Styling hair in the morning

[AspenF150]

Been doing some more reading and come to find some members here, simply brush there hair in the morning without getting it wet to style it.

Maybe it's because I'm simply not a longhair.....yet I tried this and I like the results but man, my brush rips through my hair, not cool. Right now I'm using this Con-Air cheap plastic thing with plastic rounded off tips. Is there some sort of leave in conditioner I need to use or do I just need to wait until my hair is long. I like this method better and it saves alot of time so I don't need to wait for my hair to dry. Which usually takes about an hour.

[fluffybunny]

Maybe try a different brush? If a bristle brush gets stuck in your hair, try one of those pincushion type brushes (they have little plastic or metal pins sticking out of a flexible rubber pad).

[HairColoredHair]

Personally I don't use a brush at all.

Brushes rip at my hair when it's dry and stretch it when it's wet. I can use a brush if I am really super careful but typically I don't have the patience.

I use comb only now (and have since I joined here) and I find it does much less damage to my hair. My combs are seamless, smooth horn or seamless resin (plastic) combs. Some people like wood, but I am yet to try one. :)

Your mileage may vary, of course, some people find brushes work better for them than combs, but personally, this is what works for me.

[Gumball]

I used to use a brush and it resulted in the same thing happening. Now I just use a comb and it makes things much easier. Much less ripping (in addition to the fact that I'm more aware of what's going on while I brush), and it gets through tangles easier. I use a horn comb.

[Heidi_234]

Well, you will be able to braid or bun your hair for the night and decrease the amount of tangles as you gain length. Right now, I agree with the said above, try a comb (preferably with wider spaced teeth). Also try to finger comb your hair before combing it. If you feel a tangle, don't rip though, take the comb and out and continue on a little lower, with repeated strokes the tangles will come out.

As for leave ins, if you feel like your hair need it, by all means try to use one. You may also find oiling helpful (with coconut oil and such), depends how your hair likes it.

[hmmm]

I don't use brushes. Sometimes, I don't even use a comb.

[wolf girl]

You don't want to use brushes that have seams in them where the hair can get caught. The type of brush you described is not a good one to use. A good brush will be more expensive but your hair will thank you. To go a little cheaper, get a seamless comb.

[Madame J]

I do sometimes use a brush in the morning instead of washing or rinsing my hair, but I do it in a specific order. First, I detangle my hair carefully with a wide-toothed comb to make sure there are no tangles, then I scritch my scalp with the comb (gently run the comb against the scalp in very small, back and forth, movements, moving gradually across the scalp in 4 directions) to loosen dead skin. Then I detangle again. Then I use a boar-bristle brush to brush the crud out of my hair and spread oils. I don't use any leave-in for this. This usually makes it look nice enough to wear up, but not always nice enough to leave down. Hope that helps.

[Elvi]

AspenF150, maybe you somehow sleep your curls into a mess, as you need to especially style your hair every morning. I have learned from this site that satin pillows help to keep hair in good shape in the night. So I like to have a slippery satin pillow or even to coat my pillow with a silk scarf, and clearly my hair gets less messed and tangled this way. :sleep:

[AspenF150]

To add alittle more, after I wash my hair, I do use a wide tooth comb to style it and let it mostly air dry from there.

I do oil my hair on a consistent once a week basis before washing. Get my hair nice and coated with it, let it sit for about an hour or so, drink a couple beers j/k :D then go shower. I use coconut oil but I think I need something heavier, olive oil perhaps.

Madame J - How do you comb dry hair? I'm assuming you keep it well oiled from the way you described your routine? Dry as in not wet, not dehydrated dry.

Elvi - you make that sound tempting :D

[Anje]

With hair as wavy as yours, I imagine you get a bit more "poof" when you comb or brush it dry, compared to folks with straighter hair. Also, it tends to be easier for people with lots of waves or curls to comb through with conditioner.

How do you comb dry hair? Well, I like to start with a wide-tooth comb. (Mine is made of horn, but there are some good plastic shower combs out there with seams that can't be felt. The advantage of horn is that it doesn't get staticy.) Start at the ends, more or less, and detangle them, then go up a few inches and comb that bit out. Work up until you've done your whole head. Starting at the ends gets more important, the longer it gets.

If you comb it out a few times a day, it won't be so tangled when you do it again, which means less ripping. Sleeping with a silk or satin pillowcase, sleep bonnet (so sexy!), or scarf around your head means a lot fewer tangles and probably better waves and curls in the morning.

[AspenF150]

Anje - your first paragraph is spot on with my hair. This place is scary sometimes:run:

I'm going to go looking for some leave-in. My hair tangles like crazy. Course being dry and brittle that it is probably isn't helping either. If I comb or brush in the morning, then do it again say 4-5 hours later, turns into a vine.

[nowxisxforever]

I use a wide-toothed seamless comb (The Body Shop, 10$) on my hair. I detangle in the morning from the ends (the last 2-3 inches, then move up 2-3 inches at a time until it's done) up, then twist it up into a bun or braid it.

It takes me maybe 1-2 minutes tops. Some days I won't even bother detangling it, I'll just stick it up in a bun and leave it alone.

I don't think of it as "styling" my hair, since I'm just bunning it... there's no 'styling' required. No product, no forming, no forcing it to do something it doesn't want to do.

Edit: Like Anje said, I also detangle mine multiple times per day if I'm leaving it down-- I don't tend to leave it down, but will sometimes at work, but it poofs a lot. I find braiding it or bunning it briefly will "calm it down" a bit and de-poof it for a while when I undo it, but I can't detangle just after, I have to detangle first.

[may1em]

If you have to use a brush, use a seamless one without any plastic balls on the tips (exception: the Goody Ouchless is ok).

I use a wood-bristle brush and love it. But I don't use it every day - more often I comb with a wooden comb from the Body Shop.