Styling with combs and brushes?

Disclaimer: This may led to a debate - but let's use it to learn

I am currently listening to the podcast in which Intelligent Beauty participated. The part of the interview that talks about not using combs and brushes - I don't agree with. I do understand how it can be easier with shorter hair to detangle with your fingers - but there is NO WAY that I can do that without suffering from a lot of breakage and lost length. I know this because I have worn my hair for two weeks with combing (back in the day) and because I shed so much that when I did start to detangle with my fingers I ended up having to cut out a lot of sections because the shed hairs formed knots with the unshed hairs. It was a mess.

So what I do is finger detangle, shower comb detangle, then I move to another wide tooth comb that is slightly smaller and then when get to the ends on my hair (when styling) I use a small tooth comb to detangle the ends. Then I have a detangled set style. I don't experience breakage and I am not snatching the comb thru my length. I start at the ends and move towards the root.
I still use brushes to smooth back my ponytails and the front of my hair is thick and long - no breakage there. I have a Conair 100% boar bristle brush.

Opinions on this topic?

Another disclaimer - I am not trying to put IB on blast, I think she is awesome. This post is solely about the topic of combs and brushes.

The only time I comb is in the shower to detangle. Other than that I don't use one. As for a brush - I have a boar bristle brush that I use from time to time just to smooth my edges if I've applied gel or something before I tie down. I just purchased another Denman D31 - I may try that in the shower now. I have the D4 - which wasn't working for me at all. Other than that, that's it.

I use combs and brushes too. Generally I finger comb in the shower and then when I get out I use a wide tooth comb. I've recently discovered that a paddle brush works wonders following the wide tooth comb out. When I twist I use a small tooth comb at the ends. I have a fake denman (annie) that I have used for defining curls, but I feel like it was snatching too many hairs out. I'm going to remove some of the rows and see if I like it better. I also still a boar bristle brush for smoothing into a ponytail (when my hair is blown out) and a toothbrush lol on my edges when I do twist out type styles or for a wash-n-go.

Having said all that, I do think that one could get away with only finger combing if they predominantly wore their hair in a wash-n-go--well really a shake-n-go. I think that using combs and brushes just help with the smoothing for styles that require more work.

CocaColaCutie wrote:Having said all that, I do think that one could get away with only finger combing if they predominantly wore their hair in a wash-n-go--well really a shake-n-go. I think that using combs and brushes just help with the smoothing for styles that require more work.

Maybe. I would think that over time it would cause a problem with accumulation of shed hairs.

I tried to just detangle with my fingers for a little while, but my hair ended up a knotted mess. I detangle with a wide-toothed comb and when styling (putting in twists/braids/etcc) I use a smaller-toothed comb in small sections to make sure the hair is not tangled. I also use a boar bristle brush for smoothing edges when wearing a puff or updo style.

Honestly...I only comb when I detangle with a shower comb. I gave away my brush because I simply wasn't using it anymore. I have a small tooth comb I could use when I two-strand twist, but I go so fast that I forget to use it. So...no combs unless I detangle. =P

I used to only use my fingers but recently my hair began to get extremely fuzzy, not like my usual frizz. I finally detangled using a denman type brush with softer, flexible teeth and instantly saw a difference. Guess it's time to give up on the finger only method.

With out thinking--when I don't want to complete interrupt my curl pattern too much, but I want to refresh by re-twisiting--I finger detangle.

I detangle before washing with a comb, then again after i'm done washing & conditioning. I use a Denman to detangle on wet and already detangled dry hair. A smaller toothed comb or Deman when roller setting.I use a boar brush when my hair is straightened/roller set and I want to slick it back.

I don't know if I could go 100%brushless/combless...for me finger detangling may end up in pulling out of frustration.

I think it depends on the person/hair/skill.

I use both. I use the Conair Jojoba-infused brush (not that I use it for the jojoba though, LOL). The bristles are really soft and they go thru my hair really well. I finger detangle first then use my wide-tooth comb in the shower and then the brush to finish it off. I can't just finger detangle; I've done it a couple of times and it makes me crazy because I KNOW my hair needs to be detangled more.