What should I do for my ends?

[cdonald2]

I Noticed that my ends tend to get dry much quicker than most peoples. This prompts me to want to get more frequent trims, is there something that I can put on my ends to moisturize them? I know oils seal in moisture, but what would be a good moisturizer for the ends of my hair so they won't continue to be dry?

[ExpectoPatronum]

Do you use leave in conditioner?

I'll use that, or water, then seal it in with a light layer of oil.

I've also had luck with adding some leave in conditioner (I imagine you could use rinse out conditioner too) to a spray bottle of water and spritzing my ends with that before using an oil too.

The leave in I use is Kinky Curly Knot Today.

[YvetteVarie]

I normally use a leave in conditioner when I feel my ends are drying out and top that off with an oil. So maybe try a leave in conditioner, and see how it goes.

[Marika]

I recommend a leave-in conditioner too. If you're cone-free, Alba Botanica leave-in is my favourite. I also like Desert Essence Coconut Hair Lotion.

If you use cones, there are so many leave-in conditioners to choose from. I like Redken Extreme Anti-Snap even though it's quite expensive.

And of course you can try using your normal conditioner (maybe diluted) as a leave-in but it's not the same thing IMHO.

[Madora]

A drop or two of mineral oil (baby oil). Moisten your hair first so it is damp. Then apply 2 drops of the MO to your fingers and palms, rub them together, then swipe the ends of your slightly damp hair between your hands. Repeat several times until the sheen disappears from your hands. MO is very lightweight and shampoos out easily.

[Carolyn]

I like Aveda Damage Remedy leave in for my ends. Oils tend to leave my hair coated and "tacky" feeling if I don't wash them out everyday. Oils also attract dust to my hair.

[Nadine <3]

I like the LOC method of sealing moisture in. I use a very tiny pea sized amount of conditioner after my shower (I smush it into the ends while still in the shower) then I follow that up with a tiny tiny amount of coconut/olive oil mixture to seal it in. I'm on day three after a wash and my ends are not dry and I haven't had to add anything to them at all, they stay nice until the next wash.

[sarahthegemini]

Definitely try a leave in conditioner.

Eta: You don't need to purchase one marketed as a leave in, that's just a marketing gimmick. Try out your regular rinse out as a LI.

[cdonald2]

Thanks everyone :) ill update on how it goes

[Sparklylady82]

My ends sound crunchy when I squeeze the ends when dry. I know I have some damadge though...they feel so bristly :-(

[Anje]

I don't like how my hair feels with anything more than a little oil left in. Leave ins just seem to make my hair feel sticky for some reason. So what works for me is to do a deep conditioning treatment, then to the rinsed hair with a touch of oil.

Most recent thing that worked for me was an SMT with a bit of dark soy sauce mixed in for a little hydrolyzed protein for my ends. (I usually stay protein-free because it builds up easily on me, but a smidgen in an occasional treatment doesn't anger my hair.) My clarified but not-quite-smooth ends came out silky and happy.

(It is worth starting with clarified hair. If you have buildup, that can cause all kinds of unhappy ends and even prevent treatments from adsorbing.)

[hairpleasegrow]

Have you tried cat nip rinses? SInce i cut out cones and started with cat nip rinses my hair seems less dry at the ends.

[Ambystoma]

(It is worth starting with clarified hair. If you have buildup, that can cause all kinds of unhappy ends and even prevent treatments from adsorbing.)

This x1000! My hair, the ends especially gets quite dry and floofy feeling if I don't clarify/chelate on a regular basis (every 2 weeks for me) and I found that the more moisture I tried to put into it i.e CO washing, deep treatments, oiling etc the worse it got. Nowadays as long as I stay consistent with keeping it build up free, my ends are silky and happy without any special attention.

[cdonald2]

The conditioner worked like a charm, but I do definitely think I need to clarify a little bit more often. I usually do it once a month, but I think once every two weeks might work better for me :-) thank you for the advice everyone

[queenovnight]

You should give this a shot too: Pour some conditioner into a bowl (about the amount you would add to the length of your hair) and heat it up for a few second. Just until it's warm. Add about 1/2tbs of oil (coconut, olive, whatever you use) and mix well. Leave that on the length of your hair for 30min-1hr. I do this when my ends feel dry and it works like a charm. - I use VO5 Salon Series conditioner.

[lapushka]

As Nadine mentioned before, try the LOC method for sealing in moisture. It does your ends the world of good. The link to the LOC method is in my signature. Remember less is more. You don't need to use much product, on the contrary!