Oiling curly hair, questions, questions

[C.H.]

I'm would love to know how exactly those with curly hair incorporate oiling into their routine.

I guess I'm mainly wondering the best way to oil the hair and make sure it's thoroughly distributed--without messing up the curls.

It seems like many straight-haired people oil and then comb/brush it through dry hair before bedtime. But curlies don't generally brush their dry hair. And furthermore, the curls can be compromised even with too much handling. So can you even oil curly hair while it's dry? Maybe it can be misted on instead without disturbing things too much?

Also, I know a lot of people do heavy oilings pre-shampoo, but many curlies CO wash. Will CO adequately clean up a heavy oiling?

It seems like it might be best to just oil it right out of the shower, then. And if so, do you do it while it's still sopping wet or...?

Also, in general, is there a difference in the effects of oiling dry hair vs wet hair?

Sorry if any of these questions seem silly, I'm totally new to this and obviously just not getting certain things.

[IanB]

I've found the best method for me is to pour a LITTLE oil (mainly coconut, sometimes olive) into the palms, rub my palms together, then 'finger' through.

[Hotrox]

My hair doesn't look very good with oil in it, it goes lank and the curls don't like it.

I only oil occasional and always at night before a morning wash. I use a C-Low Poo-C routine and this takes it all out.

[Heatherzilla]

I tend to oil when my hair is towel dry. I just warm up a little coconut oil in my palms and finger comb it through. My curls dry really nicely and feel lovely when I do this.

I also occasionally oil when my hair is dry but only if I'm going to be wearing it up. Oiling it when dry makes it go a little lank on me. I usually only do this if my hair has been feeling really dry and tangley.

[krissykins]

CO has always gotten oil out of my hair better than shampoo, so it's an excellent method.

As to whether it's better to oil wet hair or dry hair, it depends on your hair. For some people, damp oiling causes oil to be absorbed better for hair. I've never found that to be the case on my hair. It always leaves my hair feeling crunchy (well, when I used coconut oil and jojoba oil, not sure about other oils as I never tried with them).

In general, those who oil after the shower wait until hair is damp rather than wet to apply oil.

:)

[Safira]

I don´t use pre-oiling method, because I put oil in my conditioner, mix it well, let it sit about 1-2 hours and then wash my hair. Sometimes I use oil with my leave-in: I drop 1-10 drops, mix and let it stay. I have conditioner/oil-mist I use between washes: I mix conditioner and oil, then add water.

You should try what method is perfect for you and what oils suits you.

[C.H.]

I hadn't thought of finger-combing. As far as waiting until hair is damp rather than wet to apply oil, that seems contrary to the advice I commonly hear that in order to maintain definition/frizz free curls, you need to absolutely avoid touching it as all while it's drying. Any thoughts on this?

Thanks for all the feedback. I'd love to hear from more curlies.

[gthlvrmx]

I prefer no oil, my curls seem to lose bounce with it and get dry after a while, and the hard water makes it difficult for me to get all the oil off. But one thing that did work was that i used only a LITTLE oil and covered ear on down and made two braids for the night. I rinsed it down in the morning, and conditioned as usual but i think i used too much oil that one time in the morning because my hair looked stringier when dried and too soft for my taste in hair.
I figured i run my wet hands over my dry hair before i add EVOO so then it penetrates the hair nicely and helps keep in the extra moisture. Oil by itself on my hair just seems to make my hair dryer and harder for some reason :confused: And only dampen slightly, it's true that less is more with oil.

[meowmeow]

This is probably not helpful to you but I figured it couldn't hurt to add it here. I only use oil as a deep treatment once a week. I use olive oil, leave in in for at least one hour, then shampoo and condition.

[PolythenePam]

I'm a curly (3C) and I do a heavy oiling pretty much before every "cleanse" - I CO-wash. And conditioner does great at getting out the oil. Some think it does an even better job at breaking up the oil than shampoo. I put the conditioner on my oiled hair and let it sit 5-10 min. and then rinse.

I go back and forth between wearing my hair curly and straight-and my hair drinks up the oil in whatever state it's in. I always apply it on dry hair and leave it on overnight.

[C.H.]

This is probably not helpful to you but I figured it couldn't hurt to add it here. I only use oil as a deep treatment once a week. I use olive oil, leave in in for at least one hour, then shampoo and condition.

All feedback is welcome!

[Copasetic]

I use oil at night. I rub a pretty substantial amount between my palms, and then run my hands over my hair, without breaking up the curl. Then I put on my sleep cap, and I get really nice shiny curls in the morning.

[McFearless]

Your question isn't silly at all. :) I heavily oil my hair as a pre-wash treatment and yes, cone-free conditioner removes oil completely for me. Some people have to leave the conditioner on for 20 minutes to get their hair clean, but it still works. The times I use oil as a leave in, I just kind of rub it between my palms and scrunch my hair with my fingers, to avoid pulling the curls down.

[Stub]

In winter I was oiling my hair damp and then dutch braiding it overnight and the curls came out wonderfully the next morning. I did that last night and apparently it's too humid for oil now because, while it looked great as usual when I took out the dutch braid this morning, the curls fell out within an hour and my hair just looked stringy and greasy by the time I got out of church. Disappointing, but a learning experience. Not so much oil when it's humid, for me! But I always do it on damp hair when I want curls, to answer your question.

[gthlvrmx]

In winter I was oiling my hair damp and then dutch braiding it overnight and the curls came out wonderfully the next morning. I did that last night and apparently it's too humid for oil now because, while it looked great as usual when I took out the dutch braid this morning, the curls fell out within an hour and my hair just looked stringy and greasy by the time I got out of church. Disappointing, but a learning experience. Not so much oil when it's humid, for me! But I always do it on damp hair when I want curls, to answer your question.
You're so lucky it gets humid!

[pelicano]

I use it on soaking wet hair to seal in moisture. I comb my hair through after washing and conditioning, and then put a little oil on to seal.

[jesis]

I use a small amount of Camellia oil in my hair right after showering, but before putting in my gel. This is while it's still sopping wet that way it doesn't mess up my curl pattern. If I'm going to do a pre-wash oiling, I use EVOO or Camellia mixed with equal parts honey, put in the microwave for a few seconds, and leave it on my hair for about 30 minutes. I have to shampoo the honey out, but it's always worth it. I was using Argan oil but I feel that Camellia is much better for my hair. :D

It helps immensely. I can definitely tell when my hair hasn't been oiled! I can also tell if I've used to much. My hair is almost BSL and I about a nickel's worth.

[Tigermama]

I use oils bigtime. Before a wash, I use a heavy oiling of vatika or olive oil. Then I do a conditioner, wash, conditioner. The first conditioner is left on while I shampoo the roots and scalp. As a leave in after that I use a tiny bit of olive oil, with a decent amount to the ends before braids or an updo. This may seem unusual, but I like to use lanolin or castor oil on the ends. They love it and it seems to thicken and protect. It goes on sticky, but later becomes invisible with silky results. For a deep conditioner, I take regular conditioner, vatika, vitamin e, and shea, and apply under a hot dampened towel. For this I first dampen the hair. Coconut oil alone seems drying to me, but the vatika gives good results when used in a mix, go figure! I also saturate my hair with water and vatika or olive before swimming. before bed, I use a wide toothed comb to gently remove tangles and loops. Then oil the ends with castor and loosely bun atop my head. Loops=breakage and white dots for me! Must keep the ends smooth or else.

[Athena's Owl]

I use coconut oil as a pre-wash - I slather my hair in it, then comb it all back into a bun/braided bun for that day and then CO wash at night - and CO works far better to get coconut oil out of hair than shampoo does, any day of the week.

when my hair is soaking, dripping wet I might add coconut oil or nightblooming panacea to the last six inches of my hair, but I generally don't do this. Instead I work in my leave in conditioner, my boots curl creme, and my strong hold gel, air dry completely, and then lightly coat my hands with camellia oil for when I scrunch out the gel crunch.

If you don't want to do an all day heavy oil or if you wash your hair in the morning, then heavy oil overnight instead, or heavy oil, add a plastic cap and then wrap your hair with a towel warm from the dryer for a pre-wash treatment.