Many women feel limited to stretched styles, because they cannot achieve second-day hair with a wash and go. Well, it does not have to be that way. Your natural hair journey should be all about doing what works for you, and sometimes (or a lot of times”> that means tailoring steps in your regimen to suit your needs. There are a few ways I have modified my pineapple process — from putting it up at night, to taking it down in the morning for a weeklong wash and go. A few of the most important tweaks I’ve made in my process have been discovering what not to do.
What NOT to do
Here are five things I don’t do when I pineapple. Watch my video tutorial afterwards to see my secret weapon (hint, I do it in the car”>.
Use a hair tie
Using a hair tie to secure your pineapple can create an impression after removing it in the morning. This may work for looser curl patterns, but it does not work for my afro-textured hair. Type 4 has the best hold memory out of the hair textures, so with that in mind, I coif my hair into a pineapple using only a satin bonnet and scarf. Forgo all hair ties and scrunchies, especially on short and medium lengths, as you may be pulling the hair, creating loss of curl definition.
Use an afro pick
Using an afro pick or comb creates great volume, but it can also cause frizz, which can shorten the longevity of your style. If you live in a climate with high humidity and high dew points, you can rely on the weather to do its job. Your hair will likely lift and naturally fall throughout the day.
Fluff
This does nothing but create frizz. Since I have low- to medium-density hair, the only styles that I fluff are stretched styles because my scalp is more exposed. With a wash and go, I embrace the shrinkage. The pineapple will naturally create more height, and driving with the windows down is another way to achieve more volume.
Spritzing does nothing but cause tangles, frizz, and shrinkage with my coils. The way that my hair responds to spritzing with water is equivalent to walking outside when it is drizzling. It contracts and becomes slightly matted. I reserve spritzing my hair for when I am twisting and braiding for a style the next day. If you are moisturizing your hair daily, you should consider changing your moisturizer or leave-in conditioner. Here are my suggestions:
I wish the back of my hair was perfectly round, but it is not, and I have accepted that. There is a difference between not wanting to look a hot mess, which is relative, and striving for perfect hair. I do not rush back to the shower if my hair begins to frizz on second or third day hair. Accept that your hair is unique like your fingerprint and embrace that. Now, if you are tired of experiencing frizzy, matted hair with your pineapple, check out my tutorial below.
Watch how I take down my pineapple
Have any tips to share for taking down your pineapple? Share them with us below!
This article was originally posted in 2015 and has been updated for clarity and grammar.
Let’s play a game. What do you think of when you hear the word “mousse?” If you’re anything like me, it may bring up associations with crunchy curls, the 80s, and drying alcohols, but you should know that things have changed. Hairstyles, techniques, brands, and product formulas have all evolved since the days of teased, crispy curls. But because we still get flashbacks when we pick up a bottle of mousse, we spoke with a few curly hair experts about when to use mousse, who should be using mousse today – and who shouldn’t.
Why use a mousse?
Brooke Michie, curl stylist and owner of Lyric Salon in Austin, Texas, first made me reconsider mousse when she used it in Grace’s wavy hair transformation. She loves using mousse on her curly haired clients because it’s “easy to apply, economical per use, has buildable coverage and hold, and can be layered with so many other types of products.”
Maya Smith, International Master of Natural Curls and founder of The Doux®, a haircare line she created specifically for naturally curly hair, says mousse can be used for “any style that requires definition and light hold. It can be used not only to set wash & go’s, but for twist outs and rod sets as well.”
As I’ve been starting to experiment with mousse more, I’ve wondered if I can use it on my dry hair as a refresher on second-day hair. According to Maya, “Mousse is best applied to wet hair for Wash & Go styling, but it can also be used to set a dry twist-out and to redefine the curl pattern. I wouldn’t recommend using it to replenish moisture on next-day hair.”
What causes that crunch?
Maya says, “It’s common for mousse to be combined with gel or cream because most mousse on the market contain alcohol to make the hair dry faster. They are also polymer-rich, which creates a sticky coating on the hair, much like a hairspray. This can leave hair feeling dry and stiff. We formulated our Mousse Def as an all-in-one solution for this problem. It creates the shine and definition of a mousse, yet leaves hair soft and touchable with no flaking.”
Maya recommends watching out for ingredients such as sodium laurel sulfate (SLS, Isopropyl, and Prolyene, which “have been found to cause breakage and dry out your hair). The best way to achieve healthy hair is to have that balance between protein and moisture.”
Brooke says it depends on the mousse, “lightweight, airy mousse or foam is great for wavy hair. Denser mousse is great for 2s and 3s and as a thin layer of added hold for more definition over a moisture foundation for well-hydrated 4s even!” For Maya, it depends on the hairstyle: “I recommend mousse for hair up to Type 4B, depending on the desired results.”
But before you rule mousse out for your Type 4C coils, Gerilyn Hayes, NaturallyCurly Senior Copywriter, loves using mousse on her 4C wash and go (like Camille Rose Spiked Honey Mousse). “I use about 5-6 pumps of mousse in my hair after shampooing and conditioning. I do this because I want to make sure that I’m starting with a clean scalp and curls that are free from any other previous products. And because my curls are very coarse and need lots of hydration, I make sure that my curls are soaked with water (which is why the shower is great for applying mousse to my hair).
To avoid product and water getting into my eyes, I flip my head over and scrunch my curls’ ends to my scalp. Although I do not have a lot of length, I still use this ends-to-root scrunching method to get the optimal curl definition. Sometimes I rake the mousse through my curls and then wrap them in a scarf, giving them more shine. Although rake versus scrunching may look similar to any onlooker, the textural differences are apparent to me!”
Who shouldn’t use mousse?
“Curls with moisture as the number one priority,” says Brooke, “or those who don’t need a product with general hold, but seek more of a product/product combo to hydrate than seal.” So if your curls are thirsty and your top priority is moisture, then you may want to opt for something like the LOC Method, which layers a leave-in for moisture, an oil to seal in the moisture, and then a cream for hold.
When to use mousse
Brooke prefers “the lightest weight mousse (she loves Bread Beauty Supply Hair Foam) in wavy hair for primary, general hold,” and this is how she recommends applying it:
On freshly rinsed detangled hair in the shower, glaze a small amount over the surface area of the hair.
Then flip and glaze another small amount over the underneath surface area.
Then, apply the majority of it via scrunching and distribute it in your palms, making sure not to flatten the airiness of the foam.
Before scrunching the ends of the hair up toward the scalp with a flat palm into a clenched fist motion, rotating your head to reach curls on either side.
If you’re using a denser foam and need more moisture, Brooke recommends applying it:
Once a leave-in or moisture foundation is either combed through or scrunched in sopping wet hair.
Then add a little denser mousse by finger combing detangled sections, or for longer curls, scrunching as above.
“This will create a cast of hold,” says Brooke, but before you worry about the crunch, remember you need to break that cast by scrunching out the crunch. “Release the cast once hair is fully dry by touching curls gently, or scrunching once more to release the wet-looking hold that was necessary during the drying process to maximize definition.”
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