Mineral oil: don't knock it 'til you try it!!

Jas76 · 06-07-2012, 12:42 PM

Seriously!! I think this may be an HG for me!!

Who knew?? I put off trying this forever, assuming it was bad news. But after reading some threads on here and some articles online, I thought WTH?

Here's what I realized quickly - when used right, MO is fantastic!! When used RIGHT!!!

Even if you've tried it In products and have had no luck, it may have been the amount of MO, or it in combination with another ingredient. (or another ingredient period and not the MO at all!)

I have long, dense hair that tends to be porous. That porosity made it tough to retain moisture, and keep humidity out.

After showering, I put a generous amount of LI in my hair, (leaving it very wet) then seal with about 3-5 drops of MO mixed with about 5-7 drops of jojoba oil. (sometimes its SM elixir instead.)

Then I use gel over it. I need LESS gel now, I get ZERO frizz, very little frizz on day 2, and can get 2nd or 3rd day hair consistently!!!

I have better curl formation than ever before, I don't get the mid-day droops I always used to get - it's fantastic!!!

I still co-wash, and/or CWC and/or low-poo once or twice a week, clarify every couple weeks - same as always, and no problem with build up.

I've been using it for a little over a week, and i think I'm in love!! Can't wait to see if the trend continues!!

So give it a try if you are having any problems with moisture retention, drooping curls, maybe even frizz!!! Especially if you are porous!!

It's also helped A LOT with them matting underneath at my nape!!!

anonymous_22139 · 06-07-2012, 12:46 PM

I use MO too. It is as wonderful as you say, but a little goes a long ways.

I actually use 12 to 15 drops in my porous waist-length 3b hair. It laughs at oils, but MO seems to do the trick without leaving me looking like an oil-slick.

CurleeDST · 06-07-2012, 12:47 PM

My hair doesn't mind mineral oil at all.

Curlsnswirls · 06-07-2012, 12:49 PM

Glad you're having success with MO. I know lots of people at TLHC have success as well. I have tried it as a sole styler a couple times with good results. I never thought of using it like a regular oil to seal along with a styler. I will try it next time I wash. Thanks for sharing.

Corrina777 · 06-07-2012, 12:50 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Jas76

It's also helped A LOT with them matting underneath at my nape!!!

Well those are definitely the magic words for me! Are you just using baby oil or something else?

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Jas76 · 06-07-2012, 01:01 PM

I bought a little 4oz bottle of baby oil - but be sure it's JUST mineral oil. Many of them have added things like aloe or vit E - everything I've read says to use pure MO, not one with other stuff mixed in.

It has helped a LOT with tangles, especially that nasty nape-nest!! I am just sure to give that whole area some extra attention when I seal and it's been SO much better!!

Yeah, I think my problems in the past were using it on towel dried hair, using too much, or using a mixed baby oil. Those were in my pre-CG days, tho, so maybe mixing it with cones was an issue, too.

Either way it's been FABULOUS!!! I'm sold! Never thought I would be!!

Jas76 · 06-12-2012, 06:25 PM

Still having great success with this and no build up!!

Let me know if anyone tried it and how it worked for you!

Curlsnswirls · 06-13-2012, 10:54 AM

I just tried this....l'm currently waiting on my hair to dry completely.
I used SM hair milk as my leave in...about 5 drops each of sweet almond oil and baby oil...scrunched and raked in some FSG mixed with some HESMU. Diffused and waiting for it to dry.....will report back with Results and thoughts.

Curlsnswirls · 06-13-2012, 12:01 PM

UPDATE:
I scrunched out the scrunch and my hair looks AWESOME!! So sooooooftt and shiny!!! I will have to see how it holds up the rest of the day. I'm really hoping it holds up because I love how it turned out!!!!! I will try and take a picture.......be back.

ETA: lighting is not very good but you can get an idea of how shiny it is..my hair is actually much darker in person.

BlackAngelPlayah · 06-13-2012, 12:46 PM

^^ Very NICE!! I keep thinking of buying a jar of Dax and seeing if my hair likes it.

😜🍸Sent LIVE from my JPhone 4 using some CurlTalk app. 😜🍸

http://AfroCurls.wordpress.com

Jas76 · 06-13-2012, 02:11 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Curlsnswirls

UPDATE:
I scrunched out the scrunch and my hair looks AWESOME!! So sooooooftt and shiny!!! I will have to see how it holds up the rest of the day. I'm really hoping it holds up because I love how it turned out!!!!! I will try and take a picture.......be back.

ETA: lighting is not very good but you can get an idea of how shiny it is..my hair is actually much darker in person.

YAAAYY!!!

So glad it worked!! Looks beautiful!!!

I'm all out of FSG - Hoping to make a new batch this week and try it out with the MO!

Curlsnswirls · 06-13-2012, 05:43 PM

Thank you!! I'm going to try it out with other oils and gels. Thanks for sharing!!! I'm going to write down every combo to see which I like best. I can't believe this looks as good or better than using several expensive products!! I have several oils I can try out. I will report back after continued use.

CurlyCutie1394 · 06-13-2012, 09:15 PM

Mineral oil is grey on my hair but if it gets on my scalp it doesn't go so well

Jas76 · 06-13-2012, 09:21 PM

Lol!! I'm glad to have helped! I know I thought "this is going to be a disaster" right before using it, but it turned out great!!

Today I'm a little limp, but I co-washed today when I should have low-pooed. And now that the dryness is so much better, I have to watch that I don't OC! I think I over-did the oils this time. Not the MO, but I wasn't paying attention and had added EVCO to my LI. Then I added jojoba oil (probably a couple more drops than necessary anyhow) with my MO - too much! Haha! Curls are still nice, but a little weighed down. I should have skipped the jojoba oil since I used the EVCO - like I said, I wasn't paying attention! Lol!

So I'll low-poo tomorrow (and possible PT - it's been a while!), and I'm sure it will be back to normal.

I can't wait to try this with FSG!!!

Let me know how your combo experimenting goes!

LauraWolfhart · 06-13-2012, 10:09 PM

I haven't had much luck with mineral oil. But Argan oil has been a HUGE benefit to my curls, I'm currently using Pro Naturals Moroccan Argan Oil. It's a spray so it's light instead of greasy (as you would assume) and it's supposed to combine all of the benefits of olive oil, castor oil, almond oil and a whole load of other natural oils. Plus it's full of vitamin C, F, E and A. I'm practically obsessed with the stuff, especially as it's also a heat protectant which is great because I sometimes straighten my hair for a change.

So if any curly haired gal has frizzy or damaged hair then try argan oil!!

Jas76 · 06-13-2012, 10:23 PM

See, argan oils that I have found had a lot of cones in them, so I've never tried it. They were also REALLY expensive, so I've always gone with jojoba, EVOO, EVCO, and SM's elixir. Burt's Bees makes a baby oil that has a lot of good natural oils in it - been wanting to try it!

And I was worried about the MO. I hadn't liked some products that had it in it, etc. But everything I read told me I had been using it wrong, an that it "should" be good for me. And low and behold, after following the instructions, I had great results!

I don't use it EVERY day, but I pretty much always use some sort of oil. I'll tell you what - it completely KILLS any other oil when it comes to sealing!!! Nothing else has been like it! Keeps the moisture in my hair, and keeps the excess moisture from humidity out!!

And my nape is no longer a huge tragedy!!

Now, by day 3 my hair is starting to dry out, but compared to how my hair used to be rather dry by the morning of day 2 - I'll take it!

Still want to try Argan oil... Maybe I still will someday! It's just so expensive!!

Curlsnswirls · 06-13-2012, 10:31 PM

Here's an informative Article about mineral oil, towards the middle. There's is also more info in newer posts. I believe she also mentions that MO sometimes doesn't work for people because of formulation.

Jas76 · 06-14-2012, 08:20 AM

Yes, from what I've read it has to be ONLY MO. A baby oil with added vitamin E, aloe, lanolin, or something else like that may not work as well.

Mine isn't fragrance free, so I dont know if scents are an issue at all, but I've not noticed any problem.

There are several articles here that talk about MO. One was just published in April of this year and is based off of new studies. I think it was called "Has mineral oil gotten a bad rap?" or something like that. It was the one that convinced me to try it!

Jas76 · 06-14-2012, 08:25 AM

Whoops! That was NOT article I was referring to, though it's a good one as well.

This is the recent one that convinced me! http://www.naturallycurly.com/curlre...l-oil-for-hair

Curlsnswirls · 06-14-2012, 08:26 AM

If its cosmetic grade mineral, it should not clog your pores is what I've read. The regular mineral oil (sold as a laxative) may be too thick. You can find the food grade kind for cutting boards and such...I believe it's a lighter one. The baby oil I have is only mineral oil and fragrance.