Re: Catnip for split ends?
Quote:
Originally Posted by
ktani
Yes, I can see it. I am very glad that it is working for you. And you are most welcome. I still get an imbalance in colour, if I get too enthusiastic with my shampoo use and cut the timing in my treatment time (when I an in a hurry, lol) but catnip is so forgiving, the very next time I use it I can get what I need from it.
I just trimmed about 1.5 inches off my hair, taking off the last of the growth taper from having gone a long time between trims, a while ago.
The end of February, I cut 3 inches off my hair, which had been 2 inches from my waist, pulled down. It is now 2 inches from my waist pulled down, after the trim. My growth rate using catnip is better than it was 4 years ago but it has always been pretty good.
I followed the trim with the first thorough s&d that I have done in 4 months. I do mini s &d's periodically, just to check on things. I knew that I had a few white dots from being rushed and careless lately.
I had far fewer white dots than ever, and absolutely no split ends, so the extra brewing time did make a difference in my hair recovering from using the catnip shampoos I did for a while, that gave me a few splits, at one point. I am still not getting any breakage taper either though. My growth since the end of February was steady and fairly even. I am still amazed at what catnip can do and in a few short months, it will be 4 years exactly, since I started using it.
My hair is just about waist length. I trimmed 2 inches back in May as it hadn't been trimmed for nearly a year and the ends were looking very sad.
I have always had a problem with split ends and I am still fighting with them doing mini s&ds. I am trying to be more gentle with my hair now and hoping that the Catnip will over time stop any new splits from appearing.
I've never been able to get my hair past waist length before because of splits and growth stalls so I'll be interested to see if the Catnip does improve the growth.
I am sticking with the Catnip as my hair feels and looks better than it has for many years.
Thank you.
Re: Catnip for split ends?
Quote:
Originally Posted by
KarpatiiSiv
My hair is just about waist length. I trimmed 2 inches back in May as it hadn't been trimmed for nearly a year and the ends were looking very sad.
I have always had a problem with split ends and I am still fighting with them doing mini s&ds. I am trying to be more gentle with my hair now and hoping that the Catnip will over time stop any new splits from appearing.
I've never been able to get my hair past waist length before because of splits and growth stalls so I'll be interested to see if the Catnip does improve the growth.
I am sticking with the Catnip as my hair feels and looks better than it has for many years.
Thank you.
I am so glad that using catnip has been making such a positive difference for you.
I did not grow my hair very long because I always had a breakage taper when I tried and I could not stabilize that. It took until sometime into catnip use, to get the results I have now (I keep losing track of the exact time on that, lol. I never recorded it). Now I have the method I need and that is what I have shared. I also had a stylist who kept cutting my hair shorter than I wanted and only when I started cutting my hair myself (about a year now), did I really start growing it this long (it was stabilized for a very good while, before that). I do not have a length goal as such. I am just growing it and if a length becomes awkward for me, I will cut it back. I prefer to wear my hair down except for when doing chores. I have never had a breakage problem from wearing my hair loose, as using catnip prevents any real tangles for me. When I used to use conditioner I did have tangles, with shorter hair. My hair type is prone to that but not with catnip. My hair is fine/medium, wavy and thin.
What I have been doing recently, with the extra brewing time, is just fine tuning and improving on things even more. The biggest difference in results for me was the increased timing for the treatment way back, and bagging it. I was still brewing catnip for about 30 minutes back then and had no splits. My goal now is continuing to reduce the white dots down to 0. That is not actually realistic, lol, as the white dots for me are the result of mechanical damage. I still get careless but perfection is an interesting goal, if one stays firmly in reality and strives to achieve it, without getting too disappointed, if perfection is never really reached, IMO.
Once the hair is stabilized, in terms of not getting more breakage and splits than growth, you can trim off the bad ends and grow your hair without the problem of "losing more than you gain", in terms of what the hair looks like longer, from my experience.
Re: Catnip for split ends?
Quote:
Originally Posted by
ktani
I am so glad that using catnip has been making such a positive difference for you.
I did not grow my hair very long because I always had a breakage taper when I tried and I could not stabilize that. It took until sometime into catnip use, to get the results I have now (I keep losing track of the exact time on that, lol. I never recorded it). Now I have the method I need and that is what I have shared. I also had a stylist who kept cutting my hair shorter than I wanted and only when I started cutting my hair myself (about a year now), did I really start growing it this long (it was stabilized for a very good while, before that). I do not have a length goal as such. I am just growing it and if a length becomes awkward for me, I will cut it back. I prefer to wear my hair down except for when doing chores. I have never had a breakage problem from wearing my hair loose, as using catnip prevents any real tangles for me. When I used to use conditioner I did have tangles, with shorter hair. My hair type is prone to that but not with catnip. My hair is fine/medium, wavy and thin.
What I have been doing recently, with the extra brewing time, is just fine tuning and improving on things even more. The biggest difference in results for me was the increased timing for the treatment way back, and bagging it. I was still brewing catnip for about 30 minutes back then and had no splits. My goal now is continuing to reduce the white dots down to 0. That is not actually realistic, lol, as the white dots for me are the result of mechanical damage. I still get careless but perfection is an interesting goal, if one stays firmly in reality and strives to achieve it, without getting too disappointed, if perfection is never really reached, IMO.
Once the hair is stabilized, in terms of not getting more breakage and splits than growth, you can trim off the bad ends and grow your hair without the problem of "losing more than you gain", in terms of what the hair looks like longer, from my experience.
It is really interesting to read how you have progressed using Catnip and improving on it as you have gone along. You've done the hard work for us and we can reap the benefits.
I haven't got a length goal as such but it would be nice to see if I can actually get it to grow past my waist with it looking healthy. My older sister who trained as a hairdresser would trim my hair about once a year and she was usually quite good about the amount she trimmed off but she always went on about the amount of splits I had. She moved quite a distance away a few years ago and I didn't want to risk going to another hairdresser - I've heard to many horror stories over the years.:eek: I found Feye's method for trimming and have been using that.
I wear my hair down or half up at lot of the time. I like the feel of my hair down and its probably got something to do with the fact that when I was younger with long hair I always had to have it in braids or up some other way. However, at the moment we are having a bit of a heatwave here in the UK and its really humid so it has to go up then.
Perfection is a goal I doubt I'll ever reach but I am certainly going to try to get at least two thirds of the way there.:D
Re: Catnip for split ends?
Quote:
Originally Posted by
KarpatiiSiv
It is really interesting to read how you have progressed using Catnip and improving on it as you have gone along. You've done the hard work for us and we can reap the benefits.
I haven't got a length goal as such but it would be nice to see if I can actually get it to grow past my waist with it looking healthy. My older sister who trained as a hairdresser would trim my hair about once a year and she was usually quite good about the amount she trimmed off but she always went on about the amount of splits I had. She moved quite a distance away a few years ago and I didn't want to risk going to another hairdresser - I've heard to many horror stories over the years.:eek: I found Feye's method for trimming and have been using that.
I wear my hair down or half up at lot of the time. I like the feel of my hair down and its probably got something to do with the fact that when I was younger with long hair I always had to have it in braids or up some other way. However, at the moment we are having a bit of a heatwave here in the UK and its really humid so it has to go up then.
Perfection is a goal I doubt I'll ever reach but I am certainly going to try to get at least two thirds of the way there.:D
I find that s&d's help a good deal. Most of the time, I just do the minis now. It helps to remove hairs that catch on others. Most of the white dots I do have now are really hard to see without extra strong magnifying reading glasses, stronger than the ones I use for reading. lol. I am getting rid of the problems before they can become unmanageable. It is not that the hair gets that much more breakage if I do not, as much as my hair is more awkward to deal with. Sometimes I can see where the hair has broken off but those hairs to not split or continue to break. The areas where I used to have a lot of breakage have grown in quite well.
You are well on your way, from the sound of it, to get what you want from catnip.
Re: Catnip for split ends?
ktani, how often do you use the catnip?
I usually shampoo once a week, and use the catnip for an hour after the shampoo, then follow with my SMT. This has been good for me, as my hair is more moisturized then ever -in fact this routine has brought out waves I never had before! :)
But, I still gets splits. Not as many as I used to, but I can still find a couple dozen true splits and a LOT of white dots every time I look. :( I'm thinking about using another round of catnip mid-week -maybe after using a non-SLS shampoo- just to see if it helps. The shampoo I use now has SLS, but I love it so much that I haven't been willing to give it up. But, I might buy another just to use in-between.
Re: Catnip for split ends?
Quote:
Originally Posted by
DragonLady
ktani, how often do you use the catnip?
I usually shampoo once a week, and use the catnip for an hour after the shampoo, then follow with my SMT. This has been good for me, as my hair is more moisturized then ever -in fact this routine has brought out waves I never had before! :)
But, I still gets splits. Not as many as I used to, but I can still find a couple dozen true splits and a LOT of white dots every time I look. :( I'm thinking about using another round of catnip mid-week -maybe after using a non-SLS shampoo- just to see if it helps. The shampoo I use now has SLS, but I love it so much that I haven't been willing to give it up. But, I might buy another just to use in-between.
I find that I only need to wash my hair once a week now, as opposed to every 4 or 5 days, a few years ago.
What is in your SMT? Both aloe gel and conditioner leave residues and sometimes honey can leave it too. You shampoo may not be removing all of the residues every time, especially if you SMT, after every catnip. Try skipping the SMT. Shampoo and just catnip a few times and see how that goes. I need nothing at all, following catnip, no leave-in (I do not like leave-ins) or oil.
If catnip does not have clear access to the hair, from my experience, optimal results do not happen.
Re: Catnip for split ends?
Quote:
What is in your SMT? Both aloe gel and conditioner leave residues and sometimes honey can leave it too. You shampoo may not be removing all of the residues every time, especially if you SMT, after every catnip. Try skipping the SMT. Shampoo and just catnip a few times and see how that goes. I need nothing at all, following catnip, no leave-in (I do not like leave-ins) or oil.
I only use a mixture of conditioner (cone-free) and honey. The aloe didn't work for me. I'll try skipping the SMT a couple of weeks and see how it goes. :) Thanks!
Re: Catnip for split ends?
Quote:
Originally Posted by
DragonLady
I only use a mixture of conditioner (cone-free) and honey. The aloe didn't work for me. I'll try skipping the SMT a couple of weeks and see how it goes. :) Thanks!
You are most welcome! Good luck!
Re: Catnip for split ends?
I'm going on a hunt for catnip tomorrow. Reading through alot of the pages here has made me think it's just what my hair needs!
Hopefully my cat won't eat my hair while I sleep. :lol:
Re: Catnip for split ends?
Quote:
Originally Posted by
Leisje
I'm going on a hunt for catnip tomorrow. Reading through alot of the pages here has made me think it's just what my hair needs!
Hopefully my cat won't eat my hair while I sleep. :lol:
No worries. Here is the Catnip Article.
