OCM equivalent for hair?

[MeganJoan]

I have super oily skin and also oily hair with dry ends (the perfect combo, not!)

My skin is oily type skin. When I go to buy products they always come back with, "oh combination skin, oily T zones?" and I have to be like, "No. Just oily everywhere" haha.

I like using oil on my skin because it seems to minimise the amount of oil that my skin produces. I prefer jojoba but am using coconut oil at the moment because, let's face it, it's SO much cheaper and seems to work well.

I've been experimenting with different ways to oil my hair and also control oil after the wash. I can't guarantee this will work for you, but here what I like to do.

I will cover my hair with coconut, all the way up to the roots, and massage it into my scalp. I like to take the opportunity to really massage it in (using fingertips, not nails if you have long ones like me).

Then I let it sit for a while and really soak in. A couple hours. Afterwards I CWC using De Lorenzo Control Shampoo and Control Intense Conditioner. They're salon brands, so not cheap. Not sure if they're available in the US or what prices are like. They're made in Aus, against animal testing, and I've found them to be great for my fine oily hair with dry ends. I'm lucky enough to have an ABN to get them from a beauty supplier. The shampoo is cone free, but the conditioner does have a cone in it. It's the type that doesn't build up on hair due to it's chemical structure so I'm fine with that and my hair loves it.

If I'm happy to have the ends of my hair look a bit oily I'll mix some coconut oil that I keep in the shower into wet ends after my last condition and then rinse it out a little bit, but if I want my hair to look good until next wash (I was every second day to keep it looking nice but I'm hoping to stretch that out if this method keeps working) then I won't put more oil on.

I think the trick is to get the oil into the scalp where production is happening, then get it off my hair with the wash. But I think it's just a method of experimenting with different things to see what works for your hair. Let me know if you try this and if it works for you at all

ETA: I don't do this every time I wash my hair, but I aim for once a week.

[lillielil]

I ended up oiling my scalp with the same mix I am currently using for my face (about 70% olive/ 30% castor). Massaged for a while and then let it sit for about an hour, then CWC'd with emphasis on the first C applied to scalp to help get out the oil. I need to find a better conditioner for this.

My scalp actually feels a lot better. The spots I already picked at are still bothersome, but the others have calmed down and there are no new ones today. It is too early to tell if oiling did anything for the excess oil production. It does not look or feel greasy, and as a bonus my hair feels very soft! I will try to repeat this at least once a week for a while, try oiling all my hair (I concentrated on scalp only) and see if I can more purposefully swap out some of my full washes for COs (assuming I can find a conditioner I like that actually cleanses - time to go read through the CO thread again since apparently "any bottle of Suave" is no longer a safe bet).

Thank you all for your help and suggestions! I'm glad my question wasn't super weird.

[Nymphe]

Wow, this thread exists. I have been mainly doing oil rinsing with castor oil since 2013 and gave up conditioner. Sorbolene [Purified Water, Paraffin (Soft White), Glycerin, Cetyl Alcohol, Stearyl Alcohol, Liquid Paraffin, Ceteareth 20, Chlorocresol] is sold in the US now, but I am not touching it due to the waxes and fatty alcohols in it. Trust, I got a DH who will not hesitate to tell me if I stink or my hair/scalp is dirty.

[FrayedFire]

I have super oily skin and also oily hair with dry ends (the perfect combo, not!)

My skin is oily type skin. When I go to buy products they always come back with, "oh combination skin, oily T zones?" and I have to be like, "No. Just oily everywhere" haha.

I like using oil on my skin because it seems to minimise the amount of oil that my skin produces. I prefer jojoba but am using coconut oil at the moment because, let's face it, it's SO much cheaper and seems to work well.

Rub the ends of your hair on your face, problem solved. XD

Now that I've stopped messing with my face, it's stablized somewhat, but not enough. I'm about to try something similar to the OCM, but I'm interested in finding something similar for scalp/hair...

Preening made a huge difference for my oily top, dry ends, cause, well... it's oil. I wonder if I could put drops of oil on my fingers and preen with it, and then maybe a co-wash sort of thing? I don't have any conditioner right now, though, because my mostly SO experiment has been so effective that I haven't needed it, and then I went and spent $20 on CV sample bars because when I do wash my hair, I want to use fancy soaps and I've heard so many good things from LHCers. Still no conditioner or oil.

[proo]

This all points to an SO routine imho
All the oil, way less manipulation, no product.

[FrayedFire]

I'm about to try something similar to the OCM, but I'm interested in finding something similar for scalp/hair...

Preening made a huge difference for my oily top, dry ends, cause, well... it's oil. I wonder if I could put drops of oil on my fingers and preen with it, and then maybe a co-wash sort of thing? I don't have any conditioner right now, though, because my mostly SO experiment has been so effective that I haven't needed it, and then I went and spent $20 on CV sample bars because when I do wash my hair, I want to use fancy soaps and I've heard so many good things from LHCers. Still no conditioner or oil.

Three and a half years later update - This actually kind of works, if I use some water and start the oil on my ends, it's similar to a SO method but makes my hair smell and look nicer.

Did NOT like the CV bars. I've been eyeballing the Viori Terrace Garden conditioner bar, but trying to finish out the year on my current routine.

Anyway, I'm resurrecting this thread because I wanted to ask which oils would be considered "cleansing" aside from tea tree oil?

[Neorago]

Oooh I do the OCM for my oily face. Castor oil and Jojoba Oil one day and plain water the next. I also had the idea, perhaps the same method would work my scalp? No such luck, it took a few washes to wash out completely (I didn't feel like I used that much!) and even after it washed out my scalp was kinda itchy for a bit.

FrayedFire so you oil your lengths with a few drops of oil and water and then the leftover oil on your tips, you massage into your scalp? I wonder if that could help me? Are you still SO or do you use shampoo after? Right now I use clay shampoo to control oily scalp but it's a kinda waxy shampoo so looking for other methods too

[FrayedFire]

Oooh I do the OCM for my oily face. Castor oil and Jojoba Oil one day and plain water the next. I also had the idea, perhaps the same method would work my scalp? No such luck, it took a few washes to wash out completely (I didn't feel like I used that much!) and even after it washed out my scalp was kinda itchy for a bit.

FrayedFire so you oil your lengths with a few drops of oil and water and then the leftover oil on your tips, you massage into your scalp? I wonder if that could help me? Are you still SO or do you use shampoo after? Right now I use clay shampoo to control oily scalp but it's a kinda waxy shampoo so looking for other methods too

Oil directly on the scalp is finicky. I like it for my face when I remember to do it, but on my head I have to be careful. I wouldn't do this with some oils, certainly.

So one thing I like to do is wet my hair and scalp (with rainwater, if I can, the water in my area is hard), scrub with my fingers, scalp massager, comb, brush - I use my fingernails a lot tbh - then I put a few drops of oil on my hands and start in the lower mid length of my hair to the tips. I keep the majority to below my shoulders, I smooth my palms over the top of my head and rub the scalp with my fingertips. If I get too much oil in one area I will fold up the length against itself and squish it to distribute it. Usually I like to then bun my hair while it is still damp.

If I'm not using water, I use less oil, put it between my fingers and comb through my hair before a more thorough scrubbing. The hair will be more oily for a bit, but it eventually absorbs/rubs off, and doesn't feel like sebum greasies, though it is a good time for an updo.

If I were going to use cleanser afterwards, I'd look for a conditioner over a shampoo, but right now I'm not using anything like that.