Scrunching causes frizz?

MarleneCb

So, I've been trying to go natural and have used all sulfate, silicone free products for about 2 and a half months now. No heat. The process I do is more or less like this: Shampoo then rinse out - condition - leave in for a few mins - rinse some out - detangle with wide tooth comb while under running cold water - scrunch a little (at this point I already start to see some light frizz) - turn water off - put on my curl enhancing smoothie while scrunching and twirling some clumps (more frizz) - hop out of the shower, hair still soaking wet - spray on some leave in conditioner - scrunch a bit of gel in (MOORE WET FRIZZ) - Then I plop and leave it on for a while... Since my hair starts getting frizzy while still wet it is no surprise that it'll be twice as frizzy when dry. After plopping I just let it air dry because if I dare diffuse it just becomes a-whole-nother mess! 

*Update: My hair is, I believe, medium to low porosity. It tends to be pretty dry, split ends are common. Very thick and coarse. I have been using products like Maui and Shea Moisture. 

WavyKfromNJ

MarleneCb said:

I think my hair is low porosity, it takes a long time to dry. I dont know if it has protein overload as I don't know how to tell that. It's naturally very dry and I usually have quite a bit of split ends. Lately it's been very shiny though, but not greasy... the hair just shines which I thought was because it was healthy. It can be quite stiff sometimes too, and I can't do the pinapple thing to sleep because in the morning it just sticks up and I won't come back down.. Does this sound like too much protein?

The shine usually indicates Low Porosity hair.  

Here is a helpful post about moisture/protein balance and how to tell what you need:
http://rockyncurls.blogspot.com/search/label/Protein and Overconditioning

If you do have low porosity hair it needs some extra TLC when you need moisture, since the cuticle blocks the moisture:
http://science-yhairblog.blogspot.com/2014/07/moisturizing-low-porosity-hair.html

It doesn't matter if you have high or low porosity hair you should have a clarifying shampoo in your routine.

BrittanyM

Is this a somewhat new issue? From personal experience, I only experienced wet frizz when I had product build up. Even though you are silicone free, you may have had a sneaky one or you can still experience product building. I suggest a sulfate clarifying shampoo followed by your most moisturizing deep conditioner. A sulfate every once in a while isn't too harsh. Try that. Another tip is to be gentle while scrunching. Best of luck!

WavyKfromNJ

Tell us more about your hair is it high or medium or low porosity?
What is the density?
Is your hair fine or course or medium?

What products do you use and when do you apply them?

Therese1

When I have this issue, it is either because of product build-up or because I have a bit too much protein (I have protein-sensitive, low-porosity hair). If the issue is build-up, a clarifying shampoo is required, as @BrittanyM mentioned. If the frizz is from too much protein, then I would suggest doing a deep conditioning with a protein-free conditioner (let it sit on the hair for 30 mins.) and then stay away from protein-containing products for a couple of weeks. You should see immediate improvement after the deep conditioning, but it might take a couple of weeks for the excess protein to wear off.

MarleneCb

I think my hair is low porosity, it takes a long time to dry. I dont know if it has protein overload as I don't know how to tell that. It's naturally very dry and I usually have quite a bit of split ends. Lately it's been very shiny though, but not greasy... the hair just shines which I thought was because it was healthy. It can be quite stiff sometimes too, and I can't do the pinapple thing to sleep because in the morning it just sticks up and I won't come back down.. Does this sound like too much protein?

MarleneCb

WavyKfromNJ said:

MarleneCb said:

I think my hair is low porosity, it takes a long time to dry. I dont know if it has protein overload as I don't know how to tell that. It's naturally very dry and I usually have quite a bit of split ends. Lately it's been very shiny though, but not greasy... the hair just shines which I thought was because it was healthy. It can be quite stiff sometimes too, and I can't do the pinapple thing to sleep because in the morning it just sticks up and I won't come back down.. Does this sound like too much protein?

The shine usually indicates Low Porosity hair.  

Here is a helpful post about moisture/protein balance and how to tell what you need:
http://rockyncurls.blogspot.com/search/label/Protein and Overconditioning

If you do have low porosity hair it needs some extra TLC when you need moisture, since the cuticle blocks the moisture:
http://science-yhairblog.blogspot.com/2014/07/moisturizing-low-porosity-hair.html

It doesn't matter if you have high or low porosity hair you should have a clarifying shampoo in your routine.

Do you have any clarifying shampoos you would recommend? 

WavyKfromNJ

MarleneCb said:

WavyKfromNJ said:

MarleneCb said:

I think my hair is low porosity, it takes a long time to dry. I dont know if it has protein overload as I don't know how to tell that. It's naturally very dry and I usually have quite a bit of split ends. Lately it's been very shiny though, but not greasy... the hair just shines which I thought was because it was healthy. It can be quite stiff sometimes too, and I can't do the pinapple thing to sleep because in the morning it just sticks up and I won't come back down.. Does this sound like too much protein?

The shine usually indicates Low Porosity hair.  

Here is a helpful post about moisture/protein balance and how to tell what you need:
http://rockyncurls.blogspot.com/search/label/Protein and Overconditioning

If you do have low porosity hair it needs some extra TLC when you need moisture, since the cuticle blocks the moisture:
http://science-yhairblog.blogspot.com/2014/07/moisturizing-low-porosity-hair.html

It doesn't matter if you have high or low porosity hair you should have a clarifying shampoo in your routine.

Do you have any clarifying shampoos you would recommend? 

I usually use either Elucense Volume Clarifying Shampoo or Kinky Curly Come Clean.  I can't say I prefer one over the other, and there are lots out there
https://shop.naturallycurly.com/shampoos/clarifying-shampoos/

Gretchen

Hi @MarleneCb!  Welcome to CurlTalk!

Therese1

For clarifying, I like the Bumble and Bumble Sunday Shampoo. It is a very simple sulfate shampoo.

As far as how your hair reacts to protein, that's something that you just have to figure out through trial and error. Regardless, if your hair is naturally dry and low porosity, deep conditioning would be very helpful for you. If you want to find out if your hair is protein sensitive, I would do a deep conditioning with a protein-free condish and then stay away from protein-containing products for a week or so and see how your hair behaves. Then add a protein-containing product back in and see what happens.