How do you ensure you're getting product on the inside sections of your hair?

[Nonie]

@Nonie, I don’t remember mentioning thick, but my hair is quite dense. I can't part through it though, more because particular sections matt sometimes, and when you have hairs tangled around each other, which stick together like Velcro when wet, it’s not easy.

I do get breakage when I part my hair to apply the dc. When I have to part –even with my fingers, I kinda have to pull it apart, so when I’m smoothing the conditioner in, there’s always breakage/shedding.

Thanks for giving me something to think about!!.. I do never comb my growth . But the thing is, I’m always separating it, particularly the NG and sections that matt. I’m doing it now with one hand, and i swear the same section is tangled. I don’t know about babying it though. I leave it alone. It takes a good 30mins+ /sometimes an hour just to fingercomb! I don’t think I’m doing it more than 2 or 3 times between washes.. Should I part, moisturise, then detangle the 1 inch section. Or detangle, then moisturise? I've been doing the latter, but I'm fed up with it, and ready to leave it and go bed. I’ll email you pics in a bit.

The word "dense" to me is a synonym for "thick" so that's why I said so. My hair strands are very fine but I have a lot of them which is what makes my hair thick/dense.

OK, let me first see your thread on matting because I don't understand how hair can be sticking like that--especially if texlaxed unless...:scratchch...
Well, let me find that thread on matting first and then I'll perhaps have a better idea of what's going on. I think you said you posted photos. Hope you said what it is you used before that happened. Later!

 

[Nonie]

@bb09, why do you use Castile? I found it to be so drying and stripping. In fact, when I first joined the forum and learned about Castile, the advice I was given was to use it for my scalp and then a moisturizing shampoo like CON for my hair. The idea was that Castile was to leave a very clean, oil-free scalp while the moisturizing shampoo didn't strip my hair. Have you tried using something moisturizing like Nexxus Therappe or something with a low pH like the Giovanni line? Your hair sounds like it's got raised cuticles hence the matting. Using something with a high pH such as Castile soap just makes the cuticle more raised which is why when you rinse, your hair just locks up. When you DC, you probably just wash off all the goodness of the conditioner because your cuticles are wide open. Also if your porosity is not under control, then again your hair loses all its conditioning when you rinse.

I think you should start by finding low pH shampoos. Wash your hair in braids but during the shampooing, undo each braid--one at a time--and comb through allowing the moisturizing, low pH shampoo to coat each strand really well and then once you've got the comb through (start with wide-tooth and move to fine, working on very narrow sections) rebraid it with shampoo still in it. When you rinse, apply conditioner, do it as if it's relaxer smoothing it on small sections and combing from base to ends. I'm thinking maybe Roux Porosity Control might be a good conditioner to use. When you rinse, I'm thinking you should use a very dilute solution of ACV. The acidity will smooth your hair strands by closing the cuticles so that the hair strands aren't getting caught on each other and matting.

If wondering what products to get, I think choosing from lines that contain ceramides is a good place to start. This list might be helpful.

Another thing you might consider is getting a shower filter. Even if you don't think your water is bad, the difference a filter makes is out of this world! I wish you lived near a Nikos' cousin who can help you figure your hair out.

 

[HappilyLiberal]

When I get far into a stretch like I am now, I put the conditioner on like a relaxer.

 

[bb09]

Nonie –you seriously did give me something to think about when you said I might be babying my hair too much. The day I made that post -2 days ago? I actually sat down in front of a mirror and detangled thoroughly. Seeing made a difference, because when I was just finger combing freely, I would sometimes just separate my hair –but not actually get the shed hair or knots right out. Then move on to the next. So if it was tangled when it was dry, it would prolly be a lot worse when wet.

I don’t think I said, the matting in the first vid /pic was right after my ORS relaxer. My hair was blowdried straight with nothing in it. And I think my hair’s giving me so much problems because I have NG /an underprocessed middle, and at that point, I had some bonelaxed ends as well.

 

[bb09]

As for the castile soap, I used it because honestly what I use in my hair doesn’t seem to make a (lasting) difference. Normally I use shampoo, but as long as I put conditioner over the shampoo before rinsing it out (Kimmaytube technique), my hair doesn’t feel squeaky clean or ‘off’.

When you DC, you probably just wash off all the goodness of the conditioner because your cuticles are wide open. Should I do an acv rinse Before deep conditioning? My hair doesn’t seem to take to dc’s. I only only notice a difference for protein conditioners –which can really mess me up. But no difference in my hair with moisturising conditioners –even the moisturising ones with protein in them.

When I next do my hair though, I'm hoping I’ll atleast be able to part my hair to apply the dc properly.

 

[bb09]

bump, so I can update. I still have to get my hair done. Does anyone have tips for getting the condish/dc to really absorb?

 

[EllePixie]

Where did you get that statement about DC'ing?

 

[Nonie]

bump, so I can update. I still have to get my hair done. Does anyone have tips for getting the condish/dc to really absorb?

bb09 DCing with heat perhaps? Wearing a plastic cap and sitting under a drier. Also some products like Aubrey Organics conditioners are applied neat to dry hair for DCing so that also ensures you're getting the product in its concentrated state.

If you use a lot of products, shampooing with a clarifying shampoo is a good idea before you DC so that nothing is getting in the way of conditioner penetrating your strands. If your hair is porous, then you may feel as if your hair isn't absorbing conditioner when really it is but also releasing it during the rinse. So maybe Roux Porosity Control can help.

 

[choctaw]

bump, so I can update. I still have to get my hair done. Does anyone have tips for getting the condish/dc to really absorb?

Mix condition with rosewater and apply to hair in sections using applicator bottle.

 

[bb09]

Where did you get that statement about DC'ing?

EllePixie -gorgeous hair! I quoted Nonie. She replied me, somewhere in this thread.
My hair is probably v porous [I was (pH)testing some of my products earlier, and the conditioners were around 7. One of my shampoo's that I liked was ph 8!]

 

[EllePixie]

EllePixie -gorgeous hair! I quoted Nonie. She replied me, somewhere in this thread.
My hair is probably v porous [I was (pH)testing some of my products earlier, and the conditioners were around 7. One of my shampoo's that I liked was ph 8!]

Thank you!

And I saw Nonie's quote - makes more sense now that I see she was referring to castile soap. I was like, what?! I also think castile soap is drying - it definitely makes my hair matted. I do not recommend it!

 

[bb09]

bb09 DCing with heat perhaps? Wearing a plastic cap and sitting under a drier. Also some products like Aubrey Organics conditioners are applied neat to dry hair for DCing so that also ensures you're getting the product in its concentrated state.

If you use a lot of products, shampooing with a clarifying shampoo is a good idea before you DC so that nothing is getting in the way of conditioner penetrating your strands. If your hair is porous, then you may feel as if your hair isn't absorbing conditioner when really it is but also releasing it during the rinse. So maybe Roux Porosity Control can help.

Nonie, I'm gonna go back to doing that, once I can get a hold of my heat cap.. I stopped dc'ing with heat for maybe a year (as in regularly), because I thought, why carry on if it's making zero difference when I rinse my hair.

I'm gonna start using a clarifying shampoo maybe every time I wash my hair, since I've been stretching that out more lol.

I actually just clocked today that I'm getting demarcation breakage.!! I'm so happy about that lol, because it's not that my hair is shedding crazily. So the matting is probably my NG not having enough moisture. And the breakage is from the demarcation line. So That's something I'm gonna have to figure out. I'm due for a relaxer -gonna get one in 2 weeks (that would make it around 5 months).

I think I said it in the matting thread, but porosity control makes my hair tangle like crazy.. LaidBak mentioned that it does that if you have hard water (which I do -at home, and at uni).

I'll definitely save all the replies and use it. Thanks soo much for everyone's help in both threads. I'm gonna need help with this demarcation breakage though. I get like 50 x 3 hairs on washday (10 hairs x 5; then 3 lots of tangling).

 

[bb09]

EllePixie -thank you. You replied so quickly!

 

[TwistNMx]

I use the CLM method integrated with my own.
First I pre-poo I divide my hair into two sections in the shower and moisturize there with conditioner. Then I comb through the conditioner again in 4 sections with glycerin water and twist my hair with a shea butter & oil mixture sometimes and other times I just twist with a light oil (so the twists divide the hair even more). I spray during the week several times with water and glycerin (sometimes water / conditioner). I may wear it out on Saturday and/or Sunday or special occasions, and then remoisturized and twist back again. I condish/wash 2-3 times a week (in twists), and do a hot oil / conditioner treatment at least once a month.
HTH
PS. I rarely use any shampoo and when I do, I make sure and add avocado or jojoba oil.

 

[bb09]

TwistNMx,, thank you. Can you direct me to a link? What does CLM stand for?

 

[TwistNMx]

@TwistNMx,, thank you. Can you direct me to a link? What does CLM stand for?

CLM = Curly Like Me. (my pet name for such a great book)....
Title of book by Teri LaFlesh
See these links (hope they help you).
Teri LaFlesh - Tightly Curly - The Long Hair Community Discussion Boards

Amazon.com: Teri LaFlesh: Books, Biography, Blog, Audiobooks, Kindle (scroll down to bottom right for video explaination)
Teri also has a blog. I can't remember where right now. Perhaps someone here can find it for you.
HTH
Oh, I think this is it here: >Welcome

also video: YouTube - Starting the Process

Now with that said, a lot of people here will probably (I'm guessing) will disagree with this method - - however it works great for me.
Good luck.

 

[EllePixie]

EllePixie -thank you. You replied so quickly!

LOL yea...I was doing my daily hair board surfing.

 

[TwistNMx]

Hey bb09 , what do you think?

 

[brucebettye]

I use my fingers to part my hair and then add the moisturizer on and move on to another section. I usually do 4 or 5 sections.

 

[bb09]

@twistnmix, I haven't logged in forever. Thanks for replying. I went to the link, and there wasn't much info about it there. Is it just using condish as a moisturiser, then brushing through?

I'd just love to know if it's better to spray diluted condish on already tangled hair -e.g. straight from a bun, or to just use condish as a moisturiser.. Which is more moisture?


@brucebettye, thanks for replying. I love your pony