Undamaged hair that LOOKS damaged?

[Tangles]

Do any of you battle with hair that looks brittle and damaged but actually isn't?

I find that the only times my hair looks completely healthy is when I blow fry it on a low heat. High heat fries it, but air drying makes it look fried sometimes as well.

Is it actually worth it to restore your hair to health when it doesn't even look healthy? Or does it really take years to see improvement?

[nate]

Actually healthy hair is better than apparently healthy hair. If you have damage, it causes more and more damage (as I am learning now to my cost), so it's really important to avoid it at the source.

Healthy hair doesn't usually look anything like what you see on hair commercials or supermodels; that's cone-treated hair. What you are seeing is basically plastic. Looks nice, but it causes troubles in the long run.

My hair also looks like :( after it air-dries, so I feel your pain, but by extending the time between washes that problem has been reduced for me. (Fewer days of :( because of fewer washes.)

[sapphire-o]

Oh ya. My DH's hair naturally looks frizzy and rough. It's actually in perfect condition, though. Well moisturized and almost no splits. If you touched it then it feels soft and nice, but not from the way it looks. He doesn't ever blow-dry so I don't even know if it would look nicer that way.

[Tangles]

Yeah, you're right. What's interesting is that these days, to be considered "good" hair, it has to be like silk, no matter what it takes to get there. Kind of emblematic of our whole quick fix society.

Regardless, no one wants straggly, limp hair either. Maybe I need to experiment with no-cones, though I'm really attached to my leave in cond.

[Anje]

Mine tends to look messy and not-quite-healthy a lot of the time, too. I've got lots of new growth that looks like breakage, and the ends like to stick out. It doesn't look like silk, but it feels like it.

Given the 2a designation, I suspect you have similar issues (most folks in the 1c-2a range do). Try CO washing, or maybe even WO (Water only). If you can handle weighing your hair down a bit, it helps keep the frizz at bay.

[Tangles]

Anje, I often find that my hair looks so much better when I blowdry it on cool. Do you ever give in to the fryer? What other tips do you have for keeping wavy, yet limp hair healthier looking?

[Anje]

I gave away my fryer last June when I moved to my new house. Before that, its use was defrosting windows at my apartment (ah, free heat + old lady downstairs). I've since learned that they're good for defrosting chicken, so I may yet one day get another blowfryer.

OK, aside from that little digression, I don't have lots of tips. I know that my hair looks better (well, as in smoother and not broken) in updos. Many people around here work clear aloe gel into dripping wet hair, which helps smooth down the frizzies a bit. I just started working a little conditioner into my hair right before I step out of the shower, as a leave-in. I don't know if that cuts frizz, but it makes my hair feel particularly nice. Finally, check out Kimberlily's Defrizz Spray in the recipes. Many people swear by it.

[tiny_teesha]

maybe get your hands onto some cassia??? That should help your hair feel and look shiney and smoooooth!

[nicolezoie]

Your hair may actually be wavier than you might think. Mine was. I used to think I had mostly straight hair with a case of the bends, and I had to be extreeeeemely careful about how it dried, otherwise it looked horribly damaged. But it really wasn't. :)

[Koskaan]

I agree with Anje, it's a property of the 2a waves. I find that misting, even with plain water, and oiling help. If you want to have your hair down, maybe try damp bunning for a few hours before taking your hair down. That's how you get the waves to be more 'even' if you know what I mean.

[Tangles]

Yah it's frustrating because 1b's have hair that dries straight and 2c's have hair that plops into gorgeous ringlets... 2a's are right in between. I think my hair looks a lot healthier when I encourage wave formation. I used to use a gel which worked beautifully, but, it had alcohol and dried me out terribly. Any suggestions? I've done damp braiding and bunning before and like the results, particularly the bunning.

[Raederle]

I'm not quite at the 2a stage, being only a lowly 1c. I know I've posted this many times before, so feel free to skip the following.

I used to think my hair was 1a, because I combed it wet, which made it dry straight. Partly as an experiment to reduce combing stress, and partly as a result of falling asleep with a turban wrapped around my head, I discovered that my hair is actually wavy.

I scrunch in a little Beauty Without Cruelty leave in after getting the length wet. Then I just gently place both hands at the nape, fingers splayed and separate out the hair. I don't comb it at all until completely dry. This resulted in way fewer tangles, and, if I'm careful enough, it even preserves the waves. Preserving the waves isn't such an issue for me, as I wear my hair up, but it was an interesting side note.

The hair you see in ads isn't necessarily healthy hair. It's hair that's been treated and retouched photographically to present a particular "look". Real hair isn't often going to look the same way.

ETA: Some people have great results using aloe vera gel as a leave in. You could experiment with that. There's also plopping; here's (http://forums.longhaircommunity.com/showthread.php?t=685&highlight=plopping) a recent thread about the procedure.

[Eirinn]

Healthy hair doesn't usually look anything like what you see on hair commercials or supermodels; that's cone-treated hair. What you are seeing is basically plastic. Looks nice, but it causes troubles in the long run.

Why do you think that cones causes trubles in the long run?

[birdiefu]

I agree with the 2a problem! My hair is pretty healthy, but if I comb (especially brush!) my waves out, or turn my head upside down to do a scalp massage then flip it back, my hair looks kinda poofy and frizzy. But it's still soft. My hair naturally tries to form 'sections', so it's either piecy hair or poofy hair....*sigh*, but I love my hair all the same despite it's eccentricities!

[Raederle]

Why do you think that cones causes trubles in the long run?

This article (http://forums.longhaircommunity.com/vbjournal.php?do=article&articleid=13) goes into the whole cones issue.

[Emme76]

My hair is the same way. It is healthy....(get's dry very easy but when I keep up with my treatments it is better), and many told me that my pic look fine...but often it does look very unhealthy and it is weird. If you feel it - it feels like baby hair, very soft and smooth. When my hair looks very "damaged" I do know it needs protein..and a good moisturising treatment :D!!!!! I also started to mist....that helpes a bit.

I think I just have to start to like my hair....the way it is...with or without the frizz...:rolleyes:! Somedays are better than others....

Cassia did help me a bit, also makes my hair look thicker. Always a big plus.....

/Emme

[catfish]

I feel your pain.:flower: I have a friend who has perfect looking 1a blond hair that is full of splits and damage but it still looks great. My hair has not one split that I can find, feels soft but always looks messy. :o At least the longer it gets the wavier it gets.

[jesamyn]

I think this is part of being a wavy. My hair is 2b, and looks 'perfect' when I step out the door. An hour later, it's got little pieces here and there and is starting to look dry and frizzy. I do have some shorter hairs, but they're from growth, not breaking. (My hair seems on a growing tear recently, which I am NOT complaining about!) If I run my hands through it, it feels very soft and happy.