detangling questions for IN THE SHOWER

[mamaherrera]

Hey all again! At this again, as I can't sleep again. When you are all in the shower, how do you keep your hair off your body so that you can actually "shower"?? also, when you detangle (for those of you who do) do you turn the water off?? I find it takes me a long while if I do it gentle, and I feel bad for all that water?? But I feel so cold without it!! Also, I want to try detangling in sections. Do you all clip up hair in sections if you do it like that?? I have tried and then I feel like the clips on my wet hair could be damaging with the water weight and the weight of the clips. but you always see in movies, these women washing themselves with their hair clipped up and I know many people do clip their hair in sections, take each section down, detangle and put each section back up. A lot of work, but I was just wondering if those clips pull a lot on the hair, or how you all do it. Thanks so much!

[veryhairyfairy]

Well, on keeping hair off my body: If I'm not washing my hair, it stays in the stick-held bun it was in all day. If I AM washing my hairI use a couple of big claw clips and bun it up while it soaks in conditioner.
When I detangle in the shower I usually just do exactly what I do when I detangle outside of the shower. But sometimes I'll detangle while my conditioner is rinsing out under the water, and that has been super easy lately.

[spidermom]

I separate my hair so that half hangs over each shoulder while I'm washing my back areas with the shower brush, then let my hair hang down the back when I'm washing my front areas.

Detangling with conditioner is never hard. I do that with half my hair hanging over each shoulder, my back in the running water. I start at the bottom and comb through while working my way up.

Sometimes I wash and condition with my hair hanging toward my feet. Then my routine is a bit different. Still, even with combing all the hair this way, it's never hard to untangle with conditioner in my hair.

[Chromis]

If I'm not washing my hair, I put it up and plonk on a shower cap over it. Works great! You can get extra large versions that will fit over a bun. I had to mail-order my extra-extra large one, but the larger size from the drugstore worked pretty well until around tailbone.

I detangle before I shower and do not attempt to to detangle in the shower at all. Trying to comb my hair when it is wet is not a very good idea on my hair, but shower combing works great for others. It does seem to vary a lot by hairtype and every head of hair is different. I've never had any luck when trying to clip my hair up to section it either, horrible tangles!

I put my hair over one shoulder to wash the other side of my body, but it doesn't get in the way much. I also wash the length by putting it over one shoulder and then let it hang back normally to wash my scalp.

[Phexlyn]

I'm afraid I'm not going to be much help here... if I wash my hair in the shower, I just put it over one shoulder and that's it! Wash it, condition it, do whatever stuff I need to do in the shower, and rinse it out. I detangle before I get into the shower and once again when I'm out of it. In the meantime, my only concern is keeping my hair out of the BC ;) which is why I put it to the front. I have thin and fine hair, so it stays together in a single strand once it's wet.

[LadyLongLocks]

I put my hair up in big claw clips while conditioning or when I am showering without washing it. I don't detangle my hair in the shower anymore. I find with the coney conditioner I can detangle wet towel dried hair just fine.(towel dried as a reference, I actually use t-shirts that are softer)

[Madora]

I just stuff my hair in a shower cap then wash my body.

As far as detangling in the shower I always part my hair in two sections before getting it wet..and try and keep those 2 sectioms separate throughout the entire process. Not always successful, but I've found that the more you can control your hair, the less the chance for tangles.

As for the actual detangling itself, just be sure your hair is full of conditioner. Oh, you might want to fill the tub/shower with warm/hot water so you're not standing there freezing your tootsies off! Detangling properly takes time!

Now, working on one side of the hair at a time, take a SMALL, pencil sized thin section of your hair, and gently work up it, from the ends to the scalp.

Take another section of hair and do the same.

To keep the detangled sections free from the undetangled sections, tie with a scrunchie.
Continue to detangle until half of the hair has been detangled. Band all the detangled hair together with a scrunchie.

Repeat with other side of head.

Rinsing: Keep one side of detangled hair in the scrunchie while you rinse the other side of detangled hair

Finish with as cold a rinse as you can stand.

I wash in the head down position myself (more access to the hair that way) and use a shower jet attachment (hand held type).

I never use any pins or clips in my hair when conditioning/rinsing. Scrunchies are much more hair friendly! Hope this helps!

[JustPam]

I condition my hair with it hanging in front of me, then I twist it up and flip it over my head as if I were wrapping it in a towel, then clip at loosely the back with a small claw. My hair is still short enough that the end only just reaches my nape, but if you have longer hair you can just double back and use another/bigger clip. While it's up I wash my body and face then I let it down (still in front of me), wet it a bit more, finger comb out of the water, luckily for me that doesn't take too long so shower stays on, then I rinse, while still finger combing and massaging. I would section if my hair was thicker but I find it manageable enough just doing it all in one go.

[Madora]

I put my hair up in big claw clips while conditioning or when I am showering without washing it. I don't detangle my hair in the shower anymore. I find with the coney conditioner I can detangle wet towel dried hair just fine.(towel dried as a reference, I actually use t-shirts that are softer)

I'm dying of curiousity, LadyLongLocks..how many t-shirts does it take to towel dry all your wonderful hair?

[ARG]

I do a cinnabun on top of my head and keep it in place with claw clips. On hair washing day I use claw clips as I'm finishing my shower.

I don't detangle in the shower, I use coney products so its easy to detangle out of the shower.

[Anje]

I'm in the shower cap brigade. If I'm not washing my hair, it's bunned and often under a shower cap.

If I am washing my hair, I usually get it to the point where there's conditioner in it, then wind it around my hand and pull a plastic shower cap onto my head. That contains it well enough (until the elastic gets too dead, at least), so the conditioner won't get rinsed out and I can wash my body without my hair being in the way. Then I rinse off the soap, take down my hair and rinse it, and rinse out the shower cap so it's not slimy for next time.

I typically do not detangle in the shower, but if I did it would probably be after rinsing my body but before rinsing my hair. Can't really speak to the sectioning -- that's beyond my expertise.

[cathair]

I separate my hair so that half hangs over each shoulder while I'm washing my back areas with the shower brush, then let my hair hang down the back when I'm washing my front areas.

Detangling with conditioner is never hard. I do that with half my hair hanging over each shoulder, my back in the running water. I start at the bottom and comb through while working my way up.

Sometimes I wash and condition with my hair hanging toward my feet. Then my routine is a bit different. Still, even with combing all the hair this way, it's never hard to untangle with conditioner in my hair.

I do pretty much exactly this. By the time I have worked conditioner through my hair properly, pretty much all the tangles have fallen out anyway, then I just finger comb it a little bit. Once I have done that, it's about the only time it is ever completely tangleless.

It's definitely easier for me to wash my scalp properly when my hair is split in half. I also use a shower cap over a bun and lower the shower head to avoid my nape if I am not washing my hair.

[fiðrildi]

I don't waste water while I detangle. I wet my hair, (close the tap), part my hair in two, heavily moisturize with conditioner both sides, and then detangle gently with a wide wooden comb, starting at the ends.

When I'm just having a shower, I do a simple bun with a horn fork to keep the hair out of the way.

[battles]

Usually, I keep it bunned and under a shower cap if I'm not washing it. If I am, I put it up with an acrylic stick while I'm conditioning. I tend to leave an acrylic stick in the shower just for that purpose.

I don't shut the water off, but I could probably win a record for how quick my showers are.

[meteor]

I bun my hair and put a shower cap on top if I'm not washing my hair.

If I'm washing my hair, I slather conditioner and pile/cinnablob my hair on top of my head - it tends to slide down a lot during a shower, but it's OK.

I don't detangle in the shower because it would take way too long and I would freeze and waste a lot of water.

[DreamSheep]

I usually have my hair hanging down in front of me (I hate it sticking to my back, though it does give me neckache), either standing or crouching. I turn water off when applying shampoo and conditioner. I don't usually need to detangle much, but I do so with my fingers when applying the conditioner, and then when washing it out.

ETA: When I shower without washing my hair, I twist it up and put it into a showercap. I'm going to need a bigger one soon though :(

[Imalath]

I do not detangle my hair in the shower at all because my hair is very fragile and prone to breakage when wet. I usually detangle before I get in the shower, and wash it hanging down my back. I always pull it over one shoulder long enough to make sure I've rinsed all the conditioner off the back of my neck; it tends to linger there unless I make a point to rinse thoroughly.

If I'm not washing it, I bun it with an old knitting needle and am careful to keep my head out of the spray; I will wash my face and neck with a cloth in the sink separately. Shower caps tend to make my scalp sweaty and miserable, so I avoid them like the plague.

I would like to try detangling my hair pre-shower, braiding it, and washing it in braids to prevent tangling while it's wet. I'm afraid that the braids would catch all the dirt and product rinsing off my scalp and back though.

[CurlyCap]

I like the wet hair on my body when I'm washing it! It's part of the fun of washing my hair. :D

On non wash days, I just pin it up with a chopstick or some such. The sprinkling of water and high humidity is great for my hair and curls. It's a close as I can get to wetting it without having the sopping mess for several hours.

On wash day, I split my hair into 4-6 sections and detangle it under running water. The path of the water makes it easier to detangle and to tell where the clumps are. I've tried it without and it's a lot more difficult. It's a horrendous waste of water, but I figure I have other virtues.

Sometimes I wonder how women like me did their hair 500 years ago. No conditioner? No copious running water? I can't imagine...

[mamaherrera]

the only time I regret leaving my long wet hair on my body was when a few strands got caught when i was shaving my pits!!

[Carolyn]

OP, I'm a 1C so a little less wavy than you. I give my hair a good brushing before I get in the tub to get out any shed hair. The only time I have to move my hair is to make sure it's out of the way when I am shaving my pits and arms. I don't do any detangling in the bath or shower. I don't detangle until after I've had my hair wrapped in a towel for a few minutes. Why do you think you need to do more than finger detangle in the shower?

As for the turning off the water question, I have to take a bath at home and use a hand held shower thingie to rinse. So the water is off part of the time. When I have the luxury of taking a shower in a hotel I don't turn the water off.

[GetMeToWaist]

Carolyn, you shave your arms?

[Federica]

Like many have said, if I don't need to wash my hair I just put it in a high bun and wet my body from the neck/shoulders down.
My body + hair shower is done once a week, and it goes like this:
- I jump in the shower, wet my whole body and hair, then switch off the water
- apply diluted shampoo to my scalp and gently wash it
- switch the water on, carefully rinse all the shampoo out of my hair
- switch the water off, soap my body and apply the first conditioner. I don't even try to detangle, I just try to convince it to go all in the same direction. Much conditioner is required.
- rinse only the body, rub the nails, shave my armpits and so on while I let my hair up in a claw clip, soaked in conditioner
- rinse the hair, apply the second conditioner, put it up again
- jump out of the shower with conditioner still on
- final rinse only on my hair and scalp with cold water
Then I put it in a cotton shirt used as a towel until it doesn't drop water all over, then let air dry (if it's very cold I let it air dry at least 50% before blow dry only the roots) and oly when it's dry I finger detangle, brush it and braid it.
The overall process lasts between 45 and 60 minutes.