Cone free routines -- share yours!

[turtlelover]

I am trying out going cone free, but I am still kind of at a loss as far as products to use since basically everything I own has cones! What shampoo, conditioners, deep treatments, styling products, and serums do you use? Sulfates are OK since I'm not trying to avoid them at the moment. I am very interested in hearing about everybody's routines!

[Nadine <3]

I'm cone free, I just use suave. Both shampoo and conditioners, but not the coconut one. My hair doesn't care for the protein in that. My leave in is 50/50 almond or olive oil and cocoa butter whipped into a fluffy cream. I don't normally do DT's but if I do I just mix some oil and honey into my regular conditioner and take a long bath.

[khryz]

Giovanni has a range of silicone-free conditioners as well as its DTs. V05 is also cone free, and I use it for my SMTs. After my wash, I use (LOC method) Giovanni weightless moisture leave in conditioner, camellia oil and Palmer's manuka flower honey conditioning cream which has silicone. I assume the silicone in Palmer's would be a nice sealant for all the stuff I pile on. So far, my hair likes this arrangement.

[DweamGoiL]

I've been cone free for about 12 years now, maybe longer. I basically wash 1-2 week with Avalon Organics lemon shampoo, condition with mostly Aubrey Organics GPB and Tresemme Naturals Volumizing formula (sometimes I alternate them or mix them depending on whether my hair needs moisture or protein). As a leave-in, I use a tiny dab of Monoi Oil on wet hair and then follow up with a really light gel like Devacurl Angel Light Defining Gel. That is pretty much it!

When I first went cone free, I used to need deep conditioners, but after a year or two, my fine hair can't take too much stuff on it or else it goes limp.

[turtlelover]

I'm cone free, I just use suave. Both shampoo and conditioners, but not the coconut one. My hair doesn't care for the protein in that. My leave in is 50/50 almond or olive oil and cocoa butter whipped into a fluffy cream. I don't normally do DT's but if I do I just mix some oil and honey into my regular conditioner and take a long bath.

I haven't tried Suave in ages. I hated it as a kid, but the formulas may have changed. I will have to give it a try sometime.

[turtlelover]

Giovanni has a range of silicone-free conditioners as well as its DTs. V05 is also cone free, and I use it for my SMTs. After my wash, I use (LOC method) Giovanni weightless moisture leave in conditioner, camellia oil and Palmer's manuka flower honey conditioning cream which has silicone. I assume the silicone in Palmer's would be a nice sealant for all the stuff I pile on. So far, my hair likes this arrangement.

I have the Giovanni with tea tree right now. I am not wild about the minty/tea tree smell, but I like it. The conditioner seems pretty light for my hair, but it isn't bad at all.

[turtlelover]

I've been cone free for about 12 years now, maybe longer. I basically wash 1-2 week with Avalon Organics lemon shampoo, condition with mostly Aubrey Organics GPB and Tresemme Naturals Volumizing formula (sometimes I alternate them or mix them depending on whether my hair needs moisture or protein). As a leave-in, I use a tiny dab of Monoi Oil on wet hair and then follow up with a really light gel like Devacurl Angel Light Defining Gel. That is pretty much it!

When I first went cone free, I used to need deep conditioners, but after a year or two, my fine hair can't take too much stuff on it or else it goes limp.

I wonder how long it takes hair to adjust to no cones. Right now my hair feels a bit dry/frizzy without them, but maybe I am just not used to what my "real" hair feels like, and it isn't really a matter of adjusting at all.

[lapushka]

The most famous line I've heard about that gives the same amount of slip than silicone conditioners is Shea Moisture. I've seen so much of it around on YT, it's immense and just *everywhere*.

I don't use conefree products anymore. Can't even recall what I did use when I went conefree. Yes, the triple nutrition (but they've added a cone to that).

[ChloeDharma]

I've been using Sunny Isle ylang ylang conditioner which is based on jamaican black castor oil. I mainly brought it because the ingredients look great for the scalp but I do actually really like it on my length too. I leave it on for half to one hour after shampooing and it rinses out easily. I sometimes use mane and tail too but am not sure whether or not this is cone free.

[amino]

When I had really short hair I just used baby shampoo (yes, I know how bad it is; this was before LHC days). Then I tried a baking soda and vinegar thing and finally settled on soapberries. I've taken to just boiling 5 for about a half hour in some amount of water until it gives me a light honey color and then use 2-4 ounces of that mix on my hair at a time, mixed with some type of essential oil. I wash once a week and my hair's quite happy with the routine, but it's fine and light, so using olive oil or something on anything but the ends would weigh it down. When my hair gets too weighed down or greasy (every month-two months) I use a more sulfate-y shampoo on the scalp and greasy areas, or, when I was at home and not studying abroad, an aloe vera/lemon juice mix. That made my hair super soft and happy, but gave it a little bit too much moisture.

[Persiangirl01]

My routine is a Vegan shampoo and conditioner for distressed hair. It's called Africa Organics. I wash my hair 2x a week. The night before I wash my hair I put in coconut oil overnight and wash it out in the morning. No blow drying or straightening for me. And i may oil the ends of my hair if they feel a bit dry. I always sleep with braided hair. :)

[arr]

I wash my hair three times a week. I use a very diluted basic sulfate shampoo, like Suave Naturals. I condition with GVP Conditioning Balm mostly, but sometimes i will use the Shea Moisture Superfruit Masque. Then in the palm of my hand i mix 10 drops of my oil mix (currently olive, coconut and grapeseed) with a dime sized amount of the Shea Moisture Superfruit Conditioner and apply it to my towel dried but still wet hair. Then just let it air dry or if need be i will use the low warm setting on the blow dryer.

[Frankenstein]

The most famous line I've heard about that gives the same amount of slip than silicone conditioners is Shea Moisture. I've see so much of it around on YT, it's immense and just *everywhere*.

I don't use conefree products anymore. Can't even recall what I did use when I went conefree. Yes, the triple nutrition (but they've added a cone to that).

I second that, Shea Moisture products do have a lot of slip and are cone-free. I would definitely look into these :)

[Bubble_Curl]

The most famous line I've heard about that gives the same amount of slip than silicone conditioners is Shea Moisture. I've seen so much of it around on YT, it's immense and just *everywhere*.

I don't use conefree products anymore. Can't even recall what I did use when I went conefree. Yes, the triple nutrition (but they've added a cone to that).

Lapushka, what is YT?? :)

I will second the Shea Moisture line and Suave but will mention that the Suave Naturals line name has been changed to Suave Essentials. Others I have heard include Tressemme Perfectly Undone, VO5, and Loreal Evercreme (or something with 'Ever' in it).

[maborosi]

Right now, I'm not using cones unless I want to wear my hair down, otherwise, my hair is too slippery with them.

My current 'normal' routine:

Pre-wash oil with Henna Sooq's Cocoveda oil on length (ears and below)
Scalp oil with Hinoki oil from Nightblooming

Allow to sit for at least 30 minutes before washing.

CO-wash with Suave Naturals Wild Cherry Blossom conditioner.
Towel dry hair, apply Henna Sooq's Honey hair treatment, let it sit overnight.

Rinse out in the AM, apply Selkie hair detangler as a hydrating leave-in.
Apply Cocoveda oil to length
Apply Freya's hair salve to ends

I like to use mineral oil as a finishing oil- it gives great shine. I don't always need it, though.

I only wash 2-3 times a week now.

[Llama]

My favorite cone free conditioners that I have tried are the Yes to Carrots Nourishing Conditioner and the Loreal Evercreme Nourishing Conditioner (wow, just realized they have the same name lol).
They feel like regular, good conditioners...provide good slip and moisture.

[calmyogi]

Lately I have been using LUSH shampoo bars, because they are silicone free, if I can't afford to buy more when the two I have run out i'll probably just get a bottle of suave or VO5. I am learning that my scalp likes sulfates. After I wash my hair I have been doing an raw apple cider vinegar rinse, I feel like it helps with tangles. For moisture and conditioning I get out of the shower and apply shea moisture raw shea butter conditioner to my sopping wet hair as a leave in, then I put in the shea moisture raw shea butter detangler, then I plop my hair.

I don't feel like my hair needs a deep conditioner as long as I make sure I'm using plenty of the leave in conditioner.

Lately if my hair gets really tangly I might use a coney conditioner but I prefer not to because it weighs my hair down. I never realized how flat cones made my hair until I stopped using them for a couple of years. I really like what the shea moisture does for the texture of my hair. It enhances my natural wurly texture without frizzies. I would use the shampoo, but as I stated above my scalp likes the SLS. I started to get a build up and itchy scalp doing sulfate free shampoos.

[calmyogi]

I will third the shea moisture giving slip. I tried other cone free products before trying them and I feel like it does give slip compared to other products. Especially the african black soap hair masque. This masque can be hard to find though. I have found it at sally's. Otherwise I use most of their conditioners as a leave in and I like it. The products are really good for your hair too. I have had more compliments on my hair in the last year that I have been using this particular line by them than I have had in years. I don't feel the shea moisture products fake our any damage that your hair has they actually make your hair healthy.

[Silverbleed]

My products (http://i.imgur.com/mT1g4Bo.jpg)

1. I start with a Chagrin Valley shampoo bar, I like the Butter Bar Conditioner the most. I mostly use it on my scalp, sometimes I also wash the rest of my hair. I rinse it out and I also spray some ACV on my hair to rinse the rest of the soap out.
2. Then I use this Inecto conditioner. It's difficult to find a silicone free conditioner in my country that's also affordable, so I was lucky to discover this one. It's not the most amazing slip but they, for 3 bucks I'm okay with it. The other alternatives are over 20 bucks so it's an easy choice c: Sometimes I want to have a leave in conditioner when I step out of the shower, so I spray my own mix with this conditioner diluted in water on my hair.
3. When my hair is dry and the ends are extremely dry I sometimes add this 'Hair Wonderto feed my hair some protein. I love it especially when I'm on vacation and unable to do deep condition masks since it's a leave in.
4. The best thing I ever tried for my hair. I only need a tiny bit on my finger tips, I make it warm so it gets oily then I spread it evenly on my hair. Especially the tips, I avoid the scalp. It leaves my hair super soft, tangle free and frizz free.

If I could afford Shea Moisture I'd be a fan, but it's just not affordable for me where I live. I have one bottle and I try to use it as long as possible lol.

[Wusel]

Lapushka, what is YT?? :)



YouTube. :)

[Arctic]

My routine isn't anything special, and would be same with cones. I tend to navigate towards cone free products, and mostly use Finnish stuff (not sold where you live) and Urtekram (European [Danish?] brand).

Currently I have Garnier ____ 5-plants conditioner, it's ok but nothing special. Seems to give me fairy knots, like some (for my hair) inferior conditioners do. I wish I could pin point what ingredient/combination/property it is that causes fairy knots, but i haven't yet been able to. Some conditioners don't do that. (I have been able to pin point it to conditioners, but not more detailed than that.)

[Wusel]

My routine isn't anything special, and would be same with cones. I tend to navigate towards cone free products, and mostly use Finnish stuff (not sold where you live) and Urtekram (European [Danish?] brand).

Currently I have Garnier ____ 5-plants conditioner, it's ok but nothing special. Seems to give me fairy knots, like some (for my hair) inferior conditioners do. I wish I could pin point what ingredient/combination/property it is that causes fairy knots, but i haven't yet been able to. Some conditioners don't do that. (I have been able to pin point it to conditioners, but not more detailed than that.)

What are fairy knots? I'm googling... Do you mean single strand knots? I never had something like this...

[Arctic]

What are fairy knots? I'm googling... Do you mean single strand knots? I never had something like this...

Yes, single strand knots and fairy knots are the same thing. I think it's more wavy-curly-hyper curly folks who usually get them, and they tend to get progressively more numerous with the increase of curliness level.

[Bubble_Curl]

YouTube. :)

GAH! How could I not realize?? I blame sleep deprivation :p

Thank you :D

[AspenSong]

I've been pretty much cone-free since I joined LHC and found out about it and gave it a try, other than a couple 2-week forays back to cones to see how my hair did. Only to cut them back out.

I wash twice a week with either whatever Natures Gate shampoo I'm liking at the moment or Avalon Organics Biotin shampoo.
I have lots of conditioners I cycle in and out that my hair loves. L'Oreal Eversleek or Evercreme, Broo or Nature's Gate. And I always help stretch them with a bit of V05. I also like the 365 Whole Foods brand for conditioners and they've got a new "salon" line that's amazing. I just got some samples and tried them and my hair was amazing afterwards. And I recently got the Offshore Restore mask from Perfectly Posh, since it's cone-free and it's AMAZING too.

I use either a bit of Jojoba or Nightblooming Triple moon oil on my length and ends after washing. If my hair is tangly, I have some spray Detangler I use also from HeartJCreations on Etsy.
And then I do coconut oil soaks and SMT's for deeper conditioning when I get to it.

[Deborah]

I'm cone free I guess. I wash my hair once a week with Hesh Heenara Hair Wash Powder (Indian herbs only mixture) shaken well into a large bottle of warm water to which I add Hesh Brahmi Powder (another Indian herb) and some Methi (fenugreek) powder. After washing I rinse well, then do a final rinse, which I don't rinse out, of citric acid (vitamin C) powder shaken up well into a large bottle of cold water. That's all.

I have very fine, dark, straight, slippery type hair, and this procedure works quite well for me. It leaves my hair very clean, soft and shiny, and I like that I don't use any soaps or shampoos or conditioners at all.

[Freija]

I'm still playing with mine, but at the moment I'm experimenting with wcc using a tea tree sulphate shampoo to keep my scalp happy (mostly this is a scalp-only wash); then conditioning with my favourite humectant-heavy ACV and honey conditioner (http://www.powerhealth.co.uk/honey-cider-vinegar-conditioner/) and finishing up with a second, heavier/more 'sealing' conditioner. The second one used to be where I'd have the silicones, but for now it is either Crown Pride Avocado Detangling Conditioner or Darcy's Botannicals Pumpkinseed Conditioner. I'm still on the lookout though.

After washing, I blot my hair then apply a generous blob of Kinky Curly Knot Today (I use Tiny Twirls which is their children's' version; same ingredients same order but no perfume and a bit cheaper). Then four drops of argan oil and four of mineral oil to seal.

I have quite dry ends, prone to roughness and LOTS of tangles. Amodimethicone and water-soluble cones don't seem to give me the detangling and protection or smoothing that I really need, and the serum I have that does is straight-up cyclopentasiloxane and dimethicone. Which makes my already-stress-shed hair look even thinner and flatter; and it builds up fast, so I need to clarify more often. Which my ends hate. They like their scalp washes! So for me, trying 'cone-free is all about absolutely maximising sealing and slip without weighing my hair down or needing to clarify.

It's funny that I've had to start thinking about 'weight', really. I never do with straight-up moisturising no-come conditioners, nothing is ever heavy enough. I can even use quite a lot of oil or Panacea without going greasy.