A fellow ginger curly! (3a)

Neekolassify · 12-29-2012, 04:06 PM

Hello my fellow curlies! ♥

I've been stalking the forums for quite some time. I suppose I can put my curly story on here now and interact with you guys!

I've been a bit hesitant to visit this forum because I am a serious hair junkie and product junkie and my family is very familiar with that. I get teased about it frequently. xD It's awkward because everyone in my family (my mom and dad included) have straight hair! My mom's hair did get a bit of wave after pregnancy.

Here is an image of me so you can get a picture inside of your head:

A bit about my hair (sorry about the crappy webcam picture):

I can't get much into hair typing because my hair has a wonderful variety of hair textures in it... Ranging from 2a to 3a with 3b thrown in. (crazy) But the majority of it is 2c/3a. (... am i right?)

Right now if I checked the length of it it would be to my tailbone straightened out. In curls it it about waist length. The shortest I've ever had it is about bra line length when wet. The curl pattern gets stretched when it's wet... so I can brush it out to look straight.

When I was younger (I'm 16 now) I had long, strawberry blonde hair with waves in the front, and straight hair in the back. It was very loose waves, but got very frizzy.

Getting older, my hair just got frizzier and frizzier... I hated it because I got teased for the color and the curl. I wanted a flat iron so badly in middle school.

I got a flat iron in middle school, and began straightening without heat protectant. (burnt hair = yuck) I did eventually get heat protectant, and still straighten it occasionally when I get it in top shape, of course.

I'm not sure how I got to like the concept of maintaining curly hair since I was fighting against it all the time with flat irons, shampoos, and trying to comb it straight as it was drying. I eventually began to embrace the big fluff ball on my head. There was something in me that said: "WAKE UP. Instead of fighting against your hair, EMBRACE IT."

So, I did.

I have a styling routine now, and it is wonderful.

But, I am kind of in a rut.

You see, my hair has been reacting HORRIBLY with the bipolar Florida climate.

I can't do the CG method because I get massive amounts of build-up... yet when I shampoo daily, no build-up... but dryness.

I've never been able to do a complete CG routine without horrible buildup, only a modified curly girl routine with co-washing more frequently, shampooing less frequently. The build-up was still there.

So here is what I was experiencing: loosening in curl pattern, harder to detangle, frizz, no product hold, and a waxy feeling on the hair near my scalp. Not to mention I can get a scalp odor when I go without washing with shampoo for too long.

I'm fairly sure I know what to look for when choosing a co-washing conditioner... No -cones, -xanes, waxes, etc. I know the drill. I know build-up is unavoidable no matter how you slice it, but having low-porosity hair is hard to deal with. I was using Suave Coconut as a co-wash, and Tresemme Naturals as a rinse-out. LALSG as a styler, SOTCing with Olive oil.

(I recently got KCKT now, haven't tried it whilst going CG) I LOVE IT, btw.

I do honestly think I'm in need of a clarifying treatment and a deep treatment. (so....lazy....

)

I think I'm going to wipe the slate clean tonight. I have a hot-oil olive oil treatment in right now and my hair is in two braids and fully detangled. I'm going to try going CG again. -insert dramatic music of your choice-

Sorry guys. I wrote you a NOVEL~~~

mhen76 · 12-30-2012, 01:00 PM

Welcome, Neekolassify! Many of us need to modify the traditional CG routine. I avoid silicones and sulfates but still need to clarify every few weeks. My porosity is on the low side and most oils, including olive, just sit on my hair and don't penetrate. A little coconut or argon oil in products are OK for me but I need to use a light hand with them. A few things came to mind as I was reading your post:
1. If you're getting a lot of build-up, you may want to use lighter products.
2. It's OK to clarify on occasion but there are lots of gentle shampoos on the market. I use Burt's Bees or Shea Moisture regularly (2-3x per week).
3. Homemade FSG is a great styler and can be modified to your individual needs. I add glycerin to fight frizz, protein to strengthen and honey for moisture. More glycerin in hot, humid weather. More honey in cold, dry weather.

Neekolassify · 12-30-2012, 02:07 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by mhen76

Welcome, Neekolassify! Many of us need to modify the traditional CG routine. I avoid silicones and sulfates but still need to clarify every few weeks. My porosity is on the low side and most oils, including olive, just sit on my hair and don't penetrate. A little coconut or argon oil in products are OK for me but I need to use a light hand with them. A few things came to mind as I was reading your post:
1. If you're getting a lot of build-up, you may want to use lighter products.
2. It's OK to clarify on occasion but there are lots of gentle shampoos on the market. I use Burt's Bees or Shea Moisture regularly (2-3x per week).
3. Homemade FSG is a great styler and can be modified to your individual needs. I add glycerin to fight frizz, protein to strengthen and honey for moisture. More glycerin in hot, humid weather. More honey in cold, dry weather.

Thank you for this info! I'm just not sure because I find that sealing my hair with olive oil (juuust to seal in the moisture I get from cowashing) produces great results, but I find that I do get more build-up with that. So... Could I seal with a lighter oil such as coconut oil and be able to stretch shampoos? I don't have argan oil at the moment, but I have plenty of coconut oil to go around. I find that the Tresemme Naturals shampoo (although not sulfate free) is a good clarifying shampoo and doesn't leave my hair feeling stripped, but removes build up efficiently.

Have you ever experimented with sealing your hair at all, or currently seal your hair?

mhen76 · 12-30-2012, 03:15 PM

I typically don't seal but many curlies have good results with coconut oil. My hair is very fine and I have to be careful about what I leave in it. Too much of anything weighs it down and it easily becomes gunky. It takes some experimenting to find the products, the amounts and techniques that will work best for you. Keep reading and keep playing! It will come together!