How do you keep your ends healthy?

[FallingDarkness]

I have a silk hair cap, I bun my hair except when I'm exercising (then it's a braid), comb my hair gently, wash my hair 1x a week...still I feel like my ends split rather quickly, or perhaps I'm just impatient. Outside of just dealing with dead ends what do you guys do to keep the trimming away?

[lapushka]

Moisturize well. Moisture, moisture, moisture. Since that has been my method/mantra, I have had 0 issues with my hair splitting. A great conditioner and conditioning well can get you far, also use a leave-in (at least that) after the wash, if you can a little bit of a serum on top or one or the other if your hair is easily weighed down; it depends on how much your hair will absorb without it going limp.

[FallingDarkness]

What are your favorite conditioners ? :D

[GothicCanadian]

My favourite conditioner right now is by Sukin, I slso use a combination of oils.

[lapushka]

My absolute HG, is Herbal Essences Hello Hydration, but you can't get that except for the US anymore, and maybe a couple other countries. It's been discontinued in mine (no worries I have a backstash).

Then I love (equally as much) the Hair Food masks (called "treats" in the US) by Garnier. Especially banana and papaya (so far the only ones I tried).

[FallingDarkness]

Thank you guys so much; I've been needing to switch something up for a while now so I will try out these suggestions and hopefully one sticks :D

[RedIris]

I definitely second using a serum. A silicone serum will provide slip when detangling and act as a layer of protection to prevent friction from wearing away at the cuticle. I find oiling, especially before shampooing, to be helpful too. Oh and my favourite conditioner is Aussie Moist. The slip is unparalleled and its cheap so you can load it on and not feel like you're rinsing away your money ahaha

[knobbly]

Not to be boring but same as everyone else says. My ends are happiest when they are protected from mechanical damage and dehydration. I didn’t use silicones above hip length as I have texture issues with silicones and water, but I’ve learned to deal now that my hair is longer because they are essential to keeping my length and ends from tangling. I use a coney conditioner every washday and a serum 1-2x during the week in between washes.

Just as important is preventing water loss. In cold and dry weather especially, I need to keep my hair covered, preferably with silk or poly satin. Keeping my ends tucked into a bun prevents all kinds of damage in all environments.

[Glitch]

Amazing thread, I was thinking just the other day what other people do for their ends, as I've seen some rather luxurious ones here that are many years old!

My hair gets easily weighed down since a lot of it is fine-textured, so after a good conditioning, rinsing, I apply some coconut oil over damp hair and re-apply as needed until the next wash. I find that this helps me out a lot. Interesting replies about serums, will check it out as well. :)


Not to be boring but same as everyone else says. My ends are happiest when they are protected from mechanical damage and dehydration. I didn’t use silicones above hip length as I have texture issues with silicones and water, but I’ve learned to deal now that my hair is longer because they are essential to keeping my length and ends from tangling. I use a coney conditioner every washday and a serum 1-2x during the week in between washes.

Just as important is preventing water loss. In cold and dry weather especially, I need to keep my hair covered, preferably with silk or poly satin. Keeping my ends tucked into a bun prevents all kinds of damage in all environments.

Yes! I highly doubt I'd have made it this far, this easily, without my slippery silicones!

[Joules]

I second everyone. Lots and lots of conditioner, silicones and protective styles. In my experience with my own hair, it has to be a combination of those three factors, they don't work that well on their own.

I use double conditioning method with my rinse-out products, and a three step leave-in routine (cone-free spray, cone-free oil and cream with cones). I'm not too worried about being heavy-handed, since my hair is almost always in a bun, but it's usually ok. It can take a lot of product before it starts to look greasy, plus I use rather harsh shampoos every wash.

My favorite cone-free mask is from Schauma, great conditioners with silicones are Elseve Dream Lenghts and anything from Pantene. My favorite leave-ins are Garnier Fructis for damaged hair and the Elseve Dream Lengths cream (that line is fantastic, I use everything except for the shampoo since I don't use shampoos with silicones).

As for protective styles - buns are a must. Braids aren't as effective. I'd suggest keeping your hair in a bun as much as possible (unless your scalp is sensitive and can't handle such styles).

My hair is almost Classic and I haven't seen a single split end since I figured out this routine 4 years ago, so I guess it works.

[knobbly]

You are so right, Joules. I had been wearing braids more between pregnancy and my baby’s first year, and my splits have been really out of hand. Now I’m really trying to wear my hair in a bun unless I have to have a sun hat on. I love braids but they just aren’t as protective on my ends as they are for my length.

[JasminxCat]

Moisturize well/condition twice. ROO. Leave in. Serum. Silicones. Any of those or a combination

[knobbly]

Also it’s worth noting that while lapushka gets no splits in her hair at all, she does trim regularly to maintain her length, so her ends are fresher than someone who is growing out for years at a time and only S&Ding. So if you suddenly have a ton more splits than you’ve ever seen, it could be your habits, but it could also be that you have reached that point where your ends are just much older than you’ve ever let them be before.

ETA of course you take excellent care of your hair, lapushka, anyone who has been around here for five minutes knows that, and that is also a factor in your healthy ends. :love:

For instance, my last proper haircut was in February of 2020 just before I joined the LHC. I have done one home trim just to even up my hemline since then, the rest of my scissor usage has been S&D. Of course I’m seeing more splits now than I was in 2021, that just makes sense, but when they really started to go up a few months ago, I realized I’d been relying on braids hanging down too much, and am switching to more bunned styles now to hopefully help that slow down some.

[WitchoftheWood]

I resonate so much with what y'all are saying. The first year of hair growth I wore mostly braids and still got a lot of damage on my ends. I'm trying to wear more bun styles, but I do have a sensitive scalp and get dandruff more easily when I wear bunned styles for multiple days in a row. If any of you have seborrheic dermatitis - what do you do to combat that and still have protective styling? I've recently realized that I need to be shampooing at least twice a week to keep my scalp healthy and will alternate between buns, braids and keeping my hair down.

[MusicalSpoons]

Moisture moisture moisture, and protection in buns.

I oil heavily before washing, CWC with the first C left on a couple of hours before the actual wash, and do an oil rinse during the wash between shampoo and the final C.

Buns are held with usually a fork or stick, although flexis, spin pins, and Ficarres also work. If I ever have to braid I secure it with ribbon braided in at the ends, because a hairtie of any kind damages my ends - even a small satin scrunchie puts too much pressure on them and makes them very unhappy. I will also lightly oil to help try to protect all the ends that poke out throughout the braid, because they *will* dry out and rub against anything and everything if my braid is down so oil feels like at least I've tried … my hair really doesn't like braids :lol:

Overnight I usually wear a bun under a satin bonnet as well as a satin pillowcase - I find that the bonnet does help prevent it feeling dry if the bun comes loose, which was interesting. I used to think it might be OTT but no, it actually makes a difference to my hair!

This is not to say my hair is perfect and split-free - it's not. But my routine has helped to minimise splits and dryness, and it's what I can comfortably manage. No doubt there are further tweaks I could still make but at the moment not without being too much effort, and part of the reason I love having long hair is that I can do my routine, put it up and forget about it, and it stays happy. It's there to do more with if/when I want but doesn't require more.

[clairenewcastle]

I keep my ends healthy by regular trims. I would rather have a blunt hemline and healthy ends than have longer hair. I envy those who can grow long, healthy hair.

[Bri-Chan]

Moisture, not only after wash. I reapply some leave in every time I feel my ends dry. A thing that recently helped my ends a lot, was a good trim. Keep in mind my hair is damaged, and I trimmed around 2.75 inches. After two years of small trims two times a year (max 0.75 inches every time) that was the first time I've seen a true improvement. So if your hair is damaged, I suggest to do something similar.

[clairenewcastle]

I got quite a drastic cut today (right up to just below my chin) so right now my ends are looking as healthy as they're ever going to look.

Now all I have to do is maintain my ends.....easier said than done but I shall have fun trying. I think its important to enjoy your hair and I have not liked my hair for a while. Tonight I do.

[Shug]

Trim once a year, brush daily, light oil daily, boar bristle and heavy oiling before shampooing, leave in conditioner. No s&d for me because I don’t want my hemline to become uneven, I just ignore the few splits that show up until it’s time for a proper trim.

[Gwendolynn]

I bun most of the time, hiding my ends and tucking them safely away feels like it really helps. Besides that I personally don't wash, and I feel like for me that really helps my ends too. I redyed my ends two months ago (my ends are bleached and I still own loads of fun coloured deposit only dyes) and I noticed my hair feeling so very dry, even though I put conditioner (the dye) on it.

Now I am waiting for the sebum to travel down again, let's see if my ends will be happier again!

[blushy]

I use Bumble and Bumble’s invisible oil and almond oil on my ends all day every day. I’ll even sometimes put the oils on my hairbrush before I brush my hair.

[ArienEllariel]

I'm trying to apply an oil to my ends the night before I plan to wash my hair (so every two or three days) or whenever they're feeling a bit dry. Double condition after every wash and S&D fairly regularly. It's something that feels relaxing for me so I figure there's no harm done with doing it often.