Wondering about returning to silicones

[Moonfall]

Hello all,

I could really use some advice here :) I've been thinking about going back to using silicones for some time now. I've used the CG method for 1,5 years now, and I just don't think it has made any difference for my hair. Which is a shame, because I had really hoped it would work! I was wondering if anyone here is in the same boat as I am. I have 2b hair (I think) which is prone to splitting. I really want to grow it as long as possible, and I don't use any heat and I've never dyed it. I just want to protect it as much as possible!

Thanks in advance!
~ShirleyLynn

[Johannah]

My advice: you're using this method for 1.5 years without results... Time to try something different. Worst case scenario you'll need to go back to the CG method. Best case scenario you find a perfect routine. I've tried a modified version of the CG method for a little bit longer than 6 months and it didn't do anything for me as well. Then I went back to cones and I found my coney holy grail conditioner I'm using now for over a year. My hair never felt better than this.

[Nique1202]

Silicones are great tools in the damage-prevention arsenal! There are just a few things to keep in mind if you want to use them. Mainly, if you use silicones you need to shampoo them out before they build up.

-If you'd rather go sulfate-free this means you only need to use silicones maybe every other wash (or every 3 or 4 washes, or once a month, or... you get the picture) so that they don't build up and make your hair feel gross.

-If you plan to use sulfate shampoo with silicones, even if you don't actively wash the length you can probably use silicones after every wash if you want/if you feel like you need them. (I do, even though I only rinse the suds down my length and don't scrub any shampoo into it.)

-Either way, you'll want to do a full-length wash with a proper clarifying shampoo every so often (once a month, once every two months, whenever your hair feels weird) to take out all the silicones from the length.

-Also, conditioners are not the only source of silicones. There are lots of serums with silicones in that you can apply only where needed (I use one on top of my coney conditioner, just for the last few inches of my ends) to help avoid buildup where 'cones aren't needed so much.

[Freija]

Yep, exactly the same boat! Or at least, true CG was never quite right for me in the first place, because of my scalp - it hates sulphate-free shampoos and CO washes - but I kept with a mostly-CG, no-'cone, no combing, post-wash-plopping thing for years. I've been struggling with it ever since my hair hit BSL, though. I have 2c/3a hair when it is at its most curly, but even with CG the curl pattern (cherub) doesn't clump or hold well and it tends towards frizz (which has increasingly meant huge tangles and hair that looks like I haven't cared for it at all) - so I've recently given up altogether, and completely overhauled my routine.

With my current routine, I wash with sulphate-shampoo on the scalp only (not even suds on the length), CO-wash the lengths only (no conditioner on the scalp). Then condition again with amodimethicone and/or water soluble 'cones. Rinse. Comb through with a wide-toothed comb or wooden quill paddle brush, and LOC (leave-in, oil, cream): L with a little bit of the second 'cone-y conditioner, gently towel-dry, then O with camellia and/or sweet almond and C with Nightblooming Panacea (Ostara blend). Then damp cinnabun to form loose spirals. Comb, brush and style as needed for three days until the next wash.

With this routine, I don't have my curls; I have deep 2a-2b waves instead. But I do have much smoother, shinier wavy hair that I can brush and put up as needed. Fewer tangles, fewer splits, and it always feels more moisturised than it did with CG. There's definitely nothing wrong with experimenting and trying new things, and there's no written rule that says CG is the only thing a curly girl is ever allowed to try for her hair! It's just an attempt at something that is likely to help quite a lot of people, but it's not going to be perfect for everyone. If you feel your hair needs more protection, then it probably does - mine did! - and looking at ways of doing that is only a good thing. : )

[HairPlease]

No reason you can't hybrid a routine!
Cones one wash, cone free the next. That will help prevent buildup.
If I use a coney conditioner and it gets anywhere near my scalp though, sebum turns thick and putty like (eew).
I use a cone shampoo every day along with a cone conditioner. My hair remains it's natural texture but almost slightly more relaxed. It isn't helping the tangle consistency as much as expected but the texture feels good. I switched back to cones in 2014 from sulfate/cone free and my hair is feeling much more manageable even though it's a good bit longer.

[lapushka]

Try the Herbal Essences Hello Hydration conditioner, it has a silicone in there (or two) - not entirely sure, but it is a great and smooth detangler. Why I'm recommending this, is because it's my Holy Grail. :)

[LongCurlyTress]

Try the Herbal Essences Hello Hydration conditioner, it has a silicone in there (or two) - not entirely sure, but it is a great and smooth detangler. Why I'm recommending this, is because it's my Holy Grail. :)

Lapushka, so the conditioner doesn't have sodium laureth sulfate in it? I know that the HE Hello Hydration shampoo does have sls in it.;( Thanks for this info!! :) Does the conditioner have proteins? Amino acids? I am protein sensitive. ;( Thanks!

[*ReiKa*]

I've started using again silicones only recently after more than a year of just natural products.
So far what's really helping me in terms of manageability and slip is CONDITIONERS with silicones. The ones with amodimethicone are really worth it, in my opinion.
Start with these and see how your hair feels, then you can try to add other products.
For example, I thought that silicone-based serums would have been the best, but I'm finding that conditioners with silicones work much better than anything else.
I would personally not even consider shampoo with silicones, those are pointless.

[lapushka]

Lapushka, so the conditioner doesn't have sodium laureth sulfate in it? I know that the HE Hello Hydration shampoo does have sls in it.;( Thanks for this info!! :) Does the conditioner have proteins? Amino acids? I am protein sensitive. ;( Thanks!

No, it doesn't. :) I'll post the ingredients. Maybe an angel on here can figure this out for you. I'm not that ingredient-savvy. ;)

water, stearyl alcohol, cyclopentasiloxane, cetyl alcohol, stearamidopropyl dimethylamine, dimethicone, vanilla planifolia fruit extract, cocos nucifera (coconut) milk, fragrance, glutamic acid, benzyl alcohol, edta, methylchloroisothiazolinone, methylisothiazolinone, blue 1

[spidermom]

I love using a bit of coney serum - currently CHI Silk Infusion. I only have to use it every 2 to 3 washes for full benefit.

[henné]

You know how it is - different things do different things to different hair ...

I'm one of those folks that can't do silicones - they build up on me like crazy and make my hair greasier earlier - which means more washing, which equals more damage.

So for me, it's best to wash my hair 1-2 times (tops!) a week with diluted sulphate-free shampoo and use paraben/cone free conditioner and my hair has been hip+ length several times (even though I cut it 10+cm several times in the past couple of years) with no to minimal split ends. Now my hair is almost hip length yet again and I do have split ends, but only because I've been totally ignoring my hair for about a year now :D wearing it down almost all the time ...

I also tried WO, CO and combinations thereof, not to mention poo-bars (absolutely horrible for my hair - went through major hair-loss because of them) and finally I've arrived to the minimalist diluted shampoo approach :)

I'd say go for what allows you to go the longest between washes ... my two cents.

[chloecalls4]

I second what ReiKa said. I was all-natural CG for 3 years (using Herbal Essences Hello Hydration). Got good growth. But oh-boy my scalp suffered. Then I did clay washing for about a year. My last two washes (this past Sunday and last night, Wednesday) I used Herbal Essences Hello Hydration for my curly style and the Clairol conditioner in the pink bottle for a blow dry style. WHAT A DIFFERENCE! So yea, I think a bit of 'cones is where it's at for me.

Frieja, thanks for detailing your routine!

[cathair]

I went back to cones after a couple of years of avoiding them. I am really enjoying them. So much easier to de-tangle the ends. I don't think it even loses me any curl if I dry my hair the curly girl way. Have been using Ultimate Blends, the one with honey in it and am pretty happy with it.


Try the Herbal Essences Hello Hydration conditioner, it has a silicone in there (or two) - not entirely sure, but it is a great and smooth detangler. Why I'm recommending this, is because it's my Holy Grail. :)

I'm becoming more and more curious to see how good this is. I think I might have to give it a whirl now I am not fearing the cones :)

[lapushka]

Ultimate Blends by Garnier, is the same as "Ultra Doux" here in some of the EU (France, Belgium). It is an amazing range!

[Moonfall]

Thank you all so much for your help! I'm going to see if I can find something that works for me, and I won't limit my search to 'cone-free products :) Also thanks a lot for the recommendations! If anyone can recommend me some more, please let me know. I live in the Netherlands but I will be visiting the UK soon, so I can see what they have to offer as well.

[WannabeViking]

I tried to do the no silicones or sulfates thing for a while, and my hair hated it. I currently use what might qualify as a "low sulfate" shampoo once a week (Tresemme naturals), then condition twice with that conditioner (which is silicone free) and finish with the Aussie moisturizing conditioner (which has silicones.) Then about once a month I hit it with a shampoo that has stronger sulfates. I no longer have frizz and other problems that I did trying to do without sulfates and cones. :D

[truepeacenik]

I love using a bit of coney serum - currently CHI Silk Infusion. I only have to use it every 2 to 3 washes for full benefit.

I'm a fan of separate silicones. I use a spray when needed, maybe once a week. I can go months between uses, too. It's completely based on if the hair seems to need some extra slip.
While I do have a cone conditioner, Kirkland Moisture, I only use it on the last six inches or so. Waist and beyond. It seems to help, without major gunk problems higher in the canopy.
Without the conditioner, I'd use the spray far more often.

[Bopoluchi]

i've been cone-free for several years, but have been experiencing quite a bit of breakage from upping my physical activities. i started using cones 2 weeks ago and it has made such a big difference, i regret not trying it earlier, maybe my hair would be thicker. my hair feels and looks nicer but its the tangle prevention thats really doing it for me. im using organix coconut milk conditioner but am going to try hello hydration after all the rave reviews. i wash my scalp with vinegar and CO the lengths and whenever my hair needs it im going to clarify. i also pre and post oil my hair (currently olive on the lengths with a castor and essential oil blend on my scalp (peppermint rosmeary cedarwood)). my hair is almost knee-length and cones is making detangling so easy its amazing. the only thing im struggling with is the smell, synthetic fragrances arent my cup of tea, maybe a vinegar rinse will get rid of it.

[kitcatsmeow]

For me, it's which and how much silicone in a product. I recently went from 100% natural sulfate and cone free to using 2 products with cones. The reason for this is I like to wear my hair straight and I do not use heat. The humidity is really frizzing me out especially since I'm back to BSL (almost).

I am using a conditioner with cones for my first CWC. It contains protein which my hair loves and one cone ingredient. Also I use the matching serum which also contains only one cone and lots of natural ingredients. I already use a shampoo that is clarifying although it is sulfate free and it removes and cones well. Once a month though I may use a little BS just to be sure.

I haven't used cones in over 5 years and I'm very happy so far even though my hair does great cone free.

[lilin]

Hello all,

I could really use some advice here :) I've been thinking about going back to using silicones for some time now. I've used the CG method for 1,5 years now, and I just don't think it has made any difference for my hair. Which is a shame, because I had really hoped it would work! I was wondering if anyone here is in the same boat as I am. I have 2b hair (I think) which is prone to splitting. I really want to grow it as long as possible, and I don't use any heat and I've never dyed it. I just want to protect it as much as possible!

Thanks in advance!
~Moonfall

Well, if it's not making any positive difference for you, I don't see why not. Adding silicone may help protect from spits. Have you had more splits since going CG?

There are other ways to get similar results. A touch of baby oil on your ends, for example. But this may make it more difficult to get your hair clean using CG.

The only reason I don't use cones is because I can't get my hair clean enough while using cones without SLS, and I can't use SLS due to skin irritation. :shrug: But my hair seems to be really grabby, and it seems like a lot of people can get them out using gentler cleansing agents. So that's just me.

I never really had any issues with cones in particular. It's just not compatible with my cleanser needs.

[Monsoonu]

After not using cones for a year I have reintroduced them, but only in the form of leave in conditioners on the ends of my hair (Herbal Essences Bee Strong Leave In Intensive Cream and Marrakesh X leaving and detangle treatment) which I alternate depending on which one I fancy using.

I still use sulphate free and cone free shampoo and conditioners, but every couple of weeks I steal my partners Head and Shoulders to do a deep cleanse root to tip.

[Sunny_side_up]

My hair craves silicone. Taken to using a gloss spray with them on my freshly washed, patted dry hair. Drys very nicely with slip. Feel my hairs are helped along,being more resistant to damage. Without them i just get plain frustrated with it. Love the smell of herbal essence.

[Teagann]

I've seen silicones work on a lot of people. Torrinpaige (Heather) loves silicones and her hair is gorgeous and long. They've never worked for me; just made my hair frizzy and brittle.