Urban is right/wise, shrinkage is a fact of life for most curly heads (I think that Type 3as and lower don’t have it, but Type 3bs and up do, in varying degrees depending on tightness and texture of curls). I use gel to deal with it, since gel holds my curls in place. To combat crunchiness, I dilute gel with water and apply to damp hair, particularly with heavy, thick gels. However, lately, I’ve been diluting gel less to provide a heavier hold since my curls are now bigger in size and volume than before …. If there is any crunch, it can be “scrunched” out, which just means squeezing crunchy curls to loosen the texture. Anyway, I’ve been having decent luck lately and am happy with my curls! 🙂 I am very happy to hear that you wore you hair down – I bet it looked great 😀

6-7 inches here. My hair is bra strap length, but right now in it’s naturally curly state it doesn’t even touch my shoulders. I don’t seem to have a problem with the shrinkage anymore. I guess it’s just one of the things I’ve learned to accept over the years as I’ve learned to appreciate my curly hair. (when I was younger I hated my hair. I felt like I was the only one in the world with hair like this. Thank God for this site 8) )

If you find a curly style you like, you may care less and less about the length you “loose” when it’s curly. I’m enjoying my curly hair so much now that I’ve made a recent appointment to have it styled, and if that means cut then so be it. I did let them know that I may want to straighten it from time to time just for a different look, so I will want a cut that would work for straight hair too. But we have an advantage where we can be short and curly, or long and straight, so celebrate. (sorry for the corny rhyme. I couldn’t help myself 😳 )

[quote=SapphireWingstar]It was weird…I just had this block of hair. And the back is always the worst. My profile always looks funny when I have hair like that.[/quote]
[quote=SapphireWingstar]But when it shrinks, it just gets all dense and weirdy. 😛 [/quote]
Does this block hair thing sorta look like pyramid head?

I think I know what you’re talking about.

You have layers in the back. I have layers in the back, too. I don’t know if you brush or not, but I used to brush the whole back together. When I did this, the longest layers in the back would shrink up more than expected because the curls were getting tangled in the shorter curls. The whole back would look like a matted bird’s nest, and it looked really dense and voluminous from the profile.

Then I started brushing the layers separately (2 or 3 layers). The longest layer doesn’t get tangled in the shorter ones and it doesn’t shrink up as much. The shortest layer now moves on its own (and not as part of the rather immobile “back mass”). The back doesn’t look like a bird’s nest anymore, and the volume went down.

Is this sorta what’s going on with you? (The immobile, matted-looking “back mass”?)

[quote=SapphireWingstar]Hmm…okay, I’m trying to sort some things out…My hair is lovely in the shower, when it’s wet, no frizz or shrinkage at all. But when it dries, it starts getting frizzy.[/quote]
😆 It seems this is true for most curlies. When wet, the hair is well-defined and low on frizz/volume. As it dries, it might become less defined and/or frizzier/fluffier/fuzzier/poofier/etc. You need to find something that is very moisturizing and/or will lock in as much moisture as possible.

[quote]And it’s weird, most people complain that their ends are frizzy…for me, it’s the opposite – my ends are the most defined and non-frizzed. then further along the curl, it gets frizzy.[/quote]
Same here. My ends are the most defined and frizzless part of my hair. It’s the part nearest the root to about the quarter or mid-point of the strand that likes to go fuzzy (but only in the back and only the middle layers for me).

A lot of people have problems with their ends getting dry, but the driest part of my hair is actually the crown area. 😕

[quote]And I think it’s just the top layer that frizzes. The bottom layer shrinks, too, but it’ doesn’t frizz. Hm.[/quote]
This might be because the top layer is more exposed to the elements and your hands than the bottom layer typically is.

What products are you using other than the HEHD gel?
You should definitely get a satiny pillowcase and/or head covering if you haven’t already. 🙂

[quote=anicetta]

I hate to suggest this since it’s not a drugstore product, but you might like [buylink=http://www.curlmart.com/Kinky-Curly-Curling-Custard-p-778.html?utm_source=naturallycurly.com&utm_medium=text-link&utm_content=curltalk-post-text&utm_campaign=kinkycurly-curling-custard]Kinky-Curly Curling Custard[/buylink]. Just adding that to your routine (instead of the HEHD gel) might bring you closer to the look you want. It’s moisturizing and has hold. (I use this with a coneless conditioner and get almost HG results.)[/quote]

Sapphire-

I have to agree with Anicetta (and Urban, Spiderlashes, Cehua, Amneris, Shyygirl and others) who get good results with [buylink=http://www.curlmart.com/Kinky-Curly-Curling-Custard-p-778.html?utm_source=naturallycurly.com&utm_medium=text-link&utm_content=curltalk-post-text&utm_campaign=kinkycurly-curling-custard]KCCC[/buylink]. I get excellent results with it, but I have to use a small amount of it ([u]diluted with water[/u]), layered over a leave-in conditioner and under a diluted gel. THEN and only then will it work magic for my hair. I think that people have really different application methods and routines with [buylink=http://www.curlmart.com/Kinky-Curly-Curling-Custard-p-778.html?utm_source=naturallycurly.com&utm_medium=text-link&utm_content=curltalk-post-text&utm_campaign=kinkycurly-curling-custard]KCCC[/buylink] but it does consistenly provide high quality moisture to all of us (the amount of hold seems to vary, and so does the issue of greasiness or crunchiness – personally, I can avoid those results IF I layer and use it and gel in diluted form as stated above).

I just wanted to weigh in since I had discouraged you from this product before. I think it is wonderful at combatting shrinkage and can give a lot of other benefits as well. But you have to play around with how you apply it , the amount and the other products you use with it. Also, it is expensive but the tub will last you a very, very long time. If you average the number of uses from the purchase price, it is an affordable product and good value.

Good luck to you! 😀