PDA

View Full Version : Loose, undefined curls?



Enrapture
March 1st, 2014, 11:56 AM
Hello!

I've been struggling with my hair for quite a while. My hair can beautifully create S-shaped curls (not tight ones, but not loose either) ,but they are always falling out while drying hair. And i end up with some straight, some curly,some wavy hairs. I don't know how to maintain it. I've been doing heat-free curls overnight for past 2 years, but I am sick of it and want to wear my natural hair texture.
If I can get some pretty curls in the evening naturally( i always wash my hair at night), then i don't know how to not let them fall overnight. If i leave it out, it simply straightens, if i leave it in braid, hair becomes very wavy. My hair takes any form easily - can straighten easily and curl it with no problem (without heat)
I used to have more curly hair, now it looks more wavy. :(

Do you have any suggestions how to define my curls more? I've been thinking about using Amla on hair. I've seen some good reviews here.

http://farm4.staticflickr.com/3682/12860515383_b51106a52e.jpg this is now (still slightly wet)


http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7316/11757605824_e940d822ae_n.jpg and this was when i had a little more definition and used gel

P.S.what could be my hair type?

sumidha
March 1st, 2014, 12:15 PM
If you wash your hair at night you could 'pineapple' or 'plop' your hair overnight while sleeping, that would probably help keep the curls intact a little longer? And amla does definitely increase curl. :)

Links: http://www.naturallycurly.com/curlreading/kinky-hair-type-4a/how-to-pineapple-your-hair

http://www.wikihow.com/Plop-Your-Hair

Enrapture
March 1st, 2014, 12:25 PM
If you wash your hair at night you could 'pineapple' or 'plop' your hair overnight while sleeping, that would probably help keep the curls intact a little longer? And amla does definitely increase curl. :)

Links: http://www.naturallycurly.com/curlreading/kinky-hair-type-4a/how-to-pineapple-your-hair

http://www.wikihow.com/Plop-Your-Hair

I've tried plopping and it ended up very badly for curls. As I mentioned, it easily takes any form, so if the hair isn't lying in the curl form, it turns in a weird shape that doesn't look like curl at all.
Only a few strands survive the night. :?

CurlyCap
March 1st, 2014, 09:14 PM
Do you co-wash? Do you put a leave-in conditioner in your hair after you shower to make sure your moisture levels are high. Check out the Wurly and Curly thread for more info on these methods.

Also, do you let your hair mostly dry before you sleep on it? If it is damp when you fall asleep, the curls will be deformed by the pressure from your pillow. If you must fall asleep with it damp, try cinnabunning it before bed. This will keep it damp over night, so that in the morning, it can finish drying and your curls can form naturally.

Wildcat Diva
March 1st, 2014, 10:58 PM
Also, use a misting bottle in the morning, turn your hair upside down and scrunch, scrunch, scrunch.

Enrapture
March 2nd, 2014, 02:47 AM
Do you co-wash? Do you put a leave-in conditioner in your hair after you shower to make sure your moisture levels are high. Check out the Wurly and Curly thread for more info on these methods.

I've tried it, but it left my hair really greasy. I suppose it was the conditioner's fault. Can't really find really good conditioner in Europe.
You suddenly made me really interested in CG again. :D I'm going to order some conditioners from iherb :)



Also, use a misting bottle in the morning, turn your hair upside down and scrunch, scrunch, scrunch.
What should I put in the misting bottle?

Firefox7275
March 3rd, 2014, 02:35 PM
You are more a wavy than a curly, our pattern is weak and easily lost. Don't comb outside the shower, pineapple overnight, use a styling product and/ or hydrolysed protein to boost and hold waves. Avoid ingredients that build up and weigh hair down (many silicones, butters, some polyquats, waxes including cetyl esters).

There are a fair few Curly Girl friendly conditioners in Europe. Plopping should hold the wave or curl in its correct form: you encourage a neat defined shape with conditioner, styler and water then carefully concertina them down into the towel or t-shirt. Some can only do short plops some can do long plops.

Anje
March 3rd, 2014, 02:51 PM
I'd guesstimate you at 2c, not knowing how you handled your hair.

Have you ever tried gel? It might be worth picking some up (alcohol free is ideal, and I know some of the really cheapy brands like LA Looks tend to be). There are various ways to do it, but I think one of them (help me out here, curlies!) is to detangle your hair in the shower when it's full of conditioner, rinse it out, and apply a good amount while your hair is still pretty much dripping. Maybe even hit it again for a second with the shower to get your hair to fully clump. Then sort of pile/wrap it (plopping or something like that) in a T-shirt instead of a terrycloth towel. Take it down and let it dry without handling it, and then maybe scrunch a little if the gel has made anything crunchy/stiff.

Chamomile betty
March 3rd, 2014, 02:59 PM
You have beautiful hair.
Might just need to find the right method/products.
Keep experimenting.

Ambystoma
March 3rd, 2014, 04:02 PM
I have a similar predicament, in that my natural wave pattern is an endless source of frustration (yours is nicer - mine is a weird uneven mess that gets more and more "grunge" as the days pass) and to be honest, I've abandoned trying to make it look nice. I dry it in one large ringlet over my shoulder, which comes out as a lovely even wave with a little wurl to the ends, and preserve the style by sleeping in a cinnamon or nautilus bun overnight. It's a little straighter than it would be naturally with this method, but it always looks nice - and you can use more ringlets if you'd like it wurlier. I find sleeping in a bun preserves wurl/curl pretty well and since it doesn't have tangles in the morning it would be possible to just lightly fingercomb if you wanted to keep more of a clumped\defined look to the wurls.

BonnieU
March 3rd, 2014, 05:03 PM
I do the cg method, which has helped me bring out my natural curl pattern. I use all deva curl products and let my hair air dry without touching it AT ALL. Then I pineapple at night...

mamaherrera
March 3rd, 2014, 10:38 PM
That's how my hair is too. Sometimes it comes out so nice, others not so nice. I struggle with gel because of two reasons. 1) I struggle getting it evenly distributed, I have some "wet" looking clumps and some separated clumps. 2) I lose so much volume, and I have about as much hair as you. enough but always wanting more (that's how I feel about my quantity of hair anyways). But I'm a ii.

Chocowalnut
March 4th, 2014, 02:15 AM
That's exactly how my hair is.. what I do is after I wash it, comb it and put leave in conditioner in and then scrunch it until it's curly and let it dry. It will with some pretty defined curls that if brushed after turn into waves.