HUGE knot

I had a similar situation a while back, and what I did was I poured Infusium leave-in on it, and then worked from the bottom up with a small brush. Granted, my knot wasn't too huge, but it worked quite well.

If she won't let anyone see the knot, how do you know there is one? Maybe she's just making it up as an excuse because she wants to cut her hair but thinks she won't be allowed, whether it's by her own family, friends, or her bf. If there really were a huge knot and she wanted it out, I would think she'd be showing it to any and everyone she could to see if they could get it out.

Hi all,

I don't know what is going on in the hair universe these days, but I have received at least 5 private AskKaren emails in the past 2 weeks from different people with huge knots or tangled hair problems.

This is one topic that always frustrates me because for the most part, when hair is totally tangled and has been tangled for more than a few days, it is usually impossible to untangle. Usually the only option is a scissors which is a bad last resort IMO.

I can understand someone not wanting to show their tangles. One woman wrote that her college daughter had a huge knot at the back of the nape of her neck and the daughter did not want her mother to see it. The mother told me she literally grabbed her daughter's hair and lifted it up to see the knot.

I went through my own tangling situation a few months ago at the salon and wrote an article about it called Running From Scissors. In my situation the stylist wanted to cut the knot out, which would have removed about 8 inches of my hair length. Since the stylist caused the knot in the first place when she washed my hair, I was not in the mood to let her destroy my hair because of her original careless damage and took the knotted mess into my own hands.

At any rate...here is what worked for me:

1. I slathered each tangled section with Phyto 9. It has Macademia Nut oil and will detangle just about anything that can be untangled. The oils instantly soften the hair and will help make it easier to unwind.

I only had to use about 1/8 th of a tube of 9 on my hair which is why I love the Phyto 7 and 9 leavein/detanglers so much. They are expensive but only a tiny blob will work and I can make a tube last for 1 year.

2. Aveda Curressence Spray. It has silcones and will help soften as well.

NEVER wet tangled hair. Water makes it worse. Separate each tangled section into 1-2 inch sections and then use a good faux tortoise shell(since real tortoise is a crime to own) wide tooth comb and carefully & slowly work from the bottom up.

I have a Kent comb because they are so soft...almost like butter....and it will glide through easily. A wooden comb will work if it is totally smooth. A wide tooth pick made out of faux tortoise is also good because the teeth can help get in close to the source of the knots.

When my hair was so tangled, I separated the tangled sections into 2 inch blobs and then sprayed the top w/ Aveda and slathered each section at the bottom with Phyto 9 and then carefully detangled and combed. It took me a few hours to get all the tangles out but I did.

I also clipped off each section when I finished untangling to keep it from retangling with the still tangled mess.

So whether the girlfriend mentioned above really just wants a haircut or is embarrassed by her hair, tangles are hell.

Best wishes,
Karen

Hi! Thanks SO much for all the replies. Just wanted to say that I know the tangle is there because, 1)my son has seen it and he has no reason to lie about it, 2)I have spoken with the grandmother who has tried to get it out. The gf is quite close to her grandma, and, I guess, therefore not embarrassed to show it to her. She IS a very self conscious girl and a little bit shy, which is why I guess she won't show me. I have been around her some, but not a whole lot, and although I really didn't understand why she wouldn't show me, I didn't press the issue.
I may go by Sally's tomorrow and see if they have any of the Phyto 9....thanks SO MUCH Karen, for responding personally. Very much appreciated. (my name is Karen, also ).
Well, again, thanks to everyone who responded. I will certainly pass along the info to her. This is a very neat place, and since I totally goof my hair up all the time , I'm sure I'll be coming back a lot. Hope you all have a GREAT day!

Thank you, Karen! I remember having a huge knot when I was about 11 and my hair was waist length. It was horribe! I refused to let my mom cut it and we tried everything people suggested, from peanut butter to ice. Finally my mom just spent a long time combing through it. I'm now letting my hair grow long again and I hope I never get a huge knot again. Those are the worst and I think now I would just cut my hair to get rid of them.