How Can I Keep My Hair From Feeling Crunchy After Applying Gel?

Question of the day:  How can I keep my hair from feeling crunchy after applying gel?

Barbaranaturallyspeaking's response:  When I first started doing wash and go's on newly natural hair in December 2008, I experienced similar results.  I would do a wash and go with gel and then once my hair dried, it would sometimes feel crunchy.  I began to realize that I could try several different approaches to soften my hair.  Applying oil before adding gel to my freshly co-washed hair always helped to add a touch of moisture. I also realized that just a tiny bit of gel goes a long way, and reduced the amount of gel that I was applying to my hair.  Once my hair air dried it dried softer.  On occasions when I did have a little bit of a crunch, I counted it as giving extra hold and found a key way to soften it for day 2, 3, and 4 ( if my curls held up that long).  On day 2, I found that spraying my hair with a refresher spray and then scrunching in a little oil helped to soften my hair.  I always used my homemade refresher spray, which consisted of water, conditioner, and oil.  After spritzing my hair I then scrunched in a little oil, either olive oil or coconut oil.  My hair would maintain a feeling of softness without any crunch.  That's what worked for me when it came to scrunching out the crunch.  In fact when wearing a wash and go, wash and go puff, or even a braidout pulled back into a puff, I follow the same regimen.  Spritz with a refresher spray and scrunch in some oil and I have soft moisturized hair.  You can also find several natural curl refresher sprays in stores or online.  Did anyone else find a way to keep their hair from feeling crunchy after applying gel?   Do you have a favorite curl refreshing spray that you use to add moisture or to get rid of any day 1 crunchies?