How do you control tangles when wearing your hair down?

[shikara]

Sure would like to wear my hair down once in a while but it tangles so easily. I did notice though that there seems to be much more manageability in this regard after damp bunning. Might try to keep it down around the house for half a day tomorrow to see what difference this might make. Do you have any personal tricks and methods to control tangling? I suppose one idea would be to wear a hair friendly fabric shirt. Garnier detangler doesn't do it for me.

[Dragon]

The thing I find the best is comb it through out the day to avoid the worst of the tangles and always have a little oil on the ends.

[ravenreed]

I try to wear shirts that are more smooth and have no collars to reduce friction. I also comb my hair about 10 times a day when it is down to keep the tangles to a minimum.

[Panth]

When it is windy, chuck a lightweight scarf over your head shawl-style to keep your hair from blowing EVERYWHERE. Or, gather it all over one shoulder and physically hold it there (as if in an over-the-shoulder ponytail) whilst walking in the wind until you go inside.

Always have a hair bobble on your wrist (or, I suppose, a hair stick/comb/flexi-8/other toy of preference in your pocket/bag) for when it just gets too windy or you start doing something too active. Even if you only tie it back for 5 mins it can cut down on the tangles.

Also, whenever it gets soaked through whilst down, comb it out asap, even if this means fingercombing it through a lecture. I live in Wales, this was a common problem. :P

Try not to get it caught under rucksacks or coats or things too much. If you like to wear it tucked into your coat/jumper, fine. Just make sure it moves about under there as little as possible. Personally, that is one of the worst things I can do - I just get one big enormous matted lump in about 10 minutes flat.

[irishlady]

I don't lol...but I wear my hair down anyway as often as I can, that is when I'm not working/doing housework, that kind of thing. Otherwise it's down, except at the moment because I've set myself a goal of trying to wear it up for 2 weeks lol

I just occasionally run my fingers through it when it's down to remove any tangles. Honestly I don't care if it tangles when it's down, I'm wearing it down anyway, even if it's not very LHC friendly. :shrug:

[irishlady]

Also, whenever it gets soaked through whilst down, comb it out asap, even if this means fingercombing it through a lecture. I live in Wales, this was a common problem. :P

Try not to get it caught under rucksacks or coats or things too much. If you like to wear it tucked into your coat/jumper, fine. Just make sure it moves about under there as little as possible. Personally, that is one of the worst things I can do - I just get one big enormous matted lump in about 10 minutes flat.[/quote]

This too :)

[leslissocool]

My friend (who is also in the community) is a hairstylist and she has this product called Unite 7 second Detangle. It's a Leave in conditioner and she used it one me 3 separate times when we went out and our hair was down (my hair tangles like no other, but her hair is multi textured and longer than mine, so it gets really unmanageable) and it barely tangled! I am in love with this product.

I don't know if this would work for others, but I think just a leave in conditioner would do the trick. I found that when I soak my hair in a leave in, my hair tangles less. I wear my hair down a lot, and I have given up any kind of heat other than deep moisture. My hair is wavy/curly and really coarse, which equals rat's nest on a windy day :(.

[ravenreed]

I just looked up that product and cannot locate ingredients. If you have the bottle handy and can let me know if it has cones or proteins, I would really appreciate it! If not, I will keep an eye out and see if I can figure out if it will work for me.


My friend (who is also in the community) is a hairstylist and she has this product called Unite 7 second Detangle. It's a Leave in conditioner and she used it one me 3 separate times when we went out and our hair was down (my hair tangles like no other, but her hair is multi textured and longer than mine, so it gets really unmanageable) and it barely tangled! I am in love with this product.

I don't know if this would work for others, but I think just a leave in conditioner would do the trick. I found that when I soak my hair in a leave in, my hair tangles less. I wear my hair down a lot, and I have given up any kind of heat other than deep moisture. My hair is wavy/curly and really coarse, which equals rat's nest on a windy day :(.

[morecowbell]

I bought a mini brush and comb set from the dollar store (had to smooth some sharp edges with my nail buffer) and keep them in my purse. Because my hair is still relatively short, I wear it down more times than not while I'm at work, and during my breaks I like to gently brush my hair out. I've also been known to take a little mini spray bottle full of water and a tiny bit of aloe vera and jojoba oil to spritz my hair down during lunch.

[HintOfMint]

My friend (who is also in the community) is a hairstylist and she has this product called Unite 7 second Detangle. It's a Leave in conditioner and she used it one me 3 separate times when we went out and our hair was down (my hair tangles like no other, but her hair is multi textured and longer than mine, so it gets really unmanageable) and it barely tangled! I am in love with this product.

I don't know if this would work for others, but I think just a leave in conditioner would do the trick. I found that when I soak my hair in a leave in, my hair tangles less. I wear my hair down a lot, and I have given up any kind of heat other than deep moisture. My hair is wavy/curly and really coarse, which equals rat's nest on a windy day :(.

I've been looking for an ingredient list and can't find one. Do you have the list by any chance?

[EdG]

I avoid sitting on my hair.

I always drape my hair over the back of the chair (as in my signature photo), or if that's not possible, I put my hair in my lap.
Ed

[ravenreed]

Ah, I forgot that I do this too, although mine isn't long enough to go in my lap. I do pull it over my shoulder to the front so I don't catch it so much stuff!


I avoid sitting on my hair.

I always drape my hair over the back of the chair (as in my signature photo), or if that's not possible, I put my hair in my lap.
Ed

[Carolyn]

I pick the times when I wear it down. I don't wear it down when I'd be around a lot of tangle dangers. I never wear it down on windy days. I'll wear it down when I'm doing things like going out to eat or going shopping, or just hanging out with friends. I'm also mindful of clothing fabrics and of purse straps. Nubby wool sweaters and fleece jackets are not my friends when I want to wear my hair down. I always carry a Body Shop wooden comb and a MP purse size brush.

[BunnyBee]

I stay very, very still.

Of course I only ever wear it down at the computer or watching TV when I feel my hair needs a rest from being up. Any other situation would just be asking for trouble.

I think my hair type is just not well suited to being worn down. It's straight and somewhat grabby (past damage still there). Curls are probably less tangly since they tend to move as sections instead of each hair going a different way.

I can dream of long flowing tangle-free hair, but the only way I can have that is if I sit.. perfectly.. still :p

[haibane]

Slathering it in cones and quats. Leave in a lot of regular conditioner while the hair is still wet after washing. Misting and keeping it really moisturized (probably similar to what damp bunning does.) Oil seems to make my hair more tangly, maybe because it attracts dust.

...but my hair really doesn't tangle much, so I may not be the best person to give advice on this.

[Kat Girl]

I know I've said things like this before but I've been using wen for the past few years and it has totally changed my hair. My hair is fine and used to be very tangle prone, but now I don't really get tangles. I wear my hair down and finger comb it throughout the day. I do know wen works for me, but today I actually did CO for the first time, and I'm air drying my hair. I don't plan on giving up wen anytime soon, but so far I am liking the CO and it is a much cheaper alternative, so I might do that more. In any case I quit using regular shampoo and that could also be what solved my tangle problem. Also I began using a little coconut oil on my ends and it helps, but it's more to protect and moisturize my dry damaged ends. Hope that helps a little.

[krissykins]

Slathering it in cones and quats. Leave in a lot of regular conditioner while the hair is still wet after washing. Misting and keeping it really moisturized (probably similar to what damp bunning does.) Oil seems to make my hair more tangly, maybe because it attracts dust.

...but my hair really doesn't tangle much, so I may not be the best person to give advice on this.

Bolding mine

what are quats?

Everyone in this thread has helped me immensely, usually I don't worry about tangling when I wear my hair down, but that always comes back to bite me in the rear when I comb my hair. Maybe I'll be more mindful now

[julliams]

Watch this http://www.uniteeurotherapy.com/product-knowledge/condition/7seconds He says "it's pure natural silicone" at the end. Is silicone natural???

[haibane]

Bolding mine

what are quats?
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Quaternary_ammonium_cation
Most conditioners have some kind of quat, where they mostly provide slip and antistatic. They are also found in fabric softener, probably for the same reason.
Some of the ones named Quaternium specifically or http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Polyquaternium tend to feel "heavier" or have a stronger effect. Some come pretty close to feeling like cones, but to me they feel dryer and less sticky than cones, and makes my hair seem less stringy.

[krissykins]

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Quaternary_ammonium_cation
Most conditioners have some kind of quat, where they mostly provide slip and antistatic. They are also found in fabric softener, probably for the same reason.
Some of the ones named Quaternium specifically or http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Polyquaternium tend to feel "heavier" or have a stronger effect. Some come pretty close to feeling like cones, but to me they feel dryer and less sticky than cones, and makes my hair seem less stringy.

Thank you! I had no idea such things were in existence!

[MissManda]

I don't tend to get tangles when I wear my hair down, but to reduce/prevent the ones I do get, I will fingercomb a few times throughout the day. Coconut oil seems to help, as does the strange concoction of conditioner, jojoba oil, AVG, and water (mostly water, obviously).

[leslissocool]

I just looked up that product and cannot locate ingredients. If you have the bottle handy and can let me know if it has cones or proteins, I would really appreciate it! If not, I will keep an eye out and see if I can figure out if it will work for me.


I've been looking for an ingredient list and can't find one. Do you have the list by any chance?

I'm sorry but didn't know that Unite is really secretive of it's products content, so I cannot post the ingredients online (copyright issues). There is like one cone in the whole bottle, and it only has 20 ingredients (natural) and it's towards the end of the bottle.
I use it on my hennaed hair, and it does not give me build up at all.


Watch this http://www.uniteeurotherapy.com/product-knowledge/condition/7seconds He says "it's pure natural silicone" at the end. Is silicone natural???

There are lots of different types of silicones, some natural (some oils like sunflower oil) and some that are actually contain a lesser from of formaldehyde (keratine is basically made out of it).

http://forums.longhaircommunity.com/...&articleid=185

http://forums.longhaircommunity.com/...e&articleid=13

I am not really familiar with their products (i know it's made by Eurotherapy and I just recently found out about that line from ScarlettAdelle who told me about it) I do use cones, but my other coney leave in conditioners have a way longer ingredient list than this one.