Static Be Gone! Winter horror land.

[WaitingSoLong]

Ok so I can start out with static free, moisturized hair, but after an hour of being out and about, the static comes and it HATES ME AND MY HAIR. My only solution, really, is to NEVER EVER WEAR MY HAIR LOOSE IN WINTER. Even in a braid, it will static out and look like a pine tree.

Moisture is key, I know, but it just doesn't stand the test of time (like...one hour of time). Not this season, when the humidity is so low it will not register on my digital hygrometer.

Anyway, my weapons of choice are my ionic hair dryer (only I don't dry my hair all the time, however I can still blow it on my already-dry hair from arms length to de-static-ify it), my wood comb (no static build up) and my spritz AVG or sleek serum (temporary moisture infusion). None of these have lasting effects. The old dryer-sheet trick also only lasts minutes. So I googled it and found THIS PAGE (http://nymag.com/thecut/2013/01/best-winter-static-fighters-for-baby-fine-hair.html).

At the bottom of the article is a recommended product. Does anyone use it or recommend it? Is this another hopeless venture?

I know static and hair has been discussed at length (pun intended) before but what works LONG TERM? I mean, I can go out for a whole evening and not have to fight the static monster?

[shutterpillar]

I am interested in seeing responses. I wish I had some advice for you, but unfortunately winter hates my hair also. :undecided

[ravenreed]

Do you run humidifiers in your home? The moment I start getting static, I know the humidity is too low and I check to see if mine ran out. I don't notice static when out and about, so I can't really help there. I would take a look at the fibers you are wearing. A trick I read about is if you have a piece of clothing that gets static cling, to put a safety pin in the hem so it discharges. Perhaps your clothing is building up static and it's affecting your hair?

[Amygirl8]

I am so with you.
It's fine at home, but the school is kept so dry that there's no way I can wear my hair loose. It's much worse than before oddly, so I guess it's dryer in the school now.
Either way it's not possible. Not with a hairdryer, not with my diluted conditioner water-spritz which works great to reduce frizz, nada.
I'm also intrigued in the final product. Getting rid of static is something I'd definitely pay for.

[RileyJane]

I noticed that, too. my hair HATES winter. i just plan to wear my hair up everyday, but olive oil/ coconut oil really helps hydrate my hair and keep that frizz at a min, if i ever take my hair down for whatever reason... when i scrunch my hair i noticed it doesnt get as frizzy, but i do it very delicately.

[MotherConfessor]

Curls? What curls? Its winter - I have a puff. I would be willing to give the argan oil or the kendi bamboo stuff a shot. Of course, I know it's a toss up since my hair is not her hair, but it might be worth it if you can get it through some place that will take it back if it does not work. Plus I would make a point of taking some pictures of standard, through the day, frizz and compare them to the results with the product, just to remove the placebo effect. Cause, if they work, and that 30 dollar price tag gets you a good bit, then it is worth every penny. But 30 smackers is a lot to pay for a product that that is just going to become bathroom clutter.

[WaitingSoLong]

Do you run humidifiers in your home? The moment I start getting static, I know the humidity is too low and I check to see if mine ran out. I don't notice static when out and about, so I can't really help there. I would take a look at the fibers you are wearing. A trick I read about is if you have a piece of clothing that gets static cling, to put a safety pin in the hem so it discharges. Perhaps your clothing is building up static and it's affecting your hair?

Huh. No humidifiers. We, honestly, cannot afford to. We have two wood stoves and the air is as dry as physically possible. NO amount of humidifiers help and the electricity it sucks up running completely negates the reason we have wood stoves! We get our wood VERY cheap and save thousands in electricity burning wood in winter.

We have these kettles made to go on wood stoves but they boil over, even with a trivet. Water on hot iron stove= cracked stove.

However, I don't wear my hair down at home...ever...so it is when I am out and about it matters anyway.

I try to wear fibers that are low-friction...but in winter I am super limited. My coat is made of one thing, my shirt another, but there are always jeans on the bottom.

I like your safety pin idea...but WHERE does it discharge TO? I am always tapping something grounded to de-static-ify myself (like you do before pumping gas). I am sure the vehicle itself causes issues. Let me see what my shirt and coat are made of: shirt is polyester and rayon, coat is polyester shell, I could not find a label for what the lining is made of but it is faux fur of some kind.

Being "discharged" does not help my hair static. I wonder if having a dryer sheet in your pocket would help?

I used to have a "static spray" made for clothing. It is ionized I guess, you spray it on and your clothes stop clinging (think skirts and pantyhose). It worked, but SMELLS AWFUL and I DID spray it in my hair a couple times and it had NO EFFECT. I finally threw it out.

[neko_kawaii]

How about a big pot instead of the kettles? My mom always kept the big stock pot on our wood stove. No ideas about static, sorry.

[WaitingSoLong]

Hmm. A big pot. I am not sure I could find one that would withstand the heat of a wood stove. It would have to be cast iron, too.

ETA: I have resorted to boiling water on the stove (gas stove) which works ok...for the kitchen.

[neko_kawaii]

Hum, I lived with wood stoves as a kid, so I don't know the technical details but I have the pot my mom kept on our stove and it is just stainless steel.

[ravenreed]

In recent years I have found some rather large cast iron kettles and skillets at the thrift store from time to time. I would start hunting there. If not, even just leaving pots of water out to evaporate should help.


Hmm. A big pot. I am not sure I could find one that would withstand the heat of a wood stove. It would have to be cast iron, too.

ETA: I have resorted to boiling water on the stove (gas stove) which works ok...for the kitchen.

[ravenreed]

ETA: Duplicate post from internet hiccup. Sorry!

[Chromis]

*snip*

However, I don't wear my hair down at home...ever...so it is when I am out and about it matters anyway.

I try to wear fibers that are low-friction...but in winter I am super limited. My coat is made of one thing, my shirt another, but there are always jeans on the bottom.

I like your safety pin idea...but WHERE does it discharge TO? I am always tapping something grounded to de-static-ify myself (like you do before pumping gas). I am sure the vehicle itself causes issues. Let me see what my shirt and coat are made of: shirt is polyester and rayon, coat is polyester shell, I could not find a label for what the lining is made of but it is faux fur of some kind.

Being "discharged" does not help my hair static. I wonder if having a dryer sheet in your pocket would help?

I used to have a "static spray" made for clothing. It is ionized I guess, you spray it on and your clothes stop clinging (think skirts and pantyhose). It worked, but SMELLS AWFUL and I DID spray it in my hair a couple times and it had NO EFFECT. I finally threw it out.

Oh man, I never try wearing my hair down outside in winter! What a mess that would be what with scarves and toques and coat collars, plus what about chilly cold winter wind? I'd be a mess of tangles even without static trouble and I'd have my hair wrapped around my glasses and in my mouth and well...it just wouldn't be pretty. I had the same sort of trouble even back at bsl too. It gets cold where you are doesn't it?

[Kayla Nyx]

i have no advice for the static, also battling it here. but i seconds the boiling water. My DBF's father does this and it helps so much. I love going to his house. I usually just battle on and wear my hair up for the winter ): Since its starting to mat up on the underlayer

[spirals]

I don't get static--is that a straight hair thing?--but my hair gets really dry and my velcro ends get even worse. My solution is to go the way it wants to go. It's curly, but in winter dryness it wants to be straight, so I oil it and brush it out. I do run a pot of water on the stove, but when I go out it is subject to the dryness, so I try to go with it. I'm not sure wht to tell a "straightie," though. Maybe a teeny bit of glycerin and oil would do it?

[tigereye]

I'm afraid I can't help. My hair loves winter, but I get problems in summer (I just kind of deal with it now - just like I use sunscreen from the moment the sun first appears properly in the sky to the time next winter when it disappears again, I slather my hair in moisture, put it up, and stick a hat on top). I don't get the static (dryness in scotland? It rains way to much for that - my hygrometer is stupid high at the moment, even if my skin is parched from all the wind and rain) but I get the frizz in summer. My hair is around a 1c, and I only ever had it straightened once before I decided it was too static-y to deal with after a day in the (pathetic by most peoples standards) scottish sun. I rub a little aloe-vera between my palms and smooth it over the top of my head, and keep the rest in a bun pretty much all the time, but if your place is that dry, I'm not sure tht would make any difference really.
Sorry I can't help

[WaitingSoLong]

I don't get static--is that a straight hair thing?--but my hair gets really dry and my velcro ends get even worse. My solution is to go the way it wants to go. It's curly, but in winter dryness it wants to be straight, so I oil it and brush it out. I do run a pot of water on the stove, but when I go out it is subject to the dryness, so I try to go with it. I'm not sure wht to tell a "straightie," though. Maybe a teeny bit of glycerin and oil would do it?

Not even a whole lot helps. LOL. I have glycerine rose water, which I adore. But I don't oil my hair when it is loose. It is just a grease clump then.


As for the boiling water/wood stove...please understand that 1. The top of the stove can get well over 600ºF 2. The top has to be opened and closed frequently to load it with wood, requiring anything ON it to be moved...constantly... 3. When the water DOES actually boil, it boils dry in about 15 minutes, requiring constant filling. On our older wood stove we actually managed to boil a few kettles when the coals were not as hot but I may as well pull up a chair and sit to babysit the thing. Not very practical at all. Basically, it could help for a few minutes but that is it. Open the front door once and POOF, start over.

Maybe having water available to evaporate just setting around...but even the water my potted plants seem to be evaporating super-slow...two weeks later the soil is still moist. Not sure what it up with that.

Anyway, the point was about wearing hair down out anyway, so I have gotten off track. sorry.

[WaitingSoLong]

P.S. If you didn't read the article in the OP, it starts out with a scientific explanation of static in hair.

[browneyedsusan]

When I grew up, my parents heated the house with a woodstove. Ours had a flat top--the wood went in the front--and Mom kept a pot of water on top of the thing in the winter. The house was still dry. I can't think of anything different than the previous posters, other than filling the crockpot and plugging it in in the living room? You could also put a couple of inches in the bathtub, kitchen sink and leave the toilet lid up? Leave the bathroom door open when you shower and don't use the fan? Mist the curtains? I doubt it will help much, though. Those woodstoves suck the moisture right out of the air. If we get any warm weather, open your place up. I think it's the heated air that's causing the trouble.

[bunzfan]

So thats why i have major static i wondered if its the central heating:ponder:

[browneyedsusan]

So thats why i have major static i wondered if its the central heating:ponder:

I think that's the root cause of the trouble. There's some squirrely magic that happens with central heating that dries out the air, so even if I go from the house to the grocery, I'm still dealing with it. (Some buildings are worse than others, lots of things affect air quality.) That's just the nature of the beast. WSL's hair has got to be driving her berserk, because woodstoves are super-drying. We'll just wait a little bit. In a few months, it will be so humid here in the Midwest that we'll barely remember the dry winter!

[longNred]

we supplement our heat w/ a wood stove too. I used to keep a vessel of water on top, when we had a front load stove. I've used ceramic, cast iron, and steel. The ceramic eventually got build up from the mineral deposits from our well water, and looked gross. tossed that. a cast iron dutch oven would work well (i found mine at a flea market) or a well loved small roasting pan - mine has a ridiculous amount of build up on it, I don't cook w/ it anymore. I use this sometimes and toss in citrus peels. smells lovely. we use the top load door of our stove mostly, so I don't usually keep water on it.

re: the static... usually along w/ the static I find i'm using hand lotion ALOT. so after I use lotion, and it's just about rubbed in, I run my hands over my hair. not alot of lotion gets on my hair, but just enough to cut the static. I almost always have a small bottle of hand lotion in my purse, so I do this frequently when out and about w/ my hair down.

[Seeshami]

I use water all the time. If I wear my hair down I will go to the bathroom just to wash my hands and use some of the water to clam down The Naughty Mess. I have also found John Frieda's repair oil absorbs into my hair lightning fast so in the mornings I use that. And if absolute worst comes to worst I will spray The Naughty Mess bad kitty style with a water, essential oil mix that my Beer Soap lady gave me that she calls Monster Spray. The label has worn off though so I can't tell you what it's made from:( I know it is citrus, lavender and chamomile oils though.

[bunzfan]

I think that's the root cause of the trouble. There's some squirrely magic that happens with central heating that dries out the air, so even if I go from the house to the grocery, I'm still dealing with it. (Some buildings are worse than others, lots of things affect air quality.) That's just the nature of the beast. WSL's hair has got to be driving her berserk, because woodstoves are super-drying. We'll just wait a little bit. In a few months, it will be so humid here in the Midwest that we'll barely remember the dry winter!

Thanks for replying :D here is north of England its wet,wind, and very cold so the heating is right up, in a month or two spring sunshine should be here :pray:

[teela1978]

Seeshami's constant dampening is what I did when living in colder/drier climates. Every bathroom trip I'd pat some water on the length, and often if it was getting bad I'd lotion up my hands and try to get a little bit on my length of that too. It was less about a single product that would fix it and more about maintaining the moisture in there to keep it from zapping me.

[Naiadryade]

I'm not sure what to do about static outside, but definitely put a pot of water on your stove... or at least next to it, if it's too much of a pain to move it to load wood. I've lived with wood heat for a while, and we use big cast iron pots that are dedicated solely to that purpose, as they get rusty. There are always 2-3 pots on top of the stove. Yes, you do need to refill them multiple times a day, because that's how much moisture wood-heated air can suck up and still be relatively dry! But if you stay on top of it, it can really make a difference. I wouldn't use a kettle as they are designed to boil faster by keeping the heat in, and as you said you definitely don't want it to boil over. Pots with water rarely boil on top of our stove, they just get hot and misty. And yeah, as I said, even if they would be in the way on top of the stove, just put them right next to it. They'll still get hot enough to evaporate a good bit of moisture into the air.

[arcane]

As for wearing your hair down, try to avoid polyester, the only time I get static is when I wear polyester. Though hard with your winter coat being made of it, try wearing a cotton top for when you wear it down inside. It may help, though your hair will probably still be staticy because of the wood stoves.

[Nique1202]

I use about a nickel-sized dollop (I'm between shoulder and APL, adjust accordingly?) of regular conditioner and a couple of drops of coconut oil mixed together as leave-in conditioner, and it keeps my static mostly at bay without making it too greasy. My hair and skin get very dry in the winter, so I had static from October to April until I started using regular conditioner generously as leave-in for those months especially.

[jacqueline101]

I used to take a dryer sheet and rub it over my hair it worked.

[WaitingSoLong]

re: the static... usually along w/ the static I find i'm using hand lotion ALOT. so after I use lotion, and it's just about rubbed in, I run my hands over my hair. not alot of lotion gets on my hair, but just enough to cut the static. I almost always have a small bottle of hand lotion in my purse, so I do this frequently when out and about w/ my hair down.


LOL I have done this! Lotion in my hair? I think I have tried everything in my hair LOL

The wardrobe issue may be a lot of it for me. I think ALL my shirts are polyester. Since I am not affording a new wardrobe, I think I am out of luck. I do have a leather coat, but I still think the (non-removable) lining is polyester!

Ya know, there is something else...whenever we all go someplace, I always get the shock when we get out of the car...even if I am the last person out! Dh suggested my shoes, but I wear different ones and even with my tennis shoes...I still get it. Except...when we take HIS car....HE always gets it. How weird is that LOL! Maybe it is the driver? Hmmm.....

Hmm, pot NEXT to stove. But I would have to elevate it. You could keep butter UNDER the stove and it would never melt. Our stove sits about 10" off the hearth. What to put it on....

Still...I would need a pot of steamy water in every room to solve this. We heat exclusively with wood. If it gets super cold, we just light up the second one. We have regular heat (central) but only use it when we cannot be home to feed the stove or if we will actually be away.

Of course my skin suffers, too (from dryness, not static LOL) and I have long wished for some practical way to humidify my house. I pretty much gave up but it sure makes me look forward to the RAIN when everyone else whines about it! And we are expecting RAIN tomorrow night!

[Nini]

I was gonna suggest limestone, but since you can't keep anything on the stove that's a moot point.

My hair has been surprisingly calm for a few years now. I think it got better when I started using Urtekram shampoo that's SLS-free. It also gets worse when I don't wear indoor shoes. But your problem was outdoors so...

Try migrating over to cotton whenever you're upgrading your wardrobe. That'll definitely help! You could try an item or two if you come across a garage sale or the Salvation Army for instance:)

[swearnsue]

There was a huge thread on here a few months ago about using baby oil on you hair after shampooing. When your hair is still wet/damp you take a few drops of baby oil and scrunch it onto the ends.

Something about mineral oil is antistatic.

Look for Madora's post about it, she did an experiment and gives a detailed step by step procedure for using baby oil to stop static.

[ravenreed]

Do you have a crockpot? If so, what about filling it up with water and letting it go all day without the lid? Just don't add cold water when it is hot or you will crack the pot, and don't let it run dry.


LOL I have done this! Lotion in my hair? I think I have tried everything in my hair LOL

The wardrobe issue may be a lot of it for me. I think ALL my shirts are polyester. Since I am not affording a new wardrobe, I think I am out of luck. I do have a leather coat, but I still think the (non-removable) lining is polyester!

Ya know, there is something else...whenever we all go someplace, I always get the shock when we get out of the car...even if I am the last person out! Dh suggested my shoes, but I wear different ones and even with my tennis shoes...I still get it. Except...when we take HIS car....HE always gets it. How weird is that LOL! Maybe it is the driver? Hmmm.....

Hmm, pot NEXT to stove. But I would have to elevate it. You could keep butter UNDER the stove and it would never melt. Our stove sits about 10" off the hearth. What to put it on....

Still...I would need a pot of steamy water in every room to solve this. We heat exclusively with wood. If it gets super cold, we just light up the second one. We have regular heat (central) but only use it when we cannot be home to feed the stove or if we will actually be away.

Of course my skin suffers, too (from dryness, not static LOL) and I have long wished for some practical way to humidify my house. I pretty much gave up but it sure makes me look forward to the RAIN when everyone else whines about it! And we are expecting RAIN tomorrow night!

[kallarina]

We had a wood burning stove in my parents' house growing up. They always kept a regular old cooking pot on top filled about half way with water. It always worked really well.

As for the static. My mother and sister are both fine/straighties. They LOVE Matrix's Biolage Smoothing Shine Milk spray. You should be able to get it at most salons that sell Matrix products (I know you live in the same area as me, so it shouldn't be a problem to find). It's the only thing that works for static with my mom without making her hair greasy. It makes your hair super smooth and soft, but it does have cones in it, not sure if that would be a problem or not. We have used it in my house for years and years. It's our favorite. If it works for my mom and sister, you should have some degree of success with it, being that you are of similar hair type to them.
Let me know if you try it!

[Majala]

For me oiling my hair before washing and using a silicone comb has made all the difference.

[jojo]

I used to have terrible static in my hair but i never get it any more, i am getting more medium hairs coming through opposed to baby fine hairs maybe this is why? I also have oil one very day so maybe its to weighed down to react?

[WaitingSoLong]

We had a wood burning stove in my parents' house growing up. They always kept a regular old cooking pot on top filled about half way with water. It always worked really well.

As for the static. My mother and sister are both fine/straighties. They LOVE Matrix's Biolage Smoothing Shine Milk spray. You should be able to get it at most salons that sell Matrix products (I know you live in the same area as me, so it shouldn't be a problem to find). It's the only thing that works for static with my mom without making her hair greasy. It makes your hair super smooth and soft, but it does have cones in it, not sure if that would be a problem or not. We have used it in my house for years and years. It's our favorite. If it works for my mom and sister, you should have some degree of success with it, being that you are of similar hair type to them.
Let me know if you try it!

I may try this! I will let you know. Hey we should get together sometime...

[jeanniet]

We have a wood stove, but since our winters are rainy and cool I actually want to dry the air out a little, lol. Indoor humidity is not a problem in the winter here unless there's a drought. However, we do have dry summers and that's often when my hair needs additional moisture. Damp bunning overnight is always a big help. Your hair doesn't have to be super wet, just misted well. It always feels much better in the morning. It might not last very long for you, but it would be worth a try to do some experimenting to see if it helps.

[Khiwanean]

I used to have a problem with static when I was younger. It hasn't bothered me for years now, except for one time a couple weeks ago when I showered at DBF's place. There was absolutedly no conditioner to be had, so I used just shampoo. This might not have been so bad, but I usually CO, so it was a huge difference for my hair. And then, because I forgot the brush I usually use, I had to make do with a plastic comb for detangling once it was dry. I could not touch much of anything without getting zapped and my hair was literally floating outwards trying cling to everything. So now I'd rather not shower and have slightly greasy hair than use only shampoo. shudder:

[kallarina]

I may try this! I will let you know. Hey we should get together sometime...

Yes, absolutely!!

[jojo]

Thanks for replying :D here is north of England its wet,wind, and very cold so the heating is right up, in a month or two spring sunshine should be here :pray:

I am in the North West same here humidifiers have helped with my hair and skin

[katiebeans]

In the past, I have always had the worst static issue with my hair during the winter. I had never really found a solution. Smoothing a dryer sheet over my hair helped some, but that was weird. It wasn't until I saw this thread that I realized my hair has not experienced any static this winter. I am pretty sure it is because I stopped using commercial shampoo and conditioner. I hope all you ladies putting up with static-y hair find a solution though :)

[Seeshami]

So I took Mommy to Sally's for something for her ends and I picked up argan oil for The Naughty Mess. It has only been one day but it has help a ton with my static and knots.

[hanne jensen]

I'm a very electric person. Now that the air is so dry, I shock a lot of people. My poor doggie and kitty get shocked every time they want petting. I get shocked by my steel sink. To control static in my hair I lightly oil my hair every day with coconut oil and wear my hair up. If you have medium to coarse hair you can get away with olive oil on your hair.

Some people can't stand close to me in the winter or they'll get a shock. Hubby gets a free light show if I take my clothing off in the dark. There are sparks everywhere. Doggie and kitty run for their lives...

[Tomoyo]

This is possibly a silly question, but: My hair always feels greasier and "flatter" in winter. Why is this? Is my scalp producing more sebum in winter because there isn't a lot of moisture in the air? Or is it just an illusion, essentially, caused by static?

Whatever it is, by February I'm over having "winter hair". Bring on summer, and let it have a bit of body again!

[WaitingSoLong]

Tomoyo, I have greasy hair in winter, too. I am guessing the reason you stated is why. There have been threads about it somewhere so we are not alone.

Yesterday I saw another long hair and her hair was EVERYWHERE with static.

I mostly wear my hair "naked" (no oils, serums) with just the cones from my conditioner on it. I will slather serum on it to wear it up but my hair does not look right loose with ANY oils, no matter how lightly applied. My hair hates oils I guess.