earthnut

So I have a lot of shorter hairs, giving my hair a halo and a good taper when I braid it. I don't see any split ends, just short hairs. How can I help my hair?

It's BSL and 2c/3a. It's somewhat coarse and average thickness. No elasticity. I have no idea if it's porous or not.

My hair likes cones (or at least it used to, it doesn't seem to respond as well anymore). I wash about once a week and use a little shampoo and a lot of conditioner. I use a satin pillow case and wear my hair up when I remember.

Thanks!

earthnut

The halo may be caused by breaking hairs, though I don't notice that particularly. I do lose hairs each time I wash, style, or comb my hair, though not a huge amount usually. But I could see how over time that would cause a halo. Any tips for preventing hair loss?

How do I know if my hair is porous ?

askme

well if I used to have frizzy hair too, and I tried everything, the only thing that worked for me was Pro Naturals Moroccan Argan Oil which can help you in so many ways, it protects the hair and keeps it soft, shiny and healthy. If you are interested you can check it out at safrons. com which is where I bought it.
Good luck.

Geek_Chic

Porosity goes hand in hand with texture as one of the biggest indicators of what products will work best on your hair.

This is a very abbreviated explanation, but...

Low porosity hair has a very closed cuticle and needs moisture.

Medium porosity hair needs a balance of protein and moisture.

High porosity hair has a very open cuticle and is often (but not always) damaged from heat /perms /dyes. It needs protein.

On the texture side, which is the size of individual strands...

Fine hair needs protein.

Medium hair needs a mix of protein and moisture.

Coarse hair needs moisture.

If you're lucky, your texture and porosity match as far as protein /moisture needs, but some have complete opposites, like fine /low porosity or coarse /high porosity. In those cases, it's a bit of trial and error to figure out what works.

I did the porosity test described toward the end of this blog entry. It jived with how my hair already behaved, so it was more a confirmation of what I already suspected than a huge revelatory moment. If you want to learn more about texture, this entry has good info.

__________________
CG since 11/2011
2c /3a F /Mii, low porosity

Spring Products /Routine:
Clarifying: ACV rinses
Low Poo: Renpure Argan Oil
Co-washes: VO5 Kiwi Lime, Suave Naturals Tropical Coconut
RO: VO5 KLS or Shea Cashmere, Renpure Brazilian Keratin or Argan, Cure Care, SNTC
LI (if needed): Renpure Argan, GFBB, RBKSC
Stylers: AIF, HESMU, got2b playful pomade
PT: IAGirl's (every 2 weeks or as needed)
Trying: BTZ Noodle Head mousse

earthnut

Interesting. Thanks for that info.

My hair has always been natural, no dyes, perms, straightening, etc. so it shouldn't be damaged. However if I run my fingers backwards up a hair it's rough (but not brittle). Today I used conditioner a la curly girl (used a lot and didn't rinse it) and my hair absorbed a fair amount, but it didn't absorb it all and is stringy. It's also still frizzy! But better than it's been recently. I don't have a gel (never used one) so I didn't use that.

So I guess I'm porous, though not greatly so.

I think my hair has medium thickness. It's definitely not fine, but I'm not sure how to discern between medium and coarse.