Please help me diagnose my hair

[pariate]

It's certainly a lot more thorough! It makes more sense to me, so I'm now inclined to agree with you I'm washing tonight/tomorrow - depends on how motivated I'm feeling tonight - and I'm going to try those wet tests.

Thank you for posting that article It's very useful.

[Arctic]

You're welcome, it has helped me very much with this protein/ moisture balanse!

[Nightshade]

The curly hair thing isn't that the hair is lacking anything, it's that it was stretched too far.

All materials have two ranges, an elastic range, and a plastic range.

If something is stretched a little and springs right back (think like a slinky) it's in the elastic range. It's being stretched, but it isn't hurting the slinky (or hair).

The plastic range occurs when you stretch a material so far that it loses its ability to go back to it's original shape. Think of the slinky you stretched too far and it wouldn't coil up nice anymore.

So in the case of hair, I think the curly effect is in indicator that a hair was stretched into the plastic range, and since it was permanently deformed it winds up all misshapen as it sprung back.

ETA: Past the plastic range is the fracture point, which is where something breaks. A hair can break in the middle, but the remaining part has still been deformed in the plastic range, hence why what you see left behind can be curly and strange.

I hope that makes sense.

[Arctic]

Nightshade: But if this happens often it might be that hair is lacking protein? (ie. stretching too much without being able to return to original shape)

[pariate]

Which raises the question... how far is too far when stretching a hair?!

[Nightshade]

Nightshade: But if this happens often it might be that hair is lacking protein? (ie. stretching too much without being able to return to original shape)

Perhaps.

I think I hair that has too much protein would probably snap off clean, as it'd be brittle and wouldn't stretch far, so then, yes, it'd make sense that hair that was protein deficient would be more prone to this longer elastic/plastic range effect before it breaks.

There are other causes for curled hairs too. For instance, a sharp comb can also curl hairs like this (like the edge of a scissors curling a Christmas ribbon), and I know that's happened to me when I have gotten a new comb and then later find there's a spot that's sharp and needs sanding.

So I think my recommendation would be that if you're seeing a high amount of curled hairs to check for seams and sharp/rough edges on all styling tools, and then do the test for moisture/protein with the hair in a dish of water (hell if I can find the link).

Also, taking a shed hair and stretching it would be a good test. Then wetting a second hair and stretching it.

I'm sorry for my blathering, I hope there was sense in there somewhere.

[Arctic]

Which raises the question... how far is too far when stretching a hair?!

there were recently couple of threads about this. If my memory serves, consensus was that about 20-30 % is normal stretching. More than that is too much.

I shall come back in a minute to add the links here.

[Arctic]

How stretchy are your strands?

Speaking of stretchy-how stretchy is too stretchy

[pariate]

You're a star, Arctic Thanks for the links.

[Arctic]

You're most welcome (blushing here!)
This is one of the subjects that has been close to myself recently, and that's why I've been reading a lot about it