Tangle help please?! Need a routine to keep away knots!

[Leslieslsa]

I have thick hair about bcl. It is somewhat layered at the ends because of an old set of bangs and the fact I have grown it from a mans haircut. So it grew in in layers. But anyways yesterday I left my side braid in for 24 hours and was in the shower detangling with detangles for a half hour! Is that normal? Some of it seemed like it matted. It's seems really healthy when it is properly combed and everything, but I can't seem to keep it detangled. I am no good at buns. Would it be better if I comb and rebrand it a few times a day? What should I do?

[Sharysa]

That's normal and it's definitely fine to rebraid your hair a couple of times a day--even braids have their limits, especially if you leave them in for a full day like you did.

[Madora]

Before you wet your hair, gently detangle it with a wide tooth comb.

To help cut down on tangles when shampooing, part your hair in the center so that it is in two sections. Try and keep both sides separate throughout the shampoo process and the rinsing out.

Also, when shampooing, shampoo in one direction at a time..that is, work slowly from your crown down to your neck. The less you manipulate your hair, the less chance of tangles.

As far as tangles when unbraiding a braid that hasn't been undone for a long period of time, just undo the braid and keep the 3 sections separate.
Work on ONE section to detangle it (always work from the ends up...a little at a time..until you reach the roots). Once one section has been detangled, clip it aside..or band it, to keep it from tangling again. Now work on the next section and untangle it. Finish with the last section.
Gently and slowly comb the length of your hair, then style.

I would definitely not suggest leaving your hair in a braid for long periods of time. Find the time to unbraid it and comb it out, then braid it again.

[Firefox7275]

Are you sure you are 1c and not a proper wavy in the 2s? Are you detangling after a thorough wet down/ rinse plus long soak in a slippy conditioner? Do you use a silk/ satin pillowcase or sleep cap?

I keep tangles down with ease (wear my hair wavy-curly and loose at BSL) with conditioner only washing and leave in conditioner that effectively 'reactivates' when put need the shower. Oils can substitute for leave in conditioner if you prefer. Build up and damage increase tangles.

[Leslieslsa]

Are you sure you are 1c and not a proper wavy in the 2s? Are you detangling after a thorough wet down/ rinse plus long soak in a slippy conditioner? Do you use a silk/ satin pillowcase or sleep cap?

I keep tangles down with ease (wear my hair wavy-curly and loose at BSL) with conditioner only washing and leave in conditioner that effectively 'reactivates' when put need the shower. Oils can substitute for leave in conditioner if you prefer. Build up and damage increase tangles.

I am pretty sure it is a 1c. I do use a satin pillowcase. I actually used my cone free conditioner to condition it last night and I did let it sit in my hair. I always condition twice. My hair is also down to my buttcrack so it is probably more prone to tangles than bsl.

[heidi w.]

I didn't read everyone's response. But I can tell you that Madora knows what she's talking about. I can also tell you my opinion.
Wear your hair in a bun or braid each and every day. Unbraid or unbun each night. THEN detangle with a wide tooth comb from the ends on up. THEN loosely braid your hair in pigtail braids for the night. THEN unbraid and rebraid in the morning. I recommend you likely need more conditioner when you wash your hair, and possibly also a detangle spray or some kind of detangling agent to help you detangle. Long hair ALWAYS tangles. I've only ever met one person with long hair that has no tangles. She has beautiful hair, and is a lovely woman.

AND I recommend you use a wide-tooth comb. I use an extra-wide wide tooth comb. My hair doesn't detangle with merely a wide-tooth comb; I need an extra-wide tooth comb. I bought mine from Madora in NY. It's the ivory colored one.

ALSO do not enter the shower with braided hair. Very unwise.
heidi w.

[Leslieslsa]

I actually own a horned comb, but am more apt to use my fingers than anything else.

[ErinLeigh]

are your tangles more at the bottom, nape or MB?

[Naiadryade]

I find that for some reason, for me side braids are a little more prone to tangling than other kinds of braids. Especially in the back of the head. :shrug: Something to consider/watch for.

Do you oil your hair? Have you experimented with different kinds of oils to see how your hair reacts? For me, extra virgin olive oil is a stellar anti-tangling agent. At BSL, it kept me virtually tangle-free all the time. At WL, I can't quite claim that anymore, but the tangles are still quite manageable and only really in the ends.

Other than that, good advice has already been given. But I do want to reiterate: always completely detangle your hair before getting it wet! Hair is much more fragile and easier to break when it is wet, than when it is dry.

Maybe even consider only detangling your hair when it is dry... this is definitely a YMMV thing (for example, most curlies can only really detangle when wet or it breaks up the curls), but personally my hair is easy to detangle when dry and oiled, and still not too bad when dry and naked, but if I try to detanlge when wet it just snaps a million times and snarls even more. If it is completely smothered beyond saturation in conditioner, it is possible... but I still lose a lot of hair to breakage and excess shedding. Not. Worth. It. I wait until it's dry, and just try to reduce tangling in the shower by using methods such as Madora described.

Finger combing is great, provided you are slow and gentle. Maybe consider getting a Tangle Teezer for those difficult knotty times.

[Leslieslsa]

I find that for some reason, for me side braids are a little more prone to tangling than other kinds of braids. Especially in the back of the head. :shrug: Something to consider/watch for.

Do you oil your hair? Have you experimented with different kinds of oils to see how your hair reacts? For me, extra virgin olive oil is a stellar anti-tangling agent. At BSL, it kept me virtually tangle-free all the time. At WL, I can't quite claim that anymore, but the tangles are still quite manageable and only really in the ends.



Other than that, good advice has already been given. But I do want to reiterate: always completely detangle your hair before getting it wet! Hair is much more fragile and easier to break when it is wet, than when it is dry.

Maybe even consider only detangling your hair when it is dry... this is definitely a YMMV thing (for example, most curlies can only really detangle when wet or it breaks up the curls), but personally my hair is easy to detangle when dry and oiled, and still not too bad when dry and naked, but if I try to detanlge when wet it just snaps a million times and snarls even more. If it is completely smothered beyond saturation in conditioner, it is possible... but I still lose a lot of hair to breakage and excess shedding. Not. Worth. It. I wait until it's dry, and just try to reduce tangling in the shower by using methods such as Madora described.

Finger combing is great, provided you are slow and gentle. Maybe consider getting a Tangle Teezer for those difficult knotty times.

I only detangled it in the shower so that I could let the conditioner sit on it for a while and then I slowly finger combed it. What about hair detangler? Is that good or bad? I know it makes your hair wet, but it is mean't to detangle it..


are your tangles more at the bottom, nape or MB?

It mostly tangles near my neck. Usually because I wear a coat and although I tuck my hair underneath it to keep it from getting too cold, I also wear a hat and the friction between the hat and the coat seems to knot it up. If that makes sense.

[meteor]

It mostly tangles near my neck. Usually because I wear a coat and although I tuck my hair underneath it to keep it from getting too cold, I also wear a hat and the friction between the hat and the coat seems to knot it up. If that makes sense.
Same here... I cover that hair with a silk scarf in cold seasons now and I don't let any scarves, hats touch my hair, unless I use some silk as a "buffer". It works!

Another thing that really helps with tangles is making sure your conditioner is very, very runny - you can even do mermaid soaks in conditioner + water (+honey/aloe/oils/ACV, if you like). This really helps distribute conditioner better and helps avoid losing too much hair while spreading sticky conditioner around.

And I absolutely agree with all the good advice that was already given above on procedures for detangling and sectioning hair while washing.

[Ambystoma]

And I absolutely agree with all the good advice that was already given above on procedures for detangling and sectioning hair while washing.

Yup, me too. My ways of keeping tangles down that haven't been mentioned yet is when I step out of the shower I never flip it over to wrap the towel, I try and disturb it as little as possible by sort of folding the length up from the base of my neck and then bringing it over my head and folding the excess length gently away from there - I hope I've explained that in a way that makes sense :laugh: I find that if I change the "lie" of it once it's wet it's a little harder to sort out later, so I try and preserve the smooth clumping state that I get once I take my head out of the water stream.

The other biggie for me, definitely the most important factor, is to chelate/clarify on a regular basis, for my hair (not everyone is the same), build up is the number one cause of woe, and one problem I notice is increased tangliness the longer it's been since I last did it. Back when I tried to do CO, it could take me up to 15 minutes to detangle the lot at only waist length, but now that I stay on top of mineral/conditioner build up it takes me less than 1 minute even though it's 2" above tailbone now.

[Pierre]

I suggest you get good at at least one bun. You could try a braided bun. I braid my hair, then wind it into a spiral going inward, and clip it with a Flexi. It doesn't look round, but it stays up for days and keeps my hair from getting tangled.

[jacqueline101]

I've read Heidi w and madora advice I do agree with them except one thing you can do a braid instead of a bun up do of course choice is yours.