Mer-Care for Mer-Hair

[Nereid's Looking Glass]

I need to head to my local co-op and get me some hibiscus something-or-the-other, coconut oil, and manuka honey for a DIY hair mask. Never tried coconut oil directly in my hair but I feel, now that I'm growing it out, it needs a lot more moisture for the ends. Some castor oil should help it grow faster too.

I tell you what, but Pantene and Garnier are some of the worst brands that exacerbate my acne on my face and back. They're heavy in sulfates, which strip your natural oils and make your scalp overcompensate, and waxes, which clog your pores. I switched to Dove and my hair was softer and less oily overall (Garnier and Pantene were weighing my hair down), but a lot of the damage had already been done on my back (even on my chest!) and even Dove can't hold a candle to the SheaMoisture and L'Anza products I'm using now.

[Little_Orca]

Woo! This thread is still going. Nice.

So, sorry I have not checked in on it. If anyone still has questions, I will try to help, but since it has been so long I figure more people foudn their answers elsewhere?

And sure, this can be reworked and put in a magazine (if that is still an option.) I can work on it sometime, but just let me know.

Further, my brands have changed a little as I am always looking for what works best on my hair, but that is part of the fun of long hair. Constant experiments.

[Mermaid Freyja]

I'll also add that the Ion swimmer's shampoo/cond/leave in spray, is pretty great at keeping my light blonde locks from turning green.
Doesn't do much to keep my occasional pink hair color from fading out, and I notice that sometimes it will make my hair feel like it has an odd coating. As if I didn't rinse it out well enough, but that's probably the conditioning spray. Anyone else experience this? It's great before getting into the pool though.
I totally want to try that Angel hair care line SeaGlass posted earlier in the thread. My hair needs the moisture!
xoxo

[AniaR]

I dont think people fully "get" just how bad the local pools bleach my hair. I take every measure possible to protect my hair, but I am just in the chlorine that much. I have even cut my hair to a pixie cut twice during my mermaiding career to cut off all the dead hair. Every once in a while I redye it back to my natural auburn (though the red tends to pop thanks to the bleach) but it rarely lasts through a swim or two. I get an unintentional ombre effect. I haven't dyed my hair since November...







I am not naturally blonde in any way shape or form. Or even light haired. I try to dye it to match close to my original. Because of the bleach it always turns out a brighter red (unless I go to a salon and get a filler then it's a darker auburn)



This is a photo of me (little me!) from 2006 with my natural hair so you have a sense...



It's always brighter like that in the summer, then more like this in winter:




Since I have started mermaiding I don't feel that my hair grows at all.

This underwater pic from 2011 is about as long as I was able to keep it as a mermaid before it started breaking and falling out all the time




I had a hair dresser convince me once to go blonde to "embrace" it and well, it didnt really suit me... (2011)



Blonde was hard to keep up with the roots and my hair got worse and worse. (more 2011)




Chopped it all off and went back to red when I visited Raven in very early 2012




I HAVEN'T CUT IT SINCE! (beyond normal dead end control etc)

Mimi's wedding this past July, not a whole lot of growth for over 2 years



Here's an example of what 1-2 swims does to the color...





But yes, here we are. Unintentinally back at blonde with dye on my head tonight.


The only thing I can think of it to go to a darker brown or even black and then maybe put a bit of red over the top so I still feel like "me" with red tones but perhaps the black or brown will stick better.

I dont *want* to dye my hair so much I just cant stand how destroyed it looks when it goes blonde. I think it washes out my features and I look to much like my mother and I just want my normal auburn lol.

[Mermaid Jaffa]

I had my hair dyed a dark chocolate color, my natural hair color is black with streaks of silver. After one swim, the chemical dye started to fade. I think with any type of hair dye its going to fade and ruin even faster from chlorine. Not so sure about salt water, haven't swam in a salt water yet. And crunchy!

Does your hair go crunchy, Raina? Sometimes it feels like I've got a dried up bird's nest at the back of my head where I've missed applying coconut oil. Even though I've been very thorough with putting oil in it.

[AniaR]

yeah, well the only reason I dye hair at all is because the chlorine bleaches it to white. If it didnt do that I wouldnt dye it lol. it goes crunchy when it dries, mushy when wet, constantly hard to comb no matter how much oil I use or products. Always doing repair masks, always doing preventative stuff. tried all dyes (under hair dresser supervision), from box to salon, hennah to veggie. nothing sticks.

[Mermaid Jaffa]

Bald mermaid?

Though if you ever find a real fin cap, we'd like to know too!

[Prairie Mermaid Jamie]

While my hair damage is from constantly dying it and not from the pool (my pool here is very light on chemicals) I have learned a few things over the last 16 years.
The less chemicals in the dye, the less time itll last.
Red is the worst color for dying because it fades the fastest. Some Natural red dyes are actually made with crushed bug carcass, same thing they use in ketchup.
There is also no such thing as permanent dye. The hair cuticles dont open enough for the hair to be permanently altered at the core.
Dont waste money on manic panic or other vegan dyes if you swim alot. Vegan dyes dont open the cuticle, so its moreso painting the hair.
How you dye your hair affects how long it lasts. If you dye it while its room temp it wont last as long as if you warm it up under tinfoil or plastic. Keeping it wet the whole time is better then letting it dry. It cant soak up the dye in the cuticles unless its wet. Tinfoil or plastic wrap and a blowdryer help keep it warm so it soaks in better. Dont dye overly damaged hair. It only makes it worse. Especially boxed hair dye. It has the most extra crap in it.
Toner can help. It keeps the pool water from drastically changing the color so quickly. Its what kept my hair white for two years. Its a purple color. Hair care products for blondes usually have it too.

Hot oil treatments can help but it gets to the point where there is nothing you can do but cut it off. Crunchy hair is a very bad sign. The best prevention is for your scalp. It is what feeds your hair. Uv protection is also very helpful. Any heat at all opens up the cuticle and allows the color to come out and all the crap in the atmosphere in. Shampoos that dont really lather are better then ones that do. The lather is what strips your hair, bad stuff and good. Thats why hair feels gross and stringy when washed but not conditioned.

My personal method: coconut oil on dry hair and the whole scalp and let it soak in for 10-15 minutes. I rub chips of it on instead of melting it.
I use Wen, not shampoo unless my hair is actually dirty (then I use ag smooth aragon shampoo). I condition with a combo of Redken extreme anti snap hair mask and AG sleek aragon conditioner and let it soak. I rinse both with lukewarm water. When I get out I dunk my head into ice cold water to seal the cuticles shut.
to dry it off I gently squeeze the hair ends with a towel. Dont rub!. I use more redken extreme anti snap leave in mixed with ag aragon leave in and healthy sexy hair leave in with cocoa butter. Detangle with a wide tooth comb. I use my hair straightener when its finally air dry and spray a light mist of leave in conditioner then a quick slide with the straightener to help seal it it. The heat opens the cuticle to let in the conditioner but the pressure keeps them shut. My hair is almost waist length and very thin but in fantastic shape considering all I do to it. Before I swim I rinse my hair with ice cold water in the sink, shampoo and condition when done at the pool, the to the sink for more cold water.. Ive been swimming alot in the last 6 months and so far my hair is in the same shape it was before I got my tail. It takes a very long time to heal hair. It took me over two years to get from the mushy, delicate, sneeze-and-it-falls-out hair to somewhat healthy. Without having to hack it all off. I bleach my bang area to white to wear my lace front wigs and its just as healthy as the non bleached rest of it. I get a trim every couple months and thats about it.

Dont know if this will help anyone but it works for me.

[Mermaid Jaffa]

I didn't have crunchy hair when my hair wasn't dyed. I'm going to let it fade, then if I feel it makes a difference in having dyed or un-dyed chlorine hair, I'll get it redone. Except this time, I'd like to try a henna dye.

[AniaR]

Thanks for sharing your routine I honestly already do very similar. *sigh* just the nature of the beast I think!!

[Prairie Mermaid Jamie]

One day someone will invent something to put in hair before swimming that blocks the chemicals from coming in and will make a fortune.
When I get some extra cash im gonna try to attach a wig to a swim cap. Arda wigs now has a canadian store so no brokerage! Their wigs are amazing in and out of water.

[AniaR]

I've heard good things about adra. I know Hannah has short hair but she always wears extensions in the water. I wish I could figure out something like that. Chop off some dead hair and get good extensions lol

[Prairie Mermaid Jamie]

Id like to know what she uses. My hair extention cant survive a pool so I went with synthetic.

[Mermaid Strega]

I didn't have crunchy hair when my hair wasn't dyed. I'm going to let it fade, then if I feel it makes a difference in having dyed or un-dyed chlorine hair, I'll get it redone. Except this time, I'd like to try a henna dye.

Henna is amazing. I used body art quality henna (with no metals or chemicals in it) to glaze my already red hair. I've never had issues with fading and it's been glossed for over a year. I'm not sure how it will do when exposed to chlorine for long periods though.

[Theobromine]

I second the henna love. I just want to point out, though, in case not everyone is aware, that there is a HUGE difference between body art quality (BAQ) henna, and henna that you find in a salon that's actually sold as hair dye. DON'T USE THE STUFF SOLD AS HAIR DYE. Ironic, I know, but BAQ henna is MUCH purer and finer, just higher quality in general. It doesn't contain metallic salts or other ingredients that can harm your hair or react negatively with other types of dyes. It doesn't just sit in the hair shaft, it actually forms a permanent bond with the keratin in your hair, which actually strengthens the hair shaft. I actually started using henna just as a conditioner, but I ended up loving the color of it too. I've never experienced fading, I just have to touch up my roots now and then, and I swear the henna actually makes my hair grow faster (stimulates the scalp or something? I dunno). Just, I used to have such problems growing my hair and keeping it long, and now it grows like a flaming weed and I have to keep trimming the ends just so I don't sit on it all the time. I'm definitely a henna addict for life. I'll post a picture of it later if anyone's interested. Here's a really good informational site with how-to's and an explanation of the science of henna: http://hennaforhair.com/ I encourage anyone to check it out who's looking for a natural, permanent red hair dye/conditioner. I can't sing its praises enough.

[Mermaid Strega]

Have you had the henna react at all to the chlorine? I'm a natural red head but I use henna to brighten it up a bit. (Dire need of a root touch up myself!) I used henna from mehandi. It's wonderful!

[Miyu]

Bald mermaid?

*pokes head in* actually, this is one reason I went bald... No matter how well I take care of my hair, it likes to get damaged sooo easily (and I hardly swim!). Couple that with my love for funky hair colours and it means my head is covered in mushy cotton-candy hair. Plus I have this chronic hereditary scalp problem my physician's trying to help me treat, and having hair only makes it worse (especially in my climate - rainforest = constantly humid)... So I am actually a bald mermaid, heehee



(I'm going to "bic" my head for the first time this weekend, yay! Got those pesky moles removed!)

[MermaidAine]

I know this is an older thread, but I wanted to share this with those of you that love your mermaid colored hair. I just discovered this line and ordered a trial size of the extreme red to see if it helps keep my red in a bit longer than normal. I will let you all know how it I like it.

http://overtone.co/products/daily-co...ner-sample-set

[Mermaid Freyja]

I know this is an older thread, but I wanted to share this with those of you that love your mermaid colored hair. I just discovered this line and ordered a trial size of the extreme red to see if it helps keep my red in a bit longer than normal. I will let you all know how it I like it.
http://overtone.co/products/daily-co...ner-sample-set

Oooh, that stuff looks interesting, thanks for sharing Mermaid Aine!
Though I'm blonde I don't have platinum blonde hair currently, and it's probably a bad idea to try it again for now.
But the pastel or vibrant options in the pink shade may be a good way to keep my pink color from fading so drastically after each swim.
xoxo

[AniaR]

I never did share this here, interview with my master stylist while she works on my hair about mermaid hair