Natural Hair Like Velcro After Flat Ironing?

[SelahOco]

My hair is natural, and I've been flat ironing once a month using my Maxiglide. I iron using the chase method, because the Maxi plates with the teeth will do nothing to my hair.

It seems that once I iron my hair and comb it out, it's hard to comb my hair the next day - so I just don't. I bantu knot it up, and sort of separate the sections of hair with my hands to keep it neat.

But it's like my strands are hugging each other and don't want to let go. Like a light-weight Velcro effect. When the shop irons my hair, I can comb it easily. But when I do it, it gets straight, but I don't dare comb it.

I air dry in braids...then put a tiny bit of hair milk on just so I can work thru my hair w/o breaking it. I apply spray heat protectant, taking advantage of the moisture to comb my section before I flat iron. I make sure it's dry, then I iron it, with the iron chasing the comb.

Maybe it's because I air dry? Maybe my comb is too small? Maybe I need more moisture?

Anyone else had this happen? If this has been discussed, please let me know.

 

[melissa-bee]

Hmm. this happened to me for the first time last week.
~I think this was because i deep conditioned with cholestoral when i should have done moisture.
Or because my hair was not 100% dry. It was like 95% dry before i flat ironed, i couldn't wait any longer and i didn't want to use double heat.

 

[Aviah]

Could it be the products you are using? One of them sounds like the culprit. Mine does a little of that when I use Fantasia IC gel with Allways Natural Oil Moisturizer leave-in.

 

[Bint Yusef]

Does the heat protectant you are using contain alcohol? That has happened to me before using a spray heat protectant that had alcohol in it. My hair stuck together and felt like straw. I only use cone serums now and it has never happened again.

 

[SerenavanderWoodsen]

^^^ I agree, it really sounds like the effect might be from a product your using. Some products for moisture can actually make the hair hard and sticky. Try using just a serum for flat ironing and see if theres a difference. Chi Silk Infusion is a particularly good one.....

Another thing could be the air drying. I find that when I air dry to 100% before ironing I get can get moisture sapped dry hair. If I iron on hair that is 95% dry on the other hand I get super silky soft hair. I do it b4 its fully dry and the top sections are still damp because by the time I get to them they'll be almost dry if not fully. I think leaving a TINY bit of moisture when you iron allows you to seal it in. Not enough to make the iron sizzle, just a vague dampness, probably 95% dry....

 

[ChocoKitty]

Another thing could be the air drying. I find that when I air dry to 100% before ironing I get can get moisture sapped dry hair. If I iron on hair that is 95% dry on the other hand I get super silky soft hair. I do it b4 its fully dry and the top sections are still damp because by the time I get to them they'll be almost dry if not fully. I think leaving a TINY bit of moisture when you iron allows you to seal it in. Not enough to make the iron sizzle, just a vague dampness, probably 95% dry....

ITA this happens to me when I air-dry. My ends hate it!

 

[Nonie]

I too think it's the products you're using. I don't really know if alcohol in heat protectants are to blame because I used a spray heat protectant and a serum heat protectant and I didn't get that effect. Perhaps if the spray is used on hair that already has something else on it, that IS the problem.

I always air-dry, and then I wet-to-dry press. The last time was the first time I used heat protectants. My hair had nothing on it, except I had just rinsed out CHI Infra Treatment before air-drying. I used the spray protectant on bare hair and my hair looked like it'd been blow-dried. No velcro effect. Then I applied the cone protectant and pressed again. No velcro effect.

I do know what you mean though, coz I've had it before. I almost want to swear it was when I would use products on my hair before pressing. For a long time now, my pressing always involved just water first then a cone serum. I didn't use heat protectants. After joining LHCF and heard you had to use something, I started to try out different products and Lustrasilk Smooth Ends Leave-In comes to mind, and I remember that press didn't feel right. My ends felt rough. I then applied L'Oreal Vive Smooth Intense Serum and they felt better but still...meh! So I applied grease Isoplus and THEN I had a good press.

Obviously trying to keep up with the masses and apply moisturizers before my press was giving me a rougher press than I'm used to. So I returned to just water and serum, until I tried protectants and now I'm hooked. But still I just DC for moisture and then use only protectants for the press, doing a WTD first with protectant as my "wet product" and then a final press with serum. Hair turns out fine.

 

[SelahOco]

Thanks ladies...I'll look at my ingredients and try it differently next time. I hate this velcro feeling.