Maybe I'm Wrong About My Hair... Haven't Been Retaining Length :-(

[Poohbear]

Poohbear Then if you're looking for Natural Styles, look to Africa and see how natural hair is worn. Puffs and all other loose styles are also worn but more for special occasions. Most natural people cornrow, thread, single braids, twists, or shave their hair...etc So you don't have to imitate relaxed hair. I just threw that in there coz I see too often on the forum questions in search of "hangage", avoiding "shrinkage", etc...so I tend to think of how one can emulate those looks with natural hair--since after all, a lot people who were relaxed for years might feel more "at home" with those.

As far as puffs, phony puffs can do a good job of imitating life, so why not find some and ways to fake your dos while leaving your hair alone. Mook's Hair is a pro in low mani, fun and exciting dos. So stalk her. And if you really, really, really just want your scalp buried under big hair, get a full weave and go crazy with hair that isn't yours while your own is left in peace.

Nonie - I think I will stick with twists for right now. I wish I could cornrow but I don't know how to. I can flat twist but not very neatly.

I have a fake phony puff that I bought a few years ago and only wore it for a few days and never wore it again. Here's a pic from July 2008:

However, leaving my hair in a high bun and putting a phony pony on it causes stress to the sides of my hair. That's the other thing I've noticed with wearing my hair in buns. Buns are an easy style but the tension from wearing it smoothed into a ponytail holder causes stress on my hair strands causing my hair to be weaker and break off. I'm thinking this is because my hair is not long enough to stay comfortably in a bun. It can get into a bun, but just not comfortably since some sections of my hair are shorter than others.

The ends of my hair also doesn't like being balled up. I know ladies talk about switching up the location of the bun, but they do not understand what it takes for me to do that. I have to totally re-wet my hair if I want to do that on my natural super-shrinky hair. My hair texture is also wiry...it's not cottony.

But I don't know... I may revisit this option once my hair gets longer or at times that I don't feel like twisting it.

 

[Poohbear]

Poohbear Heat definitely causes damage and splits but I wouldn't think 6 times a year would do much to hinder growth. Could it be your hair just naturally splits easily? I say this because I've always had that problem and I don't even use direct heat...haven't in a long time. My hair just splits for no reason....I'm sure of it because I've watched it closely for years. I can do a thorough S&D and get 90% of the splits but yet months later I have tons more. I've just accepted it now and I remove them as often as I can but try not to obsess about them because there isn't much else I can do.

My hair is fine and I feel fine hair is much more prone to splitting....is your hair fine?

I also changed all my combs to seamless so I could reduce any extra splitting from combs.

Oh and also frequent trimming, dusting and S&D'ing is so important for fine hair or hair that splits a lot. Before I found hair boards my ends were so damaged and split but I refused to trim and my hair never grew. I started doing micro-dustings lol, because I was scared to trim back then and even with such a small amount taken off every 3-4 months my hair started to retain! I learned the power of trimming at that point.

Pokahontas - You may have a point but I did not notice splits before ever using a flat-iron. But at the same time, I never noticed splits when I had relaxed hair either, and I would use the blowdryer and curling irons on my relaxed hair.

And yes, I have fine-stranded hair. My hair strands are thin rather than thick.

I've been obsessing about splits too. I have even thought about cutting my hair to shoulder length or shorter and start all over.

I did read an article about coily hair being more proned to splits because it spirals rather than stays straight.

 

[Nonie]

Poohbear, I like that phony! You could do a style like I did here:

(My twist are just braided together so no elastic band strain under the puff.

...and if you feel your hairline complaining, create bangs:

And if you get bored of that, use rods or Curlformers to set hair curly and leave them down if you get bored of straight twists. Since you know what styles stress your head, I'm sure you can find ways to wear your twists that are "gentler" than others and use those. The threads with ways to style twists had some very creative dos by folks.

 

[Poohbear]

Poohbear, I like that phony! You could do a style like I did here:

(My twist are just braided together so no elastic band strain under the puff.

...and if you feel your hairline complaining, create bangs:

And if you get bored of that, use rods or Curlformers to set hair curly and leave them down if you get bored of straight twists. Since you know what styles stress your head, I'm sure you can find ways to wear your twists that are "gentler" than others and use those. The threads with ways to style twists had some very creative dos by folks.

Nonie - Cute hairstyles! But even though I've done alot of different styles with my hair, I am styled challenged! And I have no patience for braiding.

I've been thinking of doing medium-to-chunky twists of some sort so I won't worry about time consumption.

 

[Nonie]

@Nonie - Cute hairstyles! But even though I've done alot of different styles with my hair, I am styled challenged! And I have no patience for braiding.

I've been thinking of doing medium-to-chunky twists of some sort so I won't worry about time consumption.

Poohbear Girl, you need to catch yourself a case of HIH disease. When I twist, I'm usually so engrossed in some movie or show and almost oblivious to the work involved in creating that many twists. I only know how long it takes because there was a discussion once that made me time it. Otherwise, if you'd asked me, I'd swear it took no time to put them in. And once in, they can last for a long time, and maintenance is just doing one at a time as I feel like it.

Seriously, I think doing fatter twists is more work coz they need redoing sooner. This way, my hair is probably the one thing I pay the least attention to. I'd bet my bottom dollar, you spend more time on your hair the way you've been wearing it than I do. Today, I didn't even spend more than a minute on my hair before I left home. Yesterday same thing. And since it's the weekend, I probably won't bother with it tomorrow and will only deal with it on Sunday when I wash and DC and style...all of which will take 30 minutes or so.

Because twisting might be something you haven't been doing, it might seem like work. But it gets easier. Fat twists are probably a good way to go, especially if you plan to wear twist-outs (See I don't). Maybe Yassylane's regimen might work for you. (Can you tell I am crazy about this chick's hair/regimen?)

 

[Poohbear]

^^^ I remember Yassylane, but she has a looser hair texture than mine making it easier for her to part, separate, and style her hair. Look at her twistouts and braidouts. They look nothing like my twistouts and braidouts. My coils are way tighter, and I cannot wash my hair every week... too much for my hair.

Edited To Add: I wish I could wear my hair like the picture of my puff in my signature all the time. That picture was taken back in 2009. But I know as time goes on, my hair strands will start to shrink & tangle around each other.

 

[Fhrizzball]

Poohbear Have you tried banding or rollersetting? Even doing that just to put in twists after may give a more uniform shape. Or even other protective styles. I feel that even my combing may be giving me splits as I may have to invest in boneless comes down the line. I don't care how twists look on me and I can never have them last long enough so I've just been doing various forms of buns.

 

[Poohbear]

Poohbear Have you tried banding or rollersetting? Even doing that just to put in twists after may give a more uniform shape. Or even other protective styles. I feel that even my combing may be giving me splits as I may have to invest in boneless comes down the line. I don't care how twists look on me and I can never have them last long enough so I've just been doing various forms of buns.

Fhrizzball - I can't band. I've tried it. My hair shrinks too much. And I feel like what's the use of banding if I'm causing all that friction from putting sections of my hair in a bunch of ponytails. Even after banding, it still won't stretch my hair out like it has for others. My hair will still have tight coils and matted shrunken strands.

And yes I've done rollersetting. It just doesn't last and I don't feel like waiting for it to dry or sitting under a hooded dryer.

Boxbraids take too long and look too puny on me because of my fine-stranded hair. I don't know how to cornrow. I get bored with buns and have to re-do them often. So twists is the only protective style I can do which will allow me to leave my hair alone.

I have left twists in for a good amount of time without taking them down. The longest I've left twists in my hair without redoing anything was 5 weeks. I just need to stick with it once I wash my hair again.

 

[Nonie]

@Poohbear, I actually think I can get my hair to look like hers, even though hers is probably 4A.

I think she's just mastered the secret to keeping hair stretched. She washing in braids and lets it dry stretched. When I let my hair dry in braids, this is how it looks after just waiting till it dries (no product applied):

If I had braided it longer than just a few minutes to let the hair dry, it'd have been more stretched.

In the next photos I show how not using a wet product can stretch 4B hair and leave it not so shrunken tight. First this is my hair with S Curl on it:

The the section after it's been shampooed clean and conditioned then ACV rinsed and still very wet:

Same section completely dry and probably the nightmare you imagine seeing in yours:

Then the same section after I apply something that isn't wet like S Curl to the now dry hair (I used conditioner) and while it was still damp from conditioner, I combed through very gently (I do stretch the hair as the comb glides through)--banding would've worked too as would have braiding--and I'd choose the last option if I were working on my whole head:

And you can see my hair isn't tightly coiled anymore when it dries in that stretched state. Had it been in braids, I could do a braid out and wear it like Yassylane if I wanted to:

This is a photo of my hair after it's been stretched. No products in this section but I'm sure grease or oil would've not affected its stretched state, and again, no tightness here:

And in the photos below, I show the difference in my hair when not stretched (very compact 'fro)--S Curl used on wet hair:

...and stretched and combed out--Coconut Oil and Conditioner used on braid stretched hair:

If I didn't want to use a comb, I could've just done a Yassylane but I'd have to braid it every night to keep it detangled, and then just undo with fingers. Still way low mani than combing.

Again, in the case of the above puff, it was done after only one day of braids. Had I been wearing them for more days...or rebraided again, I think the stretch would've been even more. You have to remember, I started with shrunken, just washed hair the day before.

So yeah, you don't need a looser texture to be able to pull off Yassylane, I don't think.

 

[Napp]

I'm beginning to think that flat-ironing is the cause of the many split ends throughout my hair. I flat-iron my hair about 6 or more times a year. I'm thinking this is too much and is wreaking havoc on my hair. I was thinking airdrying and wet styling my hair was the reason, but maybe not. These split ends cause breakage. The breakage has been hindering my length retention.

Before straightening my hair this last time, I did a search and destroy trim on my hair. I took sections of hair and cut off strands that were damaged and split. After doing this, I wore my hair in wet buns and a few wash n gos and got tired of these styles that I hate. So I decided to straighten it again. Even though I like the look of straightened hair, I started looking at my ends very closely again and BAM! ...Split ends that were not there after I did my trim awhile ago.

I am getting really frustrated because I have been armpit length since 2009. I can stretch a section of hair in the back to my brastrap, but I want my hair to fall at that length. So maybe I need to lay off flat-ironing and straightening for a long time.

I thought about doing a blowdrying routine with no flat-ironing, but I'm unsure about that now. When I blowdry, I use high heat because I do not have the patience with cool air.

Yesterday, I was listening to Torridiana777 on youtube, and she made some very good points about leaving your hair alone for it to retain length. She wears her natural hair in twists most of the time, and her hair is waist length when stretched.

So I've been thinking about keeping my hair in two strand twists for a long time until I reach my goals. However, her hair texture is looser than mine and she has less shrinkage, therefore, making it easier for her to keep up with a twist routine. But it's still no excuse. I know Ms Lala, whose hair texture is similar to mine, decided to lay off the heat and her hair flourished with wearing two strand twists consistently. I should've taken her advice after asking her about her regimen the first time.

So the next time I wash my hair, that's what I'm going to do... two strand twists. I just wish I had a nice uniform shape for twists. When I wear twists, they have all different types of lengths which I do not like. My hair shape looks pretty nice with blowouts and variations of twistouts, but not with twists when I wear them down. So I'll probably experiment with different twist styles and updos for my twists. Hopefully I can twist my hair in a way that will frame my face nicely.

Excuse my rambling... I'm just fed up and discouraged with my hair length. Each year, I feel like I'm starting at the beginning of my natural journey when it comes to length. Now I know that the splits and breakage have to be coming from flat-ironing my hair.

Wish me the best! My goals are BSL by December 2011 and WL by December 2013.

i totally feel you. after looking at all of my hair idol regimens i noticed that most of them use heat rarley. so i know that eventually i am going to have to cut the heat usage. i am able to retain length quite well with heat but i did notice that i had more breakage and splits compared to my heat free hair (in which i practically had none) it made me wonder if i was truly reaching my hairs potential.i dont regret my heat training experience at all nor would i change it but it was just a stepping stone in my hair journey. i think you should see it that way too. this was just a chapter in your hair journey and now its onto the next!


i dont think i will be going back to twists but i am really loving my rollerset and braid out regimen. i still straighten though. i just straighten at the lowest temp i need to get it straight and i do not blow dry (i really do think blowdrying is the debil)and ever since i cut my hair i have no new splits.

 

[Lute]

How about threading.

http://www.youtube.com/user/GirlsLoveYourCurls#p/u/0/ifZ7iLIVbqs

I'm a 4a/b. It really stretches the hair out. Without the need of twisting or braiding.

 

[virtuenow]

@200AndOne - I like two strand twists done on dry hair, as in, blowdried hair. Not sure what your hair texture is, but when I airdry in big twists or braids, my hair is still not stretched out good enough. My hair is still shrunken. When my hair airdries in twists in braids, some of the strands matt together dry. I hate pulling apart these strands just to re-twist it. Even though I do not feel blowdrying my hair is bad, I am going to blowdry on COOL air next time I wash my hair to style in twists.

Also, I have a day job Monday through Friday 8 - 4:30. If I wash my hair during a week day after work one evening, I do not have time to airdry and then twist. My hair will still be wet in the morning. And some weekends, I may be out and about and may not have time to do my hair. But I will figure something out soon.

Yeah, my hair does this thing where it fuses together when I airdry-- especially in twists. Then the process of pulling the hair apart gives me worst splits than any heat application could ever do to my hair. I am watching your journey in conquering the apl slump as well poohbear. I am also stuck around that length and recently incorporated a lot more heat to my hair diet. I spent all of 2010 mostly w/a lot less heat and very few flat irons, and airdrying more than ever. That didn't help, my hair did nothing but sit at one length. I'll be back to chime in more later. Now I'm trying something totally different

 

[Ms Lala]

I totally understand your hair woes. If it's any consolation your hair looks good. I had (and still deal with) the same issues w/my hair. We have a real similar texture but I think my hair is more dense. My hair looks thick but the strand are fine and split very easily. I have learned that I can maintain but not retain length and use heat regularly. I notice that whenever I start using heat my hair stays about the same length primarily because I have to trim more because of the splits. When I started airdrying I learned that a good leave in (sometimes my regular condish) and oil makes my hair more manageable once it drys. I would suggest beginning to style your hair before it is bone dry maybe minimally damp so you don't have to deal w/the matting. This will work if you don't mind your style being somewhat shrunken up. Finger combing w/Taliah Waajid helps me when I am dealing w/hair that has been air dried also.

In terms of styling maybe you can try updos instead of lots of twists hanging since you're concerned about the consistency of them. You can even do updos that don't require twisting. You have enough length to do all kinds of styles. You just have to find something you like and that works for you. You may even try loose styles if you're willing to maintain them during the week by keeping your hair stretched w/twists or whatever. Also if you're really not into styling maybe try finding a good natural stylist and get a long term protective style done that you can leave in for a while.

I posted some styles I think may work if you adjust them for your hair.
The 3rd pic is of my hair w/flat twists in the front and you could do all kinds of things w/the back. Braid out, bun, high ponytail.... IHTH

 

[lilsparkle825]

Sorry to hear about your troubles with your hair. I, too, have fine strands that seem to split just from me looking at them, and the only way for me to avoid this is....well, I haven't found a way, LOL. I wouldn't think that straightening 6x/year is a problem, although it may not be the actual heat styling causing the problems. Have you ever considered leaving your hair straight for less time, or wearing it up in a bun or updo in the straightened state to protect your ends for at least part of the time? I know that with my fine strands, increased shedding/more frizzy or dry-feeling hair after 3 weeks or so is the signal that I need to wash and infuse the moisture with some serious DCing in order to prevent a serious splitting event. Even bunning for another week to make it a whole month won't always remedy the situation. Just sayin'....something to think about if and when you straighten again.

Adding another two cents LOL.....I wish I could wear two-strand twists, but my hair is simply too fine and they look anorexic and scraggly. I do them on wet, damp, AND blowdried hair....still a problem. My 4b sister, on the other hand, has no issues wearing them, and has gotten most of her growth from doing exactly what you discuss in this thread: leaving it alone! As a matter of fact, she had to learn this the hard way when she strayed from two-strand, Senegalese and Nubian twists in favor of puffs, ponytails and buns and not only dropped back to APL from almost BSL, but stayed there for quite some time. Now that she's back in Nubian twists, her hair is happy and flourishing.

 

[Jetblackhair]

Awww, sorry Poohbear, I definitely understand how frustrating it is to remain at the same length over a long period of time. I have fine hair which is very fragile and I require weekly protein treatments to sustain my hair. I was noticing in your siggy that part of your hair is hanging on your sweater. I know the friction of my hair on a sweater would cause havoc. Although your hair is APL and is beyond SL, the danger length for friction on clothes, I think it can still exist for us fine haired ladies (especially when wearing clothing that our hair can get caught on).

I'm thinking along with flat ironing your hair, wearing it down and not giving it a full moisture treatment for 4 to 6 weeks is causing you not to retain.

 

[Poohbear]

I'm going to wear my twists like this: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qdp_d-NeEjg

 

[Jetblackhair]

Poohbear, the style in the video is really cute and perfect as a PS. I think it will look great on you!!

 

[Barbara]

My hair hasn't seen any major improvement since the six inch trim two years ago--to even it out. Then on top of that, I've been doing my own hair lately. However, I still go to the salon a few times a year.

My stylist says it’s in better shape than he thought it would be. Yes, but the length isn't there like it used to be. I'm still at bra clasp length, not below it like it used to be. I don't oil my hair thoroughly like I used to, so I know that's the problem.

 

[Poohbear]

Lute - I just watched that video about threading and I do not have the skills to do that with my own hair. Looks like the thread helps with combating shrinkage, but I worry about the piece of thread being tangled in with my coils over the time period of keeping my style in my hair.

Barbara - Did you straighten your hair since getting that six inch trim? Are you saying your hair hasn't improved from using heat or not oiling thoroughly?

Sent from my SPH-M910 using Long Hair Care Forum App

 

[MissMusic]

Poohbear May I ask, what are you heat styling tools and appliances?

 

[Poohbear]

Poohbear May I ask, what are you heat styling tools and appliances?

MissMusic - I use an Andis Ceramic Ionic Blowdryer and the CHI Flat Iron.

 

[SherylsTresses]

Wishing you all the best on your healthy hair journey because you are my natural hairstyle idol.

 

[MissMusic]

@MissMusic - I use an Andis Ceramic Ionic Blowdryer and the CHI Flat Iron.

Have you thought about buying a better blow dryer? For example, my Revlon Ionic Blow dryer does not hold a candle to my CHI blow dryer. My Revlon blow dryer delivers heat that just does not straighten in the same way as my CHI. The CHI is not nearly as harsh as my Revlon. Your blow dryer may not be the culprit, but you only use heat on your hair 6 times a year which really should not be that damaging.

 

[curlyninjagirl]

I was thinking about this - I just flat ironed my hair a couple of days ago and got scared/annoyed with rain so I washed it today...usually, when my hair is curly and/or in twists, I'm moisturizing my hair everyday. However, when it's straight I can't do that - I can only use oil based products or my hair will revert. Do you think that might have something to do with it? Not exactly the ironing per se, but the lack of moisture when your hair is straight? How long do you leave it straight?

I could be wrong, but I don't think flat ironing six times a year is excessive in itself - it might also be that you're blowdrying + flat ironing...when I first ironed my hair I blowdried it and my hair felt terrible - it really hates being blowdried, even for a blow out. Now, when I iron I do twists or braids to let my hair air dry, then iron it like that, and it comes out soo much better.

Sorry I'm rambling but I'm just thinking while I type...

This is why I'm staying away from flat-ironing for a good portion of my HHJ. It's not just the heat that seems to cause the breakage; it's everything that entails maintaining that style: the excessive combing involved in the flat-iron process, the lack of moisture to avoid reversion, the extra manipulation of daily styling.... Too much!

 

[Poohbear]

This is why I'm staying away from flat-ironing for a good portion of my HHJ. It's not just the heat that seems to cause the breakage; it's everything that entails maintaining that style: the excessive combing involved in the flat-iron process, the lack of moisture to avoid reversion, the extra manipulation of daily styling.... Too much!

When I wore my hair straightened, I didn't do any daily styling nor combing at all. I would just put my hair in a loose bun at night and then fluff it in the morning with my fingers. But yeah, there is a lot involved before and during the flat-ironing process.

 

[Poohbear]

Have you thought about buying a better blow dryer? For example, my Revlon Ionic Blow dryer does not hold a candle to my CHI blow dryer. My Revlon blow dryer delivers heat that just does not straighten in the same way as my CHI. The CHI is not nearly as harsh as my Revlon. Your blow dryer may not be the culprit, but you only use heat on your hair 6 times a year which really should not be that damaging.

MissMusic - I thought this Andis blowdryer was a better blowdryer than I used to have. I used to use my mom's Revlon dryer and this Conair blowdryer. That Revlon one definitely made my hair feel dry, but I hardly ever used it. The Conair one was pretty good before it died on me. It would blow hotter than the Andis. This Andis blowdryer is more controlled. It has 3 settings (High, Med, and Low). And even on the High setting, it doesn't feel extra hot like older blowdryers I have used in the past.

I really think it's the flat-ironing with grease rather than the blowdrying. Seems like the heat from the plates singes the ends of my hair with that grease and causes them to split and break off eventually. I also only do one pass for each section of hair, and when I do so, I curl the end with the flat iron which I think hides the splits temporarily.

 

[HappilyLiberal]

I think having coarser/kinkier hair makes twisting even easier because they seem to stay in longer. That's pretty much been my routine for the last 2 years or so. I do have coarse hair with a lot of shrinkage, so once I put in twists, I keep them in for 2-3 weeks at a time (depending).

Good luck on the new leg of your journey! I think taking a break from the heat will work wonders for you.

Yeah... your two-strands are super cute!

 

[Poohbear]

Nonie - here are some smaller twists that I left in for a good amount of time back in 2009. Based on my fotki album, looks like I straightened my hair after taking these twists down and washing. I should have styled my hair right back into twists after washing:

I can't do the shrunken afro puff style. My hair would be super tangled. I will just have all my hair in twists.

 

[Nonie]

@Nonie - here are some smaller twists that I left in for a good amount of time back in 2009. Based on my fotki album, looks like I straightened my hair after taking these twists down and washing. I should have styled my hair right back into twists after washing:

I can't do the shrunken afro puff style. My hair would be super tangled. I will just have all my hair in twists.

Very pretty! The shrunken afro puff is a phony!!! I had all my hair in twists and the twists cornrowed underneath it. All I did at night was take off the puff, put on a baggy, and then in the AM take off the baggy, put on the puff. Hardly any manipulation.

 

[Poohbear]

Very pretty! The shrunken afro puff is a phony!!! I had all my hair in twists and the twists cornrowed underneath it. All I did at night was take off the puff, put on a baggy, and then in the AM take off the baggy, put on the puff. Hardly any manipulation.

Oh okay! I thought the puff was your real hair.

Well, I just got a trim at Great Clips during my lunch break. I was going to do it myself but didn't feel like it so I took the risk of letting someone else do it. Anyway, the guy did an EXCELLENT job! He did not get scissor happy. I told him 1/2 an inch on each layer and that's what he did! My ends feel much better and softer! I'm going to wash and condition my hair either this evening or one evening this week to start my twist routine.