True Life: I Don't Use a Comb or Brush on My Hair

Seriously. I own two wide-toothed combs that I have stopped using completely. Why? Because my hair is immensely curly and raking through it with a brush or comb does more damage than good. I have a mixture of 4a/b hair with lots of little 4a coils that are most prominent when my hair is wet, and a ton of loose-ish 4b S-patterned curls all over. While not everyone's hair falls nicely into these categories, this handy chart illustrates most hair types:

Hair that falls within the 3 or 4 range is more likely to become tangled than hair with a looser curl, or no curl at all. If you have hair that is very curly, detangling is a must, as curly hair can end up curling into other strands, creating knots, tangles, and even matted hair if you're not careful. While some folks use a comb or a Denman brush to detangle, I think those tools are too rough on the hair. I'm a proponent of wet detangling, even though hair is weaker when wet, because I find the hair is easier to work with. If you use a Denman brush or comb to detangle, you will often hear that dreaded *snap* as your hair breaks from being stretched beyond its breaking point, which is especially prone to happen when hair is wet.

Don't do this to yourself.

In my opinion, the most gentle tool you can use to detangle your hair is your own fingers. With your fingers, you can feel if your hair is being stretched or manipulated to the point of breaking, and then stop before your hair actually breaks. I typically finger detangle my hair during the conditioning process; the conditioner adds slip to my hair, making it easy to finger-comb my hair gently, effectively getting rid of knots and tangles. I've noticed healthier hair since I've given up on combs. Even if you're not focused on length retention, finger combing is an easy way to avoid literally ripping and breaking your hair.

How do you detangle?