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laughinglynxie
January 13th, 2011, 02:45 PM
Hello! Are you a wavy-haired with FINE hair? I did a search and, unless I'm blind, didn't find much for threads with this particular struggle. I've recently been dealing with the challenges of styling wavy hair without it getting weighed down. (Now that I've trimmed off some damage, I'd say I'm a solid 2b with fine and very slippery hair.) How do YOU emphasize your "curves" without being droopy?

Do you have hard or soft water?
What shampoo/conditioner do you use?
Do you use gel/mousse/curling creme?
What methods do you use post-shower (plopping, scrunching, etc.)?

Cupofmilk
January 13th, 2011, 02:54 PM
I started a thread today about similar hair. I guess I am a 2a could be a 2b. I don't know. However my hair is very fine. Biggest issue for me is tangles. My hair is permanently tangled. I can get rid of them mostly with heavy oiling but then it droops as you say. Hope someone else can help.

Becky Safari
January 13th, 2011, 02:56 PM
Do you have hard or soft water?
Very HARD water

What shampoo/conditioner do you use?
Currently just a Baby Shampoo and Suave Coconut Conditioner

Do you use gel/mousse/curling creme?
No

What methods do you use post-shower (plopping, scrunching, etc.)?
Comb in the shower after cond., put up in towel turban, "headbang" and go

Oberon88
January 13th, 2011, 02:59 PM
I have really hard water here at my apt. and I've been only washing and rinsing my hair with Brita water because my hair becomes absolutely unmanageable with the hard water, it gets super weighed down and feels gross.
I usually CO, with a cone free conditioner, but I experiment and kind of go back and forth.

I don't use any gel, sometimes aloe vera. And I coconut oil.
I comb with a wide tooth comb and air dry.

Jimothea
January 13th, 2011, 05:56 PM
I am a wavy/wurly with fine, thin hair!

Yes, I have hard water. VERY.

Hair routine is mostly ACV + CO. It's a coney conditioner though; I'm finishing off the bottle. When I clarify I usually do a brown sugar scrub or baby shampoo.

Curling cremes/etc..well, I used to, without much luck. No mas! Weighed my hair down & made it look greasy. I do have a coconut oil/coconut milk combo that I LOVE and use at night, my hair loves it!--It really seems to reconstitute the curls/wurls of day-old/two-day-old/badly-humid-out hair, if I just barely touch my dry hair with it.

I do a sock bun/foam rollers/ loopy pin curls at night if I want uniformed wurls & curls. My hair is still too short for plopping--I just tried it the other night--but think it will work when I get about 5-7 more inches. I use a BBB, or wide-tooth comb [if wet].

**Still waiting for more virgin growth to see how wurly my healthy hair will be. See avatar?! I used to straighten e-ver-y-day! shudder**

laughinglynxie
January 13th, 2011, 08:42 PM
This is all great input! I love knowing what other people are doing with their similar hair. :)

Tia2010
January 13th, 2011, 09:26 PM
Do you have hard or soft water?
We have moderately hard water in my area. I have a water filter but not a water softener.

What shampoo/conditioner do you use?
I usually switch between Giovanni and David Babaii ( my hair likes protein) but I just bought Ojon damage reversal and my hair seems to really like that ( it does have cones in it)
Do you use gel/mousse/curling creme?
No. I only use a leave in spray to detangle out of the shower.
What methods do you use post-shower (plopping, scrunching, etc.)?
I just squeeze out the excess water with a towel, gently comb with a wide tooth wooden comb to detangle , and then let it hang to dry. When it's damp I clip it up till it's dry then let it down and gently brush through it with my wooden brush to get waves.

Katze
January 14th, 2011, 03:50 AM
I am a super mixed hair type, baby fine and barely wavy on top, wurly and M thickness at the nape. Leave-in and 'cones are the best things - I probably put a (non-coney) leave-in in every day. My hair also gets tangled and stringy very, very easily.

The other day I had had my hair down all day (freshly washed the day before) and in the evening DD was riding on my back and DH took some pics. My hair looked like rat tails! In the mirror it looked GOOD... :( It is just very, very hard (for me anyway) to get this hair to look good, but I have other issues (massive regrow, thin ends) that make it even harder.

Moisture, washing more often, and sulfates and 'cones are great for my hair. No-poo worked for a bit, as did exclusive WO and CO, but my hair got very lank, tangly, and dull very fast. I need occasional deep washings with sulfates.

Avoiding heat as much as possible (for a swimmer...!) is also a good thing for me.

And I use product regularly. Mixed with leave-in. :)

hth!

melikai
January 14th, 2011, 05:51 AM
Do you have hard or soft water? Very hard water

What shampoo/conditioner do you use? I usually use Aubrey Organics Chamomile shampoo, and occasionally use Garnier Linden shampoo, which has sulphates. I do a CWC wash. For conditioner, I use Garnier Repair & Shine, which is Europe's version of Triple Nutrition. My leave-in conditioner is Nature Baby Organics Lavender.

Do you use gel/mousse/curling creme? I make my own flaxseed gel, which I use in my sopping wet hair. I have been experimenting with a Nivea curls mousse and a Garnier gel, but the flaxseed gel so far gives the most (and nicest) waves.

What methods do you use post-shower (plopping, scrunching, etc.)? I comb through my last conditioner, under the shower. I then scrunch in leave-in and flaxseed gel. I blot/scrunch out more water, first with a regular towel, and then with a tshirt. Then, I plop my hair in the tshirt for about 20 minutes, and airdry for the rest of the time (trying not to touch it!).

laughinglynxie
January 14th, 2011, 08:35 AM
I comb through my last conditioner, under the shower. I then scrunch in leave-in and flaxseed gel. I blot/scrunch out more water, first with a regular towel, and then with a tshirt. Then, I plop my hair in the tshirt for about 20 minutes, and airdry for the rest of the time (trying not to touch it!).

Our methods seem like they are the closest so far! I'm still figuring out what products work best for me, but I just started plopping because my hair is long enough now for it to work well. :) I suppose it's only fair if I answer my own posted questions...haha.

laughinglynxie
January 14th, 2011, 08:43 AM
Do you have hard or soft water?
We have very hard water here in MN

What shampoo/conditioner do you use?
I've been switching it up because I was previously trying to use shampoo bars...but I normally use California Baby shampoos and Garnier Triple Nutrition for a deeper conditioner. If my hair doesn't have buildup, I CO with Nature's Gate Chamomile Lemon Verbena.

Do you use gel/mousse/curling creme?
I've been trying the Kiss My Face Gel, Giovanni Turbo Mousse, and just got the Aubrey B5 gel to try out too. We'll see what develops after that. :)

What methods do you use post-shower (plopping, scrunching, etc.)?
Out of the shower, I drape a flour sack towel over my shoulders while I comb my product through my hair (might be switching this up soon). Then I plop for a while, take that down, scrunch with flour sack towel, and then try to leave it alone!

laughinglynxie
January 14th, 2011, 08:46 AM
I have really hard water here at my apt. and I've been only washing and rinsing my hair with Brita water because my hair becomes absolutely unmanageable with the hard water, it gets super weighed down and feels gross.

The Minnesota water that we have is super super hard, too! We are also in an apartment right now. When I use a shampoo bar, I usually make my ACV rinse with my Brita water...and that seemed to work waaaaay better. I might have to go out and get a shower filter to see if that helps my hair and skin.

laughinglynxie
January 14th, 2011, 08:53 AM
**Still waiting for more virgin growth to see how wurly my healthy hair will be. See avatar?! I used to straighten e-ver-y-day! shudder**

Me too, me too! I have bleached, dye-damaged, blowfryer, flat iron war zone all on my head. :D I stopped coloring and using a flat iron back in October....and I haven't used my blowfryer for a few weeks now. I'm pretty excited for myself. haha. I'm thinking my hair might actually be LESS textured once my virgin stuff grows out more (I have maybe an inch and a little bit grown out now).

cataphract
January 14th, 2011, 08:58 AM
Do you have hard or soft water?
We fairly hard water.

What shampoo/conditioner do you use?
I currently use baking soda for clarifying and soapnuts otherwise. If I use baking soda I follow with lemon juice and herbal rinses, I've been using burdock lately with my lemon juice. I use an oil after the shower when my hair is wet but no conditioner - I find that conditioner weighs my hair down. For flyaways I use a little glycerin rubbed between my hands and waved over the flyaways but not rubbed on the hair - very gently. That seems to preserve the waves/wurls without mooshing them out.

Do you use gel/mousse/curling creme?
Nope. Most products left in my hair will only make it go flat and straight after the first day.

What methods do you use post-shower (plopping, scrunching, etc.)?
I finger comb or wide tooth comb dry hair only. I don't really scrunch, but will lift the ends up toward the scalp in my palms a couple of inches after I get out of the shower and oil. I tried plopping for a while and my hair must not be long enough or something because it took my waves and wurls and stretched them out into loooong loose waves.

My hair can lose all its texture if you look at it wrong, so for me I've found that the less I mess around with it the more it's going to keep waves and wurls and the fat ringlets I get at the bottom sometimes. If I want to wander out into the world with all the texture I have to make sure I've properly moisturized before it dries or I'll have frizzies and odd bits everywhere. Glycerin or Vitamin E oil passed through the frizz halo can help some, but it's easy to get a little too much into the rest of the hair if I get to picking at it or if I turn on the OCD switch. I find the best thing I can do on days I want the texture is to GENTLY pull the sides back into a half up with a flat barette and leave it alone. Ignore it. Pretend it's not there.

Pretty funny, cause those days people go 'your hair is curly!' and all I can say is, 'yes, thanks.' lol. I do usually just wear braids though.

irishlady
January 14th, 2011, 09:05 AM
My hair is weird, each individual strand is like a cotton thread according to the classifier but it's quite fine too lol.

Anyway:

Shampoo/Conditioner:
I alternate between cones and non-cones since my hair is very flyaway if I use non-cones too often, but weighed down if I use cones too often. 50/50 works for me.
I have a lot of products I'm trying to use up and here is what I use: Lush Ultimate Shine shampoo bar with Tesco Coconut shampoo

Mane 'n Tail shampoo and conditioner

Tresemme Naturals Aloe Vera and Avocado Shampoo and Conditioner

Kiss My Face Whenever shampoo and conditioner

Leave In:

John Frieda Frizz-Eaze Serum for medium frizz on damp hair, I never use it on dry hair it weighs my hair down.

Deep Condition:

Coconut Oil before I wash, overnight or during the day, and Lush hair treatment as well 20 minutes before I wash.

I never use heat, I just either plait/braid it and sleep like that or let it air dry. Depending on humidity, I will sometimes braid my hair to get braid waves, they look just like my natural waves anyway.

laughinglynxie
January 14th, 2011, 09:11 AM
My hair can lose all its texture if you look at it wrong, so for me I've found that the less I mess around with it the more it's going to keep waves and wurls and the fat ringlets I get at the bottom sometimes.

Haha! Oh my goodness, mine too! I think that's why I'm getting so frazzled trying to figure out the best methods for my hair.


If I want to wander out into the world with all the texture I have to make sure I've properly moisturized before it dries or I'll have frizzies and odd bits everywhere. Glycerin or Vitamin E oil passed through the frizz halo can help some, but it's easy to get a little too much into the rest of the hair if I get to picking at it or if I turn on the OCD switch. I find the best thing I can do on days I want the texture is to GENTLY pull the sides back into a half up with a flat barette and leave it alone. Ignore it. Pretend it's not there.

Pretty funny, cause those days people go 'your hair is curly!' and all I can say is, 'yes, thanks.' lol. I do usually just wear braids though.

It sounds like I might have to adopt some of your methods for a little while and see what happens. I certainly have found that even if I use a very light conditioner, it still makes my hair flatten out in an instant. Plus, I'm VERY OCD about running my hands through my hair, tucking it behind my ears, etc...so maybe doing a half-up would keep me from touching it!

lapushka
January 14th, 2011, 01:01 PM
Do you have hard or soft water?
What shampoo/conditioner do you use?
Do you use gel/mousse/curling creme?
What methods do you use post-shower (plopping, scrunching, etc.)?

- Very hard water

- Shampoo: ATM mostly sl(e)s shampoo and lots of it (palm full per application); Conditioner: either a silicone one (in which case the length is washed/clarified each time) or Garnier Triple Nutrition (no cones, but heavy). Normally, I'd use a lighter conditioner so as not to weigh down my F hair and my waves, but I'm growing out a perm, so the heavier the conditioner the better.

- Curling cream (or some other anti-frizz stuff), then a tiny bit of gel (non-alcohol based so it doesn't dry out as the silicone curling cream does that enough)

- Styling products are gently smoothed, scrunched in. Plopping: occasionally, not ATM because of the perm.

cataphract
January 19th, 2011, 10:42 AM
Haha! Oh my goodness, mine too! I think that's why I'm getting so frazzled trying to figure out the best methods for my hair.

It sounds like I might have to adopt some of your methods for a little while and see what happens. I certainly have found that even if I use a very light conditioner, it still makes my hair flatten out in an instant. Plus, I'm VERY OCD about running my hands through my hair, tucking it behind my ears, etc...so maybe doing a half-up would keep me from touching it!

lol, yeah, it took me a long time to figure my hair out, I still only estimate having it about 50% figured. I recently decided to, in the name of science, test shampoo/conditioner again for documentation's sake. It only reinforced why I can't used the two. My hair was instantly slippy, weighed down, and had much less volume. It's soft but you can definitely tell there's 'something' in it no matter how many times I've rinsed and what temperature the water was. Now I get to figure out how long it takes to get it back somewhere manageable going back to my old routine (bs+lemon juice with herbal rinses and regular oilings)

I, too have really hard time not touching my hair, especially when any part of it is hanging loose. My bangs are perpetually sad (or will be until they grow out) because I can't leave them alone. The best thing I've been able to combat it with is inventive updos involving braids, lol.

Lianna
January 19th, 2011, 10:53 AM
Do you have hard or soft water? Soft.
What shampoo/conditioner do you use? SLS and cones, brands change.
Do you use gel/mousse/curling creme? Not on a daily basis, sometimes to smooth some side waviness of baby hairs while doing an up-do. My hair doesn't like leave-ins, just a light oiling sometimes.
What methods do you use post-shower (plopping, scrunching, etc.)? When I don't wanna enhance my own curl pattern, I just do an up-do. Once I put gel all over the length trying to do the curly girl thing...bad idea, I had tangles, and my hair never tangles normally (still short). I think the best for me is a drop of oil on damp hair, tames frizzies and my natural wave appears.

laughinglynxie
January 25th, 2011, 01:50 PM
Anyone in this category do CO washes? How does it leave your hair? I have found this week through my experimenting that my hair and scalp respond well to it...but it almost makes my hair waaaay too silky/slippery to do anything! Humph...not sure what to do about it.

ninelifewriter5
January 25th, 2011, 08:45 PM
Anyone in this category do CO washes? How does it leave your hair? I have found this week through my experimenting that my hair and scalp respond well to it...but it almost makes my hair waaaay too silky/slippery to do anything! Humph...not sure what to do about it.

I put conditioner only on my length, but shampoo the scalp (without getting the shampoo on the length) and my hair likes it. It's actually one of the first times I've really loved how my hair feels, even with the frizziness that comes when I brush it.

It makes my hair feel really soft and light, and when brushed it feels fluffy (which I like sometimes).

As for the silky/slipperiness, I can't help there. My hair doesn't hold anything like bobby-pins anyway, so yeah.

phistash
January 26th, 2011, 09:28 AM
Technically, I don't have fine or thin hair, but it is very absorbent, and by day three after washing, it is invariably lank, greasy, and flat. My struggles to work out a routine and to keep my waves intact seem to be the same as for fine-haired people, so I'll join in:


Do you have hard or soft water?
NYC has soft water.

What shampoo/conditioner do you use?
I usually switch things up every four or five months. Right now, I'm having good results from Burt's Bees sugar beet shampoo and Yes to Carrots/Tomatoes shampoo. I sometimes use Mane n Tail conditioner, also. I CWC. No other wash method has worked for me. This way, my waves get the added moisture they need, but my scalp hair gets cleaned.

Do you use gel/mousse/curling creme?
I use argan oil, then leave-in conditioner (both on only my length), and curl creme all over. If I'm going out and want my curls to be extra defined, I will use gel, but that's infrequent.

What methods do you use post-shower (plopping, scrunching, etc.)?
Now this is where I've figured out some things. I used to pat my hair dry with a towel and then wrap it up turban-style, allowing the excess water to soak up for a few minutes before adding products. I no longer do this. I press a towel very gently against my hair to absorb water. When I do this, my hair hangs down in three or four large, wavy clumps. I put the argan oil on my hands, and carefully grab each clump and squeeze lightly while pulling down, coating it with the oil. I repeat with the leave-in conditioner, and then the curl creme (which I also coat onto my scalp-hair). Then I flip my head a few times, forward and back, and allow to air-dry.
So far, this is the best method I've found for encouraging my curls without weighing my hair down, and, most importantly, without inadvertently creating frizz. Basically, the less I handle my hair, and the wetter it is when I do handle it, the less frizz I create.

I also always wear my hair twisted up on the first day, as this keeps the curls intact for the second day.

I feel like I am still learning, though. My hair is very frustrating sometimes.

phistash
January 26th, 2011, 09:30 AM
Oops, I forgot to mention that I no longer scrunch my hair, as that is too much handling of it, and it creates frizz and breaks up the waves. No good.

kanzer
January 27th, 2011, 07:31 PM
Hi all, newbie here :) It's great to find a thread dedicated to my hair type!

Do you have hard or soft water?
I live in Holland and we have very hard water. It seems to make my hair curlier - when I'm in Dublin it's more wavy than curly - and super frizzy - and when I was in NYC for a month it went poker-straight and sleek! Shame I can't move there permanently, it was so low maintenance :)

What shampoo/conditioner do you use?
Just about to switch to sulfate/cone free, wondering how that'll affect my hair!

Do you use gel/mousse/curling creme?
Sometimes. I occasionally use John Frieda Frizz Ease serum and/or curl booster mousse, as well as mousse by a Dutch brand (Andrelon). They have okay results but I lose most of the shine and get a lot of frizz. Best results have been with lemon rinse, I get perfect ringlets at the front and pronounced waves at the back with barely any frizz and lots of shine! It also makes my hair very soft.

What methods do you use post-shower (plopping, scrunching, etc.)?
With the lemon rinse I gently squeeze the water out, finger comb/style it and then DON'T TOUCH IT, cos as several of you have said if I so much as think about touching my hair it'll freak out and hide... Crazy old hair.
Otherwise I towel-squeeze it, finger comb/style it and then leave it down for a while, damp bun it for a bit, put it in a plait/braid for a bit, leave it down again and generally run my fingers through it a lot. This results in soft waves.
I also put various kinds of oil into it, that reduces the frizz quite a bit. It seems to wilt my curls though :(

What frustrates me most is that my curliest bit of hair is my chin-length "fringe", which dries up in tight spiral curls. Unless I sit bolt upright, indoors and don't touch my hair at all for 3 hours I get frizz, waves and curls all mixed up together, with an insane fringe that points in whatever direction it feels like that day. I used to blowdry/straighten it but now I'm trying to go heat free - it's hard! The lemon juice rinse really helped, though it has less good results when I interfere with the drying process.

Anyone else had good results with lemon juice? I'm thinking of trying honey soon, I've heard it softens/de-frizzes, and the lightening effect would be an added bonus!

PS Sorry for rambling, I got a bit carried away! It's just so great to find people who don't tell me to shut up when I start talking about my hair :D

ninelifewriter5
January 27th, 2011, 11:05 PM
I forgot to do this, whoops.

Do you have hard or soft water?
Hard water, unfortunately.

What shampoo/conditioner do you use?
I use Akin shampoo on my roots/fringe only, and Nature's Gate conditioner.

Do you use gel/mousse/curling creme?
No, but if I could I would. My hair is prone to frizz and fly-aways; I just haven't found a product that words and is hair-friendly.

What methods do you use post-shower (plopping, scrunching, etc.)?
Squeeze my hair to get the excess water out and air dry. Plopping/scrunching/etc makes the frizz worse. I sometimes pin the top half of my hair up (like a some-up, some-down style) to get more wave on the bottom layer of hair.

laughinglynxie
February 17th, 2011, 02:44 PM
So I've been trying poo bars off and on (I often visit the HUGE thread dedicated to them) and I'm bummed that I just can't get it to work with the hard water here. My hair has so much more texture when I use them...but I feel major waxies right away. :P I've done all the tricks that go with the territory, too.

Ah well, back to COwash for me. :) I'm digging the Nature's Gate Lemongrass and Clary Sage. Big time. Wish I could find a cheaper organic option, though!

pepperminttea
February 17th, 2011, 04:27 PM
Do you have hard or soft water?
Very hard water.

What shampoo/conditioner do you use?
I've been messing around with oil shampoo since New Years, using Sainsbury's Apple shampoo as a base. Before that I CWC'ed with the same shampoo and Pure Nuff Stuff's conditioner (which is coconut oil-based).

Do you use gel/mousse/curling creme?
Generally no. My routine's mostly 'cone-free, but I toy with 'coney serums and leave-ins sometimes, to give me some slip. The rest of the time oil is my leave-in of choice.

What methods do you use post-shower (plopping, scrunching, etc.)?
When I use serum I scrunch it through lightly, but generally I don't do anything special; towel turban and very gentle detangling while damp.

CO washes?
I've never tried them; I try to keep my hair relatively low maintenance, and the amount of time they take is a bit past my limit.
(tl;dr: No, because I'm lazy. :p )


I'm a terrible wavy really; I comb while my hair's damp, so most of my waves are repressed, and then I braid my hair for sleep, so one night after wash day I have braidwaves instead. But there are there, hiding underneath, and sending frizz my way so I can't forget about them. :p

Incidentally, you might want to check out The 2a F support thread (http://www.longhaircommunity.com/forums/showthread.php?t=36484). :)

Kat Girl
February 17th, 2011, 04:57 PM
Oh thank you! This is the thread for me. I'm sooo fine wavy! Anyway, to answer your questions. I'm not sure if I have hard or soft water. I think it's in between but more on the soft side. Right now I am still growing out damage from a very bad dye job I had about 2 years ago. I don't have too much farther to go cutting the damage off. I struggle with oily roots and dry ends, but that may be just because of the damage. One thing I do use and swear by is wen! That stuff has changed my hair and my life and I recommend it to everyone! Since I have been using it I do not get tangles, and even though you can't really undo hair damage, it has done wonders to improve my hair through the whole growing process. The only drawback is you have to use alot of the product and it does get pricy, but I gladly pay it and find it worth every cent for me.

Debra83
February 17th, 2011, 05:02 PM
Do you have hard or soft water?
Hard water.

What shampoo/conditioner do you use?
coconut oil/shampoo mix/Garnier Fructis Triple Nutrition Conditioner (no cones)

Do you use gel/mousse/curling creme?
Garnier Fructis Triple Nutrition Conditioner (no cones) - as a leave in, but not an "official" gel/mousse/curling creme. Can't find one yet that works.

What methods do you use post-shower (plopping, scrunching, etc.)?
air dry, sometimes scrunching, sometimes roll up and clip to get more curly waves and less frizz.

jaine
February 17th, 2011, 06:10 PM
Hello! Are you a wavy-haired with FINE hair? I did a search and, unless I'm blind, didn't find much for threads with this particular struggle. I've recently been dealing with the challenges of styling wavy hair without it getting weighed down. (Now that I've trimmed off some damage, I'd say I'm a solid 2b with fine and very slippery hair.) How do YOU emphasize your "curves" without being droopy?

Do you have hard or soft water?
What shampoo/conditioner do you use?
Do you use gel/mousse/curling creme?
What methods do you use post-shower (plopping, scrunching, etc.)?

This is surprising to me ... I had no idea that wavy hair could be droopy!!!

Mine is fine and wavy and average thickness and wants to be HUGE and puffy in all directions. "Puffy" is the #1 adjective I hear people using about my hair on the rare occasions when they say something about it. It's very difficult to "weigh my hair down" with conditioners ... it would have to be a super oily conditioner like Aubrey Organics White Camellia ... something like that doesn't have enough emulsifier to fully rinse out its own oil so it leaves oil in my hair even if I rinse it well. The only thing that makes my smaller is adding a lot of oil to it, or not washing it for at least 5 days in a row.

laughinglynxie
February 17th, 2011, 07:09 PM
Incidentally, you might want to check out The 2a F support thread (http://www.longhaircommunity.com/forums/showthread.php?t=36484). :)

Oh, that's great! Thank you! Gosh, the amount of info and threads you can find on here is truly endless. I suppose I've only been around since October...but I'm kind of a hopeless internet addict, too. :)

laughinglynxie
February 17th, 2011, 07:15 PM
This is surprising to me ... I had no idea that wavy hair could be droopy!!!

Mine is fine and wavy and average thickness and wants to be HUGE and puffy in all directions. "Puffy" is the #1 adjective I hear people using about my hair on the rare occasions when they say something about it. It's very difficult to "weigh my hair down" with conditioners ... it would have to be a super oily conditioner like Aubrey Organics White Camellia ... something like that doesn't have enough emulsifier to fully rinse out its own oil so it leaves oil in my hair even if I rinse it well. The only thing that makes my smaller is adding a lot of oil to it, or not washing it for at least 5 days in a row.

I will have to admit, then, that I'm jealous! It's been so hard for me to find products to use that don't make my hair flat. :D I wonder if it's because you're at the farther end of being a wavy? Maybe as your hair gets longer you'll be into the 3s. ;) Maybe another one of MY issues is that I have quite oily hair...I don't think I could even go 3 days without some sort of wash in there! COwashing seems to make me less of a greaseball, though.

Laur
February 17th, 2011, 07:37 PM
Do you have hard or soft water?
Moderate to hard

What shampoo/conditioner do you use?
Suave Tangerine Whatever for daily CO washing, Burts Bees Grapefruit and Sugar Beet for actual conditioning, and Chagrin Valley Shampoo Bars (usually Carrot Milk/Honey) for once a week washing

Do you use gel/mousse/curling creme?
I usually mix about a dime sized blob of aloe gel into my hair when it's sopping wet if I'm going to wear it down, before scrunching with a towel and plopping.

What methods do you use post-shower (plopping, scrunching, etc.)?
^flip hair upside down, scrunch with a towel to get the water out, and then plop in an aquis towel.

My current profile pic is a "hair type" pic more than anything - it was taken with no leave ins and no plopping or scrunching, so it's not a good representation.

I struggle both with my hair getting "stringy" from too much product and from it being too darn slippery to stay in any updos! I can't win!

laughinglynxie
February 25th, 2011, 01:54 PM
I struggle both with my hair getting "stringy" from too much product and from it being too darn slippery to stay in any updos! I can't win!

Oh gosh, me too! I think that's my issue with doing COwashes. I love them, but it makes my hair just soooo darn silky (I know some people would laugh about that) that I can't keep it styled up. As it is, I use an X-Small Flexi-8 for an entire ponytail to keep it tight enough (my ponytail circ. is ~3"), haha.

colette
February 25th, 2011, 02:36 PM
this is the thread i belong to!:)

i wash and condition using Aussie luscious long shampoo and conditioner, full of cones but they smell great and add a bit of weight to my hair, and helps tame the flyaways/frizzys. i love this product, every time i switch shampoos, i always switch back, its the only one that makes my hair behave!

i squeeze out the water, and then wrap it in a turbie and leave it to dry in that, it seems to help keep it smooth somehow. if ive just washed before bed, i clip back my fringe (which im currently growing out:rolleyes:) and do two braids and leave it to dry in those, nice uniform waves in the morning!

i live in a really soft water area in the uk, and when i visit anywhere that has hard water, i find my hair tends to behave better (smoother), suppose everyones hairs different in that respect.

Rocket22
February 25th, 2011, 02:49 PM
Oh gosh, me too! I think that's my issue with doing COwashes. I love them, but it makes my hair just soooo darn silky (I know some people would laugh about that) that I can't keep it styled up. As it is, I use an X-Small Flexi-8 for an entire ponytail to keep it tight enough (my ponytail circ. is ~3"), haha.


Hahaha you have me beat my .5" I would love to gain some thickness :) we seem to have the same hair and I'm not sure what works yet :) but I can say seems like gaining some length is helping me some :) I can not use too much product or I get the limp thing. Im looking forward to more length then I can use curlers (heat free) and not have it look so short and with wavy hair it can look fuller than it is.. I think so anyways :)

wavykisses
February 27th, 2011, 08:37 AM
Do you have hard or soft water?
HARD water I bought a shower filter from wal-mart (20dlls)
and my hair is wayyyyy more soft than before

What shampoo/conditioner do you use?
Currently The body shop rainforest shampoo very diluted
Natures Gate Hemp conditioner (gives me the best volumen ever) but I have to
use another condish with it because if I used by itself it does not a good job
detangling
Ao organics honeysucle Rose just dab leave it there for 5 min and rise,this
is my detangling condish

Do you use gel/mousse/curling creme?
No

What methods do you use post-shower (plopping, scrunching, etc.)?
Nothing but at night I jus bun all of my hair on top of head and secure it
with a few pins, it stays put all night and in the morning I have very
pronounced curls even my mom told me the other day my hair
was looking curlier than normal :)

kanzer
February 27th, 2011, 04:15 PM
That sounds interesting wavykisses, what kind of bun do you do?? I'm trying do find good ways to dry my hair without much luck so far...

Lianna
February 27th, 2011, 06:01 PM
I'm actually 2c/3a, but I don't see real spiral curls unless I do that uncombed hair type drying, which I don't. I'm also F/M, but mostly fine.

Do you have hard or soft water? Soft.

What shampoo/conditioner do you use? Usually any L'oreal. Can't help you much here because I'm not in Europe/U.S/Canada/Australia like most here. Most brands talked here I don't have, and I don't use pricey international brands you could actually identify, just a $5 shampoo (SLS) and conditioner (with cones), or any coneless when I feel like CO'ing (national brands). I wash everyday due to hot weather/sweaty scalp.

Do you use gel/mousse/curling creme? Kinda. I use gel to smooth my bangs into an updo, but I can't handle the crunch if I do it all over (though it did look nice when I did it once).

What methods do you use post-shower (plopping, scrunching, etc.)? I actually don't "play up" or "play down" waves, not intentionally. I do lightly oil while damp, usually grapeseed or just plain EVOO. I don't like to wait my hair dry *loose*, looks quite weird while drying, then settles. I usually use the scrunchie method (http://archive.longhaircommunity.com/showthread.php?t=20761), just out of laziness and confort, because I don't want damp hair clinging onto me everyday. Always gives me nice waves without frizz anyway.

MandyBeth
February 27th, 2011, 08:23 PM
Me! Well, I may have waves, they are debating playing now. I have a major thickness in a tail, but twisted anything, it squashes down and then is a problem to get anything in. Grrr.

laughinglynxie
February 28th, 2011, 01:32 PM
Hahaha you have me beat my .5" I would love to gain some thickness :) we seem to have the same hair and I'm not sure what works yet :) but I can say seems like gaining some length is helping me some :) I can not use too much product or I get the limp thing. Im looking forward to more length then I can use curlers (heat free) and not have it look so short and with wavy hair it can look fuller than it is.. I think so anyways :)

I'm still figuring out my best routine, too. Right now I really love Nature's Gate Awapuhi Conditioner for cowashing. When I need to shampoo, I always go with the California Baby Super Sensitive. I find I can't stick with just the CO...after a while my hair just gets too droopy! Once a week or so I need to have that shampoo wash. :D

I've been doing pretty good with my heat-free styling. My bangs are finally long enough that the cowlick that I have doesn't make them look weird if they air dry. And it actually feels weird now if I have to use a blowdryer for some reason.

laughinglynxie
February 28th, 2011, 01:42 PM
Me! Well, I may have waves, they are debating playing now. I have a major thickness in a tail, but twisted anything, it squashes down and then is a problem to get anything in. Grrr.

I looked at your hairtyping pic. :) It looks like you have some really nice texture! When it gets longer, I would guess your hair will be in the 2s. I can't wait to see how it goes! Why can't hair grow any faster? :D I want to see what my hair will look like once the damage is grown out a lot more.