Struggling with your natural hair? Come in here.....

Cruzankink · Sep 5, 2012

DarkJoy said:
Thanks for the update @Cruzankink! What you using to seal? Perhaps another oil will help avoid those ssk.

@DarkJoy I did not use anything to seal so its no surprise I had the SSK and tangles. I didn't want to pack my oils because I didn't want a mess in my luggage. I just decided that I will deal w/ whatever my hair turns into when I return home. :ohwell:

I intend to make my own all-in-one leave-in that moisturizes and seals which helps when you're traveling.

Cruzankink · Sep 5, 2012

faithVA said:
Glad you had a good time.

Let us know about the coiling/curling. I noticed the same thing. I didn't have amazing curls but I had some. When I chopped I had 0 .

But I'm also wondering if they start to reappear with length.

@faithVA Thanx! I also didn't have super coily/curly hair. But my 4b hair did whole lot more coiling than now. I don't know whether length is a factor for me. Interestinly enough, my hair coiled and clumbed more when it was shorter b/c I assumed I had more heat damage (heat texturizing). But like I said I'll give it some time to pin point the exact cause.

faithVA · Sep 5, 2012

Playing around with using more of the kimmay tube. Today my hair feels soft but with the oil its hard to really tell how my hair feels. So on next wash day, I will make the kimmay tube LI without the oils, apply it twice using my heat cap and then apply the oils to 1/2 of my hair and put nothing on the other side. Then I will be able to compare.

So far it looks like adding more and using my heat cap are working. But the true test will be how my hair feels at the end of the day.

NewlyNature12 · Sep 5, 2012

Did my first twist out...my hair feels so rough! Deep conditioned with Dove, used Knot Today and a little bit of Tressume Naturals as leave in. Olive oil as a sealer. Air dried, then blow dried on low heat low speed to stretch/hurry up the process. Used Shea Moisture style milk to twist, with some Shea butter on the ends. My twists are defined, but my hair feels like a brillo pad. What did I do wrong?

faithVA · Sep 5, 2012

[USER=3466 said:
NewlyNature12[/USER];16770675]Did my first twist out...my hair feels so rough! Deep conditioned with Dove, used Knot Today and a little bit of Tressume Naturals as leave in. Olive oil as a sealer. Air dried, then blow dried on low heat low speed to stretch/hurry up the process. Used Shea Moisture style milk to twist, with some Shea butter on the ends. My twists are defined, but my hair feels like a brillo pad. What did I do wrong?

How does this differ from what you usually apply to your hair? Are these your regular products?

NewlyNature12 · Sep 5, 2012

faithVA said:
How does this differ from what you usually apply to your hair? Are these your regular products?

I don't really have regular products... I had a weave so I havent seen or had to work with my hair for a long time. This is my first time wearing my natural hair out, so I just picked the most "popular" products.

faithVA · Sep 5, 2012

[USER=3466 said:
NewlyNature12[/USER];16770915]I don't really have regular products... I had a weave so I havent seen or had to work with my hair for a long time. This is my first time wearing my natural hair out, so I just picked the most "popular" products.

Ok. I understand. Well its a good time to start a regimen so you can figure out what your hair likes. Any of those products or several of those products could be making your hair feel crazy.

You didn't mention washing your hair at all. Did you wash it with anything? or did you cowash?

If would recommend getting a real deep conditioner. I believe dove is an instant conditioner. You might want to save that until you know what your hair likes.

Skip the Tresemme Naturals for now. And just try using either the Knot Today as a leave-in or the moisture milk.

Go ahead with what you are twisting and styling with until you figure out what works for you from the initial wash to the leave-in.

Check your hair at each stage to see how it feels. If it doesn't feel soft and moisturized at a stage then you want to decide if you need to switch products or techniques.

For example, if I cowash and my hair doesn't feel soft or moisturized when I rinse, there is no amount of conditioning or leave-in that will make it feel soft later. So my recommendation is to start at the first stage is starts to feel bad and fix that stage and then move on.

NewlyNature12 · Sep 5, 2012

Thanks Faith. I'm going to try again later this week. I'll take your advice. I washed with Nexxus, but maybe I need to use something more natural friendly. I'm trying to get rid of that and the Dove.

faithVA · Sep 5, 2012

NewlyNature12 said:
Thanks Faith. I'm going to try again later this week. I'll take your advice. I washed with Nexxus, but maybe I need to use something more natural friendly. I'm trying to get rid of that and the Dove.

It doesn't have to be natural, but your hair will tell you when it likes it or it doesn't. Natural shampooes and conditioners can make your hair feel like crap too :lol:

As you try products start paying attention to the ingredients to see which products your hair likes and which it doesn't.
1. Does your hair like silicones?
2. Does it like aloe vera?
3. Does it like shea butter?
4. What consistency of conditioner or leave-in does your hair like?
5. What oils does your hair like? light, heavy, ceramides, etc.

Then you can buy products based on your hair knowledge vs. other's recommendations. I know it's a lot :lol:

NewlyNature12 · Sep 5, 2012

faithVA said:
It doesn't have to be natural, but your hair will tell you when it likes it or it doesn't. Natural shampooes and conditioners can make your hair feel like crap too As you try products start paying attention to the ingredients to see which products your hair likes and which it doesn't.
1. Does your hair like silicones?
2. Does it like aloe vera?
3. Does it like shea butter?
4. What consistency of conditioner or leave-in does your hair like?
5. What oils does your hair like? light, heavy, ceramides, etc.

Then you can buy products based on your hair knowledge vs. other's recommendations. I know it's a lot

Yes it's a lot! Lol! But I'm excited to get to know my own hair. I an going to search some threads for a new deep conditioner.

HanaKuroi · Sep 5, 2012

NewlyNature12 said:
Did my first twist out...my hair feels so rough! Deep conditioned with Dove, used Knot Today and a little bit of Tressume Naturals as leave in. Olive oil as a sealer. Air dried, then blow dried on low heat low speed to stretch/hurry up the process. Used Shea Moisture style milk to twist, with some Shea butter on the ends. My twists are defined, but my hair feels like a brillo pad. What did I do wrong?

Olive oil makes some people's hair hard. I don't like shea moisture style milk. Wasn't moisturizing to me. Not familiar with dove.

DarkJoy · Sep 5, 2012

NewlyNature12 said:
Thanks Faith. I'm going to try again later this week. I'll take your advice. I washed with Nexxus, but maybe I need to use something more natural friendly. I'm trying to get rid of that and the Dove.

NewlyNature12, If I may add from your original post, you are using a ton of products. Using so many at once when trying to figure out what your hair likes can be counterproductive. Like now--which product/s are making your hair hard is difficult to tell. Could be 1 product, could be an accumulation of 2 or 3. Or maybe 2 products aren't interacting well. The hardness could also be your hairs reaction to anything from the shampoo to the final seal.

Next wash, stick to 1 or 2 products for styling-- your moisturizer and sealant or 1 or the other. Eliminate everything else. If something goes wrong its easier to figure out what it is and permanently remove it from your regi. This is building your regi from the ground up. You learn as you go...

NewlyNature12 · Sep 5, 2012

DarkJoy said:
NewlyNature12, If I may add from your original post, you are using a ton of products. Using so many at once when trying to figure out what your hair likes can be counterproductive. Like now--which product/s are making your hair hard is difficult to tell. Could be 1 product, could be an accumulation of 2 or 3. Or maybe 2 products aren't interacting well. The hardness could also be your hairs reaction to anything from the shampoo to the final seal.

Next wash, stick to 1 or 2 products for styling-- your moisturizer and sealant or 1 or the other. Eliminate everything else. If something goes wrong its easier to figure out what it is and permanently remove it from your regi. This is building your regi from the ground up. You learn as you go...

Thanks! I will definitely take that into consideration. Im always down to simplify!

Linxnme · Sep 5, 2012

I posted my problem in the transitioning thread....now for my daughter's hair problem. She is 8 and natural, and I am now getting on top of her regi (learning to care for her hair was a big reason as to why I am transitioning). Anyway, her hair is a few inches past shoulder length and I notice when washing and dc'ing, the top portion of her hair seems unresponsive to the conditioner, while the bottom half, towards the ends are just as moisturized and silky looking as can be. For example, I section her hair in four and I apply the con to one section and as I work it through, the top half of the section, although soft, appears dry and doesn't really react to the con (it almost looks frizzy like humidity just hit it), while the bottom half, towards the ends loves the conditioner and is silky soft, and has cute little coils.

What is that about? She has always been natural and her hair is about a 4b/c. I have flat ironed in the past although not regularly. What can I do?

Edited to add pic

HanaKuroi · Sep 5, 2012

Linxnme said:
I posted my problem in the transitioning thread....now for my daughter's hair problem. She is 8 and natural, and I am now getting on top of her regi (learning to care for her hair was a big reason as to why I am transitioning). Anyway, her hair is a few inches past shoulder length and I notice when washing and dc'ing, the top portion of her hair seems unresponsive to the conditioner, while the bottom half, towards the ends are just as moisturized and silky looking as can be. For example, I section her hair in four and I apply the con to one section and as I work it through, the top half of the section, although soft, appears dry and doesn't really react to the con (it almost looks frizzy like humidity just hit it), while the bottom half, towards the ends loves the conditioner and is silky soft, and has cute little coils.

What is that about? She has always been natural and her hair is about a 4b/c. I have flat ironed in the past although not regularly. What can I do?

Edited to add pic

Can u post your regimen and products?

Linxnme · Sep 6, 2012

HanaKuroi said:
Can u post your regimen and products?

I just started with her solid regi but it mimics mine.

Wash weekly - Giovanni deep moisture poo and con
Dc - Megasilk moisturizing treatment w/grapeseed oil
Leave in avj, megasilk leave in, seal with Ecco
Daily ms, elasta qp mango butter,seal lightly w/Evco

Still undecided about using the 2min protein that I use weekly.

virtuenow · Sep 6, 2012

Linxnme when you say the "top" portion of her hair is unresponsive to conditioner do you mean her roots? Or do you mean the front (e.g. bang area) is not responsive. And by bottom is silky, you are referring to ends, right? Well, if that's the case then its good. The ends is the most important thing for lenght retention and it sounds like her hair is accepting moisture. Her "top" or roots and ends are all apart of the same hair. It sounds like she just has some clumping action going on. For some people it's more evident at the ends, where the hair will join together and wind around into curls & coils. Most importantly, how does her hair feel. Does the whole strand feel like it is accepting the moisture in spite of appearances?

virtuenow · Sep 6, 2012

Linxnme said:
I just started with her solid regi but it mimics mine.

Wash weekly - Giovanni deep moisture poo and con
Dc - Megasilk moisturizing treatment w/grapeseed oil
Leave in avj, megasilk leave in, seal with Ecco
Daily ms, elasta qp mango butter,seal lightly w/Evco

Still undecided about using the 2min protein that I use weekly.

You should be wetting her hair daily, as in a moisture spritz. The mango butter is a sealer and the evco is a sealer. So you are essentially double sealing her hair and adding no moisture. That is where the spritz comes in. Then you should add a creamy leave in on top and a sealer. But spritzing is important that you hydrate her hair DAILY. Also, your routine sounds nice otherwise, except shampoo. It is severely drying. You may want to dilute the poo in an applicator bottle and just shampoo her scalp. That way you do not dry out her hair, and let the conditioner and poo residue do the rest of the cleansing.

Linxnme · Sep 6, 2012

Yes I mean the from the roots down. The hair does feel soft, its just that I can really see the bottom half, (about 3-4 inches) going towards the ends coiling so nicely. I wish the entire length can behave like that. Also, a big no no, I am learning is that I towel dry (with a regular towel) after washing. Not a major towels dry, but she has the towel on her head for a few minutes. I think the towel absorbs a lot of moisture and may take away from the dc benefits and the leave in as well.

virtuenow · Sep 6, 2012

Linxnme said:
Yes I mean the from the roots down. The hair does feel soft, its just that I can really see the bottom half, (about 3-4 inches) going towards the ends coiling so nicely. I wish the entire length can behave like that. Also, a big no no, I am learning is that I towel dry (with a regular towel) after washing. Not a major towels dry, but she has the towel on her head for a few minutes. I think the towel absorbs a lot of moisture and may take away from the dc benefits and the leave in as well.

I use a nice soft t-shirt. They work perfectly. Just designate a few t-shirts expecially for the hair. They are much more gentle and less pulling, less drying.

Linxnme · Sep 6, 2012

virtuenow said:
You should be wetting her hair daily, as in a moisture spritz. The mango butter is a sealer and the evco is a sealer. So you are essentially double sealing her hair and adding no moisture. That is where the spritz comes in. Then you should add a creamy leave in on top and a sealer. But spritzing is important that you hydrate her hair DAILY. Also, your routine sounds nice otherwise, except shampoo. It is severely drying. You may want to dilute the poo in an applicator bottle and just shampoo her scalp. That way you do not dry out her hair, and let the conditioner and poo residue do the rest of the cleansing.

Good ideas. I actually spritz my hair, but I wear a wig as a ps. Her hairstyle this week is a curlformers bang with a twist out pony tail and while I can spritz the ponytail part, if I spritz the bang, the curls might fall, but then again, maybe I mist it.

The only time, I am able to do a wet (as opposed) to mist it is if I cornbraid it. She was actually staying on of the ms with the spray bottle and evco when she was braided up. I was loving it. Now that i think of it, it is braid time this weekend. I think that way it will be easy for me to get her moisture in tact, with low manipulation.

Linxnme · Sep 6, 2012

virtuenow said:
I use a nice soft t-shirt. They work perfectly. Just designate a few t-shirts expecially for the hair. They are much more gentle and less pulling, less drying.

Thanks so much. This was a great help because it was bugging the heck out of me.

virtuenow · Sep 6, 2012

Linxnme said:
Good ideas. I actually spritz my hair, but I wear a wig as a ps. Her hairstyle this week is a curlformers bang with a twist out pony tail and while I can spritz the ponytail part, if I spritz the bang, the curls might fall, but then again, maybe I mist it.

The only time, I am able to do a wet (as opposed) to mist it is if I cornbraid it. She was actually staying on of the ms with the spray bottle and evco when she was braided up. I was loving it. Now that i think of it, it is braid time this weekend. I think that way it will be easy for me to get her moisture in tact, with low manipulation.

Yes, I was going to say a light mist should suffice when you have her in stretched styles. You don't need to saturate it daily.

faithVA · Sep 7, 2012

I've been playing around with the Kimmay Tube leave-in. I skipped the oils this time around. I cowashed. I put 1 to 2 TBSP of Giovanni Direct on one side of my head. I put 1 to 2 TBSP of Giovanni Direct mixed with AVG on the other side of my head. I sat under my heat cap. And the mix with AVG seemed to absorb into my hair where the Giovanni alone did not. I tried to apply more after I used the heat cap but my hair was saturated.

My hair was still very wet this morning which is unusual. But part of my hair with just the Giovanni was ashy and dull looking. So I misted my hair with water and rubbed it in, let it dry and bit and did my texturizing method. I put on a little bit of sunflower/grapeseed oil.

Both sides feel soft but the side with AVG feels softer and smoother. The Giovanni side feels more crunchy.

My hair is completely dry now and it still feels pretty good. The AVG side feels better over time.

My conclusion so far is that I definitely need to put in more leave-in than I was using. And for some products I do need to add the AVG. I should also hold on the oil until I style.

I am going to try the same leave-in comparing AVG with AVJ.

My version of soft is still probably harder than others :lol:

but this is better than what I have been getting. So maybe I can make some progress from here.

I won't repurchase the Giovanni because I don't think its the right product for my hair but it's good to practice with.

2ndsbetter · Sep 8, 2012

I should've come into this thread a long time ago. I'm 1 year post BC but my hair is mostly 3 to 4 inches in different areas. I think I could've retained all 6 inches but I find myself trimming SSKs and split ends 3 to 4 times a week. My crown is the shortest part of my hair. It is forever dry and tangled. I moisturize and seal daily but hair still has SSKs the next day. Also, my hair is dry again as soon as I cowash, I think I may be low porosity based the on floating hair test. I did a permanent color a few weeks ago.

Any help would be appreciated.

Regimen
Daily: S-Curl and seal with African Pride Growth Oil or shea butter mix, then I twist and wear a wig
DC weekly: just tried Nunaat Silicon, then use CON leave-in or Cantu shea butter leave-in

At least twice a week I use my sulfur mix on my scalp.

I rarely shampoo and when I do I use black soap or Nexxus Therappe. I try to clarify once a month.

lamaria211 · Sep 8, 2012

2ndsbetter said:
I should've come into this thread a long time ago. I'm 1 year post BC but my hair is mostly 3 to 4 inches in different areas. I think I could've retained all 6 inches but I find myself trimming SSKs and split ends 3 to 4 times a week. My crown is the shortest part of my hair. It is forever dry and tangled. I moisturize and seal daily but hair still has SSKs the next day. Also, my hair is dry again as soon as I cowash, I think I may be low porosity based the on floating hair test. I did a permanent color a few weeks ago.

Any help would be appreciated.

Regimen
Daily: S-Curl and seal with African Pride Growth Oil or shea butter mix, then I twist and wear a wig
DC weekly: just tried Nunaat Silicon, then use CON leave-in or Cantu shea butter leave-in

At least twice a week I use my sulfur mix on my scalp.

I rarely shampoo and when I do I use black soap or Nexxus Therappe. I try to clarify once a month.

Put the scissors down! Does scurl make your hair feel soft and moisturized if not stop using it. My hair hates poo I now use cleansing conditioners like Wen. If your not already sealing in your moisturizers you can try that as well. How often do you use protein your hair can not hold moisture without the proper protein balance if I were you I would start off with something light like AO GPB or an egg then use a moisture DC afterwards and see how that works

2ndsbetter · Sep 8, 2012

lamaria211 said:
Put the scissors down! Does scurl make your hair feel soft and moisturized if not stop using it. My hair hates poo I now use cleansing conditioners like Wen. If your not already sealing in your moisturizers you can try that as well. How often do you use protein your hair can not hold moisture without the proper protein balance if I were you I would start off with something light like AO GPB or an egg then use a moisture DC afterwards and see how that works

I think I need to find another moisturizer. As far as protein, I used the Aphogee 2 step a few weeks ago and the Nunaat Silicon I used for a DC yesterday has protein. I was so tempted to grab the scissors before I read this post and you caught me! lol The bushiness of my ends drives me crazy and makes it hard to seal them.

I'm been thinking of ordering AO GPB and think I'll go ahead and get it and keep looking for a good DC.

virtuenow · Sep 8, 2012

@2ndsbetter If your hair is dry after co-washing, then you u haven't found the right conditioner yet. I agree with the above, AO Gpb is a great moisture-balance protein Deep conditioner. It is also a reconstructor which means it builds your strand--- it is better for correcting porosity than anything I've encountered (whew). It's the first cond'r my hair ever reacted to and actually held moisture. Definitely top of the line. The float test is not a good way to determine porosity. Rather, feeling whether your hair is accepting water and moisture is a better way. Your reggie sounds like you are on the right track, but you need to find the right products. S-Curl is heavy in glycerin, maybe your hair doens't like glycerin. I know mine doesn't. I avoid it at all costs. Also, after you use your daily spritz, I think it would be better to seal w/a creamy leave in first, then just put your oil seal on your ends. By the way, you should find a good moisture spritz and you don't have to heavy seal every day. Perhaps you can also combat the dryness by diluting your shampoo and trying the moisture drenched pre-poo.

2ndsbetter · Sep 8, 2012

virtuenow said:
@2ndsbetter If your hair is dry after co-washing, then you u haven't found the right conditioner yet. I agree with the above, AO Gpb is a great moisture-balance protein Deep conditioner. It is also a reconstructor which means it builds your strand--- it is better for correcting porosity than anything I've encountered (whew). It's the first cond'r my hair ever reacted to and actually held moisture. Definitely top of the line. The float test is not a good way to determine porosity. Rather, feeling whether your hair is accepting water and moisture is a better way. Your reggie sounds like you are on the right track, but you need to find the right products. S-Curl is heavy in glycerin, maybe your hair doens't like glycerin. I know mine doesn't. I avoid it at all costs. Also, after you use your daily spritz, I think it would be better to seal w/a creamy leave in first, then just put your oil seal on your ends. By the way, you should find a good moisture spritz and you don't have to heavy seal every day. Perhaps you can also combat the dryness by diluting your shampoo and trying the moisture drenched pre-poo.

You have some great suggestions. When I ran out of the Oyin Handmade Greg Juice, I used that bottle to make a water and conditioner spritz. I may need to revisit that. As far as glycerin, you may be right. I have a bottle of glycerin that I don't even use. I sometimes seal with shea butter, Cantu Shea Butter leave-in or Motions Hydrate My Curl Pudding before the oil. Also, I usually prepoo with oils or a prepoo similar to the one used by Patchouli85 on YouTube.

faithVA · Sep 8, 2012

[USER=346351 said:
2ndsbetter[/USER];16797657]I should've come into this thread a long time ago. I'm 1 year post BC but my hair is mostly 3 to 4 inches in different areas. I think I could've retained all 6 inches but I find myself trimming SSKs and split ends 3 to 4 times a week. My crown is the shortest part of my hair. It is forever dry and tangled. I moisturize and seal daily but hair still has SSKs the next day. Also, my hair is dry again as soon as I cowash, I think I may be low porosity based the on floating hair test. I did a permanent color a few weeks ago.

Any help would be appreciated.

Regimen
Daily: S-Curl and seal with African Pride Growth Oil or shea butter mix, then I twist and wear a wig
DC weekly: just tried Nunaat Silicon, then use CON leave-in or Cantu shea butter leave-in

At least twice a week I use my sulfur mix on my scalp.

I rarely shampoo and when I do I use black soap or Nexxus Therappe. I try to clarify once a month.

Are you sure your hair is ok with silicones?

Struggling with your natural hair? Come in here.....

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