New, Lost, Need Wavy Hair Help

[serinat]

Hi! You all have quite a forum here. I've been searching and reading for a couple of days, but I'm having trouble finding what I'm looking for. Can anyone help me, or direct me to threads that will help?

1 - I have wavy hair. I'm working on figuring out the classification, but I'm thinking somewhere between 2a - 2c. It's like beach hair, but if I put product on it, it's large loopy waves. Except for the bottom - perfectly straight. I hate it. Can I do something to make the bottom hair wave, too, or am I stuck?

2 - Regarding that troublesome bottom hair - it *always* gets tangled when I wear my hair down. Then I have to brush the knots out, which only emphasizes the texture differences (bottom brushed hair gets straighter, top unbrushed hair stays wavy). Is there some way to deal with this?

3 - More nape-of-the-neck issues - I get flaky dandruff there. I think this comes from not brushing my hair very often, but since my hair is wavy, I don't brush or comb unless necessary (tangles). I'm not sure how to deal with this. I massage that part of my scalp well during washing, but it always flakes up again within a day or so.

Thanks for any help!

[Clarisse]

Sounds like a 2a/2b to me :)

As for the straight ends - there are two possibilities. Either, your ends have been damaged chemically and this has changed the texture. Bleach and perming solutions change the bonds in your hair and damages the outer layer in order to penetrate the hair shaft.

Or, your hair texture changed with time. This happened for me too. As we age, different hormones are sent into the bloodstream, and hormones have an impact on the follicle. Your hair started out straight then got wavy and now your ends are straight and your roots are wavy.

I got dandruff twice in my life. First time it was because I had caught head lice, second time was because I hadn’t washed my hair for a long time and my scalp got irritated from all the dirt and old sebum. Over-shampooing can do the same. Maybe try some anti-dandruff shampoo.

Btw - welcome to the community!

Have you tried a wide-toothed comb for detangling instead of your brush?

[serinat]

Thanks for your thoughts! I should clarify that by "bottom" hair, I mean the bottom layer, closest to my neck. (As opposed to the bottom parts of all of my hairs, which is not what I mean.) Sorry if I was unclear.

I haven't dyed my hair for ten years and my last perm was eight years ago, so chemical damage isn't a possibility for me. My hair was perfectly straight (all of it) before I had babies. Now, five pregnancies later, it's super wavy. (Again, except for the hair closest to my neck. Straight.)

[cataphract]

Thanks for your thoughts! I should clarify that by "bottom" hair, I mean the bottom layer, closest to my neck. (As opposed to the bottom parts of all of my hairs, which is not what I mean.) Sorry if I was unclear.

I haven't dyed my hair for ten years and my last perm was eight years ago, so chemical damage isn't a possibility for me. My hair was perfectly straight (all of it) before I had babies. Now, five pregnancies later, it's super wavy. (Again, except for the hair closest to my neck. Straight.)

When I was wee, I had straight hair and in my early twenties it started getting curly/wavy and it took me a while to figure out what to do with it. I too have nape hair that likes to tangle and it used to fall flat while the rest of my hair would bounce up into curls. Still happens, sometimes, but so far the best I can figure is that the top layers (since I have pretty thick hair) smash it down while it dries making it dry straighter. It was the worst back when I was using conventional shampoo and coney conditioner. Since switching to bs/acv and oiling more I've had more even texture through my hair. I have to also keep in mind that if I want to KEEP that texture I have to either finger comb when wet and leave everything alone while it dries or be VERY careful when finger combing or using the widest toothed comb I can find. Keeping my nape hairs more oiled has helped with the tangles also. Washing less often has helped in general as well.

[jaine]

My hair is wavier in some places too - it's normal. One possible workaround is to alert your stylist to it and ask him/her trim your hair dry and unstretched to make it look more proportional.
Mine is curlier on the underlayer - I'll trade! :) You probably get a lot fewer tangles than I do.

[Clarisse]

Hormones control our body functions, and during puberty, pregnancy and meno-pause, a woman’s body is a hormone fabric. This explain the texture change :)

I can’t see why the straight texture in the nape is a problem - dose it pose any styling difficulties? Maybe you just have to change the way you view at your hair. A wide-tooth comb will help in preserving the curls and minimize damage from detangling.

I’m sorry I didn’t understand that you meant the nape part of the hair... :o

[jaine]

Oh I just had a thought ... what is your hair resting on top of when you wear it down? I just remembered because it's winter where I am and most of my tangles were caused by a bulky, scratchy scarf or coat. I've switched to a softer scarf and I put it around the outside of my hair before I put on my coat... that helped tremendously.

[Neen]

Check out this thread for wavy specific advice and support:
http://forums.longhaircommunity.com/showthread.php?t=1366

Your hair sounds similar to mine except, like jaine, I have a curlier underlayer (although sometimes it's curlier near the nape and straight towards the ends :shrug:), and I've classified myself as a 2a. I agree with the recommendations to use a wide-tooth comb instead of a brush. Damp bunning is one "styling" method that might help to give a more consistent wave throughout your hair (including the underlayer). I also suggest dry massaging/scritching between/before washes for the scalp issues.

[1hunky5monkeys]

Have you ever visited naturallycurly.com? So much helpful info there for wavy, wurly, and curly hair. :)

[serinat]

Oh I just had a thought ... what is your hair resting on top of when you wear it down? .
It seems to tangle no matter what I wear, but it certainly tangles faster when I'm wearing a winter coat/scarf. I can't stand the feel of my hair inside my scarf, or I'd try it your way.


Damp bunning is one "styling" method that might help to give a more consistent wave throughout your hair (including the underlayer). I also suggest dry massaging/scritching between/before washes for the scalp issues.
Is there more to damp bunning than the obvious - putting it in a bun when it's wet? That's pretty much what I do anyways, since I have a baby who likes to grab my hair - I have to put it up in a bun of some sort to keep him from yanking on it when he's on my back. So I rarely wear it down, even wet. But if I try to wear it down after letting it dry in a bun, it ends up with funky waves. Perhaps trying different twirling patterns and/or doing more than one bun would help?

Dry massaging - would just just be rubbing/scratching between/before washes, or is there a more technical way about it?

Thanks again, all.

[Neen]

Is there more to damp bunning than the obvious - putting it in a bun when it's wet? That's pretty much what I do anyways, since I have a baby who likes to grab my hair - I have to put it up in a bun of some sort to keep him from yanking on it when he's on my back. So I rarely wear it down, even wet. But if I try to wear it down after letting it dry in a bun, it ends up with funky waves. Perhaps trying different twirling patterns and/or doing more than one bun would help?

You're right - aside from the obvious, you can experiment with wrapped buns rather than twisted, different tools for holding the bun, more buns, etc. I'm probably not the greatest help on damp bunning because I don't put my hair up when it's wet anymore (my scalp doesn't like it), but I've read about it here and I remember I used to like the result when I did more of a wrapped than twisted cinnamon bun held with a scrunchy. I did have to be careful about how I tucked in the ends though, or they would end up funky.



Dry massaging - would just just be rubbing/scratching between/before washes, or is there a more technical way about it?


That's about it, it's one of those what ever works for you things. Some people use a comb, some people just use the pads of their fingers, I use my fingers/nails. Just make sure what ever you use is clean or you could end up causing more scalp problems.

[julliams]

My bottom layer is also straight whereas my other hair is naturally wavy (see avatar). What I find great is that I don't really experience much wave/curl shrinkage because I have my straight under layer. So, my hair looks longer than it would if it were all wavy. For this reason I've come to really like having a straight bottom layer. Can you provide a photo? I'm sure if you scrunched it a little with your hands it would give a little bit of movement?

In regards to your dandruff, I would almost bet that your scalp is just dry. Try dipping your fingertips in olive oil (yes, the cooking kind) and massage it into your dandruff areas. See if that helps at all, I know it did for me. I just repeat any time my scalp gets flakey again.