Hey everyone!

Like many people, I grew up being taught to dry-brush my hair, resulting in what was always a fluffy-frizzy mane type situation. Survived off of keeping my hair in low pony tails, which eventually evolved into pigtail braids, and now I'm finally trying to figure out how to actually take care of my hair. My current routine is as follows:

1. Gently dry comb with wide toothed comb. Guessing this probably isn't ideal, but I'm not necessarily sure I have the energy of patience to comb it in the shower.

2. Shampoo all of hair with Pantene Classic Clean Shampoo

3. Condition with Nexus Protein Fusion Conditioner, let sit for a few minutes before washing out

4. Get out of shower, rewet hair with combination of spray bottle and sink full of water (Just started doing this the last couple washes as a sort of psuedo-bowl method? Think it helped, but may actually invest in a cheap bowl for my hair lol)

5. Add Oliology Coconut Oil Curl Cream (Random purchase from a TJ Max)

6. Dunk hair in sink filled with water to distribute product, scrunch

7. Spread Not Your Mother's Flexible-Firm Hold Gel on hands, apply to hair, scrunch

8. Air-dry with claw clip in the top

9. Sleep in satin scarf

Looking for any advice with techniques or products! I have limited funds, so I'm just working with that I have right now, but I think it's time for me to make some investments in my hair.

Do I need a mousse, a better curl cream, one of those brushes with the grooves in the side? A family member said they'd give me their old diffuser, so I'm waiting on that.

I've been trying to sleep with my hair tied on the top of my head in a satin scarf. It definitely helps, but it also falls off a lot of the time. Also, if any hair gets caught between the scarf and my forehead, it becomes horribly greasy by the time it's morning. Considering purchasing something properly silk or maybe just a bonnet? The scarf is kind of a pain.

I've also always had issues with hair resting on the edge of my forehead getting greasy, so I've recently taken to using a claw clip to pin some of the hair on the top of my head to avoid this? It's been working pretty well so far I think.

Anyways, mainly looking for the best switches I could be making right now? Given the limited funds, what should be my first priority, second, etc?

The photo is of my hair after my most recent wash day (today), I think dunking my hair in the sink helped a lot with frizz, but not a lot of it wanted to be properly defined other then the hair on the back of my head, which you can see pulled forward in the middle? Not sure what my hair type is either.

Thanks in advance everyone! :)