Does dry matter?

[Misti]

I have noticed that the ends of my hair are very dry. I use baking soda and vinegar to clean my hair and they don't add moisture, of course. But my scalp hates product. A lot.

I've tried oils, but my super fine hair doesn't respond well to oils -- even the smallest amount can make my hair an irretrievable grease pit.

I was thinking about coming ehre to ask whether you folks think dry ends matter, if you're not seeign a lot of breakage...then I looked again at the photos of my hair, and I decided that I think it probably does...

I know what works for me. My hair adores an egg yolk and coconut milk soak with honey and aloe. But I have an insane schedule and am bascially lazy, so I ed up not doing it very often.

This morning, I was pondering the problem.

I can't use egg as a leave in. Yuck!

So I decided to try coconut milk soak with honey and aloe as a leave-in when I am wearing my hair up. Six hours in, it looks like I have mousse or hairspray or something in, but it doesn't smell wierd or feel drippy.

Any other super fines have a nonproduct solution to keeping the ends moisturized that can be fit easily into a morning routine?

[RitaCeleste]

I have coarse hair but I went and tested Aubrey Organics Honeysuckle Rose as a leave on the ends of my daughter. On her, I just put some in my palm and rubbed my hands together and pulled it threw from the neck down (her hair is midback, dry and fine) it was dry and not oily at all by the time I combed threw it. I am using it on my ends today applied dry and combed in. No one in my town carries it, but Honeysuckle Rose is the best thing so far for my color treated damaged hair. I order it with Trader Joe's Nourish Spa conditioner from Lakshmi's Cupboard. If I over-oil my hair just a little, adding some AOHR helps make it not look oily anymore. It softens my hair, my ends are stiff and tend to stick out from my back if I don't use AOHR. Protein really dries my hair so I deep condition after ever protein treatment with AOHR. I can't help it, I think its the best thing since ice-cream!:D

[Misti]

I tested Aubrey Organics Honeysuckle Rose as a leave on the ends of my daughter.(her hair is midback, dry and fine)

Thank you, RitaCeleste...I'll look for that. Maybe if I keep it below the shoulders I can use it.

[spidermom]

Have you tried exactly 1 drop of oil to ends? That's how I started.

Yes, I think dry does matter as it often goes hand in hand with brittle.

[Misti]

I have tried one drop, yes. And with a very light oil, it doesn't get greasy...but it doesn't seem particularly moisturized, either.

Yeah, that "dry=brittle" was pretty much my conclusion, too. :)

[spidermom]

The conditioner seems to matter a lot as to whether my ends feel moisturized or not.

And sometimes the ends are just too depleted to respond to anything and must be tolerated or cut. I got rid of about 7 inches after a trip to the Caribbean. They were beyond help.

[RitaCeleste]

I think the lightest oil I've use is Meadowfoam seed oil. You can wet the ends before you apply the oil or the AOHR. I try to do this every other day in the summer because my hair get so dry and I'm not always showering. I also oil my hair with coconut oil atleast two hours before I'm gonna wash it (Over-night is awesome!). And my washing is often just a co-wash with Nourish Spa conditioner and AOHR as a leave in on damp hair. I am always trying to save on products but I'm always having to spend some because of all the coloring I do.

[RitaPG]

When I don't feel like using oil, I wet my hands and rub two drops of my favourite conditioner on them, then smooth it gently on the last 2 inches of my hair. You don't need to use it above the shoulders, only on the dry ends. Works for me :)

[Misti]

I'll try that, Rita. Thanks.

[skyblue]

Yes I've done that, I added water to the end of my bottle of GF triple nutrition, I use it as a leave in I think it works pretty well

[haibane]

Have you tried catnip tea soaks? They're really moisturising for my hair.

[BlazingHeart]

What about doing a pre-wash oiling? I don't know if you're a morning or night washer, but the oil doesn't necessarily have to be on for all that long to do you good. I oil 4-5 hours before I wash, and I get it to the point where it's a little bit piecy and slick, but nobody's going to see it but me and my housemate, so I figure no real harm done.

~Blaze

[McFearless]

I think dry does matter. Dry hair is more prone to breaking. Do you wear updos? On days you are at home I don't think it would hurt to use a drop of oil and have greasy ends.

[Carolyn]

My hair would be a dried out mess if I washed with baking soda and rinsed with vinegar :shudder: It would be a disaster. The egg is probably too much protein added to the drying properties of the baking soda. I think you need moisture. If your scalp can't handle conventional shampoo and conditioner, couldn't you use a moisturizing conditioner from the ears or shoulders down? It you are washing your hair standing in the shower, nothing should touch your scalp if you are careful. I think you need to get the moisture back into your hair and then try some light oilings to help retain that moisture.

[Deborah]

When my ends have seemed dry I have stroked just a tiny bit of shea nut butter on the last 6 - 12 inches. This works great for me. My hair is ultra-fine (think toddler's hair, just more of it.)

[Pirate Cat]

I tried a baking soda/vinegar routine a few times because I wanted to get away from commercial shampoos and conditioners as well. The baking soda dried my hair out like nobody's business; not just the ends but the length as well. I haven't found a solution yet but I'm working on it. Maybe at least ease up on the amount of baking soda?

[Misti]

I added water to the end of my bottle of GF triple nutrition, I use it as a leave in I think it works pretty well

I'll give that a try, Skyblue. Thanks.


Have you tried catnip tea soaks? They're really moisturising for my hair.

I have, Haibane, and it works a treat, except...my hair is so white that the yellow stain is really obvious. (See my album! :rolleyes: I never saw myself as a blonde and it's pretty disconcerting!) I do it anyway sometimes, but the moisture seems to fade as fast as the yellow so I need an alternative.


What about doing a pre-wash oiling? I don't know if you're a morning or night washer, but the oil doesn't necessarily have to be on for all that long to do you good. I oil 4-5 hours before I wash, and I get it to the point where it's a little bit piecy and slick, but nobody's going to see it but me and my housemate, so I figure no real harm done.

Blaze, I am a morning washer, but I have a miserable time getting oil out of my hair even when I try it as a pre-wash treatment. I tried oil shampoo and even that left my hair a mess that took three washes with shampoo and conditioner to get rid of. I can always hide the yucky hair in a bun, but by the time I get the oil out, any moisture it may have provided is gone, too.


I think dry does matter. Dry hair is more prone to breaking. Do you wear updos? On days you are at home I don't think it would hurt to use a drop of oil and have greasy ends.

I have come to agree with you that dry hair is almost certianly more fragile. I wear updoes 95% of the time ... so I can hide the oil. But it doesn't make my hair seem any more moistuized. (I used a heavy coat of coconut oil all winter and in spring when I stopped using it, it took a couple of weeks of daily washing to get it all out - and my hair looked as dry as ever.


If your scalp can't handle conventional shampoo and conditioner, couldn't you use a moisturizing conditioner from the ears or shoulders down?

Yeah. I can. That and oil seems to be the only alternative anyone really knows about and oil doesn't work for my hair so I guess I'll give it a try.


The egg is probably too much protein added to the drying properties of the baking soda.

Actually, no. My hair looks fantastic after I use the egg and coconut milk...but I'm too lazy and busy to do it every day so I need a quicker alternative.


When my ends have seemed dry I have stroked just a tiny bit of shea nut butter on the last 6 - 12 inches. This works great for me. My hair is ultra-fine (think toddler's hair, just more of it.)

Thanks, Deborah. I'll give that a try, too!


Maybe at least ease up on the amount of baking soda?

I actually use very little baking soda so it would be hard to go with less. I think that the problem is less the baking soda per se, and more that my routine doesn't add any moisture back in.

Day two of the coconut milk routine. It remains easy to handle. Still looks like I am wearing mousse or something, but that's not a bad thing. My hair feels immensly smooth, like it did with coconut oil...so even if it still doesn't look happy when I rinse it out and dry my hair down, it's probably still protective. I'll know more this weekend about the long term moisture (or lack).

[Misti]

By the way, thank you everyone for the suggestions! On payday, I will be going uot and buying a couple of conditioners and some shea butter to try. :cheese:

[RitaPG]

I went back and re-read your original post, you say that your hair does not respond well to oils, but does well with egg yolk and coconut milk. It got me thinking, your hair loves protein, this may not be about moisture.
I don't think honey works very well as a leave-in, though, even mixed with aloe and coconut milk. I think might be what's causing that hairspray feel, protein as a leave-in is a bad idea since it tends to leave hair brittle.

You mentioned that what you were doing before, with the egg yolk and coconut milk with honey and aloe seemed to be working, I suppose the best thing would be to keep it up.
If your schedule doesn't allow you to do it more often, then the conditioners people advised you already should do the trick :)

[luxepiggy]

Another vote for moisturizing conditioners below the neck (^(oo)^)v

[SpinDance]

Oh the joys of finding things that work! :/ Have you tried Panacea? I've had better luck with it than I have with straight oils, although my hair does like oils, especially as a prewash treatment. A tiny fingertip touch of Panacea spread/melted in my palms then carefully spread on my ends and lengths works nicely as a leave in. Too much and it gets piecy, but a tiny bit now and again is OK. Too much and I just put it up and call it a deep treatment, though.

[Misti]

Have you tried Panacea?

Um...no. I've never heard of panacea. :confused: What is it?

Update. I was going to keep with the coconut milk until today, but my hair was getting more and more dry looking, crispy, and unhappy, so I stopped. Then I had to powder my head with bicarb to get rid of the grease that had crept up the hair and was making my scalp feel nasty.

After a thorough bicard and ACV wash, I dug out a bottle of conditioner and tried the leave in idea. I still prefer to use food and plants in my hair, but I was desperate.

But I am thinking that RitaPG was right -- it's not about moisture at all. My hair seems desperate for protein so, this weekend I plan to do a cassia treatment (or maybe Zizyphus - - I find the yellow stain less than wonderful ) and follow it with the egg and coconut treatment that makes such a difference.

But I am also going to dig up some information about using eggs for washing hair. Staring Monday, I'll experiment to see if that will help.

I honestly don't have time to sit around for hours dripping cassia and egg as often as my hair wants them, so I am still on the hunt.

Thanks for the ideas, everyone. You've been an immense help in my research!:cheese:

[RitaCeleste]

Good luck with the egg thing. Make sure the water is COLD when you rinse. I tried once and the water was warm enough to cook the egg in my hair. My sister died laughing at me. Egg +warm water = Hot Mess. I was afraid to try it again but I think I'm smart enough to pull it off these days.

[Misti]

Egg +warm water = Hot Mess.

I love it! Very true.

<laugh> I did that once, too. Funny how easy it is to remember the second time, isn't it?

[RitaCeleste]

Oh yeah, getting bits of egg out of my hair took forever. I was finding bits for three days if I remember right. When I found haircare forums I was hunting product reviews before I went shopping. Now I am getting brave and hunting recipes. Recipes never go out of business or change their formula when you aren't looking. I didn't have honey to mix with olive oil today so I tried conditioner and olive oil and that went well so I'm working my way up. That you can maintain your hair without spending a ton of money on product is inspiring! When mine gets to my waist, I've always ended up spending more on it and I end up not liking my haircare routines.

[RitaCeleste]

It was RitaPG that said it might be protein it needs. I was responsible the leave-in idea :(.

[Misti]

It was RitaPG that said it might be protein it needs. I was responsible the leave-in idea :(.

Oops, I'm sorry. :(

[Misti]

Recipes never go out of business or change their formula when you aren't looking.

Oh, so true. And I seem to have far fewer sensitivity issues with herbs and foods -- manufactured products make my scalp so unhappy.

[SpinDance]

Misti, sorry to be slow replying, I've been away on holiday. I hope I'm not breaking any rules here. Panacea is made by our own Nightshade, available through etsy.com here (http://www.etsy.com/shop/NightBlooming?section_id=5427870). There are 3 blends, regular, Summer and Winter. The latter are available seasonally. I have no affiliation, just a satisfied customer. I started with the little sample sizes, which I suggest as a good way to try them. There are larger sizes available as well.

I use it not only on my hair, but also as salve for my hands. I've not noticed a significant difference in performance between the 3 blends, although others have reported they get different results. There is a thread about it here (http://forums.longhaircommunity.com/showthread.php?t=50728). Using Panacea finally gave me shine all the way to my ends. It doesn't take much to do the job, either.

[Misti]

Misti, sorry to be slow replying, I've been away on holiday. I hope I'm not breaking any rules here. Panacea is made by our own Nightshade, available through etsy.com here (http://www.etsy.com/shop/NightBlooming?section_id=5427870). .

Thank you, SpinDance! I'll have to contact Nightshade! :)

[Misti]

A little update. I have been trying the protein conditioner as leave in and it seems to be working wonderfully. And by keeping it well below the shoulders, I have managed to keep my scalp (mostly) happy, too.

I still haven't gotten organized to try an eggs wash, but I will. meanwhile, my hair doesn't feel crisy pany more.

Thank you!!

[alyaziaaah]

I use any normal condish for co-wash mixed with a little coconut oil in water in a spraybottle as leave in and detangler. As detangler I also spray it on my detangle brush. It keeps my ends moisturized and doesn't need time ;-)

[Thinthondiel]

I was about to suggest using just aloe as a leave-in (it makes my hair feel more moisturised than any other product), but I see you've already found something that works for you. :)