What was your hair care routine before LHC knowledge?

[rosieex3]

Maybe it was similar, possibly even the same, and maybe completely different. What was your routine before? Here's mine:

First let me inform you that I have an incredibly dry scalp, and incredibly dry hair that I'm pretty sure is impossible to over-moisturize.

1) Wash hair every other day or every two days, always with lots shampoo and conditioner. Whatever kind I had in my shower, didn't really matter. Also, I would wonder why my very expensive shampoo didn't show any difference in the quality of my hair.

2) Rub my hair dry with a towel.

3) Rip my plastic hair brush violently through my just shampooed hair.

4) Scrunch it with some product and put it in a braid or bun overnight to dry.

5) Always wonder how come my hair was so dry, dull, and unhealthy looking the day after washing it. (*Cough* Shampoo *Cough) :D

6) Dye my hair an unhealthy amount of times.

7) Run a flat iron through my hair when I had bad hair days without any heat protecting product. Not necessarily to make it straight, but to add some shine and flatten out the frizz.

I don't think I could thank LHC enough for saving my scalp and hair! I think the one thing my hair needed the absolute most was to give up shampoo.

[Dars]

I was a product junkie and never looked at the ingredients.

I shampooed and then did it again because it said so on the bottle!

I used towels and owned a brush.

Regular use of the hair straightener, in fact it was such a big part of my life I splashed out on a $300 one... big regrets there! :(

I would get it cut every around every 12 weeks because I was trying to grow it out and that's what is recommended mainstream.

Sometimes I'd use the blowdryer.

I didn't know how to care for my curls at all.

I liked to tease my hair now that I think about it.

That's all I remember for now.

[Cirafly24]

- Shampoo twice with harsh sulfates, sudsing all the way to the ends every time
- Condition with tons of cones
- Brush wet hair with a plastic brush
- Sometimes allow to air dry, sometimes blow dry and flat iron
- Wear down or up in a ponytail with an elastic that routinely ripped my hair out
- Dye every couple of months

[sugarpixie10988]

I shampooed every day with a clarifying shampoo... Herbal Essence's Drama Clean. The only reason I did was because it smelled sooo good!

I used whatever conditioner we had at the moment.

Brushed my hair when wet with a plastic brush with the balls at the end.

I sometimes would tease it a small amount if it was looking a bit flat.

Despite the clarifying shampoo every day along with everything else, my hair didn't really look that bad. I'm sure it helped a lot that I pretty much left it alone most of the time, and never used heat on it out of laziness. It looks a lot better now though in comparison!

[countryhopper]

*daily washes with shampoo
*rub dry with towel
*blowdry while pulling the brush through it
*sleep in velcro rollers (velcro+hair= not a good thing!)
*tease and hairspray
*various extremes of coloring over the years

[jera]

I used to wash daily with shampoo, tore a plastic comb threw it, blow dried it and curled with a curling iron. I also brushed and never used oils on my hair. :p

[Captain Nikki]

Used awful Pantene sh & condish for many years.
Ripped through it regularly with a brush. Never took the time to be gentle.
For about a year, i straightened it everyday. Didn't even know what a heat protectant product was.
Wore it out, exposed to the hot sun & wind everyday, without even a scrunchie.
Relied on some crap, useless Avon leave in serum for years which obviously did nothing to protect my hair.

[HintOfMint]

1. Shampoo down to the ends every day (Often an expensive shampoo like Redken)
2. Silicone conditioner (expensive corresponding conditioner)
3. Rub hair dry with a towel
4. Blowdry hair upside down, on hot, without protection, every day
5. Plastic bristle brush
6. Would use my boar bristle brush on wet hair, and often to detangle
7. Hairspray (and would often brush through the hairspray)
8. Flat iron without protection (does hairspray count as protection?:rolleyes:) and on high heat
9. Same as above with a curling iron
10. When I realized I had a lot of damage, I snipped off split ends with a dull pair of scissors
11. Then I would play with and twist the newly cut ends until I made them split again, often within minutes (I am not joking)
12. I would let my longest layer get matted and then rip through them with the plastic bristled brush.

The bottom half of my hair was so damaged, it was a full three shades lighter than the rest of my hair, and I didn't even dye it.

Wow, my routine is pretty different, to say the least

[christine1989]

Before finding LHC I thought that I had discovered CO washing on my own! I was suprised that it was so popular. The main thing that LHC changed for me was geting rid of SLS shampoo and experimenting with different hair oils.

[Roseate]

Then:
-Shampoo and condition once a week, with sulfates to cause lovely scabs on my scalp, and cones to pull out all my wurls!
-Blow dry straight while brushing
-Touch up with flat iron

Now:
-CWC once a week with diluted sulfate-free shampoo and lots of conefree conditioner
-Leave-in conditioner
-touch of oil on the ends
-flaxseed gel if I feel like it
-air dry, don't touch, admire wurls!

[Loreley]

1. I washed it twice a week with SLS shampoo which I kept changing.
2. I used coney conditioners, most of the time Pantene or Sunsilk. (I know cones are not particularly bad but I don't like them.)
3. I didn't trim it at all for 4 years.
4. I used a plastic brush, tearing my wet hair with it.
5. Rubbed my hair with the towel.
6. I wore my hair almost all the time in a bee-butt-like bun with a scrunchie tied tightly around it or in a ponytail.
7. I rarely flat ironed it.
8. I dyed and coloured it twice or three times, which caused a lot of demage, I'm still growing it out. :(

I still don't know how it grew to almost classic length with this horrible routine. :confused: It was very demaged, I had fairytale ends, it looked awful.

[Masara]

Before LHC I would wash my hair every day with shampoo and then condition and I still do. The differences are in the way I do it; conditioner on the ends, shampoo on the roots, rinse and then recondition.
I still brush my hair through with a wide spaced paddle brush whiole wet and I still use a hairdryer on my roots, just not on all my hair and not until my hair is completely dry.

Before LHC, I had worked out that certain conditioners didn't work well on my hair but it took LHC knowledge to work out that they all had cones.

I've always done deep conditioning treatements but LHC opened up a whole range of oil based treatements, because I had been worried that oil would weigh my fine hair down.

[lastnite]

I used to do all the bad things to my hair...blow dry, straighten, wash everyday, bleached, hot rollers, colored, permed, chemically straightened, used cones galore. I still remember saturating my hair in Infusium and then putting on a big dallop of frizz ease or some cone serum...I thought they were actually conditioning my hair and sealing split ends, I guess they were but I didn't think they could seal out moisture and dry my already dry hair out even more. I used a plastic brush to detangle my wet hair. I was really clueless with haircare then, lol. :o:(

I started on my hair journey from the things learned on the long hair boards about 7 years ago, so since then I gave up the blow dryer, coloring and heat styling, using a wide toothed comb to detangle only when my hair is dry, shampooing 1-3x a week...I still use different shampoos and conditioners (cones, sulphates) and such, but that's just the product junkie in me that I haven't grown out of yet.

[Tiina]

Dyed my hair every 2 months. Shampoo and condition 3-4 times a week. Had no idea what was in either of them and had never heard of SLS nor 'cones. Shampooed the lenght every time. Didn't care if it was wet or dry, brush or comb... Good thing I have always been too lazy to use any heat styling.

And now I'm WO. :rolleyes:

[Verybadhairday]

I always brushed out my curls into an awful frizz bush, it was insanely dry from using shampoo and conditioner every other day or so, using a brush whilst wet too and flat ironing it once a week. I also highlighted it twice, which made it dryer, then dyed over that. So my hair was like straw! Woops

[Sammich]

I used to be quite hair friendly actually,(Before any research into hair care!) surprising.
I used to comb with a wide tooth (woops said toof at first! :p ) comb when wet, but I still do, just with my Denman now! :p
I never blow dried, I was too lazy. I never flat ironed, too lazy again. Never curled, maybe once or twice a year...?
I brush with my denman! Hands down. Love how comb-like it is, and how undamaging it feels.
Baddies: I dyed it almost every year from the age of 10; in 2009... I dyed it about 4 or 5 times... dear me, I also shampooed and conditioned the length and scalp everyday, always wondered why my scalp hair was incredibly oily after a wash. My dad told me to rub coconut conditioner in my scalp because it'd help with hair growth, very cute of him! He got me into hair care actually!(I do CWC now) After my wash, I also SOMETIMES rubbed the towel on my wet hair. :p

I think the main reason why I was so healthy with my hair was, I hated the sound of breaking hair, I thought of my hair as a separate entity? I didn't want to harm it in any way, and I loved it, I used my own common sense to determine whatever I did to burn it, slice through it with a comb/brush was incredibly damaging! :p
I still leave my hair out alot, I love free flowing and don't consider that damaging unless I don't take care of it when it's free! :p

[MissMB]

...Sooo, I'm guilty of a lot of items on the OP's list. o_o I guess I have no idea what I'm doing, hahahah! If anybody has easy-to-give (no trouble) starters advice, that'd be cool! :)

[MissMB]

And I mean easy-to-give on your part - not me actually using the advice!

[Lemur_Catta]

Nothing special, nothing too bad either.
I washed and conditioned with whatever I had on hand...I usually bought Sunsilk or something like that, the ones for straight hair. Then I blowdried it, with no brush or styling, just for drying.
I usually wore my hair loose or if it was very hot or I was exercising, a ponytail.
I dyed occasionally, but mostly temporary dyes. I also flatironed 1-2 times a year, never more than that. I was lazy more than concerned with damage :D
But I had hair about shoulder-apl length, so I didn't really cause much damage.

[Sammich]

...Sooo, I'm guilty of a lot of items on the OP's list. o_o I guess I have no idea what I'm doing, hahahah! If anybody has easy-to-give (no trouble) starters advice, that'd be cool! :)

Check this out MissMB! It's a thread totally dedicated for newbies! :D
http://forums.longhaircommunity.com/showthread.php?t=32573

[chopandchange]

Old routine:

Washing: SLS shampoo, coney conditioner, rip plastic brush through hair while still in shower, rub hair with towel.

Styling:
To get it straight: spray with heat "protector" and spend about 1.5 hours blitzing with GHDs.
To get it wavy: spray with heat "protector" and spend about 2 hours using round spiky brush to "style" with hairdryer.
To get it curly: scrunch mousse into wet hair.

New routine:

Washing: CO, blot hair with towel, apply serum, detangle with wooden comb.

Styling:
Wavy: plait wet hair after washing. (approx. 30 seconds)
Straight but curly at the ends: ponytail hair and twist length into ringlets. (approx 30 seconds)
To get straight hair: em, just forget it.

:cheese:

[Pandora.]

Oh. My. God.
Where do I start?!

Old routine:
-Constantly rip a paddle brush through my hair.
-Flat iron hair daily (sometimes twice!).
-Multiple bleaching.
-Spray a whole ton of hairspray all over my hair.
-Wash hair every other day (sometimes everyday).
-Vigorously shampoo the length as well as the scalp.
-Rub hair with towel, then rip at my tangled hair with a paddle brush.
-Tug at hair when styling.
-Constantly pull, scratch and play with my hair when bored in class
-I'm not even KIDDING when I say this, but when I had a split end, I used to literally pull the split off right up the hair shaft, out of boredom.

New routine:
-I now straighten my hair - at the most - once (sometimes twice) a week. I'm gradually getting a lot better at this as well. I make sure I use a whole load of heat protection spray.
-I haven't had my hair bleached since late March/early April (around that time anyway). My roots are beginning to look dreadful so when I next go to the hairdressers I'm going to ask them to just do my roots - and not even TOUCH the rest of my hair!!
-I use the CWC method of washing. I use A LOT of conditioner now!
-I've started using more leave-in conditioners, and this olive oil sheen spray which I find to quite good.
-I don't wash my hair as frequently.
-I don't rub my hair with a towel when wet, I blot my hair and then wrap it up and leave it for a while.
-I air-dry after washing.
-I wear my hair in a top bun when I go to bed, and sometimes I braid my hair.
-I S&D when I can be bothered.
-I don't rip through my hair with a paddle brush (well, only sometimes I do); I usually use a wide tooth comb instead.

My new routine isn't perfect, but it is SUCH an improvement from my old one. It's only been a little over a month and my hair feels much healthier already. Since my hair grows fast, it's beginning to feel thicker already.

[jasper]

I didn't do a lot of bad stuff to my hair. I just never did anything good to it.

I used to wash two to three times a week, but rarely decided to use my conditioner because I thought it just made my hair limp. Very often, I was shampooing with Neutrogena Anti-build-up, not that I used any product that could be building up. I let my hair air dry, or in other words, ignored it. I wore it up all the time (because I thought it was too ugly to be presentable) in a cinnamon bun with hair sticks or sometimes used little claw clips to secure it, or I put it in a pony tail. Maybe the worst thing I did was my work-out hairdo where I used no-slip hair ties wrapped really tight on a high half through pony tail, causing a lot of friction and breakage.

[Ravenne]

Hm...

Then:
- Shampoo all the way to the ends, used very little conditioner and only on the ends
- Coney conditioners
- Rub dry with towel
- Detangled right after shower with a brush
- Blow-fried every day, sometimes straighten
- Always wore it loose or ponytailed; let it tangle and then ripped through it with brush

Now:
- CO or CWC with no cones
- Blot dry with towel
- Gentle comb detangling after shower and put it up in a turbie twist
- Air dry
- Use wood comb and BBB only
- Use various protective updos and braids!!!

And what a difference it has made!

[Tonks]

I don't remember too much what I used to do with my hair...

I think I washed it every 2-3 days, shampoo all over, then conditioner. I'd occasionally brush it dry with one of those brushes with the plastic balls on the end. I'd straighten it a few times a week (before I used to straighten it every day, I thought it was the only way to control my hair!).

Now I wash once a week, oil my hair semi-regularly, don't use heat at all (in fact, I got rid of my hairdryer! Next to get rid of is the curling iron and straightener), wait till my hair is dry to detangle/comb it, and I use a wooden comb now with wide teeth. I also finger comb it frequently throughout the day, because it tangles easily, and I like having my hair down.

[CrisDee]

Oh, my GOODNESS, where to start? I brutalized my hair!

Old routine:
Chemical dye every 4 weeks, roots for 22 minutes, pull through length for 6 minutes
Daily whole head shampoo/conditioner, loads of cones
Rub hair dry with a towel
Rip brush (metal with plastic balled ends, many of which had fallen off) through it from top to bottom
Blow dry daily, on highest heat upside down
Large barrel curling iron daily, on highest heat to smooth the length and turn the ends under
Leave it loose to get caught under my purse strap, closed in the car window, etc.
Wonder why the ends seemed so thin and I had so many broken flyaways

New Routine:
Cut hair to pixie, grew out chemical dye, henna/cassia only now, roots only every 2-3 weeks
Daily CO, no cones
Gently wrap hair in chamois to blot dry
Gently detangle with wide tooth horn comb
Blow dry 2-3x week (hair's still short, gotta style it for work!) on lowest or no heat setting
No heated metal appliances of any kind
Stare at ridiculous health and shine when passing a mirror

I think the perception many people have about "treating hair like antique lace" is that it's expensive and time consuming - but I've found my new routine to be less expensive and takes far less time :) Now all that may go out the window when it gets long enough for cool hair toys... :D

[Fairlight63]

Then:
I would color my hair with Nice & Easy a Med. Ash Blonde.

Wash hair with Pantene Shamp. & cond. 1 time a wk. Set on elect. hot rollers once a week or use curling iron.
brush hair with brush, comb into style, put on hair spray.

Now:
Don't color my hair any more.
Wash hair with SLS Free shampoo & no cones cond. 2 times a wk.
Put up in a cloth after washing for a while (don't use a towl any more on hair), then take down & let air dry. Dont' use hot rollers or curling iron on hair.

[FrannyG]

Before LHC:

Shampooed and conditioned daily with coney products without clarifying ever.

Brushed hair when wet to detangle.

Used blowdryer on hot setting.

Used curling irons or hot rollers daily, and spent a lot of time doing so.

Used mousse and gels that were drying.

Coloured my hair with box dye without using any pre-colour coating.

Used a hi-lift blonde at times.

Always wore my hair down.


Since LHC

CO with cone-free conditioner, although I do use cones on my damaged ends right now, and will until the damage grows out.

Clarify when necessary.

Do regular SMT's with non-coney conditioner.

Finger comb my hair when it's about 99% dry, and then use a horn comb to complete the detangling.

Use jojoba oil daily on my ends.

Still use box dye, but coat my hair with coconut oil first, and am more careful to do roots only. I now use a medium blonde shade instead of very light or ultra light blonde.

Use a BBB only at night, to distribute jojoba oil, and before COing to remove much of my shed hair. I don't use many strokes.

No heat styling.

I wear my hair up a lot and wear it down only when I go out with friends.

The only stying product I use, and even at that it's rarely, is Morrocco Method Blood of the dragon gel, which has natural, hair-friendly ingredients.

Enjoy how much better my hair looks and feels since using a new routine for the past couple of years. :)

[slythwolf]

Then:
1. Shampoo the scalp area with sulfate-having shampoo once a week or whenever I worked out and got all sweaty. Follow with lots of cone-having conditioner on the whole length, sometimes twice.
2. Comb out in the shower with the conditioner still on using a wide-tooth comb.

Now:
1. Shampoo scalp area once a week or as needed with sulfate-free shampoo, using lots of cone-free conditioner on the length.
2. Finger comb or use a wide-tooth comb when dry.
3. Henna roots every couple of months or so.

Really the big change has been getting rid of sulfates and cones, and adding henna. My hair has always been in pretty good shape.

[Fiferstone]

Here's MINE :)

1) Wash hair every other day, always with Pantene shampoo and condish.

2) When conditioning, comb through the conditioned, tangled hair with any ole comb I had hanging around :shudder

3) Ditto the plastic, ball-tipped hair brush on sopping wet hair

4) Let it fly in the breeze and get caught in the trees ;), pretty much ignore it, perhaps put it up in a half-up or ponytail with any ole supermarket barrette (the bad, "hair eating" french barrette kind).

5) Box dye it every two months with L'Oreal Preference, sometimes the whole head application method if the color was slightly different than the color I'd used before

6) Wonder why the last 5-6 inches felt (and behaved) like straw.

[In2wishin]

My old routine:

1) Wash hair once or twice a week, depending

2) Condition

3) Blot with a towel

4) Detangle with wide toothed plastic comb

5) Air dry

6) Style with wide toothed comb and plastic bristle brush. Usually pull back into a low pony with a metal barrette (which broke my hair at the edges) or do a tails up with same barrette when at home

7) Color with L'Oreal Excellence Cream light ash blonde approx. every 2 months


My new routine isn't too different except I only use natural combs and brushes; I wash twice a week alternating shampoo with and herbal wash; I oil once a week with Jamaican black castor oil; I no longer color; I no longer use anything metal in my hair except a Flexi-8, jumbo bobby pins, or Spin Pins (nothing with sharp edges or that my hair can get caught in).

[Naamah]

S & C every other day, rubbed a towel in my hair, used a BRUSH on my WET hair afterward, shudder: and then I would go to bed with wet hair. I would flatiron occasionally, maybe once a week. No heat protection. I dyed my hair a few times a year. I wore my hair down all the time. I only wore it up for work, in a messy bun with a hairtie. Got a lot of breakage from that.

[Twil]

THEN
1) Shampoo and Condition everyday
2) Comb while wet
3) Squeeze water out with a towel
4) Finger comb in some leave-in
5) Put up in a bun, plaster 'baby hairs' (really broken off hairs) with gel.


NOW
1) Condition every day
2) Shampoo as needed (usually if I leave the shower, and water is beaded on my hair instead of soaked in, the silicones have coated my hair and need to be washed out)
3) Comb hair while in the shower
4) Squeeze out water (but only until it's not dripping)
5) Apply Products
6) Style.

[jane53]

I care for my hair the same way now as I did before I discovered LHC. I wash it every other day with Suave Naturals shampoo and conditioner. I don't use a comb on it. I usually braid it wet and go to bed without brushing it. All snarls are out by morning and a smooth brushing is possible.

[julliams]

I used to use Pantene which gave me an itchy scalp and then I would flat iron about 2 - 3 times a week. I always got loads of compliments and get hardly any now. Interesting.

[Hiriel]

I washed with shampoo and conditioner once or twice a week, was a bit more violent with my towel than I am now, and wore it down more. And used elastics and barrettes that snagged in my hair sometimes. That's about it.

[OrangeStripe]

Before I went to uni I would wash my hair every 2/3 days, at uni every morning with shampoo and conditioner (pantene ect.) if I was going somewhere.
Brush straight out the shower, then tie up in a tight high pony or bun with nasty hairties.
Now, I'm on WO, washing every 3/4 days, combing when partly dry, then into an updo with no bobbles, just friendly hairpins.

[Svenja]

I literary had none, if you don;t count in washing. I washed them every day. Conventional shampoo chosen for smell rather than effect. Brushing wet hair. Ponytail. Thinking about my routine back then now it makes me shudder.

[alwayssmiling]

Ok here goes -

1) Bleached my own hair every month (roots only)
2) Used any old shampoo and conditioner (never read a label until I came here)
3) Flat ironed at least once a day, sometimes twice and often when it was damp!
4) Rubbed my hair with a towel
5) Blow dried hair dresser style - ie with a round brush and the nozzle right on the hair
6) Hot rollers and curling tongs for nights out
7) Used rubber bands in my hair

I also never did a DT even though I was abusing my hair something rotton. This is why for years I thought my hair never grow. It was breaking off as fast as it was growing. (Holds head in shame :rolleyes:)

[freckles]

Then:
wash every 2-3 days with sls shampoo (right down to tips). Maybe condition, but maybe not. Roughly towel dry. Blowdry every other time or so. Daily, brush with plastic brush fom roots to tips, not detangling properly. Wear down.

Now: shampoo & condition every 2-3 days -- shampooing scalp only. T-shirt/air dry. Daily: detangle using fingers/wooden comb from tips upwards, then smooth with tangle teezer, mostly updos.

[beez1717]

before I was just washing with any ol poo that we had around and that was it. Now I use conditioner and I try to stay away from sulfates a little bit and then I now dry my hair :( I guess I should learn to love my wet hair right?

[Iron0Maiden]

* Dye my hair every few months... sometimes once a month.
* Tease my hair and straighten it EVERY DAY for months.
* Shampoo my hair with clairifying shampoo every day.
* Brush when wet.
* Sleep with a wet bun, tossing and turning
* Give myself trims (I didnt haver proper scissors and I at one point didnt get a proper hairtrim for 7 months...)
* Cut my hair myself (I gave my self my own whacky haircut.... ughh.)
* Spray hairspray ALL OVER my hair, even on the ends of it, and spike it with gel every day.
* Wair these colored hair extensions that would rip my hair out.

[meph]

It was the same. I used to use whatever shampoo made my hair feel clean but not stripped and follow up with Palmolive anti tangles. I currently do that too.
That said, I did experiment with CO, no cones, no sulphates and different conditioners but those methods didn't really make a difference - if they did, it was only for the worse.
So now I'm back at where I was pre LHC and it's still working good for my hair. I'm happy that I've tried different things though; I otherwise would've never known if my hair could have been improved or not.

EDIT: I also was never too keen on heat styling or blow drying, I've always been a low maintenance girl when it comes to hair. :D

[Medievalmaniac]

Pre-LHC:

wash and condition every day with 'cones and 'fates galore...usually Pantene.Shampoo the length, rubbing vigorously. Vigorous rubbing dry with towel.

"protector" spray (extra cones! ACK!) whenever I used heat. Leave-in conditioner every day (cones on top of cones!)

Hair dryer and/or curling or flat iron 2-3 times a week.

Threw it up in the same twist secured with a claw clip every day.

Ripped ponytail holders out after workouts

box dye every 2 months or so.

Professional cut once every few months because I was sick of it not looking great even though "I was taking such good care of it" (ooooops...! lol)

Now:


CWC with VO5 once a week, alternating between 1 week clarifying and 3 weeks moisturizing. Rinse through with no shampoo or conditioner if needed after a heavy workout on non-shampoo days.

Nightblooming split end treatment and anointing oil 2-3 times a week.

Coconut oil, tea tree oil, almond oil, olive oil - still experimenting here. I'm on my second SMT right now and loving it.

No other commercial products. No heat. Nobody but me touches my hair with scissors!

Put it up most days with my very rapidly growing hairtoy collection.

Revlon Perfect 10 dye once every 4 months (still trying to get up the guts to go henna) But, since dye is my only vice, and it's infrequent - 3-4 times a year, tops - and I'm using the shortest possible leave-on time, I don't feel as bad about it.


I am so grateful for LHC! I "thought" I was taking good care of my hair before....now I KNOW I am!! :D

[Sarahmoon]

- Sleep with my hair in a ponytail
- Brush it with a simply awful brush with hard synthetic hairs.
- Wash twice a week, use lots of shampoo on the length and no conditioner.
- Rub length with a towel after washing.

That was at the worst moment. Later I read somewhere online (not a hair forum) it was nonsense to use shampoo on the length and to rinse your hair with cold water to make it more shiny. I then quit the shampoo on the length thing, used more conditioner again and occasionally rinsed with cold water. I stopped rubbing the length with a towel when I one day just basically saw a lot more splits after doing so. Shortly after joining LHC, I abandoned the awful brush and started braiding my hair at night.

[LadyMydnytMoon]

when I was hid, it was all shampoo everyday then I started using those 2in1 shampoo+conditioner. When I had my hair relaxed in HS I started using shampoo and then conditioner everyday. Now its all different, but I'm still trying to see what works best.

[Cholera]

SLS shampoo, coney conditioner, rub hair dry with towel, brush with a small round brush with little balls on the ends of the bristles, blow dry on high til 100% dry, then straighten (possibly after applying hairspray). It seems so terrible to me now, but my hair didn't seem damaged at the time! o.o

[Kaijah]

1. Shampoo everything with whatever sulfate 'poo was in the shower
2. Use a bit of some type of "strengthening" conditioner (read: protein explosion oh dear god) or straightening/smoothing conditioner
3. Towel dry, brush, ponytail and ignore
4. Brush again when it was all dry, and either re-ponytail or straighten

Repeat daily, while wondering why my hair was so angry all the time... :confused: :laugh:

[Yozhik]

Before LHC I did a lot of bad things to my hair :(

- shampoo + condition every day, and I would pile all of my hair on top of my head while shampooing (I did read labels and had heard that SLS was bad, but didn't like it that natural shampoos didn't get my hair "squeaky" clean)
- rub my hair dry with a towel
- rip brushes through my wet (or dry) hair. I'd hear my hair breaking and think it was good that I was getting all of the knots out :shudder:
- occasionally flat iron (2-3 times a year) on the highest setting with no heat protector.
- pull my split ends apart so they would "go away" Eek!
- wear really tight ponytails with elastics
- not wear hats, ever, so my ends were horribly sun-damaged and crispy

I'm glad my poor hair is forgiving me now!

[goodenough]

I was suprisingly the same as I am now! Think I was just given good advise before, and I have tough hair so I'm not as careful as some on here.

Before:

shampoo and condition with Suave Coconut products every other day
blowdry only when absolutely needed (going out in winter right after washing, etc.)
hotrollers/iron once in a while
use brush gently
avoid styling products
hairspray only once in a while
trim only when I want it shorter

now-the same pretty much. I actually read about Dove s & c on LHC, and I find using them once in a while helps my scalp.

I also stretch my washes to three days once in a while. What I did learn was lots of updos. Before, I was limited to a basic bun, a ponytail, topsytail, and braids. Kind of a waste, since I've had it as long as hip length with boring hairstyles:) I didn't use hairsticks correctly, either.

[zombi]

Before LHC I was using shampoo with sulfates & blowdrying + flat ironing my hair much more often, and I used chemical dye. Though I only washed my hair in cold water every 3 or so days, so that's a plus? everything else I think is better now. Henna dye, embracing my natural texture, and gentler/more natural shampoos.

[luckyduck]

Before LHC, I was not using near enough conditioner! I had problems with an itchy scalp and I thought that the conditioner would make it worse. I would shampoo, just once though, and use a little conditioner. On the plus side, I rarely used the blow dryer, and I always did wear it in an updo.
Now I CWC at most twice a week, though this week I went a whole week and did CO today for the first time. I am not sure if I like it, but I want to give it a couple of days before I decide.
(My itchy scalp is a thing of the past!)

[Speckla]

chop chop chop away my 'frizz'

[Tamara78]

I would flat iron my hair every day and use harmful coloring, so now I'm trying to limit the flat ironing as much as I can and decided to let my color grow out

[little_cherry]

Before LHC:
-Shampoo with sulfates and conditioner with LOTS of cones- twice a week.
-Use straightener every day- once a week (depends on how I felt). Sometimes I'd use a straightener on wet hair.
-Kept it down most of the time and hardly let it go past shoulders.
-Ripped through it with a barrel brush at least once a day.
-Used towel to scrub hair dry and brushed wet hair.


shudder:

I'm glad I found LHC.....

[BunnyBee]

Wash every few days (trying to keep semi permanent colour from fading) with Pantene because I liked the smell

Towel dry (probably with some wringing:run:)

Brush with round vent brush.. I didn't even own a comb

Air dry (one good thing)

Dye every 1-2 weeks depending on how well my colour was holding up :nono:

Bleach every.. so often (too much) to A) do roots, and B) lighten PREVIOUS colour in preparation for new one :brickwall

Wear down most of the time, or in "creative" updos with assorted tiny braids and sparkly metal accessories


I had also done the following on occasion:
Curling (both hot iron and rollers), hairspray, teasing, talc as dry shampoo, coney serum, metal clasped elastics, refuse to brush/comb hair for days, rip out tangles, let hair whip about in the wind, seawater, chlorine, bleaching and dying when fully aware of allergies, and also occasionally purposely ripping it out... shudder:


I'm surprised I HAVE hair.

[XcaliburGirl]

Then:
Everyday
Wash with 'coney SLS shampoo on my whole head, unless I had gross scalp build-up in which case I'd use Selsun Blue for a few days
Condition with 'coney conditioner on my whole head
Towel turban for 5-10 minutes
Occasionally try some 'coney styling product, just to end up with my hair looking the same but feeling scuzzy.
Comb and put up with sticks; after chop, pull back with head band or ponytail

Now:
Everyday
Wash and condition with whatever method I'm attempting this week, switching to something else when I get dry scalp, dandruff, or scalp build-up
Towel turban for 5-10 minutes
Occasionally try aloe vera gel just to end up with my hair looking the same but feeling nice.
Comb and put up with ponytail or Flexi-8 french twist

:rolleyes: I feel like I'm not really making much progress, but on the plus side, I was pretty benign with my hair to start with.

[Dreams_in_Pink]

I shampooed only top of my head (!) with an anti-dandruff shampoo. Didn't rinse it too well. No conditioner because the anti-dandruff shampoo was 2 in 1. (can you spell head and shoulders)

I step out of the shower. With the highest heat and blow speed on, i blast my dripping wet hair with a blow dryer, making sure all the strands get a fair share of the boiling heat and wind. After it's %150 dry, rake shed strands with a cheap plastic comb.

Afterwards, i put my hair in a ponytail tightly, wondering why i still have some gunk left on my scalp...

[enfys]

The same pretty much.

CWC twice a week with anything I fancy as long as it's not Pantene or Garnier Fructis. SLS shampoo diluted with water, coney conditioner
Blot with a towel.
Air dry, but finish with a blow drier before bed or in the morning if needed.
Brush.
Oil with jojoba

The additions now are:
SMT and other treatments
Cassia (which I will start up again when DH has grouted the bathroom...)
Tangle Teazer (which wasn't invented then)
Hair forks (was just sticks)
Coconut oil and grapeseed oil (hadn't heard of)

It should be noted that 1: My mum was an excellent hair teacher and 2: I spent 5 years on other long hair sites before joining here.

[Carolyn]

Then:
Shampoo and condition almost every day with salon products most of the time. Towel turban up for a few minutes. Comb with wide tooth comb. Blow dry and use a curling iron almost every time I shampooed. Wear it down or in a ponytail. Cut off 1-2" every 3-4 months.

Now:
CO or CWC every 2-3 days. Towel turban and wide tooth comb to detangle. Deep condition every 1-2 weeks. Oil the night before a wash about twice a week. Cut down on use of sulphates and cones. Heat style only once every 2-3 months. Wear in a bun or braid most of the time. Trim a half inch every 3-4 months.

[ArienEllariel]

Shampoo and Condition with average sulfate drugstore shampoo. At one point I was using shampoo for oily hair (which of course completely dried out my already dry ends) and/or a clarifying shampoo everyday. I would use conditioner with cones but it never seemed to combat the damage caused by the shampoo. I would not use a wide tooth comb to detangle.. and I would sometimes brush my hair wet. I tried to do monthly VO5 hot oil treatments but they didn't seem to help much. Slept with my hair loose to wake up to a rats nest every morning.

Right before I joined the LHC, I switched over to some expensive olive oil shampoo and conditioner made by Regis. It did nothing to help my hair. It was just as broken and damaged as ever.

Thank God for the LHC... my hair is soooo much better now.

[pepperminttea]

I discovered the LJ longhair community equivalent of the LHC a few years before venturing here, so that's when I started experimenting and learning about all those very long words on the back of shampoo bottles. Prior to finding there, my route was whatever shampoo/conditioner smelled nice and was preferably on offer. Often Pantene. I was generally very rough on my hair with brushing (with one of those terrible plastic ones), I yo-yo-ed between a long bob and BSL, layered, and I washed every other day; always wearing my hair down on the first day and ponytailed the next with damaging elastics. I dyed my hair for a while, and once made the mistake of getting a perm. I never really got into heat-styling, it was too much hassle, but it was straightened after every cut and whenever my friends asked if they could. I generally air-dried though, after rough towel drying, apart from after I learnt to style the perm, which for me meant mousse, scrunching, and the cold setting on the one and only hairdryer I've ever owned (which has been long since lost). I slept with it loose or ponytailed on a cotton pillowcase and always woke up to matted tangles of doom.

Now, well. Cone-free, heat-free, no dyes or perming, detangling with a wooden comb, and generally being a lot more gentle with my hair. I was sulphate free for a while too, but I've had to return to them with the hard water here; diluted though. Sleeping on a silk pillowcase with my hair in a single braid helps a lot. I self-trim, so my layers are slowly disappearing, and it doesn't see straighteners at all. I do pre-wash deep oilings, and lighter ones post-wash, and S&D regularly. I've also learnt a handful of styles other than the ponytail and invested in a modest collection of hairtoys. :)

[Aevra]

-Wash every night with sulfate shampoo and cone conditioner twice using 2x the amount of conditioner compared to the shampoo (so exaggeration here, if I used 25% of a bottle of shampoo then I would use 50% of the conditioner bottle...that's the easiest way to explain it)
-roughly brush with plastic brush with metal bristles while wet
-rub hair with towel until damp
-go to bed with hair wild, not even pulled back
-wake up and brush my hair again with same brush
-use hair elastic with metal closer

I'd occasionally flat iron, I'd get my hair trimmed every other week (my grandma woks at the salon so I got it for free) and allowed them to put lots of product in.


And I wondered why my hair was so frizzy...and so un-healthy.

[Bene]

Before LHC:

- Wash and condition every 2-3 days with Herbal Essences
- Leave a towel on my head and wander around until I remembered I needed to do something to my hair
- Use Frizz-ease leave-in (or other hair serum, depending on what I had on hand)
- Detangle
- Damp bun with an elastic hair thingy

Sometimes, I'd blow dry and flat iron whenever I felt like I wanted straight hair. Using whatever heat protecting product I had on hand.


After LHC:

- Wash with shampoo bar, use ACV instead of conditioner, every 2-3 days.
- Leave a towel on my head and wander around until I remember I need to do something to my hair
- Use (camellia or sweet almond) oil as a leave-in
- Detangle
- Damp bun with fork or stick

Sometimes, I'll blow dry and flat iron whenever I feel like I want straight hair. Using Living proof as heat protection.



I suppose the only difference is my product choice :shrug:

[Islandgrrl]

Honestly, with the exception of chemical dye to make my hair brown and heat styling, my routine then isn't all that different from what it is now.

Seriously. I neglect it. A lot.

[Wanderer09]

Mine's not drastically different. I was always too lazy for any kind of heat styling. I hated how poofy blowdrying made my hair, so as soon as I had a say in it (age 12 or so) I stopped. I washed once a week, S&C with Herbal Essences, the purple one for curly hair. I combed my hair out when it was wet, let it dry, then either pull it into my eternal frizzy ponytail or leave it alone. Sometimes, if I wanted to wear it down and curly, I'd scrunch it with gel or curl creme, but I hated how crunchy my hair got so I stopped. That was the extent of my routine. Now:

- wash once or twice a week (CO, S&C, WO, whatever I feel my hair needs). I use different products now and am more careful when I wash and rinse.
- detangle, oil, braid.
- occasional deep treatments (SMTs usually) when I feel like pampering myself

[shockinglength]

* I'd wash with harsh sulphate shampoo every two days, whether my hair needed it or not.
* Rip a platic brush through it frequently evry day-even when it was wet.
*Daily use hair spray.

My hair care is MUCh different now ;)

[GeoJ]

My old routine wasn't horrible, but had room for improvement:

1. Shampoo (twice) and then condition with Aubrey Organics Island Naturals.
2. Twist it up into a towel for a few minutes.
3. Comb it (while wet) with a wide tooth plastic (seamed) comb.
4. Used hairtoys that were causing damage on a regular basis (for me that was metal barrettes, clips with sharp seams, and elastics with sharp parts).
5. Sometimes I used a blow-drier, but that was rare because it took too much time to do.
6. Used coconut oil to smooth down frizzies.


Now, when I use shampoo and conditioner I will CWC. I don't twist it in a towel, but wrap the towel around my wet hair, forming a 'towel tube'. I only use my fingers to detangle if my hair is not dry, and replaced my seamed comb with good quality wood and horn combs. I got rid of damaging hairtoys (or fixed, by sanding seams in some cases), and replaced them with sticks, forks, flexi-8s, and a ficcare maximas. I don't use the blowdrier at all anymore.

[Chestershire]

wash it every single day, brush through when wet, then rub dry quickly with towel, use loads of product, then blowdry, let it down or puts it in tight ponytail, picking up hairs from shirt and floor, repeat.
OH the horror!

[luxepiggy]

Shampoo & condition
Wrap in towel for a few minutes
Blow dry until damp
Fingercomb
Repeat daily(^(oo)^)v

[moonkitty]

I washed every second to third day.
1. Shampoo
2. Condition...leave in for several minutes while finishing shower
3. Occasional ACV rinse
4. Wrap wet hair in turban style towel for a few minutes.
5. Gently brush out
6. Occasionally used Avon's Dry Ends Serum

[KittyLost]

1) Shampoo the roots with a clarifying shampoo or volumising shampoo
2) Condition the ends with whatever miracle conditioner
3) Wrap hair in towel for 5minutes
4) Rag brushes through my wet hair
5) Blowdry my hair upside down
6) Flat iron my hair upside down
7) Brush my hair again

[JenniferNoel]

-Shampoo with SLS
-Condition with lots of sticky cones.
-Rub/blot dry with a towel
-Blow dry
-Flat iron

But surprisingly, it held up just fine.

[Quezie]

I did know to avoid cones before LHC!

I've always been pretty careful with my hair, but I know a lot more now then I did.

I had a ****ty brush, and I slept with my hair loose, so of course there were more tangles.
I kinda yanked through tangles a little bit.

I hardly ever used to blowdry my hair, or straighten it. Whether this was because I was lazy or what? I'm not sure.

[katha]

I didn't really have a routine.

I used whatever shampoo was in the bathroom while I lived with my parents. After that, I used whatever shampoo's bottle design I liked.
I didn't use conditioner until shortly before I started actually being interested in my hair.
I brushed while wet (even though I still do that once in a while, but now I'm a lot more careful) and I coloured it every few weeks. I never went completely blond, but I did use bleach for highlights once or twice.
Never used a hair straightener, and I blowdried maybe once every 3 years or so ^^

[sakuraemily]

shampoo once or twice a week.
change shampoo every other week because it never gave me the shampoo ad hair(now i have more sense).
oil hair before shampoo(still do that).
change hair oil each time i needed a new bottle.
it was abuse basically.
now i use natural homemade shampoos most of the time, i've chucked conditioner and 'm a lot happier post LHC

[bumblebums]

I went no 'poo before I started hanging out on LHC a lot, and I learned about a lot of LHC-style routines early on, too. But if we go way back before that, then it was:

- Wash every other day, with whatever shampoo and conditioner happened to be around. Always washed the whole length and conditioned the scalp as well as the length.
- Rub my hair dry with a terry cloth towel. Wonder why so much hair ended up on floor.
- Blow-dry or straight iron on occasion. Wonder why more hair still ended up on floor.
- Sometimes, allow hair to air-dry, always with a coney leave-in conditioner (what a waste of money that was!)
- Brush my hair with a BBB and wonder why it looked so greasy on top and so poofed out on the bottom.
- Professional haircut every 3 months or so.

[hmmm]

Pre-LHC:

- I oiled before washing my hair, never with anything other than Parachute coconut oil
- Washed with coney/sulfate shampoo, twice
- Used coney conditioner on my entire head - not that I ever had that much hair anyway
- Did a vinegar rinse whenever I had malt vinegar available: I never used anything else
- Combed wet hair so it would dry faster, didn't know about seamless combs
- Used loots of coney serums
- Left it down all the time

Now:

- I still oil, but I use herbs and blends of olive, castor and coconut oil
- I CWC, with cones or without
- I use oil as a leave-in because it works better than cones for me
- Still do vinegar rinses, but with ACV instead
- Don't comb wet hair or handle it at all
- Use wooden/seamless combs
- Put it up most of the time
- Don't sleep with it down
- Oh, and I henna it from time to time

I think the biggest difference LHC made to my routine was introducing me to all those herbs and foods I could use on my head.

[Crackaleen]

I washed my hair every three days or so with regular ol' shampoos and conditioners - I switched brands regularly but it was generally something -cone laden. Afterward I'd rub it with a towel and would usually leave it twisted up in said towel for about 10-20 minutes. Then I detangled using one of those brushes with the plastic beads on the ends of the bristles (usually involved ripping through tangles from roots to ends). That brush was all I ever used - I assumed combs were for people who had short or very thin/fine hair. :rolleyes: Often I would then blow dry it with a round brush to straighten it (I never liked flat ironing as much, though I did that occasionally too). I also did VO5 hot oil treatments somewhat regularly.

[excentricat]

Shampoo roots to ends every day, and condition ears down, using whatever cone-laden drugstore stuff I had around.
Rub hair dry with a towel
Comb wet with a seemed, wide-ish tooth comb, brush if I couldn't find the comb
Leave it down or ponytail in the same spot

It was never so bad, but I would get bad pony tail breakage, even from the good elastics, and eventually split ends.

[MandyBeth]

Most recently before...

1) Run diluted conditioner thru hair.

2) Shampoo twice to get evil scales of sebum gone

3) Smother hair in conditioner for rest of shower

4) Wrap hair in towel to let dry as much as possible as my scalp was now fussy from the evil scale removal.

5) Brush hard to get rest of scales gone, as that was the only way that worked.

This is all done daily in the am.

6) Comb tangles out

7) Work tons of oil and cone serum in

8 ) Take brush to hair again to loosen up the evil scales of sebum.

Done daily in pm.

9) Trim hair every 6 weeks.

Tho' I did realize that yes, my brush habits are damaging.

Before this.... dyed weird colors and often. Tho' didn't have the sebum problem, so didn't have the scrubbing/scratching of scalp and hard brushing. My hair was in better shape then.

Never did get into a blow fryer - gives me crazy foof. Flat irons and curling irons are a joke for me - my hair giggles and falls out in a matter of minutes.

[lunalovegood]

Before LHC, I had already switched to CO-washing and avoiding cones and SLS. I'd read about the Curly Girl method popularised by Lorraine Massey and tried following that. My hair responded well to the CO-washing etc but the full Curly Girl regime (plopping and scrunching using gel) wasn't working. Instead of the nice waves and curls other people were getting, my hair was just crazy - random waves sticking out everywhere. If I brushed my hair I lost most of the waviness but if I didn't it was a big mess. So I kept the basic principles of CO and no SLS or cones, but stopped the curly stuff. I thought I'd invented this method, then I discovered LHC and that lots of people did it. :D

Before LHC, I used to blowdry every time I washed my hair and always had my hair in a ponytail. Now I let it dry naturally and I'm trying to master updos, which I think look nicer anyway.