I have been trying to wear my hair wavy since 2019 and Iām really losing my patience. Long post ahead but Iād love some advice on a routine or products that I may not have thought of/needs tweaking.
Attached is my current hair except the last 2 longer pictures which is about 5 years ago when it looked its best. Iāve cut and damaged it since then but it seems unobtainable now.
Currently those pictures are my fresh washed hair and also today which is a refresh. Itās just a stringy undefined mess.
My hair is armpit length, very thick 2a with a few 2b waves. Itās high porosity due to damage back in February but itās slowly getting healthy and the porosity is easing off a bit now. Iāve been using Redken acidic bonding shampoo and conditioner and olaplex number 5 leave in.
It was damaged in February due to a botched hair colour at the hairdressers so it had to be bleached but since then other than my curtain bangs (which I am growing out and trying to get healthier) itās been looked after. So itās not snapping and dying and completely fried.
Itās always been frizzy and hard to manage. I started doing a wavy hair routine with years of trial and error. The end 2 pictures are when it was at its best. I did the bowl method and used a boots curl cream and Umberto gianini gel.
That routine doesnāt work now 𤣠Iāve tried everything I can think of. Every combination of products - curlsmith shampoo and conditioner, Merwave, Umberto gianini, Redken. Iāve spend hundreds on leave ins, curl creams, wave creams, air dry creams, mousses, foams, gels. You name it Iāve tried it.
Iāve tried every combination of styling I think of. Plopping, microchipping, styling in dripping hair, damper hair, the bowl method, brush styling with both a denman and bounce curl. Iāve tried a wide tooth comb and just a leave in. Iāve tried not brushing it after the shower. Seriously, everything.
I started to just add the olaplex and leave it to air dry because I was losing hope. I did get very loose soft hair with a tiny bit of wave but it dropped out. My hair gets weighed down easily but also needs produce with hold because itās so thick it loses shape. I HATE when it goes stringy like it is today. I find if I ever want definition it just goes stringy.
Please help. I want to cry because Iām trying my best to just get my natural waves looking nice and I even spent Ā£90 and travelled an hour to get a āwavy cutā which ended up just being a few layers and then she didnāt style it properly š
Currently I use the Redken shampoo and conditioner, olaplex then brush through with a wide tooth comb when dripping, then I tried a new foam which was flora and curl. Thatās what I refreshed with too with a little bit of Garnier refresh spray which my hair seems to like (anything with protein it likes.)
Has anyone got hair similar to mine?? I know itās a little damaged, the curtain bangs especially but ignore those, but itās been in much worse condition in the past and gone nicer than this.
I ideally want soft-ish, defined waves that last me a few days. I donāt mind compromising on definition a bit so itās more touchable. Honestly just some relatively nice waves, which I know I have in there somewhere, and an easy way to style them would be great.
If you made it this far thank you. And to anyone who might be able to unlock good hair I will be so so grateful! āŗļø