Struggling with your natural hair? Come in here.....

[southerncitygirl]

GoddessMaker
how do you know your hair is jacked? are you sure that you don't have massive shrinkage and how often do you trim? every 3-4 months trimming would be ideal. every time i think i don't retain when its time for a flatiron and trim and i am in awe,lol! are you getting breakage all the time or is your hair chronically dry?

 

[southerncitygirl]

ladies, i have tried qb amla and olive heavy cream but i think claudies products are better. i currently have isha, murumuru-acai, and ends insurance in rotation for now....i haven't used the quinoa-coffee balancing yet. though the claudies products are wetter and cause a little shrinkage my hair feels much more moisturized then i seal with the oils of my choice.claudie has sales often so i'll place another order around the time of memorial day wkend if she had a sale.i started having dryness issues towards the last half of 2011 and lost a bit of length (went back from mbl to bsl). i now think the dryness is in check, and i'll get a trim in the next week or so. the next hurdle for me to tackle is trimming more often like every 3-4 months cause i would retain more length this way (less to trim) instead of cutting much more less often. hth

 

[LoveisYou]

A cool trick I learned, I will share with you. While in the shower after conditioning your hair, rinse it out.

Let your hair get a little wet, not soaking and reapply conditioner again. Detangle and smooth your dc on mixed with oil. I used vegetable oil and olive oil mixed in Aubrey Organics Honey Suckle Rose Moisturizing conditioner DC.

Put water on your hand, then the DC and smooth it on a section of hair and then braid that section.

Braid or twist your hair into 8. Make sure you put a lot of DC on your edges and nape.

Even though I own a steamer I put a shower cap on after then wrap my hair with a small hair towel and leave it for 45 mins and I wouldn't doubt longer would be even better results I just don't always have the patience.

I keep my hair in the braids and rinse under running water thoroughly.

Unbraid, blot hair and apply your leave in and then a light amount of serum to each braided section as I unravel and blow dry that section clipping up and away the others.

Takes like maybe 15-20 mins, hair is sleek and moisturized and isn't dried out.

Basically just coat your conditioner over with a DC mixed with oil before you blowdry your hair..

wow sounds awesome, thanks

 

[Dreamer48]

Hair profile: 4a/b; a mix of kinky coils, curls, and loose waves (i.e. a mess)

Reggie and Products:
Shampoo and condition with Shea Moisture Organic Raw Shea Butter Moisture products 1-2x a week.
Deep conditioner: Silk Elements Mega Cholesterol at least every other week.
Leave-in: Shea Moisture Organic Raw Shea Butter Deep Treatment Masque.
Sealant: Grapeseed oil or Blue Magic Coconut Oil.
I always moisturize, seal, and braid my hair up and wear a satin scarf at night.

How do you style your hair? Buns and twists.

What problems do you have with your hair? SSKs!!!!!. My hair is moisturized, but it's breaking off because of the ssks. Sometimes I just sit in the light and find the weak point of a strand where a knot has gotten tight, gently tug, and break off my hair. I pretty much live in buns because of my various lengths and amount of shrinkage, but I think the buns are also causing some breakage.

I'm researching how to self-install kinky twists and box braids. I think I need to put my hair away for the next two years. Twists with my own hair look weird because of my uneven lengths and I'm tired of cutting my hair.

 

[Arian]

NappyNelle, I'm using AO GPB or White Camellia. I usually just wash my hair and afterwards use Qhemet Heavy Cream and seal that in with an oil...But I don't know. Qhemet Heavy Cream works better on damp hair. Perhaps I put products on my hair while its wet rather than damp and that's the problem?

 

[nisemac]

NappyNelle, twists don't work for me....because of my hair's curl pattern and texture, twists dont work well. the crown stays but the rest come loose and begin to curl on themselves. the also go in a million directions. i'm sealing the end of my nubb (wont even try to call it a pony!).

my hair liked the cornrows and wigs...but finding the right wig---it takes 30 days for items to reach me, and with the weather warming up i dont think i can bear it.

also, the climate here is VERY dry...for the first time in my live, my skin looks like i been dredging in flour. I fought all winter with trying to maintain some moisture. i only started using the gel recently, and i do use the KT leave in under the gel. i also seal with jojoba.

i think its just another stage, and i have to decide whether i can work with it to get to the next stage.

i'll know soon. i head back to the States for a few weeks. there will be less pollution, clean, soft water, etc. i'm gonna see how she does during that time.

 

[Arian]

I think I'm going to quit sealing with oils...my hair hates oils. My hair likes water/glycerin, but it is not consistent. When I'm having a good day with water/glycerin, my hair is soft as cotton. But when it's bad, it's bad. My hair doesn't like aloe vera unless, as Nonie mentioned, it is mixed in AO conditioners. What's weird is that if I seal with oil after I have used water/glycerin, my hair feels wonderful. *sigh* I think I'm going to go back to DCing with heat, using Alter Ego as a deep conditioner, and being minimalist with styling products. I think I want to keep experimenting with the water/glycerin until I get the right ratio. (Sorry, I'm using this post as my personal hair journal, lol)

 

[greenandchic]

Hair profile? 4a/3c, fine to medium strands, medium density.

Reggie?
Cowash twice weekly.
Shampoo about once a month these days.
Deep condition weekly.
GHE every other day.
Henna about once a month for strength.

Products
Curl Junkie Daily Fix
L'Oreal EverCreme Cleansing Conditioner
Tresemme Naturals Conditioner
Aussie Moist Conditioner
Aubrey Organics Honeysuckle Rose Conditioner
Aubrey Organics GPB Conditioner
Queen Helene Royal Curl Smoothing Oil
Coconut, olive, jojoba oils
Hugo Gel
Ecostyler Blue Gel
Custom blended butters.

How do you style your hair? Usually in a clip on top of my head or bun.

What problems do you have with your hair? Dryness, shedding (though i am working on that). I'm also a slow grower.

 

[Nonie]

greenandchic, is your shedding causing thinning or is it accompanied by scalp discomfort?

 

[greenandchic]

@greenandchic, is your shedding causing thinning or is it accompanied by scalp discomfort?

Just thinning from low ferritin levels. I'm working on raising it.

 

[Imani]

I'm not exactly struggling since my hair IS progressing/retaining (slowly) and my hair is the longest its been in my life, but I could definitely use some improvements.

Hair profile? 4b, fine/medium strands; medium density. And also the slightest thing will make it break off. I've been told my hair is "like a sponge" so I assume that means its prone to high porosity.

Reggie and products?
Wash day:
-Detangle before I shampoo on wet hair w/EVOO and Oyin Dew. I let it sit a little while under a shower cap and leave under the cap only pulling out the section I'm detangling. I used my fingers, wide tooth comb, and then my denman brushes
-Shampoo w/Bee Mine in 4 sections
-DC under Steamer, been playing around w/different DCs but my main one is Giovanni SAS
-Oyin Dew leave in (I'm kinda in love w/this product) and and little bit of oil. Air dry in twists
...Im pretty content w/this routine, its just very messy and time consuming

Daily maintenance:
Working on it, been trying different things

How do you style your hair? Stretched out airdried in twist pulled back in a ponytail or bun.

What problems do you have with your hair?

Styling issues-My hair is very frizz prone, shrinks alot and doesn't hold styles well. Its not very thick/gets easily weighed down so styles like twists don't good to me bc I like fuller hair. I feel like I look like a little boy (ie Bow Wow as someone said in another thread, lol) in many protective natural styles. And I don't have "wash and go" hair, it would just be a shrunken fro which would be dry as hell by the end of the day and tangled mess, lol. Plus I don't have a defined consistent curl pattern at all so I wouldn't attempt WnG anyway. I also work out and sweat very hard so thats another styling issue. I wore wigs for a year and I'm burnt out on fake hair. And I am afraid that twist or braid extensions will damage/dry out my hair. Most of the styles/techniques people post on here or on youtube don't work for my hair given my texture and lack of thickness.

Dryness, Splits, Breakage, SSK's- I'm working on these currently. For the splits, breakage and SSKs: I think I just need to trim more, I haven't seen many broken hairs or splits that go really far up my strands, they are always near the ends so I think trimming more will greatly reduce this. The SSKs aren't excessive and are always near the very ends as well and I think they are just a part of my hair type so I'm not that concerned about them; Im in a new area and havent' found anyone I trust to straighten and trim my hair so I only do it when I go home to visit which I don't think its frequent enough. I wore my hair straight alot (weekly)when i first transitioned/went natural, maybe there isn't much I can do about it til all the weak ends are gone.

Dryness-I'm working on it. My hair just seems fickle. A product or technique will seem to be working for a while, then it won't anymore. Also, I got tired of doing my hair/focusing on other things so I started washing every two or three weeks but I'm going to go back to weekly washing and steam DCs, so I hope that will help. As for daily moisture I'm trying to figure it out, what to put on it, how often, how much etc. Alot of things coarser 4bs use don't work (ie most butters make my hair hard), but then many other lighter products just aren't moisturizing enough/make my hair feel weird or dried out(ie glycerin sprays).

 

[JudithO]

@NappyNelle, can you recommend the products you use to stretch your hair in braids? .

I've had the best stretches Nonie using a completely oil based product.. My personal castor oil blend has given me the best results... It has coconut, olive, joboba and sunflower oils in it. PM me.. I can send you some.

Hair profile? 3c/4a/b thick, thick strands

Reggie and products? *sigh* It changes often. Right now, I shampoo weekly with Keracare Hydrating Detangling poo. DC with either AO GPB or any other AO conditioner. Style with Qhemet AOHC and twist.

How do you style your hair? Twistouts or wash and goes

What problems do you have with your hair? Dryness! No matter what I do my hair feels fine when it's wet and at first when applying product, but dries hard and crunchy. No matter the leave in...ugh! I'm currently experimenting with leave ins right now. Right now, I'm on It's a 10...let's hope it really is a miracle leave in...

Single strand knots are my enemy and for some reason, lately I have been experiencing massive shedding and tangling... but I bought some Alter Ego to help remedy this problem. I heard it helps with shedding and provide lots of slip.

Moisture... I say ditch GBP for now, pre-poo, wash and moisture DC a few times and see how your hair reacts... I feel like moisture has to come from the DC... and the leave in's just enhance....

Hair profile: 4a/b; a mix of kinky coils, curls, and loose waves (i.e. a mess)

Reggie and Products:
Shampoo and condition with Shea Moisture Organic Raw Shea Butter Moisture products 1-2x a week.
Deep conditioner: Silk Elements Mega Cholesterol at least every other week.
Leave-in: Shea Moisture Organic Raw Shea Butter Deep Treatment Masque.
Sealant: Grapeseed oil or Blue Magic Coconut Oil.
I always moisturize, seal, and braid my hair up and wear a satin scarf at night.

How do you style your hair? Buns and twists.

What problems do you have with your hair? SSKs!!!!!. My hair is moisturized, but it's breaking off because of the ssks. Sometimes I just sit in the light and find the weak point of a strand where a knot has gotten tight, gently tug, and break off my hair. I pretty much live in buns because of my various lengths and amount of shrinkage, but I think the buns are also causing some breakage.

I'm researching how to self-install kinky twists and box braids. I think I need to put my hair away for the next two years. Twists with my own hair look weird because of my uneven lengths and I'm tired of cutting my hair.

Dreamer48 Sounds like your hair doesn't like to be left out... or allowed to shrink.. can you PS with two strand or flat twists? Or stretch out your hair with braids/twists before u bun?

I'm not exactly struggling since my hair IS progressing/retaining (slowly) and my hair is the longest its been in my life, but I could definitely use some improvements.

Hair profile? 4b, fine/medium strands; medium density. And also the slightest thing will make it break off. I've been told my hair is "like a sponge" so I assume that means its prone to high porosity.

Reggie and products?
Wash day:
-Detangle before I shampoo on wet hair w/EVOO and Oyin Dew. I let it sit a little while under a shower cap and leave under the cap only pulling out the section I'm detangling. I used my fingers, wide tooth comb, and then my denman brushes
-Shampoo w/Bee Mine in 4 sections
-DC under Steamer, been playing around w/different DCs but my main one is Giovanni SAS
-Oyin Dew leave in (I'm kinda in love w/this product) and and little bit of oil. Air dry in twists
...Im pretty content w/this routine, its just very messy and time consuming

Daily maintenance:
Working on it, been trying different things

How do you style your hair? Stretched out airdried in twist pulled back in a ponytail or bun.

What problems do you have with your hair?

Styling issues-My hair is very frizz prone, shrinks alot and doesn't hold styles well. Its not very thick/gets easily weighed down so styles like twists don't good to me bc I like fuller hair. I feel like I look like a little boy (ie Bow Wow as someone said in another thread, lol) in many protective natural styles. And I don't have "wash and go" hair, it would just be a shrunken fro which would be dry as hell by the end of the day and tangled mess, lol. Plus I don't have a defined consistent curl pattern at all so I wouldn't attempt WnG anyway. I also work out and sweat very hard so thats another styling issue. I wore wigs for a year and I'm burnt out on fake hair. And I am afraid that twist or braid extensions will damage/dry out my hair. Most of the styles/techniques people post on here or on youtube don't work for my hair given my texture and lack of thickness.

Dryness, Splits, Breakage, SSK's- I'm working on these currently. For the splits, breakage and SSKs: I think I just need to trim more, I haven't seen many broken hairs or splits that go really far up my strands, they are always near the ends so I think trimming more will greatly reduce this. The SSKs aren't excessive and are always near the very ends as well and I think they are just a part of my hair type so I'm not that concerned about them; Im in a new area and havent' found anyone I trust to straighten and trim my hair so I only do it when I go home to visit which I don't think its frequent enough. I wore my hair straight alot (weekly)when i first transitioned/went natural, maybe there isn't much I can do about it til all the weak ends are gone.

Dryness-I'm working on it. My hair just seems fickle. A product or technique will seem to be working for a while, then it won't anymore. Also, I got tired of doing my hair/focusing on other things so I started washing every two or three weeks but I'm going to go back to weekly washing and steam DCs, so I hope that will help. As for daily moisture I'm trying to figure it out, what to put on it, how often, how much etc. Alot of things coarser 4bs use don't work (ie most butters make my hair hard), but then many other lighter products just aren't moisturizing enough/make my hair feel weird or dried out(ie glycerin sprays).

Your hair almost sounds like Kimmaytube's hair to me... Frizz prone 4AB medium... Can you try out some of her youtube styles?I can't give you styling advice, but I generally try to find pple with my natural texture or close, and try to copy theirs until I find something that works.

 

[beautyintheyes]

I wouldn't say I'm struggling.
I'm just 1) really trying to find one staple line that i can use-made a thread about it. I thought i had found it all in the argan oil, but alas, my hair is not a fan of the leave-in.
2) SOOOO FRICKING BORED. ugh. i'm tired of my hair right now. don't wanna see it, touch it, moisturize it, comb it. this is dangerous for me because the last two times i was hair bored:
got a bob
shaved the side of my head
so what now?

Get a wig with a new look

 

[Imani]

I've had the best stretches Nonie using a completely oil based product.. My personal castor oil blend has given me the best results... It has coconut, olive, joboba and sunflower oils in it. PM me.. I can send you some.



Moisture... I say ditch GBP for now, pre-poo, wash and moisture DC a few times and see how your hair reacts... I feel like moisture has to come from the DC... and the leave in's just enhance....



Dreamer48 Sounds like your hair doesn't like to be left out... or allowed to shrink.. can you PS with two strand or flat twists? Or stretch out your hair with braids/twists before u bun?



Your hair almost sounds like Kimmaytube's hair to me... Frizz prone 4AB medium... Can you try out some of her youtube styles?I can't give you styling advice, but I generally try to find pple with my natural texture or close, and try to copy theirs until I find something that works.

Yup that's the same conclusion I came to as well and I actually did jack a good bit of my regimen from kimmaytube and SOME things do work, others not so much, for example Curls and Kinky Curly products don't do much. Also her hair is no where near as tight/kinky as mine and seems thicker too so styles I've tried I still look like a little boy and I can't do those smooth flexi sets she does. Maybe they will look better once I get more length

 

[Poohbear]

^
My 4z hair loved washing in twists...

... Sounds like u have a plan tho.. Keep us posted.

judy4all - but is your 4z hair more like a kinky straight rather than a kinky coil? Do you have any pictures of your hair? Here's how my hair looks when it's shrunken up dry without detangling:

 

[JudithO]

Poohbear My hair doesn't look like yours shrunken... Looks more like this...

See this video for a closeup..

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=faPph63YvZ8

 

[LifeafterLHCF]

@GoddessMaker
how do you know your hair is jacked? are you sure that you don't have massive shrinkage and how often do you trim? every 3-4 months trimming would be ideal. every time i think i don't retain when its time for a flatiron and trim and i am in awe,lol! are you getting breakage all the time or is your hair chronically dry?

southerncitygirl My hair just never seems good to me. Like I only like it when it's wet. But once it's dry it's blah. Stuff seems to work for a short time then it stops. Like Crisco was good for a min now it's not. I don't know. This weekend I'm going to dc,blow out and trim and see what it does. I hate having hair that isn't cute I mean it doesn't make me happy esp if I have a special guest.

 

[Poohbear]

Poohbear My hair doesn't look like yours shrunken... Looks more like this...

See this video for a closeup..

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=faPph63YvZ8

judy4all

Hey! I've seen you on youtube before! I was mad that you relaxed your hair girl!

But anyway, now I see why you can get away with washing your hair in twists. If I had hair like yours, I would definitely wash my hair in small twists. Your hair is more of a kinky-straightish (not straight at all but not curvy coil) texture which I sometimes wish I had. Your hair seems to be easier to detangle and stretch out rather than having to deal with a bunch of penspring-like coils to stretch out. Hope that makes sense.

 

[JudithO]

@judy4all

Hey! I've seen you on youtube before! I was mad that you relaxed your hair girl!

But anyway, now I see why you can get away with washing your hair in twists. If I had hair like yours, I would definitely wash my hair in small twists. Your hair is more of a kinky-straightish (not straight at all but not curvy coil) texture which I sometimes wish I had. Your hair seems to be easier to detangle and stretch out rather than having to deal with a bunch of penspring-like coils to stretch out. Hope that makes sense.

lol... Cool that you have been on my channel... It'll take a minute before some of my subbies forgive me for the creamy crack... but I'm willing to beg.. lol..

@ the bolded... Sweetheart... I'm not sure if I agree with the above... My hair is extremely fine... extremely kinky... detangling and stretching loose hair was hard for me and I would like to argue that I had the hardest to detangle hair but I think every struggling natural can claim that... hehe...

 

[Embyra]

judy4all - but is your 4z hair more like a kinky straight rather than a kinky coil? Do you have any pictures of your hair? Here's how my hair looks when it's shrunken up dry without detangling:

I love looking at your hair poohbear yours was the first coily hair i EVER saw*sings memory*

 

[Nonie]

I've had the best stretches Nonie using a completely oil based product.. My personal castor oil blend has given me the best results... It has coconut, olive, joboba and sunflower oils in it. PM me.. I can send you some.

Hi judy4all:

I have also had good stretches with coconut oil. I just get better stretches w/o product so I usually do it that way. I was asking Nappynelle not so much for myself because I already have a system that works, but rather I asked in order for her suggestion to be more helpful to those reading.

In the pics below, you can see the stretch I got using coconut oil and conditioner. The conditioner was a mistake (I thought it was something else ) so I would have probably gotten better results if I didn't have that in the mix.

This puff is on fully shrunken hair (S Curl applied to damp hair and left to airdry in puff:

​

This puff is on stretched hair (coconut oil and conditioner mix ) puff made the same week as puff above:

I remember when growing up in Kenya getting our hair braided outside in the sun and using coconut oil (refined) and our hair being very nicely stretched with each subsequent braiding session. So yes, I know about non-water-based products giving good stretches...but wanted to hear what different people use. I was particularly interested because a lot of these non-water-based products are not "moisturizing" so could leave one with hard hair.

I appreciate you sharing your concoction as it offers another idea to folks.

 

[Nonie]

judy4all

Hey! I've seen you on youtube before! I was mad that you relaxed your hair girl!

But anyway, now I see why you can get away with washing your hair in twists. If I had hair like yours, I would definitely wash my hair in small twists. Your hair is more of a kinky-straightish (not straight at all but not curvy coil) texture which I sometimes wish I had. Your hair seems to be easier to detangle and stretch out rather than having to deal with a bunch of penspring-like coils to stretch out. Hope that makes sense.

Poohbear, I beg to disagree. IMO your hair would be as good at holding twists as any type 4 hair. I think the reason you think your hair is that different from that of judy4all is because your kinks might be slightly bigger than hers and you also allow your kinks to form coils. For people with tiny coils, like me or judy4all, letting that happen is asking for trouble. I had never seen anyone with my hair let their hair do what yours is doing which was no wonder because allowing it to happen would be worse than shooting your foot off IMO. I just didn't believe anyone would let that happen. That is, until I saw Afrokink's WNG. *clutches pearls* (That was the scariest thing I ever saw coz I NEVER give my hair a chance to even THINK of doing that.)

That is what my hair and judy4all's hair would be like if we did what you Poohbear did to get yours to do that--and if we really didn't make an effort to comb through and keep it detangled. The coils in Afrokink's hair are just like yours but you can't see them as well as one can see yours coz they are tiny and her pic isn't a close-up like your.

Foxglove's hair is like mine and judy4all's hair and she offers a better close up so you can see that coils are there, just not easy to see: http://www.longhaircareforum.com/showpost.php?p=11246758&postcount=36

Now why do I say that your hair can hold twists for long? It is because of the coils and how compact they are. They aren't loose and wavy like type 3 hair which would unravel. The compactness makes twists hold well because the ends, particularly if you wet then and roll between fingers, will coil up like this:

You yourself said that your hair would mat/loc up if you washed in twists, so holding in twists, isn't really a problem at all. The problem anyone with type 4 hair would have is not that twists would not hold, but rather that they may mat and loc up when you wash. That is, unless you twirl each strand first before wrapping it around the other. You do that, and not only will the twists hold well (coz that's just how type 4 hair do) but they will not mat either and will unravel this easily: http://youtu.be/Jff-Uqfb_SA

 

[Poohbear]

Nonie - I didn't say my hair wasn't good at holding twists. I was saying my twists wasn't good for washing in twists. I don't let my hair shrink up in coils like that anymore, I was just showing an old picture of how my hair shrinks up in its natural unmanipulated state.

Now as far as holding twists, I do my twists on stretched hair and sometimes the ends unravel because of this. Now if I did my twists on wet hair, I know they would hold better but I just don't like how wet twists look because they are all shrunken and spacey.

Poohbear, I beg to disagree. IMO your hair would be as good at holding twists as any type 4 hair. I think the reason you think your hair is that different from that of judy4all is because your kinks might be slightly bigger than hers and you also allow your kinks to form coils. For people with tiny coils, like me or judy4all, letting that happen is asking for trouble. I had never seen anyone with my hair let their hair do what yours is doing because the headache of getting a comb through that after allowing it to happen seemed like murder to me... That is, until I say Afrokink's WNG.

That is what my hair and judy4all's hair would be like if we did what you Poohbear did. The coils are just like yours but you can't see them as well as one can see yours coz they are tiny and her pic isn't a close-up like yours.

Foxglove's hair is like mine and judy4all's hair and she offers a better close up so you can see that coils are there, just not easy to see: http://www.longhaircareforum.com/showpost.php?p=11246758&postcount=36

Now why do I say that your hair can hold twists for long? It is because of the coils and how compact they are. They aren't loose and wavy like type 3 hair which would unravel. The compactness makes twists hold well because the ends, particularly if you wet then and roll between fingers, will coil up like this:

You yourself said that your hair would mat/loc up if you washed in twists, so holding in twists, isn't really a problem at all. The problem anyone with type 4 hair would have is not that twists would not hold, but rather that they may mat and loc up when you wash. That is, unless you twirl each strand first before wrapping it around the other. You do that, and not only will the twists hold well (coz that's just how type 4 hair do) but they will not mat either and will unravel this easily: http://youtu.be/Jff-Uqfb_SA

 

[Nonie]

OK, I did think that's what you Poohbear had said before; that you worried about matting hence my suggestions for the twirling first. However, and I blame it on the pizza, I got a brain fart when I read your response to judy4all where you commented on the difference in hair and thought you said you see why she can wash in twists and not have her hair unravel. Yeah, you never said that but the pizza brain read that. Sorry for my redundant post.

But yeah, even she would have her hair matting if she just wrapped without twirling and washed as often as I do.

BTW, I also twist on stretched hair. NEVER have I twisted on shrunken hair. The photo below was taken of my hair as I was twisting it: first I stretched with braids (seen to the left); then I undid the braid (seen in the middle); then I twisted (seen to the right):

After I'm done twisting, my ends look frayed (see pick below) and so I CW or wet them so that the twists look neater. Before I wet them, the twists are wonky and drunken looking until I dunk them when they get a nice straight shape and also hang better. I love the shrinkage from doing this as it gives them weight so they fall into place and also it fattens them up a bit so they don't look malnourished and sparse.

If I didn't want shrinkage, I'd still dunk at least the ends coz nothing is more pleasing to my eyes than twists that end in nice blunt rounded ends:

Oh, I do remember what made me get the wrong end of the stick in your post: your stating that judy4all has straight-ish hair. It isn't. It just doesn't show up coils because they are tiny, but its pattern is similar to yours. You can see that in the pics of Foxglove's hair. In some pics it's exactly like that of judy4all...but when you see close up, you see your pattern but with some areas looking manipulated. The reason for this is when kinks are so tiny, cupping each other doesn't happen easily so you will not see the coils clumping as much as they do in hair with slightly larger kinks.

 

[LightEyedMami]

Hair profile? 4b/4c, thick hair strands

Reggie and products? Homemade Hair Butter, Shea Moisture, castor and jojoba oil (mainly), givonni shampoo,Aphogee 2 min, AOHSR Condish, and Giovonni condish & leave in sometimes.

How do you style your hair? Up until a few weeks ago, all i would wear is twists, twists, and more twists!

What problems do you have with your hair? Dryness, Tangling,Breakage, SSKs, not retaining because of issues already mentioned

-FYI.. have decided to heat train.

 

[Nonie]

Now as far as holding twists, I do my twists on stretched hair and sometimes the ends unravel because of this. Now if I did my twists on wet hair, I know they would hold better but I just don't like how wet twists look because they are all shrunken and spacey.

Poohbear, interesting that your observation is that wet twists look spacey? My experience is the opposite. You can see what my twists look like when freshly done on stretched hair even though I carefully stagger my parts so each subsequent row covers the parts in the one below it; yet my twists look spacey.

But when I wet them, shrinkage causes a thickening and fullness. The photo below is another example of how well wetting twists works for me in creating a fullness effect:

And remember those wonky twists I posted earlier from freshly done twists? This is what they looked like after several more washes (below). Yes they are shrunken but that doesn't bother me. I love the look of fullness and neatness way much more than length:

 

[FtrDrO]

Hair profile? 4a/b, fine, low porosity, normal density

Reggie and products? Wash weekly or every other week with CON shampoo, DC with AOWC or AO GPB on towel dried hair or occasionally on dry hair, in which case I use Giovanni SAS as my final conditioner. Hair is always dealt with in sections (braids or twists). Apply Kimmaytube leave in and allow to airdry. Recently purchased Qhemet's BRBC, Cocoa Ghee, & Olive Hydrating. Jury is still out on those.

How do you style your hair? Twists or under the wig, with the occasional braid out or twist out.
What problems do you have with your hair? Ugh...my hair is very finicky. Just about any manipulation leads to breakage. If I try to finger detangle, it takes forever and I reduce breakage but then I get tons of shed hair knotting around each other which leads to pieces having to be cut. If I use a comb, then I get broken hair everywhere. SSKs, tangles, and mid strand splits are the norm. . It's gotten My hair feels most moisturized in a braided or twisted style. But if I let it out, it's dryness city. It hates butters, especially shea, and silicones. It's gotten to be very annoying.

 

[JudithO]

Hair profile? 4b/4c, thick hair strands

Reggie and products? Homemade Hair Butter, Shea Moisture, castor and jojoba oil (mainly), givonni shampoo,Aphogee 2 min, AOHSR Condish, and Giovonni condish & leave in sometimes.

How do you style your hair? Up until a few weeks ago, all i would wear is twists, twists, and more twists!

What problems do you have with your hair? Dryness, Tangling,Breakage, SSKs, not retaining because of issues already mentioned

-FYI.. have decided to heat train.

LightEyedMami

How often do you wash your hair or moisturize it? your problems sounds like a lack of moisture getting into your strands... do you DC? how often?

Why have you decided to heat train?Do you prefer straighter styles? Want to ease detangling? I asked because if your hair is suffering, and you start heat training, it will make the problem worse... and those twists that you are currently tired of? You may never get them back again..... Just because of the amount of support and knowledge available, I feel more confident in a relaxer, texlaxer, texturizer if I prefer to wear straight styles... Heat training is such unfamiliar territory that you may not have too much help available if you need it..

Hair profile? 4a/b, fine, low porosity, normal density

Reggie and products? Wash weekly or every other week with CON shampoo, DC with AOWC or AO GPB on towel dried hair or occasionally on dry hair, in which case I use Giovanni SAS as my final conditioner. Hair is always dealt with in sections (braids or twists). Apply Kimmaytube leave in and allow to airdry. Recently purchased Qhemet's BRBC, Cocoa Ghee, & Olive Hydrating. Jury is still out on those.

How do you style your hair? Twists or under the wig, with the occasional braid out or twist out.
What problems do you have with your hair? Ugh...my hair is very finicky. Just about any manipulation leads to breakage. If I try to finger detangle, it takes forever and I reduce breakage but then I get tons of shed hair knotting around each other which leads to pieces having to be cut. If I use a comb, then I get broken hair everywhere. SSKs, tangles, and mid strand splits are the norm. . It's gotten My hair feels most moisturized in a braided or twisted style. But if I let it out, it's dryness city. It hates butters, especially shea, and silicones. It's gotten to be very annoying.

FtrDrO I suggest you clarify your hair first, DC using something that doesn't have any protein like AOHSR and put it in 2 strand twists.. Girl if you have kinky hair that is fine... I dont think you have any business doing any OUT styles on the regular... Also.. seal with a castor oil based product.. Make your own castor oil mix, or use a combination of Kimmaay's leave in + Qhemet AOHC and you'll keep your ends soft and it wont break so much... Why did you get BRBC instead of AOHC?

 

[blackeyes31626]

Hair profile? 4c, fine med & thick strands, low po

Reggie and products?
prepoo w/ olive oil
poo w/ SM retention poo
dt w/ CJ RM(hardly ever) or olive oil & honey(weekly)
ro whatever... tresemme naturals, gvp cb
leave in Oyin dew or CJ smoothing lotion
spritz juices and berries

How do you style your hair? twists

What problems do you have with your hair? Dryness, Tangling and SSKs. I need something to keep my hair moisturized for more than one day. I always hear naturals saying product X kept my hair moisturized for three day or even a week. The product is usually a butter/cream but all the butters I've used just sit there. erplexed

 

[Nonie]

blackeyes31626, I think your solution will lie in less is more. EVOO would make my hair hard. Butters would do the same thing. I'd sooner have softer hair using NOTHING than using products. Secret for me is starting off with clean hair (which means not CWing or oil rinsing, but using shampoo like Giovanni 50:50 which I use undiluted to get my hair clean. When it's clean it can then receive conditioners. I find conditioners that relaxed folks use to be the best conditioners there are. Since I'm not a product junkie, I don't want to recommend any but I suggest you just pick whatever relaxed folks rave about and use that to condition. Use lukewarm water through the whole wash. Even your last rinse. Add a few drops of ACV to your last rinse. Now this is where I want you to take a leap of faith. Braid your hair and let it airdry in braids. It will feel hard I know. When dry apply S Curl no-drip activator spray to make the hair soft enough for a comb to go through. It should feel like it does when you have conditioner on it, and then put on a plastic cap. Wear it for a whole day or for the night. Do not seal. Do not use anything else on your hair...and see how that feels.

Heck, even if you just baggied your bare hair after you DC, you'd be surprised at how soft your bare hair is. That should show you that products you use are to blame for making your hair hard.

I know someone whom I believe had coarse hair who'd simply seal damp hair with Castor oil...and her hair was soft and easy to manage. That's another simple regimen right there.

Also check out on of my idol's regimen Yassylane's; another example of how keeping things uber simple can make your life a lot more simple.

Every time I see a long list of steps in hair regimens, I am reminded of how all the suggestions I got from people when I joined the forum didn't work for me and made my hair more work. When I returned to doing very little, my hair and I have had the easiest relationship ever.