I fell off the wagon :(

[Nesoi]

After a year of sulfate and 'cone-free washing, no products except coconut oil and aloe gel, and air-drying, I have strayed from the path of righteousness. I'm away with a very 'glossy' family member this weekend who always looks so gorgeous and groomed. I was seduced by her array of shiny bottles and potions, and have ended up washing with sulfates, conditioning with cones, spraying a load of chemicals on my head and blow-drying on high heat with a bristly brush.

Of course all these things are absolutely fine if they work for your hair - and they do for the cousin in question, who has chin-length, fine hair that is regularly highlighted - but they do NOT work for my wavy, wurly, thick, sensitive mop! My hair feels so stiff and tangly and horrible and solid, somehow. I've put it up with spin pins and it looks fine but it feels like Lego hair. I hate it. Can't wait to get home tomorrow and clarify, deep condition, oil and air dry!!

Has anyone else done something stupid to their hair even when they KNOW better? I have nobody to blame but myself ;)

[Radiant]

Has anyone else done something stupid to their hair even when they KNOW better? I have nobody to blame but myself ;)

Yep, I sure have. Last summer I cut 10" off my hair on impulse. Hadn't planned it, but just woke up one morning and decided to go get my hair cut. Regretted it almost immediately. Figure it'll take me 2 years to get back the length. I'm about half way there now. It'll be OK, I'm sure you can clarify as you've said and get the products all out of your hair. After all, if we didn't make mistakes we'd never learn much.

[ErinLeigh]

I cut and bleached 2 weeks ago. I knew I didn't want to grow until I removed all the keratin but deciding to bleach was a major surprise.
I had darkened my hair with intent of growing out more natural..but after a week of people asking me if I was sick, depressed, gaining weight, upset or tired I got frustrated and told my stylist "make me blond" without thinking it thru at all.

Off the wagon for sure.

[jacqueline101]

I fell of the wagon today I forgot to shampoo and condition before I done my cholesterol and deep conditioning treatment. Damien had me shook up today. I'm hoping my hair turns out alright.

[lapushka]

It's the reverse for me. I do have to have my hair washed with harsh sulfates (because of SD; to keep it at bay). If I dare go CO or sulfate-free, it wreaks havoc on my scalp. My hair gets oilier super fast as well, which in turn exacerbates the SD.

So no my experimenting days are over. ;)

[meteor]

Yes and no. I haven't felt like that about using the wrong kinds of products. I think unless the product is extremely alkaline or acidic, it probably won't destroy my hair.
I have certainly felt like I fell off the wagon with cuts: my hair invariably looked better before than after the cut, and I always got a lot more cut off than what I asked.
Also, it was very hard to stop highlighting, and I fell off the wagon a couple times in the past. I think bleach is a highly addictive substance! :lol:

[leilani]

I agree. 16 years on the highlighting merry go round. I'm finally off and my mom is freaking out at the thought of my having dark hair as a bride next month since I've been blonde since I was a baby.

[truepeacenik]

I have a 2-5 minute mask that I use roughly weekly. Meaning if I remember.
Last night I washed, put it in....and promptly forgot it wasn't an overnight.
Crispy dry hair, especially the ends, that needed shea nut butter after I rinsed it all out.

That said, the upper 2/3 is rather nice.

My other big goof up is when traveling. I know that the Bay Area routine almost works on LA. But not in Colorado, or NYC, or Chicago.
So I wind up getting some packet of rescue crap.

I now have two pre packed tins, one with a poo bar and conditioner bar that works in high humidity, and one for the desert.

Traveling does teach me that minimal works. I'm really playing when I'm experimenting at home.

(That said, I'm thinking about honey shampoo. Knowing it is a humidity option only.)

[chen bao jun]

Nesoi, hope your hair is fine now.
doesn't sound like you did any real harm.
If someone wants to change up their routine, or even regularly do things that LHC does not recommend, well, its your hair. Enjoy the change!
Meteor and Leilani, if you like to be blonde, why not take a read over on the Bottle Blonde grows long thread?
http://forums.longhaircommunity.com/showthread.php?t=21256

[restless]

Has anyone else done something stupid to their hair even when they KNOW better? I have nobody to blame but myself ;)

Yeah, this weekend was rough on my hair... I was out dancing and having fun while wearing my hair loose. I do wear my hair loose on an almost daily basis so thats nothing uncommon, but Im very careful with how I handle it and try to make sure it doesnt get stuck/rubbed/ripped. It usually works just fine and it has taken me to almost-BCL. Thing is, the dance floor was crowded so it kept getting stuck on people as they danced by. On top of it all, it kept getting stuck in my necklace as well. So yes, my hair has had better weekends... but I had a great time and Im sure my hair will be back on track after some pampering so its all well :)

[RainbowBowser]

I fell off the wagon because my wash schedule got messed up due to the use of hairspray when styling my hair. I knew what I was doing, I knew the crispy effects that would come with it. And now I have to wash my hair tomorrow morning, I hate only having 2 days in between washes when I can easily go 4, my record is 6.
I'm currently repenting with an SMT pre-wash treatment overnight.

[DancingQueen]

I blow-dried and straightened my hair thursday night, so it would be easier to manage while out. As an added bonus, I discovered it reaches BSL when straightened! :disco: Now I just have to wait for full BSL.. unfortunately, I am due for a haircut pretty soon. :(

I don't really regret it, because it looked awesome the first few days, although yesterday, it had started to get really flat. So I am missing my curly hair a bit right now :)

[Nesoi]

Well, I'm glad to hear it's not just me!! Sometimes I feel like everyone here is a paragon of hair virtue but it turns out there are a few hair skeletons lurking in the closet after all ;)

I'm determined to learn some braiding techniques so that I can look fancier/more groomed without resorting to things I know my hair doesn't like. My hair is too short for buns (apart from sock and vague-cinna) but is long enough to french braid. I just need to practice!

[Jing]

Has anyone else done something stupid to their hair even when they KNOW better? I have nobody to blame but myself ;)

Yeah, I keep trying new organic sulfate-free shampoos and cone-free conditioners in the vain hope of finding one that works for my hair, despite the fact that every single one I've tried so far has left my hair feeling horrible, stringy and gunky (not to mention the itchy scalp!). -_- I don't know if it's the local water or what, but eugh. I can't seem to rinse out cone-free conditioners no matter how long I stand under the shower for or how little I use. At least I have coconut oil for comfort. :(

[HintOfMint]

Falling off the wagon for me means forgetting to tie up my hair for bed. I had tangles this morning I wouldn't wish on my worst enemy.

[meteor]

Well, I'm glad to hear it's not just me!! Sometimes I feel like everyone here is a paragon of hair virtue but it turns out there are a few hair skeletons lurking in the closet after all ;)

I'm determined to learn some braiding techniques so that I can look fancier/more groomed without resorting to things I know my hair doesn't like. My hair is too short for buns (apart from sock and vague-cinna) but is long enough to french braid. I just need to practice!
If you want to wear updos, your hair is long enough for things like French twist, peacock twist and Gibson tuck. And they can't be done on longer hair.... I wish I'd known about them when my hair was shorter.