Do my hair?

February 12, 2009 1:16 PM

I have long, fine-textured-but-thick-in-amount wavy hair and a two-part question about what to do with it. Help?

First part: an event-specific question. I am going to a wedding tomorrow afternoon, and it is on Staten Island, and I am taking a combination of trains, buses, and ferries to it. I would like to do something to my hair that looks fancy, but not overdone, and importantly, does not look like a wild mess at the end of my journey to the wedding. I want something fancier than a ponytail and less severe than a bun, but almost anything except those two options results in a halo of flyaway strands all over my head (for instance, even the tightest french braid will not stay), unless I use so much hairspray and gel that it appears that I soaked my head in glue prior to leaving the house. I want to avoid that look.

My hair is the combination of very abundant and very silky-textured that makes it very hard to deal with. It is lightly layered, about halfway down my back, and is light brown. I also have bangs. What should I do with it tomorrow? Relatively easy/low maintanence, please, because my skills are limited. I'd like to wear it up rather than blow it out or scrunch it, because when it is down, it takes about four seconds and a walk down the hall for a giant knot to form in it. Which leads to the second part of my question:

2) What can be done to avoid these horrible knots occuring in hair like mine? My hair is longer than it's been for years, and now I'm remembering why I cut it off long ago. Knots! No matter what! Really big knots! Is there some product or some secret (besides "cut it off" or "always wear it up") to keeping long, wavy, thick-but-fine-textured hair knotless?

posted by millipede to clothing, beauty, & fashion (7 comments total)

Your hair sounds a lot like mine, possibly finer. I use Mane 'n Tail Detangler on the knots, and it works a treat.
posted by Faint of Butt at 1:35 PM on February 12

i'm going to guess you haven't noticed yet but wavy hair is totally in right now—all the actresses and models and fashionistas are spending a lot of time and money so their hair can look like yours and mine does if we just leave it down and don't ever bother to brush it. so my advice is: wash it now, make sure to use conditioner and then comb through with your fingers or a wide-toothed comb. if you're going to use a brush, make it a good one with boar bristles.

hairspray and gel suck and will just make your hair gross—go to duane reade's and get a tiny bottle of garnier fructis brilliantine shine or something like it. you can just pump a drop out into your palm and smooth your hair out whenever you need to. i spent my whole life wanting straight hair only to realize this past year that a) wavy hair is totally awesome and b) there is no point in having long hair if you're just going to wear it up all the time.

if your hair is knotting so much, make sure you are a) using a very good conditioner b) never ever brushing your hair while it's wet, fingers or wide-toothed comb only c) don't vigorously towel or blow dry your hair and c) get a proper trim!
posted by lia at 1:42 PM on February 12

I use Johnson's No More Tangles De-Tangling Spray. Same general idea as Faint of Butt's Mane 'n Tail, but perhaps more readily available.

It's a product intended for kids, but the scent isn't too obnoxious- sort of pear-y?- and it works really well, on wet or dry hair.

My hair is the same length, and a bit coarser than yours. I've had good luck with "half up, half down" styles for formal occasions when I don't want it pulled back too severely. With a nice clip, it can be very classy and low maintenance.
posted by charmcityblues at 1:47 PM on February 12

My hair is like yours. I tried the wavy look a few years back... it made me look like a poodle unless I used more mousse than I'd care to remember (and a diffuser to dry my hair). My hair is more wavy than curly, though, and quite fine. YMMV - if you can pull it off, go for it!

I swear by Biosilk Silk Therapy in my hair to protect my hair from blow drying. It also reduces the kink knots at the back of my neck. A quarter-sized dollop is almost too much for my just past shoulder length, very thick and fine hair.

Using Lush Moisturising Treatments every month or so (and henna) seems to help as well.
posted by Grrlscout at 1:55 PM on February 12 [1 favorite has favorites]

This conditioner is cheap and takes out tangles really well. Put it into your wet hair, wait 1 minute, and the tangles will basically just slip right out.
posted by pseudostrabismus at 2:14 PM on February 12

2nding Lia

I've found that Bumble and Bumble's Styling Lotion Spray after your shower and before you blow dry gets the tangles out. It smells fantastic and makes your hair very managable. I use this on top of a good conditioner and my wavy, thick hair isn't tangly.

Spray liberally, then detangle and part your hair with a wide tooth comb.

Blow dry your bangs first, then move to the roots of your hair and make sure those get nice and dry. Then, after the rest of your hair is about 80% dry-- apply Bumble and Bumble's Surf Spray, again liberally, all over your hair-- the combo of salt and water will give you an amazing messy, sexy wavy hair that will only get better through out the day.

A tip that I've gotten over the years when wearing my hair wavy/curly is:
Don't touch your hair too much once you've started drying, actually I don't touch it AT ALL until it's 100% dry. It causes frizziness.

Honestly, you can get these same products cheaper by using the drug store brands (they all have a knock off of the styling lotion spray and the surf spray...) but I've never tried those. I'm a sucker for expensive hair products.
posted by dearest at 2:57 PM on February 12

Oh, dear. I *have* your hair, and wouldn't wish it on anyone else.

BUT, since you already have it, here's my suggestion for your wedding 'do:

1. Since your hair probably looks lovely when worn down and blown out (later tangles notwithstanding), do the usual wash/blow/flat-iron on the morning of the wedding. Don't add any product yet, except heat protection if you want.

2. Since your journey to the wedding would mess up any hair worn down, tie it back VERY loosely for the duration of the trip, changing the position of your clip/elastic two or more times so that it doesn't have a chance to dent your hair.

3. Upon arrival at the venue, remove the clip/elastic and steal into the washroom with a flat-iron to give your hair another once over. Use a serum like Pearatin to smooth your hair. Do NOT use a pomade or anything at all sticky, unless you want to be combing out tangles for the rest of your lifetime.

4. Once the wedding's over and you're back home, deal with the fact that your nice-looking, smooth top layer of hair is probably concealing a rat's nest beneath. Grab your favourite pick, liberally apply detangling solution, and spend some quality time in front of the television. It's a pain in the ass, but it's the price we fine-haired ladies pay for our good looks!

For every day use, I actually just use Pantene conditioner. It seems to work as well, if not better, than the expensive salon stuff, and since it's a quarter of the price I feel no qualms about applying it in massive, probably-excessive quantities.

Good luck!
posted by Pomo at 4:11 PM on February 12