Wurly and Curly thread!!!

[Curlsgirl]

Hi all the cute curlies!

I have been doing very little with my hair lately, have been busy and well just not spending much time with it. Since I trimmed I cannot manage a Figure 8 for the life of me and that was my fall back on style!!!

I wear a lot of messy buns and braids but am tired of braids really so mostly messy buns. Same routine and for the one who asked about combing I comb mostly in the shower with conditioner on my hair or sometimes very gently if I am going to braid or get my hair color touched up so my stylist won't have to do it. She tries but just is not as gentle as she should be in my opinion.

[Aries_jb]

Okay, so I read through this entire thread, and I have to say, you all are a wealth of knowledge! I've been lurking on this site long before I joined and I always got a little down because many longhairs here don't seem to use styling products and the like. It made me think that I would have to give up the gel in order have long healthy hair. However, I see that many curlies here use styling products AND have beautiful healthy hair. I can't tell you how much better that makes me feel.

That said, I need to vent a little. I don't have thick hair. I just don't. My ponytail circumference is 2.5 inches, and I'm honestly happy with that number. My problem is the amount that it tapers off is just awful to me. Right now my hair is between shoulder and APL (varies with the weather, as you all know) and from the neck down I can actually count the number of curls! I can see through them! It's just embarrassing. I've been wearing it up to hide the ends, which I know will actually help them in the long run. I do have a lot of baby hairs that I hope will help thicken up my hair, but I'm not sure if there's anything else I can do, or if I just have to live with it.

I'm taking a few vitamins (MSM, biotin, a mulit, and fish oil), I only wash once a week (sulfate free poo or CV bars), I never comb without CO in my hair, I believe I handle it pretty gently, so I'm at a loss as to why there's so much taper.

Sorry for the vent, but I figure this would be the best place to do it. I'm just tired of having to cut off so much hair in order to thicken it up.

[pariate]

That said, I need to vent a little. I don't have thick hair. I just don't. My ponytail circumference is 2.5 inches, and I'm honestly happy with that number. My problem is the amount that it tapers off is just awful to me. Right now my hair is between shoulder and APL (varies with the weather, as you all know) and from the neck down I can actually count the number of curls! I can see through them! It's just embarrassing. I've been wearing it up to hide the ends, which I know will actually help them in the long run. I do have a lot of baby hairs that I hope will help thicken up my hair, but I'm not sure if there's anything else I can do, or if I just have to live with it.

Hi

I sympathise - a few months ago I'd had enough of my taper. My ends looked pitiful, they really did. I'd been working on my hair (adjusting my routine, being more careful etc) for about 9 months and the rest of my hair was developing beautifully, so in the end I admitted defeat with the taper confident that I would regain the length. I cut about two inches off my hair in two self-trims over three months.

Before I cut my hair it was about an inch below BSL, so I acknowledge that it was far easier for me to whack off a couple of inches than it would be for someone with APL! I should also point out that the main reason for my taper was suuuuuuuuuuper damged ends, lots of breaks and finding so many splits that my S&D's went on for hours at a time...

In your case, if you can't identify lots of damage then I would suggest you exercise some benign neglect, try to forget about your hair as much as possible and in a couple of months when you've got some extra length maybe you could start micro-trimming on a regular basis to help beef up the ends. That way you won't suddenly lose length but you will slowly start to see more depth to your ends.

I hope some of that helps. I tend to waffle quite a bit sometimes... Sorry if I've been useless!

[Aries_jb]

Information is never useless! Plus it's nice to know someone can relate. I see all these thick heads of curls around here and it's hard not to get a little down, you know?

Since cutting my hair I have just been playing around with different conditioners and routines, trying to focus more on hair health and ways to get my hair to look it's best while in an updo in an effort to distract myself from the state of my ends. On the upside, I feel a lot more comfortable wearing my hair up and I have a few no fail, no fuss styles in my arsenal now.

I'm definitely going to take your advice on the microtrims. I want to grow my hair to around BSL before I trim again. It's a length where my hair doesn't feel so short (unlike now), and it's also a great length for doing some of my favorite updos. Hopefully in a couple of months, I can take my hair down again and see some growth as well as thickening.

Thanks for your advice and the reassurance. I feel like I really need it right now...

[pariate]

Thanks for your advice and the reassurance. I feel like I really need it right now...

Awww, honey! Don't feel blue, this will all pass, as you know Just a royal PITA waiting, isn't it? I thought of something else that helped me - I started using more protein conditioners and my hair suddenly seemed to inflate! That did wonders for my taper. Yes, despite my cuts I still have a bit more taper than I'd like; but the extra protein gave it a real boost and suddenly it didn't look so wispy and insubstantial.

Keep your chin up

[girlcat36]

That said, I need to vent a little. I don't have thick hair. I just don't. My ponytail circumference is 2.5 inches, and I'm honestly happy with that number. My problem is the amount that it tapers off is just awful to me. Right now my hair is between shoulder and APL (varies with the weather, as you all know) and from the neck down I can actually count the number of curls! I can see through them! It's just embarrassing. I've been wearing it up to hide the ends, which I know will actually help them in the long run. I do have a lot of baby hairs that I hope will help thicken up my hair, but I'm not sure if there's anything else I can do, or if I just have to live with it.

I'm taking a few vitamins (MSM, biotin, a mulit, and fish oil), I only wash once a week (sulfate free poo or CV bars), I never comb without CO in my hair, I believe I handle it pretty gently, so I'm at a loss as to why there's so much taper.

Sorry for the vent, but I figure this would be the best place to do it. I'm just tired of having to cut off so much hair in order to thicken it up.

I have the same problem. Microtrimming has been essential over the last year. My ends have improved, but still have a long way to go. Wearing my hair in a half-up disguises some of the thinness.
Here is my hair last November:


And my siggy is from Aug. 2008:

[Aries_jb]

Awww, honey! Don't feel blue, this will all pass, as you know Just a royal PITA waiting, isn't it? I thought of something else that helped me - I started using more protein conditioners and my hair suddenly seemed to inflate! That did wonders for my taper. Yes, despite my cuts I still have a bit more taper than I'd like; but the extra protein gave it a real boost and suddenly it didn't look so wispy and insubstantial.

Keep your chin up

Thanks. I think I have some conditioners with protein in them somewhere in my huge stash of products! I just counted last night and I have 13 conditioners to work with. It's an addiction I know, but one problem at a time .

I have the same problem. Microtrimming has been essential over the last year. My ends have improved, but still have a long way to go. Wearing my hair in a half-up disguises some of the thinness.
Here is my hair last November:


And my siggy is from Aug. 2008:

Those pictures are so inspiring! It's such a huge difference! I hope I'll see a difference like that. Can I ask about your previous/current ponytail circumference?

[girlcat36]

My ponytail circumference was just under 2" when I joined LHC. It is now 2.75, and I have a lot of baby hair coming in. But--FYI---I did lose a good amount of hair to my cancer treatment. My chemo caused a diffuse thinning, and my radiation(on my neck) caused a good sized bald patch aat the back of my head. Check my profile for my hair progress photos if you want to see pics.
Anyway, no matter what the reason for thin ends, I think my pics prove that patience and microtrimming DO pay off!
My hair length 13 months ago was 19", I am only at 21" now due to trimming, so it's slow gowing but I'll get there.

[Aries_jb]

Thanks for the information girlcat36. I've read through the thread and I recall you mentioning your cancer treatment. It's all the more reason to be inspired, I think.

About your circumference, that truly is amazing! I myself went from a circumference of 2.25 to 2.5, which provides me some comfort. I'm just not sure what else I could do. I think I've been fairly gentle with it, but being a curly, I think I break some of the guidelines most people here follow for having long hair.

For instance:

-I comb my hair when wet. I know that this is when hair is at its most fragile, but for the sake of my curls, I have to.
-I wet my hair everyday. Again, it makes my curls look their best and keeps them moisturized, but I don't know if that's damaging. Not wetting the length in the past resulted in parched ends.

That's about it. I know that many curlies do the above and still have undamaged hair, so I'd like to think that it's not so bad. Other than that, I believe I'm pretty gentle with it, so I have to think that it's the shedding that's causing the taper, and I'm not sure how to control that.

[girlcat36]

Aries jb----If you use a seamless comb you are much better off. I do comb my hair in the shower, but I use a seamless comb. It has made a world of difference. I don't think wetting your hair everyday should cause a problem. I would wet my hair everyday if I had time to let it dry.
Are you cone-free? Cones were doing the most damage to my hair.
I also sleep on a silk pillowcase.
I use baking soda rinses, but I think the majority of LHCer's don't like baking soda. It seems to get all the gunk off my hair so that when I do condition it, the conditioner acatually gets into the hair.
Lately I have been using pure shea butter on my ends when they are dry and it seems to be helping the curl pattern.