The Water-Mostly/Hybrid WO Washing Thread

[Nymphe]

vpatt, you and I sound like we're going through a somewhat similar thing, except your hair is oily (I think?) and mine is dry! My ends are doing a bit better, but still dry out sooo much. This might sound odd, gross, or old-fashioned to some, depending on your take, but lately I've been using a bit of lard scented with lavender on my ends, and it works better than most oils. Interesting....

Does it help oils to soak in better if the hair is damp first? Does that add more moisture? I wonder if I should try the LOC method.

Hey, my West African ansestors used plant and animal fats along with water to maintain their hair (and some still do today). I have used unsalted butter in a DIY conditioning treatment and loved it. One day, I will try it straight.

If I did lard, I would make sure it was the white stuff called leaf lard from the kidney area.

I do oil rinsing and notice some oils penetrate better than others, some seal in moisture better than others. Try different oils on your ends damp or wet and see what happens.

[likelikepenny]

Hey, my West African ansestors used plant and animal fats along with water to maintain their hair (and some still do today). I have used unsalted butter in a DIY conditioning treatment and loved it. One day, I will try it straight.

If I did lard, I would make sure it was the white stuff called leaf lard from the kidney area.

I do oil rinsing and notice some oils penetrate better than others, some seal in moisture better than others. Try different oils on your ends damp or wet and see what happens.

Nymphe, would you be willing to provide a list of the oils you've used and a brief summary of how it performed in each category?

[Nymphe]

Nymphe, would you be willing to provide a list of the oils you've used and a brief summary of how it performed in each category?

Sure, probably in its own thread. There are still dozens more I want to try and I was seeing how different oils behaved together.

[vpatt]

vpatt, you and I sound like we're going through a somewhat similar thing, except your hair is oily (I think?) and mine is dry! My ends are doing a bit better, but still dry out sooo much. This might sound odd, gross, or old-fashioned to some, depending on your take, but lately I've been using a bit of lard scented with lavender on my ends, and it works better than most oils. Interesting....

Does it help oils to soak in better if the hair is damp first? Does that add more moisture? I wonder if I should try the LOC method.

Yes, my scalp can be quite oily. But my ends are dryer. I think it is a combination of longer hair, seldom trimming and WO. Which is why for now I'm doing using WO on my scalp and whatever helps moisturize the ends.

I have been told it is better to wet hair before applying oils as the oil helps lock in the moisture.

I have not tried lard for my hair, but maybe after butchering season in the fall I will try it. But I wonder if my dog and cats will be after my hair, lol. I guess not after rinsing.

[melikai]

Hey, my West African ansestors used plant and animal fats along with water to maintain their hair (and some still do today). I have used unsalted butter in a DIY conditioning treatment and loved it. One day, I will try it straight.

If I did lard, I would make sure it was the white stuff called leaf lard from the kidney area.

I do oil rinsing and notice some oils penetrate better than others, some seal in moisture better than others. Try different oils on your ends damp or wet and see what happens.

Is the leaf lard "cleaner" or more pure? I'm not sure how to tell, but the stuff we get over here doesn't smell really, and seems nice.
I wish I could get some more avocado oil. I used it years ago and it worked really well for me. Don't have the money atm.

Yes, my scalp can be quite oily. But my ends are dryer. I think it is a combination of longer hair, seldom trimming and WO. Which is why for now I'm doing using WO on my scalp and whatever helps moisturize the ends.

I have been told it is better to wet hair before applying oils as the oil helps lock in the moisture.

I have not tried lard for my hair, but maybe after butchering season in the fall I will try it. But I wonder if my dog and cats will be after my hair, lol. I guess not after rinsing.

Yep, I haven't trimmed my hair for 2 years now or so. I did a very very light dusting on the ends a couple months ago though. I think I'll do that once in a while to hopefully get rid of the worst of splits.
The lard we get here doesn't have any smell, really. Maybe a very slight yummy (to me) smell. We use it in most of our cooking.

I've been trying the LOC method on my hair, but it's really easy to overdo it. Difficult to combine it with WO, especially because I don't need to wash that often.

[vpatt]

I'm a country girl, I have no problems with lard. Except it is probably hard to find in stores without having additives. Other than that it is a natural oil imo. And yummy in some cooking. I know vegans feel differently.

[Nymphe]

melikai, it sounds like you are OK because regular lard has a piggy scent that is unmistakable for anything else.

Avocado oil is a good one, I agree. Olive oil penetrates more, but it makes my hair rough and greasy.

Nice hair! Has the breakage stopped? Do you have full sebum coverage, yet?

[melikai]

melikai, it sounds like you are OK because regular lard has a piggy scent that is unmistakable for anything else.

Avocado oil is a good one, I agree. Olive oil penetrates more, but it makes my hair rough and greasy.

Nice hair! Has the breakage stopped? Do you have full sebum coverage, yet?

It definitely doesn't have a piggy smell!

Thanks! The breakage has stopped for now, I think, but it's still very dry no matter what or how much stuff I put on it. I haven't been able to get my sebum to go beyond my ears, because my scalp is very dry and doesn't seem to produce much sebum.

[vpatt]

Melikai, I love your hair! If my ends feel dry between washes then I will damp them and apply a bit of conditioner. It seems to absorb as it drys. I had to play with the amount of conditioner to use. I think oil would work, too. But I would need only a tiny bit or it might be too oily.

So....after saying I would stick with WO on my scalp I tried something from the forum yesterday. Boil 2 cups of water, steep 2 green teabags for 30 minutes. Squeeze them into the water and add 2 tsp honey and 2 tsp ACV. When it was cool enough I wet my hair with water and then added this as I would shampoo and massaged my scalp. I poured it on the length and did my usual cold rinse. I think I like it....my hair feels softer, the scalp feels clean but not stripped and my hair is shiny. I do think I will still need to condition the ends between washes, tho. And I will see how my scalp does over the next few days. I was thinking maybe to alternate with WO for more conditioning. Time will tell...

[Ophidian]

Melikai, your hair looks great!

vpatt, your green tea wash sounds very refreshing. I've used it as a rinse before and really liked it.

Pardon my cross-posting from the experiments pass or fail thread, but I had to share: I made a rinse by cold-infusing marshmallow and slippery elm in water and used it to condition my hair after a rye wash. The results were incredible--hair feels so soft and moisturized (it's been feeling a bit dry lately), and my waves are perfectly clumped. I know a lot of people use this combination as a leave-in detangler but I was very pleased with the results I got using it as a rinse-out. I applied from roots to tips, left it on for about 10 minutes, and then rinsed.

For the rye wash itself I took Reyn's advice and did as much of a scalp-only wash with it as I can with APL hair. I did two loose english braids and applied the wash with an applicator bottle (which I usually do), holding the braids out of the way as I massaged it in. Then I held them out away from my head as I rinsed to keep it from running down the length. This seems to have worked well because I didn't have any flakes when my hair dried. It also minimized manipulation of the length (what little I have anyway) during rinsing since I didn't have to finger comb under running water like I usually do to get the bits out of my length.