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View Full Version : The Greaseball Thread!



bunnylake
December 29th, 2012, 06:58 PM
I found a few older short threads on how to deal with having an oily scalp, but I figured I'd start a new more "official" support thread for us oily types.
Share any tips, tricks and techniques you might know of for combating the greasies!

I myself find it nearly impossible to stretch my washes because my roots are gross by day two. When I used sulfates, my scalp was even oilier faster. I'd often end up washing my hair twice a day. Sulfate-free shampoos and sometimes CO washing has helped me stretch my washes to once daily and *sometimes* every other day.

ravenreed
December 29th, 2012, 08:16 PM
I also found that going mostly sulfate free by switching to CO made my scalp less oily. I still cleanse every other day because my ends get dry and my roots get oily, but when I was shampooing, my hair would look greasy within 24 hours. I also use dry shampoos as needed for those days when I just don't have time to wash.

jacqueline101
December 29th, 2012, 08:40 PM
In the summer my fringe get oily due to sweat I use dry shampoo.

TheHowlingWolf
December 29th, 2012, 09:10 PM
Yeah, I only shampoo my hair once a week but I co wash when I need to. I just hate having greasy hair! I could be totally clean & look great but I would feel like crap if I had oily roots!

RileyJane
December 29th, 2012, 09:28 PM
haha im interested! even though i love the fact my hair has such great natural oils, it takes maybe a day and a half before it becomes too crazy, in turn driving me crazy! definitely going to watching this thread

bunnylake
December 29th, 2012, 11:18 PM
I am looking into herbs and essential oils that help regulate sebum production. I will post all of the information that I gather!

akilina
December 30th, 2012, 12:41 AM
Me! Me!
I have just gotten over it though. Since using sulfate free diluted shampoo its made a world of difference..i can stretch one day if I have to but thays all still..and I have learned to be really okay with it.

woolyleprechaun
December 30th, 2012, 01:12 AM
Mysteriously, I found that castor oil helped. If I oil my scalp with a mix of castor and a lighter oil the night before a wash, it takes much longer for my scalp to get oily after....

Brenna
December 30th, 2012, 01:58 PM
so interesting about the castor oil - will have to try it.

ladyfey
December 30th, 2012, 02:03 PM
I just switched from Nizoral to Dandrene shampoo about two weeks ago. What a difference! My hair now is feeling slightly dry, I'm going to decrease the frequency with which I use the Dandrene. It is a miracle. It has the same medication as Nizoral but also has a bunch of homeopathic ingredients meant to decrease greasies and irritation. I can't praise it enough :) Amazon has it, if anyone else feels like trying it.

jillosity
December 30th, 2012, 03:06 PM
My hair was extremely greasy when I was coloring it and washing every day. Quitting hair color and switching to a shampoo bar was the first thing I did that made a difference years ago when I gave myself a pixie (having been roughly BSL for years). The next thing that really helped was changing my diet, going from vegetarian to raw foods, that made a HUGE difference in my hair (and everything else!) My hair grew fast and I could finally skip a day washing. Then I got bored with my hair and started henna-ing and fell off the raw food wagon too. Now, I'm doing more raw and CO washing, I can actually go 3 days if I want to. Suave Daily Clarifying is the best conditioner I've used yet.

TheHowlingWolf
December 30th, 2012, 03:07 PM
Mysteriously, I found that castor oil helped. If I oil my scalp with a mix of castor and a lighter oil the night before a wash, it takes much longer for my scalp to get oily after....

Is there a special kind of castor oil you use?

bunnylake
December 30th, 2012, 03:22 PM
Yes, I have read that castor oil actually has a drying affect. I just bought some today!

KiwiLiz
December 30th, 2012, 03:40 PM
I'm trying to stretch out washes now - I've CO'ed for 6 days now. Previously I would shampoo and condition everyday. I think after a while I'll start stretch out the CO wash to every 2nd day. But my oil skin and hot climate might say otherwise!

DinaAG
December 30th, 2012, 03:44 PM
citric acid rinse with rosemary and peppermint always help me

bunnylake
December 30th, 2012, 03:45 PM
Some oils that are considered semi-drying, meaning they have the ability to make the skin drier rather than more moisturized/greasier, are castor, sesame, corn, and grapeseed.
Essential oils that help regulate sebum: lavender, rosemary, clary sage, lemon, cypress, peppermint

lapushka
December 30th, 2012, 03:46 PM
My hair gets washed once a week, that's stretched, and yes it's oily. Normally it needs to be washed 2 to 3 times a week to look presentable but due to circumstances that can't happen. So, the last 2 to 3 days are blah for me, but oh well... I have SD as well, but it's normally pretty much under control if I don't stretch to 2 weeks (Nizoral whenever it's necessary). CO is a disaster as are mild shampoos. My shampoos are harsh shampoos (such as Herbal Essences and Pantene), shampoos that contain sulfates.

IndigoOptimist
December 30th, 2012, 04:11 PM
I use a combinational of dry shampoo (or baby powder if I've run out), updos and hats to stretch washes to every 3 days (more if I'm not leaving the house or seeing anyone but that is rare). I've been doing this for the past 2 years and although day 3 hair is not pleasant, as long as my fringe looks clean (I sometimes wash it on it's own) the rest of my hair is acceptable :)

I've tried CO multiple times, but just can't get it to work for me. I do the odd CO wash here and there, but my hair looks like it hasn't even been washed if I do it repeatedly.

TheHowlingWolf
December 30th, 2012, 09:16 PM
Oh wow, I didn't know castor oil was a drying oil. Could it have a negative results if only used once a week?

Edit: I mean, if I only use it once a week, would it dry out my scalp to the point where it hurt my hair growth? I used to use castor oil & coconut oil as a weekly treatment but stopped. I didn't notice a drying affect though, maybe it was cause of the coconut oil?

Elanadi
December 31st, 2012, 12:27 AM
I have SUCH an oily scalp... I'm a wash once a day or my bangs and temples are soooo greasy. If I skip a day, my entire scalp feels like it's coated in lard, it's so gross and uncomfortable. And I have SD, which is irritated by not washing more frequently. I tried stretching washes, but it didn't seem to work. Then I tried CO, and my hair felt so gross. I could not wait to shampoo it the next day. I'd used a super organic conditioner, so I thought maybe it didn't have enough cleansing agents, so I tried a White Rain conditioner. I had ZERO expectations. I put my hair up while still wet and figured I'd shampoo the next day, but when I woke up the next morning, my hair didn't look gross. I did still have some irritation from SD, so I put aloe vera gel on my scalp, which helped that issue immensely. I've been on every other day washes since, and my scalp and hair seem to be okay! I'm not sure if it's the choice of conditioner or the aloe very gel (or both), but I am SO glad to be able to skip a wash day now and then!

Swissmiss2584
March 2nd, 2013, 01:12 PM
By day 3 the top part of my hair is so oily. Not very attractive. I may try to CO on the 3rd day to see how that works.

kdaniels8811
March 2nd, 2013, 03:25 PM
I am able to go 4-5 days between washes due to using herbs instead of shampoo - hennera hair wash or my own combination of shihaki, bhrami, etc. Sorry, the spelling is atrocious. Anyway, indian herbs help me grow my hair and stretch washes. I have been shampoo free for a couple years now.

Cirafly24
March 2nd, 2013, 03:34 PM
I only wash my hair once or twice a week...it gets oily, but I just put it up, and you can't really tell. If I wanted it to look squeaky clean all the time, I'd have to wash every day, and I'm just not willing to do that!

Ligeia_13
March 4th, 2013, 11:44 AM
Hello there! I manage to wash my hair every four days, but it's already oily and itchy by the end of day 2 :/

Vrindi
March 4th, 2013, 11:53 AM
It took me a looong time to stretch washes. First I went sulfate free— for a couple of years. It took a few weeks to adjust to no sulfates. Then, I would wash every day and a half, so in the morning one day, and then the evening on the next day, etc. I did this for about 2 months, then stretched to every other day. It took my scalp a long time to adjust, but eventually it did. Now I can go 3-4 days, and could probably go a week if I were camping or something. This is without any dry shampoo in between washes. For me it just took a lot of patience and updo's when I went out, otherwise I wouldn't mess with it.

kouran
March 4th, 2013, 12:24 PM
Shampoo bars!! My hair looked clean for six days!! Also, when using non-bar shampoo, I like to scalp-wash using soapnuts, it's fast and they leave hair clean.

Anje
March 4th, 2013, 12:24 PM
Some oils that are considered semi-drying, meaning they have the ability to make the skin drier rather than more moisturized/greasier, are castor, sesame, corn, and grapeseed.

Sorry to burst your bubble, but that's not what it means for an oil to be drying or semi-drying.

If an oil is said to be a "drying oil", that means it has the ability to HARDEN. As in solidify.

Linseed oil is especially known for this quality, which is why it's used as a wood finish, but to a lesser extent other oils can do it too. I've noticed it especially with grapeseed oil, where a little solid crust forms on the funny can thing it came in. This process happens to unsaturated oils to one degree or another, as they oxidize and cross-link; therefore air exposure is important to this process.

As a side note, this means that you might want to be more cautious of oil buildup if you chose to use drying or semi-drying oils in your hair as leave-ins. The last thing any of us wants is solidified oil residue analogous to what forms on the stove, forming on our hairs.