hair woes! help a sistah out! *L*

[sylviaetc]

ok, where do i begin? ok i've been "taking care" of my hair every since i found this board in may. btw i love it here! anyway... when i started i was about 6 mons into my relaxer, but i decided to delay my touch-up until the summer was over because i discovered the braidout and couldn't let it go. i'm braid crazed! so now it's 10mons into my relaxer and i've worn braidouts 24/7 for the past 3mons, air drying no heat no brushing etc. everythings suppose to be great right? i'm doing all the right things with my hair etc... BUT! now my hair looks wild. basically i have a shoulder length afro; and despite all of the "moisturizers" i put on it it's dry and brittle. the only time it looks moisturized is right after i take out my braidout, then its like "la whirls la curls" ; but that only last a day... it's about time for me to relax again but i'm terrified; what if it all falls out? i mean its really soft; but when i try protein treatments to build it up they make it feel too brittle. i'm stumped! i'm using most of the products in the lust arcenal so moisturizing shampoo and conditioners can't be what i'm lacking. has anyone got any ideas about how i can add more moisture to my hair? heres what i already do...
loreal mega moisture shampoo 2 x's wkly
loreal lust conditioner 2x's wkly
kids organics shea butter detangling moisturizer hair lotion
and hollywood beauty carrot creme for moisture daily
hot six oil mixed with tea tree oil for scalp oiling
water for daily misting
and maybe... pink oil glosser for shine (because with all the moisturizers i put in my hair air drying is robbing me of shine, still)
(i used to use scurl but the glycerine left me dry and brittle)
observation: it pains me to say that when i was frying my hair, using petrolium based greases, brushing, etc my hair looked soooo good that even i would do a double take when i passed a mirror. *L* anyone experienced this irony?

any advice is welcomed... TIA

 

[adrienne0914]

do you ever clarify? because you're using so many moisturizing products, it could be that you have some buildup that's causing your hair to look dull. i didn't think that was an issue for me until i accidentally tried a clarifying shampoo (free sample from Elasta QP).

i would give the S-Curl another try. i noticed that when i used it alone for braid outs, my hair looked frizzy by the end of the day that i wore it out. when i started letting it down after my bun/phonytail (with the Vaseline on my ends), i didn't have that problem anymore. i could wear it for days and still have shiny hair.

 

[Peachtree]

Sylvia, I just posted a thread "plastic caps, anyone?".... well, I did my normal moisture routine then slept in a plastic cap. My hair was *MEGA* moisturized this morning. Maybe this would work for u too. Or instead of sleeping in the cap, try wearing a plastic cap around the house for a few hrs... that might give good results too

 

[sweetcocoa]

I agree with Adrienne. You may need to clarifying shampooing. I don't clarify (I do a acv rinse once a week)...but you may need to and then start over with less oils. Also what kind of water are you misting with daily? I use distilled water. I can't emphasize enough how water...especially hard water will make your hair dull and hard no matter what you do it. Shower or tap water have not tounched my hair in over 6 months. My entire shampoo routine is distilled water. Now that is what I do personally. I'm not saying you have to go as far as I do...but use it in your misting bottle and as your final rinse. You will see a difference.

 

[love2praz]

I have to agree with both suggestions! Clarify and then try "marinating" your hair in oil with a plastic cap. In times past when my hair was deprived of moisture, I'd saturate my hair with olive oil at night and put on a plastic cap while I slept. After about 3-4 days, my hair was ultra-moisturized!!

 

[sylviaetc]

ok ladies... i'm going to take your advice and do the plastic cap thing after i use a clarifying shampoo. i have a question though: after using the clarifying shampoo, do i then follow up with my regular shampoo? i've had neutrogena clarifying shampoo in my bathroom for the longest; i've been using it to clean my combs, *L* is this a good shampoo?
TIA for your replys

 

[Shinka]

it might just be the two textures ( natural and permed hair)..They usuallly don't work well together without alot of trouble. Permed hair no matter how much you take care of it is a natural breakdown of your natural hair ( that how it de'kinks). Permed hair and natural hair are naturally drier. SO water is the best mositurizer!!!! You might be better off cutting the permed ends and conditoning you natural ahir for a while...or cutt the permed ends then get a relaxer on the new growth

also braids dry our hair out due to the chemicals that are in braids, that's why people suggest rinsing or washing the synethic or natural hair before you braid with it.

Also after protein treatments ( which do make hair hard and dry and brittle because protein is drying) you should mositurize your hair really well or use a creme rinse to replace mositure.

 

[sylviaetc]

hi shinka, thanx for your reply. i just wanted to say that when i braid my hair, i'm just braiding my own hair; no extenxions added. and cutting off the relaxed section of my hair is good advice but, my new growth is only 5ins. while my relaxed growth is around 14in.; if i were transitioning i would take your advice but i'm trying to add length. someone posted about hard water, i think thats the culprit in my case or else its the fact that i'm using too much oil.
anyway thanx again...