccan Red Clay & Shea Butter
“This detoxifying and restorative clay masque uses the clarifying benefits of Moroccan red clay to remove impurities and product build-up on hair. Shea butter replenishes moisture and tames frizz.”
This masque is LIFE, I’m not kidding. When I first applied this product, it didn’t feel moisturizing. However, it does say “heat activated” on the packaging. This implies that you should use heat with this product.
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Y’all know how much I LOVE a thick deep conditioner. This masque came through in consistency! I felt like I didn’t have to use a lot because of the thickness. Shout-out to African Pride for sending me a complimentary hooded bonnet dryer attachment! I sat with the bonnet attached to my blow dryer for 15 minutes and afterward, my hair felt EXTREMELY moisturized. You can turn the jar upside down and nothing will come out.
THIS METHOD BROUGHT MY HAIR BACK TO LIFE !| I tried the MAXIMUM HYDRATION METHOD and I’m speechless!
Leave-In Conditioner: Coconut Milk & Honey
African Pride’s leave-in conditioner, “combines ultra-hydrating coconut milk with replenishing honey so hair is instantly softened, hydrated and shinier.” This spray smells SO good! The conditioner comes in an 8 fl oz. spray bottle instructing you to “shake to mix”. It’s advertised to refresh and soften natural coils and curls. Coconut milk replenishes moisture, naturally softens and detangles while honey naturally retains moisture and adds shine.
I don’t remember my reasoning behind purchasing this product because I’m not a fan of “spray” products. To me, I don’t feel like it gets the job done. Anyway, throughout the use of this product one thing which stood out to me the most was the scent. It’s STRONG! Not strong in a bad way, but it’s a real powerful sweet smell. Similar to my distaste with spray products, there’s one for strong sweet scents.
It’s very lightweight and moisturizing. I feel like this will be my go-to leave-in when I need to refresh my curls. Or, when the weather is warmer as I like to use thicker leave-in products during colder months.
Leave-In Cream: Coconut & Baobab Oils
Hydrate and strengthen hair with a nourishing blend of coconut and baobab oils. This leave-in is very thick, which I like for the colder months. As mentioned earlier, it’s thicker than the curling cream and pretty much has the same scent. What I particularly love about this product is in the instructions it tells you to “apply a generous amount”, so you already know wassup (another reason it finished as quickly as it did). You can also use it as a daily moisturiser, which I did a few times or layer with products.
Since this leave-in cream is on the thicker side, I’d suggest applying water before applying this cream. This way it’ll be easier to work the product through your hair. I also will probably only use this product when styling on wash day. The first product I tested from this line based on a review from Instagram and I instantly fell in love. I used it with a sample of another brand’s product and I got such an awesome twist out. Sadly, I haven’t been able to recreate that specific look but the leave-in cream works great on my hair to give me added moisture.
Curling Cream: Shea Butter & Flaxseed Oil
The “versatile styling cream blends shea butter and flaxseed oil to provide deep moisture, lasting definition, and radiant shine, ensuring coils and curly styles are smooth and bouncy with a soft hold.” “Shapes, hydrates and adds shine to natural coils and curls” The curling cream comes in a 12 oz. jar and contains no parabens, mineral oil, sulfates nor petrolatum. Shea butter deeply moisturizes, helps strengthen and protect the hair while flaxseed oil provides a natural hold and restores shine.
This curling cream is great! I haven’t really branched out from SheaMoisture’s Coconut & Hibiscus Curl Enhancing Smoothie. Don’t fix what isn’t broken, right? But, this cream will definitely be a staple product! Like the leave-in cream, this product is somewhat on the thicker side. I say somewhat because it’s a bit runny, however, a little goes a long way. I feel like if you apply too much of this product then it might leave your hair flaky.
The funny thing about this cream and my hair is how light it is. Usually, my hair prefers thicker creams such as the leave-in but I’ve been reaching for this product lately while styling my hair. The only thing I’m iffy about is the hold, therefore I’d suggest pairing it with another product. On my next style I’d probably pair it with a gel.
5 Essential Oils: Castor, Grapeseed, Argan, Coconut, Olive
This oil “uses a nourishing mix of five premium oils (Castor, Grapeseed, Argan, Coconut, Olive). Plus vitamin E to replenish natural nutrients, protect against breakage, promote growth and strengthen strands. All while infusing coils and curls with moisture and body.” Last but not least, an oil. Whether you’re using the LOC or LCO method, you need an oil to seal in every ounce of moisture. The oil comes in a 4 fl oz. bottle with a spout and contains five essential oils: Castor, Grapeseed, Argan, Coconut and Olive.
This is the ULTIMATE scalp and hair oil. Sealant when doing my LOC/LCO styling method.2. Hot oil treatment.3. If we were ranking these products on scent alone this would be the winner; it smells heavenly! I’ve used this product quite a few times on my scalp, but it’s hard to judge it’s effectiveness (lately, my scalp always seems dry).
Olive Miracle Collection
The Olive Miracle 7-in-1 Leave-In Moisture Restore Curl Refresher is touted as a jack of all trades, detangling, conditioning and refreshing curls, controlling frizz and adding shine, offering heat protection, and preventing split ends. I don’t typically use a refresher spray, simply because liquidy products tend to shrink, and subsequently tangle, my hair after it has been stretched.
I was also hesitant to use this particular product because of how many silicones are present. Granted, most appear to be water-soluble, but I still did not want to deal with potential buildup from daily use. The scent of this product (as well as the others in this line) reminds me of a green apple body spray. I used this as a leave-in prior to blowdrying and for a twistout.
It did initially assist with detangling. It also seemed to aid in overall smoothness. However, it did not do much for me in the way of refreshment for my curls. I initially ended up with hair that was a bit oily, but I eventually ended up with dryness a few days post-wash, presumably due to build-up.
The Olive Miracle Non-Flaking Foam Setting Mousse is your standard solution for controlling set styles. I used it first for refreshing my twists, then for a wash and go, a bantu knot set, and to set a twistout. The foam did a great job of laying down my twists and sealing in any flyaways and loose hair. In terms of the wash and go, it did set my curls and did not leave them hard or crunchy.
Now, concerning the Bantu knot set, I wasn’t particularly satisfied with the results. My hair was indeed smooth, soft, and shiny, but it didn’t have much hold. I must be fair, though - I did this style on blowdried hair. My hair has historically taken Bantu knots better on dry hair, but the product instructions do not make provisions for that - only damp hair. My ends are also a bit frayed and the mousse was no match. I also tried to salvage the style with a flat twist set to no avail.
With that experience behind me, I decided to give the foam one more try on my old faithful twistout. I decided to use the foam to set my style after my typical leave-in and cream styler, which has no hold. My twists did come out fairly defined and soft. As with the other styles, the product delivered on the promise of not flaking. However, I did not experience lasting hold - my style was lost after a day or so.
Last but not least, the Olive Miracle Weightless Heat Protectant & Shine Mist is the heat protectant in the bunch. I used this as a heat protectant for both the blowdryer and curler iron, as a finisher to my set styles, and as a frizz guard for my takedowns. All of my hair reverted back without any damage from heat styling. As a matter of fact, my hair started shrinking as soon as I took it down.
My hair was shiny but not necessarily frizz-free. I also experience my hair being a bit oily to the touch. However, I will also be fair here, as I may have used more product than necessary, especially in concert with the Curl Refresher. Interestingly, this heat protectant has two silicones vs. the four in the Curl Refresher. There are actually 10 different oils in this heat protectant, which may have lent itself to the oiliness of my hair as well.
Overall Thoughts
I was surprised that the leave-in cream and curling cream didn’t clash since they’re both fairly thick products. But, they complement each other very well. My absolute favorites from this line are the pre-shampoo, shampoo, heat-activated masque, and 5 essential oils! I’d give this entire collection a 10/10.
Although I wasn’t thoroughly impressed with the conditioner, every other product in this collection was GOLD! Especially for the price point of each product, I think this collection is amazing. Overall, I really enjoyed using these products and they are type 4 qualified and coily hair approved. It was something different for me from the typical mainstream brands and most of them worked great.
I’d give the moisture miracle line 3/5 until I try the remaining products (pre-shampoo, shampoo, conditioner, gel n’ cream, masque and mousse). As you can see it’s an extensive product line covering everything you’d need for your natural hair care regimen.
At the end of the day, the Aloe & Coconut Water Pre-Shampoo was magic. The other three products left much to be desired. I won’t necessarily give up on them, but I have other products in my current rotation that give better results, and thus I don’t forsee myself reaching for them often.
Customer Reviews:
- This Saved My Hair: “Before using this pre-shampoo I could barely get my fingers through my hair and now I can use my wide-toothed comb to apply my products like I need to. And my hair always feels super soft and moisturized after rinsing. This really saved my hair.”
- Curls Popping: “Great curling creme for natural hair!”
- It Does want you want it to do: “It's great for holding down those sides but really light without the stickiness”
- The Holy Grail of Oils: “Very moisturizing! The natural oils are superb for my hair type. And the shine is unmatched.”
- Staple In My Routine: “I always use this when i get braided extensions. Works as intended and minimizes breakage while adding needed moisture. A staple in my hair care routine”
- Good Product with Appropriate Balance Of Moisture And Control: “I'm in love with this. Best for all protective styles and wash and go's. Adds moisture, shine and movement to the hair."
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| Product | Rating | Comments |
|---|---|---|
| Pre-Shampoo | 10/10 | Instantly softens and detangles hair. |
| Shampoo | 10/10 | Gently cleanses without stripping natural oils. |
| Conditioner | 7/10 | Fairly watery consistency, not as moisturizing as expected. |
| Masque | 10/10 | Heat-activated, provides extreme moisture. |
| Leave-In Conditioner (Spray) | 9/10 | Lightweight and moisturizing, great for refreshing curls. |
| Leave-In Cream | 8/10 | Thick, best used with water for easier application. |
| Curling Cream | 9/10 | Provides deep moisture and lasting definition. |
| 5 Essential Oils | 10/10 | Nourishing mix of oils, perfect for scalp and hair. |
