Luscious Healthy Ends Challenge 2025

[Chicoro]

Yes it looks nice. For us non-butter and oil ladies, are there any alternatives for our ends? What about conditioner? Do you think that would work?

I'm not sure. I'm sticking picking up clues and getting a better understanding about your hair. Do you have a photo of how our wear your hair regularly? If we can see that, that might provide some more intel for us to better assist you.

 

[Chicoro]

You might not remember in last years post that I struggle to remove shed hairs. I cannot go through my hair once and remove them. It doesn't matter what tool I use. I kept it to 2 in the shower but still had to go through it again when I twisted it up.

I haven't resolved the issue but just deciding to be more OK with it and hope it works out

I remember.

 

[Chicoro]

You are a great host @Chicoro

Thank you so much @faithVA . I appreciate your comment and I appreciate you.

 

[faithVA]

I'm not sure. I'm sticking picking up clues and getting a better understanding about your hair. Do you have a photo of how our wear your hair regularly? If we can see that, that might provide some more intel for us to better assist you.

I'm always in mini strands or flat twists. Some version of these.

 

[Chicoro]

I'm always in mini strands or flat twists. Some version of these.

The flat twist style and the accompanying color are gorgeous! Your mini twists are pretty.

Which style has creates the most shed hairs for you?

Which style creates the most tangles for you when taking the style down?

Are the ends of your hair dry when using these styles?

Or, does one style keep your hair more dry than the other?

Do you wear the hair covered in a scarf or hat at all?

 

[GettingKinky]

@faithVA I don’t think I’ve ever seen your flat twists before. I love them! I wish I had the skill to do flat twists.

 

[Chicoro]

Yes it looks nice. For us non-butter and oil ladies, are there any alternatives for our ends? What about conditioner? Do you think that would work?

Are you a non-butter and non-oil lady due to not liking the feel of these products on your hair? Or, do butters and oils have a negative impact on your hair? If the impact is negative, what is that impact exactly?

My suggestion for you is to look for a specific type of conditioner. I do not know of one on the market today. I am sure after some research you should be able to find one with the suggested ingredients in the formulation. You want to look for a conditioner with two KEY ingredients at the top, or near the top of the ingredients list.
Those two (2) key ingredients are:

• behentrimonium methylsufate or behentrimonium chloride
• dimethicone

It can't be one or the other. BOTH must be present in the formulation.

I don't know how you feel about silicones, though.

Because all hair is different, trying this might pose a risk. Thus, if you want to try, I would suggest you pick ONE small section of hair, such as one twist in the same place on your head, and test the conditioner only there over a 1 month period.

Why these two ingredients? Because believe that you have high porosity hair. High porosity hair requires a kind of 'netting' to fortify it. Behentrimonium plus the dimethicone in combination will form a netting over the hair strand.

They will make the hair less porous and cover over the hair strand so that the hair, which is a kind of substrate, will be more fortified.

IF, the two ingredients work on the hair well, often times that same hair will then respond to butters and oils differently. The butters and oils will have a more fortified substrate or surface, which is the hair strand to perch upon. And the impact of the butters and oils become beneficial for the hair and also look good in the hair. The hair no longer looks weighed down and greasy.








Once

 

[faithVA]

The flat twist style and the accompanying color are gorgeous! Your mini twists are pretty.

Which style has creates the most shed hairs for you?

Which style creates the most tangles for you when taking the style down?

Are the ends of your hair dry when using these styles?

Or, does one style keep your hair more dry than the other?

Do you wear the hair covered in a scarf or hat at all?

Aw thanks! My flat twists styles I've mastered. I have a lot of different ones I wear when I'm not lazy. I'm limited with my 2 strands because of length, density in the back and a bald spot at the top of my head (lol). Anyway, I wear these because they don't require daily care.

I shed the same regardless of the style. I'm probably a person who should cleanse every 3 to 4 days to eliminate the shed hairs. Keeping my hair in a style for a week makes it tougher.

My hair doesn't really tangle or I don't think it does. I don't try to manipulate my hair after a week in a protective style. The first time I do anything with it is under running water and when water and/or conditioner touches my hair, my hair just smooths out. What I learned years ago, as long as I detangle my hair before applying shampoo, I don't have tangles.

Yes my ends are more dry with two strands than with flat twist because I can tuck my flat twist. But I think I may get less splits in 2 strands because in flat twists after about 5 days I think my hair starts to shrink up a bit.

I wear my hair covered when I go to bed but that is about it. My scalp doesn't like to be covered for long periods of time. It likes some air circulation or it starts to burn. And that has to do with that bald spot at the top of my head which has to do with years of relaxing and sitting under hot dryers.

I'm thinking instead of oil and butter, I will try spraying my 2 strands and applying a hair milk to the end 2x a week and see how that fairs.

 

[faithVA]

@faithVA I don’t think I’ve ever seen your flat twists before. I love them! I wish I had the skill to do flat twists.

Really? That is so surprising. I use to have a blog where I posted all of my styles. I have about 10 years worth of flat twists styles. I have worked at my job for 8 years and I doubt they even know me in anything else (lol) It is my go to style. I can throw flat twists in in about 10 minutes for a basic style and 30 minutes for something I think is decent.

I may post some of my styles over the years as a throwback.

 

[faithVA]

Are you a non-butter and non-oil lady due to not liking the feel of these products on your hair? Or, do butters and oils have a negative impact on your hair? If the impact is negative, what is that impact exactly?

My suggestion for you is to look for a specific type of conditioner. I do not know of one on the market today. I am sure after some research you should be able to find one with the suggested ingredients in the formulation. You want to look for a conditioner with two KEY ingredients at the top, or near the top of the ingredients list.
Those two (2) key ingredients are:

• behentrimonium methylsufate or behentrimonium chloride
• dimethicone

It can't be one or the other. BOTH must be present in the formulation.

I don't know how you feel about silicones, though.

Because all hair is different, trying this might pose a risk. Thus, if you want to try, I would suggest you pick ONE small section of hair, such as one twist in the same place on your head, and test the conditioner only there over a 1 month period.

Why these two ingredients? Because believe that you have high porosity hair. High porosity hair requires a kind of 'netting' to fortify it. Behentrimonium plus the dimethicone in combination will form a netting over the hair strand.

They will make the hair less porous and cover over the hair strand so that the hair, which is a kind of substrate, will be more fortified.

IF, the two ingredients work on the hair well, often times that same hair will then respond to butters and oils differently. The butters and oils will have a more fortified substrate or surface, which is the hair strand to perch upon. And the impact of the butters and oils become beneficial for the hair and also look good in the hair. The hair no longer looks weighed down and greasy.








Once

I'm actually low porosity. But I think you are right about the first ingredient. I think my hair responds well to that.

My hair is fine and it really doesn't like anything heavy. Neither does my skin. Things like oils and butters and cones tend to sit on top of my hair but they don't actually hold any moisture in. So, then my hair dries out and I need to add some moisture now those products keep me from being able to add anything to them. This has come from many years of trying things. The closest I have every come to being able to use oil if I did an oil rinse. I can condition and add oil but then I can moisturize mid-week. This is what I was doing before GettingKinky turned me on to the A's who made me aware that oil is not for me. Once I gave up the oils and butters then I could use a gentler shampoo and once I did that I started to retain and my curls came back.

My hair used to dry out after 2 days but with the change in shampoo and using lighter products I can hold moisture for about 4 or 5 days. I think this is good for me. I'm just looking for something to hold me for another 2 or 3 days until wash day. That is why I'm looking at something like conditioner because it will be more water based. I just want it for my ends.

When my hair gets longer, I will rinse my hair mid-week in the twist and reapply products to hold me for another 4 or 5 days. Right now I'm just in between stages.

I will look for conditioners and products with behentrimonium and start from there. Fortunately, I don't think I need any big changes.

 

[faithVA]

Here are some of my throwback flat twist styles

 

[faithVA]

Throwback Set 2:

 

[GettingKinky]

@faithVA how long did it take you to get good at flat twisting?

 

[VarieYvette]

Here are some of my throwback flat twist styles

View attachment 500694View attachment 500696View attachment 500698View attachment 500700View attachment 500702

What wizardry is this? I am in absolute awe of your skills

 

[VarieYvette]

This weekend, I did my usual wash, DC and airdry process. Products used were a Tresemme colour protecting shampoo, Skala Divino Potao DC and hen moisturised and sealed with The Perfect Hair Mango and Marula Leave In and The Perfect Hair Mango and Shea Whipped Butter.

My hair had very little shedding and breakage, which means that the trim I did in December was much needed.

This week I am in a gelled bun and baggying under a faux pony. The gel doesn't leave a hardened shell, but it's a great way to fight the humidity, since we are smack dab in our rainy season and its raining every day. My ends are also protected from the net in the faux pony by baggying, so I have high hopes for this hairstyle

 

[Chicoro]

I'm actually low porosity. But I think you are right about the first ingredient. I think my hair responds well to that.

My hair is fine and it really doesn't like anything heavy. Neither does my skin. Things like oils and butters and cones tend to sit on top of my hair but they don't actually hold any moisture in. So, then my hair dries out and I need to add some moisture now those products keep me from being able to add anything to them. This has come from many years of trying things. The closest I have every come to being able to use oil if I did an oil rinse. I can condition and add oil but then I can moisturize mid-week. This is what I was doing before GettingKinky turned me on to the A's who made me aware that oil is not for me. Once I gave up the oils and butters then I could use a gentler shampoo and once I did that I started to retain and my curls came back.

My hair used to dry out after 2 days but with the change in shampoo and using lighter products I cab not hold moisture for about 4 or 5 days. I think this is good for me. I'm just looking for something to hold me for another 2 or 3 days until wash day. That is why I'm looking at something like conditioner because it will be more water based. I just want it for my ends.

When my hair gets longer, I will rinse my hair mid-week in the twist and reapply products to hold me for another 4 or 5 days. Right now I'm just in between stages.

I will look for conditioners and products with behentrimonium and start from there. Fortunately, I don't think I need any big changes.

Thank you for taking the time to read and think about my suggestions. I appreciate it. Well, it is great to know that behentrimonium works for your hair. That is a detail and that is super important. Thanks for clarifying that your hair is low porosity.

Definition of BHT

Behentrimonium Methosulfate is a quaternary ammonium salt and is mainly used as an antistatic, conditioning, softening, hydrating agent in hair care products. It is also useful for improving the texture of the product.

Behentrimonium methosulfate can hydrate your curls, making them soft, smooth and well hydrated. Another beneficial property of BTMS is that it not only hydrates your curls but also works towards retaining the moisture in them for a longer time. It forms a thin film over the surface, preventing loss of moisture.


Since you know your hair doesn't do well with silicones then I would suggest that when you are looking for your conditioners you look for :

behentrimonium + hydrogenated oil (like hydrogenated olive oil or hydrogenated castor oil, etc)

 

[Chicoro]

Aw thanks! My flat twists styles I've mastered. I have a lot of different ones I wear when I'm not lazy. I'm limited with my 2 strands because of length, density in the back and a bald spot at the top of my head (lol). Anyway, I wear these because they don't require daily care.

I shed the same regardless of the style. I'm probably a person who should cleanse every 3 to 4 days to eliminate the shed hairs. Keeping my hair in a style for a week makes it tougher.

My hair doesn't really tangle or I don't think it does. I don't try to manipulate my hair after a week in a protective style. The first time I do anything with it is under running water and when water and/or conditioner touches my hair, my hair just smooths out. What I learned years ago, as long as I detangle my hair before applying shampoo, I don't have tangles.

Yes my ends are more dry with two strands than with flat twist because I can tuck my flat twist. But I think I may get less splits in 2 strands because in flat twists after about 5 days I think my hair starts to shrink up a bit.

I wear my hair covered when I go to bed but that is about it. My scalp doesn't like to be covered for long periods of time. It likes some air circulation or it starts to burn. And that has to do with that bald spot at the top of my head which has to do with years of relaxing and sitting under hot dryers.

I'm thinking instead of oil and butter, I will try spraying my 2 strands and applying a hair milk to the end 2x a week and see how that fairs.

To me, it seems that your vulnerabilty is on your ends. The style I'm leaning toward for you is the flat twists.

Question: If you do undo the flat twists before 5 days, can you avoid the shrinkage and would that minimize the splits?

Perhaps an issue for you might be that:
although it is convenient for you from a time saving standpoint, maybe your hair needs to be re-done sooner than every 5 days, not matter what the style?

 

[faithVA]

@faithVA how long did it take you to get good at flat twisting?

I really don't know because I've been doing it so long. But my girlfriend recently started and I'm thinking it's about 2 months doing it weekly to have it look neat.

I always suggest to people interested on wash day just take 1 section at the front and practice until they are happy.

 

[faithVA]

To me, it seems that your vulnerabilty is on your ends. The style I'm leaning toward for you is the flat twists.

Question: If you do undo the flat twists before 5 days, can you avoid the shrinkage and would that minimize the splits?

Perhaps an issue for you might be that:
although it is convenient for you from a time saving standpoint, maybe your hair needs to be re-done sooner than every 5 days, not matter what the style?

I have to admit I'm being some what lazy in my responsesxand not giving you all my history and details because it just seems like it will be a book.

You are right the best answer to my issues is resetting my hair every 4 to 5 days but with my life I just can see how that is going to work. If I cleanse mid week then to keep from flat twisting wet hair which causes splits at this length I'm forced to sit under the dryer. I just don't have 2 hours mid-week to spend on hair.

For now I think my best solution is to try to moisturize my ends twice a week and reset weekly.

I do know the best answer isxto refresh often but it just isn't workable right now. As my hair gets longer and I can dry my hair in larger twists or braids that can be bunned is what I'm shooting for this year.

I will explain flat twists vs 2 strand issues later. They both have their drawbacks.

 

[faithVA]

This weekend, I did my usual wash, DC and airdry process. Products used were a Tresemme colour protecting shampoo, Skala Divino Potao DC and hen moisturised and sealed with The Perfect Hair Mango and Marula Leave In and The Perfect Hair Mango and Shea Whipped Butter.

My hair had very little shedding and breakage, which means that the trim I did in December was much needed.

This week I am in a gelled bun and baggying under a faux pony. The gel doesn't leave a hardened shell, but it's a great way to fight the humidity, since we are smack dab in our rainy season and its raining every day. My ends are also protected from the net in the faux pony by baggying, so I have high hopes for this hairstyle

What gel are you using?

 

[Chicoro]

I have to admit I'm being some what lazy in my responsesxand not giving you all my history and details because it just seems like it will be a book.

You are right the best answer to my issues is resetting my hair every 4 to 5 days but with my life I just can see how that is going to work. If I cleanse mid week then to keep from flat twisting wet hair which causes splits at this length I'm forced to sit under the dryer. I just don't have 2 hours mid-week to spend on hair.

For now I think my best solution is to try to moisturize my ends twice a week and reset weekly.

I do know the best answer isxto refresh often but it just isn't workable right now. As my hair gets longer and I can dry my hair in larger twists or braids that can be bunned is what I'm shooting for this year.

I will explain flat twists vs 2 strand issues later. They both have their drawbacks.

You are answering just fine... I am one of the nosy -est little things in this thread! Good sport of you to answer so graciously. Just never know what will 'click' or what may help another of our lovely sisters!



I ask, because the other Sexy Smart Things in this thread have eagle eyes, minds like steel traps, analysis skills of a genius and suggestions of a mastermind. So, we are putting it out there for everyone to see. It takes a Village to grow some hair, too!

Let's see what intuitive nudges people get. You never know, somebody may think of an alternative or option that might work perfectly for you. Thanks for letting me poke and prod at your hair.

"Each lovely head of hair is a mystery unto itself, and an incredible treasure beautifully unleashed upon the world, once unlocked." ~ Chicoro

 

[keranikki]

I'm always in mini strands or flat twists. Some version of these.

I’m inspired by your second hair style. I may try it. Thank you!

 

[faithVA]

@Chicoro - Here is a long, long something
I have a plan at the bottom. There really aren't a lot of things I'm trying to figure out. Although it may seem like I'm struggling, I'm only really trying to work through 2 things right now 1. Dealing with shed hairs and 2. How to remoisturize mid-week. And it has to be practical to fit in my schedule.

This is helping me to fine tune what I want to work on for this month.

The Short History
So you know I've been on this board since 2008, but is has been since 2000 that I really have gotten more of a handle on my hair. 2008 to 2020 was just years of multiple set backs.

Before 2008
Always hair issues even when my mom took care of my hair. She did fabulous but not a lot of knowledge back then.
The back of my hair has always been the worst and has always broken off severely no matter what. With a relaxer it would last about 2 weeks before it was no longer straight. For most of my life I've not had hair in the back.

Relaxed at 12 because I wanted it. Self relaxed mostly because I was broke.
Jerricurl in my 20s and my hair was the longest it has ever been probably because all of that spray. I think my hair was APL to BSL.
Back to relaxed and went to a stylist every 2 weeks; updos and wore a wrap for years and my hair grew. Eventually the back would break and I would cut it.
--regular relaxing and sitting under hot dryers fried my scalp.
--Waiting for 2 weeks to reset my hair added to naturally dry scalp and hair issues.
Big chopped in 2008 by mistake and wore it natural and short through 2008. Started coloring my hair.
--Simple regimen; shampoo, condition, spray with curl spray

Went back to work in 2008 so started wearing a wig (ugh!). Switched up with some protective styles and joined the board
2008 stayed natural. Ditched the wigs. Grew hair, lost hair, had set backs.
In 2012 my mom was terminally ill, so spent 2012 and early 2013 in hospitals, and carrying for her. Also entered menopause But the stress of all that hit my whole system hard. Had to ditch the protective styles because lawd the heat (lol)

Somewhere around 2012 I had a trichologist study which gave me the following
--low porosity
--medium density
--strands fine
--alopecia at the center
--use max 2 products to not weigh down hair
(can't remember the rest)

In either 2018 or 2019 I let someone talk me into letting some "super" professional flat iron my hair. I knew better and there is no excuse. My hair is an anomaly. The more heat you apply to it, it doesn't get straighter. It just doesn't So the pictures I took of my flat iron, theirs pretty much looked just like that. Anyway. Those attempts to straight may hair showed up in March 2020. My hair just felt out in large clumps in the shower so then I was bald.

But then @GettingKinky sent me an IM and had me look at some information. And her one kind gesture moved me out of all of the trial and error from beginning of time to 2020. And since then I have felt like I finally have a handle on what works for me. I'm listening to my hair more. She likes water and high quality basic products. She likes consistency. She likes things light and simple. I just need to listen better.

What I also knew but didn't always pay attention to
--My hair can get fairly straight with just tension
--Regardless of preparation my hair does not need heat over 325. Anything higher it will look OK within 2 years it will just fall out (2020)
--My scalp is like my skin it does not like heavy products. It will feel smothered and break out.
--If I rinse often at least every 4 days I can reduce my bald spot but otherwise it spreads
--I have to be careful with sitting under a dryer because of the alopecia. If I do I need to spray it often to keep it from drying it out.
--My hair grows and retains better with more water. She is thirsty.
--My hair is dense in the front, which I love. And it is sparse in the back which makes me sad But it is what it is.
--The hair in the back is super fine and super curly but it is the most prone to breakage. I sleep on my back and I sweat a lot and so I get more shrinkage and tangling here.
--My strands are slippery and many products just lay on top or just slide off

What have I tried:
LOC - all kinds of combinations
Baggying - nope; scalp hates it and it makes my hair hard
Protein and Deep conditioning regular: didn't notice any difference over years
Henna: Henna no matter what type makes my hair hard and eventually breaks
Indigo: Found no way to make the Indigo adhere to the henna with my smooth strands
Semi-permanent color: Put it on; leave it for the allotted time; It will just rinse right out
Sitting under a dryer: It probably takes about 1.5 hours for my hair under a high quality dryer;
Products and more products: Preferably salon quality products made for color-treated hair
Detangling: All of it; brushes; combs; pre-poo; finger-detangling
Oh There is More

Where I am at now and have found that works.
Cleansing:
At least once a week with a Salon Quality shampoo for color treated hair. Often will only shampoo once
Shampoo 1: Based on situation, products, style: clarifying, almost clarifying, all purpose, moisturizing
Shampoo 2: This is always a moisturizing shampoo.

Conditioner: When I get the shampoo step right the conditioner just needs to be a decent one. I apply it, add water, squeeze it in and let it sit.
TGIN is my go to deep conditioner. My hair melts as soon as I put it in. I deep condition as needed. This step really has not done much for my hair over 15 years. But I like to do it sometimes.

Protein/Bond Treatments
Because I color my hair I try to do something with protein or bond strengthener.
I have tried many protein treatments over the years and not found any to really do anything. But K18 leave-in has been a game changer for me.
Now trying Bond-bar from Sally's to see if it works. But I will re-up my K18

Leave-in:
TGIN is my favorite. It is light and my hair seems to love it. Trying Mielle right now

Styling:
I tend to use gel for the majority of my styles because gel holds moisture in my hair often. I have not found a leave-in, cream styler that holds moisture in my hair for more than 2 to 3 days. They also make my hair feel stiff and don't allow my twist to hang properly.

Reset: Regardless of the style, my scalp likes to have water after 4 or 5 days. I think my hair is dry because my scalp is dry. Trying to add water to my hair only does so much. Long term I will be pushing to rinse my hair after 4 days. However, due to time constraints I need more length to enable me to create styles this works for.


Go To Styles

Flat Twist:
Pros: It is fast, easy and can last a week. I can also tuck my ends under. This is my go to style when I am doing a lot of cycling
Cons:
1. I tend to style my hair while wet. As my hair grows longer, my hair will want to shrink as it dries and this adds tension and can lead to breakage
--Resolution: let my hair air dry or sit under the dryer before styling. Also can try using a heavier gel
--Todo: Start using a heavier gel. I think last year I did too many styles with just leave-in and no styler.
2. Because the back is shorter it gets pulled more and can cause breakage. Also wearing the same style causes breakage at the parts
--Resolution: Alter the hair style to prevent breakage in over used areas

Two Strand Twist
Pros: Can last a week; Can rinse in twist and reset for a few more days; Maybe can moisturize them. Eventually it will be an easy style to pull up
Cons: Need to set aside two hours; It needs more moisture by day 5; The back is less dense and I hate the look of it
ToDo:
1: Try different methods to try to moisturize my scalp and ends during the week
2. Try rinsing earlier during the day and reapply leave-in and gel to see if I can get an extra 4 days

Wash and Go
Pros: My hair likes a wash and go because of the water and the gel combination
Cons: It seems to take forever to get it right
--It needs to be reset every 4 days and my hair is too short to convert to a bun or another style
--It takes forever for my hair to air dry so would need to use a dryer; I hate dryers; But will consider this in the future
ToDo: Nothing at this time; Will try a wash and go when my hair is longer.

The Plan:
Being patient and letting my hair grow out a few inches will give me more options. In the meantime I just need to keep with what I am doing and focus on keeping my scalp and ends moisturized. I need to re-up on some products: deep conditioner; K18; TGIN leave-in, KCCC

Step 1: Twice a week spray scalp and hair with Mielle conditioning spray and then add leave-in and gel to the ends.

Future:
When the weather warms up I will water rinse in twist, followed by leave-in and gel to see if I can get an extra 4 days.

When I have a free weekend, I will try drying my hair in twists under a dryer and then flat twisting stretched hair to see how this works. First, I will need to figure out what products I want to use with this as a styler. Should I apply my styler first and then dry or dry and then apply the styler. My concern is that the dryer will remove moisture that I sorely need. Will need to think about this one.

 

[faithVA]

To me, it seems that your vulnerabilty is on your ends. The style I'm leaning toward for you is the flat twists.

Question: If you do undo the flat twists before 5 days, can you avoid the shrinkage and would that minimize the splits?

Perhaps an issue for you might be that:
although it is convenient for you from a time saving standpoint, maybe your hair needs to be re-done sooner than every 5 days, not matter what the style?

I wrote a looooong post at the end. All of that damage you saw in my pictures from last year came from flat twist. I didn't wear 2 strands often last year. Due to that damage is why I switched up. But without all the details your conclusion makes sense. There is a lot going on in VA

 

[faithVA]

I’m inspired by your second hair style. I may try it. Thank you!

Thank all of you for giving me feedback on my flat twists. I have done them for so long I don't even feel like I'm really doing my hair when I do them. I'm sure my SO is tired of seeing me in them I see them as I just threw something in. It is good to know that maybe I'm not looking as crazy as I think I am.

 

[VarieYvette]

What gel are you using?

I am using the Ecostyler Krystal Hair Gel. I found that if my hair is well moisturised before I apply the gel, and I wash out the gel in a week, I do not have any damage from using it. However, if I keep gel in for longer than a week, I will definitely have problems

 

[Chicoro]

I am using the Ecostyler Krystal Hair Gel. I found that if my hair is well moisturised before I apply the gel, and I wash out the gel in a week, I do not have any damage from using it. However, if I keep gel in for longer than a week, I will definitely have problems

Could you share what do you put under the gel to moisturize, please?

 

[faithVA]

I put my twist in Saturday. Paying attention, I can see that my twist are starting to shrinkage, indicating they are losing moisture. Tonight I will spray my scalp and twist and add hair milk and see how that works. I have a few ideas but will start there.

 

[VarieYvette]

Could you share what do you put under the gel to moisturize, please?

So I only use gel to style after my wash day and I have to wash it out after a week. I did my usual shampoo and DC, moisturised with a leave in (linked the one I am currently using, it have mango butter and shea butter and the seal with a whipped butter (also has mango and shea butter) from the same line. I airdry in African threading overnight. The following day I lightly mist my hair and scalp with this other leave in and then apply the gel and do my little bun and use my scarf to lay my hair down flat. My hair is still a bit short, so if pieces stick up dung the week I mist the hair to reactivate the gel and do the scarf method again I only reapply gel if necessary. I am also not doing the really slicked down bun so I do not use too much gel, because my scalp hates having gels on it.

 

[Chicoro]

So I only use gel to style after my wash day and I have to wash it out after a week. I did my usual shampoo and DC, moisturised with a leave in (linked the one I am currently using, it have mango butter and shea butter and the seal with a whipped butter (also has mango and shea butter) from the same line. I airdry in African threading overnight. The following day I lightly mist my hair and scalp with this other leave in and then apply the gel and do my little bun and use my scarf to lay my hair down flat. My hair is still a bit short, so if pieces stick up dung the week I mist the hair to reactivate the gel and do the scarf method again I only reapply gel if necessary. I am also not doing the really slicked down bun so I do not use too much gel, because my scalp hates having gels on it.

Perhaps I have overlooked it, but I don't see the link to the product you use to moisturize your hair. Is it in another previous post within this thead?

Thank you for the detail regarding your process.