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Thread: Using Coconut Oil and straightening Irons?

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    Member Jenny.Wren's Avatar
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    Default Using Coconut Oil and straightening Irons?

    Today I applied coconut oil to my towel dried hair and then dryed my hair with my dryer (diffuser) and was really pleased (I was a tad cynical thinking I'd have greasy hair). Anyway, I feel this will be great when I want to leave my hair au natural with the curls but sometimes I like to use my straightening irons.

    If I use a heat protection spray can I iron away - I'm not sure of the implications with oil in my hair?

    Does anyone else have this combo or perhaps I should use conventional products with the the irons?


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    New Member MelodyGabrielle's Avatar
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    Default Re: Using Coconut Oil and straightening Irons?

    I would be a little wary of oil and too much heat. I don't know exactly what it would do but heating up oils do change them chemically so it might not be good. I read once on a site that it might be like "cooking" your hair although I don't know why it would be more like cooking than adding heat to your hair in general

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    Member Jenny.Wren's Avatar
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    Default Re: Using Coconut Oil and straightening Irons?

    hmm, that's interesting about the oil changing chemically. Perhaps someone with knowledge about this will be along later....


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    Member Fractalsofhair's Avatar
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    Default Re: Using Coconut Oil and straightening Irons?

    You generally need cones if you're going to heat style your hair. If you have undamaged resilient hair, oiling after and before might be enough to stave off a lot of the damage, but generally cones seal the hair and hide damage, making it healthier looking(Since flat irons aren't good for your hair. In my experience, and I can say it takes some effort for enough of my hair to break off to notice, but heat styling does that to me!). The biggest issue with oiling and heat is that some oils might smoke and smell off at the 400 or so degrees of a flat iron. Hot oil treatments are very beneficial to your hair, but they only get to like 150-200 degrees as opposed to the 400 or so of a flat iron. You'll definitely want to oil AFTER you've flat ironed, but I would suggest a coney serum for when you're actually doing the heat styling.

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    Member Jenny.Wren's Avatar
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    Default Re: Using Coconut Oil and straightening Irons?

    Quote Originally Posted by Fractalsofhair View Post
    You generally need cones if you're going to heat style your hair. If you have undamaged resilient hair, oiling after and before might be enough to stave off a lot of the damage, but generally cones seal the hair and hide damage, making it healthier looking(Since flat irons aren't good for your hair. In my experience, and I can say it takes some effort for enough of my hair to break off to notice, but heat styling does that to me!). The biggest issue with oiling and heat is that some oils might smoke and smell off at the 400 or so degrees of a flat iron. Hot oil treatments are very beneficial to your hair, but they only get to like 150-200 degrees as opposed to the 400 or so of a flat iron. You'll definitely want to oil AFTER you've flat ironed, but I would suggest a coney serum for when you're actually doing the heat styling.
    ok, thanks for that. Perhaps I should just use the oil when I know I wont be using straight irons.

    I'm assuming it's ok to dry my hair using the hairdryer (with diffuser attachment) when coconut oil is applied - or are we talking about absolutely no heat with oil?


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    Member Fractalsofhair's Avatar
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    Default Re: Using Coconut Oil and straightening Irons?

    Jenny Wren, depends on the heat of the blowdryer. I do do hot oil treatments where I massively over oil with coconut oil and take a blowdryer to my hair to heat up the oil. I would suggest the cones for regular blowdrying, if it's on anything but the cold function. However, coconut oil can be used in addition to it. I'm not a big fan of what heat styling has done to my hair, (blowdrying my hair daily for one month, plus one gentle bleaching(didn't even lighten my color!) has caused 75% of it at the ends or more to break off, and my hair to go from shoulder length in parts to my chin.(In the front where the hair is more delicate.) This being said, I really don't think this amount of damage is normal for simple blowdrying and the maybe 10-20 volume peroxide bleach I used! I would definitely suggest using the coconut oil the day after you flat iron and at the end of the day when you're done blowdrying your hair, since it is said to prevent protein loss, and any sort of oil will help protect your hair and coconut oil penetrates the hairshaft, thus healing your hair to some degree.(Yes, hair is dead and can't really be healed.) I'm really not the best person to ask for help with heat styling, since my hair reacts sooo poorly to it(whenever my aunt has tried to straighten it, chunks just break/burn off. I have very thick hair so it's not a big deal, but still...). If you blowdry to prevent frizz, the coconut oil does a wonderful job with that!

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    Member Honey39's Avatar
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    Default Re: Using Coconut Oil and straightening Irons?

    I wouldn't straighten with oil on your hair - I am vaguelyremembering that 200 degree straightners boil any water/oil in your hair and cause the hair shaft to explode...there are some horrible pictures of this somewhere around.

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    Default Re: Using Coconut Oil and straightening Irons?

    Quote Originally Posted by Honey39 View Post
    I wouldn't straighten with oil on your hair - I am vaguelyremembering that 200 degree straightners boil any water/oil in your hair and cause the hair shaft to explode...there are some horrible pictures of this somewhere around.


    Courtesy of Nightshade's "Damaged Hair: Understanding, Preventing & Rehabilitating" article.

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    Jumi of Moonstone GlassEyes's Avatar
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    Default Re: Using Coconut Oil and straightening Irons?

    Actually, oil and silicone accomplish pretty much the same job when using heat. They basically slick up the hair shaft to make it smoother/make straightening easier.

    The misconception with silicones are that people ACTUALLY think they protect from heat. Nope. What they really do is make straightening easier by filling in the cuticle and sealing it in. That means that damage is still done, but it looks nicer. Oil does much the same job, though to a less scientifc/plastic degree.

    Really, and keep in mind that I thought that heat-protectants would help my hair when I straightened (though I knew there'd be damage anyway), if they could really protect from 500 degree bars of heated metal, we'd be using them to protect firemen. Which we aren't.

    That said, a palmful of olive oil used to be the only thing that could get and keep my hair straight with cones.
    (Lord Caswallawn of the Crushing Blow in the Order of Longhaired Knights)

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    Member Jenny.Wren's Avatar
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    Default Re: Using Coconut Oil and straightening Irons?

    Quote Originally Posted by Fractalsofhair View Post
    Jenny Wren, depends on the heat of the blowdryer. I do do hot oil treatments where I massively over oil with coconut oil and take a blowdryer to my hair to heat up the oil. I would suggest the cones for regular blowdrying, if it's on anything but the cold function. However, coconut oil can be used in addition to it. I'm not a big fan of what heat styling has done to my hair, (blowdrying my hair daily for one month, plus one gentle bleaching(didn't even lighten my color!) has caused 75% of it at the ends or more to break off, and my hair to go from shoulder length in parts to my chin.(In the front where the hair is more delicate.) This being said, I really don't think this amount of damage is normal for simple blowdrying and the maybe 10-20 volume peroxide bleach I used! I would definitely suggest using the coconut oil the day after you flat iron and at the end of the day when you're done blowdrying your hair, since it is said to prevent protein loss, and any sort of oil will help protect your hair and coconut oil penetrates the hairshaft, thus healing your hair to some degree.(Yes, hair is dead and can't really be healed.) I'm really not the best person to ask for help with heat styling, since my hair reacts sooo poorly to it(whenever my aunt has tried to straighten it, chunks just break/burn off. I have very thick hair so it's not a big deal, but still...). If you blowdry to prevent frizz, the coconut oil does a wonderful job with that!
    thanks for all your replies. At the very least I need to user the dryer with diffuser attachment as my hair would never dry if I left it dry naturally so I will continue with conventional products and save the coconut oil for scalp and pre-wash treatments and I will apply a little after I have styled my hair - I'm happy with this.

    On any odd occasion where I wont use heat (perhaps on holiday), then I will apply the oil and leave to dry.


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