2a/2b

[catoala]

Hello.

My hair is 2a, but potentially 2b. When I use shampoo only, my hair is very wavy and curly, but when I use conditoner, it just goes straight... Is there anything else I could use instead of conditoner (I have tried many ones - no difference) that won't weigh down my waves but my hair won't be dry (it isn't very dry but..)? If so, I'd be glad to hear about it. Thanks.

[embee]

I don't have waves, but my hair was limp when I used conditioner, and rough-tangles when I didn't. Not good.

One thing I tried, and found it worked pretty well, was to highly dilute my shampoo, and only one wash, not two like the bottle said. Then I used very very dilute conditioner, like a squirt of it mixed in a big tumbler of water. I really was aiming for my scalp to be cleaner and my length to be lightly conditioned.

That was enough shampoo to clean off my scalp, and enough conditioner to smooth out the tangles, but not enough to weigh everything down.

I liked this method because it was almost free as I already had the products and this made them last much much longer. :) You could give this a try, it's certainly cheap and easy.

[MusicalSpoons]

You could try an acidic rinse, as long as the pH is not too low http://science-yhairblog.blogspot.com/2013/08/ph-of-common-homemade-rinses.html

Some members have had success just using a drop or two of oil on damp or wet hair (plant oils, or mineral oil - the type you find in baby oil, not the mechanical lubricant kind of mineral oil!)

You say you've tried lots of conditioners; did that include leave-in conditioners? I have no idea but it seems to me those should be lighter than rinse-out conditioners.

Or herbal / natural things, like aloe or marshmallow root or slippery elm, etc. In fact a nice sounding aloe with a hint of oil recipe was posted recently on the Henna / Herbal recipes board (the thread's called Aloe Aloe).


embee I must admit I've never heard of using diluted conditioner by itself before, but that sounds like a most sensible place to start!

[embee]

embee I must admit I've never heard of using diluted conditioner by itself before, but that sounds like a most sensible place to start!

I've used diluted conditioner to wash woolen things. That's how I wash my winter blanket at the laundry - mix up a bottle of diluted conditioner and pour it in when they say "add soap" - only no soap for me. Then fluff dry for just a few minutes on low, air dry the rest of the way. Lovely soft blanket with a good clean smell, works for me. :)

I started that when I was trying to use up products I no longer used on my hair!

[mariakatija]

I found that if I use sulfate free shampoo my hair is flat. Also, any leave ins tend to weigh down my hair so I try to avoid them until my hair naturally goes flat as the days go by past wash day. My hair seems to like less frequent washes but with a sulfate shampoo and absolutely no silicones in my conditioner or products.

Have you tried an oil treatment before washing? That really helps me. I do one every other wash. Then as my conditioner I the Garnier Fructis Nourishing Treat 1 Minute Hair Mask. I don't comb my hair until the following day and my waves are shiny and happy. I find too much combing flattens my hair and frizzes it.