The CO (conditioner only) washing thread

**GRU** · March 22nd, 2012, 11:24 AM

Originally Posted by SapphiraSilver

Thanks so much for your reply. I am glad to hear that it does wash right out, I have read elsewhere on this forum that some people say it's to oily and it was hard for them to wash it out, so I am a little anxious, that's why I am contemplating trying coconut milk or cream instead, but oil just sounds better. Thanks for all the info

Also, since it is a solid and it melts when warm/hot. will it solidify again on the hair when the hair cools down? some people use it as a leave in, will it get all hard again on the hair when the hair cools?

I'm another who is able to CO-wash out copious amounts of oil with no problem.

With your hair being fine (F), you're going to want to start VERY lightly with the oil.

And no, it doesn't "get hard" unless you leave a LOT of oil on it and you go out in cold weather. Coconut oil melts at around 72F (22C), so just being that close to your body keeps it "warm", plus you're not going to have enough on it to actually be a solid - you're going to have the scantest of films, not enough to be "thick". Imagine trying to make a paper airplane out of a piece of cling wrap or tissue paper -- not stiff enough, is it? The oil isn't going to be heavy enough on your hair to get stiff, either.

**Springgrl** · March 22nd, 2012, 11:31 AM

I am sorry if someone has mentioned this or talked about it, but this is such a long thread. Does anyone have trouble with greasy hair?? My hair is hip length and I wash it everyday or every other day, because it just looks greasy. If I stop doing this, will it just get used to it? Do i just have to deal with it for a while?

**Fethenwen** · March 22nd, 2012, 12:17 PM

Originally Posted by DaniVerde

Thank you! I don't know if we have Alterra, but I'll check it out!

Hi there!

If you can't find Alterra, I do recommend XZ conditioner which you can find in regular shops across the country. I use the Omena one which is working great at the moment.
Though I will check if I can find Alterra now, haven't heard of it before I'm always open into finding a CO conditioner that is also organic and biodegradable.

**Khiwanean** · March 22nd, 2012, 12:35 PM

Originally Posted by Springgrl

I am sorry if someone has mentioned this or talked about it, but this is such a long thread. Does anyone have trouble with greasy hair?? My hair is hip length and I wash it everyday or every other day, because it just looks greasy. If I stop doing this, will it just get used to it? Do i just have to deal with it for a while?

My hair used to get greasy a lot faster than it does now that I'm CO. I can go days and days without my hair looking greasy.

I do think doing CWC for a while helped ease my transition into CO. By no means does your scalp just stop producing oil right away. It does take some time to transition, usually a couple weeks. Even so, some people have naturally oily enough scalps that their scalps never really transition. You won't really know if it will help cut down on the oil production until you try. If it doesn't work for you, it doesn't work for you.

**GRU** · March 22nd, 2012, 01:02 PM

Also regarding transition -- you may find that you need to CO-wash daily for a week (or two), which will get your scalp started on slowing down the oil production (CO-washing will get you clean each day while your scalp is still in over-production mode, but you won't be stripping it as much so it will start slowing down production). Then you can CO-wash every other day for a week or so, which will continue to clean your scalp, which will have slowed down its production further. And you can continue to extend time between washes however works best for you.

**afu** · March 22nd, 2012, 04:47 PM

I've actually never come across the CO method until browsing the forums today, and from reading what a lot of you have said i'm very exited!

I have a 'thing' for washing my hair, i love doing it! Unfortunatly my hair has been majorly damaged from heat styling and bleach over the past few years so my new years resolution was to ditch the heat (cant quite face returning totally to my natural colour yet, the highlights will remain a while longer). I knew too much washing wasn't great for my hair so i cut back from washing it daily to every3-4 days. However, maybe CO will allow me to indulge myself in washing a bit more often, hehe. I think i might aim to do a couple of CO washes per week and then a normal one but i'll see how it goes.

My usual routine is to wash, towel dry, apply an intensive conditoner for an hour, then rinse. However i hate doing this on the days im staying with my partner as his house is freezing and hanging around with soggy, conditioner smothered hair is not appealing in the slightest! so i'm hoping this method will be useful for those situations.

Just done my first CO wash (btw, does it make a difference if you use an intensive conditoner Vs regular, is there a difference in lathering etc?). So far so good, i'll update when it's dry and when ive tried it a bit longer

**DaniVerde** · March 23rd, 2012, 12:21 AM

Originally Posted by Fethenwen

Hi there!

If you can't find Alterra, I do recommend XZ conditioner which you can find in regular shops across the country. I use the Omena one which is working great at the moment.
Though I will check if I can find Alterra now, haven't heard of it before I'm always open into finding a CO conditioner that is also organic and biodegradable.

I couldn't find Alterra anywhere...but I didn't realize that the XZ Conditioners were an option, thank you so much!!

**Dragon Faery** · March 23rd, 2012, 12:47 AM

Hi!

I'm a new poster to this thread, but a long time ago I waded through the first hundred or so pages and have been CO-washing ever since.

Currently I go back and forth between two conditioner combinations. I prefer to be completely cone-free, and if something even looks like it might have something sort of coney in it, I don't use it.

My favorite combination for cleaning thoroughly is V05 Kiwi Lime followed by Nature's Gate Chamomile. My favorite for moisturizing is V05 Strawberry Smoothie followed by Desert Essences Coconut. But I'm always searching for new combinations.

Just wanted to pop in and contribute that.

**Zydrate** · March 23rd, 2012, 12:48 AM

Started co-washing (I think 2 weeks ago) and it seems to be that I'm not in any kind of tranisition. :very confused:
I'm using cheap (about 1€) MyHair conditioner (no cones), it washes my hair perfectly, it even washed very large amounts of almond and castor oil. My hair is veeeery soft to touch, looks very clean, and it gets oily after 3-4 days.
edit - I'm using large amounts of co

, I leave it in my hair for at least 20 min, massage it for 2-3 min and rinse it well with warm and then cold water.

**SapphiraSilver** · March 23rd, 2012, 01:16 AM

Thanks for your replies. I have bought Coconut cream in a can, and an expensive Extra Virgin Coconut Oil. I am currently sitting with my hair soaking in Coconut Cream, which isn't as oily as I thought, see how that washes out with CO. If it won't do much I'll try the Oil. Thanks again everyone. Maybe mixing a little oil in the cream may help? not make it too oily and easier to wash out with CO?

Also, does anyone know if there is an oiling thread on LHC? So I don't keep posting here in the wrong place?

Edit: The Coconut cream washed out Okay with CO, I did scrub a lot though. I don't see that much difference in my hair, I imagine it should take regular use rather then just one time.