Detangling: Updated, Collective Wisdom As Of 2016

Qhemet's Detangling ghee and silk elements curly cuties seems to work well for my hair. I will go back to finger Detangling first with oil. After washing and rinsing out conditioner, I will finger detangle again. I will use those other products when it's time to style, or twist my hair.
I'm 4a tightly coiled, fine hair, with medium to high density.
 
Detangling skills update :wiggle::

I accidentally added a new finger detangling move to my repertoire: I take a section of water-and-conditioner- drenched hair and try to finger comb my way through the section. When I can't pull my fingers down and through the hair section any further, I leave my fingers right there where they got "stuck." With my fingers STILL THERE -- STUCK -- I take my OTHER hand and gently pull hair from around my stuck fingers, via the harp method.

:yep:

:pulpdance:

Also, I clipped rough ends, and that has reduced the knots and tangles I get in the first place.

NaturelleGrow's Marshmallow, Slippery Elm, and Cinnamon DC is STILL the best detangling agent I've EVER experienced. Slip is still other-worldly! :yep:
 
MeaWea said:
Good thread!!
My question: when is enough, enough?
My sister was talking about a product/system she tried today that cut her detangle time to 10 minutes, down from 15. My usual detangle time is about 30-45 minutes. My hair is much curlier and more dense than hers but is there an upper limit to how long you will devote to detangling?
Click to expand...

There is for me. I technically could finger detangle, but the only way I get it done thoroughly takes sooooo long. Yep, I've seen the videos, lol. So I use a comb and/or 7 row denman. My hair breaks some, but I don't have the time luxury to take forever doing my hair, it already takes long enough. 1.5 hours is as much time as I'm willing to take detangling my hair.

I also find that periodically blow drying with a comb attachment really helps with the tangling. It's like even with the comb and brush, I'll miss 10% of the shed hairs each time. Over time, they build up. But they can't hide if I blow dry with a comb attachment.
 
YvetteWithJoy said:
Detangling skills update :wiggle::

I accidentally added a new finger detangling move to my repertoire: I take a section of water-and-conditioner- drenched hair and try to finger comb my way through the section. When I can't pull my fingers down and through the hair section any further, I leave my fingers right there where they got "stuck." With my fingers STILL THERE -- STUCK -- I take my OTHER hand and gently pull hair from around my stuck fingers, via the harp method.
Click to expand...
You are getting down to the minutia of details; love it. I would add using more conditioner or oil on the stuck area to help ease the process.
 
Sharpened said:
This is very similar to the three-comb smooth down from HotCombs.net, but she actually talks about ingredients that give slip and using fingers throughout.
Click to expand...


I'm 4c, cottony texture.

I love the three comb smooth! I do it about 3 to 4 times a year to get out the shed hair that I miss from the regular finger detangling. It gets out a lot and my hair ends up soooo soft!

Recently, thanks to a suggestion from @almond eyes, I've (re?)discovered steaming with conditioner first to finger detangle. But then, I discovered adding KCKT to the conditioner and steaming and it was the best thing ever! I can't wait to pair that with the three comb smooth and see magic happen!
 
Hair type: coarse, kinky, curly , nappy. Fairy fine to medium thick strands. My hair has high tangle tendencies.

I detangle on wet hair soaked in slippy conditioner only. I use a large tooth comb weekly sometimes bi weekly to remove shed hair. I finger detangle every 3 or so days when i redo my wash n go.
 
4B - 4C, high density.
I've tried lots of different detangling methods.
Right now I have to finger detangle the night before wash day with an oil (coconut or grapeseed). It takes 3-4 hours.
Every so often I'll comb with a seamless comb.
Can't use conditioner, can't wet my hair.
 
MeaWea said:
Good thread!!
My question: when is enough, enough?
My sister was talking about a product/system she tried today that cut her detangle time to 10 minutes, down from 15. My usual detangle time is about 30-45 minutes. My hair is much curlier and more dense than hers but is there an upper limit to how long you will devote to detangling?
Click to expand...


Nothing over an hour. I hear people say it takes them hours (as in multiple, like 3 or 4) to detangle, and I'm like HECKS NAW!!! I would never do my hair if it took that long.
 
pelohello said:
YASSSS!!!! I soooooooo need this thread. I am losing soooooo much hair due to poor detangling skills. Everytime I think I have it down pack, I end of causing knots and then have to cut several inches off.

I will be subbing to this thread!!!!

Great topic OP!!!!!!

Moving forward, I think I will detangle like this:

1. Prepoo with Olive oil and finger detangle in small sections
2. Place hair in four sections and wash hair in those sections. Lightly finger detangle from the ends up
3. Apply DC and use a wide tooth comb for finish detangling.

**Finger detangling alone doesn't work for my hair. I always have matting if I don't use a comb.
Click to expand...

I've been finger detangling since this post!!! So far, my hair seems to be doing ok. I'm still have slight issues with me causing my knots, but now there aren't as many as before. I just don't have patience and it's causing me to make knots:( But I am determined to become an expert at finger detangling. Who knew how difficult this would be. I have been watching naturallyquinn on utube and may follow her way of finger detangling. My problem is that I don't know when I should finger detangle.; when I pre-poo, apply ACV/Clay, DC or afterwards. But I'm determined to figure it out:)

 
I am a 4a (with some random 3C and 4B sections), high density, medium strands and a cottony, webby texture.

I finger-detangle almost exclusively and I only finger detangle after shampooing with globs of rinse-out conditioner in my hair. My hair is always in 4 sections when I wash and once the rinse-out is in each section of my hair, I then split each section into 4-6 subsections and proceed to thoroughly finger detangle.

I have detangled before washing, after deep-conditioning, while deep-conditioning and now after washing and before deep-conditioning. Before washing made me too tired to actually finish wash day, after deep conditioning made me dread washing out my dc and the detangling after, during deep conditioning used too much deep-conditioner (DCs are not cheap!). I have reached a happy medium. Since I wash and condition in the shower, once I'm in the shower, I can go ahead and get detangling out of the way. Also, my hair detangles easier when it is wet and using rinse-out conditioners before DC-ing gives my hair a nice base of moisture so I don't have to use so much DC. My hair is so long and tangles so easily that getting detangling out of the way as soon as possible but in a way that makes detangling as easy as possible makes me not DREAD wash day as much.
 
I've been thinking about spreading my full detangling session over 3 days on a continuous rotation:

Day 1: Fully detangle bottom sections of my hair

Day 2: Fully detangle middle sections of my hair

Day 3: Fully detangle top sections of my hair

Day 4: Fully detangle bottom sections of my hair

And so on.

The reason: I really need to avoid letting a week pass before I've detangled. Maybe if I develop the habit of constantly detangling -- but making a COMPLETELY realistic schedule -- I won't let my hair tangle up to 7th-day level knots and tangles over my entire head.

It already makes my soul exhale and relax to anticipate only ever fully detangling one third of my hair on any given day. Woooooo saaaaaasa. :meditate:

Maybe I'll try this starting next week.
 
I've finally found the perfect detangling method for my hair...I think detangling in the shower under running water was what was actually setting me back a little bit. What seems to be key for me is:
  1. Loading my hair up with both conditioner (I use Tresemme Luxurious Moisture conditioner because it gives my hair a lot of "slip") and oil (I normally use Parachute coconut oil)
  2. Detangling in front of the mirror instead of in the shower. This way I can see how my hair is moving/detangling and avoid making more knots during the detangling process. I've been doing this for the past month or so and have been seeing a lot less hair in my comb.
  3. I detangle my hair in 6 sections.
  4. Also, as I'm moving up my hair shaft while detangling, I make sure that I'm holding my ends so that they're not re-tangling and only the parts of my hair that still need to be detangled are moving...if that makes sense.
  5. As I'm detangling I use short strokes with the comb (I move the comb down my hair shaft a little, remove the comb a little, move the comb down the hair shaft a little more, remove..repeat)and move the tangles down my hair shaft little by little, rather than pulling the comb through my hair and continuing to pull even if I feel a tangle...if that makes sense (lol). I start at the ends and work my way to the roots.
  6. I twist each section after I finish detangling.
  7. I also lengthened the amount of time between each detangling session/full wash day. I used to do this once a week and now I do it once every week and a half to every two weeks.
This isn't a part of the detangling process, but my hair tangles a lot less when I sleep with my hair in a twisted low ponytail compared to when I used to sleep with my hair in two french braids. I used a hair tie to hold my hair close to the scalp and then I two-strand twist the length of hair in the ponytail and then pull the hair straight over the top of my head and use a couple bobby pin to pin my twisted ponytail to the top of my head so that my hair isn't hanging out of the bottom of my du-rag.
 
Here are bunch of detangling videos with my own quick summary for future reference. For those on mobile devices, hit the top of the box where the video title is and that will take you to the YouTube page.

Finger detangling:


Addresses webbing:


Sebum for slip:


Clump separation:


Detangle and stretch fine 4c hair:


Detangle from the root, stretched hair:
 
4a/b, natural, dense, coarse, medium-thick strands

What Helps Me:
- Wash hair in manageable sections for detangling purposes
- Rake through hair to finger detangle while rinsing shampoo
- Detangle each section under running water with Ouidad Double Row Detangler or modified Denman (some days I use both)
- Rinsing with lukewarm water keeps hair nicely detangled
- Finger detangle midweek to remove shed hair
 
Mostly 4A, with 4B around the edges; fine texture, high density

I find it is easiest to detangle my hair by finger detangling in the shower 1-2 times per week. Then, once every two to three months, I do a more thorough detangling session with a good bottle of conditioner and my wide tooth comb, followed by my paddle brush or tangle teaser.
 
Sharpened said:
Here are bunch of detangling videos with my own quick summary for future reference. For those on mobile devices, hit the top of the box where the video title is and that will take you to the YouTube page.

Finger detangling:


Addresses webbing:


Sebum for slip:


Clump separation:


Detangle and stretch fine 4c hair:


Detangle from the root, stretched hair:
Click to expand...


I'm still making my way through these videos, Ms. Sharpened, but I want to say thank you!

I just watched the one on webbing. That is EXACTLY what I spend my time doing: detangling webs. I really appreciated the video. Words and technique were PERFECT! Very soul-soothing for me. :smile:

:kiss:
 
YvetteWithJoy said:
I'm still making my way through these videos, Ms. Sharpened, but I want to say thank you!

I just watched the one on webbing. That is EXACTLY what I spend my time doing: detangling webs. I really appreciated the video. Words and technique were PERFECT! Very soul-soothing for me. :smile:

:kiss:
Click to expand...

This is very interesting. I seem to get a lot of tangles on the lower right side back quarter area. Finger detangling has helped but when I get those tight clumps I need a straight pin to loosen the ball. I try grabbing it from both ends to wiggle it looser but sometimes that doesn't work.

Also, if my hair is dry with aggravated cuticles, it makes it even harder to separate so I use a slippery conditioner oil mix and press in those sections and then begin to work. Keep the suggestions coming.
 
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Dee Raven said:
Fine, medium density 3c/4a as well. I prefer finger detangling throughout all steps of the wash process: when wetting the hair (under the running water), shampooing, conditioning, rinsing (under water again) and styling.

A note on finger detangling, there are different ways to do it that make the process work. Raking, Pulling hair taught w/ one head and raking with the other, spreading (which really helps with the roots). So if you have been unsuccessful with finger detangling, I highly recommend experimenting with different techniques. I've gotten way better with finger detangling in the last year and am always shocked at how easy it is.

Naptural85 has a good introduction.
Click to expand...

she's the best
 
  • Fine (thin) strands . . . or course (thick) strands?
  • High density of hair per square inch of scalp . . . or low density of hair?
  • Curl pattern?
Answer:

Fine strands
Medium density
4b, wiry with 3a all the way in the back
Detangling is the worse and I can't SEE how it could work for me.

Naptural85 hair is smoother, not as dry as mine gets so...yeah. Mine shrinks up Afro style. Not the same type of process for me. Ugh!

ETA- ill look more into this when I get back home but I'm detanglig with fingers in dry hair now and 2 things. One, how do I know when it's fully detangled? If I used a comb, I doubt it would go all the way through. Should I change how I define detangled?

Two- my roots are puffy and the rest less so. It makes me feel like it's not detangled at the root. I'll try and post a pic of my first small section in the front of my hair (the easiest section).

Two- would my twistouts still swing and flow?

ETA- again. Stopped on dry hair. I need to dampen it or use condish. I'm going to give it a solid try for a month. If I can handle it, I'll keep going.
 
Last edited:
Wenbev said:
at first I thought you guys were talking about any brush that you wet LOL.
I am on amazon right now buying this brush. I have coily, dense, fine hair like OP and detangling is WORK.
Click to expand...

Hi, @Wenbev! :wave:

I really hope the brush helps!

Yesterday I did a full detangling session after DCing with Komaza Care Protein Hair Strengthener and then saturating my hair with NaturelleGrow Protein-free Marshmallow Root yaddah yaddah deep conditioner. Full detangling took me 1 hour and 28 minutes, working on 8 sections of hair. My goal is to prevent retangling as MUCH as possible, so I will be trying the "tiny French roll" nighttime protective strategy. We'll see how it fares!

Yesterday, this time to fully detangle I tried doing three "passes" on each section of hair:
  1. First pass: I used the Wet Brush (starting from the bottom and working my way up).
  2. Second pass: I used the finest side of the green comb pictured below.
  3. Third pass: I used my fingers to feel my ends to for tangles or knots, and I finger combed and pulled apart any remaining knots.
After detangling each section, I twisted it up. The NG deep conditioner was still in it, and I left it in over night under a plastic processing cap and bonnet. In the morning, section by section I rinsed the NG and applied leave-in conditioner. I twisted each section back up each time. Then out of the shower, I applied gel section by section. I tried to saturated my ends especially, to try to surround them with gel as sealant to help prevent/reduce knotting and tangling.

SBS-502125.jpg
 
I can barely wait the two days to get this brush! LOL. Recently, the tangling has gotten so bad, I decided to trim back a 1/4in. My hair was untangled for 30 minutes. So I basically cut for no reason. I also get the webbing of hair where it actually looks like a spider's web when you try to separate the hair. smh.
 
Wenbev said:
I can barely wait the two days to get this brush! LOL. Recently, the tangling has gotten so bad, I decided to trim back a 1/4in. My hair was untangled for 30 minutes. So I basically cut for no reason. I also get the webbing of hair where it actually looks like a spider's web when you try to separate the hair. smh.
Click to expand...

Same here with the webbing and how quickly my hair retangles. Yes: SMH indeed! :smile:

I am AMAZED at folks who say they hardly get any tangles.

:eek:

:thud:
​
Like, how, Sway?!?? :lol:

Then there's the folks talmbout, "I just detangle in the shower with conditioner for about 12 minutes and voila!" Oh, yeah?!?? :fistshake: :smile:

They give me hope that I can figure out how to keep my hair from tangling so much in the first place. Maybe. :look:
 
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