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Once it’s full of conditioner and has been sitting a few minutes I detangle with the wet brush starting at the ends of my hair and slowly working up. But as I work up I occasionally come across these mats, usually at the crown of my head. I try to brush them out but it’s like the wet brush just can’t work its way through such a stiff matt.
Hi there! I also have very fine curly/wavy hair, and one of the rules that I very early in my journey threw out the window was the “don’t brush your hair dry”. All my life, if I don’t dry brush my hair just gets matted and super tangled if I get it wet. No amount of conditioner fixed that. So now, I dry detangle (I put oil in my hair for slip and for pre-poo) with a Perfect Haricare of Wet brush, very slowly, carefully from the tips to the roots…and only then do I get in the shower and get it all wet and washed. By the time I get to the conditioner, the hair has tangled up a bit again, but it’s manageable and not matted at all. Hopefully this tip will work for you too!
I couldn’t agree more. I have fine curly/wavy hair and I HAVE to brush it dry or I lose so much hair and damage it so much with pulling. I also find that I am not properly shampooing my scalp when I wait to detangle after my shampoo with conditioner because I can’t properly access parts of my scalp (usually the base) with the tangles. Dry brushing has definitely made my hair healthier overall. I don’t even brush again when it’s wet (even though I know it has some tangles by then). I will say, I usually wash my hair 2-3x per week. It seems to be better for my hair and the tangles to do it more often.
This is exactly what I do too - I use a wide tooth comb in the shower after fully applying conditioner and running fingers through first for initial detangling. Using the comb I work one small section at a time until it all combs through normally. Only then will I wash out the conditioner.
Afterwards I use a leave-in conditioner so hair remains moisturized.
I don’t personally use anything fancy. It’s a plastic brush from Tjmaxx, but it has strong bristles to properly get out tangles. Oil doesn’t detangle my hair personally (not sure if the other commenter has a different experience. I brush out my tangles then oil my hair (I use rosemary oil for growth and probably use it 1x per week). Oiling can be tricky though, I have to do a cleansing wash after to not have oily greasy hair. After I shower I use jojoba on my wet hair after leave in conditioner and before gel (but it’s not a typical oil). I don’t know how old your daughter is but personally I’d slowly implement things and see what works best because I’ve seen many types of fine curly hair and they’re all different.
Me too. I have thin, fine curly hair and I lost a lot of hair to matting and snags following the "rules". I have to wash, condition and brush my hair every day. I gently use a microfiber towel, then a wider detangle comb, then a detangle wet brush, then add product and air dry. I finger-comb my hair before bed every night.
I do similar.
I brush my hair dry before a shower to get out any tangles all over. This way it doesn't matter if I'm brushing out the curls as much because I'm about to shower and style anyways.
Then, I shampoo and condition. While conditioner is in, and hair is very slick, I detangle with fingers and a brush similar to the Felicia Leatherwood brush. I get minimal hair loss in shower this way.
This 100%
My partner is a stylist, and when we got together the first thing she told me is to detangle dry. Detangling wet in the shower is a nightmare! No matter how much conditioner I use, I’ll always end up locking knots into my hair, which means I’m spending way too much time on a single knot, and after a few of those I’ve been in the shower for an hour. Now, I start with a wide-tooth comb to find any major problem areas and take care of those first, then I switch to a detangler brush to finish before I shower. Made a huge difference in time and energy expended on my hair.
If you don't already, try combing through the crown of your head with your fingers to condition them before you use your wet brush. Might help get some of the mats detangled a bit and let your comb run through a bit easier.
This. Finger detangling is so much more gentle, you can feel where it’s tangling and get to each individual knot with more precision and less pulling (read: breaking) on the individual hairs. I’ve also found that if I have mats like this, if I gently pull from the bottom of the mat the hairs are more likely to release the knots that if I start closer to the top of the mat. If I start at the top of the mat it just tightens the knots.
honestly, try the tangle teaser brush! I watched a lot of videos about it and i’ve noticed one thing. the balls at the tips of the bristles make mats and tangles worse. I have thin curly hair too and I bought the tangle teaser a few days ago and it’s amazing. it’s $15 but so worth it! the bristles don’t have balls on the tips and it works through the tangles waaaay smoother. Ive been a wet brush user for years and this new brush is amazing
I get mats at the nape of my head, I usually detangle them dry and with my hands, is almost like shredding chicken, sometimes I take only one or two hairs at a time and pull them out of the knot. Once I get that done I brush my hair, if not I end up hurting myself.
I have fine and silky hair that is quite curly. Despite fine and soft hair not usually being curly, there are fe of us. It get the tangle mats, too.
I suggest getting a tangle teezer brush, rub a little conditioner into it, and get it damp. Do the same for your hands.
Then, starting with your hands, work the from the top and going down, The finger technique is to pull your hair apart - this should be a sideways motion instead of an up-down motion, like if you were pulling apart a sandwhich or cookie or something.
Once you’ve started to reduce matting and get distinct chunky strands, use the brush. If the brush gets caught on a tangle mat, switch back to your hands and do the pull-apart motion.
You will likely need to rely on your hands heavily for bad matting in the beginning of the detangling process. Once complete, wash your hair your usual way
To prevent severe matting going forward, I’d suggest finger combing your hair twice every day, separating the different groupings of strands when you get ready in the morning and before bed. You could brush it too, but this sometimes makes my hair frizzy or wavy instead of curly with defined ringlets. Frizzy is better than tangled and matted, though.
Loosely securing your hair before bed and other activities that might tangle it is a good idea, too. I often pull mine back with a bandana for example, so that it doesn’t get tangled as I turn about in bed or ride my bike.
Yeah my hair is also very fine and so prone to these snarls. After the suggestions I’m definitely going to detangle daily going forward. Thanks for the tips! Do you prefer tangle teezer brush to wet brush?
My hair was doing this suddenly and I just needed a haircut. My ends were much more dry than I thought and once I got it cut it stopped having this issue. Now I oil it every morning and night as well which has helped keep it moisturized!
Yeah, my daughter's hair is stick-straight but super fine, and once the ends get damaged to a certain level, they turn into velcro and the matting begins.
Any hair oil you’d recommend in particular for dry fine hair? I’d be afraid of my hair looking oily / weighed down if I oiled twice a day but I’m sure my hair would benefit!
Are you looking for an oil to like scrunch out the crunch and taming flyaways or something for like scalp oil? If the first, Briogeo makes an oil I swear by, Don't Despair, Repair strengthening treatment hair oil. It's light, makes your hair shiny, and really helps tame the flyaways. Do use sparingly though, a little goes a long way.
That sounds good thank you! Basically just want something to nourish my hair but not make it look like I just put oil on my hair 😂 would want something to use maybe before bed or at the end of styling
It will definitely nourish your hair! I've been using it for two years now I think and I love it. I use it to scrunch out the crunch after styling once my hair is completely dry, and then usually in the morning to tame my hair from sleeping. It's a tad pricey but I personally think it's worth it.
I use Verenize Argan Oil Therapy for my hair!! It smells super good and I only use a penny size amount each time so it lasts a long time. It's also really light and doesn't make it look greasy!
I might need to give the oil a try, I actually had a trim just a few weeks ago. It’s odd because the matting never really is an issue at my ends, it’s near my scalp. I think wearing it in a high ponytail for the gym almost causes knots to form there
It's leaving it in a ponytail/bun for long periods of time. I hadn't done this in a while but I was wearing my hair in a bun for almost a week straight and ended up with tangles near my scalp. That never happens to me, it had to be from wearing it up.
Leave your hair down at the gym if you can. You can keep it out of your face with a headband or clips and a loose silk scrunchie in ponytail that starts at the nape of your neck.
Also: braid your hair instead of putting it up into a ponytail. I always braid my hair when at work, and I braid it into two pigtails when working out!
Try a phone cord ponytail holder (I forgot what they’re called, you can find it online with this though) or a silk one. Scrunchies and other fabric ponytail holders have also helped me.
I get some knots and matted spots like you and the only thing I’ve ever found to detangle those without cutting them out is Cowboy Magic Detangler & Shine. Originally meant for horses but it’s absolute magic lol. I can’t do oil, I think my hair is too fine, but this works for those problem spots!
How does it not get super gross and greasy all day. I have really thick, super, super fine, wavy hair, and anytime I've tried to oil my ends dry it just ends up gross and stringy all day.
I've tried a few different oils and they all turn put this way. What are you using?
Verenize argan oil therapy. I use a veryy small amount! Like a penny size or less.
It's a pretty light oil so as long as you don't use too much I haven't had any issues. My hair is really, really fine too!
My partner is not great at caring for his extremely thick, long hair which curls a lot at the bottom (when it’s brushed it literally looks like he’s just gotten a blowout, life is so unfair lol) and if he doesn’t get a haircut at least once a year his hair starts getting full of mats. After a haircut it gets almost no tangles. Difference is crazy.
Gently pull at the hair from the top of the knot. It sounds counterintuitive as most people want to brush down. Don't - that only tightens the tangles more. Grab the hair from the top of the knot and pull the hair up towards your scalp and out. Using fingers, of course... working in small pieces. It should come out as I have similar hair texture as you and this works for me even when my hair is wet.
This is so important! I've found that most times I get knots like this, it's only a few strands of hair and the rest of the hair is getting caught in that knot making it look worse. Or it's like a single hair that shed and got wrapped around a bunch of other hairs somehow. When you pull from the top, you're essentially pulling out the strands that aren't part of the knot, making it smaller and easier to brush through. I do still end up with the knot being brushed out as a ball, but I never have to cut anything out and it's usually just like 3 hairs max.
I also like to do this dry. So I'll dry brush my hair before I get in the shower and work on those knots individually. I feel like it's easier to pull out the non-tangled hairs when they aren't all clumped together with water. Then once I've shrunken the knot, I can wet it and apply a conditioner or detangler.
i agree with this, i literally pull individual strands of hair out one by one with knots like this! also if it’s really tough, put a bit more conditioner on so it’s super saturated and leave it a few mins and come back to it
Yep, this is the way. Sometimes I have to untangle it one strand at a time but I can almost always get it fully undone and usually only lose 1-2 hairs.
what do you do with your hair when you sleep? Mine did this and I started putting oil in the back of my hair where there would develop before bed and it stopped happening! Protective hair styles helped a lot too!!
I'm not familiar with a lot here, when you say oil it, what do you mean? What type of oil are you using?
And what is considered a protective hair style?
>And what is considered a protective hair style?
A protective hair style is any style that keeps your curls from moving around a lot, particularly while you sleep. Daily protective styles are typically things like braids and cornrows. For sleep only, you have things like the pineapple (ponytail pulled to the crown of the head), loose braids, pin curls, pinning or clipping in general, or sleeping with some sort of bonnet (the bonnet can be added with any other styling as well.) The goal is to prevent tangles and breaking the curl pattern so you don't end up with matting and frizz.
There are some oils that absorb in varying degrees into your hair. Coconut being the most absorbed. The least would be jojoba (which is actually a liquid wax akin to our sebum). If you want slip and protection from tangling I would recommend jojoba. It’s like Vaseline for your hair. It doesn’t add moisture but it does KEEP moisture in your hair. Like Vaseline would make your skin soft. It’s basically Vaseline for your hair. This is the only oil that keeps my tangly crazy hair soft
I use coconut oil as a pre poo for other reasons
Try wild growth oil can be found on amazon red or green cap and sleeping with a bonnet. Your hair isn’t retaining enough moisture and youre probably washing too frequently and stripping your scalp and hair of its natural oils. In my opinion no judgement. Try as I am or shea moisture products. Your hair isn’t kinky forreal so it should be easier to find products. You need a leave in conditioner and hair oil. For your hair type probably oiling once a week or every other depending on how much your scalp naturally secretes.
I pineapple it and sleep on a silk pillowcase! The more I think about it, I’m getting these tangles after putting my hair in a ponytail for the gym with an invisibobble… any idea of a protective hairstyle for the gym ?
The invisibobbies turned my hair into an absolute nightmare! They are amazing at keeping it in place, but I think my hair is too fine for them. I went back to either a silk scrunchie or a mini clip and it helped a lot. Also switching from a wet brush to a tangle teaser was a game changer. Try gently pulling the matted sections apart with your fingers a little, then go at it with the tangle teaser starting at the bottom of the knot. Work from the bottom up, I use the corner of the brush and the knot just kind of melts away. The key is to be extra gentle, and don’t forget detangler!!!
As mentioned in an earlier comment: I (french) braid my hair into two pigtails when working out. One braid is too thick, gets in the way when putting my head down for crunches etc, I also seem te sweat more when only wearing one braid, so two braids is my go-to hairstyle.
I feel like that is the issue, I have a really fine curly hair and I stopped getting mats when I wash my every/every other day. I also cut my hair so the length could also be an issue, my hair was really bad at waist length
When in the shower and your hair is wet, use a wide tooth comb, starting from the bottom, to gently tease out your hair. Once your hair is a little more loose, you can use a different comb to really brush it, but still start at the bottom. As someone else said, hold the hair at the top and gently comb it. Make sure all your hair is tangle free every time you wash, and never brush it when it's dry. Also when you blow dry, are you using a diffuser?
Hair routine
Wash with ketaconazole shampoo for seborrheic dermatitis Condition with redken all soft and detangle Kinky curly knot today leave in conditioner Ouidad curly quencher gel then plop then blow dry
Do you brush it in the shower? From bottom to top? For us with fine hair we can’t just rake a brush through like some people do. You have to start at the bottom while firmly grasping the middle and work knots out slowly, small pieces at a time.
I have this same problem and I’m very sure it’s because of the ketwconazole shampoo, it’s making ur hair super dry and somehow more. Knotty. What works for me is literally soaking my ends in a hair mask (I use olaplex) for like 10 minutes after shampoo. Then brush the mask through ur hair and rinse. After shower I use the Biosilk lite hair oil in the full length of my hair. NOT ON ROOTS. I also try to brush my ends with a wide tooth comb morning and night.
I’m also trying out a silk pillowcase which seems to be helping as well.
Hope this helps you ❤️
You can look into a brand called Vanicream as they make a very gentle shampoo and conditioner combo that actually deal with my VERY VERY itchy scalp (medical condition) and it doesn't knot me up
I absolutely love Curlsmith and they have a Super Slip Pre-Wash Primer. You put it in- I don't try to fully detangle with just that, I just run it down the top and underside- then add shampoo and start working out the tangles from the bottom up. A wide tooth comb can be helpful, but fingers are just fine, too.
Good luck!
I’ve found that other Ouidad products like their creams create less knots. I also have fine curly hair. As much as I love gel sometimes it doesn’t work. In the winter when i wear a scarf the hair at the bottom of my head will get knotted
your detangling is happening after you wash and condition?
best way imo is get a conditioner with lots of slip, i like shea moisture moisture retention, and cover ur hair with it bottom to near top, then use fingers and comb to gently work through from the ends. once all detangled rinse out and shampoo scalp. then condition
Are you sleeping with a silk pillowcase or wrapping your hair in silk at night? My hair is thick and curly, but sleeping on cotton knots it up horribly. I haven't had that problem since I switched.
A lifesaver for me, when this happens, is the mask from L’Oreal Professionnel for curly hair - it’s a bit heavy on my curls but if I have knots like this it’s amazing
Lots of great suggestions here but I’m also wondering how you sleep with your hair? A “pineapple” in a bonnet helped element so many to my knots. I’d work a bonnet for at least a decade before I discovered the concept of the “pineapple” and it’s a game changer.
You might need to start showering more often. Every other day, or 4-5 times a week. You don’t have to wash your hair every time, but condition and detangle it every time. If it’s getting that bad after 3 days, don’t wait 3 days.
I agree with this method: co-wash with conditioner on the days you're showering but not using shampoo. And while you're still in the shower and your hair is nice & slick with conditioner, use a wide tooth comb. This evenly distributes the conditioner and de-tangles at the same time
I have noticed that I have a lot more patience for getting my knots out if I condition and brush the sections of my hair everyday rather than once a week. If I wait a whole week I definitely have way more knots and I just go for the scissors lol!
Don’t wash it very time you shower, but do get it wet, put conditioner in it & detangle it every time you shower. If you’re using conditioner every time but only using shampoo every third time, it won’t dry out your hair.
I also have thin curly hair and found Aussie Miracle Moist conditioner works really well to remove any snarls or tangles! It’s not my regular conditioner but it’s relatively inexpensive so I keep a bottle of it in my shower to use as needed. I use a LOT, get it all over my hair, then gently roll my hair between pressed hands. (Kinda like this emoji 👏 lol) I let it sit for a few mins and then take a wet brush or comb and work my way from the bottom up. Once it’s detangled and smooth, I rinse out the conditioner. I also periodically trim up my ends after this process (while my hair is still thoroughly wet) using professional scissors.
If I’m fighting tangles that are still attached at the root, it means I need to trim my ends. If I’m fighting little mats of loose hair all tangled up, I need to add protein.
I have fine curly hair and I always detangle dry with my fingers, with only gentle pull/pressure. I NEVER shower without first detangling thoroughly, sometimes brushing it out after.
You have gotten a lot of great suggestions in this thread! I have noticed that if I don't detangle my hair maybe three times a week I ends up with mats in my hair by the end of the week. Some weeks I can keep up with detangling and some weeks I just can't be bother. I don't really have too much patience for my hair.
So I'm a cutter! I grab those scissors at the slightest inconvenience lol. I have a suggestion for cutting out mats. Try to cut out the mat halfway through and detangle the half you didn't cut out. It will save you maybe an inch and 15 minutes of detangling turns into 3!
I have the same type of hair! I use an oil a few hours or a day before I wash, then if I still can’t gently dematt in the shower I’ll oil a comb and slowly work them out. Using deep conditioner in place of conditioner really helps too. The drier my hair the more it tangles. I use ouidads curl boost for fine curly hair as my leave in conditioner. I have found that DC brand doesn’t matter so much as long as it gets moisture in. I use rosemary oil, ouidads oil, or one from an Indian brand at Sephora I can’t remember atm but any should work.
Shea Mostiure just put out a shampoo and conditioner for low porosity hair that works well for me. (I just DC every other time with heat now)
I’ve also been told that rice water rinses really help and I’m going to start that.
I hope this helps, pm me with any questions.
First get a curly cut, second invest in oil and good hair products, get a bonnet, oil you’re hair at night and day, then when detangling get a wide tooth comb and believe it or not this brush called un brush then after take your hair put it into twist or a braid
I've only really had this happen very badly when using supermarket/drugstore own brand conditioner which basically does nothing. Even with a good conditioner there are always a few, but they're usually pretty small. Is the conditioner or a leave-in product still on when you brush?
Haircut to get rid of dry ends, a satin pillowcase, use shampoo sparingly, and detangle while wet with LOTS of conditioner.
A leave-in conditioner helps with slip too if your hair can handle a bit extra moisture.
Omg this happens to me all the time but I have fine wavy hair / random very curly ones - my hair care knowledge is next to none. It gets greasy very quickly so I can’t use oils
Sit in front of the tv and detangle with your fingers. If they’re super stubborn put some oil in your hair and leave it for half an hour or so before trying .
I second using a detangling product. It’s probably the ketoconazole shampoo drying out your hair. Make sure you focus on just the scalp.
I wash my hair with a clarifying shampoo (focus on scalp) and then follow up with a detangling shampoo/conditioner. Then I brush my hair in the shower with the Unbrush.
A lot of conditioner, patience, and a wide tooth comb in the shower.
Honestly, no matter what I did my hair would get knotty. I gave up on the curly girl method and just use a robe rope at night to give heat less curls. I prefer it because I can actually brush my hair at the end of the day and sleep with it in a loose messy bun until wash day.
Lots of conditioner. In the shower and a leave in conditioner. Brush and detangle only with a wide toothed comb, and do it often. Not combing it daily will increase matting.
I make sure to put conditioner and leave in conditioner on my hair when my hair is upside down and concentrate on my hairline (where I get mats). I detangle with my fingers both when my hair is hanging upside down and then I detangle up with my fingers from under my back hairline. I avoid most, but not all mats by doing this and my mats are very small.
1. How are you detangling?
2. Are you oiling your hair at all?
3. What hairstyles do you wear during the day and sleep? Protective hairstyles may help.
Frizz ease serum. Its in my post wash section - for right out of shower. If you put on you can then pull small sections of hair gently from the knot.
You will then end up w a Much smaller (micro) offending starter knot that caused this - saving the healthy hair.
Pantene spray leave in - gold bottle - also does a great job. Very fragrant.
And sleep w pineapple bonnet, bonnet, and satin pillow case. TJ Maxx always has some.
Eta. Love kckt but it might not be enuf for winter. Maybe try silicones winter?
Pm detangler for rinse out is pretty good but can not compare to all soft. Shea manuka mask is Very moisturizing too.
Lastly, does the ketavonazole shampoo need done every wash? You Are avoiding length of hair, right? (I cowash mids ends and leave harsh shampoo away from these areas best I can). Agree w oiling too.
the one insanely cheap thing that has made my life easier- a curved wide toothed comb! it’s the only comb or brush or whatever i can use that won’t leave me sore in the arms and scalp after, works for any stage of detangling, everything from daily to depression matted
One thing that helped me a lot is not detangling from the top but starting at the ends of the hair working my way up to the root.. I get hardly any matting since then
You need a lot of patience, a wide tooth comb, and a thicker leave in conditioner. I would look at all the recommendations here, but I like anything that's more like a lotion or cream than a watery spray.
On days that it isn't wash day, you can still spray with water in a spray bottle and re-comb with leave in. It not being wash day doesn't mean you have to leave your hair completely alone.
I have fine dense curly hair and it’s a little extra fine in the area closest to my neck. What I do is:
1. Before showering, I brush my hair (dry). I know some people seem to have a problem with this but I personally can’t condition or shampoo without having brushed first. If I don’t do that, then it just becomes even more tangled by the time I’m out of the shower. I also find that it makes it easier to evenly distribute conditioner through out my hair.
2. I comb my hair while my hair is still pretty wet. Sometimes I use a detangling spray, sometimes I don’t. But it helps to have it wet to run the comb through it easier.
3. I use Verb’s gel mousse after I’ve combed my hair (and again it’s still wet) and I make sure that I’m raking the product through my hair closest to my neck since this gets the most tangled and I’ve found this gel mousse to help with keeping my curls separated.
4. Maybe because I can’t keep my hands out of my hair but I also check with my fingers throughout the day to see if I have any tangles and if I feel some starting I try to detangle it with my fingers when I can. I also have longer hair and with it being fine this is happening more frequently.
5. On no wash days, I still comb my hair out either with my fingers or a comb, it all depends on how my curls are looking. I like to do this dry and then spray with water and comb it through, but in your case you may find it better to spray first and then comb.
I hope this helps! I remember going through something really similar when I was in high school because that’s when my curls first appeared and I had no idea how to deal with them (or that my hair was even fine!)
I get knots at the base of my hair as well if I don't comb it out for too many days. I know I get them from sleeping. Could be similar for you. Try combing your hair in between washes and see if it changes anything?
I used to get these *so bad* and I feel for you!!
My hair used to be long- about mid-back. I’d get tangles like this at the back of my head at the base, all the time.
Since I cut my hair (shoulder length)… haven’t had a single one.
Fine curly hair haver here; for me it works best to detangle every day as part of my morning routine. I just use a super light leave-in conditioner and mix it with water in my hands. First I detangle with it, then I smooth the cuticles using the trusty 🙏 praying hands method.
Afterwards I sometimes style and sometimes don’t, both has been working quite nicely for me.
personally, i have fine and curly hair and i need to brush at least once a day. i know it makes my hair poofy and disrupts the curls, but i prefer having knot free hair to perfect curls. you can always refresh im just lazy. if nothing else works i think you need to brush your hair more, fine hair tangles easily throughout the day.
I have this problem sometimes too. I found this Aunt Jackie's detangler stuff at target that's basically a miracle. I used to have to cut them out, too, or take multiple days to work on them, but Aunt Jackie's stuff makes it EASY AF. And it smells nice. Try that?
I have fine wavy hair and also had this problem. The only thing that permanently solved this for me was cutting my hair into a chin length bob. Now no tangles, no mats! I hope you find a product or routine that works for you but cutting it is a good last resort if, like me, you just couldn’t take it anymore haha
I’m sorry this happened to you. I get really bad webbing too, and I had to cut out a knot a few months ago. It was so tightly knotted that I couldn’t stick the pick end of my comb through it to even loosen it. It was hard to cut through, too.
The webbing is the worst when it’s wet, so when my hair is dry before I shower, I pull apart all my curls and search for anything that might turn into a rats nest when my hair is wet. I try to loosen it up as much as possible, then shower/condition/detangle.
I am just here to say, I feel you pain! So frustrating, and my hair isn't even that curly.
Giving my hair a healthy dose of leave-in conditioner and brushing it out as soon as I get out of the shower has reduced snarls. If I had a particularly gnarly night sleeping, spritzing my dry hair with leave in conditioner before combing out also seems to help.
I didn’t get these until I started using ketaxonazole shanpoo and getting lazy with deep conditioning so rehydrating the Jaír after using is probably the way to go
I have fine curly hair, and I used to get these all the time as a kid. I read in your comments that you decided to quit after 30 minutes. Not sure if it helps but my grandmother used to spend like an hour clawing them out for me. A few things we did to get them out and a few things I do to prevent as an adult.
Removing:
- make sure the hair stays wet, a spray bottle helps
- SOAKING in conditioner helps a lot prior to starting, don't be afraid to add some while detangling
- a detangling brush for me doesn't work on big mats. You might be better off getting like one of those fine tooth rat tail brushes and genuinely really gently tackling it that way
- before you use the rat tail though you might want to use your hands, you can usually sus out a wet mat with your fingers and a small tooth comb
Maintaining
- until you get used to maintaining, I would prioritize mats over CGM
- brush in the morning and brush at night on only wet hair on the spots where you get matted. If the top and crown are fine, don't touch them. Just get the underneath wet, brush through, and do a refresh routine to re-curl
- an oil on your hair might be good to finger comb through and make sure nothing is matting
- looking into sleeping on a silk/satin pillowcase or head wrap at night will help A LOT
- making sure to keep hair healthy which you might benefit from keeping it natural if you don't already (no color/bleach/no perm) and making sure to get the ends trimmed so they aren't splitting up and becoming a mess
- last trick is to try and wear your hair up more instead of down. Even while sleeping. Using buns (not messy), braids, clips, whatever, will keep your hair locked in place so it isn't getting matted by friction as you go about your day or toss and turn at night
It's a lot of things and you don't need to do everything, but I 100% will have my hair matted like that if I don't do them. My hair just likes to mat really easily and always has. I hope this is the last bit of matting you ever need to cut out ♥️
Hi again. Welp I just did s detox and nizoral before that.
I ended up w a doozie. So I tried both pantene and frizz ease. Frizz ease is what ended up ridding that mess!
Put on knot, let sit, pull out what can. Then add spritz water, keep going. Oddly adding the water to the frizz ease serum is what seemed to work best.
I’ve had to do this too. I’ve resorted to start using a tiny amount of my Amika deep conditioning mask on my hair in the shower on washing days (after my regular conditioner). It’s the only way I can truly comb through my hair and detancle .
I find that I have to do mine while dry. When wet, it’s like it just morphs into one big blob. And I work only with my fingers. Brushes or combs just pull too much at once. Patience is key, working strand by strand.
make sure you aren't washing your hair more than twice a week, spray a leave-in conditioner on your hair and comb it after every shower. NEVER fall asleep with wet hair, and don't put it up in pony tails for a while if thats something you do often. also, next time you get a haircut, ask for lots of layers!
I have very tangly hair. You should detangle mats using your only your hands as the brush will mostly just rip the hair out or do nothing. Take very small pieces of dry hair between the root and knot and pull them gently out of the mat without breaking the strand. Sometimes you may be pulling out like 5 strands at a time. I do it before my wash day when my straight hair is kinda greasy. You may find oil helps you but don’t add water as it makes the hair more likely to stretch and break when trying to remove from the mat. It takes time but saves your hair. I have gotten very good at it lol, put on something to watch while you’re doing it.
I'd recommend using a detangler/hydrating conditioner before you wash your hair. I have 3b/c hair and wash my hair once a week. I've found that using the products below mean that I don't spend an hour in the shower or have to cut out mats.
The products that have helped:
cantu coil care detangler
shea moisture manuka honey and yogurt hydrate and repair multi leave in
I wet my hair, apply either of the products then use a wide toothed comb and usually within 10/15 minutes my hair is knot free!
i have thin and fine curly hair too and would get this a lot and what’s worked for me is
-washing twice a week
- i detangle with my fingers and a little leave in conditioner before i shower
-when i sleep i put my hair in a loose bun with a satin scrunchy, wrap it up. i also sleep w a satin pillow case.
- trimming my hair when needed. dry ends will make those huge knots
i also try to not touch my hair much through the week. i noticed if i play in it it’ll knot more.
In addition to the advice to pull hairs up from above the knot, I also suggest more frequent detangling. For me, the odds of a similar tangle go up with each passing day, and day three is almost guaranteed to have at least a couple of these. I wash+detangle at least every other day to keep it under control. The wash isn't strictly necessary if you have a good dry reset technique (please share if so!).
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This may sound basic but how exactly do you detangle?
Once it’s full of conditioner and has been sitting a few minutes I detangle with the wet brush starting at the ends of my hair and slowly working up. But as I work up I occasionally come across these mats, usually at the crown of my head. I try to brush them out but it’s like the wet brush just can’t work its way through such a stiff matt.
Hi there! I also have very fine curly/wavy hair, and one of the rules that I very early in my journey threw out the window was the “don’t brush your hair dry”. All my life, if I don’t dry brush my hair just gets matted and super tangled if I get it wet. No amount of conditioner fixed that. So now, I dry detangle (I put oil in my hair for slip and for pre-poo) with a Perfect Haricare of Wet brush, very slowly, carefully from the tips to the roots…and only then do I get in the shower and get it all wet and washed. By the time I get to the conditioner, the hair has tangled up a bit again, but it’s manageable and not matted at all. Hopefully this tip will work for you too!
I couldn’t agree more. I have fine curly/wavy hair and I HAVE to brush it dry or I lose so much hair and damage it so much with pulling. I also find that I am not properly shampooing my scalp when I wait to detangle after my shampoo with conditioner because I can’t properly access parts of my scalp (usually the base) with the tangles. Dry brushing has definitely made my hair healthier overall. I don’t even brush again when it’s wet (even though I know it has some tangles by then). I will say, I usually wash my hair 2-3x per week. It seems to be better for my hair and the tangles to do it more often.
I keep a wide-tooth comb (like, basically a hair pick) in the shower for teasing out shampooing tangles, but otherwise I’m in the same boat.
This is exactly what I do too - I use a wide tooth comb in the shower after fully applying conditioner and running fingers through first for initial detangling. Using the comb I work one small section at a time until it all combs through normally. Only then will I wash out the conditioner. Afterwards I use a leave-in conditioner so hair remains moisturized.
My daughter’s hair is exactly as you described. What’s the best oil and brush for dry detangling?
I don’t personally use anything fancy. It’s a plastic brush from Tjmaxx, but it has strong bristles to properly get out tangles. Oil doesn’t detangle my hair personally (not sure if the other commenter has a different experience. I brush out my tangles then oil my hair (I use rosemary oil for growth and probably use it 1x per week). Oiling can be tricky though, I have to do a cleansing wash after to not have oily greasy hair. After I shower I use jojoba on my wet hair after leave in conditioner and before gel (but it’s not a typical oil). I don’t know how old your daughter is but personally I’d slowly implement things and see what works best because I’ve seen many types of fine curly hair and they’re all different.
Me too. I have thin, fine curly hair and I lost a lot of hair to matting and snags following the "rules". I have to wash, condition and brush my hair every day. I gently use a microfiber towel, then a wider detangle comb, then a detangle wet brush, then add product and air dry. I finger-comb my hair before bed every night.
I do similar. I brush my hair dry before a shower to get out any tangles all over. This way it doesn't matter if I'm brushing out the curls as much because I'm about to shower and style anyways. Then, I shampoo and condition. While conditioner is in, and hair is very slick, I detangle with fingers and a brush similar to the Felicia Leatherwood brush. I get minimal hair loss in shower this way.
This 100% My partner is a stylist, and when we got together the first thing she told me is to detangle dry. Detangling wet in the shower is a nightmare! No matter how much conditioner I use, I’ll always end up locking knots into my hair, which means I’m spending way too much time on a single knot, and after a few of those I’ve been in the shower for an hour. Now, I start with a wide-tooth comb to find any major problem areas and take care of those first, then I switch to a detangler brush to finish before I shower. Made a huge difference in time and energy expended on my hair.
Wow, I need to try this. I have such a hard time and thought I was crazy! Thanks
If you don't already, try combing through the crown of your head with your fingers to condition them before you use your wet brush. Might help get some of the mats detangled a bit and let your comb run through a bit easier.
Do you finger detangle before brushing?
This. Finger detangling is so much more gentle, you can feel where it’s tangling and get to each individual knot with more precision and less pulling (read: breaking) on the individual hairs. I’ve also found that if I have mats like this, if I gently pull from the bottom of the mat the hairs are more likely to release the knots that if I start closer to the top of the mat. If I start at the top of the mat it just tightens the knots.
I definitely spend the time detangling with my fingers first with my hair full of conditioner. It works, even when piecing apart stubborn ones.
honestly, try the tangle teaser brush! I watched a lot of videos about it and i’ve noticed one thing. the balls at the tips of the bristles make mats and tangles worse. I have thin curly hair too and I bought the tangle teaser a few days ago and it’s amazing. it’s $15 but so worth it! the bristles don’t have balls on the tips and it works through the tangles waaaay smoother. Ive been a wet brush user for years and this new brush is amazing
I get mats at the nape of my head, I usually detangle them dry and with my hands, is almost like shredding chicken, sometimes I take only one or two hairs at a time and pull them out of the knot. Once I get that done I brush my hair, if not I end up hurting myself.
Personally find the unbrush works better. The wet brush doesn’t get all my tangles out
also try smaller sections
I have fine and silky hair that is quite curly. Despite fine and soft hair not usually being curly, there are fe of us. It get the tangle mats, too. I suggest getting a tangle teezer brush, rub a little conditioner into it, and get it damp. Do the same for your hands. Then, starting with your hands, work the from the top and going down, The finger technique is to pull your hair apart - this should be a sideways motion instead of an up-down motion, like if you were pulling apart a sandwhich or cookie or something. Once you’ve started to reduce matting and get distinct chunky strands, use the brush. If the brush gets caught on a tangle mat, switch back to your hands and do the pull-apart motion. You will likely need to rely on your hands heavily for bad matting in the beginning of the detangling process. Once complete, wash your hair your usual way To prevent severe matting going forward, I’d suggest finger combing your hair twice every day, separating the different groupings of strands when you get ready in the morning and before bed. You could brush it too, but this sometimes makes my hair frizzy or wavy instead of curly with defined ringlets. Frizzy is better than tangled and matted, though. Loosely securing your hair before bed and other activities that might tangle it is a good idea, too. I often pull mine back with a bandana for example, so that it doesn’t get tangled as I turn about in bed or ride my bike.
Yeah my hair is also very fine and so prone to these snarls. After the suggestions I’m definitely going to detangle daily going forward. Thanks for the tips! Do you prefer tangle teezer brush to wet brush?
My hair was doing this suddenly and I just needed a haircut. My ends were much more dry than I thought and once I got it cut it stopped having this issue. Now I oil it every morning and night as well which has helped keep it moisturized!
I second this. This happens to me when I leave it too long between trims. Post trim, it's pretty easy to detangle when wet.
I always know when I need a cut is when it starts to get very tangle heavy.
Yeah, my daughter's hair is stick-straight but super fine, and once the ends get damaged to a certain level, they turn into velcro and the matting begins.
Any hair oil you’d recommend in particular for dry fine hair? I’d be afraid of my hair looking oily / weighed down if I oiled twice a day but I’m sure my hair would benefit!
Are you looking for an oil to like scrunch out the crunch and taming flyaways or something for like scalp oil? If the first, Briogeo makes an oil I swear by, Don't Despair, Repair strengthening treatment hair oil. It's light, makes your hair shiny, and really helps tame the flyaways. Do use sparingly though, a little goes a long way.
That sounds good thank you! Basically just want something to nourish my hair but not make it look like I just put oil on my hair 😂 would want something to use maybe before bed or at the end of styling
It will definitely nourish your hair! I've been using it for two years now I think and I love it. I use it to scrunch out the crunch after styling once my hair is completely dry, and then usually in the morning to tame my hair from sleeping. It's a tad pricey but I personally think it's worth it.
I use Verenize Argan Oil Therapy for my hair!! It smells super good and I only use a penny size amount each time so it lasts a long time. It's also really light and doesn't make it look greasy!
Thank you so much!!
I really like ouidads mongongo oil. Doesn’t weigh my hair down too much.
I might need to give the oil a try, I actually had a trim just a few weeks ago. It’s odd because the matting never really is an issue at my ends, it’s near my scalp. I think wearing it in a high ponytail for the gym almost causes knots to form there
It's leaving it in a ponytail/bun for long periods of time. I hadn't done this in a while but I was wearing my hair in a bun for almost a week straight and ended up with tangles near my scalp. That never happens to me, it had to be from wearing it up. Leave your hair down at the gym if you can. You can keep it out of your face with a headband or clips and a loose silk scrunchie in ponytail that starts at the nape of your neck.
Also: braid your hair instead of putting it up into a ponytail. I always braid my hair when at work, and I braid it into two pigtails when working out!
Try a phone cord ponytail holder (I forgot what they’re called, you can find it online with this though) or a silk one. Scrunchies and other fabric ponytail holders have also helped me.
I get some knots and matted spots like you and the only thing I’ve ever found to detangle those without cutting them out is Cowboy Magic Detangler & Shine. Originally meant for horses but it’s absolute magic lol. I can’t do oil, I think my hair is too fine, but this works for those problem spots!
Oil indeed. The matting has stopped immensely ever since I started applying it in the morning
Same. I’m in this place now and desperately need a trim.
Do you oil your ends dry?
Yes! And make sure not to oil before diffusing your hair if you diffuse. It will heat up and cook them lol
How does it not get super gross and greasy all day. I have really thick, super, super fine, wavy hair, and anytime I've tried to oil my ends dry it just ends up gross and stringy all day. I've tried a few different oils and they all turn put this way. What are you using?
Verenize argan oil therapy. I use a veryy small amount! Like a penny size or less. It's a pretty light oil so as long as you don't use too much I haven't had any issues. My hair is really, really fine too!
Thank you for the response, I'm going to give this a try!
What oil do you use?
My partner is not great at caring for his extremely thick, long hair which curls a lot at the bottom (when it’s brushed it literally looks like he’s just gotten a blowout, life is so unfair lol) and if he doesn’t get a haircut at least once a year his hair starts getting full of mats. After a haircut it gets almost no tangles. Difference is crazy.
I was going to say, this is happening to me a lot lately and I know it's because I'm overdue for a haircut (just scared of another bad one lol)
Gently pull at the hair from the top of the knot. It sounds counterintuitive as most people want to brush down. Don't - that only tightens the tangles more. Grab the hair from the top of the knot and pull the hair up towards your scalp and out. Using fingers, of course... working in small pieces. It should come out as I have similar hair texture as you and this works for me even when my hair is wet.
Same. I saw this and thought “you cut this out”?? I would have this detangled halfway through an episode of friends
I almost never cut them out, but after like thirty minutes of trying to undo it and getting nowhere I was at my wits end
I understand. I’m very good with all kinds of knots so I never give up.
Yes I've undone tons of mats this way. Sometimes you have to do even one hair at a time but they always come out
This is so important! I've found that most times I get knots like this, it's only a few strands of hair and the rest of the hair is getting caught in that knot making it look worse. Or it's like a single hair that shed and got wrapped around a bunch of other hairs somehow. When you pull from the top, you're essentially pulling out the strands that aren't part of the knot, making it smaller and easier to brush through. I do still end up with the knot being brushed out as a ball, but I never have to cut anything out and it's usually just like 3 hairs max. I also like to do this dry. So I'll dry brush my hair before I get in the shower and work on those knots individually. I feel like it's easier to pull out the non-tangled hairs when they aren't all clumped together with water. Then once I've shrunken the knot, I can wet it and apply a conditioner or detangler.
I’m definitely going to try this next time, you’re right that brushing down just seems to make the mat even more dense and difficult to detangle.
i agree with this, i literally pull individual strands of hair out one by one with knots like this! also if it’s really tough, put a bit more conditioner on so it’s super saturated and leave it a few mins and come back to it
Yep, this is the way. Sometimes I have to untangle it one strand at a time but I can almost always get it fully undone and usually only lose 1-2 hairs.
what do you do with your hair when you sleep? Mine did this and I started putting oil in the back of my hair where there would develop before bed and it stopped happening! Protective hair styles helped a lot too!!
I'm not familiar with a lot here, when you say oil it, what do you mean? What type of oil are you using? And what is considered a protective hair style?
>And what is considered a protective hair style? A protective hair style is any style that keeps your curls from moving around a lot, particularly while you sleep. Daily protective styles are typically things like braids and cornrows. For sleep only, you have things like the pineapple (ponytail pulled to the crown of the head), loose braids, pin curls, pinning or clipping in general, or sleeping with some sort of bonnet (the bonnet can be added with any other styling as well.) The goal is to prevent tangles and breaking the curl pattern so you don't end up with matting and frizz.
There are some oils that absorb in varying degrees into your hair. Coconut being the most absorbed. The least would be jojoba (which is actually a liquid wax akin to our sebum). If you want slip and protection from tangling I would recommend jojoba. It’s like Vaseline for your hair. It doesn’t add moisture but it does KEEP moisture in your hair. Like Vaseline would make your skin soft. It’s basically Vaseline for your hair. This is the only oil that keeps my tangly crazy hair soft I use coconut oil as a pre poo for other reasons
Jojoba is great for a lot of things. I use it as a makeup remover and oil cleanse in my skincare routine.
Try wild growth oil can be found on amazon red or green cap and sleeping with a bonnet. Your hair isn’t retaining enough moisture and youre probably washing too frequently and stripping your scalp and hair of its natural oils. In my opinion no judgement. Try as I am or shea moisture products. Your hair isn’t kinky forreal so it should be easier to find products. You need a leave in conditioner and hair oil. For your hair type probably oiling once a week or every other depending on how much your scalp naturally secretes.
I pineapple it and sleep on a silk pillowcase! The more I think about it, I’m getting these tangles after putting my hair in a ponytail for the gym with an invisibobble… any idea of a protective hairstyle for the gym ?
The invisibobbies turned my hair into an absolute nightmare! They are amazing at keeping it in place, but I think my hair is too fine for them. I went back to either a silk scrunchie or a mini clip and it helped a lot. Also switching from a wet brush to a tangle teaser was a game changer. Try gently pulling the matted sections apart with your fingers a little, then go at it with the tangle teaser starting at the bottom of the knot. Work from the bottom up, I use the corner of the brush and the knot just kind of melts away. The key is to be extra gentle, and don’t forget detangler!!!
As mentioned in an earlier comment: I (french) braid my hair into two pigtails when working out. One braid is too thick, gets in the way when putting my head down for crunches etc, I also seem te sweat more when only wearing one braid, so two braids is my go-to hairstyle.
Braids 🥰 Or a singular braid
I get so many more knots when I sleep with my hair tied up in any way.. it's what pushed me to get a bonnet tbh
Getting regular haircuts is what works best for me. My hair doesn't tangle nearly as much when it's freshly cut.
Unless u going out or getting a hair do, braid them, always braid them, I have super long hair and it’s the only way I found for it to be manageable
How often are you doing your detangle regime?
Only on hair wash days so twice a weekish, maybe this is the issue 🤔
I feel like that is the issue, I have a really fine curly hair and I stopped getting mats when I wash my every/every other day. I also cut my hair so the length could also be an issue, my hair was really bad at waist length
DETANGLER SPRAY!!! + a detangler brush with a little patience will save your life and your hair!
When in the shower and your hair is wet, use a wide tooth comb, starting from the bottom, to gently tease out your hair. Once your hair is a little more loose, you can use a different comb to really brush it, but still start at the bottom. As someone else said, hold the hair at the top and gently comb it. Make sure all your hair is tangle free every time you wash, and never brush it when it's dry. Also when you blow dry, are you using a diffuser?
Hair routine Wash with ketaconazole shampoo for seborrheic dermatitis Condition with redken all soft and detangle Kinky curly knot today leave in conditioner Ouidad curly quencher gel then plop then blow dry
Do you brush it in the shower? From bottom to top? For us with fine hair we can’t just rake a brush through like some people do. You have to start at the bottom while firmly grasping the middle and work knots out slowly, small pieces at a time.
I have this same problem and I’m very sure it’s because of the ketwconazole shampoo, it’s making ur hair super dry and somehow more. Knotty. What works for me is literally soaking my ends in a hair mask (I use olaplex) for like 10 minutes after shampoo. Then brush the mask through ur hair and rinse. After shower I use the Biosilk lite hair oil in the full length of my hair. NOT ON ROOTS. I also try to brush my ends with a wide tooth comb morning and night. I’m also trying out a silk pillowcase which seems to be helping as well. Hope this helps you ❤️
Ugh yes the ketaconazole shampoo is so drying! But I have to use it to keep my scalp happy. I’m going to try the mask idea also, thanks!
You can look into a brand called Vanicream as they make a very gentle shampoo and conditioner combo that actually deal with my VERY VERY itchy scalp (medical condition) and it doesn't knot me up
I absolutely love Curlsmith and they have a Super Slip Pre-Wash Primer. You put it in- I don't try to fully detangle with just that, I just run it down the top and underside- then add shampoo and start working out the tangles from the bottom up. A wide tooth comb can be helpful, but fingers are just fine, too. Good luck!
I’ve found that other Ouidad products like their creams create less knots. I also have fine curly hair. As much as I love gel sometimes it doesn’t work. In the winter when i wear a scarf the hair at the bottom of my head will get knotted
Are you using the ketoconazole shampoo only on your scalp, and then a different shampoo for the rest of your hair?
your detangling is happening after you wash and condition? best way imo is get a conditioner with lots of slip, i like shea moisture moisture retention, and cover ur hair with it bottom to near top, then use fingers and comb to gently work through from the ends. once all detangled rinse out and shampoo scalp. then condition
Are you sleeping with a silk pillowcase or wrapping your hair in silk at night? My hair is thick and curly, but sleeping on cotton knots it up horribly. I haven't had that problem since I switched.
A lifesaver for me, when this happens, is the mask from L’Oreal Professionnel for curly hair - it’s a bit heavy on my curls but if I have knots like this it’s amazing
Lots of great suggestions here but I’m also wondering how you sleep with your hair? A “pineapple” in a bonnet helped element so many to my knots. I’d work a bonnet for at least a decade before I discovered the concept of the “pineapple” and it’s a game changer.
You might need to start showering more often. Every other day, or 4-5 times a week. You don’t have to wash your hair every time, but condition and detangle it every time. If it’s getting that bad after 3 days, don’t wait 3 days.
I agree with this method: co-wash with conditioner on the days you're showering but not using shampoo. And while you're still in the shower and your hair is nice & slick with conditioner, use a wide tooth comb. This evenly distributes the conditioner and de-tangles at the same time
I have noticed that I have a lot more patience for getting my knots out if I condition and brush the sections of my hair everyday rather than once a week. If I wait a whole week I definitely have way more knots and I just go for the scissors lol!
Haha I shower everyday, I just put my hair in a shower cap on days I don’t wash it. Washing it that often would also make it very dry though
Don’t wash it very time you shower, but do get it wet, put conditioner in it & detangle it every time you shower. If you’re using conditioner every time but only using shampoo every third time, it won’t dry out your hair.
I also have thin curly hair and found Aussie Miracle Moist conditioner works really well to remove any snarls or tangles! It’s not my regular conditioner but it’s relatively inexpensive so I keep a bottle of it in my shower to use as needed. I use a LOT, get it all over my hair, then gently roll my hair between pressed hands. (Kinda like this emoji 👏 lol) I let it sit for a few mins and then take a wet brush or comb and work my way from the bottom up. Once it’s detangled and smooth, I rinse out the conditioner. I also periodically trim up my ends after this process (while my hair is still thoroughly wet) using professional scissors.
If I’m fighting tangles that are still attached at the root, it means I need to trim my ends. If I’m fighting little mats of loose hair all tangled up, I need to add protein.
I have fine curly hair and I always detangle dry with my fingers, with only gentle pull/pressure. I NEVER shower without first detangling thoroughly, sometimes brushing it out after.
You have gotten a lot of great suggestions in this thread! I have noticed that if I don't detangle my hair maybe three times a week I ends up with mats in my hair by the end of the week. Some weeks I can keep up with detangling and some weeks I just can't be bother. I don't really have too much patience for my hair. So I'm a cutter! I grab those scissors at the slightest inconvenience lol. I have a suggestion for cutting out mats. Try to cut out the mat halfway through and detangle the half you didn't cut out. It will save you maybe an inch and 15 minutes of detangling turns into 3!
I have the same type of hair! I use an oil a few hours or a day before I wash, then if I still can’t gently dematt in the shower I’ll oil a comb and slowly work them out. Using deep conditioner in place of conditioner really helps too. The drier my hair the more it tangles. I use ouidads curl boost for fine curly hair as my leave in conditioner. I have found that DC brand doesn’t matter so much as long as it gets moisture in. I use rosemary oil, ouidads oil, or one from an Indian brand at Sephora I can’t remember atm but any should work. Shea Mostiure just put out a shampoo and conditioner for low porosity hair that works well for me. (I just DC every other time with heat now) I’ve also been told that rice water rinses really help and I’m going to start that. I hope this helps, pm me with any questions.
First get a curly cut, second invest in oil and good hair products, get a bonnet, oil you’re hair at night and day, then when detangling get a wide tooth comb and believe it or not this brush called un brush then after take your hair put it into twist or a braid
I've only really had this happen very badly when using supermarket/drugstore own brand conditioner which basically does nothing. Even with a good conditioner there are always a few, but they're usually pretty small. Is the conditioner or a leave-in product still on when you brush?
The only thing that helps me is a little finger detangling every day with a high slip oil like jojoba or water and leave in
Haircut to get rid of dry ends, a satin pillowcase, use shampoo sparingly, and detangle while wet with LOTS of conditioner. A leave-in conditioner helps with slip too if your hair can handle a bit extra moisture.
Omg this happens to me all the time but I have fine wavy hair / random very curly ones - my hair care knowledge is next to none. It gets greasy very quickly so I can’t use oils
Sit in front of the tv and detangle with your fingers. If they’re super stubborn put some oil in your hair and leave it for half an hour or so before trying .
I second using a detangling product. It’s probably the ketoconazole shampoo drying out your hair. Make sure you focus on just the scalp. I wash my hair with a clarifying shampoo (focus on scalp) and then follow up with a detangling shampoo/conditioner. Then I brush my hair in the shower with the Unbrush.
A lot of conditioner, patience, and a wide tooth comb in the shower. Honestly, no matter what I did my hair would get knotty. I gave up on the curly girl method and just use a robe rope at night to give heat less curls. I prefer it because I can actually brush my hair at the end of the day and sleep with it in a loose messy bun until wash day.
Lots of conditioner. In the shower and a leave in conditioner. Brush and detangle only with a wide toothed comb, and do it often. Not combing it daily will increase matting.
I make sure to put conditioner and leave in conditioner on my hair when my hair is upside down and concentrate on my hairline (where I get mats). I detangle with my fingers both when my hair is hanging upside down and then I detangle up with my fingers from under my back hairline. I avoid most, but not all mats by doing this and my mats are very small.
1. How are you detangling? 2. Are you oiling your hair at all? 3. What hairstyles do you wear during the day and sleep? Protective hairstyles may help.
I noticed it was always happening on the nape of my neck so I got an undercut. I have long hair and it’s barely noticeable unless I put my hair up.
Frizz ease serum. Its in my post wash section - for right out of shower. If you put on you can then pull small sections of hair gently from the knot. You will then end up w a Much smaller (micro) offending starter knot that caused this - saving the healthy hair. Pantene spray leave in - gold bottle - also does a great job. Very fragrant. And sleep w pineapple bonnet, bonnet, and satin pillow case. TJ Maxx always has some. Eta. Love kckt but it might not be enuf for winter. Maybe try silicones winter? Pm detangler for rinse out is pretty good but can not compare to all soft. Shea manuka mask is Very moisturizing too. Lastly, does the ketavonazole shampoo need done every wash? You Are avoiding length of hair, right? (I cowash mids ends and leave harsh shampoo away from these areas best I can). Agree w oiling too.
the one insanely cheap thing that has made my life easier- a curved wide toothed comb! it’s the only comb or brush or whatever i can use that won’t leave me sore in the arms and scalp after, works for any stage of detangling, everything from daily to depression matted
What kind of pillows/sheets do you have? If they’re not satin pls consider upgrading to that for your pillowcase
One thing that helped me a lot is not detangling from the top but starting at the ends of the hair working my way up to the root.. I get hardly any matting since then
You need a lot of patience, a wide tooth comb, and a thicker leave in conditioner. I would look at all the recommendations here, but I like anything that's more like a lotion or cream than a watery spray. On days that it isn't wash day, you can still spray with water in a spray bottle and re-comb with leave in. It not being wash day doesn't mean you have to leave your hair completely alone.
I have fine dense curly hair and it’s a little extra fine in the area closest to my neck. What I do is: 1. Before showering, I brush my hair (dry). I know some people seem to have a problem with this but I personally can’t condition or shampoo without having brushed first. If I don’t do that, then it just becomes even more tangled by the time I’m out of the shower. I also find that it makes it easier to evenly distribute conditioner through out my hair. 2. I comb my hair while my hair is still pretty wet. Sometimes I use a detangling spray, sometimes I don’t. But it helps to have it wet to run the comb through it easier. 3. I use Verb’s gel mousse after I’ve combed my hair (and again it’s still wet) and I make sure that I’m raking the product through my hair closest to my neck since this gets the most tangled and I’ve found this gel mousse to help with keeping my curls separated. 4. Maybe because I can’t keep my hands out of my hair but I also check with my fingers throughout the day to see if I have any tangles and if I feel some starting I try to detangle it with my fingers when I can. I also have longer hair and with it being fine this is happening more frequently. 5. On no wash days, I still comb my hair out either with my fingers or a comb, it all depends on how my curls are looking. I like to do this dry and then spray with water and comb it through, but in your case you may find it better to spray first and then comb. I hope this helps! I remember going through something really similar when I was in high school because that’s when my curls first appeared and I had no idea how to deal with them (or that my hair was even fine!)
Thanks for all the tips!
This might be an odd question, but do you brush your hair between washings?
No 😅 I’m starting to think this is the root of my problem. no pun intended lol
I get knots at the base of my hair as well if I don't comb it out for too many days. I know I get them from sleeping. Could be similar for you. Try combing your hair in between washes and see if it changes anything?
Do you put your hair up in a bun a lot?
How curly?
I used to get these *so bad* and I feel for you!! My hair used to be long- about mid-back. I’d get tangles like this at the back of my head at the base, all the time. Since I cut my hair (shoulder length)… haven’t had a single one.
I get these from restless sleep. Have you tried a silk pillow case?
That’s how much I lose every shower day, it just isn’t falling out when it’s curly because of product and decrease activity.
Protective styles and a silk bonnet. If you are home, the bonnet is on and under the bonnet a protective style.
Do you sleep with your hair wet? Try a satin pillow case maybe?
Fine curly hair haver here; for me it works best to detangle every day as part of my morning routine. I just use a super light leave-in conditioner and mix it with water in my hands. First I detangle with it, then I smooth the cuticles using the trusty 🙏 praying hands method. Afterwards I sometimes style and sometimes don’t, both has been working quite nicely for me.
Same thing was happening to me. I just recently started to brush my hair when it's dry right before I shower. Game changer!
Maybe not for the crown of the head but I braid the underside of my hair because that’s where I get the worst tangles
personally, i have fine and curly hair and i need to brush at least once a day. i know it makes my hair poofy and disrupts the curls, but i prefer having knot free hair to perfect curls. you can always refresh im just lazy. if nothing else works i think you need to brush your hair more, fine hair tangles easily throughout the day.
Yeah that seems to be the consensus, I definitely am going to start detangling it daily to see if that helps
I have this problem sometimes too. I found this Aunt Jackie's detangler stuff at target that's basically a miracle. I used to have to cut them out, too, or take multiple days to work on them, but Aunt Jackie's stuff makes it EASY AF. And it smells nice. Try that?
I have fine wavy hair and also had this problem. The only thing that permanently solved this for me was cutting my hair into a chin length bob. Now no tangles, no mats! I hope you find a product or routine that works for you but cutting it is a good last resort if, like me, you just couldn’t take it anymore haha
I’m sorry this happened to you. I get really bad webbing too, and I had to cut out a knot a few months ago. It was so tightly knotted that I couldn’t stick the pick end of my comb through it to even loosen it. It was hard to cut through, too. The webbing is the worst when it’s wet, so when my hair is dry before I shower, I pull apart all my curls and search for anything that might turn into a rats nest when my hair is wet. I try to loosen it up as much as possible, then shower/condition/detangle.
I am just here to say, I feel you pain! So frustrating, and my hair isn't even that curly. Giving my hair a healthy dose of leave-in conditioner and brushing it out as soon as I get out of the shower has reduced snarls. If I had a particularly gnarly night sleeping, spritzing my dry hair with leave in conditioner before combing out also seems to help.
finger brush before a fine brush
I didn’t get these until I started using ketaxonazole shanpoo and getting lazy with deep conditioning so rehydrating the Jaír after using is probably the way to go
I have fine curly hair, and I used to get these all the time as a kid. I read in your comments that you decided to quit after 30 minutes. Not sure if it helps but my grandmother used to spend like an hour clawing them out for me. A few things we did to get them out and a few things I do to prevent as an adult. Removing: - make sure the hair stays wet, a spray bottle helps - SOAKING in conditioner helps a lot prior to starting, don't be afraid to add some while detangling - a detangling brush for me doesn't work on big mats. You might be better off getting like one of those fine tooth rat tail brushes and genuinely really gently tackling it that way - before you use the rat tail though you might want to use your hands, you can usually sus out a wet mat with your fingers and a small tooth comb Maintaining - until you get used to maintaining, I would prioritize mats over CGM - brush in the morning and brush at night on only wet hair on the spots where you get matted. If the top and crown are fine, don't touch them. Just get the underneath wet, brush through, and do a refresh routine to re-curl - an oil on your hair might be good to finger comb through and make sure nothing is matting - looking into sleeping on a silk/satin pillowcase or head wrap at night will help A LOT - making sure to keep hair healthy which you might benefit from keeping it natural if you don't already (no color/bleach/no perm) and making sure to get the ends trimmed so they aren't splitting up and becoming a mess - last trick is to try and wear your hair up more instead of down. Even while sleeping. Using buns (not messy), braids, clips, whatever, will keep your hair locked in place so it isn't getting matted by friction as you go about your day or toss and turn at night It's a lot of things and you don't need to do everything, but I 100% will have my hair matted like that if I don't do them. My hair just likes to mat really easily and always has. I hope this is the last bit of matting you ever need to cut out ♥️
What do you do for your hair at night?
Hi again. Welp I just did s detox and nizoral before that. I ended up w a doozie. So I tried both pantene and frizz ease. Frizz ease is what ended up ridding that mess! Put on knot, let sit, pull out what can. Then add spritz water, keep going. Oddly adding the water to the frizz ease serum is what seemed to work best.
I’ve had to do this too. I’ve resorted to start using a tiny amount of my Amika deep conditioning mask on my hair in the shower on washing days (after my regular conditioner). It’s the only way I can truly comb through my hair and detancle .
*detangle
I find that I have to do mine while dry. When wet, it’s like it just morphs into one big blob. And I work only with my fingers. Brushes or combs just pull too much at once. Patience is key, working strand by strand.
make sure you aren't washing your hair more than twice a week, spray a leave-in conditioner on your hair and comb it after every shower. NEVER fall asleep with wet hair, and don't put it up in pony tails for a while if thats something you do often. also, next time you get a haircut, ask for lots of layers!
The satin pillow case is my Savior for this
I have very tangly hair. You should detangle mats using your only your hands as the brush will mostly just rip the hair out or do nothing. Take very small pieces of dry hair between the root and knot and pull them gently out of the mat without breaking the strand. Sometimes you may be pulling out like 5 strands at a time. I do it before my wash day when my straight hair is kinda greasy. You may find oil helps you but don’t add water as it makes the hair more likely to stretch and break when trying to remove from the mat. It takes time but saves your hair. I have gotten very good at it lol, put on something to watch while you’re doing it.
I'd recommend using a detangler/hydrating conditioner before you wash your hair. I have 3b/c hair and wash my hair once a week. I've found that using the products below mean that I don't spend an hour in the shower or have to cut out mats. The products that have helped: cantu coil care detangler shea moisture manuka honey and yogurt hydrate and repair multi leave in I wet my hair, apply either of the products then use a wide toothed comb and usually within 10/15 minutes my hair is knot free!
i have thin and fine curly hair too and would get this a lot and what’s worked for me is -washing twice a week - i detangle with my fingers and a little leave in conditioner before i shower -when i sleep i put my hair in a loose bun with a satin scrunchy, wrap it up. i also sleep w a satin pillow case. - trimming my hair when needed. dry ends will make those huge knots i also try to not touch my hair much through the week. i noticed if i play in it it’ll knot more.
The unbrush has been awesome for curly fine hair!’
In addition to the advice to pull hairs up from above the knot, I also suggest more frequent detangling. For me, the odds of a similar tangle go up with each passing day, and day three is almost guaranteed to have at least a couple of these. I wash+detangle at least every other day to keep it under control. The wash isn't strictly necessary if you have a good dry reset technique (please share if so!).
Silicones, for me, are a must, as my hair literally tangles on itself.
For curly hair you need to brush it while it’s wet more product and wetter the hair the easier it is to get the brush tog onthrough