Looking for Big Sis....Hello....Anybody Out There?

Hey DVA,

Sorry for the late reply I was out of town with no access to the internet [You must be registered and logged in to see this image.] .

With Qhemet's its not necessary to use a leave-in since it is heavy but I use one since my hair is pretty thick and eats up moisture. Make sure that your hair does not feel weighed down if you try a leave-in with it. I usually use the KCKT with it since that's not really a heavy leave-in in my opinion.

I never considered whether shea butter reduced frizziness in hair but it is the only product I have that does not contain shea butter. I can tell you for some reason the Qhemet's heavy cream does add some type of frizziness to your hair. I have noticed it with my hair and I have seen other naturals write about the frizziness also with the AOHC. It gives great moisturization but you will deal with some type of frizziness.

Also how you twist can cut down on frizziness. Try to start as close to the root as you can without it being too tight. Also make sure your hair has been detangled also before twisting

Hey KC,
Thanks for the reply. No internet. [You must be registered and logged in to see this image.] I am so addicted, I went on a cruise once and thought I was going through total withdrawal. I've learned to adjust now. Sometimes no access can be a good thing...I think. [You must be registered and logged in to see this image.]

Anyway, the twists I did this past weekend came out great. I'm three days in and they still look good....I can't believe it. No frizz or anything . [You must be registered and logged in to see this image.] But now my scalp is itching. I'm trying not to scratch and use the end of a rat tail comb to help alleviate the itchiness. I thought we had talked about this but I didn't see the post. Can/Should I spritz my hair while twisted? If so, what do you recommend?

Thanks in advance!

Believe me I did go through withdrawal [You must be registered and logged in to see this image.] I was visiting family and my mother's computer was in the shop for repairs so I had to do without for two days!

I saw your twists and they look lovely. I think the tip that Ooop2 gave you was good about leaving the twists in for a few days to help set and define the twists. I also suffer from a dry itchy scalp and it drives me crazy. You can spritz your hair while in twists. This is good for moisturization since you are not wetting your hair or scalp. You don't want your hair to be dry so make sure you are still moisturizing. I use a spray leave-in conditioner or sometimes I will make my own. I have the Jane Carter leave in spray that I spray my hair with to moisturize when I have twists in. Did you have any of the Oyin Sprays? I couldn't remember but I know you've used some of their products. If you have the Greg or Frank Juice you can use that to Spritz your twists. When I make my own I use water, aloe vera juice, veg. glycerin, rosemary eo.You can spray as needed. I sprayed once in the morning and in the evening before bed.

If you make your own make sure you use ingredients that your hair likes.To alleviate the itching you are going to have to use something that helps with dryness and itching such as tea tree eo, peppermint and rosemary essential oil. You can make a spray or an oil to apply to your scalp. I have used both. For the spray I had water, tea tree oil, rosemary and peppermint. I would spray on whatever area of my scalp which was itching and kind of massage in. For the oil mixture I used Castor Oil, Safflower oil,a little tea tree eo, Rosemary oil and peppermint and applied to the scalp area in a massaging motion.

You can apply to your scalp while in twists just massage on your scalp. You probably already know that tea tree oil is strong so you want to use something to help mask the smell a bit.

I must have missed this post...LOL! Don't know how. Great advice.

I do have Oyin juices. I thought I might be able to use them on my twists but wasn't sure. When I read you used JC LI I figured Oyin juices would work also, but I think I like the idea of making my own spritz better. I have all the ingredients you listed (water, aloe vera juice, veg. glycerin, rosemary eo). I've used these on my hair and my hair responds well, so I'll definitely be mixing some up.

I used an oil mix I made a while back and massaged that onto my scalp also. It's a mix of castor/jojoba/sweet almond oil w/rosemary & lavendar. I like that mix alot too.

bump

I read this the other day and forgot to respond, sorry. Have you been using the Oyin juices on your hair or did you make your own hair spritz? I bought some more aloe vera gel this weekend to mix with some vegetable glycerin to see how it works on my hair.

Is your scalp still itchy and did you mix up an oil mixture for this? Also I saw where you mentioned the Taren 916 vid where she said that its better to use vegetable glycerin in the winter than the summer. I think she has this incorrect. From everything I've read glycerin is actually better in the humid weather than winter weather. Glycerin is a humectant that draws moisture from the air. If there is no moisture like in the winter it will draw the moisture from your hair and cause it to be very dry. This is why its better to use this time of the year. Some people are able to use it in the winter but you have to be careful.

Thanks for responding KC. I did mix up the oil mix. I used jojoba, castor, and almond and a drop of lavendar and tea tree I think. I'm going to have to start writing down the ingredients on my bottles. I forget...lol! My scalp felt better. I need to be more consistent though.

And I'll have to research the whole glycerin thing. I wasn't sure and haven't searched on here yet. I'm sure there's lot of info posted. What you said makes sense though. Then that means I can add to my spritz. I hope I didn't mix up what she said but I'm almsot positive I got it right.

Thanks!

Hey DVA,

Yes you can add glycerin to your spritz. There are a quite a few threads about the use of glycerin on naturallycurly.com. Make sure you get the vegetable glycerin.

I always have to write on the side of my mixes what's in my containers that I mix up so that I don't grab the wrong one [You must be registered and logged in to see this image.]
I have one I use for my OCM cleansing and my scalp oil.

I'll have to check out the NC.com site for the info on the vegetable glycerin.

I'll be buying some labels so I can put them on my bottles. I don't want any mishaps [You must be registered and logged in to see this image.] ...LOL!

Today I think I discovered something to help alleviate my smooshed hair in the mornings. I sprayed my hair with the KCKT spritz I made and then started pulling (gently) my hair to strech it out some. I also added some coconut oil to my hands and pulled/stretched a few times more. I noticed less frizz since I wasn't doing all that fluffing which I think actually caused MORE frizz [You must be registered and logged in to see this image.].

Is this okay to do as part of my daily routine when I'm rocking
my wash n go's? I'm thinking it'll be good for my ends too since I'll be stretching using oil and getting the ends of my hair really good. I liked my results too by the way.

This sounds good. I've heard good things about the KC Spritz as a refresher. If its working for you keep doing it. Now are you asking if you can use the spritz and coconut oil on wet hair daily or just to refresh your hair?

I think its good as a refresher. Now I've heard of some people using the spritz on wet hair but I'm not sure how coconut oil is on wet hair. Let me know if i answered your question.

I was wondering about the pull and stretch method. Is that going to be too much manipulation for my hair?

I don't think its too much manipulation since you're basically trying to reshape your hair the next day. Just be gentle when you are doing it.

That's what I was thinking but had to be sure and get an "expert" opinion. [You must be registered and logged in to see this image.]

Thanks!

I can't wait to get a new camera so I can post pics....seeing is believing in my opinion and helps provide more info to accompany the questions.

I'm no expert, I'm still learning too [You must be registered and logged in to see this image.] . Can't wait until you get your new camera so that we can see pics!

Hey KC,
Back again...more questions. My dryness issue was real. I was talking with my mom today and she noticed it. After she felt my hair I asked her if it felt dry and kind of rough, she said yes.

I honestly thought I was imagining or expecting too much and doubting my ability to assess my hair....seriously.

Anyway, I believe there are a couple of issues but the main one is that lately I've been wetting my hair with plain water and/or my KCKT spritz mix and that's it. I added Hairveda Whipped Gelly a couple of times too on top of the spritz mix.

1. Do I need to seal anytime I wet my hair, whether it's after washing or just wetting with plain water?
   
2. Is a pomade like Oyin Burnt Sugar sufficient to seal my hair with?
   
3. Should I seal after using a leave-in condish/oil spritz mix, even though oil is in the mix already?
   
4. If I start sealing everytime I wet my hair to lock in the moisture is this going to cause buildup?
   
5. If I do start to have buildup from the oils used to seal will co-washing sufficiently clean my hair?
   

My other issue is using the right products during the right season. I'm still reasearching that...it's very interesting. I'm actually going through all of the products I currently have to see how I can switch them up properly.

One last thing, what do you think about curl activator? I'm thinking about using some S-Curl or Care Free Curl on my hair since it has glycerin and stuff in it and is supposed to be a pretty good moisturizer.

Thanks in advance!

What conditioners are you using as your co-wash and also how often do you deep condition your hair? I'm asking because it could be the products you're using which are not giving you enough moisture.

1. After washing or co-washing you definitely want to hold the moisture in your hair. Now if you're just using water do you not apply any product to your hair afterward?

2. The oyin pomade can be used to seal since it has a lot of oils in it.

3.Even though oil is in your spritz its not really sealing your hair. When you use a leave-in conditioner try mixing your oil with the leave-in in your hand before applying to your hair to cut down on the oily feeling.

4. You won't necessarily get buildup but your hair may become more oily. Try using a lighter oil or don't use as much. Grapeseed oil is really light and also try the method I mentioned above with mixing your leave-in condish with the oil.

5. So far you've been doing the CG method so co-washing should work fine for you since you're not trying to remove cones, mineral oil, etc. I don't think anything heavier would be needed to remove the oils. If I find out anything different I will let you know.


I love Curl activator or as they call it "the juice" (lol). Right now I have the care free curl activator and I plan to start using it a whole lot more. I was experimenting with glycerin and so far it seems like my hair likes it. My hair has been feeling really dry with these extremely hot temperatures and it left my hair feeling really soft and moisturized.

krazy coils wrote:What conditioners are you using as your co-wash and also how often do you deep condition your hair? I use SuaveNaturals.I'm thinking I need to change to something else like
my Yes to Cucumbers or Giovanni. I think I've read on here too that Garnier or HE are better than Suave.

1. After washing or co-washing you definitely want to hold the moisture in your hair. Now if you're just using water do you not apply any product to your hair afterward?

No, I was just wetting with water. I was worried about applying to much product to my hair.

2. The oyin pomade can be used to seal since it has a lot of oils in it.

I may start using this to seal then. It's kind of thick so I'll only need a little bit.

3.Even though oil is in your spritz its not really sealing your hair. When you use a leave-in conditioner try mixing your oil with the leave-in in your hand before applying to your hair to cut down on the oily feeling.

I'll try that. Thanks!


I love Curl activator or as they call it "the juice" (lol). Right now I have the care free curl activator and I plan to start using it a whole lot more. I was experimenting with glycerin and so far it seems like my hair likes it. My hair has been feeling really dry with these extremely hot temperatures and it left my hair feeling really soft and moisturized.

Thanks so much KC! I hope you don't mind the way I posed my questions, numbered like that. But it's the best way for me to organize my questions and stay focused on what I need to find out...lol! My answers are in blue above.

I'm going to get me some "juice" (LOL) today then. I hope they don't have cones in them.

From what I've read about the humidity and stuff, my Oyin and Jane Carter products are perfect for this time of year.

And I've made mixes of aloe and water and water and glycerin before and my hair responded well. I'll revisit that.

Hey Dva,

No I don't mind the way you posed the questions (lol). Yes you may need something a little more thicker and moisturizing than the Suave. This conditioner works for some people but it didn't work for me when I tried it. The Yes to Cucumbers is really moisturizing so I would definitely stick to that. Now some of the HE conditioners do have cones so look out for that if you are still avoiding cones. Garnier Fructis does have a cone free conditioner but I can't remember which one it is. Also when I co-wash I sometimes add oil to my conditioner to help with dryness.

When you are just wetting your hair with water and not applying anything to your hair this could also be contributing to your dryness. Make sure you put something on your hair even if its just a little conditioner or some type of moisturizer.

Have you tried "baggying" your hair before. This is when you apply a conditioner to your hair and put a plastic bag or cap on your head overnight and rinse your hair in the morning. If your moisture levels don't improve I would suggest this and use your Qhemet's Amla and olive heavy cream. I tried this with the Qhemet's heavy cream and my hair was really soft and moisturized the next day. HTH

I haven't tried "baggying" before. I try to avoid sleeping with the plastic bag/cap because it's so noisy...LOL! But I've done it with my DC treatments before. Can I use the co-wash condish to do this or do I need to use the leave-in for the baggying?

I know the Qhemet AOHC would help. And I won't have to rinse that out if I baggy with it since it's just a moisturizer, right?

Use a co-wash conditioner since they are usually thicker than leave-in conditioners. If you use the Qhemet's you can leave it in.

krazy coils wrote:Use a co-wash conditioner since they are usually thicker than leave-in conditioners. If you use the Qhemet's you can leave it in.

Thanks a bunch! I'll let you know how it goes.

Hey KC,
My twists are starting to last a little longer now that I've found the right products for my hair. YAY! [You must be registered and logged in to see this image.] So, I'm wondering should I be doing anything to the ends of my twists so I can ensure they're healthy.

Also, do you use Aloe Vera Gel? I just picked up some aloe vera juice the other day to use in a leave-in condish. I still have some AV gel and had been using it in my spritz mixes and wondering if I should have been using the juice instead. Anyway, don't want the gel to go to waste so I was wondering what I can use it for. I do know my hair likes it.

I saw them and they are looking good! When I do twists on the day that I do them I rub a little of the butter I used to twists on the ends and I seal with castor oil. Each day after that I spritz the twists and rub either a little oil or butter on the ends. You can also use a light leave-in on your ends also. You want to make sure they are not dry and prone to breakage.

I've been using aloe vera gel as part of my pre-poo. I just started doing this. I mix it with an oil an apply to my hair. Also I add it to a shealoe mix I use which I apply to my skin

Thanks KC! AV Gel to prepoo with oil. I know your hair was soft. I'll have to try that too. You have so many great tips, my list of things to try is steadily growing....and I like it! [You must be registered and logged in to see this image.] I like some variety with what I'm doing to my hair.

And see I'm learning. I used some shea butter on my ends and daily I would spritz my hair w/water and seal with castor/jojoba oil. Worked well.

Yes the AVG helps with softness and moisture. Keep doing what you're doing and the dryness issue will get better [You must be registered and logged in to see this image.]