search and destroy questions

[rrs]

When you s&d, do you only cut the true splits? Or do you also take the white dots? What about the bent ends? What if they are only a little bent and dry looking?

Thanks.

[höpönasu]

I cut all the bad ends. Maximum results. I do dustings about every 4 months and my hair has improved a lot so when I'm S&D'ing I rarely find big amounts of any bad ends. A person who has tons of bad ends S&D'ing can be quite painful.

[rrs]

Three reasons that I currently have some bad ends:

I haven't trimmed since Feb. I know I should, but I'm in a smaller city and can't seem to find any stylists who don't want to cut it into a bob and bleach it. I'm really new to longer hair, and I don't feel comfortable doing even a dusting myself.

I did a Joico kpak a few days ago. I could tell my hair needed it, but it does usually cause dryness for me. I only do one every couple of months or so. My hair appears to need protein sometimes but also be sensitive to it.

I'm growing out from a layered chin length bob, so lots of different lengths happening. I think my hair is actually type 1b. I did platinum highlights every two months for several years, but stopped doing that in February of this year. I'm still working on growing out some bleach damage.

Today I will clarify and do an Aussie 3mm and see if that helps the dry ends. I'm only at shoulder length, so I'm trying to baby it rather than cut it when possible.

[rrs]

Thank you for the reply. Do you do your dustings yourself or do you go to a stylist? I'm really new to this hair stuff and and don't know if I'd feel comfortable doing a dusting. I have all kinds of layers growing out that I'm just not sure how to handle.

[jrmviola]

What i do for S&D is this: There is a long white counter in my bathroom and I have dark hair. I use that as my backdrop, usually just get up on the counter. Because my eyes are so poor, i do this early in the morning or mid day, not in the evening. If I can open the window and blinds and let light in then that is better too.

1. section hair in whatever manner pleases you. Some twist their hair, i dont.
2. take a 1/2" or so section and fan the ends out in your fingers like holding a hand of cards. then
3. Cut all the obviously split ends. I dont ever seem to get white ends (maybe due to my conditioner?) but when i did in the past i trim those also.
4. start one side to the next and go until you run out of time. I dont actually ever get done...
5. Use the correct hair scissors. Im not the best to tell you which ones are good but i've seen a thread here somewhere that deals with it...

Hope this helps:D

[jacqueline101]

I did white dots, splits, and bent ends.

[martyna_22]

Actual splits, the ones that begin to split and bent with that white dot showing that hair is going to break off soon. And the really tapered and repeatedly bent ones.

[Sharysa]

Once a month I do the "twist sections of hair" method to trim every type of split-end I can find, just to be safe. If the ends aren't blunt and smooth, I cut them.

However, I do make sure not to trim too far above the nape of my neck. If I tried to trim ALL of my hair, I'd go crazy.

[cosmic crusader]

I trim bent ends. It's helped me a lot, since I started including them I hardly get actual splits.

[MeowScat]

Any ends that look questionable, I snip off. White dots are frayed ends, like a rope. They can lead to huge splits and are very noticeable in sunlight.

Have you experimented with different oils? Your hair might love it.

[höpönasu]

I dust myself. Part hair in two, put other one to a ponytail,and for the loose section: take small sections and dust the very ends. Then I pin dusted section to other side. When I'm finished I put the dusted side to a ponytail and let the other loose and repeat. I think I suck at explaining. :doh:

[rrs]

Any ends that look questionable, I snip off. White dots are frayed ends, like a rope. They can lead to huge splits and are very noticeable in sunlight.

Have you experimented with different oils? Your hair might love it.

Yes, I do use camelia or olive oil at bedtime once or twice a week. It does help. I have to be careful to oil lightly and wash it out the next day because my hair is so fine and thin.

I have more splits than normal right now because of the protein treatment. I will stay away from all protein products fir the next couple of weeks. In the past, this has helped bring it closer to normal.

[Brileeka]

I cut absolutely every hair that has damage about a half an inch above the damage.

[Natalia]

I admit I don't S&D nearly as often as I should but I take off splits, white dots, severely bent ends, and occasionally fairy knots if they were bad enough to create a permanent kink.

[BlazingHeart]

Do you follow your protein treatments with a moisture treatment, rrs? Most people find that helps keep their hair happier than doing just the protein, since it can be quite drying.

I only take off actual splits. I've never found white dots, and even when my ends are very badly bent indeed, they tend to recover. I do have very tough hair, though, so I'm not saying I'd recommend my course of action to anyone else!

[CurlMonster]

I trim in sunlight on a black backdrop. I have found black helps me to spot damage as the damaged ends tend to show up lighter than the healthy ends- perhaps that is why others don't see white ends?
I trim all splits, white dots, bent ends, and ends that look thinner (like they were a split end and one side of the split has come off). I often start by searching for damage on my braid after a day of wearing. Often the little bits that work their way out of the braid have splits. Then I will take out the braid and start working in sections until I run out of time or am satisfied with how many splits I've trimmed. It would never be possible to get all of them, so I just do a bit and hope that it makes a difference. I also dust the ends when they start to feel rough and tangly even after a thorough session of S&D.

[Emanuelle]

I cut all type of bad ends. Splits, knots, etc.

[Taenarian]

Every split end mentioned above gets the snip, plus any (rare) last 1 cm that looks like stupid brother broke my Slinky.

[AmyBeth]

I will snip all damage, white dots, splits or bent ends. My hair is so fragile that any damage is only going to get worse. Don't be afraid to dust your own ends. You know what you want better than any hairdresser, and you can trust yourself, you really can! At any rate, when you are only dusting, in the highly unlikely event that you mess up, it won't be noticeable anyway!:)

[Cherry*Tree]

I rarely S&D.

[FuzzyBlackWaves]

Splits, white dots, bent ones that look like they've disconnected a bit from the rest of the strand, one strand knots.

[Garnetgem]

I tend to S&D from time to time i do the bent and weak looking ends as well as the splits,i sit near a lamp and i can spot them clearly,as a result my hair gets less tangled i feel i should do it more often than i actually do..

[Chocowalnut]

I'm glad you asked this question, I've been wondering the same thing. I didn't know if I should trim white dots that are like 1/2 inch from the end of the strand or not. It seems a lot of people here do.

[Amode]

I can't really even try this yet. MY hair is too short to reach in front of my face so I could properly see the ends. (Doing it via mirror is impossible and frustrating.)

[MsPharaohMoan]

What i do for S&D is this: There is a long white counter in my bathroom and I have dark hair. I use that as my backdrop, usually just get up on the counter. Because my eyes are so poor, i do this early in the morning or mid day, not in the evening. If I can open the window and blinds and let light in then that is better too.

1. section hair in whatever manner pleases you. Some twist their hair, i dont.
2. take a 1/2" or so section and fan the ends out in your fingers like holding a hand of cards. then
3. Cut all the obviously split ends. I dont ever seem to get white ends (maybe due to my conditioner?) but when i did in the past i trim those also.
4. start one side to the next and go until you run out of time. I dont actually ever get done...
5. Use the correct hair scissors. Im not the best to tell you which ones are good but i've seen a thread here somewhere that deals with it...

Hope this helps:D

For the record I think the reason this member couldn't find white dots was because she looked at her hair against a white background. Regardless of what color your hair is damage looks white. Using a black background contrasts with the white damaged parts.

[lapis_lazuli]

Just be careful when cutting off white dots! You may be cutting off an end with a piece of dust on it, mistaking it for damage. I always run my fingers along the strand before cutting to be sure :)

[Olavi]

I cut everything that looks damaged (split, white dot, bent, just generally damaged looking). And I admit, I cut very roughly, sometimes cutting centimeter or two and few non-damaged ends with damaged ones.