New hair photo not good

[marobader]

I blow dried my hair last night to check my new length I new I gain 7cm since my last hair photo (the one in avatar 4 months ago) so it become longer but so thinner it look so bad I am not so far from my goal (west) but I guess I need a trim.
what do you think guys (the old photo was 4 months after a trim & I used a flat iron) now I didn't trim for 8 months
thanks in advance
http://img841.imageshack.us/img841/5629/53aec73d0c5b48668849f41.jpg

http://img841.imageshack.us/img841/5629/53aec73d0c5b48668849f41.jpg

[kitcatsmeow]

It is thin at the ends. If it were me I'd trim a little. If you regularly blow dry/iron you may want to think about changing that.

[Yozhik]

I see your natural texture is curly -- do you have a photo of it curly? Also, do you usually wear your hair curly or straightened?

To me, this would determine whether or not I'd feel like I needed to trim -- in other words, I usually wear my hair wavy, so the hemline can be more uneven and not be a problem. As a result, I go more than 8 months without trims with no significant problems.

Hope that helps! :flower:

[Silverbrumby]

http://img841.imageshack.us/img841/5629/53aec73d0c5b48668849f41.jpg

Do you have a photo of it air dried? I'm betting you have some really cute fairy tail ends.

[Rufflebutt]

Don't be discouraged! Here was my first picture on LHC:

http://24.media.tumblr.com/tumblr_m8mg1goPIq1rxty4io1_250.jpg

But a couple microtrims later it became:

http://25.media.tumblr.com/tumblr_m8mfu9QvkL1rxty4io1_250.jpg


Just maintain that length for as many months as you need for the rest of your hair to catch up if the thickness is what you are worried about. :)

[Rufflebutt]

I also second the notion of giving up the flat iron. Throw it out the window!

[katfemme89]

Marobader, have you thought about trying the curlygirl method (silicone free conditioner only, no shampoo, no brushing, only wide tooth combing and letting air dry so that your natural curl pattern can be allowed to form and look beautiful) I think it would benefit you. The straighter the hair, the more obvious thin ends. The curlier, the less obvious. In my opinion (which, sadly, isn't worth much) you would benefit from embracing your natural hair type. Let your beautiful curls fly free!

If you don't want to do that, then I would suggest what Rufflebutt mentioned, and just keep doing microtrims until the rest of your hair catches up to the longest portion of the hair and thickens up the hemline.

[Suze2012]

Marobader, have you thought about trying the curlygirl method (silicone free conditioner only, no shampoo, no brushing, only wide tooth combing and letting air dry so that your natural curl pattern can be allowed to form and look beautiful) I think it would benefit you. The straighter the hair, the more obvious thin ends. The curlier, the less obvious. In my opinion (which, sadly, isn't worth much) you would benefit from embracing your natural hair type. Let your beautiful curls fly free!

If you don't want to do that, then I would suggest what Rufflebutt mentioned, and just keep doing microtrims until the rest of your hair catches up to the longest portion of the hair and thickens up the hemline.

This is what I was going to suggest.
I would get a trim to start off with.
Your hair has great potentialfor improvement from the look of it. Looks like there are curls just dying to be loved and treated with some tlc. :)

[katfemme89]

^^^^Exactly what she said.

[MissAlida]

I agree with the other posters. You could try to let it curl. The blowdried hair looks frizzy, because your curls don't like it. My hair looks just the same when I blow dry it, which I don't. I haven't blow dried it for years. However, you could try hair wrapping, if you want straight hair. It wont give you stick straight hair, and needs patience till you get the hang of it. But it's heat free, and it's worth a try. Also the curly girl method. And lots of moisture. I say maintain, don't trim several inches, you'll regret it. That's what I did, and I regret it.:)

[piffyanne]

Marobader, you'll quickly notice that curls are anthropomorphized all the time on the LHC. That's because we've all learned that they're sentient:rolleyes:. If they don't like what's going on, they'll make themselves heard one way or another. Why not let them express themselves for a little while? The CG method others suggest is what I'd go with. :flowers:

I'm a closet-curly: I try to do the CG method, but my hair refuses to curl anymore because it's so long that the weight drags it down (~Fingertip shouldn't be too long! :rant:). You're lucky your hair still wants to do it, I'm so indescribably jealous of all the curlies on this forum! Your hair looks beautifully thick! :D Keep us posted!

Useful threads for you: http://forums.longhaircommunity.com/showthread.php?t=96168, http://forums.longhaircommunity.com/showthread.php?t=99639, http://forums.longhaircommunity.com/showthread.php?t=369, and http://forums.longhaircommunity.com/showthread.php?t=4866 as starters.

If you want more information, search using LongHairCommunity and the terms you want, the LHC search function isn't always completely accurate.;)

Hope to see you around the forums again!

[marobader]

Do you have a photo of it air dried? I'm betting you have some really cute fairy tail ends.
here is my air dried photo big frizzy mess
http://img855.imageshack.us/img855/8804/99563f86fe2c416c923fae4.jpg
actually I don't wear my hair either straightened or curly most of time stretched (comb it in a pun & let it air dried for day & half ) Is it bad for my hair ?
I tried to wear it curly I love it on people on my I hate it .
I co-wash for a all year now clarify every month ( I can't find any silicone free hair products unfortunately) I use oils as leave in .& I got flax seed but don't use it yet
I don't uses flat iron or blow dry only for length check (2 flat iron 1 blow dry in 8 months )

[Greenfire]

Okay, the way your ends are going, thin and all, keep it! Do microtrims as needed, when all the rest of the thicker stuff catches up into fairytale ends you'll be able to wear it all natural airdried and not have to worry about the way it looks thinner in spots and thicker in others! It's really long, but not quite long enough to let the sides fall like it is in the back. It's so pretty there where it's curly! If your goal is to wear it natural, don't chop it all off! Just keep with it!

I'd love to see your hair stretched as you call it, not air dried or flat ironed, but to see how you wear it every day. If it's really obvious, you might want to microtrim just a little, but then let it all go fairytale again if you wear it natural.

[marobader]

Thanks all for all your advices really appreciate it any advices to get a decent curly look
piffyanne
I hope your hair curl again :) I love curly hair in people too but not at me :(
Rufflebutt
plz tel me how you do microtrims
katfemme89
I do most of curly girl do except for the silicons
Suze2012
what potentialfor improvement mean plz ?
MissAlida
I know I will regret it I was thinking of 1 inch only

[ladonna]

here is my air dried photo big frizzy mess
http://img855.imageshack.us/img855/8804/99563f86fe2c416c923fae4.jpg
actually I don't wear my hair either straightened or curly most of time stretched (comb it in a pun & let it air dried for day & half ) Is it bad for my hair ?
I tried to wear it curly I love it on people on my I hate it .
I co-wash for a all year now clarify every month ( I can't find any silicone free hair products unfortunately) I use oils as leave in .& I got flax seed but don't use it yet
I don't uses flat iron or blow dry only for length check (2 flat iron 1 blow dry in 8 months )

I love your hair! I suggest some olive or coconut etc oil to help the individual hairs stick together to make ringlets. My hair is crazy and poofy if I dont leave in some olive wirh a bit of condishioner, this is the only way for me to get nice smooth curls.

[marobader]

Thank you very much I wash my hair today I will post a photo when it dried hope you like it :)

[curlyhair]

here is my air dried photo big frizzy mess

actually I don't wear my hair either straightened or curly most of time stretched (comb it in a pun & let it air dried for day & half ) Is it bad for my hair ?
I tried to wear it curly I love it on people on my I hate it .
I co-wash for a all year now clarify every month ( I can't find any silicone free hair products unfortunately) I use oils as leave in .& I got flax seed but don't use it yet
I don't uses flat iron or blow dry only for length check (2 flat iron 1 blow dry in 8 months )
Hi Marobadr i'm Egyptian too and we are hair twin (the same colour ad texture) . i recommend Les Karites Hair mask it is cone free (i checked the ingredients my self) and for clarifying cone free shampoo i recommend pantene pro v clarifying shampoo but be careful using it as it contains 4 surfactants so be wise while using it as it can be really really drying.

[marobader]

hiiiiiiii so happy I found an Egyptian LHC friend thanks for the products suggestion do you use the hair mask for co-wash it worls ?& what do u use as a leave in ?

[curlyhair]

hiiiiiiii so happy I found an Egyptian LHC friend thanks for the products suggestion do you use the hair mask for co-wash it worls ?& what do u use as a leave in ?
Yes , i use it for co wash once a week by diluting 1 tablespoon of the cream +1 teaspoon of honey + 3 tablespoons of water ( sometimes amla decoction) apply it to my wet hair using wide toothed comb , let it for 15 minutes then rinse with water and no i don't use a leave in conditioner only coconut oil to comb my hair .

[Suze2012]

I thought I owuld come back here to chek for updates so hello again. :)

I am getting the feeling from both your photos and your comments on them that you want you curl somewhere between picture no 1 and picture no 2?

I plop my hair to encourage curl and got an Aquis microfibre turbie head towel.
I don't use it in the way they show you to on the pack.

It has a 'head end' and then gets smaller into a 'lengths' end which you are supposed to put your length into and then twist it up and attach it at teh back with a button.

It's just a thought but I'm wondering whether leave in conditioner and using a turbie this way might help you get closer to what I think you're looking for.

I have tried oil as a leave in and it makes my hair curlier and frizzier whereas a small amount of leave in conditioner (any conditioner) makes the hair shaft smoother and sort of weighs it down somewhat.

You could also try the turbie method with a long sleeved cotton t-shirt - put a t-shirt on a chair and put your head on it upside down. Pull your length towards yoru knees, put the base of the t at the nape of your neck and the length of your hair along the length of the t-shirt wrap the t-shirt around and tie it up on your head with the sleeves - just for about 20 minutes or so. It could be worth a try. :)

[virgo75]

marobader - you look like you have the potential for absolutely gorgeous ringlets! You might want to check out this website called "tightly curly." The lady there has ringlet curls as well and had poofy hair. She figured out how to work with it very well and it's beautiful!

Here's the link: http://www.tightlycurly.com/welcome

To summarize what she does: she shampoos, then uses a conditioner that doesn't have cones(don't worry if you don't have that), finally she uses a conditioner with cones and uses it as a leave-in to define the curls.

I've used my coney conditioner as a leave-in and it works great for defining curls! Just add while hair is still wet or damp(you'll have to see what works best for you) and DON'T BRUSH OR COMB after that. If you brush or comb it after that it will be undefined and poof out like in your pic.

Good luck. I think your curls will be gorgeous once you figure out how to syle them. :)

[kitekats]

The color is very shimmery twinkly:)

[spidermom]

I can see why you like to straighten it, otherwise the curl pattern eats up all your length. I've found a trick that works really well to take the poof out of blow-dried hair. Make a segmented ponytail with several hair bands - not too tight - for about 15 minutes. Pull back the top like a half-up, then add a second pony at the nape and another one or two for the length. Leave in for about 15 minutes while you do your make-up or something. Then take the ponytails out. Oh - and it helps even more if you use a leave-in. I have a spray conditioner by Nexxus. It smoothes all the poof out. Of course, we have very different hair, but it's worth a try - right?

[jojo]

Your ends look like mine a few weeks ago, so don't despair it's normal for long hair to have thinner ends. I think too as you have combed out curls it looks worse, plus you have dark hair against a white shirt, it exadurates thinness. I did the same thing in my before photo, my hair is wavy rather than curly and I brushed to see the length, my daughter told me it looked nowhere near as bad in real life.
Before
http://i1048.photobucket.com/albums/s366/joanna-eglin/292eb513c4dc4260ae9140a1f6659d9c.jpg
And after, I combed it periodically from damp to straighten,hence why all my flyaways are playing out, not the most flattering photo but the hemline is much thicker. I plan to micro trim monthly as I still have some slight thinning in the middle section, but see how the darker shirt makes a huge difference? My hair isn't this dark either it's lighting
http://i1048.photobucket.com/albums/s366/joanna-eglin/ebec70850f905845fe9b0457b61a8282.jpg

[heidi w.]

I would get used to your hair in its curly state, and give up flat ironing. Your hair blown dry looks awful. It appears dry, and overall unhealthy. I'm betting that in its curly state with you CO washing, it'll appear far lovelier.

Good luck,
heidi w.

[CurlyCurves]

I'm also a 3b, and although I do not need leave ins, perhaps I can give you some tips?

If you want to wear you natural curls, you could do what I do. I cowash, and then rinse out the conditioner with cold water. I then use my PVA towel to scrunch the excess water out, scrunch a bit more then I do not touch it while it is drying.

http://a6.sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-snc6/269764_4439563187621_133379084_n.jpg

If this does not work for you, and you want a blowdried look without the heat, you can do these;


Wrapping;

http://a7.sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-ash4/264873_4452944242139_1051114374_n.jpg

Banding;

http://a2.sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-snc7/313516_4452259385018_474437373_n.jpg

Ponytail wrapping;

http://a2.sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-ash4/399415_4447751552325_2144656684_n.jpg

Clipping;

http://a6.sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-ash4/185814_4425876285457_525624136_n.jpg

Finger curls;

http://a1.sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-snc7/484529_4294230114385_1822108852_n.jpg

With all of these techniques, I get similar results. Often like this;

http://a8.sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-prn1/521994_4264157562590_1144526532_n.jpg
http://a3.sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-ash3/555749_4450302416095_2051221372_n.jpg

Hope this helps!