Why it's getting stringy?

[Eirinn]

My hair doesn't tangle when I wear it down - it hardly ever tangles (on wind maybe) but it does another magical trick - it's getting stringy and doesn't look nice:rolleyes: I have to brush it often and feel like damaging it... It isn't greasy. Why it's like that and what can I do about it?:( I don't grow it for such effect. Help!

[Guenever]

My hair's stringy too.. has been like that... well.. since BSL or so.. the joy of straight-ish hair, I guess :wink:
I've discovered that my hair's more prone to stringiness when I use cones - but it's not really a problem for me as I don't wear my hair down in public..

So, sorry, I don't have any advice.. I've seen other threads concerning this matter before, and I remember brushing as one of the main solutions.. but yes, that would be damaging in the long run..

I hope somebody else is ready with more info :)

ETA: http://archive.longhaircommunity.com/showthread.php?t=72866&highlight=stringy+hair
Found one - this thread from October discusses stringy hair - we're definitely not alone^^

[Angellen]

That may have something to do with your hairtype. Very straight types tend to get piecey, especially at longer lengths, at least in my experience. Updos will definitely hide the problem, but I'm not sure what will combat it for when it's down.

Sorry I don't have more suggestions, but I hope you find the help you need! :flower:

[Ohio Sky]

I also have this happen, and the only thing Ive found is brushing :shrug:

When I wash JUST RIGHT and use JUST the right amount of coconut oil and comb it JUST right and then let it dry JUST right, then its not as bad, but its quite a trick :o

[vindo]

My hair has always been stringy, but it has gotten better with gaining length. It seems like the top hair can hold together better,and nowadays only my ends/ lengths get stringy...the hair around the face stays neat for about a day.

Stringy hair has many factors. One is a low cohesion - the strands simply dont stay together as well...getting stringier and stringier with time. Greasy or oily hair can contribute to stringiness.
Hair with a naturally verky sleek and smooth surface, a low friction is silky and does not tangle easily but again it tends towards stringiness since the slippery strands can not possibly find any support.

I have the most stringy hair you can imagine. Sometimes it looks like oiled or wet. I used to hate it. But instead I tried to focus on minimizing the stringiness by
1. understanding what causes it and
2. working with it..not against it.

Here is what seems to help my hair:
-No more semi perm. dye - it seemed to mke my hair very flat and stringy.
-No cones...same effect as the dye..
-Even hem and longer hair - the more hair there is for support the longer it will take the hair to get stringy :D
My hair started getting better at midback/waist length.
-Henna...it seems to give the hair a better grip without roughening up the surface.
-Leaving it alone - I plan my hair down days..on other days I let it be stringy and oily hidden in a updo ;)
When I wear it down I try not to comb too much since it just spreads oils and dirt into the freshly washed hair. So I comb when 'needed'.

There is unhealthy ways to reduce stringiness as well like beaching hair, teasing it, hairspray etc. but I dont think anyone would want that type of advice here ;)
I wouldnt do it, its not worth it. Stringy hair might be annoying but one good thing is that most men dont seem to notice/ care at all (my hubby)..

[spidermom]

My hair gets "ropey"; too thick to say "stringy". One day I left half my hair ropey and combed the other half, then asked DS, DS-GF, DH, and DD which side they liked better. They all picked the ropey side. Who wudda thunk it?

[heidihug]

I have "poster" hair for stringy-ness. It gets stringy especially when down, but even in ponytails. Heck, even my braid tassles separate into piecy ends. I've always envied those with hair that lays just right all day long (I know a couple of people like that).

What to do about it? Pretty much what Emichiee said above. I brush twice a day (morning and night) - I'm one of those people whose hair just will not abide combs. But if I am wearing my hair down or in a loose pony, I carry a brush with me all day for underside touch-ups. If I don't occasionally work out the beginnings of tangles, the pieces will roughen and frizz and I will have a nightmarish knotted mess by the end of the day.

[trolleypup]

Piecey hair, oh yes! After a full preen and comb out, my hair isn't piecey for about 42 seconds, so long as I don't move, the air doesn't move, and noone pulls out a camera.

*shrug*

[Eirinn]

Thanks guys and wow-thanks Emichee:flower: My hair is no more without cones but I guess I brush it too often - that's why it's getting greasy so easily... But it's hard - I look in the mirror and just can't resist the temptation to brush what I see there:shrug: And it also looks much better on the top. Maybe fingercombing would work? Oh and it's much more slippery after CO!

Emichee - you're right that the men don't see it - mine neither! (huh, so why do I bother?:lol:

[Eirinn]

Piecey hair, oh yes! After a full preen and comb out, my hair isn't piecey for about 42 seconds, so long as I don't move, the air doesn't move, and noone pulls out a camera.

*shrug*

So I'll just comb it out and won't move:D

[burns_erin]

Henna helped the stringy look on my hair too. So did ACV rinses.

[Anje]

Mine gets somewhere in the range of ropey to piecey to stringy in moments after I brush, it seems. I doubt holding still would help, and I feel like oils make it worse.

However, I really wear my hair up or braided most of the time anyway.

[flapjack]

The longer my hair gets, the more this goes away, actually. It used to do that at around bsl but now it just stays in one big "blob" down my back, unless I have a ton of oil in it overnight. But even at its oiliest, it still pretty much stays in big chunks.

[Katze]

Mine gets really stringy these days, too. As I'm not a straightie, yet not a full wavy, frizziness adds to it for hair that, IMO, looks like poop.

For a while, 'cones were helping. Now I'm not sure. My hair is straighter with 'cones and my scalp unhappier, even though I S&C with cones maybe once a month.

WO washing was helping, but lately, it doesn't seem to work.

I think my hair is too greasy as a product of it, overall, being healthier, and thus might need to be washed more.

I really want hair that I can wear down and enjoy - what's the point of long hair, after all? - but am fighting with its generally nasty texture a lot these days.

[vindo]

The longer my hair gets, the more this goes away, actually. It used to do that at around bsl but now it just stays in one big "blob" down my back, unless I have a ton of oil in it overnight. But even at its oiliest, it still pretty much stays in big chunks.

Thats a good way to describe it...mine starts turning stringy at first on the outsides and ends, and then works its way through the big "blob"...but for most of the time at least the center of my 'mane' looks neat :lol:

[Flying Betty]

I'm afraid that's just one of the things that comes with having straight hair. Mine is like a satin sheet for 30 seconds after I brush it, but once I move it settles itself into little stringy bits. For me, having my hair super clean helps more than anything else. It's as if any grease gives the strands something to cling to. Essentially, if I want it to look its best, I have to brush it immediately before doing so. So if I'm caring what my hair looks like when it's down, I carry a brush and brush it whenever I stop in a bathroom.

[flapjack]

Thats a good way to describe it...mine starts turning stringy at first on the outsides and ends, and then works its way through the big "blob"...but for most of the time at least the center of my 'mane' looks neat :lol:


Yeah, we have pretty similar hair types. I think mine is a bit shorter and possibly thicker, but... close enough, haha. I think I like this term, too, I'm going to start calling it "the blob". :p

[FrannyG]

My hair gets very piecey too. I have to literally brush it seconds before I take a length photo, or it's piecey already. Even after a good BBB session my hair looks piecey within a minute. It's been that way all my life, and nothing I've used has changed that.

Some people use styling product to achieve the piecey look. Just learn to embrace it. :)

[MemSahib]

I think it's just a function of straight hair. As a child when mine was above my shoulders it was stringy then, too. Right before a photo I brush/comb carefully then don't move until the pictures are taken.

[Cinnamon.locks]

I had the same problem when i was younger, now it just gets stringy after not washing for more than 5 days, or when i use a new condish or poo. i simply brush with a BBB and flip my head a couple of times and the problem goes away. sorry could not help more.

[Hypnotica]

Yeah, I know the problem. Cones do make my hair get these larger pieces which is better then stringyness in my book.

[Eirinn]

Henna helped the stringy look on my hair too. So did ACV rinses.

Sorry, I don't understand:shrug:

ETA: Forget it, I'm just stupid:silly: Now I understand.

[Eirinn]

I've done ACV rinse and I just don't recognize my hair anymore - it totally stopped being stringy!:cheese: Even after a lot of dancing in hot place:D

[busnutmedic]

Yeah, it goes piecy on me too :roll:

But when the wind is blowing a bit, at least it looks a little windblown and not like it's just weird! :D

Bonnie

[chloeishere]

Cassia helped reduce stringyness for me. The effect is best RIGHT afterwards, when it dries though. But overall? Yeah, I'd say it helps.

Otherwise, I dunno. If I use a fine toothed horn comb, my hair isn't piecey at all for a few minutes. I figure a horn comb is less damaging than a brush, so long as I don't tear through tangles... so I don't worry about it too much. Then again, if my hair is stringy when I'm out... oh well! It'll still look okay. I try to keep it all together in one big mass, so it isn't as obviously stringy, but my hair is really silky, so it doesn't work very well for more than about 10 seconds. If I'm standing still.