Share your softness secrets :)

[starlamelissa]

More than shiny hair, I love soft hair. My Hair is loosely wavy, thick, and died with manic panic over unbleached hair. Just about waist in length.

Here are my secrets: I use baby shampoo with declglocoside or cocoglucoside as my main cleanser. After my shower I use a tsp of biologe knockoff balm from sallys on towel dried hair.

I wash every two or three days.

I use a denman brush which is seamless and fab, makes my hair much softer than combing or finger combing.

Oh, here is a weird one, I only brush once a day. I put it up if I am going out.

So what are your tricks to softness?

[CurlAhead]

Hmm, I have started CO-washing again, and that sure makes a huge different compared to shampoo. And I use a conditioner from Garnier Fructis that makes my hair a bit shinier and softer. Otherwise, I oil the hair with olive oil before washing.. Hmm, I think that was it. And ohhh, I don't us a towel anymore, instead I'm using a t-shirt to dry my hair. I am not going back to towels which leaves my hair all frizzy, no thanks! :D

[pink.sara]

I always put some oil or conditioner on the dry lengths before I wet it and use diluted shampoo the roots then condition the lengths again. sometimes I leave the oil or conditioner on overnight, sometimes just for 20 minutes, but I always CWC, then I use a final rinse of very diluted White rice vinegar as my water is very hard and deposits minerals.
Supersoft, supershiny hair is the result!

Since doing this routine my previously beloved serum and shine spray haven't been used once :)
And I also use a Denman brush maximum once a day.

[starlamelissa]

Hmm, I have started CO-washing again, and that sure makes a huge different compared to shampoo. And I use a conditioner from Garnier Fructis that makes my hair a bit shinier and softer. Otherwise, I oil the hair with olive oil before washing.. Hmm, I think that was it. And ohhh, I don't us a towel anymore, instead I'm using a t-shirt to dry my hair. I am not going back to towels which leaves my hair all frizzy, no thanks! :D

I have met so many curlies who just don't towel dry any more.... Not worth the frizz!

[longcurlygirl<3]

For me it is deeptreatments, I use Miss Jessicurl Weekly deeptreatment. It can be bought at curlmart.com. It is pricey, but I love it! Plus a leave-in [I use kinky-curly knot today] It is AAA-MMAAZ-INNG :D.

[starlamelissa]

Okay Denman brushes just rock. They really are different than a Normal brush.

[kanaka]

My hair itself is soft so i dont take any special care. but i use olive oil twice a week. olive oil makes my hair double softer. other than olive i use coconut oil. i dont use conditioner as well. sometimes i apply combination of both olive oil and coconut oil. i use oil as conditioner and moisturiser for my hair :)

[Madora]

Softness comes readily for me using my pure Goody boar bristle brush. 100 strokes, every day, right after I get up in the morning. Brushing also makes your hair shine beautifully!

[starlamelissa]

Softness comes readily for me using my pure Goody boar bristle brush. 100 strokes, every day, right after I get up in the morning. Brushing also makes your hair shine beautifully!

Your results with a bbb are astounding. What a mane!!!

[Madora]

Your results with a bbb are astounding. What a mane!!!

Thank you, starlamelissa! The daily brushing yields such terrific results and what could be simpler? Brushing is good for most hair types (curlies not so much) because you can adapt the brush strokes for your type of hair and still see results in time. It is how you use your bbb that determines how your hair will turn out.

[Ermine]

I don't know how well this would work for everyone else since my hair is already soft by default since it's fine, but my hair can get even softer with CO. Also, every once in a while I saturate my hair and scalp with coconut oil and leave it overnight. Not only does that take care of my dandruff, my hair is super soft and shiny after it's washed out. Air drying also makes my hair more soft.

[terpentyna]

Cone-free conditioners, acv rinses and, probably most importantly, camelia oil.

[Deemeeuh]

Air drying gives me way softer hair than when I was blowdrying. When it's completely dry the next morning, a careful brush with my wooden pin massage brush- http://www.drugstore.com/products/prod.asp?pid=189023&aid=338666&aparam=189023&scinit1=pla makes my hair super soft

[archel]

I have to agree with the boar bristle brush thing. It makes my hair gleam like crazy. Also, a few drops of argan oil make it shine without weighing it down - but not too much! Less is more with oil.

[MissManda]

My hair is quite soft naturally, but I have discovered techniques to greatly enhance it.

They are:

CO-Washing, esp. w/ a conditioner that has lots of slip like GFTN
ACV Rinses
Damp Bunning/Braiding
Using a Tangle Teezer or BBB for super-smoothness
Coconut Oil
Avoiding chemical damage more than any other kind of hair harm.

[starlamelissa]

My hair is quite soft naturally, but I have discovered techniques to greatly enhance it.

They are:

CO-Washing, esp. w/ a conditioner that has lots of slip like GFTN
ACV Rinses
Damp Bunning/Braiding
Using a Tangle Teezer or BBB for super-smoothness
Coconut Oil
Avoiding chemical damage more than any other kind of hair harm.

Doing a damp bun is one of my best hair styling methods. Good hold, and gorgeous waves.

[MyKing'sQueen]

For me henna made my hair the softest it's ever been :D

[Chetanlaiho]

My hair is |crazy| soft at the moment, and I have no idea why! xD I don't care much for shineyness (yes I know the word is shine, and no I don't care) but it's soo frikkin soft right now O_O

The only different thing Ive done is wash with a sulfate free shampoo the other week (with a full CO after, still felt a little dry) and actually rinse out my 'ends' conditioner instead of leaving it in.

[rachelily]

I use the oil shampoo method. It makes my hair so soft! I have curly hair, and I've found that when using gel it is best for me personally to put it in while my hair is still sopping wet, scrunching only. Then when my hair is dry I use my fingers to "pull" the crunch out, like sliding my fingers down each curl multiple times til they are soft. Brushing makes it fluffy, but "pulling" works wonders!

[clairenewcastle]

Since I gave up using conditioner in favour of doing catnip rinses my hair is softer than its ever been.

[rena]

Baby shampoo has a softening effect on my hair too. When I wash with that, and apply Garnier Triple Nutrition conditioner as a leave in, that does the trick for me pretty well.

Some standard rules I follow are to never soak up any of the water from my hair with sort of material, only sqeezing the water out works, leave-in after every wash, and after minimal combing, not to lay a finger on it until it is totally dry. Following these rules usually gets me nice softness.

[rachelily]

Baby shampoo has a softening effect on my hair too. When I wash with that, and apply Garnier Triple Nutrition conditioner as a leave in, that does the trick for me pretty well.

Some standard rules I follow are to never soak up any of the water from my hair with sort of material, only sqeezing the water out works, leave-in after every wash, and after minimal combing, not to lay a finger on it until it is totally dry. Following these rules usually gets me nice softness.

Totally agree on the water thing - my hair has never been softer since only using my hands so squeeze it out.

[Sunny_side_up]

massaging my scalp and covering my hair with black seed oil and leaving it on (dry hair) for a couple hours, then washing with sls free shampoo and leaving it to air dry. Normally in two braids. glossy soft waves, with a nice bit of volume and bounce.

[starlamelissa]

Baby shampoo has a softening effect on my hair too. When I wash with that, and apply Garnier Triple Nutrition conditioner as a leave in, that does the trick for me pretty well.

Some standard rules I follow are to never soak up any of the water from my hair with sort of material, only sqeezing the water out works, leave-in after every wash, and after minimal combing, not to lay a finger on it until it is totally dry. Following these rules usually gets me nice softness.

I love gtn condish, but the smell is just too chemical jolly rancher green apple/baby spit up in my hair. Boo!!!

[starlamelissa]

Totally agree on the water thing - my hair has never been softer since only using my hands so squeeze it out.

Do you twist or pat the water out?

[rachelily]

Do you twist or pat the water out?

My hair is curly so I scrunch it out (squeezing upward). How about you?

[starlamelissa]

Well rachelily, I squeeze from top to bottom in a sliding motion and wrap it in a soft beach towel

[QueenJoey]

I have almost always had soft hair. It's not especially shiny or pretty in any way, but at least I've got the softness factor!

My hair feels especially amazing if I apply leave-in conditioner and oil to my damp hair and bun it while it dries. My hair feels so silky when it finally dries!

[sweet*things]

A lot of it is genetics, but I've always had very soft hair. It helps to have no layers and to minimize damage. Short hairs poking out will make your hair feel rougher.

[rachelily]

Well rachelily, I squeeze from top to bottom in a sliding motion and wrap it in a soft beach towel

Ooh gotcha, that probably gets the water out really well! What is your hair type?

[Seeshami]

Renpure's Amazing Miracle deep penetrating reconstructor. The naughty mess loves it, and the naughty mess generally hates all things that are created to make it behave. The mess also enjoys flexi-8s. I think it thinks it's jewelry and therefore dangerous instead of safe.

I also like Organix Nourishing Coconut Milk Anti-breakage serum, however it doesn't always help, some times it makes the naughty mess look fake shiny and I dislike that.

[Charlotte:)]

I'm not going to lie; both Herbal Essences conditioner and sillicones in general make my hair softer than anything else I've ever tried :)

[kidari]

no heat styling, always air drying, heavy oilings, CO washings, clarifying followed by an SMT, damp bunning, diluted conditioner used for CO washings sprayed in hair before bunning, gentle handling, cones, and Fox's shea butter cream on the ends

[UP Lisa]

My baby-fine hair is soft all on it's own. Too soft in some ways!

[AngelDella]

I am new here and have been reading the boards for a few weeks. I tried an SMT with Sally's Cure Care Conditioner, honey, aloe vera gel for the first time last week, and my hair has never felt that soft! I have also been coating my hair with biolage conditioner and covering with t-shirt sleeves overnight then CWC the next morning, air dry, then lightly oil the ends...hair is super soft and shiny. Great advice on this board!

[nellreno]

Mine are:

Co-washing it and combing GFTN conditioner through my hair at the last minute.
Keeping it up during the day.
Putting coconut oil on the length a couple days before I shower.
Reminding myself that even though I'd really like to be WO it doesn't work with my scalp and only dries out my hair.
Staying the heck away from a bbb, like WO I'd like for it to work but it only dries out my hair and makes it break.

[PiratesRose]

I wash daily (bad, I know, but my scalp gets nasty if I don't) with Herbal Essences ("Totally Twisted") shampoo & conditioner, then apply Beyond the Zone Frizz Zapper anti-frizz serum (oil-free glosser), which seems to do the trick for me. You can find Beyond the Zone products at Sally Beauty Supply.

[silverpiper]

Aloe - it makes my hair so soft and full ... and totally unmanageable! Sigh.

[YepLilly]

I'm new around here, but so far I like the softness a good deep conditioner gives. I'm currently using Aussie 3MM.

[Merewen]

Catnip has been making my hair a lot softer.

[PineappleJello]

I really liked (flat) beer rinses. They made my hair so smooth. My biggest problem is opening the bottle and not drinking the whole thing.

[Mayflower]

The 'Jungle' conditioner from Lush, makes my hair super soft and smelling amazing for DAYS!

[curlymarcia]

I can't live without sweet almond oil. The bad thing about it is that It only works on wet hair (at least in my fine hair).

[Lianna]

Good formulated conditioners, olive oil, bunning (makes it smoother) and tangle teezer.

[angelfell]

My hair may not be the longest, nor strongest, but it is very soft and very shiny most of the time. Since it seems to be so thin, that may be why, but my mother always says it's because I have 'indian hair' (as in Native American).. apparently, I'm 1/4 native american or something.. I'm adopted, I don't know :p. ANYWHO.. I use Garnier Fructis Sleek & Shine shampoo and conditioner, and I always let the conditioner sit while I take care of everything else, like washing my face and body. I'm pretty sure the GF S&S is teeming with cones though, just as a warning. Then, as soon as I get out and while my hair is wet, I finger some coconut oil and Biosilk Silk Therapy oil throughout, mainly amongst the length. And ouila! My hair dries shiny and soft.

ETA: Biosilk Silk Therapy is one of my favorite products ever.. and i lasts FOREVER, because just a small dap distributes wonderfully.