The heavens have opened...

[HeartofHaleth]

...and the angelic choir is really belting it out. I tried lightly oiling my hair for the first time. Wonderful things happened. Just thought I'd share my jubilation.

Am I posting too much? I feel like I'm posting too much. If I am, go ahead and give me a swift kick and I promise I'll do better.

[gustavonut]

Pictures! :D

[HeartofHaleth]

Behold my usually floofy mop, so smooth, so shiny! Most of the difference is in the feel, though. My hair has a nasty tendency to get tangled as soon as I move slightly after brushing it. Now it's so nice and orderly!!

http://i.imgur.com/zCOFkVz.jpg

[Sarahlabyrinth]

Yes, oil is a great breakthrough. Your hair is looking very happy :)

[HeartofHaleth]

It is, it is! It really does deserve this after all my years of neglect :(

[PristineAllure]

Behold my usually floofy mop, so smooth, so shiny! Most of the difference is in the feel, though. My hair has a nasty tendency to get tangled as soon as I move slightly after brushing it. Now it's so nice and orderly!!

http://i.imgur.com/zCOFkVz.jpg

You gave us a picture. Beautiful hair for my eyes to feast on. No my dear. You are not posting too much, keep posting. Keep feeding my addiction :)

[pailin]

Hooray!
So, which oil did you try?

[HeartofHaleth]

You gave us a picture. Beautiful hair for my eyes to feast on. No my dear. You are not posting too much, keep posting. Keep feeding my addiction :)
Thank you! An alarming compliment, but a compliment nonetheless :)

[HeartofHaleth]

Hooray!
So, which oil did you try?

Coconut. My mother loves the stuff, so we always have big jars of it sitting around. It's what I've always used for makeup remover since I started wearing makeup! I guess hair is the logical next step:p

[Sarahlabyrinth]

So, tell us - did you use it before, during or after washing it?

[HeartofHaleth]

A good while after. I wash on Thursdays.

[Nellon]

Oh yeah, coconut oil. I'd be bald without it ;) But seriously, I use it so much and it's really saved my hair.

I use it before washing, as a leave in, and it makes a big difference :) Other good oils I like are almond, thistle and apricot kernel oil.

And your hair is just drop dead gorgeous!! :) Thanks for sharing!

[Sweets]

You hair really seems to like it! I have coconut oil for everything, and when dbf and I use it as massage oil, I always end up getting some in my hair :o it's like an overnight leave-in, and I shower before work, and it's lovely after the shower even if it looks terrible before LOL.

[HeartofHaleth]

I guess I must be lucky; mine doesn't look greasy or stringy at all! (Which is good because I've got to go to church today and I'd hate to mess up my wash schedule)

[HeartofHaleth]

Oh yeah, coconut oil. I'd be bald without it ;) But seriously, I use it so much and it's really saved my hair.

I use it before washing, as a leave in, and it makes a big difference :) Other good oils I like are almond, thistle and apricot kernel oil.

And your hair is just drop dead gorgeous!! :) Thanks for sharing!

Aww thanks! It isn't really that red, it just decided to look that way in the light of that particular room.

[Arctic]

Your profile page says you've posted 2.27 posts per day, which is hardly too much (power posting), so post away!

You have beautiful hair! My hair also loves oiling, unfortunately my skin doesn't, so I have had to stop with the oils (bar very occasionally adding few drops to my DTs).

[parkmikii]

Gorgeous results! Congrats :D

[Skade]

Beautiful hair HeartofHaleth! Fun to hear that you discovered something new and wonderful for your hair! And don't be shy, keep posting! ;)

[HeartofHaleth]

Yay! No kicks yet! Thank you all for the kind words!

[-Fern]

:hifive: Oils have been my holy grail product, too! :D Coconut oil has a tendency to make my ends crunchy, but everyone's hair loves something a little different.

Right now I am hooked on a special blend that is mostly pumpkin seed oil with patchouli notes, but I also like to use an Indian oil blend (brahmi + amla).

If your hair likes the oils, you might try the Rinse-Out Oil method (http://forums.longhaircommunity.com/showthread.php?t=129191). I modified it slightly and now mix 5-6 drops of oil with conditioner in the palm of my hand before conditioning. I do this maybe once a week, not every time I wash my hair. Love the results!!

[meteor]

Awesome hair and excellent results, HeartofHaleth! :D Great to hear about such great results from oil. I love oiling, too, and I always tweak the way I use oils depending on hair's current needs. There are multiple ways of using oils, if you want to experiment further:

- pre-wash oiling (heavy oiling on dry/damp hair a few hours before washing) - this research shows how coconut oil reduces hair keratin loss in virgin and damaged hair from the wear & tear of washing and combing: Effect of coconut oil on prevention of hair damage - http://journal.scconline.org/pdf/cc1999/cc050n06/p00327-p00339.pdf and Effect of mineral oil, sunflower oil, and coconut oil on prevention of hair damage - http://journal.scconline.org/pdf/cc2003/cc054n02/p00175-p00192.pdf

- oil rinses (smoothing a few drops of oil after shampoo and before conditioning) - for increased elasticity, combability;

- adding oil to conditioner or deep treatments (to boos conditioning effect);

- oiling to "seal" moisture post-wash and to help detangling (alone or as part of LOC - liquid+oil+cream/conditioner) as well as to provide a mild barrier to reduce drying effects of sun/wind/heaters...;

- oiling dry/damp braid tassel every night or so to add elasticity and shine and protect the ends more (for preventing split ends);

- before swimming (to reduce water and mineral uptake in chlorinated pools);

- before bleaching or using peroxide-based dyes (more on this: http://forums.longhaircommunity.com/showthread.php?t=10495), etc...

[-Fern]

Can we make meteor's awesome post a sticky? :grin: Such a great resource for all the different ways we can use oil.

[meteor]

^ Oh -Fern, you are too kind! :love: I'm pretty sure everybody already knows this stuff ;) , except maybe folks who are new to hair oiling.

[LongCurlyTress]

Awesome hair and excellent results, HeartofHaleth! :D Great to hear about such great results from oil. I love oiling, too, and I always tweak the way I use oils depending on hair's current needs. There are multiple ways of using oils, if you want to experiment further:

- pre-wash oiling (heavy oiling on dry/damp hair a few hours before washing) - this research shows how coconut oil reduces hair keratin loss in virgin and damaged hair from the wear & tear of washing and combing: Effect of coconut oil on prevention of hair damage - http://journal.scconline.org/pdf/cc1999/cc050n06/p00327-p00339.pdf and Effect of mineral oil, sunflower oil, and coconut oil on prevention of hair damage - http://journal.scconline.org/pdf/cc2003/cc054n02/p00175-p00192.pdf

- oil rinses (smoothing a few drops of oil after shampoo and before conditioning) - for increased elasticity, combability;

- adding oil to conditioner or deep treatments (to boos conditioning effect);

- oiling to "seal" moisture post-wash and to help detangling (alone or as part of LOC - liquid+oil+cream/conditioner) as well as to provide a mild barrier to reduce drying effects of sun/wind/heaters...;

- oiling dry/damp braid tassel every night or so to add elasticity and shine and protect the ends more (for preventing split ends);

- before swimming (to reduce water and mineral uptake in chlorinated pools);

- before bleaching or using peroxide-based dyes (more on this: http://forums.longhaircommunity.com/showthread.php?t=10495), etc...

I can't wait to look at each of these links meteor! Thanks so much for posting these links. :applause

[HeartofHaleth]

Thank you, meteor! So many wonderful ideas to try!

[meteor]

^ Thanks so much! :D I forgot to mention: it's best to experiment with one thing at a time (to really see what works and how exactly it works) and go drop by drop with adding oils, to avoid over-oiling as well as wasting product. ;) (I think many of us have had an experience with over-oiled hair... sometimes it can even take a couple clarifying washes or a long conditioner soak to remove it.)
Best of luck and happy experimenting! :cheer:

[lapushka]

Looks like the oil did amazing things for your hair! Looks like a keeper. :D