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Why again is brushing wet hair a no-no--and do I remember right that using a comb is preferred? I've always brushed my hair, never really used a comb for any purpose. I don't heat style anymore, so I use the brush to part my hair and brush it a little smooth before letting it air dry. I use an expensive brush (if it makes a difference, it's a mixture of boar and nylon bristles) and recently had to order a new one because I left it behind on a trip, so I went on Amazon which I always do to get the best price; they had a nice detangling comb by the same brand so I thought I'd try it. It's supposed to be durable and not have any rough seams, and when it came, it did look nice and smooth. It has wide set teeth.
At any rate, it seems to me that I feel more tugging and hear more ripping sounds when I use the comb on my wet hair than I ever did with the brush. It isn't that I hear a LOT of ripping or feel a LOT of tugging--it's just more than with the brush. So is it something else about wet brushing that's supposed to be bad? Or should I just go back to brushing?
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I comb my hair with a wide tooth comb in the shower while it has conditioner in it. Once I am out of the shower I don't comb it or brush it, I just use my fingers. But my hair is wavy/curly. The objective for me is to scrunch styling products into my hair and encourage the waves and curls.From what I understand wet hair is more fragile and will break more easily. That is the reason I have always seen given as to why one should not brush wet hair.
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I have always read and been told by hairdressers that brushes should not be used on wet hair. I try to be as gently as humanly possible with my hair when it is wet because breakage leads to frizz and more frizz I don't need. (Wavy/curly hair tends to frizz a bit on its own depending on the weather.)
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Brushing is generally not recommended because it can overstretch and damage the hair in it's wet state. If you are combing your wet hair correctly you should have fewer tangles and splits. Hair should be coated with conditioner and combed GENTLY starting at the ends and working toward the roots. The structure of brushes causes the hairs to get caught between the bristles because wet hair gets fewer hairs between the bristles it seems like less pulling and tugging but that's just because fewer hairs are involved but MORE of those hairs are overstretched than with combing. It's like grabbing three or four hairs and trying to stretch them till they break verses grabbing 40 or 50 and trying to stretch and break them. Hope this helps.
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Thanks, beauty bear. Yes that makes sense--so in essence there are fewer hairs in each space between bristles with brushing, so you don't feel a big section of hair getting tugged but it's still happening. I kind of realized on my own that I probably wasn't taking the time to comb from ends to roots so I will try taking it slower and starting with the ends. I'm always in a rush in the morning so that's part of the problem (and part of why I stopped bothering with blow drying at all). I will say the comb I ordered is very nice and smooth so I feel confident at least that it won't have rough edges to scrape my scalp or my fine hair.
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I actually went to the salon for a cut yesterday and I asked while I was there. The answer was do not brush wet hair. It is much more fragile. The hair will break and you will have lots more frizz.Sarah you don't use conditioner, right? I was thinking you could try an experiment (maybe on a weekend when you do have a smidge more time?). Get one of the super cheap conditioners (Suave Naturals or VO5) and try just a thin coating of that after you shampoo your hair and comb through it with your new wide tooth comb before you rinse it out. I never cease to be amazed at how easily I can get the tangles out by doing this. I used to have to work for quite a while to unsnarl my hair before I began doing that.Also how you shampoo your hair CAN make a big difference in how many tangles you get. This video shows how to not tangle your hair nearly as much.
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The light rinse outs I mentioned though give the hair a lot of 'slip' and make it easy to run a comb through it.I used to have the same problems you have. Any sort of conditioner weighed my hair down and made it flat. I only used conditioner from ear level down in my hair. Now I actually 'wash' my hair with conditioner most days. Every third day I shampoo. I find my scalp is a lot less oily than it used to be and the ends are no longer dry. Combing is a breeze and I actually never comb my hair with anything but my fingers after I am out of the shower now. You would think it would be a rat's nest as my grandma used to call messy hair, but it is not.It took me a while to work up the courage to try doing my hair this way but I am glad I did it now!
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I don't think brushing when wet when you've cut out a lot of way more damaging things really causes much harm, have you noticed any damage? if you're not happy with the comb go back to your brush or try a new comb.
I use tons of conditioner from tops of ears down, my hair is so thick and NEEDS the conditioner, I also use a detangler spray and wide tooth seamless comb. Maybe try just a detangler spray? Also I don't pile hair on top of my head to wash it, I wash it like at the hairdressers but with my head forward.
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Agreed, bluecurls--I don't pile my hair on my head, just work the shampoo through my scalp with my fingers. I do put a lightweight turban on my hair to soak up the water, but I don't pull it tight. My hair doesn't get bad tangles. I think I'm getting the hang of combing (ends to roots), but too early to say so far if it's doing anything different for my hair, better or worse vs brushing.
I tried a rinse out conditioner in addition to my moisturizing styling product. My hair looked great for the first day, but by day 2 I did feel like I had build-up. I have a fair amount of hair, but it's pretty fine and can get limp at the drop of a hat. So, may have to condition every other day if I use a conditioner too.
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If you are using a styling product with a conditioning agent built-in, you can probably skip the conditioner. OR you could try a conditioner specifically for fine hair and apply ONLY to the last 4 to 6 inches at the ends (Avoid the first 3 to 4 inches at the roots) If this still seems to be too much, try diluting 1/2 to 1 teaspoon of the conditioner in a squeeze bottle with 4 to 6 oz. warm water and apply only to ends. Comb to de-tangle then rinse gently with cool water.
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My hairdresser gave me the same advice. Much better idea to comb wet hair...gently does it though.
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So--I think the verdict is my brush is better than my comb. I'm not saying this would apply to all brushes and combs, just the ones I use. I not only felt and heard more breakage when using the comb, but I'm seeing it as well. So I'm going to try going back to the brush for a while and see how I do. The brush is mixed boar and nylon bristle--not sure if that makes a difference.
I did find a rinse out conditioner I think I like--Pantene's fine hair conditioner.
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