Conditioner for coarse, thick hair.

[Elliot]

Hey all,

Finally starting to seek good hair and skincare products and curious about a conditioner. Perhaps one of you has similar hair or has some experience. My hair is SUPER thick, coarse, heavy and never really soft.

Hair retention isn’t an overwhelming concern for me; I’ve done well in that aspect of the genetic lottery. But I’d like my hair to feel softer and perhaps even easier to style should I be so bold (handful of times a year).

Thanks, chaps.

 

[Darth Scandalous]

Is your hair straight or curly?

 

[Elliot]

Is your hair straight or curly?

When I was a child, ridiculously curly. Closer to wavy these days, but far from straight.

 

[ColtRevolver]

I only shampoo/condition about once a week. Everyday I use a leave in conditioner on damp hair.

 

[Elliot]

I only shampoo/condition about once a week. Everyday I use a leave in conditioner on damp hair.

Interesting idea. I don’t wash daily but more so the leave in conditioner. Never used one or even have familiarity with the action (tho yes, it’s rather self-explanatory).

 

[Darth Scandalous]

When I was a child, ridiculously curly. Closer to wavy these days, but far from straight.

You may want to check out the ethnic hair section at your store of choice. Lots of options, leave in conditioners, hair masks, that sort of thing. Based on the description you may want to look at products aimed toward mixed-race hair, which tends to be more curly/wavy than kinky/coily. I have thick hair that tends toward wavy more than curly these days as it gets more gray. So what I used ten years ago doesn't work as well anymore.

Currently I use the cheap Coconut Curls brand, shampoo once a week and condition daily, and I don't rinse the conditioner. You'll need to play around with that to see what your scalp will tolerate. Another line that works very well is Deva Curl, but its a lot more expensive. I don't use it anymore because it worked better wheb my hair was more curly.

You'll probably need to experiment to find a product that works for you, but I'd start there.

Another thing that can help is occasionally preconditioning with refined coconut oil. Just melt in your hands and work into dry hair. (Mine is long so I usually put it in braids to keep it from frizzing while the oil works in). Let it sit for a while, then shampoo and condition as normal. Your hair will look and feel much more moisturized.

 

[Elliot]

You may want to check out the ethnic hair section at your store of choice. Lots of options, leave in conditioners, hair masks, that sort of thing. Based on the description you may want to look at products aimed toward mixed-race hair, which tends to be more curly/wavy than kinky/coily. I have thick hair that tends toward wavy more than curly these days as it gets more gray. So what I used ten years ago doesn't work as well anymore.

Currently I use the cheap Coconut Curls brand, shampoo once a week and condition daily, and I don't rinse the conditioner. You'll need to play around with that to see what your scalp will tolerate. Another line that works very well is Deva Curl, but its a lot more expensive. I don't use it anymore because it worked better wheb my hair was more curly.

You'll probably need to experiment to find a product that works for you, but I'd start there.

Another thing that can help is occasionally preconditioning with refined coconut oil. Just melt in your hands and work into dry hair. (Mine is long so I usually put it in braids to keep it from frizzing while the oil works in). Let it sit for a while, then shampoo and condition as normal. Your hair will look and feel much more moisturized.

Very useful! Yes, my father’s lineage was North African, Egyptian, etc. and I take this from him. Amount of hair, as such, has never been a concern.

 

[Darth Scandalous]

Interesting idea. I don’t wash daily but more so the leave in conditioner. Never used one or even have familiarity with the action (tho yes, it’s rather self-explanatory).

You can start by not rinsing *all* the conditioner out, or rinsing and then just adding a little and leaving it in to air-dry. That's what I do with new products to get a feel for how they act.

Oh, and don't use a regular towel if you can help it. A microfiber hair towel or a tshirt is good for keeing it smooth, regular towels will frizz it up and strip the healthy oils out. I wrap my hair in a tshirt and let it soak up water while I shave, then let it air dry the rest of the way. I'm a white guy with essentially Puerto Rican hair texture...not sure how that happened.

 

[ColtRevolver]

The leave in conditioner I use is from the ethnic section.

 

[Phoenixkh]

I just asked my wife... Once a week, she strips a piece of aloe and uses the juice, combined with Manuka honey, Jojoba oil and a little bit of glycerine. She mixed them all together, puts the oil on her hair for 20 minutes, then shampoo and condition: Kiehl's products. She's been experimenting for months, talked to several hair stylists, etc.

That be more work than you want, but I figured I'd pass on what she's learned. I use this leave on conditioner myself, but it didn't work that well for her.

https://www.amazon.com/Garnier-Fructis-Intensely-Smooth-Conditioning/dp/B078PJCVSQ/

 

[Mitzie]

Coconut oil rubbed into dry hair then rinsed with hair conditioner after washing