Wurly and Curly thread!!!

[Hollyfire3]

I wash every day by one method or another. It's the only way to actually keep moisture in my hair because I have very little, and very thick, sebum that doesn't travel down the hair shaft at all, and my hair doesn't take moisture at all well when it's dry.

Mostly, I CWC, but if my scalp doesn't need washing, I'll just skip the wash stage and condition. Occasionally, I S&C with a mild shampoo if I'm starting to get some build up.

My hair's short at the moment, and I probably won't grow beyond the point of it being practical to wash daily.

I am planning to grow my hair out to about HL maybe longer and it is about BSL right now so soon, especially with my thick hair, it will become very impractical to dry naturally so i want to eventually only wash every 5 or maybe more days.I might try CWC if CO washing fails to work. My hair can't decide if it needs protein or moisture and i think it hates me very much, even though i keep trying to make it happy, oh well...

[QueenMadge]

I CO wash probably two times per week. Once every week and a half or so I use very dilute shampoo and do a scalp wash. My hair tends to lose moisture quickly and if I wash or wet it more frequently it gets really really dry and fuzzy and loses curl definition.

I also have a hard time finding a CO conditioner that does not irritate my scalp and cause itchies. I am experimenting with natural conditioners like honey and molasses to try and remedy that.

[Hollyfire3]

I CO wash probably two times per week. Once every week and a half or so I use very dilute shampoo and do a scalp wash. My hair tends to lose moisture quickly and if I wash or wet it more frequently it gets really really dry and fuzzy and loses curl definition.

I also have a hard time finding a CO conditioner that does not irritate my scalp and cause itchies. I am experimenting with natural conditioners like honey and molasses to try and remedy that.

Molasses is great, i used it twice in an SMT and gave my hair great shine and softness, it also seemed to darken my hair a bit, so steer clear if you have light hair (mine is dark brown). The fuzzy and no curl definition part sounds like my hair, but all the moisture i add to it just makes it striaghter...wierd...

[Alibran]

I am planning to grow my hair out to about HL maybe longer and it is about BSL right now so soon, especially with my thick hair, it will become very impractical to dry naturally so i want to eventually only wash every 5 or maybe more days.

That's my problem. It's so thick that it takes all day to dry at hip length, but I've never found a way of stretching washes without it becoming a frizzy, dry mess. That's a lot of the reason why it ended up short again - because I just couldn't manage it. This time, I'm just going to take it really slowly and make sure I can look after it properly at the length it's at before I grow it any longer. I now know from experience that it doesn't get easier as it gets longer!

[Hollyfire3]

That's my problem. It's so thick that it takes all day to dry at hip length, but I've never found a way of stretching washes without it becoming a frizzy, dry mess. That's a lot of the reason why it ended up short again - because I just couldn't manage it. This time, I'm just going to take it really slowly and make sure I can look after it properly at the length it's at before I grow it any longer. I now know from experience that it doesn't get easier as it gets longer!

That sucks, and i know exactly what you mean, i try to stretch washes (except for now because i just can't STAND this crap my hair is putting me through now, so it gets washed daily in hopes of coaxing it into looking better...i'll get back to you on that one, this might take a while, lol) ,my hair takes 3 solid hours to dry in a small room with a large ceiling fan, if i go to bed with wet hair, i am forced to blow dry in the morning. i am only at BSL and worried my hair will take forever to dry at my goal length, no i know it will take forever, but if that is the least of all problems i have with my hair, i will deal with it lol, if i ever get there that is, Good luck growing out and managing your hair, i know how hard it can be.

[C.H.]

I am at tailbone now and drying is quite an ordeal.

I have found that if I just spend some extra time squeezing out water over the tub that I get drier faster (it is still 12-16 hours if I have to put it up damp).

I just stay leaning over the tub and squeegee my scalp with my hands, working the water down through the ends and squeeze the ends between my fingers. I repeat this 7 or 8 times over 5 min or so until I can't squeeze anything more. Then I turban and leave it for a good 15 minutes - sometimes flipping the towel around to put the drier end at the scalp.

By this time it is at a damp stage that is manageable where I can sit and let it fall without drips.

Yes, my hair is a little past tailbone now, and air drying is basically an overnight deal. I do a CG process in the evening, then plop overnight into a huge satin scarf. It's still damp the next morning, but is finally dry by about 11 a.m. If it weren't overnight, I'd basically have to wash and everything first thing in the morning, and then it would be dry around bedtime and what would be the point of that?

Anyway, given how long it takes to dry I'm just not willing to do it that often, so I had to find a way to make the curls work for 5-7 days. I just hate spending entire days of my life with wet, transitional hair. Because I feel that my hair looks odd and overly defined the day it dries and looks much better when the curls have softened up a bit the next day. So it's not really until 36-48 hours after the initial wash that I think my hair actually looks good. If I had to then start all over? No. That sh*t needs to last for a while.

[Quixii]

I'm just super lazy/benign neglect about drying. I squeeze out water with towel after I first get out of the shower. After a minute or so it'll start dripping again, and I either keep patting it dry or ignore it. I throw it up in a ponytail to get it out of my face while it dries. I ignore it. It eventually either dries and looks good or dries and looks okay. Usually I shower at night so it does more of its drying while I'm sleeping.
I've just recently discovered that if I put it up in a cinnabun while it is still very wet (not damp, but dripping wet), I can leave it up for however many hours, and then when I take it down, it will still be slightly damp but will finish drying in about ten minutes and will have less frizz.
But honestly, unless I have an event, I'm not really watching how my hair looks or how it's drying.

[sycamoreboutiqu]

Your hair is gorgeous and so thick!! Off topic.....have you tried oil shampoo or do you just cowash?

Thanks.

I have tried the oil shampoo and really liked the results. I didn't like the feel of it wet however and it was nearly impossible to detangle when anything less than saturated in water so I would have to go to bed with semi-tangled wet hair.

The next day however it felt completely different, fairly smooth - after it got combed out.

I think I have some pics in my album of the oil shampoo results. My hair really formed some ropes, but they felt rough so it wasn't too much fun.

I guess it just ended up being too many extra steps/hours to get about the same results as CO and using leave-ins and oils afterwards.

Right now though the scalp issues are coming back - so I may switch around and do a CWC or try an oil shampoo again for a change.

[sycamoreboutiqu]

Does it still curl naturally after 15 minutes in a towel turban? I find that my ends don't curl nicely if I leave them in the towel for too long -- but then I think my hair is less curly than yours to start with, and the curl is easily discouraged. Even contact with my body while drying will leave some parts of the length in an annoying state that's neither curly nor straight, and even if it dries nicely curly one pass with the comb will leave it in a fluffy semi-straight condition that's good only for putting in an updo!

Yes, same here. It only looks kind of curly / fairly wavy if I air dry without any manipulation at all after coming out of the towel. Finger combing or anything makes the canopy instantly go smoother while the underneath layers are like a washboard - super ripply but not really curly.

So yes, I usually put it up too because that half-way wavy look to some people just looks messy and I don't feel like hearing anyone's opinion on that subject

[Kelikea]

I noticed that there is a lot of talk about using towel turban, even for a few minutes, then ends are too dry, but length isn't. Does anyone just use a water spray bottle or palm full of water to remedy that? I've always had a water spray bottle to add moisture to my hair, either in the "drying" process or in the styling process. I know it seems counter-productive to add water during drying time, but it can help even out the moisture in the ends/length so that it dries more evenly. It is also a great tool for 2nd or 3rd day waves, rather than jumping back in the shower, it can refresh your hair.