SheaMoisture has just launched its Purple Rice Water Range here in Australia, and I’m super excited to try them out for curly hair.
Purple Rice Water was known as forbidden rice and was once withheld from the public by the wealthy and royals in ancient China, and dates back to the Heian period. And in Japanese culture, rice water is also known for giving shiny, healthy hair. It is said to reduce friction, strengthens and fortifies brittle hair, increases elasticity and closes the cuticle.
The Purple Rice Water Range from SheaMositure also has wild orchid and sweet violet extract, so it’s meant to help treat colour-treated curly hair and especially curly hair that’s really brittle.
Now it’s for color-treated hair, so they must know I’m not a natural blonde, but don’t tell anyone. 😉
I love SheaMoisture’s curly hair products, and this time, I received the shampoo, conditioner and color care masque to try out in the Purple Rice Water Range.
I have type 3A curly hair, and for this trial, I hadn’t washed my hair for about five days. (I had showered, I just hadn’t washed my hair because we don’t need to go crazy and wash every day. That will dry your curls out.) Curly hair is naturally dry, so washing every 3-5 days, depending on your curl type, is totally fine.
I don’t put a whole bunch of the Purple Rice Water shampoo in because, with my hair it’s very fine, so too much shampoo dries out my hair. I only put shampoo on the crown of my head, and in the video, I show you what I mean by that.
I then wash it out, and rinsing out the shampoo cleans the rest of my hair without drying it out too much.
As for conditioner, this is where I use quite a bit. The Purple Rice Water conditioner has a beautiful smell too. (It’s lilac.)
I use the conditioner from the mids to the ends because curly hair needs a lot of hydration at the end, and you rinse out with lukewarm water.

Next I use the Purple Rice Water strength and colour masque. I usually use these in the shower after rinsing out the conditioner, because they are meant to be used on damp or wet hair. It smells like lilac, too. The masque has a beautiful consistency. It’s really, really thick and beautiful. That’s what I love about SheaMoisture curly hair products.
I will work that through – whatever I have left over in my hands I’ll put in the ends of my hair because I don’t want too much product. The masque is quite thick. I don’t want it in my crown because that will actually make my hair less voluminous and make it look really flat. And I kinda look like I have a mop on my head. 👀
I scrunch dry with an Aquis towel. So it’s a special towel for people with curly hair. I always wait for it to air dry. I don’t use any heat on my curls.

On day two, the curls did drop just a little out of their curl pattern, which was expected. It’s winter, I’ve got heating indoors, and I’m in 24-hour lockdown with the added stress of a pandemic, so I wasn’t expecting my hair not to experience some reaction to stress.
They do have a beautiful curl pattern with the Purple Rice Water range. I pineapple my hair at night, this is just to help the hair at night so it doesn’t lose the curl pattern as well, and I use a silk tie, and sleep on a silk pillowcase to help my curls keep their pattern. Cotton causes too much friction and ruins curls.

And I styled my hair with the Miracle Styler from SheaMoisture, which is awesome.
This is what it looks like with the Purple Rice Water Range from SheaMoisture. Beautiful, and soft. The curls are super soft, and they’re not crunchy at all. They kept the curl pattern, my hair felt a lot more hydrated than it would usually.
I do use other SheaMoisture range, including the Manuka Honey & Yoghurt, Coconut & Hibiscus, and the Intensive Hydration range.
I definitely feel that Purple Rice Water range is perfect for my hair around this time of year, and it’s actually just kept it, the curl really hydrated, kept the curl pattern a lot more defined and I really love it.

I recommend the Purple Rice Water Range from SheaMoisture. I love the curl pattern it’s given me, they feel hydrated, they feel defined. If you’ve got color-treated curls or your hair is just a bit brittle, and your curls need a little bit of love, definitely try the Purple Rice Water Range out.
SheaMoisture Purple Rice Water Range is available online from July-August 2020.
Click here to visit the SheaMoisture Australia website.
Curly hair products used:
- SheaMoisture Purple Rice Water Shampoo
- SheaMoisture Purple Rice Water Conditioner
- SheaMoisture Purple Rice Water Color Care Masque
- SheaMoistureSilicone-Free Miracle Styler
- Aquis Curly Hair Towel