First time S&D on curly hair.... Help.

[Marbid]

I'm a bit overwhelmed. I want to do S&D on my hair, but it is really curly. I read online that a way to do it is to section your hair into 4 sections and inspect the ends of each section evenly. I cant inspect my ends like that, they don't stand on the same path, they curl every which way. I don't think I can just crab one curl, twist it, inspect the end of that one curl. That's a lot of hair to twist tiny curls into. It will take for ever.

Does any one have any tips for me on how to S&D on thick curly hair? I feel a tad bit overwhelmed. The only thing I can think of is to gather tiny bits of hair, twist them and inspect the ends that stick out. Any more hair than just a few would hide the ends. But that is very overwhelming.

Is there any advice that could make me feel less overwhelmed? Or is it a just-get-used-to-it kinda thing?

[teddygirl]

I feel overwhelmed as well. I've never done my whole head s+d, it takes me half an hour to do a square inch of hair, it seems to take forever.

[Marbid]

I know exactly what you mean. I just can't fathom how some people here will do check all of their hair like this. It would take me two days of sitting on a chair looking over all of my hair. Especially for a first time. What with all those splits. I mean, after the first time I would think it would take less time because it is just maintenance. But The first time, with all of your hair, and all of those ends. Especially in frizzy curly hair. It really is overwhelming. I almost don't want to do it. But I want to cut my hair even less.

[DarkCurls]

I've done it curl by curl (not twisting, just literally taking one curl and inspecting it, snipping off the ends). I never did it in one sitting; usually it took me a couple days, starting on one side of my head and working around.
A method I like and which may suit you better, is braiding the hair and inspecting the ends. Unfortunately, it means you really only see the longest ends (plus a few splits that poke up along the braid), but it's faster and easier.
One thing that's really important during S&D is the lighting. The right lighting makes it so much easier.

I'm too lazy to S&D regularly, but I have done it. And, because it may matter: my hair is 3a, ii thickness.

[Redhead Rebel]

It can be a bit of a mission, my hair is only 2c/3a and ii thickness. I braided my hair into around 8 plaits and inspected the ends. Whe I did a self trim i did the same and just cut a cm off the end of each plait.

[CurlyCap]

I do curl by curl as well.

I just pick a general section of my scalp to work on and inspect the ends of the curls in that portion of my scalp. It does take several days this way, but I've also found that I can spread it out over a month or so if I need to. It's a maintenance sort of activity, so there's no rush.

It's the sort of thing I do while I wait for a DVD to start up or I'm just too lazy to be proactive about anything else.

I will say, though, that if I'm looking at my ends and can see multiple splits per curl or bunch of curls, I just decide it's time to mini-trim. Then I take a curl and cut 1/2" off the end, being sure to cut perpendicular to the spiral itself. It's simpler and probably due if I'm seeing that kind of splitting/knots.

[Sharysa]

My hair's barely wavy, but I can't understand how it would take half an hour for you to inspect one lock of hair. My hair is coarse with a nearly 4-inch ponytail, and it still only takes me a couple of hours to do my whole head.

Are you sure that you're able to tell the difference between splits and normal hair? I got pretty freaked out my first time trimming splits when I saw dozens of strands sticking out of the twist, but then I realized that the majority of the strands had nice, healthy blunt ends and not tapered or split/crooked ones.

So now I just keep my split-end trimming to about past my nape, because most of the hair above my nape is still healthy.

[Marbid]

My hair's barely wavy, but I can't understand how it would take half an hour for you to inspect one lock of hair. My hair is coarse with a nearly 4-inch ponytail, and it still only takes me a couple of hours to do my whole head.

Are you sure that you're able to tell the difference between splits and normal hair? I got pretty freaked out my first time trimming splits when I saw dozens of strands sticking out of the twist, but then I realized that the majority of the strands had nice, healthy blunt ends and not tapered or split/crooked ones.

So now I just keep my split-end trimming to about past my nape, because most of the hair above my nape is still healthy.

I can tell the difference between split ends and not split ends. With me the thing is, I have a lot of split ends a poking out hair. And to add to it, I am slow and careful not to cut the ends that are healthy. And i am awkward with it as well, I need two hands to hold the hair in front of my eyes so that I can see splits. And then I need to let go of the hair to cut the split, in which case, I loose the split among all the other sticking out curly ends. I'm just awkward about it and not used to it at all. So I'm slow. I don't know how you can do all of your hair within a couple of hours only, I can't imagine it.

But if I think of it as an ongoing maintenance thing instead of something that must be done in one day, then I feel a little less overwhelmed. When I think of it as a habit to develop. Or something to do while listening to audio books or something. So I guess I have to view S&D differently.

[Jenny31557]

If you search on YouTube about how to s+d your hair, you'll find some really great techniques that you can use. That should make it easier for you. :)

[Sharysa]

I can tell the difference between split ends and not split ends. With me the thing is, I have a lot of split ends a poking out hair. And to add to it, I am slow and careful not to cut the ends that are healthy. And i am awkward with it as well, I need two hands to hold the hair in front of my eyes so that I can see splits. And then I need to let go of the hair to cut the split, in which case, I loose the split among all the other sticking out curly ends. I'm just awkward about it and not used to it at all. So I'm slow. I don't know how you can do all of your hair within a couple of hours only, I can't imagine it.

It seems I go faster than some people in spite of all my hair because a lot of people here seem hyper-focused on cutting ONLY THE HAIRS THAT ARE SPLIT. But my splits tend to clump together a few at a time, so I just... aim for that general area, and if a few extra hairs get trimmed as well, that's no big deal for me.


But if I think of it as an ongoing maintenance thing instead of something that must be done in one day, then I feel a little less overwhelmed. When I think of it as a habit to develop. Or something to do while listening to audio books or something. So I guess I have to view S&D differently.

Well, if you want to do your split-end trimming regularly instead of every month like I do, then you can do that. Like, instead of trying to do all your hair at once, you can just do half your hair every week or so. There's no set rule for trimming your split ends--it's your hair and your schedule.

As for trying to see splits easier, a lot of people do their split-end trimming against a contrasting background. For example, I trim my splits in the bathroom because not only do I just have to rinse the tub off at the end, my hair is black and shows up REALLY well against the white bathtub and walls.

[Leeloo]

I'm a bit overwhelmed. I want to do S&D on my hair, but it is really curly. I read online that a way to do it is to section your hair into 4 sections and inspect the ends of each section evenly. I cant inspect my ends like that, they don't stand on the same path, they curl every which way. I don't think I can just crab one curl, twist it, inspect the end of that one curl. That's a lot of hair to twist tiny curls into. It will take for ever.

Does any one have any tips for me on how to S&D on thick curly hair? I feel a tad bit overwhelmed. The only thing I can think of is to gather tiny bits of hair, twist them and inspect the ends that stick out. Any more hair than just a few would hide the ends. But that is very overwhelming.

Is there any advice that could make me feel less overwhelmed? Or is it a just-get-used-to-it kinda thing?

You could do sections at a time, like one day you'd do the left front side, the next time you S&D you could do the next section.

[aksown]

I just do a little bit at a time while I sit at the computer each day. A little bit, every day and I manage to stay ahead of the majority of the splits.

[LAG93]

And i am awkward with it as well, I need two hands to hold the hair in front of my eyes so that I can see splits. And then I need to let go of the hair to cut the split, in which case, I loose the split among all the other sticking out curly ends. I'm just awkward about it and not used to it at all. So I'm slow.

I just did my first s&d today! It was hard...I didn't do well and I was the same as you with the awkward hand thing. I've got straight hair, and I still found it super hard! I'll probably do it again tomorrow to get what I missed....cause I had a lot of splits! Like almost every strand...maybe a trim instead?

[spirals]

The only parts I can reach are my very ends, which are thinned (purposely). If I brush it out and hold the ends up in front of the patio door, I can see splits easily. If I see one, I take hold of that hair, drop the rest, and pick up the shears and snip it. It takes a while, but I don't have many bad ones.

[QMacrocarpa]

I find tiny self-trims (http://feyeselftrim.livejournal.com/) twice a year more compatible with my sanity. Sure, trimming the ends won't get any of my splits that aren't at the ends, but a tiny trim still makes a big difference in how my (curly, split- and breakage-prone) hair behaves, and I can live with some splits as long as they're kept down to a dull roar. Skipping s&d saves me a ton of time, aggravation, and eye-strain, since this way I spend probably 10 minutes per year cutting my hair.

[Marbid]

ah. I also do the tiny trim twice a year. But I am trying to not trim. So I will do S&D. With some practice I'm sure I'll get faster and better at it. And once this first time is over, it becomes just maintenance and It will take much less time.

Thank you for all your help guys. I don't feel overwhelmed anymore. I find that I am only aiming to cut the ends that are split. But I will do s&d over time. That way I do not feel any rush to finish it all of in one day. It will just be like something I do a little of, every couple of days to maintain my hair.

I find that I can see my ends much better when I contrasts with the black of the computer keyboard with the dinning room light hitting it. My ends are much lighter than the light brown of the rest of my hair. So they contrasts well with dark surfaces. I just vacuum the computer afterwards. lol.

I also find that mini braiding my hair is much easier than twisting it. If I let go of the hair to kill a split, the braid stays and I just return to search for more splits.

All that is left is the awkwardness of my hands. But that will go away once I get used to seek and destroy. :)

[Marbid]

Well let me just say that I edited the glitch. but I could not find a way to delete it. So this is still better than a duplicate. Its bothering me ok.

[Marbid]

ooo my bad, Computer glitch. I'm sorry.. I can't edit it myself. But i'm sure some one will delete the extra one. :eek:

[spirals]

I do microtrims, too. I'm talking 1/16 inch off the very longest ends.

[PamelaViktoria]

I find that if I just keep up with the canopy, where most of my damage is, it's pretty good. And I haven't cut my hair in 4 months