Can you brush curly hair? Is it a good idea and what happens when you do brush out your curls?
Welcome back to Day 4 of the Hair Romance Good Hair Q&A series. I'm creating new videos to answer your hair questions, because if you're brave enough to ask it, you know that most of your friends are probably are wondering about it too.
This question came from my Hair Romance Crew (this is my free Facebook group and you can join just by clicking here – I just ask a simple question about how you found me because I'm really curious to know). The collective knowledge in this group is just fantastic.
Here's the question from Deb:
"I am curious about brushing and combing curly hair. I am currently only combing when my hair is wet and not brushing at all as it causes frizzy hair but I miss combing my hair every day. Is this really going to cause a problem aside from possibly pulling hair out if it's tangled? I am washing every five to seven days and co wash with conditioner every two to three days and use a scant bit of gel."
I love this question because it's all about creating a hair routine that suits you.
This is what happens when I brush my hair:
And while it's totally fun and I did wear it out like this (admittedly just to the salon) it might not be as wearable in your life.
Instead of brushing, detangling it at the end of the day with a little water spray or leave in conditioner might work or alternatively, adding in a head massage as part of your hair routine. It can be a nice way to mark the end of the day, to relax and unwind.
Check out my tips on head massages here. They're the best thing you can do to help promote blood flow to your scalp which in turn can help promote hair growth too.
If you're looking for some curly hairbrushes, these are the ones that I recommend:
Can you brush curly hair? Is it a good idea and what happens when you do brush out your curls?
Welcome back to Day 4 of the Hair Romance Good Hair Q&A series. I’m creating new videos to answer your hair questions, because if you’re brave enough to ask it, you know that most of your friends are probably are wondering about it too.
This question came from my Hair Romance Crew (this is my free Facebook group and you can join just by clicking here – I just ask a simple question about how you found me because I’m really curious to know). The collective knowledge in this group is just fantastic.
Here’s the question from Deb:
“I am curious about brushing and combing curly hair. I am currently only combing when my hair is wet and not brushing at all as it causes frizzy hair but I miss combing my hair every day. Is this really going to cause a problem aside from possibly pulling hair out if it’s tangled? I am washing every five to seven days and co wash with conditioner every two to three days and use a scant bit of gel.”
I love this question because it’s all about creating a hair routine that suits you.
This is what happens when I brush my hair:
And while it’s totally fun and I did wear it out like this (admittedly just to the salon) it might not be as wearable in your life.
Instead of brushing, detangling it at the end of the day with a little water spray or leave in conditioner might work or alternatively, adding in a head massage as part of your hair routine. It can be a nice way to mark the end of the day, to relax and unwind.
Check out my tips on head massages here. They’re the best thing you can do to help promote blood flow to your scalp which in turn can help promote hair growth too.
If you’re looking for some curly hairbrushes, these are the ones that I recommend:
The Black Diamond ReVolt is a fully featured rechargeable headlamp that can also be run using regular lithium-ion or alkaline AAA batteries. So-called dual-mode headlamps provide users with a way to ease into the rechargeable headlamp paradigm, which requires carrying a USB-compatible power pack. They also provide a good shit-hits-the-fan fallback strategy if find yourself someplace where you can't recharge your headlamp or power pack, but AAA batteries are readily available. Weighing 3.5 ounces (100 grams), the ReVolt has a sophisticated set of functions and features including a white and red light, strobe, dimmer, lock, and battery meter. But the ReVolt's control logic can be difficult to remember if it is used infrequently, which is often the tradeoff in using a richly featured headlamp.
Black Diamond ReVolt Instructions
Control Logic
The ReVolt has a single digital switch on top that controls all of the light's functions and provides access to the light's white, red, strobe, and dimmer functions. At any time, you can also tap the side of the lamp, called the power tap, which is a short-cut to turn the mode you're in up to full power. There's also a digital lock, if you hold the top button down for 4 seconds, something that I think is essential to prevent accidental discharges when packed.
The one function that stands out is the dimming capability which works in both the white and red modes. There aren't that many headlamps in this class (single strap/batteries housed with the LEDs) that have a dimming capability. Having a dimmer is very useful for close-up tasks like navigating with a map, reading in your tent, or cooking dinner, where less light is much easier on the eyes. But I suspect that it makes the control logic of the unit significantly more complicated compared to simpler headlamps where you can just cycle though a round robin of different modes with single button clicks.
I've owned past Black Diamond headlamps where the control logic is way too complicated and hard to remember. The ReVolt is kind-of borderline in that regard. The headlamp does a lot, but the written and graphical documentation included with the headlamp is poor. The best way to learn how to use the ReVolt, for me at lest, is to watch the Revolt instructional video on YouTube. If you carry a smartphone on hikes, I'd recommend taking a picture of the ReVolt documentation for future reference, even if it's really only good as a visual reminder. In the worst case, you can still get the lamp to work reasonably well if you forget the fine details and start pushing buttons.
The Black Diamond ReVolt includes 3 NiMH rechargeable batteries
Rechargeable Batteries
The ReVolt includes three AAA NiMH rechargeable batteries that can be recharged while they're inside the light using a micro-USB compatible cord. Note that Black Diamond locks you into using their proprietary AAA NiMH batteries if you want to be able to recharge the ReVolt. There's a hack that you can use to bypass this limitation so you can use 3rd party NiMH batteries.
You can also power the headlamp using regular AAA batteries, which is nice if you don't have ready access to a USB-compatible battery pack or wall recharger. Black Diamond does not recommend or warn against the use of lithium-ion AAA in their documentation, which is kind of odd, but I've found that they work well with the ReVolt. They also provide a way to use the headlamp in freezing temperatures, since the Black Diamond does not recommend the use of their NiMH batteries below 32F.
There are still some limitations with the NiMH batteries that you want to be aware off. First off, they're not as powerful as one-time Alkaline or Lithium-ion batteries and you'll experience very different light intensities using the ReVolt depending on which batteries you use. For example, if you use the three rechargeable NiMH batteries included with the headlamp, you can expect a max while light lumen output of 175 lumens for up to 6 hours. This is based on Black Diamond's optimistic published specs…I've found the performance to be considerably less. If you use three AAA alkaline batteries, you can expect a max output of 300 lumens for up to 30 hours. The difference is even greater if you only use the minimum light setting of 40 lumens. With the included NiMH batteries you can get up to 30 hours or light, versus 175 hours with alkaline batteries. You can however extend the battery life beyond these maximums by using the dimmer feature.
The NiMH batteries also take a fairly long time to charge, up to 5 hours. You also can't use the headlamp while it's recharging.
NiMH batteries are also known to lose power very rapidly if they sit around for a while, like 30%-40% per month (REI has a good article about battery longevity). You will probably need to recharge the ReVolt often if you use it with NiMH batteries. I'd go so far as to encourage you to recharge the device after each use and certainly before every hike or backpacking trip you take, even if you use it fairly frequently. Black Diamond suggests that you leave the headlamp plugged in to a USB charger when not in use because the headlamp will trickle charge itself automatically for 1 hour, every 24 hours, to make sure it's fully charged.
The ReVolt also comes with a battery power indicator, which I'm a big fan of on any headlamp. If the meter shines blue, the digital lock has been engaged. If it shines green, the battery is more than 50% charged, if it's orange, it's 25-50% charged, and if it's red, it's less than 25% charged. I wish the green light only indicated a 100% charge, since I think it's important to know when the headlamp is fully charged.
The ReVolt also has a battery meter, which is different from the battery power indicator. Its function is to signal different error modes, such as improperly seated batteries or batteries that have been discharged too much and need to be reconditioned in a wall charger (not included).
Recommendation
The Black Diamond ReVolt is a dual power headlamp that can be used with rechargeable NiMH (included), alkaline or lithium-ion AAA batteries. In addition to white and night vision preserving red modes, it has a dimming capability, which makes it easier to use for closeup tasks and helps extend battery life. A built-in battery power indicator and digital lock, to prevent accidental discharge, are also premium capabilities that are important for more technical trips.
I think the ReVolt is an excellent headlamp if used with regular batteries primarily, but that there are just too many little gotchas with the NiMH batteries to really count on them for primary use. While NiMH batteries and a built-in battery charger are included in the headlamp, they don't provide as much power as non-rechargeable AAA batteries, they don't work in cold temperatures, and they need to be recharged more frequently between uses. Still, there are use cases where having the NiMH batteries and built-in charger can be convenient and save you money and hassle over carrying spare AAA batteries.
For myself, I'm quite comfortable carrying a recharegable headlamp with a lithium battery and a power pack. But if you prefer the security of a dual-power rechargeable headlamp that can be also be powered by off-the-shelf AAA batteries, the Black Diamond ReVolt is one of the few quality headlamps available that provide that capability.
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Georgetown One by Anthem is the first new tower planned as part of the Surrey City Centre's 10 acre masterplanned community. The community itself is made up of seven residential towers, townhouses and 100,000 square feet of restaurant, office and retail space. The 30 storey Georgetown One tower includes 351 studios, one and two bedroom homes that are all efficiently designed. Amenities include co-working space, a glass covered outdoor theatre, fire-pit lounge, fully equipped gym and yoga studio, social lounge with wet bar, pool table and table tennis, entertainment kitchen and dining lounge, as well as a guest suite. In addition, Georgetown One is just steps from King George and Surrey Central SkyTrain station, along with the SFU Surrey campus and an abundance of retail amenities.
Georgetown One by Anthem is the first new tower planned as part of the Surrey City Centre’s 10 acre masterplanned community. The community itself is made up of seven residential towers, townhouses and 100,000 square feet of restaurant, office and retail space. The 30 storey Georgetown One tower includes 351 studios, one and two bedroom homes that are all efficiently designed. Amenities include co-working space, a glass covered outdoor theatre, fire-pit lounge, fully equipped gym and yoga studio, social lounge with wet bar, pool table and table tennis, entertainment kitchen and dining lounge, as well as a guest suite. In addition, Georgetown One is just steps from King George and Surrey Central SkyTrain station, along with the SFU Surrey campus and an abundance of retail amenities.
Centra Surrey City Centre by Everest Group is a new 24 floor highrise project that that brings urban conveniences to low density residential living in the Fraser Valley. The 167 unit building is perfect for families, in the fastest growing and largest school district in BC. The homes are designed spaciously with modern inspired interiors, featuring contemporary fully equipped kitchens, 8’8” ceilings, wide-plank laminate flooring and expansive windows. Centra also features over 16,000 sqft of indoor and outdoor amenities including a fitness centre, clubroom, co-work stations and yoga rooms, along with 24 hour concierge service. Just steps from Surrey City Centre, the cities transit and entertainment hub, has nearby amenities that include grocery shopping, retail, restaurants, parks and transit.
Centra Surrey City Centre by Everest Group is a new 24 floor highrise project that that brings urban conveniences to low density residential living in the Fraser Valley. The 167 unit building is perfect for families, in the fastest growing and largest school district in BC. The homes are designed spaciously with modern inspired interiors, featuring contemporary fully equipped kitchens, 8'8" ceilings, wide-plank laminate flooring and expansive windows. Centra also features over 16,000 sqft of indoor and outdoor amenities including a fitness centre, clubroom, co-work stations and yoga rooms, along with 24 hour concierge service. Just steps from Surrey City Centre, the cities transit and entertainment hub, has nearby amenities that include grocery shopping, retail, restaurants, parks and transit.
