Curly hair issues

[Happy107]

Hi Everyone,

I have extremely thick curly hair and I want to move away from conventional hair product I can't find a good subsitute. For years I used a ton of gel in my hair. Thankfully, I have been gel free for a few months now!! But i still use a serum in my hair (http://www.sallybeauty.com/Olive-Shine-Serum/SBS-425025,default,pd.html). I wash my hair about once every week with Dr. Bonners and rinse it everyday. I have a strong feeling that the serum is causing some of my facial acne (i dont get red pimples just little skin colored bumps and blackheads) But i dont know what else to use. I have tried olive oil, coconut oil, and avocado oil. All of them are too liquiding to keep my hair together and i look like a human Q-tip when i use them(right now my hair is a little pass my ears).

I am open to any suggestions!!! Any oils or maybe some product that isnt completely horrible for me. Thanks!!!

[Dimond]

I also have extremely thick curly hair and use to have to use tons of product to keep my hair looking decent. I found using all natural products, along with the conditioner-only method keeps my hair in excellent condition and allows much less maintenance. I can even go without wetting my hair daily (or doing anything to it), which I had to do before.

My favorite brands:
myhoneychild.com
karensbodybeautiful.com
aubrey organics mandarin hair gel (couple of their conditioners are good too).

Condition-Only Washing: Conditioner-Only Method (http://dimondhealth.com/PersonalCare)

[Thick]

I also have thick curly hair. For me, the best thing to do is go to some natural water source like a lake or river and wash it naturally with that water. Especially if your hair is short and unmatted, try going without anything for awhile. Thre is such a huge difference between natural water (even well water) and chlorinated city tap water.

I sometimes wash with a bar of natural soap, then put a small amount of coconut oil on it by warming it in my hands then combing my fingers through my hair.

Since I stopped using shampoo my hair has gotten so much better and stronger. I can brush it (while wet of course=) without the gobs of conditioner I used to spend so much money on.

Rinsing with cold water as the last thing you do will help it shine and curl, too.

[cara4art]

That does it - I'm going "low-poo" as they say over on another board that specializes in naturally-curly hair. My hair is thick and curly too, with variations in the curl type, dry and color-treated(so-o not ready to go grey just yet, if ever, with my look - LOL!) I had my hair cut 5 days ago, and asked my cutter, who loves natural stuff whenever possible, and he really recommended sulfate-free stuff for curly hair, and even agreed that washing with a simple conditioner and using natural oils would be good for me. I already use shea butter and coconut oil on my hair and it loves those! My hair tends to get frizzy and undefined on certain parts of my head, and no treatments have helped that though. These frizzy areas just showed up over the last year or so! The rest of my hair is OK, with waves and loose curls that are pretty well-defined.

[lrpurro]

Happy107,

See if you can get this book from your library:

http://www.amazon.com/Curly-Girl-Lorraine-Massey/dp/0761123008

I too have very curly hair and found LOTS of great tips in this book!

A few that have been the most helpful are:

*stay completely away from any hair product with ingredients from the sodium laurel/laureth sulfate family

*use conditioner for "shampooing" instead of any soap that will strip your hair

*deep clean scalp by exfoliating with a brown sugar scrub

*no combing hair unless it is sopping/soaking wet--as in in the shower with water actually pouring over it--I comb through my hair ONLY then to remove loose hairs and detangle

*get one of those mister bottles and fill with a lavendar essential oil and purified water mix--use this to revitalize hair during the day

*"arrange" your curls with scrunching, finger forming, clips or old-fashioned bobby pins and let air dry to nearly eliminate frizz

*and one the most important: KEEP YOUR HANDS OFF YOUR HAIR to reduce frizz :)

Good luck!

:)
Lisa

[Care4raw]

These tips are great, thanks for posting this useful info!

See if you can get this book from your library:

http://www.amazon.com/Curly-Girl-Lorraine-Massey/dp/0761123008

I too have very curly hair and found LOTS of great tips in this book!

A few that have been the most helpful are:

*stay completely away from any hair product with ingredients from the sodium laurel/laureth sulfate family

*use conditioner for "shampooing" instead of any soap that will strip your hair

*deep clean scalp by exfoliating with a brown sugar scrub

*no combing hair unless it is sopping/soaking wet--as in in the shower with water actually pouring over it--I comb through my hair ONLY then to remove loose hairs and detangle

*get one of those mister bottles and fill with a lavendar essential oil and purified water mix--use this to revitalize hair during the day

*"arrange" your curls with scrunching, finger forming, clips or old-fashioned bobby pins and let air dry to nearly eliminate frizz

*and one the most important: KEEP YOUR HANDS OFF YOUR HAIR to reduce frizz :)

Good luck!

:)
Lisa[/QUOTE]

[Happy107]

wow!! thank you everyone!!! these tips are definitely helpful!! going through all the links and stuff now. =)