Why does hair "separate" into sections..

**Heidi_234** · October 2nd, 2009, 11:34 AM

Originally Posted by Anje

Plomping (maybe it's plopping?) is a method you sometimes see described where you basically let your hair dry in a pile, rather than hanging loose. One method is to just lower your wet hair onto a T-shirt, then somehow bundle that around your head so that the hair dries in that compressed shape. Piling it on your pillow while you sleep and it dries works too, but my usual, semi-accidental method is just to let it dry loose in my sleeping bonnet (tres sexy!). I get much stronger waves in the morning.

It's plopping.
And here's a visual aid.

**rhubarbarin** · October 2nd, 2009, 11:35 AM

Okay, I have to confess I don't understand this thread.

The only hair I have ever seen, straight, wavy, curly, that doesn't hang in 'chunks' or defined sections is on tv, or has been combed/brushed in the last 5 minutes.

As far as I was ever aware, this is the nature of human hair. ???

**florenonite** · October 2nd, 2009, 12:28 PM

Originally Posted by rhubarbarin

Okay, I have to confess I don't understand this thread.

The only hair I have ever seen, straight, wavy, curly, that doesn't hang in 'chunks' or defined sections is on tv, or has been combed/brushed in the last 5 minutes.

As far as I was ever aware, this is the nature of human hair. ???

I know a lot of straighties whose hair, while not a single sheet by any means, is far less stringy than mine. Their hair probably looks like a lot of the pictures I post here, even if it's not been brushed recently. These pictures, of course, show my hair at its best, and I often get more defined sections that I don't like because it does look stringy.

**MsBubbles** · October 2nd, 2009, 03:33 PM

Originally Posted by rhubarbarin

Okay, I have to confess I don't understand this thread.

The only hair I have ever seen, straight, wavy, curly, that doesn't hang in 'chunks' or defined sections is on tv, or has been combed/brushed in the last 5 minutes.

As far as I was ever aware, this is the nature of human hair. ???

I have seen many people with BSL or longer length hair that hung together like a smooth sheet for hours. All of them had straight hair. Now that I think about it, some of them blowdried their hair straight every day (the ones that were my friends). The common factor with these lucky ladies was that they had a lot of hair - not necessarily coarse hair, but a lot of it. (I have thought about this a lot!).

**Syaoransbear** · October 2nd, 2009, 03:50 PM

I thought hair separated when it was healthy. That's usually how I spot healthy hair in the first place. Most of the people I know that have hair hanging as one blow dry/straighten/dye/abuse their hair.

I thought it was because a healthy cuticle will fit like a puzzle piece right next to the cuticle of the hair beside it if the cuticle is nice and flat, but if the cuticle is damaged it will be raised, so the damaged cuticle of one hair won't 'fit' with the hairs around it. If all the hairs are doing that, it ends up making one 'sheet' of hair instead of pieces that fit with each other.

I dunno

**freznow** · October 2nd, 2009, 04:11 PM

For me, it depends on what I wash with. I used to get it a lot when I used ACV rinses - no idea why that made my hair stringy. Now, with eggs for washing and catnip for conditioning, I tend not to have that problem.

On the plus side, fine-straight-stringy hair is a common type for fairies and elves, methinks. And it doesn't look half bad when you're rocking the braid or bun waves.

**florenonite** · October 3rd, 2009, 03:09 AM

Originally Posted by freznow

For me, it depends on what I wash with. I used to get it a lot when I used ACV rinses - no idea why that made my hair stringy. Now, with eggs for washing and catnip for conditioning, I tend not to have that problem.

On the plus side, fine-straight-stringy hair is a common type for fairies and elves, methinks. And it doesn't look half bad when you're rocking the braid or bun waves.

ACV rinses made my hair stringy, too; I think it was because they made it greasy. I don't think I was using too much, either, it was no more than 1T in a pint of water.

**amoulixes** · October 3rd, 2009, 06:07 PM

This used to bother me too, but the longer my hair gets, the more I like it. The reason for this is that (as one poster mentioned) somehow I developed waves that look much better in "chunks." Now I just need to learn to handle the frizz...The hardest day for me is the day I wash my hair because it doesn't tend to chunk nicely. The second day though? I'm lovin' the chunks! Ha, that sounds so strange! Embrace the chunks!

**MsBubbles** · October 3rd, 2009, 07:37 PM

Originally Posted by Syaoransbear

I thought hair separated when it was healthy. That's usually how I spot healthy hair in the first place. Most of the people I know that have hair hanging as one blow dry/straighten/dye/abuse their hair.

I thought it was because a healthy cuticle will fit like a puzzle piece right next to the cuticle of the hair beside it if the cuticle is nice and flat, but if the cuticle is damaged it will be raised, so the damaged cuticle of one hair won't 'fit' with the hairs around it. If all the hairs are doing that, it ends up making one 'sheet' of hair instead of pieces that fit with each other.

I dunno

What you're describing doesn't describe what I'm thinking of. I'm not talking about matted hair. I'm talking about individuals hairs that are fine and silky and when they swing, they all swing together. Hah that sounds funny.

. They all slide individually but together, creating the image of a smooth, flowing veil. This is very healthy-looking hair. I have never seen dyed/abused hair hanging together in the way I have described. So I guess in return, I don't understand what you mean, either! (not saying you're wrong, just trying to explain what I meant)

ETA: The friends of mine who blow dried their hair - their hair was still healthy-looking. It was BSL max and trimmed.

**Paliele** · October 3rd, 2009, 10:46 PM

My hair definitely does the chunky thing. I think that may be one reason the "real world" doesn't see super-long hair as a positive--when it's down it clumps together, and they assume it's "ratty" or "unkempt". When in reality, it's just what hair does. My solution is to put mine up!