Why won't my hair stay detangled?

[Annapox]

Sometimes I wonder if your idea of “detangled” hair is a bit different from “standard” ones, of course each person might be different, a person might even have different standards at different phrase of life.
For me, now, since I don’t use a comb or brush anymore, detangled hair means I weave my fingers through the dry strands slowly and gently from the ends and then work my way up to the roots, there will be a little friction, and a few sheds, that’s expected, but no big struggles and zero breakage or knots. My hair ends have turned semi-permanently wavy 1b because I bun or braid 90% of the time. So my detangled hair still looks messy and unkempt to most “untrained” eyes, but I don’t care about it anymore as long as I can throw it into a bun without strangling my fingers.
But in the past, back when I was a high pony tail girl who still used a comb, my idea of detangled hair meant combing through my 1a wet or dry hair from roots to ends forcefully, the comb should be gliding right through in one swift motion, and I would end up with very sleek, pin straight hair, even slightly curly ends would be unthinkable to me. But of course, back then I didn’t really pay attention to how terrible that was destroying my hair. I cringe just thinking about that.
Funny how your perspective changes along with your major hair care routine.

I detangle my hair starting at the ends and working my way up, but I comb all the way to the ends each time, so at the end when I start at the root I end up combing through the whole length. And after I detangle a couple sections, I put them together and try to comb them starting at the root, which is when I find out that my hair has already begun to retangle itself.

[Annapox]

Personnally, I don’t find it extra oily. I do wash my bangs daily or everyother day with dry shampoo, but the entire scalp gets shampoo’d Sunday and Wednesday (usually!), if I use the TEK brush one week and not the other, hair is the same amount of oily either way!

ETA, I think this may be a difference in hair type such as F vs C. My tangles very easily and sometimes tangles itself again before I’ve finished detangling! Oils and serums help, keeping it bunned helps. I am not going for a very neat look, my face framing bits and bangs are often all over the place, I just want my lengths to be manageable. So I am loving coming back to this thread to share and receive tips

Glad to hear it doesn't make your scalp oilier! I have ordered myself a wooden brush, and I should have it in about six days.

[Annapox]

Some hair is prone to tangling. Mine will if I don't use silicones.
A good alternative to boar bristle that a lot of people like here is the tangle teezer. It's pretty much the only brush I use since it does a good job removing tangles and doesn't make my hair oily at all.

The Tangle Teezer does seem popular here! I was specifically looking for a brush that would distribute the oil on my scalp throughout my hair, though, which is why I opted for the wooden brush.

[Chromis]

I am going to out myself as a true rebel. I do not detangle bottom up. I start from the roots. If I go the other way, I somehow just make more tangles.

There is a trick though! You need to use a wide wide comb to start and you have to stop the moment to run into a tangle. Gently work it loose, then continue. Once I can go all the way through, I switch to a slightly finer comb because the wider one doesn't work well to remove lint. I used to follow that with the boar bristle brush, but stopped using it years ago and I never used that down to the ends.

[lapis_lazuli]

I am going to out myself as a true rebel. I do not detangle bottom up. I start from the roots. If I go the other way, I somehow just make more tangles.

Same here Starting from the bottom doesn't help me much because the worst knots occur at my nape, and so I find it faster and more efficient to start there and work them down the whole length in small sections. I only use my fingers though.

I don't think I've ever had hair that was 100% free of tangles. There will always be a slight resistance when I run my hands through it, but when the strands come apart easily, that's when it's "detangled".

[Annapox]

I am going to out myself as a true rebel. I do not detangle bottom up. I start from the roots. If I go the other way, I somehow just make more tangles.

There is a trick though! You need to use a wide wide comb to start and you have to stop the moment to run into a tangle. Gently work it loose, then continue. Once I can go all the way through, I switch to a slightly finer comb because the wider one doesn't work well to remove lint. I used to follow that with the boar bristle brush, but stopped using it years ago and I never used that down to the ends.

Same here Starting from the bottom doesn't help me much because the worst knots occur at my nape, and so I find it faster and more efficient to start there and work them down the whole length in small sections. I only use my fingers though.

I don't think I've ever had hair that was 100% free of tangles. There will always be a slight resistance when I run my hands through it, but when the strands come apart easily, that's when it's "detangled".

My worst tangles tend to be between ear-height and shoulder-height. I find that I'm less gentle the higher up I start, though.

Mostly unrelated, but I think I was wrong when I said lint wasn't an issue for me. I never find lint in my plastic combs and brushes, but I realized the other day that my wooden comb, which I only started using fairly recently, does have lint in it. I don't know whether it makes the tangles worse, but it's a possibility.

I also learned last night that not all conditioner makes my hair easier to detangle. I'm staying in a hotel right now, and I brought shampoo but am using the hotel's conditioner. It's so runny that I'm not sure it actually stays in my hair until I rinse it out, and combing my hair before rinsing the conditioner out was no easier than detangling without conditioning at all. Unfortunately, I can't see the back of the bottle to compare ingredients.

[EdG]

Mostly unrelated, but I think I was wrong when I said lint wasn't an issue for me. I never find lint in my plastic combs and brushes, but I realized the other day that my wooden comb, which I only started using fairly recently, does have lint in it. I don't know whether it makes the tangles worse, but it's a possibility.

Clean the comb with a slightly damp washcloth. A small amount of lint is normal.
Ed

[mermaid lullaby]

I also learned last night that not all conditioner makes my hair easier to detangle. I'm staying in a hotel right now, and I brought shampoo but am using the hotel's conditioner. It's so runny that I'm not sure it actually stays in my hair until I rinse it out, and combing my hair before rinsing the conditioner out was no easier than detangling without conditioning at all. Unfortunately, I can't see the back of the bottle to compare ingredients.

I totally get it, I stayed at a Hotel and the shampoo made my hair feel so dry. I thought, I had dead ends until I went home and cared for my hair. I always bring shampoo and conditioner with me now when I travel.

[Annapox]

So I've been using the wooden brush for about a week now, and I think I like it. It feels good on my scalp, and my hair is very soft when I'm done brushing. I'm tempted to keep my hair loose so I can play with it, but of course that would just tangle it, so instead I just take my time brushing my hair. I think the wooden brush actually keeps the tangles out instead of re-tangling my hair, but sometimes my hair gets sort of stuck in the brush. Not like when I run into a knot; more like my hair takes up too much space and there are traffic jams between the bristles slowing the process down. It's a little annoying, but it doesn't hurt or pull any hairs out.

I also got another non-wooden brush so that I can keep one in the bathroom and one in my bedroom; it's one of the Bass Bio-Flex ones, and I got the Leaf shape instead of the Swirl shape because it looked sturdier and I know from experience that it's possible for flexible brushes to snap unexpectedly. I've been using it after I shower (so my hair has already been detangled with conditioner in), and I think it works pretty well.

[Whirly Girly]

So I've been using the wooden brush for about a week now, and I think I like it. It feels good on my scalp, and my hair is very soft when I'm done brushing. I'm tempted to keep my hair loose so I can play with it, but of course that would just tangle it, so instead I just take my time brushing my hair. I think the wooden brush actually keeps the tangles out instead of re-tangling my hair, but sometimes my hair gets sort of stuck in the brush. Not like when I run into a knot; more like my hair takes up too much space and there are traffic jams between the bristles slowing the process down. It's a little annoying, but it doesn't hurt or pull any hairs out.

I also got another non-wooden brush so that I can keep one in the bathroom and one in my bedroom; it's one of the Bass Bio-Flex ones, and I got the Leaf shape instead of the Swirl shape because it looked sturdier and I know from experience that it's possible for flexible brushes to snap unexpectedly. I've been using it after I shower (so my hair has already been detangled with conditioner in), and I think it works pretty well.

I’m glad you found a brush you like, Annapox. This is the brush (below link) that I broke today but I thought of you because it’s amazing for tangles….I love it so much. I ordered a 2nd one.


I bought mine from the Canadian Amazon but i’m sending you the American link.



https://www.amazon.com/Fiora-Natural...s%2C103&sr=8-1