Hair glosses, shine treatments, recipes...

[nikolette]

For years, I used this Clairol Gloss http://www.clairolpro.com/professional-hair-products/radiance-colorgloss (http://www.clairolpro.com/professional-hair-products/radiance-colorgloss) to deepen my dark brown hair to a rich black with lots of shine. It is also available in a Clear Shine.

I *love* the shine that this product gives. It also makes my curly/frizzy hair seem more manageable.

Any insight to how damaging this may be to my locks? I haven't used it in almost a year because I've been scared to damage my hair... But I do really miss the shine!

Does anyone have an alternative or similar product that they like?


Anyone have great recipes for SHINE ?
Please share!!

[lapushka]

It says it blends up to 30% gray, so there has to be some "strength" to it, although coloring would be far worse, IMO. Is it a toner of some kind? If so, that's it, unless you want to switch to another brand.

[Anje]

Deposit-only color? Probably isn't that bad, though an ingredients list on the website is apparently too much to ask. :P A number of folks here enjoy changing up their color temporarily with veggie dyes like Manic Panic, Adore, Directions, Punky, etc., and those are generally conditioning and undamaging (unless you bleach your hair first, but the damage there is from the bleaching).

I tend to point people to the SMT recipe a lot (good grief, it's in my signature), but I find it makes my hair quite soft and shiny. If your hair is fond of humectants, it's absolutely worth a try.

[goldenears]

Deleted post 23/11/14

[Madora]

If you want shine, softness, incredibly healthy hair, brush it daily with a pure boar bristle brush! Nothing like it! And you will save TONS of money but not having to rely on ointments, oils, treatments, or anything else. Brushing is easy to do, provided you do it correctly and with the right boar bristle brush (no plastic/no rubber/no rounded brush)!

[Annalouise]

Madora-
No rubber or rounded brush?! uh oh. I think I'm using the wrong bbb. Mine is rounded and has the red rubber pad under the bristles.
Why is that bad?

[CurlyCap]

Rosemary tea rinses, especially with fresh rosemary, cause ridiculous shine. if you have a yard, rosemary is very hardy, easy to grow, and tolerates heavy pruning.

[Madora]

Madora-
No rubber or rounded brush?! uh oh. I think I'm using the wrong bbb. Mine is rounded and has the red rubber pad under the bristles.
Why is that bad?

Annalouise, the red rubber pad creates friction when the brush is used.
The round brush is only meant for short hair. As Mr. Michael explains in his book "George Michael's Secrets for Beautiful Hair" "Remember, too, that most manufacturers make hair brushes that are round or semi-round because these work best on short hair. Unfortunately, because you brush your hair with a flip of the wrist, when you use a round brush this tangles long hair. So, if your hair is anything over 10 inches long, use a brush with a flat or elongated base and hold it with your thumb at the base to avoid a flipping motion, even though this flip of the wrist is okay for shorter hair."

Man, you do NOT want to brush your hair with a round or semi-round brush!!! I tried it...once...and once was more than enough. Talk about snarl city and the most horrid mess afterwards! Long hair + rounded brush...disaster city. Elongated or even oval shaped bbbs are much more hair friendly with long hair!

[Verdandi]

BBB isn't for everyone, though. I had massive hair loss from using it, even though I did as supposed, used a non-rubber brush etc. I still lost at least 1" thickness in the two months I kept going. The shine was amazing though, and I guess it works better for someone with less fragile hair. Just a heads up.

And about the Clariol gloss, peroxide IS damaging, and if you want shine to hide damage/dull hair, you're just making it worse with anything with peroxide, even if it takes time for it to show. I'd recommend a colour conditioner instead :)

[Annalouise]

Annalouise, the red rubber pad creates friction when the brush is used.
The round brush is only meant for short hair. As Mr. Michael explains in his book "George Michael's Secrets for Beautiful Hair" "Remember, too, that most manufacturers make hair brushes that are round or semi-round because these work best on short hair. Unfortunately, because you brush your hair with a flip of the wrist, when you use a round brush this tangles long hair. So, if your hair is anything over 10 inches long, use a brush with a flat or elongated base and hold it with your thumb at the base to avoid a flipping motion, even though this flip of the wrist is okay for shorter hair."

Man, you do NOT want to brush your hair with a round or semi-round brush!!! I tried it...once...and once was more than enough. Talk about snarl city and the most horrid mess afterwards! Long hair + rounded brush...disaster city. Elongated or even oval shaped bbbs are much more hair friendly with long hair!

Ok, back to the drawing board! haha, Thanks again Madora! Christmas is coming up. I'll ask for a new brush. (And a new comb!). Its worth it for me because I don't use products on my hair so I'll splurge on a good brush and comb. I knew I didn't have the type of brush sold at the Madora salon. But I guess I thought it didn't matter because it was a bbb. Hmmm, silly me.
And also I should buy the George Michael book because I'm sure it has loads of valuable information. Maybe I'll get it right one of these days and not make any more hair mistakes! I really hope to reach waist by next summer. So now is the time to start doing the RIGHT things with my hair.

Thanks Madora! I'm so grateful to have you here on the boards helping everyone with their long hair goals! THANKS!!
(I wonder if I should try a madora shampoo also because I have NEVER found a shampoo that doesn't strip the hair). I'm using a diluted soap because I can't find a gentle shampoo. I wonder what Mr. Michael says about washing your hair with soap?


Nickolette I really don't think that putting chemicals on the hair is a good idea. Nor is it a good
idea for your skin (which is your largest organ) and all that chemicals goes to your liver to detox. It's not good for you. But if you must you must. I understand.

I use herbal teas to get some shine or add some fragrance like lavender, or rosemary (as Curlycap said). Nettles is another good herb for the hair and there's horsetail and white willow bark and lots of lovely plants. You might want to experiment with herbs. In the past I did have some great shine/colors from herbal combinations but I don't recall exactly what I was using. I know I was using henna in my tea (NOT TO COLOR THE HAIR). But just rinsing with henna or hibiscus can bring out some orange/red hues and shine. Of course it washes out with your shampoo and its not permanent.

[Madora]

Annalouise: here's a link to the various shampoos offered at Madora Long Hair Heaven (NYC). I believe they are also available at the other GM salons as well.http://madoralonghair.com/products-page/shampoo

I have been using the Pink Crème Shampoo exclusively since 1982! Wonderful stuff! I dilute mine most of the time (one tablespoon of shampoo to not quite one tablespoon of warm water. Stir well, pour over entire head/length).

Be warned: shampoos are expensive! A mini travel pack can also be ordered wherein you can choose what type of shampoo/product you wish. Runs about $25.00

Soap...ugh! Mr. Michael mentioned that in olden times people used castile soap (if they could afford it) and rinsed with something to help restore the PH balance in the scalp.

I'd really, really steer clear of any type of soap product and instead find a gentle shampoo. If the GM products are too pricey for you, I'm sure others here can recommend a gentle shampoo.

Also, don't be fooled by those shampoo/conditioner combo packages. Your hair needs to be cleansed. You use shampoo for that and you don't need a lot of it either. Afterwards, that is when you protect it with the conditioner rinse. The GM conditioners are very, very rich! A little goes a long way!

[Annalouise]

Madora I'm willing to give it a try. There is only one caveat and that is I don't handle strong fragrance.
How do the G. Michael shampoos and conditioners compare with drugstore products in terms of fragrance? Are they as strong smelling, more strong smelling,
or less strong smelling? Or another way of asking about the fragrance if you don't smell drugstore products is- when you wash your hair, how long does the fragrance linger in your hair? One hour, half a day, One day, two days, three days....?

If I can handle their fragrance then I'll be good to go. If not I'll have to give them away. I noticed they have a 'special shampoo' for extra sensitive people. I think
this might be a good one to try.

Wait a minute..... You've used the SAME shampoo for 32 YEARS! Oh my goodness that has to be a world record! That is some testament to the product!
Amazing!:toast: