Q: I live in Grovetown,Ga., and my hair is like a fuzz ball after a few minutes in the heat. I use Jojoba oil, Design Essentials Natural Hair. I have also tried Jane Carter , but it makes my hair dry. I use a lot of oils because I color the gray in my hair. Depending on what I see first in my arsenal it’s what I use. Please help me. I am having a hard time keeping my from turning into a fuzzball. Thanks in advance.
A: I have not using any of the products you have mentioned (besides jojoba oil), so I cannot comment on what’s in them or why you hair is getting fuzzy. Sometimes it’s really best to do your own research and experiment with different products. Here’s what I suggest:
- Examine all of the ingredients lists for the products you are having issues with. A lot of the time, formulations aren’t as different as companies would like us to believe, and there is often a common denominator. For example, when I first went natural, I was using some products that were great on my hair initially, but as the day went on my hair would get SO DRY. I thought that it was my fault and I wasn’t conditioning my hair properly. Then, I realized that glycerin was very high on the list for ALL of these products, and at the time it was super dry in my city (so dry that my hands looked like prunes 24/7 because I was not used to such dryness). In contrast, I also began to notice that many of the products I fell in love with had aloe vera very high on the list, and usually did not contain many heavy butters. Other ingredients that often throw people for a loop are emulsifying wax and/or beeswax, mineral oil, and non-water soluble silicones. And remember, when an ingredient is higher on the list, that means there is more of it in the product. You might have issues when something is the second ingredient, but not when it is the tenth.
- Play with the order in which you apply your products, especially when you are using an oil. Since oil is for sealing in moisture, you can assume that less moisture (some will still get in there) is going to reach your hair after you apply your sealer, which is why many people apply their sealer AFTER their leave-in conditioner, but before their styler.
- Pay attention to how your hair feels without any product in it. Yes, I love products, but if my hair feels dry/hard/gummy without anything in it, my moisture/protein balance is most likely off and I need to move forward accordingly, with a deep condition or protein treatment.
- Make sure you are washing/clarifying your hair, ESPECIALLY if you are using a lot of oils. One of the main reasons people get frizzy hair is because they have product build up, which makes it so the hair cannot get conditioned well because everything is just sitting on top of the hair. Think of it like if you never rinsed your toothbrush after applying toothpaste and brushing. That would get pretty nasty, right?
- Remember, oils do NOT provide moisture to the hair. They help you retain moisture, but do not provide it. Make sure you are pairing oils up with water-based (ie, moisturizing) products.
- If you color your hair, you need to be diligent about deep conditioning. Dye lifts your cuticle, which makes your hair more porous and it’s easier to have it dry out. At minimum, be sure you are deep conditioning once a week. When I dyed my hair in May 2010, it made my hair so dry! I think I deep conditioned my hair three times in one week so my hair felt normal again. Also, an apple cider vinegar rinse will help close your cuticle and make it more difficult for moisture to escape. This can be done in the shower after conditioning. Dilute the ACV by 50% with water and pour it over your hair as your final rinse.
Hope that helps and good luck! Georgia can be gross in the summer. If anyone else has additional advice, please chime in!
xoxo
questfortheperfectcurl.com 
Thank you so much for this information. I live in hot and humid Florida and I am noticing that my winter products are going to have to go on the back burner! My hair is longer than it was last summer and I am having to look for a new regimen. I am concluding that Oyin Hair Dew and Kinky Curly combination are in the lead so far. Long Aid gel is good, but my hair does not like it consistently without doing a deep conditioner afterwards.
Also, I see that Komaza Care Califia Curl Pudding is on you HG list. I love this product in the winter, but I am finding it is not working this summer! What do you use as a leave in with this product?
Sorry for the long response.
I usually use it alone, but I haven’t used it this summer b/c I can use glycerin. It’s in my fridge to break out once our dews get lower. Oyin Hair Dew and KCCC seems like a yummy combo.
just a tip – sometimes when hair LOOKS dry, it is not. my hair is much longer than it was last summer (obvs) and I’ve noticed that even though it’ll be nice and moisturized – soft and touchable – it’s fuzzy as hell. and it LOOKS dry. I think that my cuticles may be swelling from all the humidity in the air. Maybe I’m using something without a humectant in it or maybe I’m not sealing….in any case, I’m going to have to start using a styling gel to hold my twistouts. I’ve never done this before because in the winter I could twist-twistout-retwist-and twistout again and I would still have curl definition. last summer my hair wasn’t long enough for me to notice the fuzz, so it’s on to a styling gel for me. I just found out that Smooth and Shine curl activator gel is nice and light, with decent ingredients (aloe vera and glycerin). I’m going to try twisting with this to see if my twistouts will last longer without the fuzz factor.
Hi there, I live in Alabama, and today it will be 96 degress of hotness outside. I am using Uncle Funky’s Daughter (supercurl, ecostyler olive oil gel and then curlymagic). These are the only products that have kept my dyed dark brown hair from being a fuzzy dry hot mess. I always do wash n gos….. I shingle the products in the order I listed. Both of the UFD products are great, but the ecostyler helps to clump my curls and give me definition. So far so good. I was in the ATL all last week, and my hair looked Awesome….So I hope this helps.
Thanks for the advice!!! I need to dabble in UFD some more.
Thanks eveyone. You all have really helped
You’ve picked some great questions for this series. They may be specific to individual but are really universal issues. Love it!
Thanks! I realized that I was answering a lot of questions that can apply to many of us, so I thought I would share. 🙂
Georgias dew points r so high. Too high for humectants. I try to avoid them all together because my hair feels like straw and is frizzy after being outside for a while. Look for humectants in your hair products. Its helped my hair a lot
When I 1st applied the QHCC, my 1st reaction was “oh sh*t!”. I thought my hair was going to dry like uncooked Ramen noodles-hard & stringy looking. I did have some crunch in areas where I know I applied too much. I was trying to section it & work it through per the instructions but I was rushing & kinda slapped it in.
The crunch went away & I knew next time to go a little lighter & to make sure to work it through & spread it out evenly.
I’m trying the Queen Helene’s from Whole Foods right now and it leaves my hair super crunchy. It is a knock-off to the Kinky-curly curling pudding, which is what I was looking for. I’ve used the Kinky-Curly for years but it’s so expensive! I’ve been looking for a less expensive alternative and thought I found it in QH but, maybe I’ll try it with a different leave-in. KC never left my hair crunchy the way QH does. And I’m surprised that it does this considering I use the QH non-alcohol styling gel for my slick backs. I love the gel which is why I was excited to see a curling creme from QH. I’m still experimenting
Yep, this is why I always encourage people to do their own experimenting with products. What works for one, may not work for another for a number of reasons. Sometimes, hair is just bratty and doesn’t like a formulation. IMO, the Queen Helene does not touch KCCC.
See I liked glycerin when I lived in FL. It gives me big hair. I think the thing w/QH is that I got the big hair w/o the frizz. The curls just kinda swelled & were fluffy, but weren’t frizzy. Still defined. I dunno the dew points, but it was pretty humid all weekend. And I like that my hair doesn’t feel dry. I haven’t moisturized in 3 days. I’ve had an issue w/dryness lately cuz I’ve been lazy & haven’t DC’d in a while. But no dryness. Folks couldn’t keep their hands out of my hair. And even that didn’t frizz it or disturb the curls.
I’m glad it works for you! I love big hair, but my hair is always big no matter what, lol! Last year, I went to DC and got some Curl Junkie products in the mail (Aloe Fix and Coffee Coco Curl Creme), and I wasn’t paying attention since I was so excited to use my products, so I used the Aloe Fix…very cute at first, then when I went outside for about an hour, my hair turned NASTY. There was spider web frizz everywhere and it looked like someone had given me 50 noogies. Never again! I actually am using the QH today and it’s drying nicely, but our dew is 48 today.
I’m clueless about hair “science” so I can only piggyback off that info with a couple of product recommendations. The first one is Curls Goddess gel from Target ($8). I absolutely hate gel but find it necessary b/c I only wash n go. This gel provides a light hold but isn’t sticky & doesn’t flake. It’s not really going to hold a slicked back bun all day w/o fly aways, but it will hold your curls down–as in keep them defined w/o frizzing. A tiny bit goes a long way. And I usually just rub it on wet palms then lightly scrunch through my hair.
My 2nd recommendation is the new love of my life: Queen Helene Royal Curl Cream. It’s the consistency of a pudding-like gel. Many say it’s a Kinky Curly Curling Custard dupe, but I haven’t used that product. This stuff gives my hair GREAT definition. It’s shiny & soft. My hair grows “down” & not out & I got BIG hair w/o frizz. I danced & sweat in humidity-still no frizz. I applied it over my Giovanni leave-in & didn’t add anything else. Pure love! I was tired & slept w/my hair in a pony-puff that night & it still looked good when I let it down the next day. I wet my hands & lightly applied a little Goddess gel & was good to go. I’m on day 3 & have a big defined curly puff which I never get. The Queen Helene is @ Whole Foods for $8.
See, I absolutely would not suggest the Queen Helene Gel – I have it and glycerin is VERY high on the list and I would not use it in a hot, moist climate like GA in the summer time. My hair would turn into a rat’s nest. I don’t know what is in the Goddess Gel though. Some people are fine with glycerin in any dew point, but I know most are sensitive to it. The climate with dancing/sweating is a lot different from the actual dew point.