Need hair advice

*blackrose

"I'm kupo for kupo nuts!"
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#1
I have what I call Cocker Spaniel hair. :p Very long, thick, and dense. It is naturally curly/wavy, but not really the good kind. If I sleep on it wet (which I normally do, as I hate drying my hair so I'll shower at night) I wake up to a bunch of ringlet curls. They don't always look half bad...until I touch them. And if I don't touch them, they frizz. Letting my hair air dry during the day results in semi-loose frizzy waves. Blow drying my hair? Poofy, thick, frizzy mess. Really, think of the ear hair on a Cocker Spaniel and that describes my hair. LOL I normally straighten my hair if I'm doing anything with it because otherwise it looks like crap. Even then, most people can straighten their hair and have it last a few days...mine may last the day, then I have to re-straighten it the next day. And even straight, I still have to fight frizz. If it is going to be humid/wet outside at all, I just don't even want to mess with it and I just pull it back because nothing I can do will make it look good.

What it looks like air dried IF it dries just right - it may do this one time out of ten:



When it is straight:


I need to buy more hair products (running out), need to purchase a new flat iron, and am also due for a hair cut, so I thought this would be a good time to get opinions on what I should be getting.

I currently am using Herbal Essence Long Term Relationship shampoo/conditioner. I've had tried various other brands/types and really haven't been happy with any of them. Either they didn't condition my hair properly so it was dry/frizzy, it conditioned it too much so it became oily and heavy after only a day (I wash my hair every other day), my hair didn't feel clean, I had lots of breakage, etc., etc. I'm fairly happy with the shampoo I have now, but didn't know if I should look into something different. I know that sulfate-free shampoos are supposed to AWESOME...but I hate that they don't lather and I can never get my hair to feel clean using a sulfate free shampoo. So, none of those. Also, I can't break the bank on shampoo...something low-cost is a must.

Now, as for hair products. I hate doing anything with my hair, and I hate putting a ton of products in it mainly because a.) it takes forever to do anything with it and b.) when I put products in that means I have to wash my hair that night, which means the next day I'll have to start over from square one instead of having it at least most of the way straight or what not, so it will take forever once again to do anything with it.

For when it is curly: Is there a product that I can just put directly into my hair when it is either air drying or already dry, but curly from sleeping on it wet at night? Typically, the curls look good at first, but then as the day goes on frizz and other things set in and it just looks bad. Mike really likes my hair when it is curly, but I can never figure out how to just get the curls to stay how they are (and I hate actually curling my hair).

For when it is straight: I've been using a CHI flat iron since forever. However, both of them have died on me. The first one was my fault and I screwed up the cord. This second had one of the heating elements die, so only one of the plates heats up. Luckily it is still under warranty so I can get a replacement, but I may have my mom buy me a different brand and give my replacement to my sister. Should I stick with a CHI, or is there another brand I should look in to? As I said earlier, the CHI works well, but even then my hair does NOT stay straight past a day. And it still takes me a good 30 minutes to get it entirely straight.
For frizz, I typically either apply some Dove Intense Frizz Control Cream or Morrocan Oil. Works fairly well for the most part, but I didn't know if there was something better. Course, it looks like the Dove product is no longer made...figures as much, because I really liked it.

Annnnd, last thing. Should I get it styled any differently, or no? I normally just get it trimmed up and have layers put in. Short bangs annoy the bejesus out of me and I like my hair the length it is (hate short hair). I'm thinking I'll just ask for a more intensive layered look, since I think what she does now is more to just thin it out and make it not so thick and heavy...I just want something basic and casual. And however I get it cut, it HAS to be able to go up into a ponytail. I hate having my hair down at work.
 
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#2
First off, try using an SLS and paraben free shampoo. You have to give it some time because there will be a shitton of crap and residues from the old shampoo that has to come off. There are some that lather. There's one I get at WalMart that comes in a tall bottle with a pump that's less than $6. It's not my favorite, but it's inexpensive and right now that's kinda important. It made a huge difference for me!

My hair is actually trying to wave a little now, and I encourage it by doing the "sleep on it wet" thing. A smidge of argan oil (the same stuff I use on my skin), lightly rubbed over my hair takes care of any frizziness.

I finally learned that when it comes to hair, less is definitely BEST!
 

FG167

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#3
I have the same hair as you, exactly the same.

I use Biolage (sp?) shampoo for color treated hair and I love it, it smells like vacation and makes my hair feel clean.

I have a stylist-level straightener and blow dryer but I don't know the brands off-hand. I can look when I get home - but they are AWESOME.

If I want the curls, I put in some product (I just buy at random what looks/smells good) and then use a diffuser until it's just damp and then let it be. That helps my frizz tone down a bit. Honestly, I have yet to see it not pop up during the day unless it's SUPER dry and I straighten it, at which point static usually drives me crazy.

Mine is a tad shorter than yours with layers. I usually end up tossing it up anyway due to dog training but I'm interested to see what others say since I have the same exact texture as yours.
 

~Dixie's_Mom~

♥Chloe & Violet♥
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#4
Your hair looks really similar to mine. Mine however, tangles SOOOO easily. It really sucks. So I can't really just sleep on it. It'll look okay but be tangly underneath which I can't stand. So I generally loosely braid my hair and sleep on it, then take it out in the morning and its wavy, or straighten my hair when I wake up. If I shower in the morning, I let it air dry. However I have found that if you get an attachment for your blow dryer, you can put some mousse in your hair, and use it (I think it's a diffuser, not sure) to dry your hair w/out touching it (touching it can cause frizz) and it looks awesome. For frizz, I usually use a random anti-frizz product.

Eta: and I really like the cut you have! I'm trying to grow my hair out to all one length (i have layers and side bangs) and mine looks about like yours right now but longer. Except you don't have bangs.
 
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#5
Mine used to tangle like that Dixie! The only way I could get it untangled was to load it up with conditioner in the shower and comb it out there. The breakage was :eek:

Mine's very similar to Blackrose's now, length, cut and all, except I keep long bangs and fringe around the sides. It even curls almost like that if I sleep on it wet. Not quite as much :(
 

~Dixie's_Mom~

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#6
Renee, same here! I use tons of conditioner to get my tangles out. I guess it's not as bad as it used to be, it was terrible when I was younger, but it still tangles a lot throughout the day so I have to brush it out several times a day. Did you grow out of it, or did you find something to change it?
 
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#8
Renee, same here! I use tons of conditioner to get my tangles out. I guess it's not as bad as it used to be, it was terrible when I was younger, but it still tangles a lot throughout the day so I have to brush it out several times a day. Did you grow out of it, or did you find something to change it?
After two or three weeks of SLS/paraben free shampoo it quit. I rarely EVER use conditioner anymore and even when I drive with the windows open it's easy to brush out, which is amazing since it's longer than it's ever been in my whole life.

The first couple of weeks on the no crap shampoos were kind of twitchy, but I realized my hair was literally detoxing so I stuck it out. I did, at first, use a really hardcore, no suds, mud based one. Talk about hard to get used to, lol! I wish I could remember the name of it. I've probably got the bottle stashed someplace. The next one I used was one of the shampoo bars from www.mehandi.com. LOVED it, and it does lather.
 

~Jessie~

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#9
I have super thick and curly hair, and Mixed Chicks leave in conditioner is my life saver!

http://www.amazon.com/Mixed-Chicks-...MT2U/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1336503172&sr=8-1

I use SLS free and natural shampoo and conditioner (Burt's Bees) and then dry off my hair a bit with a t-shirt. Then I put the leave in conditioner in. I scrunch my hair, pin it up, and leave it like that over night.

Voila! Lots of springy curls (with low frizz!).

I wash my hair with shampoo only once a week. I'll use conditioner or water only every other day, since my curls will sag if they're not 'reset'.

I went through THREE CHI straighteners. Two broke during the warranty period (heat plates stopped working) and then the last one stopped working right outside of warranty. I replaced it with a GHD straightener. I used to straighten my hair all the time, but now it's too long to mess with. Once any sort of water or humidity gets to it... POOF!
 

Southpaw

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#11
I second the Mixed Chicks recommendation. That, or DevaCurl - I've used both, and on my hair both brands yield the exact same results, but I use DevaCurl now because I get it discounted.
They're both "supposed" to be used as a 3-step product. Shampoo, condition, and then Mixed Chicks has the leave-in conditioner as their final step, whereas DevaCurl has a gel (but it doesn't dry crunchy like typical gels). But IMO the leave-in conditioner/gel is really the only product you need, I don't notice any difference with their shampoos and conditioners. A little goes a long way too, I've been using DevaCurl since March 2011 and I've only had to repurchase it once.

Otherwise my hair is pretty similar to yours... sometimes it would dry and look nice, but 99% of the time I only looked presentable if it was straightened or in a ponytail.
 

Romy

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#12
Blackrose, our hair is identical! lol.

I had the same detox issue when switching to crap free shampoos. My current hair regimen is to wash it every day using some baking soda dissolved in warm water, rinse it out, then do a final rinse with a splash of apple cider vinegar in a cup of warm water. When I have time, I'll make a gallon or so of rosemary tea and use that to mix with the vinegar for the rinse. The rosemary must make a big difference, because when I use it people are always like, "whoa your hair looks beautiful!" and when I don't they don't say anything. lol.

Once or twice a week I'll wash with real soap, but not regular shampoo. Usually it's Dr. Bronner's peppermint castile soap 50/50 in water, with a teaspoon of grapeseed oil and another tiny splash of apple cider vinegar. I wash the dogs with the same mixture and it gets them really clean, the vinegar makes it really easy to rinse the suds out. The peppermint oil also feels awesome, like icy hot on your scalp. :)

About a month after switching I stopped having random frizz.
 

*blackrose

"I'm kupo for kupo nuts!"
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#13
I'll look into getting some of that Mixed Chicks leave in conditioner.

I don't have a problem with it tangling - I'm sure if I slept on it all of the time without every brushing it I would, but typically going a day doesn't make it horrible. lol

I use Biolage (sp?) shampoo for color treated hair and I love it, it smells like vacation and makes my hair feel clean.
I think I've tried their conditioner before (got a free sample or something) and I really liked it. Can't remember if I liked the shampoo, though, once we had it...hmm...but I do know I liked using the conditioner in conjunction with whatever shampoo I had at the time.

But, even thought I know shampoo probably makes a HUGE difference, I may just stick with Herbal Essence since I don't have anything bad to say about it. I can spend $5 on a 24oz product versus $16 for a 16oz product...and cheap is really what I need right now, unfortunately.

Also, coming from someone who never ever blow dries her hair...what is a diffuser? Sounds like it would be beneficial for when I do blow dry, but I've never even heard of it before. LOL
 

Locke

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#14
I third the Mixed Chicks products. They are pricey though, but a little bit of the leave-in conditioner goes a LONG way. I love love love it and I hardly ever worry what crazy poof my hair will turn in to since using the product.
 
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#15
Blackrose, our hair is identical! lol.

I had the same detox issue when switching to crap free shampoos. My current hair regimen is to wash it every day using some baking soda dissolved in warm water, rinse it out, then do a final rinse with a splash of apple cider vinegar in a cup of warm water. When I have time, I'll make a gallon or so of rosemary tea and use that to mix with the vinegar for the rinse. The rosemary must make a big difference, because when I use it people are always like, "whoa your hair looks beautiful!" and when I don't they don't say anything. lol.

Once or twice a week I'll wash with real soap, but not regular shampoo. Usually it's Dr. Bronner's peppermint castile soap 50/50 in water, with a teaspoon of grapeseed oil and another tiny splash of apple cider vinegar. I wash the dogs with the same mixture and it gets them really clean, the vinegar makes it really easy to rinse the suds out. The peppermint oil also feels awesome, like icy hot on your scalp. :)

About a month after switching I stopped having random frizz.
I think I'm going to give that a try, Romy. I've a huge bush of rosemary out here, too.

How long do you brew the rosemary?

After discovering argan oil I don't EVER see going back to products! Once in awhile I use a little curl enhancer, but I've even quit needing to use an root lift since I got the crap out of my hair. Most of the time if I want to do a curl enhance though, I just use amla.
 

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