Braid Extension Hair is evil!

[kristina]

I never thought I'd say this being a former braid addict but I think extensions really dry out the hair. Maybe because I use the cheapo kanakalon hair but I was surprised because I followed the crown and glory method to a tee- I dipped in vinegar water before I put the hair in and I sprayed with s-curl, surge and better braids every day. But my hair still felt seriously crunchy. I don't know if I'm doing something wrong but until I figure the deal, I'm staying away from it all together. Has anyone noticed this?

 

[MomofThreeBoys]

Why not try human hair?

 

[Champagne_Wishes]

How are you prepping your hair before you put your hair in extensions?

 

[IntelligenceisBeautiful]

I'm with you on this one, my haie does not like these. I made sure to deep condition my hair weeks in advance, crown and glory whilst in braids, remove carefully, tried both synthetic and natural, made sure braids weren't tight and still it took me years to learn that braids just thin and break my hair. Some people's hair thrive with these, not mine. To each his own I guess. Cornrows are ok though, I love them!

 

[LDebagoria]

I never thought I'd say this being a former braid addict but I think extensions really dry out the hair. Maybe because I use the cheapo kanakalon hair but I was surprised because I followed the crown and glory method to a tee- I dipped in vinegar water before I put the hair in and I sprayed with s-curl, surge and better braids every day. But my hair still felt seriously crunchy. I don't know if I'm doing something wrong but until I figure the deal, I'm staying away from it all together. Has anyone noticed this?

Weird! All I use is that cheap hair, and I literally dump oil onto my braids every day. When I take 'em down, my ends are almost greasy!

 

[candibaby]

Nope, I always use Kanekalon hair for my extensions and have never had a problem with dryness.

 

[JenniferMD]

Could it be your shampoo and conditioner? What are you using on wash days?

 

[kristina]

I used CON once a week and Lekair (the orange one) as my conditioner. Before I braided I didn't do anything special but I deep conditioned the wash before braiding. Maybe it's just the nature of my hair or the fact that it was dry damaged from so many years of abuse. Either way I'm going to have to forego those senagalese twists for awhile.

 

[CarLiTa]

I think it's evil too, which is why I don't want to get them anymore. Last time I did, was May 2004 and left them in for a month. My hair was SO dry when I took them out, and I had to get a trim... more like a CUT... so i thought to myself: why "protect" my hair for a month, only to have it extremely damaged when the braids are taken out? My hair grows the same rate, in braids or not, so I don't see the point of putting myself through extreme dryness and then being depressed about it

 

[nchristina]

Yep, it's evil alright. Human hair was a little better for my hair.

 

[carletta]

I never thought I'd say this being a former braid addict but I think extensions really dry out the hair. Maybe because I use the cheapo kanakalon hair but I was surprised because I followed the crown and glory method to a tee- I dipped in vinegar water before I put the hair in and I sprayed with s-curl, surge and better braids every day. But my hair still felt seriously crunchy. I don't know if I'm doing something wrong but until I figure the deal, I'm staying away from it all together. Has anyone noticed this?

I wouldn't surge the hair just the scalp. Surge makes my braids feel dry sometime so I just spray the scalp and wash my braids every 4 days due the rising heat outside and I keep more moisture in my hair this way. When I take the braids down, I have mega moist hair!

 

[Sweet_Ambrosia]

Nope, I always use Kanekalon hair for my extensions and have never had a problem with dryness.

Same here.
It may be the Surge thats causing the dryness, not necessarily the hair itself.

 

[Mahalialee4]

Surge protein....from the aloe (muccopolysacharides) perhaps? Bonjour

 

[Growingitlong]

I would say it is the using of surge everyday too. I think that is what is drying out the hair and not the use of the kanekalon hair. Also I recommend the use of the scurl for moisturizing or some such curl type spray moisturizer. I find that they work well on keeping hair mositurized while in braids.

 

[kristina]

I only used the surge on my scalp.

 

[tweezer6]

I love braids, but my hair hates them. I always have to trim afterwards because my ends are so chewed up. Kanekalon (spelling?) is not my friend! My hair ended up a tangled mess each time I used it.

 

[kristina]

I love braids, but my hair hates them. I always have to trim afterwards because my ends are so chewed up. Kanekalon (spelling?) is not my friend! My hair ended up a tangled mess each time I used it.

Same thing- my ends were crunchy and hard- I got scissor happy and cut them off because they were so nasty.

 

[nylady74]

I've used human hair and found the same thing kristina. I just joined LHCF from another board that swears by braiding as a protective style and my hair HATES it The ends were crunchy, hard and dry which is NOT normal for my hair. No more for me.

 

[Phoenix]

Weird! All I use is that cheap hair, and I literally dump oil onto my braids every day. When I take 'em down, my ends are almost greasy!

Yep, same with me. I always use kanekelon, soak it in vinegar first, and after my hair is braided I use MTG every other day and braid sheen everyday.

A couple of days ago a braid was feeling kind of loose so I took it out. My hair was VERY moisturized...almost greasy. I never have a problem with dryness when I take my braids down.

But you have to figure out what you hair likes. I've been wearing braids off and on for about 10 years and my hair loves them. But I know a lot of people who have had very bad experiences with braids. If they don't agree with your hair then don't wear them.

 

[PretteePlease]

strange i use the cheap jumbo braid hair and never have a problem may be its because i get cornrows instead of individuals. my hair is always really moist when i take it down. I oil wkly, use activator daily, surge when i remember but near daily, maybe the shampoo is too drying

 

[LondonDiva]

ORS Nature's shine on the hair kept my hair moisturised. I just sprayed a lil on them daily and it was all A-OK. Whether in braids or not the hair needs constant moisture.

 

[kristina]

Thanks for the input ladies. I definately I'm going to go without them for awhile so I can see if there really is a correlation (for now, it's just my speculation). I also think it could have something to do with not clarifying beforehand. When I took out my braids my hair was oily but it still feel crunchy, like the moisurizing products didn't really penetrate while in the braids. And my ends seriously were hard. To be fair, I think I just have dry, porous hair all the time- just that the kanakolon excerbates the problem. Fortunately I'm learning to like my hair braid w/o the hair so it's not a big deal. I think next time (assuming I try again), I'll try human hair braids instead.