PDA

View Full Version : Reducing volume



zsuper
November 5th, 2009, 05:22 PM
Another question from me.

What do you people suggest to reduce volume/body from hair?

As a guy, it's not desirable for me to have any volume or frizz in my hair. I find it hard to find any information on reducing volume/body naturally (i.e. without completely slathering all 2+ feet of my hair in gel) because most people seem to want it.

I do have my hair layered to prevent the hair under the surface from pushing it out, but I still find I have a lot of frizz and fly away.

I generally have to use a flat iron for ~30 minutes after washing or ~15 minutes after waking up to keep it as flat as possible, and even then it still has a bit too much volume and frizz.
My hair is chemically straightened, though I used ISO Mane Tamer, which is supposed to be a lot less damaging than other methods. It removed a lot of the frizz and puffyness, but there's still too much there.

I do follow the basics; I use Eufora moisturizing shampoo and conditioner (it uses an aloe vera gel base instead of water), I rinse my hair with ice cold water after getting out of the shower, I don't attack my hair with a towel, I never brush my hair with anything but my fingers (and sometimes a wide tooth comb), I always air dry my hair before bed, and I only shampoo once every ~3 days, I apply an anti-frizz serum to my hair after soaking up the water with a towel.
The only thing I can think of that I'm missing is a leave in conditioner; I have a few, but they're all either really wet (which undoes my flat ironing and makes my hair look worse) or in the case of creams, contain a lot of alcohol, which seems counter-productive to me.

Any tips would be appreciated.

RocketDog
November 5th, 2009, 05:29 PM
I have very fine hair that has a good bit of natural curl, which means that it tends to grow bigger and bigger as the day goes on if I don't have something in there to tame it. What I find works for me is taking a few drops of jojoba or coconut oil and rubbing it into my palms vigorously, then gathering my hair behind me (like I'm making a ponytail) and rubbing the oil into the hair that's hanging down until it feels evenly distributed. This seems to do a good job of de-frizzing, and it loosens the curls a bit too so they lay better on my back.

I do the same with my hair after it's flatironed, although I do use the oil sparingly so my ends don't get stringy. I also found that using a good wide-toothed comb made of natural materials seemed to help zap frizz when my hair had been straightened, where plastic would make everything staticky and frizzier.

zsuper
November 5th, 2009, 05:40 PM
Thanks, I'll try to find some coconut oil and see how it works.

I only have canola oil (for cooking!) at the moment, so I might try doing that tomorrow after touching it up unless there's anything scary and bad about canola oil that I'm not aware of.

Curlsgirl
November 5th, 2009, 07:36 PM
I have 2 suggestions and the first one you are not going to like. The flat iron is VERY drying and damaging to your hair and could very well be causing a LOT of the poofiness in the long run. For me it was great when I first used it but then the longer I did, the more "poofy" and "dry" my hair got until it was just awful. That's when I found this place and started just letting my hair be curly most of the time. I trimmed a lot of damage off and it took a long time but it sure was worth it.

Also there is one product that I found back then that helped me with the "poofiness" and that was Sunsilk anti-poof conditioner in the blue bottle. It was a GOD-SEND back then when I wanted to wear my hair down. I would use a ton of it and rinse it out and then use the Sunsilk anti-frizz leave-in in the green bottle. My hair is very thick too and I hated it to be poofy. Since that time, my hair is longer and heavier and I don't use that anymore and only flat-iron maybe a few times a year. Sounds like aside from the heat you are doing a lot of things right. Could you braid or pony your hair to try to smooth it while the damage is growing out? I got small trims for a few years to avoid cutting all mine at once. Just my preference. HTH!

Oops also saw that you chemically straighten. That is terribly drying and hard on the hair too. How curly is it without the straightening? I think guys look great with curly hair actually!

ZenBird07
November 5th, 2009, 08:02 PM
There's a lot of folks around here that strongly suggest embracing one's natural curl. It's one of the major hair hurdles. There are even men on this site that have beautiful curly hair and if you stick around long enough you'll be able to see their profiles and talk to them personally about their regimens...
I however;);) use a lot of manual manipulation(geez that sounds wrong) through out entire air drying process -no blowdrying, no heat stying, no chem treatments... but it gets the job done. I find that when my hair is braided or twisted or generally bunched together for a while(while drying) then taken out and put into another one that it tames the frizz and curl considerably. I also oil with monoi.
And here's one I'm surprised wasn't mentioned yet; SMT...SMT...SMT...There's an extensive thread on this and it has gotten rave reviews by most of the individuals that have tried it. I love it...HTH:)

ZenBird07
November 5th, 2009, 08:05 PM
Thanks, I'll try to find some coconut oil and see how it works.

I only have canola oil (for cooking!) at the moment, so I might try doing that tomorrow after touching it up unless there's anything scary and bad about canola oil that I'm not aware of.

Not all oils are created equally...if you're headed to the kitchen look around for some canned coconut milk. Simmer it for an hour, separate the oil from the solids and voila, coconut oil OR just use the coconut milk in your hair as a treatment. Check to see if you don't have EVOO... Lots use it and claim it's wonders. I'd use that before I'd use canola on my hair...Good luck!!:)

Tinose
November 5th, 2009, 09:10 PM
I would honestly suggest start moisturizing your hair a lot. SMTs are great, oil's great, really there's a lot of things that will help moisturize your hair. The drier your hair is, the more it frizzes, and with that much flat-ironing, you're damaging and drying your hair an awful lot. If you can bear to part with it, I would suggest stopping flat-ironing. Even blow-drying's better than flat-ironing, and it'll get it just as flat.

Unfortunately, with your hair type you're never going to get it completely straight without damaging it or a lot of effort. I believe some people have had some success with making their hair look straight with very big rollers.

Something you might also try is products with a lot of cones. Cones will protect your hair from the heat at least a little, and at least for me, they weigh down curls. Not everyone experience that, though, so your mileage may vary.

Good luck!

spidermom
November 5th, 2009, 09:23 PM
First of all, pretend that they quit making flat irons and chemical straighteners. Dried out hair poufs and frizzes all over the place, so stop drying out your hair.

Use conditioner in the shower and comb your hair out with it. Your hair will have less frizz if you smooth gel, wax, pomade, or styling putty over the surface of damp hair. Be sparing at first. You can always add a little more as needed, but you have to wash your hair to get it off. It always helps me to blow-dry on cool, secure back in multiple ponytails going down the middle of my head with multiple hair-ties (called the caterpillar, I think), and/or braid loosely and use smoothing product over that to prevent surface frizzies. The styling putty helps the most. Similar products can be too gluey, but I like Natures Gate Styling Putty. It feels tacky when you stroke it on, but it works, and it's easy to comb through. Oh, and typing a bandana or wearing a hat while hair dries helps it to be flat at the surface instead of frizzy.

Length adds weight and pulls the puffiness out, so grow longer. I think that layers frizz out more than nonlayered hair.

zsuper
November 6th, 2009, 05:09 AM
Thanks. I'll look more into oil treatments.

I've worn it just tied back (no heat at all) for the past three years, but my new job involves 50/50 programming/business, where as before it was just 100% programming.

Before I had it chemically straightened, it was like 2c and conical and got oily very fast; the closer it gets to the bottom, the more it gets puffed out and frizzy. By the time it got half way down my back, it was puffed out so much that it just looked silly.
My only choice was to tie it back in a pony tail and tuck it into my shirt. Even then, I needed a lot of gel to keep my hair from sticking up, and through out the day pieces of hair would find their way out of my shirt and just sort of flutter every which way. People who saw me straight-on would just think I had short hair gelled back.

Right now, if I could completely kill all the frizz and puff, it might be okay to leave down because it's just a bit wavy. But unfortunately, it does have a lot of frizz and a bit of puff, and that's not really a good way to be wearing it while meeting with investors.

zsuper
November 6th, 2009, 05:46 AM
If anyone's up this early and has experience, I have 15 minutes before I leave, my hair is rather frizzy, and I'm casually eyeing the canola oil in my kitchen.

Would it be a good idea to put two or three drops in my hair, or will that definitely make my hair look/smell like an oily mess?

Curlsgirl
November 6th, 2009, 06:02 AM
Thanks. I'll look more into oil treatments.

I've worn it just tied back (no heat at all) for the past three years, but my new job involves 50/50 programming/business, where as before it was just 100% programming.

Before I had it chemically straightened, it was like 2c and conical and got oily very fast; the closer it gets to the bottom, the more it gets puffed out and frizzy. By the time it got half way down my back, it was puffed out so much that it just looked silly.
My only choice was to tie it back in a pony tail and tuck it into my shirt. Even then, I needed a lot of gel to keep my hair from sticking up, and through out the day pieces of hair would find their way out of my shirt and just sort of flutter every which way. People who saw me straight-on would just think I had short hair gelled back.

Right now, if I could completely kill all the frizz and puff, it might be okay to leave down because it's just a bit wavy. But unfortunately, it does have a lot of frizz and a bit of puff, and that's not really a good way to be wearing it while meeting with investors.

The reason it gets worse toward the ends is because that's the most damaged part. Years of blow-drying and flat-ironing just absolutely fry your hair. I know from experience. I would slowly trim off the damage and wear it contained when it poofs and frizzes. I haven't heard of using canola oil by the way. Extra virgin olive oil however is great for your type hair. Just start with a couple of drops. What the previous poster said about SMTs is great too and you should try them but as damaged as your hair sounds I doubt even that will do a lot of good. Lots of us curlies had a hard transition period from blow-drying and ironing to embracing our curls. Now I do enjoy an occasional blow-out but love my curls more and they look SO much better now that I take care of my hair mostly without heat. See the thread for 2c/3a wurlies and curlies for a lot of great tips and inspiration.

JamieLeigh
November 6th, 2009, 09:08 AM
Now that I'm cone-free, I've found that the only thing cones ever did to my hair was flatten it out and reduce my volume. If you're already using shampoo and conditioner with silicones, then I really don't know what advice to give. Good luck in your search. :flower:

zsuper
November 6th, 2009, 07:09 PM
Thanks again everyone.

I just took a shower and tried a few things differently, and so far my hair is drying amazingly frizz-less and without the usual volume.

One thing I didn't know was that I should rinse my conditioner out with cool (not warm) water before rinsing with ice cold water; I originally rinsed my conditioner out with warm water, which supposedly doesn't have the same effect.

I also combed some aloe gel through my hair after my serum and I think it's doing a great job of keeping the frizz in line, as well as adding some weight to my hair while still leaving it soft and movable.


I'm heading to the store tomorrow to get a deep conditioner and some safflower oil, so hopefully they'll help get rid of any frizz that might be there once it finishes drying.

ZenBird07
November 7th, 2009, 08:52 PM
Thanks again everyone.

I just took a shower and tried a few things differently, and so far my hair is drying amazingly frizz-less and without the usual volume.

One thing I didn't know was that I should rinse my conditioner out with cool (not warm) water before rinsing with ice cold water; I originally rinsed my conditioner out with warm water, which supposedly doesn't have the same effect.

I also combed some aloe gel through my hair after my serum and I think it's doing a great job of keeping the frizz in line, as well as adding some weight to my hair while still leaving it soft and movable.


I'm heading to the store tomorrow to get a deep conditioner and some safflower oil, so hopefully they'll help get rid of any frizz that might be there once it finishes drying.

This sounds like an awesome start zsuper!! I'm so glad it's starting to work out for you. I have heard of folks using the safflower oil with great results. Good luck with your new products and regime choices!!:)

Thinthondiel
November 7th, 2009, 09:09 PM
I haven't read through all the replies, so I'm sorry if I repeat something, but - does your shampoo containt sulphates? Sulphate shampoos make my hair incredibly dry and frizzy. That includes a so-called hydrating shampoo I used for a while.

I've been doing WO (water only) for about half a year now, and my hair is doing so much better - it's not dry or frizzy like it used to be, and my flyaways are smoothed down (so I guess they're not really flyaways anymore).