Hair wrapping - ok to do every night?

[CrisDee]

Is there any harm in doing this (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p1bIHMpCrKA) every night? I discovered this a couple months ago - tried it, and am absolutely LOVING the way it's coming out! For the first time since I got my hair hacked off, I actually like my hair! :cheese: I've been showering before bed, COing my hair, then wrapping my hair in a stretch satin scarf for the night. In the morning I take off the scarf, run a wood quill brush through it, and it looks just like it looks in my avatar! But is there any chance this could somehow be damaging to my hair? Like maybe wrapping it wet every night could dry it out or something?

[HintOfMint]

Doesn't sound damaging at all. In fact it sounds like it has the same benefits of damp bunning.

[morecowbell]

Doesn't sound damaging at all. In fact it sounds like it has the same benefits of damp bunning.

Agreed. :)
In fact, you've inspired me to try this!

[KristiLe]

I've been wanting to try this but I wasn't sure how it would come out! Do you have to use pins or anything to keep your hair in place? How big is your scarf? Thanks! :D

[CrisDee]

I use this (http://www.sallybeauty.com/scarf/SBS-378100,default,pd.html?cm_vc=SEARCH) one from Sally Beauty. The site says it's 30" square. My hair is UBER slippery, so the only way this works is when it's fresh-out-of-the-shower wet. I tried using clips, but they left dents in my hair, so I just brush (wood quill brush) the hair round and round my head until it sticks; hold my breath so it doesn't move, grab the scarf, fold it in half into a triangle, and tie it as quickly as possible before anything falls or flops. I also do a trick I saw in one of the videos, where you then spin the scarf around on your head, in the same direction that you wrapped the hair, to smooth out any pieces that may have gotten a bit out of place when tying on the scarf.

I remember "back in the day," when dinosaurs roamed the earth and there were no blow-dryers - a trick that curly girls used to use to partially straighten their hair was to set it on very large rollers, some even used orange juice cans. I guess the wrapping method, in effect, uses your own head as a giant roller!

[alwayssmiling]

I love doing this too. It makes my hair shiny looking as well as straightened. This only thing I would say to think about is the amount of brushing you are doing when wrapping your hair. I have brittle hair that has been abused somewhat so I keep brushing to a minimum these days. Your hair looks very healthy I guess you don't have to worry about brushing. Do you do it like me and wait until its very nearly dry?

If you heat straighten your hair then this is such a good substitute.

[CrisDee]

I cut off all my chemically colored, heat damaged hair last year. I've been growing it back out for just over a year now. Switched from chemical dye to henna, kept it short til all the chemical color underneath had grown out.

No, I can't wait til it's nearly dry, it would never stay - my hair is very fine and slippery. I wrap it as wet as possible. The "brush" is a wood quill brush, not one with bristles - a comb would work just as well, but I love the way the brush feels on my scalp :)

[liagibba]

Man, this is almost enough for me to start showering at night... I just tried it with dry, BSL hair and it didn't work so well. I'm definitely thinking about trying this technique soon!

[picklepie]

My mother straightened my hair, when I was a little girl, by wrapping it around my head wet-- she used big bobby pins, though. Your way sounds much more comfortable for sleeping!

[MNoelH]

I read about this the other day and went searching for some videos on you tube. I must not be searching right, because I didn't find anything for long hair. I also can't imagine how long this would take to dry.

One video I did see (on shorter hair) was using pantyhose with cut off legs to hold the hair in place without pins. I just can't figure out how to do the wrapping part and am wondering how long I would have to leave it on for it to dry.

Can anyone point me to some tutorials you've found?

[CrisDee]

My thread-starter post has the video that I used - and when that one is playing, my screen has a bunch of other similar suggested videos on the right, you could click some of those as well. But the trouble I found is that all the hair wrapping videos I found were on girls with African-type hair, which has WAY more texture than my slippery mess! The girl in the video I used wrapped hers dry, but I knew from the get-go that wouldn't work for me. So when I tried it, I did it with just-washed wet hair, and it worked fairly well. I still have to get the scarf on quickly, before it all starts to fall, and I have to poke some of the stragglers back up into the scarf, then spin the scarf to make sure everything's smooth. But I do that right before bed - and it's like styling my hair while I sleep :D

[ooo]

One video I did see (on shorter hair) was using pantyhose with cut off legs to hold the hair in place without pins.
I don't have a scarf, so I'll try it with a pantyhose soon :D

[KristiLe]

I use this (http://www.sallybeauty.com/scarf/SBS-378100,default,pd.html?cm_vc=SEARCH) one from Sally Beauty. The site says it's 30" square. My hair is UBER slippery, so the only way this works is when it's fresh-out-of-the-shower wet. I tried using clips, but they left dents in my hair, so I just brush (wood quill brush) the hair round and round my head until it sticks; hold my breath so it doesn't move, grab the scarf, fold it in half into a triangle, and tie it as quickly as possible before anything falls or flops. I also do a trick I saw in one of the videos, where you then spin the scarf around on your head, in the same direction that you wrapped the hair, to smooth out any pieces that may have gotten a bit out of place when tying on the scarf.

I remember "back in the day," when dinosaurs roamed the earth and there were no blow-dryers - a trick that curly girls used to use to partially straighten their hair was to set it on very large rollers, some even used orange juice cans. I guess the wrapping method, in effect, uses your own head as a giant roller!
Thanks for the info!! I can't wait to try! :D

[MNoelH]

Ha ha ha!

I tried with damp hair. No way no how is this happening! I had a tangled slippery mess. Had it even worked, I have no idea how long it would have taken to dry... I'm pretty sure it would be longer than an overnight.

[Vermelha]

I've been wearing wraps since I was a YOUNG girl...like wayyy back! Though it did give me straighter hair that laid flat and looked very silky, wrapping it the same direction every night can cause hair to recede or thin on one side.

I would do it, but the trick is to change the direction every time you wrap. But for length, it's really good for keeping ends smooth and tangle-free. I use a little oil (since my hair is dry) and wrap my hair and my hair comes out super-shiny!

[Mangachan]

This method is fine. When I had my hair chemically straightened, I wore the wrap style 65% of the time and it isn't damaging as long as you don't wrap it the same way each time. Having to pin some parts is an expected part of the process.

[Mike]

I have been putting my dry hair up at night for a while with a silk scarf thing and the benefit is that the increased warmth which means better circulation to your scalp and more growth. It works. I guess it might keep it straighter too.

[Vermelha]

It also allows you to brush your hair in a circular pattern every night without worrying about ripping through ends. It helps me get more circulation to the scalp. I can't do this often because my hair is curly =(

[FrizzBall]

Sometimes wrapping in the same direction over time can cause thinning or stress on the hair much like bunning in the same spot continuously does. So ever so often, try to switch up the direction your wrap in or do a cross wrap where you split your hair down the middle and wrap both parts in a cross/overlap fashion.

[CrisDee]

Thanks, ladies! I had no idea that continued wrapping in the same direction could cause thinning, I'm SO glad you clued us in! I tried one night wrapping in the opposite direction and I didn't like the way it came out, so I've been wrapping in the same direction almost every night! :shudder: I'll make sure to change it up, I think I'm noticing a bit of thinning on the one side even after just a couple months!

[Vermelha]

Thanks, ladies! I had no idea that continued wrapping in the same direction could cause thinning, I'm SO glad you clued us in! I tried one night wrapping in the opposite direction and I didn't like the way it came out, so I've been wrapping in the same direction almost every night! :shudder: I'll make sure to change it up, I think I'm noticing a bit of thinning on the one side even after just a couple months!

It takes a little bit of alternating every night to get it to do right ;). For instance, if you wrapped it clockwise last night, the next day it'll be tough to wrap it counterclockwise.

Actually (correcting myself), I alternate every week (when my hair is straight, that is). One week will be clockwise and the other counterclockwise to prevent too much stress on one side of the hairline.

Also, how often do you wash? If you wash frequently, wrapping and washing constantly can cause breakage and thinning too. Weekly washing tends to work for a lot of people who wrap.

[CrisDee]

I could never go a whole week without washing, I'm afraid. :( My hair looks pretty icky at the end of day 2, so I've been washing either every day or every other day! I don't use shampoo, though, CO for me. I haven't noticed any breakage at all, but I do have a spot at my hairline above the outer edge of my right eyebrow that looks a bit thinner to me (I wrap from right to left). Of course I'd had bangs for over 30 years prior to growing them out this year, so it could be that the thin spot has been there for years and the bangs have masked it. :shrug: In any event, I'll definitely alternate my wrapping direction!

[Vermelha]

I could never go a whole week without washing, I'm afraid. :( My hair looks pretty icky at the end of day 2, so I've been washing either every day or every other day! I don't use shampoo, though, CO for me. I haven't noticed any breakage at all, but I do have a spot at my hairline above the outer edge of my right eyebrow that looks a bit thinner to me (I wrap from right to left). Of course I'd had bangs for over 30 years prior to growing them out this year, so it could be that the thin spot has been there for years and the bangs have masked it. :shrug: In any event, I'll definitely alternate my wrapping direction!

That's understandable. Then I would just suggest trying to alternate upon every wash. I've had that happen twice in my youth and learned my lesson. ;)