i was going to try wearing my curls out on my vacation to florida because i loveeee them but after spending 2 hours on washing and styling i don’t know if i really can since i’m always in the water 😭😭💔💔

I have thick 3C/4A curly hair and I’m struggling with fairy knots and split ends. I take vitamins/prenatals + vitamin D, get regular trims, and try to take care of my hair, but somehow I notice split ends again super quickly after trimming.

I love wearing my hair curly in wash-and-gos and don’t want to live in protective styles 24/7 just to retain length. For people with similar hair types who grew long healthy hair while still wearing wash-and-gos, what helped?

Things I’m wondering:

• How often do you wash?
• Do you diffuse or air dry?
• What products helped with moisture + hold?
• How do you prevent fairy knots?
• How often do you trim?
• Do you stretch your hair at night?
• Is there a way to keep curls defined without causing tons of tangles/single-strand knots?

I feel like every time my hair starts growing, the ends start splitting again and I lose progress.

i just used flaxseed gel as a styler and not just a prepoo and my gel cast is so strong i was not expecting this much definition!!!!!

I’m looking for a strong hold product or product combo that actually works for high porosity hair without drying it out.

My hair absorbs moisture super fast, like it feels hydrated for a second and then it’s gone. I need something that will give me a strong hold and a slight cast, but not make my hair stiff or crunchy.

I really want my curls to still have movement and volume. I hate when my hair gets stuck to my head or feels hard. I’m definitely more of a volume person.

I also need something that can hold up in humidity, especially for summer, because my hair tends to lose definition really quickly.

For reference, my hair struggles to hold styles even when I use strong hold gels, and it tends to feel dry in certain sections no matter how much product I use.

If anyone has product combos (like leave-in + gel + mousse layering) that give hold, moisture, and volume, please share.

My curls feel really rough, almost like straw. When I put product in, it looks okay for maybe 30 seconds, then it goes right back to feeling dry and rough again. The weird part is it’s only happening in certain sections, mainly the back of my hair, not really the front.

I get so frustrated because the front of my hair turns out fine, but the back is always super dry and brittle. It genuinely feels like there’s no product in it at all even though I’ve used a lot. It also feels like it needs to be detangled even though I already detangled it, and it just doesn’t seem to absorb or hold onto any product.

Routine:

1. Shampoo/Conditioner: I use Olaplex shampoo and conditioner, and I also use the Niche Beauty deep conditioner.
2. Styling Products & Application: I use Honey Hydrate by Camille Rose as a leave-in, then The Doux Honey Butter Gel. Sometimes I add The Doux Def Mousse and sometimes I skip it. I finish with the Olaplex gel as a topper because my hair doesn’t hold well, even with strong hold gels. i’ll use the unbrush or bounce curl styling sometimes but mainly don’t brush style
3. Drying Method: diffusing majority of the time air drying if i’m lazy lol
4. Other Info: I detangle before the shower with flaxseed gel and i use the tangle teezer . I’ve only been wearing my natural hair for about a year to a year and a half. My hair is colored, but I haven’t dyed it in about a year. My hair struggles to hold styles and drops very easily. I really don’t mind frizz i’m a frizz lover but what my hair does isn’t even frizz it’s weird and spongy