OP - As someone with chronic dry hair it sounds like your moisture problem is an issue of not only your products but also your techniques..
1- If you're having an issue retaining moisture why are you using so much protein?? Moisture/protein balance is super important and from reading all the posts on this thread it sounds like between the megateking and the coconut oil (which retains protein)....it would be a great idea to scale back on those two things. Don't MT so much and stick to sealing with jbco or something else for a while
2 - please use the wet towel steaming method suggested to you earlier in this thread. I swear by it. And when you d.c dont use a protein dc...using something moisture rich like Keracare or whatever your moisturizing dc of choice is makes more sense for your issue. You said your hair feels good on wash day....this will make it feel better
3 - if you are going to use Qhemet or any other rich buttery leave in, please remember that nothing really moisturizes but water anything else we use in our hair is to help retain that moisture. I would recommend lightly misting your hair with a spray of 2 parts water and 1 part of your favorite conditioner...(not sopping wet just a mist) then try applying the Qhemet Alma & Olive....or Burdock Root products (I use Alma cause my hair is dry and coarse and needs the added heaviness. Use your discrection)
After you've applied the water/conditioner mist and product, seal with a little bit of jbco, (braid it in plaits if you'd like) and wrap your hair in a silk scarf for the night.
4 - In the morning when you wear a half wig, i highly recommend baggying under the wig. You dont even need to apply more products unless you want to (i usually just use a teeny bit of the mist spray and just lightly seal my edges and ends in jbco)
All these things are highly intentionally methods for not just introducing moisture but retaining it irregardless of whether it is winter or not. I've learned them during my 26 week stretch after months of feeling like you did. And they really helped.
This go round the new addition to my regimen will be that I will introduce ponytail rollersets into my wash day after week 6 to keep my roots straight without direct heat. For the first 6 weeks I plan to just wash and dry my hair using the crown and glory method.
oh and im not sure if i read this correctly...but why do you clarify or acv so much? stripping your hair when it doesnt seem to be that nourished to begin with feels a bit counter-intuitive.
i cowash most of the time and only shampoo/clarify like every 6 weeks or when i go to the salon for a blowout. but thats a personal choice. for me i just know that anything more than that would be silly cause there aint much to clarify cause i'm tryna keep all the moisture i have
HTH!
