How do you deal with the new growth 'halo'?

[squidgetroo]

OK, I am getting seriously annoyed with my hair and need ideas, pretty please!

My hair has finally reached the point where I can do french and dutch braids and get it all in there. The new problem I'm having is all my new growth. When my hair is pulled back in a braid, I have about 2-3" worth of new growth sticking out all over my head and it looks ridiculous. Don't get me wrong, I'm HAPPY I have so much hair growing back in! But I would like to be able to do more than put my hair in a pony (no fuzz shows then) or twist it up in a claw clip. I've tried coconut oil, aloe vera gel, regular hair gel...nothing works to smooth them down.

I don't know if its just my hair type? When I joined LHC I thought I was a 1b/1c. After going no-cone and starting CO washing, vinegar rinses, henna and oiling my hair, it has now progressed to a solid 2b, which I'm still learning to deal with. And the new growth is all spirals and just curling all over the place...it kinda looks like I stuck my finger in a light socket. :silly: So am I just stuck with ponytails until everything grows another few inches?

[christine1989]

I have the same exact problem! After taking biotin all of this new hair is starting to grow in and it is sticking out eveywhere. Coconut oil has been working well for me if I put just a small amount in while my hair is still wet. Unfortunatly the best technique for smoothing them down is running a flat iron through your hair quickly (probobly not worth it considering the damage it creates). Perhaps if you tried a drop or two of a thicker oil like castor or olive???

[Atlantic]

Flax seed gel, or aloe vera gel. I can't live without it.

[lexiflowers]

I always have a significant halo thing going on, because I have very fine hair. This seems to be the case on my straighter days and my wavier days, whether I blow dry or not, and regardless of any particular product I use in my hair.

I've just learnt to like it. It's kind of cute, in my opinion. :shrug:

Congratulations on your new-found spirals by the way, that must be really pretty. :)

[GoddesJourney]

I just ignore it because the new growth halo has nothing on the amount of frizz I had my whole life. If it gets really bad, just oil it a little.

[RocketDog]

Braiding or styling while hair is damp helps a lot, and I recently started keeping a spritzer bottle with just a tidge of conditioner diluted in water to use when I put my hair up. It's lighter than oil, but better than plain old water for me.

[enfys]

I just don't look in the mirror if I can help it, and every time I go to the bathroom I wipe my damp hands over my hair after washing them.

[squidgetroo]

Thank you everyone...I do usually braid it when its damp, as its so slippery when dry that the braid will just fall out. Maybe I'll try a heavier oiling with olive oil and see if that keeps them at bay. I'll give the flax seed gel a try too...aloe gel does nothing except make my hair crunchy for some reason. Yeah, the spirals are kinda neat, and my whole life I've wanted curly/wavy hair, I just have no idea how to deal with them when they're this darn short! LOL

[ladysaraii]

For me, I tie it down with a scarf for about 15 min. It makes my hair lay down flat

[jaine]

What steps did you follow with the gel? If I comb my hair while it's wet with gel in it, and then let it air dry, that works really well to get all of my hairs lying in the same direction. If I skip the combing, everything still goes in different directions after it dries.
Was it a hard-hold gel?

[Yozhik]

I just ignore it :)
Otherwise, I find if I add oil to the halo, it just contributes to my hair looking greasier faster . . .
I like the scarf suggestion, though! Try not to be too frustrated -- it'll grow ;)

[Pr0sperity]

I have that halo around my hair. I have just been wetting my hands and wiping them over my head. However, I kind of like the look of my halo. I have never had one before.

[squidgetroo]

What steps did you follow with the gel? If I comb my hair while it's wet with gel in it, and then let it air dry, that works really well to get all of my hairs lying in the same direction. If I skip the combing, everything still goes in different directions after it dries.
Was it a hard-hold gel?

I did basically the same thing...added gel to wet hair, combed it through with a wide-tooth comb, then braided. It looked good while it was still damp, but as soon as it was all dry, the little curls just sprung out same as always, only this time they were crunchy. I just used Suave gel...I think it was extra hold. Already threw out the bottle so I can't check.

[ZaBasDa]

Honestly, I can't do anything about it. Softer gels like aloe do not do anything for frizz or new growth. Hard hold gels help a tiny bit, but only if I use so much gel that my hair gets crunchy. So I just put my hair up and hope the halo doesn't decide to curl straight out and away from my head that day.

[Gumball]

If I need to try and lessen the halo effect I use aloe vera gel. Unfortunately my halo is permanent so, well, I just grin and bear it. :) Might as well be as comfortable in my own skin as possible!

[Katze]

Aloe does nothing for me. If I really want my hair to be smooth, I wait until it is 'dirty' (days 3-4 after washing), brush it smooth, then wet it and put some gel it in, and smooth it with my hands again. Then I fasten the longest fuzzy bits with bobby pins, a headband, or barrettes.

I am regrowing what I lost after giving birth. My ends are super thin (I seem to have natural taper which leads to very thin fairy tale ends, no matter how much I trim) and my crown very thick and fluffy and frizzy. Lately I have been washing with 'cones, as this tames the frizz a bit. Though it does straighten my hair out, having hair that looks a bit tidier is worth losing the spirals.

At the moment I prefer to wear my hair down but with the top in a half up. The extra fuzz at the top contributes to more volume at the crown, and if my hair is freshly washed I can comb the length and put gel in it to make it hang better. I'm hoping that it looks like my taper is on purpose - 'layered' - but fear it too often looks ratty or like I need to cut.

Other than that I focus on messy updos, since they can look nice and seem like I 'did it on purpose.' The only other solution, really, seems to be to just wait...and I am hoping the severe difference will be gone in a few years!

[Leneveu]

I have so many baby hairs that I've been using bobby pins to hold them down. It gives me a sort of tight-bunned "ballet class" look which I'd rather avoid, though :laugh:

I'm going to give aloe gel a try :)

[squidgetroo]

I am regrowing what I lost after giving birth.

This is basically what happened to me. The sucky part is that my 'baby' is now 2 1/2 years old. After my oldest I also shed a huge amount and it took several years to get back to normal. I literally lost almost half of my volume both times. :( Good thing I have a lot of hair to start with! I've also been taking biotin for the last several months and I think that's what's contributing to the massive re-growth.

I think your hair is lovely. :) As is the draftie on your profile page! :D Is it a friesian? Or perhaps a perch/friesian cross?

[FrannyG]

I've learned to love my little halo hairs. Nothing wrong with them at all.

If you're really bothered, I, like others, suggest a bit of aloe gel.

[Liss]

I always seem to have a halo around the face, but it doesn't bother me.

Although in the past few weeks I've been getting a serious all-over halo which I have been taming by wearing headbands. It doesn't sit them all down, but it draws the attention away while they grow beyond the sticky-up phase.

[spidermom]

I use Natures Gate Styling Putty. A little goes a long way, and it works great. And bonus - you can comb through it later.

[curlylocks85]

I know what you mean. I have a lot of new growth and I find I look silly with it sticking up every which-way. What I do is bobby pin the new growth. I take oils and give it a good bit and the just pin into place. It can be annoying, but it works for me and I look at it, as an intermediate step until further length is gained so it stays is updos.

Hope this helps. :)

[piratejenny23]

a couple of months ago i had very little halo, but i've been using a new conditioner (garnier fructis triple nutrition) and lately i've been having major halo! i mean, troll-doll-like halo, of handfuls of hair that are over 4" long!

i find that using a sleeping cap greatly reduces my halo--i've just been falling into bed and crashing lately, so i've been negligent. my cap is actually a pair of pantyhose :o very silky and comfortably snug...

a while back i was experimenting with fabric softener as a conditioner and i had ZERO halo! i keep forgetting to try it again though...aaarggh...pics of halo/no halo:

http://forums.longhaircommunity.com/album.php?albumid=4459

i read on another halo thread that pulling your hair back into a half-up while it's drying is helpful. i tried it once or twice & it worked...again, i just keep forgetting!

good luck!

[Anje]

Shea butter conditioning cream (see the Recipes) slicks baby hairs down REALLY well. Might be too greasy-looking, though.

[Belisarius]

Since no one has suggested it, perhaps a heavier oil like olive oil might work?

[squidgetroo]

Well, I tried a heavy oiling yesterday with olive oil, and all it did was make the little wispy hairs (along with the rest of it!) look heavy and greasy. And they still stuck out. And it took 2 CO washings to get it all out. Blah. I think I'll try to find the Nature's Gate styling putty that Spidermom was talking about...maybe its heavy enough to keep them under control. Thanks, everyone, for your great ideas! :)

[Shell]

Well, I tried a heavy oiling yesterday with olive oil, and all it did was make the little wispy hairs (along with the rest of it!) look heavy and greasy. And they still stuck out. And it took 2 CO washings to get it all out. Blah.

Yep, that's what happens when I oil those wispies. I use a plastic head band that goes all of the way over your head, like an Alice band. It keeps the crazy hairs down and adds kind of a Greek goddess look, and we can all use that, right? No one has mentioned a cone serum (unless I missed it in my skim); sometimes if you're really desperate and don't want to use a head band, that works.