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

I really like Giovanni direct and Silk Elements leave.in creme those two are my favs.

Cruzankink, don't tell anyone I told you this coz I do sound like a broken record since this is my holy grail and I preach about it a lot. So I'ma tell you on the DL lest folks fling things at me. I see Foxglove holding a tomato at the ready so yep, we'll have to do this in the dark.

Psst... (you need to highlight the blank space below for the 411 you're not to tell anyone I told you )

If shrinkage doesn't bother you and it's not too dry under the rock where you have made your abode, then I recommend S Curl or Hawaiian Silky 14-in-1. There's a method to the madness though. If you apply S Curl to damp hair, it dried up hard. But you just need to reapply and you will have moisture for days. To ensure it stays on my hair, I baggy at night instead of wearing a scarf that will rob my hair of the moisture. I only need to do those two application on wash day (on damp then on dry) and I don't need to moisturize again until wash day. But if you don't like shrinkage, then don't do this. At night, I braid my hair to keep tangles at bay before baggying. In the AM my hair feels like butter, combs so easily as if with conditioner, and feels soft and fluffy and moist without being juice dripping, or icky sticky.

Nonie you dont sound like a broken record you sound consistant which is a good thing

Nonie

Im transitioning, but stalking this thread anyway

@Nonie,
I was about to throw out my 14 in 1 bc it made my hair feel dry/hard and a weird sticky film, but Ill give it another try the way you mentioned it.

Thanks for the anti-humectant tip too...I wouldnt have known not to use anything under it. Should you not even use a leave in? Would a light spray one be ok?

Cruzankink, again Im transitioning so I can only hope it still works when Im totally natural, but so far the SM CES is the ONLY product Ive found to moisturize my 3" of new growth. It has laughed at every other product and combination of products/concoctions Ive tried...and when I used the SM I was sooooo happy to finally find something. My hair has been soft and managable ever since!

Hair profile?
4a, 4b, 3c, medium and thick, coarse and wiry strands, high density, CL-NL (and a short front around bang area, about to the eyebrows), low and normal porosity (I think), protein sensitive

Reggie and products?

• Co-wash at least 1x a week with V05 or Tresemme naturals nourishing moisture
• DC 1x a week w/whatever moisturizing DC is on hand, protein treatment whenever I feel I need it-same with ACV rinses,
• Henna once in a while
• apply a leave-in and seal everyday on damp-wet hair (currently: keracare natural textures leave in, peach kernel nectar)
• scalp massage with hair trigger at least 1x a week

How do you style your hair?
Out in all its (mostly) shrunken glory, occasional braid-outs; I don't have enough for a bun or a ponytail

What problems do you have with your hair?

• Since the humidity has risen it feels REALLY parched after I come back indoors
• it takes forever for my hair to get wet
• I thought I was low porosity because I fit so many of the description, but am now questioning this because my hair feels SO DRY-it does not hold onto moisture like low porosity hair supposedly does
• ever since I've taken my two-strand twists down (which my hair did not like) it's been so iffy and frustrating.
• I have no clue what's going on with it but it's making me want to cut everything off. I might just put some braid extensions in, this whole week has been a bad hair week and my hair has not looked very good to me lately either and my efforts seem useless.

Here's what I did before my hair started acting up:

1. An Acv rinse and scalp massage with black tea
2. Co-washed with tresseme naturals and detangled
3. Claudie's renew Protein conditioner
4. Organix awapuhi ginger conditioner
5. Pumpkin seed curl moisturizing conditioner as leave-in
6. sealed with peach kernel nectar

After the acv rinse my hair felt wonderful, same for after the protein treatment. The awapui ginger conditioner was not satisfying in the moisture content, but for the rest of this day my hair felt okay. After that, I don't know what went wrong, but my hair has been a hot mess. I even tried DC'ing with one of my former staples from when I was relaxed (silicon mix bambu) once my hair started acting up. I know it's just hair, but it really has me raging.

Cruzankink said:

QUESTION: Can you ladies recommend moisturizing leave in conditioners that has worked for you? I am currently using Shea Moisture Coconut & Hibiscus Curl Enhancing Smoothie. It works OK but I'm running low and thought it is a good opportunity to try something else. I don't know if this is the usual practice but in order to get my hair to have all day moisture I have to use a lot of the smoothie. Since it is the only leave in I'd ever use consistently I don't have much to compare it to. If any of you use a leave in that is reasonably priced don't hold back. I live in an area where I have to ship most if not all my hair products. Anything to save money would help. Thanks.

Click to expand...

Have you tried the Moisture Milk? I don't consider the smoothie a leave in, it's more of a styler. The Curl and Style Milk works much better for moisture.

DarkJoy said:

Hello Ahlaam, my fine haired friend.

Care to share your concotion with a fellow fine-haired sister? Hehe

Click to expand...

Sure thing!

I use this conditioner called 'Extra Kool' which I adore, you can only get it from Dubai, this lady near me sells it. I add some olive oil, coconut oil and argan oil and apply to dry hair. I wrap my hair with whatever is available and stay with it for a few hours. If possible I use a hooded dryer and sit for 30 minutes. I then rinse it off and hair is divine. Moisturised but not greasy and its not heavy. I seal with the smallest amount of castor oil and no frizz and moisturised hair for 2-3 days. No jokes hun! If I could shout from a roof top, I would! lol

I make a small sample for some of my friends and sell it because they keep nagging me about it lol. If you're in UK don't mind sending you a small pot. It's always nice to help a fellow fine hair lady

I only use shampoo once a week but slowly trying to cut it down because the conditioner works so well as a shampoo too! Hope that helped!

MaraWithLove said:

Hair profile?
4a, 4b, 3c, medium and thick, coarse and wiry strands, high density, CL-NL (and a short front around bang area, about to the eyebrows), low and normal porosity (I think), protein sensitive

Reggie and products?

• Co-wash at least 1x a week with V05 or Tresemme naturals nourishing moisture
• DC 1x a week w/whatever moisturizing DC is on hand, protein treatment whenever I feel I need it-same with ACV rinses,
• Henna once in a while
• apply a leave-in and seal everyday on damp-wet hair (currently: keracare natural textures leave in, peach kernel nectar)
• scalp massage with hair trigger at least 1x a week

How do you style your hair?
Out in all its (mostly) shrunken glory, occasional braid-outs; I don't have enough for a bun or a ponytail

What problems do you have with your hair?

• Since the humidity has risen it feels REALLY parched after I come back indoors
• it takes forever for my hair to get wet
• I thought I was low porosity because I fit so many of the description, but am now questioning this because my hair feels SO DRY-it does not hold onto moisture like low porosity hair supposedly does
• ever since I've taken my two-strand twists down (which my hair did not like) it's been so iffy and frustrating.
• I have no clue what's going on with it but it's making me want to cut everything off. I might just put some braid extensions in, this whole week has been a bad hair week and my hair has not looked very good to me lately either and my efforts seem useless.

Here's what I did before my hair started acting up:

1. An Acv rinse and scalp massage with black tea
2. Co-washed with tresseme naturals and detangled
3. Claudie's renew Protein conditioner
4. Organix awapuhi ginger conditioner
5. Pumpkin seed curl moisturizing conditioner as leave-in
6. sealed with peach kernel nectar

After the acv rinse my hair felt wonderful, same for after the protein treatment. The awapui ginger conditioner was not satisfying in the moisture content, but for the rest of this day my hair felt okay. After that, I don't know what went wrong, but my hair has been a hot mess. I even tried DC'ing with one of my former staples from when I was relaxed (silicon mix bambu) once my hair started acting up. I know it's just hair, but it really has me raging.

Click to expand...

Well, MaraWithLove,

Since I'm just sitting here enjoying my morning coffee with nothing to do but laundry, I took the time to have a look at the ingredients lists on a few of those products you use. So, I believe you are in the beginning stages of protein overload. Check it out:

1. Organix = Keratin Protein (Organix has more bad stuff. It is NOT ORGANIC in the least . Their conditioners also contains silicons which are drying in the long run).
2. Pumpkin seed kernel (Darcy's?) = hydrolyzed oat Protein
3. Claudies Renew Protein = Obviously Protein
4. Tresseme Natural = Alcohol, Isopropyl Alcohol (not sure which flavor you use, but the aloe one contains THIS of all things!! shame! alcohol is one of the MOST drying chemicals out there!)

I know Shea Moisture products get mixed reviews here, but at the least their DC does not contain proteins (or its so low on the list it makes little diff). It's what I use. However, there's lots of low-no protein products out there. There's plenty of threads on LHCF about such products.

Anyway, to rescue your hair maybe lay off the ACV rinses (not the teas!! they are wonderfully moisturizing!) so you aren't closing your cuticles too tight as the inner part of your hair needs moisture now. And continue sealing the s--t out of it to keep moisture in. Heavy sealing may be needed to do that.

I'd also recommend co-washing only with a protein-free condish or something like Wen or a Wen knock-off--I use a knockoff . Maybe DC-ing twice a week until it feels back to its old self again.

My hair was suffering from color damage AND protein overload I think. Now it's TOO moisturized (I think), so I'm experimenting with doing the opposite. LOL. But the above is how I got overmoisturized, which took several months btw. There's no instant fix.

HTH

Leslie_C said:

Im transitioning, but stalking this thread anyway

@Nonie,
I was about to throw out my 14 in 1 bc it made my hair feel dry/hard and a weird sticky film, but Ill give it another try the way you mentioned it.

Thanks for the anti-humectant tip too...I wouldnt have known not to use anything under it. Should you not even use a leave in? Would a light spray one be ok?

Click to expand...

Leslie_C Nope. I don't believe you should use anything at all. I don't. If your hair is well moisturized (internally) by a proper DC, and then you're sealing it with a product that doesn't allow moisture in or moisture out (anti-humectant), what's the point of adding anything else?

westNDNbeauty shared her straightening regimen and she too doesn't believe in applying products to hair before straightening. If you think about it, the "moisturizer" you're applying isn't supposed to be heated up. And chemicals react under heat...so what exactly is the point of putting something on your hair that will get burned and probably turned into something else by a chemical reaction due to heat and give your hair an awful smell? What's more, moisturizers have water in them that will evaporate under heat, so again, what exactly was the point of putting the water there if you'll just be boiling that moisture away? And have you ever tried to apply something on something already coated with something slippery? All you end up doing is having the products' molecules slide over each other and either mix or leave gaps. Meaning your hair won't be meticulously protected by the heat protectant/anti-humectant so you will burn the exposed areas.

When I last straightened my hair, I shared how I used heat protectants for the first time and not only did I have a wonderful press, but also there was no that familiar smell of straightened hair. Not during the process or after or even when I wet my hair to wash it after the press. So I'm convinced that westNDNbeauty is onto something. Better to have hair that has nothing so you can apply the heat protectant/anti-humectant well w/o leaving any gaps. What I do is use TWO heat protectants. A liquid spray that I apply on my fully dry hair. Why fully dry? Because I want to be sure that when my hair feels wet, its because protectant has been applied thoroughly. That the wetness is due to full coverage. I do it section by section (narrow section at that) then pass flat iron so I can be meticulous in this. After doing that to all my hair. I then smooth a serum to fully seal, again working on narrow sections at a time, and passing the iron once over each section after applying serum before moving to another. Working on narrow section ensures no hair is left unprotected and also that the iron's plates have contact with all hairs so that you don't need to pass the iron more than once and so you don't need to hold the heat in one place for long. One smooth sweep and the kinks melt away.

Also, MaraWithLove, my honest belief is that braiding it up will probably make it worse leading to another BC? Only because you wont be able to DC it and moisturizie it thoroughly back to health so well. I've personally never had luck braiding to save my hair. I always ended up chopping once the braids came down and starting fresh from the ng no matter how hard I tried to save my hair while braided.

@Nonie has given excellent advice for straightening hair.

I just started flat ironing again and don't use any products between my hair and the heat protectant. Anything else would just interfere and you could end up with hair that is fried because the other products negated the protectant's effects. This means NO leave-ins, NO oils, and NO moisturizers. Just rinsing the DC out of my hair and low-heat blowdrying (with the protectant on). The more protectant before the flat iron. I actually put the protectant on each section and comb through, give it a second to absorb, then pass the flatiron one time only (at 150-200oF--low heat because I'm not going for straight, just enough to make my ends less ssk-prone). Repeat. I oil after my hair is done.

So far, so good. It's been a month and no issues, so we shall see!

@Ahlaam--thank you!! It sure has given me ideas. Appreciate it.

DarkJoy I'm sipping my coffee too, still.

Thanks for taking the time to respond. Everything you've just said makes sense, but in my frustration I was avoiding the details smh.

Oh, I only do ACV rinses once in a while, as a sort of clarifier since I don't shampoo my hair. I love my teas!

Guess it's time to flush my products out a bit. For a bit there, I was thinking I might not be as protein sensitive as I thought, but obviously my product selection was just making things worse! Oh and that awapuhi ginger conditioner? Got rid of it when my hair didn't like it-can you say refund? I need to just go shopping.

YW MaraWithLove--it's what we're here for! And yes, sometimes we DO need to come here. We are too close to our issues in eirther hair or life! So sometimes its hard to see the forest for the trees... Makes me so grateful LHCF exists!

Leslie_C said:

Im transitioning, but stalking this thread anyway
@Cruzankink, again Im transitioning so I can only hope it still works when Im totally natural, but so far the SM CES is the ONLY product Ive found to moisturize my 3" of new growth. My hair has been soft and managable ever since!

Click to expand...

@Nonie Got the S Curl bit I'll check out the product.

@Leslie_C Does SM CES refer to Shea Moisture Curl Enhancing Smoothie? If yes, then we've had similar and different experiences. When I first BC it worked just fine but now that my hair is a li'l longer, I litterally have to pile the stuff on to get any moisture. Then, I end up with a white head.

UPDATE: As mentioned in a previous post, I did my quinoa protein conconction on a patch of hair and it was not dissapointing. I'm charging forward this weekend.

LESSON: One thing worth mentioning, particularly to those new to natural hair: My hair is at a stage where if I do a twist out it doesn't curl under as it did when I first did my BC nor does it hang bc it is not long, instead the twists stick out like little spikes. Yes.... I look like the black hell-raiser. So all this week I opted for WnGs. BIG MISTAKE! I had SSK galore not to mentioned my hair got sooooooo dry. WnG is gonna have to be a once in a while thing for me. Another lesson learned in my HHJ.

Has anyone discovered the secret for making their 4b crown blend in with the their 4a springy coils in the back and the sides?

*deep breath*

Ok I wasn't going to aak this question but curiosity has gotten the better if me. Can anyone help determine my hair type. Idk what exactly this would prove but I'm hoping it'll help me in developing a reggie :









Both photos are unmanipulated since I cowashed yesterday...I'm having a lazy day

*hope my hair is long enough to determine*

IronButterfly said:

Has anyone discovered the secret for making their 4b crown blend in with the their 4a springy coils in the back and the sides?

Click to expand...

I have one stubborn patch in my crown like that, it's easy to get frizzy compared to other parts...but if I apply MORE product to that part than any other section and use a thick sealant it blends well.

you guys are a wealth of knowledge! Makes perfect sense! Thanks!

Nonie and DarkJoy... thanks for the breakdown...I never thought of it like that. Ill bet that is how a lot of people end up with heat damage is from frying their hair from piling on products with the heat protectant and it reacts and burns.

@ Cruzankink yep SM CES is the same product you mentioned...it will be a sad, sad day when it stops working for me! It is reasonably prices and available on the ground, what more could I ask for? What do you use for your wash and go's?

Now you all are gonna make me have to look into this tea rinsing thing...you had me at "moisturizing" lol.

APrayer4Hair said:

*deep breath*

Ok I wasn't going to aak this question but curiosity has gotten the better if me. Can anyone help determine my hair type. Idk what exactly this would prove but I'm hoping it'll help me in developing a reggie :



View attachment 157083



View attachment 157085

Both photos are unmanipulated since I cowashed yesterday...I'm having a lazy day

*hope my hair is long enough to determine*

Click to expand...

APrayer4Hair I'm no expert but I characterize type 1 as straight, type 2 as wavy, type 3 curly and type 4 kinky. The a, b, and c is just the degree of wave, curl or kink. Like you, I believe that figuring out my hair type helps in a selecting products and regimen and to an extent it does. However, this is not always the case. I consider myself a type 4b but many of the products other 4b ladies recommend do not work for me. A good example of this is reading any product review: one 4b would give it 5 stars and another would say it sucks. I'm to a point that I have purchased ingredients I know my hair likes to add to my existing products so I can address what my hair needs. My suggestion, if I may be so bold, is not to focus on what type your hair is but rather figure whether you have fine/coarse, porous/non-porous, protein sensitive, thin/dense hair. Then purchase products that cater to your particular needs.
PS - Great cut!

Thanks for the review Cruzankink!! Glad the quinoa worked for you. I'm not surprised given all the research and time you put in before even buying it. It's also great that it gave your damaged SSK ends a boost too. That's always a worry--if it will make what's already fragile, even worse. Amazing stuff... congrats on finding a natural product that works on your hair. woohoo!

I have a mini-review below too:
______


I tried the AO GPB.

I Pre-poo'd with coconut oil and my tea mixture, then mudwashed with SM Purification Masque and added extra bentonite and rhassoul clays with a little baking soda. I'd been heavy sealing with grease and found that a little soda takes it right out. Then co-washed twice with a Wen knockoff, Lisa Rachel.

Being cautious, I put the AO GPB on a thumb--size section on the crown and waited a minute (usually my hair balls up fast!). Nothin! Waited another minute. Nothin! I applied it to my whole head. The directions say leave in for DC for 15min or 2 mins for regular condish. I was afraid of what I might find if just left a cap on for 15min without keeping an eye on it. So, kept my fingers massaging my scalp the whole time, to feel for any changes. About 5 mins in, I noticed it feeling a little less soft (but not balling up and brittle). Immediately rinsed and hair was fine and still very soft and moisturized!! I then followed with neem tea and SM Deep Conditioning Treatment for 30 mins with 10min heat just to be safe. lol My hair came out great--soft, mosturized and supple...well the ng did anyway...

I'm gonna do this again in 2 weeks! This is the first time in forever a protein did right by my fur. lol. After that? Well...
------

Afterwords, I followed with a cool blowdry and very cool iron--now at 175oF (using both Mixed Chicks for the blow dry and the IC Straightening Serum for the iron). The NG was AMAZING...the ends not so much. They were wires and kept curling down and snagging into the new growth, even when I added castor oil for slip! I was sure by next month, all my hair would be FUBAR, so...

CHOP CHOP

My first TWA!

And you know what?! I LOVE IT! It's abut 2 inches straightened all around. It's made the cutest twist out. Went to a party the next day and the compliments keep rolling in.

OMG, I'm thinking I might NOT let my hair grow out for a while--just keep it healthy and strong. LOL. It's so soft. Don't think I ever felt my hair like this before. I think when I DO decide to grow it out, it will be much thicker.

I got LHCF to thank for such healthy growing fuzz. Thanks ladies!!!

DarkJoy, you just dropped that BC bomb like it was a small punctuation. I'm glad you're happy with your new do. You remind me of when I got my unsolicited BC. After I got over the shock and anger, and discovered S Curl, I was in love with my hair.

I'm also excited to hear that you discovered the wonder that is Aubrey's GPB. I have never felt inclined to get any other protein when reconstructors work so well. Never had to worry about protein/moisture balance. So glad you have joined the cult!

BTW, it's against regulations to have a BC and not show pics.

Congrats on your bc DarkJoy. Pic please......

OK, This is my first post in here and I haven't yet read through the other posts but here is my problem.

I did the big chop in Sept of 2009. When I chopped it was down to maybe 1/2 inch of hair. I did the bc with hopes of growing some beautiful long flowing hair like I've seen on here.

Fast forward to now and my hair looks no different than when I had a relaxer. It's thin, and while it's grown it hasn't grown much considering all the time that has passed.

I {foolishly} thought that going natural was going to improve my hair and have it looking like I've always dreamed. But sadly it looks the same. :0( :0(

I'm just frustrated at this point. I see all the beautiful hair on here and I want it but mine looks nothing like the ladies that have been able to grow their hair.

I even had hope seeing some people that started with hair like mine but managed to get it looking great.

So here is what I do:
I wash 1-2 times per week.
I moisturize daily with s curl and seal with evoo or coconut oil
I take a mulitvit and silica daily
I deep condition once a week
I do aphogee treatment once every 6 weeks
I keep my hair braided and use wigs as my protective style

I'm giving up on the dream of hair down my back. If I could just get it to a thicker shoulder length I'd be really happy.

As far as hair type I'm not sure.

Any suggestions for me? Or anyone have/had hair like mine and was able to make it better over time.

I'll take any help I can get.

Nonie said:

@DarkJoy, you just dropped that BC bomb like it was a small punctuation.

BTW, it's against regulations to have a BC and not show pics.

Click to expand...

Cruzankink said:

@DarkJoy WHAT!!! You cut your hair?! I'm glad you like it and welcome to the TWA club.

Click to expand...

lamaria211 said:

Congrats on your bc @DarkJoy. Pic please......

Click to expand...

Dang, Nonie! You just called me out! LOL. That emoticon was scary enough to get me to post the dang pics...

CRUZANdkink, LOVE LOVE LOVE the TWA Club! I can't keep my hands out of it.

Thanks lamaria211 and for suggesting GPB too!

Out of fear of life and limb (Nonie) lol, here's a cpl before and some afters:

Before BC February 2012 and June 2012 (also in my album here)




Post BC 6/30/2012!! Sorry, my twist-out died (2nd day hair).

For the last 2 years I have been natural I thought I was removing all my shed hair. Yes, I'm a heavy shedder but the tangles and dryness were out of this world.

I used Aussie 3 Minute Miracle Deep Conditioner (incredible slip) on soaking wet hair, combed my hair through and followed with a Denman Brush. Lawd all those extra shed hairs that I had been leaving in my hair.

I had used the Denman over a year ago but felt it was ripping my hair. The combination of the Aussie and then combing first has made me fall in love with the brush.

I dry my hair in twists or braids and they are now soooo smooth and not tangled at the ends.

Bublin said:

For the last 2 years I have been natural I thought I was removing all my shed hair. Yes, I'm a heavy shedder but the tangles and dryness were out of this world.

I used Aussie 3 Minute Miracle Deep Conditioner (incredible slip) on soaking wet hair, combed my hair through and followed with a Denman Brush. Lawd all those extra shed hairs that I had been leaving in my hair.

I had used the Denman over a year ago but felt it was ripping my hair. The combination of the Aussie and then combing first has made me fall in love with the brush.

I dry my hair in twists or braids and they are now soooo smooth and not tangled at the ends.

Click to expand...

Noooo it is a trap Bublin don't use that denman modified or not. With or without conditioner it matters not. The midshaft splits will show up months later. I am still dealing with those as my hair grows longer. And don't think of the tangle teaser either.