Very, very long hair Qs page 2

[geostump]

The only braid I can do is a mandarin braid and I do that on my youngest daughter as she has long blonde hair. My eldest daughter can do a fairly decent waterfall braid now. I'm just working on getting my hair down to the middle of my back. Had to get my hair trimmed up tonight and found out that with the way my husband plays with my hair, he damages the crap out of it and should be surprised that I'm not fully bald. Now I need to find a way to get the hair to grow back in.

[giliakareo]

I have read. Overbrushing can cause breakage and irritation of the scalp.

[zoebird]

After reading the hair forums for most of the day, I'm definitely going to try some new things.

First, I need a hair-cut. Counter-intuitive, but according to my reading today, to start growing hair long and strong, you have to remove the damaged bits, and then start with nice, undamaged hair, and then treat it nice.

Second, I have to start treating my hair nice. That means abandoning my hair styles which use all kinds of things that damage my hair (go figure), and going for other hair styles that don't -- using sticks.

In addition, I'm going to have to stop combing my hair when wet. I don't do it often, but I definitely do it.

Next, I'll need to start treating my hair.

I'm going to do a two-step clarifying/stripping process to get out minerals -- vinegar first, then rinse; then baking soda/water in a paste, then rinse; then using shampoo. Doing this at least once a month, and definitely before the next treatment!

The second treatment is to help with dander and to provide a bit more blond-ing to my blond -- using a cassia and neem powder mixture (to a mud) which supposedly will help with dander and also make the blond more blond. Or brighter. There's some debate about this, apparently.

And then, do more deep coconut oil conditioning treatments (which I do about once a week), and then lighter coconut oil treatments as needed.

Then, see where how far I get with quarterly trims to help keep the hair healthy. So. . . yeah. I'm excited because it's all natural.

[Annieh]

I usally do a gypsy braid if I want it out of the way..
Use a long silk scarf to french braid down both sides & then wrap around head & pin in place, looks like this...

LOVE your gypsy braid, DinoHunter. Beautiful.

[Annieh]

I think one fat normal braid brings the hair up shorter than a french braid. But with a french braid you can fold the end under and tuck it right up inside the braiding. The braid is double thickness but appears less than half as long (ie it would vanish altogether with shorter hair, but not with waist length hair).