"Your hair looks like you never had a perm and it looks super dry."

L

locabouthair

Well-Known Member
This is what the shampoo lady told me today. :sad:

People have always told me how dry my hair looks (even when I was natural) and it's kinda embarrassing for me to hear that.
I,
moisturize and seal with castor oil every day
clarify/chelate regularly
wash and DC once a week

My hair will be shiny and smooth once I leave the salon but three days later it looks dry as a desert.

This is my theory: since my hair is not relaxed straight (not on purpose:rolleyes:). and it still looks kinky:ohwell: the cuticles are not flat therefore they do not reflect the light well. I've heard people here say that 4b natural hair doesn't not shine, but might have sheen. Don't think I have sheen either. :ohwell:

My hair is very resistant, conditioners don't do much, shine hardly last long, hair rinses last a week at best.

I know my diet isn't the best but I'm working on that and I know only the hair coming in will benefit. So it will take time to see a change.

I know hair sprays can help somewhat but aren't they bad?

I really don't wanna use a bunch of product but I'm tired of people telling me how dry my hair looks.

Any advice or suggestions?

I'm at the point where, I don't care about length anymore, just give me some shine and I'll be happy:grin:
 
What color is your hair? Maybe you could try a dark rinse and/or a clear cellophane treatment. I don't know if there is a connection, but I feel like since I've been on the co-wash challenge my hair is shiner and it's definitely more moisturized.
 
awww don't let the shampoo lady get you down!
Yes 4b hair is not typically supposed to be shiny and thats perfectly fine. When you say your hair looks dry, does it feel that way too?
If it doesn't feel dry then focus on products and regimens conducive to shiny hair. Have you tried henna or something like color showers or sebastian laminates? Or what about a small amout of chi silk infusion (depending on how your hair reacts to cones) or maybe some lacio lacio or silicon mix. Or maybe you can look up the thread that discussed shine rinses and such and try an mix it with your conditioner. Maybe more oil will help.


hth
 
LOOKING dry and BEING dry are 2 different things.

when my hair is naked, it looks bigger, drier and less defined. with certain products and techniques it looks smaller, shinier and more defined. but it's still the exact same hair... it's just as healthy naked as it is coated with conditioner.

my son's hair is super-healthy and also has low sheen. it always LOOKS dry, but when people touch it they are surprised at how soft it is. and i'm not about to load his short little napps up with product lookin like Jherri-curl Junior just to please other people. :rolleyes: i know his hair is healthy and that's what matters to me. :yep:
 
I dunno what more you can do.:ohwell: You say you moisture daily. I know you seal with castor oil but what do you use to moisturize with? Maybe you can try moisturizing twice a day, morning and night. Are you wearing protective styles or is your hair down being exposed to the air? You say you wash and dc once a week, what are your products? Are they moisturizing poo and dc? Maybe for a couple of weeks you should shampoo and dc twice a week. And make sure you are sleeping with a scarf at night to help with the dryness issue. Sorry for all the questions, i'm just trying to help. I remember reading somewhere that if you are dealing with dry hair doing a ACV rinse helps.
 
My hair use to be dry and I had to moisturize 2x a day and pre-poo and DC for about an hour just for it to still be dry. Now when I DC i let the DC sit for a while and then put an oil over it (I use castor oil). I tried this Sunday and did not have to moisturize once since.
 
SoAnxious12 said:
awww don't let the shampoo lady get you down!
Yes 4b hair is not typically supposed to be shiny and thats perfectly fine. When you say your hair looks dry, does it feel that way too?
If it doesn't feel dry then focus on products and regimens conducive to shiny hair. Have you tried henna or something like color showers or sebastian laminates? Or what about a small amout of chi silk infusion (depending on how your hair reacts to cones) or maybe some lacio lacio or silicon mix. Or maybe you can look up the thread that discussed shine rinses and such and try an mix it with your conditioner. Maybe more oil will help.


hth
Click to expand...

ITA with this entire post!!!!
My hair was this way before LHCF (see my siggy pic). It NEVER had sheen and my moisture level was non-existent. I truly believe that using EVOO daily has helped to seal in the moisture and give me sheen/shine. It is my do-or-die sealing oil!! I also think that using henna/cassia, lacio-lacio (rollersets), and silk infusion (flat-ironing) have helped too.

BTW, We seem to have similiar hair texture. What moisturizer/leave in con do you use daily before sealing, Loca?
 
Your hair didnt look dry whne I met you at the last meet up. However Im wondering why you clarify regularly. I tend to only clarify 1 every two months. Also perhaps you may want to cut out shampoo for a while. My hair also doesnt have alot of shine either but proclaim shine spray from Sallys helps it alot.
 
locabouthair said:
This is what the shampoo lady told me today. :sad:

People have always told me how dry my hair looks (even when I was natural) and it's kinda embarrassing for me to hear that.
I,
moisturize and seal with castor oil every day
clarify/chelate regularly
wash and DC once a week

My hair will be shiny and smooth once I leave the salon but three days later it looks dry as a desert.

This is my theory: since my hair is not relaxed straight (not on purpose:rolleyes:). and it still looks kinky:ohwell: the cuticles are not flat therefore they do not reflect the light well. I've heard people here say that 4b natural hair doesn't not shine, but might have sheen. Don't think I have sheen either. :ohwell:

My hair is very resistant, conditioners don't do much, shine hardly last long, hair rinses last a week at best.

I know my diet isn't the best but I'm working on that and I know only the hair coming in will benefit. So it will take time to see a change.

I know hair sprays can help somewhat but aren't they bad?

I really don't wanna use a bunch of product but I'm tired of people telling me how dry my hair looks.

Any advice or suggestions?

I'm at the point where, I don't care about length anymore, just give me some shine and I'll be happy:grin:
Click to expand...

Are you using a no-lye relaxer? If so, then that could be the cause of your dry hair issues. Once I changed over to lye my hair looked so much better. No-lye relaxers do not lay the cuticles down flat resulting in the hair not looking shiney.

I'm not relaxed anymore, but during the last two years of my relaxer days my hair did a 180 in the shine department, plus a few other hair changing techniques from the hairboards.
 
I'm not trying to put you on a million things, but have you tried rinsing your hair with tea? Amla oil also give me a lot of shine. But, definitely rinsing with tea. SAA does it too. Thats how Scareca get her hair so shiny.
 
Thanks for replying ladies.

I haven't learned to multi quote yet.

kacie, my hair is kind of off black, and a dark brown. I tried co washing and my hair never felt moist with it. I did use dark and lovely black rinse and it was jet black but it only lasted a week, when i went back to the salon my hairdresser couldnt even notice it.

Sometimes, it does feel dry but even when it doesnt it still looks like it a little bit. I never tried sebastians or colorshower. I couldnt find colorshowers in the BSS. I never tried the chi silk infusion.

I moisturize with wave nouveau moisturizing lotion. I wear my hair down everyday because it's too short for protective styles.

When I wash my hair on my own, I use CON poo and either kenra MC or Elasta QP DPR-11 for moisture. Doesnt do much though.

I tried an ACV rinse, it gave me good shine but it only lasted for about two days plus it gave me sooooo many tangles.

Caribgurl, maybe I'll try the EVOO, I just hate the way it smells, plus its not that cheap around my way.

Cutebajangirl, I chelate about once a month. I will try to look for the proclaim shine spray.

Oh and I do use a no lye relaxer but I just started using it 3 months ago. People were telling me about my dryness even when I was using lye.

I remember my friend told me one day, "I dont like that Dominican salon on the corner. My hair came out looking like yours (referring to my dryness) :ohwell:
 
bravenewgirl87 said:
I'm not trying to put you on a million things, but have you tried rinsing your hair with tea? Amla oil also give me a lot of shine. But, definitely rinsing with tea. SAA does it too. Thats how Scareca get her hair so shiny.
Click to expand...


What type of tea should I use?

I tried using alma, I dont think I noticed a difference, plus the smell kills me. I still have some sitting under my sink. I'll trying it again. I'll add the SAA to my list too. Thanks.
 
Hey Loca! :D

Your hair has always looked so beautiful at the meet-ups :)

I had a problem with shine and I realized that much of my hair had been overprocessed. How often do you relax and how long do you leave the relaxer on? Maybe try stretching a little longer and cut the relaxing time by a few minutes. It really worked wonders for me :)

Have you tried coconut oil instead of castor oil? My hair did not like castor oil but loves coconut!

Good luck and keep us updated! :)
 
locabouthair said:
What type of tea should I use?

I tried using alma, I dont think I noticed a difference, plus the smell kills me. I still have some sitting under my sink. I'll trying it again. I'll add the SAA to my list too. Thanks.
Click to expand...

Black tea will dye your hair jet black. Green tea will give it shine. Mix them together. Go to naturally curly and on the front page is the article on tea. I think you will see a difference in your hair. Leave the tea in your hair for a few minutes, just as you would with any other rinse. TRy that first and see if there is any change.
 
Have you tried using S-Curl or Worlds of Curls Moisturizer? You may want to try add EO's to your EVOO or Amla oils to relieve the scent. I'm just taking a wild stab in the dark here. I hope everything works out for you.
 
Loca,

Your hair did not look dry when I met you last month. However, I did have to raise a fuss about the satin scarf issue. I think the shampoo lady was probably trippin'. They have their bad days and nasty attitudes just like everybody else. Also as a shampoo assistant, if you are going to tell a client that her hair looks dry...you need to get on your game and hook your client up by using the appropriate products and techniques. She should have informed your stylist and the stylist should have made a recommendation. For example, rinsing the conditioner in cool water makes a big difference!!
 
You may want to try a 50/50 mix of glycerin and aloe vera; it is really moisturizing and lasts a long time on the hair.

I got the glyercin at Whole Foods (NOW brand), and the Aloe Vera at Sun Harvest (a local baby Whole Foods); the brand is George's and it's in a 32 oz bottle. I also mixed mine with a little SAA and a little essential oil blend.

Check out the hair recipes board under the "best moisturizer ever".

HTH & HHG! :)
 
You may be using too much castor oil which can make your hair look dry. Have you tried coconut oil, a little goes a long way and it gives your hair a natural sheen? Also adding natural oils to your DCing combats dryness. There are some really helpful threads on Oil Rinses and coconut oil which a lot of ladies recommend, for moisture, conditioning and slip. You could also look at some of the products you use, I switched to Dr Bronners Magic Soaps for shampooing, because any products containing sulphates and mineral oils tend to dry our hair which many ladies emphasis on this board.
 
Maybe its the castor oil. It can make the hair look dry, especially if it is placed on wet hair. I know from experience.

If I do use castor oil, I use just a bit mixed in my conditioner.
 
MeechUK said:
You may be using too much castor oil which can make your hair look dry. Have you tried coconut oil, a little goes a long way and it gives your hair a natural sheen? Also adding natural oils to your DCing combats dryness. There are some really helpful threads on Oil Rinses and coconut oil which a lot of ladies recommend, for moisture, conditioning and slip. You could also look at some of the products you use, I switched to Dr Bronners Magic Soaps for shampooing, because any products containing sulphates and mineral oils tend to dry our hair which many ladies emphasis on this board.
Click to expand...


IA totally with the bolded. My hair is similar to yours that it is extremely dry, however I have made some recent improvements in this area:yep:.

I love castor oil's thickening properties, and I still put it in my DC's, but now I realize that it is to thick for all my hair, I just use it on the ends only.

Coconut oil is the only oil that I have tried that gives my hair a natural shine :yep:.

Try moisturizing with a moisturizing conditioner, just enough to lightly coat your hair and then seal with coconut oil- that has been the magic bomb for me, I really hope it works for you.
 
I think it may be time to re-evaluate your products. You've said about a couple of things that they do nothing for you. If you're still using them, I think you might want to try something else.

Also, do you moisturize everyday? I got the impression that you didn't. If you don't, then you probably need to moisturize at least 2x a day. There are a few good moisturizers out there and lots of recipes on the board.

And how's your water intake? Alot of our hair presence is based on what's on the inside. Remember at the essence, your hair is protein, so you want to make sure that you are getting the proper intake. And if you're not taking a multi-vitamin, I'd strongly suggest doing so.

At your next yearly exam you may want to ask your doctor if you have any vitamin deficiencies.

HTH!!!
 
bravenewgirl87 said:
Black tea will dye your hair jet black. Green tea will give it shine. Mix them together. Go to naturally curly and on the front page is the article on tea. I think you will see a difference in your hair. Leave the tea in your hair for a few minutes, just as you would with any other rinse. TRy that first and see if there is any change.
Click to expand...

When do you put the tea in the hair?
This is my wash day process:
Pree-poo
Wash with condish
Rinse with water
Deep condish
Rinse with water
Apply moisturizing leave-in
Style

If I skip the pree-poo I:
Deep condish on dry hair
Rinse with water
Wash with condish
Rinse with water
Apply moisturizing leave-in
Style

Where would I insert/ substitute for the tea rinse?
 
locabouthair said:
This is what the shampoo lady told me today. :sad:

People have always told me how dry my hair looks (even when I was natural) and it's kinda embarrassing for me to hear that.
I,
moisturize and seal with castor oil every day
clarify/chelate regularly
wash and DC once a week

My hair will be shiny and smooth once I leave the salon but three days later it looks dry as a desert.

This is my theory: since my hair is not relaxed straight (not on purpose:rolleyes:). and it still looks kinky:ohwell: the cuticles are not flat therefore they do not reflect the light well. I've heard people here say that 4b natural hair doesn't not shine, but might have sheen. Don't think I have sheen either. :ohwell:

My hair is very resistant, conditioners don't do much, shine hardly last long, hair rinses last a week at best.

I know my diet isn't the best but I'm working on that and I know only the hair coming in will benefit. So it will take time to see a change.

I know hair sprays can help somewhat but aren't they bad?

I really don't wanna use a bunch of product but I'm tired of people telling me how dry my hair looks.

Any advice or suggestions?

I'm at the point where, I don't care about length anymore, just give me some shine and I'll be happy:grin:
Click to expand...

Like others have posted just becuase your hair look dry doesn't mean it is. Does your hair break easy, not from the root but pieces from the hair. If so then your might be dry, if not then you okay. When my air feels dry well my ends, I put olive oil creme on it at night, the next morning its soft and shiny. I usual do it everyday, but a girl get lazy sometimes. However she should not have said that to you, she was out of her lane to say that. I would had turn around and left out. Im sorry that happen to you.
 
Fine 4s said:
When do you put the tea in the hair?
This is my wash day process:
Pree-poo
Wash with condish
Rinse with water
Deep condish
Rinse with water
Apply moisturizing leave-in
Style

If I skip the pree-poo I:
Deep condish on dry hair
Rinse with water
Wash with condish
Rinse with water
Apply moisturizing leave-in
Style

Where would I insert/ substitute for the tea rinse?
Click to expand...

Don't rinse with water. Rinse with tea.
 
Test your water. :yep:

P1020329-vi.jpg
Washed in hard Texas water tap.
P10305261-vi.jpg
Washed/rinsed in distilled water
 
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