The CO (conditioner only) washing thread

**mallorykay13** · August 3rd, 2012, 04:32 PM

Originally Posted by Amber_Maiden

not since I was about 15-16.... And that was just hormones, I think. Now it takes about 3-4 weeks for my roots to get greasy. Kind of sucks, because that means I don't produce much sebum for my hair, I guess...

Hmm, I guess I never really considered the repercussions of NOT having oily hair.

**In2wishin** · August 3rd, 2012, 04:48 PM

Originally Posted by mallorykay13

Is there a comprehensive list of bad hair ingredients out there?

That is a loaded question. There really isn't such a thing as a "bad" ingredient that is actually used in hair care products, just ingredients that aren't good for a particular person and their hair, or a particular purpose.

The best thing is to look up the ingredients for anything that is causing you problems to try and figure out what the troublemaker is.

**Amber_Maiden** · August 3rd, 2012, 04:54 PM

Originally Posted by In2wishin

That is a loaded question. There really isn't such a thing as a "bad" ingredient that is actually used in hair care products, just ingredients that aren't good for a particular person and their hair, or a particular purpose.

The best thing is to look up the ingredients for anything that is causing you problems to try and figure out what the troublemaker is.

Exactly.
I always though cones were bad, but recently- after quitting them for over a year- it turned out my hair LOVES them.

Hate SLS though.

**mallorykay13** · August 3rd, 2012, 04:58 PM

Originally Posted by In2wishin

That is a loaded question. There really isn't such a thing as a "bad" ingredient that is actually used in hair care products, just ingredients that aren't good for a particular person and their hair, or a particular purpose.

The best thing is to look up the ingredients for anything that is causing you problems to try and figure out what the troublemaker is.

Good point.

**brave** · August 3rd, 2012, 05:00 PM

Amber_Maiden, is your diluted shampoo SLS and it's just dilute enough that it doesn't bother you? Or is it coco betaine based?

I don't know how long it takes to get my scalp greasy. With shampoo bars and vinegar it was amazingly fast, but with CO I've never gone between washes long enough. Should experiment at some point.

**afu** · August 3rd, 2012, 05:26 PM

Yep I wear my hair up most of the time, I think the main culpret is my fine/thin hair which makes it look worse than probably if I had more hair! At least I know that I can get good results from CO washing every 2 days, so if experimenting with WO doesn't work out i've got a happy place to go back to

**Amber_Maiden** · August 3rd, 2012, 05:32 PM

Originally Posted by brave

Amber_Maiden, is your diluted shampoo SLS and it's just dilute enough that it doesn't bother you? Or is it coco betaine based?

I don't know how long it takes to get my scalp greasy. With shampoo bars and vinegar it was amazingly fast, but with CO I've never gone between washes long enough. Should experiment at some point.

I use this right now, diluted. Not sure what it's base is. It's not SLS based. I can't go near SLS- I even had to change my toothpaste!

Good luck with your experimenting! I plan on using shampoo bars after my shampoo is used up.

Originally Posted by afu

Yep I wear my hair up most of the time, I think the main culpret is my fine/thin hair which makes it look worse than probably if I had more hair! At least I know that I can get good results from CO washing every 2 days, so if experimenting with WO doesn't work out i've got a happy place to go back to

That might be it... I have pretty thick hair, so that could be why I can go so long without washing.

**brave** · August 3rd, 2012, 10:07 PM

Originally Posted by Amber_Maiden

I use this right now, diluted. Not sure what it's base is. It's not SLS based. I can't go near SLS- I even had to change my toothpaste!

Good luck with your experimenting! I plan on using shampoo bars after my shampoo is used up.

That might be it... I have pretty thick hair, so that could be why I can go so long without washing.

Shampoo bars didn't work out in the long run for me, but my hair is extremely dry and I hated the vinegar rinses. I think I remember you doing those anyway though so you might have better luck. I do miss the amazing smell.

I really wish I could find a solid conditioner that worked. It doesn't seem to exist yet. I have tried the chagrin valley butter bar and it was really just a more moisturizing soap, which is still too drying.

**afu** · August 4th, 2012, 05:22 AM

brave have you tried estsy? there are a few solid conditioner bars on there, although i havn't tried them myself

**Suze2012** · August 4th, 2012, 06:05 AM

Originally Posted by kittykat86

Well it worked. I used a t-shirt and slightly scrunched my hair and I have waves! It is still drying, but I am happy for now. I just hope the frizzies stay away.

Yay! Excellent!
...I bet the frizzies didn't stay away though..but hope they did!
My hair is a lot less frizzy with co washing and I use aloe vera gel on wet hair to help tame frizz but it still gets me sometimes.
I've had a bad week with frizz though and think my hair is still recovering from using a coney co to see how my hair reacted and then ending up clarifying to get back to no cones.

I have figured out that it can take a while for hair to return to a more normal (better) state after an experiment gone a bit wrong so sometimes you just have to give it time and only try one thing different within a couple of weeks.

afu I'm quite interested in the synthetic chamois idea - tshirts don't seem to take that much water out and aren't very absorbent - better than a towel still though. Where do you get them from?