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VenusianMane
August 11th, 2020, 08:30 PM
I guess the title should be written as “making an updo” but it’s too late now Dx

Anyway, just curious to know if LHCers with wavy hair brush out their waves before making a bun, braid etc
I usually don’t brush/detangle my hair in this case, specially since I like to wear my hair down, so often I wear an updo but afterwards want to wear my hair down, and I don’t like to wear my brushed out hair down
But something tells me that I should brush my hair before making an updo :confused:
What are everyone’s thoughts on this?
Curious about what those with curly hair do on that same situation too!

Simsy
August 11th, 2020, 08:56 PM
It depends where I am in the wash cycle; and how everything is behaving. I have found the first 2-3 days after washing tend to be better left to fingers as the comb causes more breakage on the clean curls. E.g. wash Saturday, the comb won’t get used until Monday at the earliest. After that, it’s more about how much fluffy new growth I’m prepared to fight and how smooth I want the updo to be for how long. By day 4/5, I’m at the “soft bun wave” point of my week and mostly things are playing fair either way.

If I’m at the end of the wash cycle and I need to move the bun for any reason; I will have to use a comb because everything is running in a particular direction and nothing will sit nicely without some encouragement. I also have to pull the comb out if I’m oiling my hair or skipping a wash day, the oil makes things a little less obedient.

If I want a smooth updo without frizz or fluff; I need to use a comb to get everything going in the right direction and moving together. Otherwise I get a halo effect as the new growth forms a lovely (though unintended) crown of curls and random spirals. Generally I’m ok with the fluffy bits escaping since they will eventually work their way out and I don’t mind them most of the time.

cjk
August 11th, 2020, 08:57 PM
I've done both. The choice depends largely on the effect you want.

One thing I've said on the group is that my updos became significantly more attractive when I started styling my curly hair instead of trying to straighten it.

As you well know, combing wavy or curly hair tends to pull out some of the texture and break up the clumps. This can provide a much sleeker look.

Leaving the clumps intact emphasizes the natural texture of your hair. And gives the exact same style a very different effect.

Today I've been painting. I normally braid for sleep, so I turned it into a braided bun.

https://i.imgur.com/OuLZzNy.jpg

Kathie
August 12th, 2020, 12:41 AM
No I don't brush. I either 1. finger comb it into place, 2. carefully pull it back while trying not to disturb the curl / wave pattern, or 3. work with each curl or wave clump by twisting my hair back clump by clump into a half-up held by two clips.

ynne
August 12th, 2020, 01:51 AM
I tried both. For me, the main issue is that with the texture, it's really hard to separate my hair neatly! So all I can do with curly hair is put it in a ponytail, half-up (but that's already complicated! the sectioning takes me a while), or a twisted bun. I can't do anything more complex because the clumps get in a way and my hair is very "grabby", so I fear breakage.

I can't comb it dry either, so that always means putting on a ton of leave-in conditioner / a little bit of oil first, finger detangling thoroughly, and then I can comb/brush it. It's a lengthy process, though, so I usually only do this later in a wash cycle, when my hair naturally lost some texture already. Sectioning remains the biggest issue. I honestly wish my hair allowed for easier braiding, but it's true that the extra texture can be pretty. :)

I do like intact curls in ponytails, at least. Left one is on slightly brushed out hair, right one on freshly washed, styled hair:


https://i.postimg.cc/CM8JQ6Rt/Foto-Jet-8.jpg

lapushka
August 12th, 2020, 03:49 AM
Nope. I weekly wash. I only detangle (brush) pre-wash and immediately post-wash, rest of the week it is left alone. And I bun daily.

I just gather it up (don't even put fingers in) and tadaa!

Mariekeeee14
August 12th, 2020, 03:51 AM
Like other people said above me, it depends on where I am in my wash cycle. If it is day 3 or 4, I’ll wet it a bit with a spritzer and brush it with my tangle teezer to minimise breakage, cause it is knotty by then. I’ll do this when I know I won’t wear my hair down in public until after wash day. Otherwise I’ll just pull it back into a bun that’s a bit looser than when it’s brushed.

VenusianMane
August 12th, 2020, 11:42 AM
Thank you so much everyone!
I usually do the same as you guys, either not detangling at all, or just later in the wash cycle
I guess I’ll continue doing that and stop worrying about having to detangling before making updos :)

cjk that’s a beautiful updo!

ynne thank you for the comparison photos, your hair looks gorgeous!

ynne
August 12th, 2020, 12:11 PM
Thank you so much everyone!
I usually do the same as you guys, either not detangling at all, or just later in the wash cycle
I guess I’ll continue doing that and stop worrying about having to detangling before making updos :)

cjk that’s a beautiful updo!

ynne thank you for the comparison photos, your hair looks gorgeous!

As long as it works for you, I think it's a good approach! :) And thank you ♥

HaMalka
August 12th, 2020, 12:38 PM
As a mildly wavey, I brush my hair before braiding so long as my hair is dry. It makes my hair lay more smoothly. If my hair is wet I don't braid or brush it I just put it in a bun if I have to do anything.

Jo Ann
August 12th, 2020, 01:38 PM
LWB's and nautilus buns don't care if I brush/comb or not. As for the rest, it depends on the look I'm going for and how smoothly I want my hair to lay.

What can I say? I'm easy :p

Bri-Chan
August 12th, 2020, 01:44 PM
I'm just a 2a but brushing or combing dry makes my hair poofy and frizzy, very hard to manage. So I don't brush for an updo.

MiaShaylee
August 12th, 2020, 02:00 PM
It really depends on the updo, how oily my hair is, and how cooperative it is being. Sometimes it's waving just right, other times I have to fight with it to get something remotely organized.

Stray_mind
August 13th, 2020, 12:31 AM
I just comb trough with my fingers. My hair is pretty soft and slippy so it straightens out quite easily.

shelomit
August 13th, 2020, 10:13 AM
For buns, I pretty much just toss the hair up there. For braids (or anything that involves a lot of parting), I have trouble dividing the hair evenly unless I have combed it out. Since you have to divide the hair at the scalp or nape to get a good sense of how much hair will be in the section, and then pull the sections apart going downwards, the lengths want to cling together. How much detangling I have to do depends on the humidity and how I've treated my hair recently. If it's dry and/or I've only worn my hair stretched since I last washed it, I just have to do a quick finger-detangle along the places that I plan to divide the hair. It's easy enough to do that dry. If I've worn my hair down and curlier, or if the humidity is poofing it up, I spritz on a little water and comb it fully out.

It is possible for me to braid my hair without detangling it at all, but it will be a very messy, lumpy, uneven braid because I have to make do with however the locks have naturally fallen rather than being able to divide it into even parts.

I do almost invariably wear my hair with a center part. I put it in right after washing my hair, and even if I have worn a bun on the top of my head or something else that undoes the part, it typically falls right back in at the same spot as soon as I take down my hair. I think it's just "trained" after a long time of being parted in that spot. So I don't have any trouble putting in that part with dry hair, just other parts or dividing the two halves of the hair for braiding.

ETA: I don't actually think my hair takes much damage from being brushed dry. I've had periods when I've done it regularly, and periods when I've avoided it; there does not seem to be much difference in how much breakage I get. But it does poof my hair up, so it's not the best for braids.

SleepyTangles
August 13th, 2020, 01:18 PM
I do, as I like to detangle often. But I know that then I need to keep hair tightly compressed in an hairstyle for a while, in order to de-puff the situation ;)