I need to update my hair care regimen
October 27, 2013 4:41 PM   Subscribe

I used to be able to shampoo, blow dry, and curl my hair and then sleep on it for a day or two at a time to spare my ends daily heat damage. Then I got bangs. My bangs get oily mere hours after I get out of the shower, forcing me to shower, dry, and style my hair every day and accumulate the repercussions of constant heat contact. Dry shampoo makes my hair look even oilier. So how can I keep my roots/bangs oil-free and my ends healthy?

I have longish, straight-ish, very dense, very fine hair (as in, it's the texture of a baby's hair but there's a ton of it). Since I hit 25, in the summers, I'd wash my hair 5-7 days a week. In the winters, I could get away with washing my hair maybe 4x a week. When I did shampoo, I'd blow dry and then curl my hair, which I could sleep in for at least one extra night without needing too much extra styling. Then I got bangs, which are far oilier than the rest of my hair, so now I need to wash my hair daily. This is fine for my roots, which are naturally on the oily side, but not great for the ends of my hair, which are really dry. I also shower in the morning, blow dry my hair, and then curl it with a curling iron. I get a trim every 4-6 weeks, per usual.

Assuming I do not want to leave the house with anything other than nice-looking curls, what I can do to my hair regimen that would either take care of the oily bangs or tend to my dry ends? So far, I've been using Redken's Heat Glide on my ends, as it's very light even in big doses, unlike argan oil products. In a pinch I'll swipe my bangs with a wet brush and blow dry them, but they often just look kinda weird. But I'm still forced to shampoo my hair daily, and I'd prefer to find a solution where I can stretch out the blow drying and curling to at least two days. Thanks in advance for any product recommendations or tricks!
posted by zoomorphic to Health & Fitness (18 answers total) 5 users marked this as a favorite
 
Are you using your shampoo and conditioner correctly? I say that because I didn't know there was a right way until I got bangs, too. Shampoo goes on the roots ONLY, and conditioner goes on your ends only. That means no conditioner should really be touching your bangs ever! It sounds weird, but once you start doing it, your hair undergoes a pretty excellent change, at least in my experience.
posted by These Birds of a Feather at 4:48 PM on October 27, 2013 [4 favorites]


Best answer: Wash the bangs only between shampoos?
posted by kmennie at 4:49 PM on October 27, 2013 [5 favorites]


It depends on the kind of bangs you have, but you can totally wash just your bangs every day. Just gather all your bangs in the front of your head, pour water over them over the sink and shampoo your bangs/scalp. Also, definitely don't use conditioner on your bangs. If you must, use it only on the very ends.

I have the same type of hair, except it is super straight. I highly recommend Kiss My Face's daily shampoo/conditioner, if you're looking for a change.
posted by Hey Judas! at 4:51 PM on October 27, 2013


Best answer: The women I know with bangs wash them separately between complete hair washes.
posted by quince at 4:53 PM on October 27, 2013 [3 favorites]


I am so interested in these answers because I was about to post the same question!

My bangs get oily almost immediately after showers/styling... I can't figure out why! The rest of my hair can go up to 3 days between washes. In fact, it even looks BETTER on the 2nd or 3rd day.

So far I use dry shampoo (this kind) or cornstarch on my bangs, but both of these give my hair a weird texture or gunk up my scalp.

I also think hairspray helps somewhat because it holds my bangs in place so I don't touch them as much.

Beyond that, I have started using Neutrogena Anti-Reisdue Shampoo which works AWESOME for the rest of my hair, but doesn't make a huge difference for my bangs.

My current solution it to wear a headband basically all the time... so I'll be watching this thread.
posted by raspberrE at 4:54 PM on October 27, 2013


Best answer: When my hair was long enough to have bangs, I would wash them separately daily and use these on my forehead during the day if I thought the bangs were getting too oily. Sometimes it's not your scalp but your forehead that's causing the bulk of the oil buildup.
posted by Anonymous at 5:13 PM on October 27, 2013


Several times a day, blot your forehead with a single ply of a tissue and follow with a dusting of loose powder.

This was never really enough for me when I had bangs, so I used to also wash my bangs in the sink several times a day.

That wasn't ever really enough either, at least not for me. Some problems really can't be solved.
posted by tel3path at 5:13 PM on October 27, 2013


Part of the reason my bangs get oilier sooner is because they are resting on my forehead, which is an oil-producing SUPERCHAMP. Using an oil-absorbing facial product can help. Some are alcohol-based (drying...which I actually prefer) and some are silicone-based, like a primer (I'm not a fan, but lots of people love them.) My favourite one originally was by Proactiv (Daily Oil Control) but there are others on the market.
posted by Ouisch at 5:14 PM on October 27, 2013 [1 favorite]


I have curly hair and bangs. Curly hair should not be shampooed often, but my bangs get greasy too! So I just shampoo my bangs and nothing else when I shower.
posted by greta simone at 5:18 PM on October 27, 2013


Can you clip your bangs back every other day? So even though they're oily, they're out of your face?
posted by katypickle at 5:21 PM on October 27, 2013


Switch to a shampoo that doesn't have Sodium Lauryl Sulfate. It strips less of the oil from your hair when you wash it causing your hair to produce less oil. It takes a few weeks, but I've gotten it to where I only wash my hair once a week and use cornstarch in the middle of the week. I do not have bangs, however, this is just a general suggestion. Also, use a boar's bristle brush. Disclaimer: My standards for hair beauty are very low maintenance. If you use products, they may weigh your hair down.
posted by eq21 at 5:21 PM on October 27, 2013


Absolutely dry shampoo! Just use it at the front, it kind of thickens the hair and dries it out. I think there's no other way..I tried everything before, and used to wash my fringe separately, and this just saves so much time and really works. I use the Batiste brand.
posted by cornflakegirl at 5:39 PM on October 27, 2013 [1 favorite]


You may have tried all this, but I'll just give my two cents:

- Make sure you don't put conditioner in your roots/bangs.

- Braid back or clip back your bangs on the 2nd or 3rd day, and when you're at home on the 1st day, so they stay degreasy or not visible when they get greasy.

- Use the right dry shampoo-- Tresemme's dry shampoo is just like spraying grease on your hair in my experience, but Got2b Rockin' It is good in my hair.

- Straighten your bangs the day you wash them, and give them a little bounce (with a straightener), so they're not resting directly on your forehead.

- Get thicker bangs?
posted by stoneandstar at 5:48 PM on October 27, 2013


I, too, have curly hair and bangs. I wash my hair every other day (am beginning to stretch it to every third day). On my off days, I will put my hair in a loose bun in the shower and just rinse my bangs while I'm washing my face. I formerly washed my bangs post-shower in the sink using a little bit of shampoo, which works if they get too oily.
posted by kellygrape at 7:10 PM on October 27, 2013


Best answer: I have long, curly hair with bangs. I'm washing my hair once a week now. However, I wash my bangs every time I wash my face (I'm not fancy, I just use my face washing cleanser) As others have noted, keep your forehead nice and clean/not oily, it really helps a lot. Also don't give up on dry shampoo, just find the one appropriate for your hair. Lift up your bangs and shoot it at your scalp, let it dry for a minute, then brush it out HARD with a boars hair brush or similar.
posted by stormygrey at 8:05 PM on October 27, 2013 [1 favorite]


Best answer: Agree that you should try different dry shampoos. I've tried about 6-7 different kinds and they range from AMAZING to "totally ineffective." My personal favorites are Batiste and Prive. Ulta often sells sample sizes of some dry shampoos, maybe try buying a few smaller bottles so you're not committing to a bunch of giant ones that may or may not work.
posted by Bella Sebastian at 10:19 PM on October 27, 2013 [1 favorite]


Best answer: When you do wash, use Garnier Fructis on your bangs, it strips the oil very well. But not in the rest of your hair as it is too harsh.
posted by St. Peepsburg at 9:13 AM on October 28, 2013


Response by poster: I am embarrassed that the idea of simply washing my bangs between full showers did not occur to me. I used a shower cap and wrapped most of my hair in a tight bun underneath it during the shower and scrubbed my bangs separately. It's that easy, folks.
posted by zoomorphic at 12:19 PM on October 29, 2013


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