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View Full Version : Do you have to lie about hair care products?



LovingLife
April 6th, 2009, 02:43 AM
I'm incredibly flattered when people talk about how shiny my hair is but often they'll be like.
'Do you use anything in your hair?' or
'What products do you use?' and I have to say
'nothing' because I know if I did say 'I wash my hair through with vingegar and sometimes braid my hair with olive oil, they wouldn't be so eager to touch it.

Do you ever find this?

Heavenly Locks
April 6th, 2009, 02:52 AM
There is so much social warpage when it comes to hair care, I can see why it's easier sometimes to just lie. ;)

I find most often though, that even with the truth, people are completely disbelieving. Like if someone says "I use salon product X only, it costs 50$ a bottle and I wish my hair looked as nice as yours, what do you use?" and I say "Oh...I use Suave...and I don't heat style very often." They are normally like "That's amazing, I can't believe it." Or just stand there agape...

Or I get the classic grumble "oh well then your hair just must be extra nice to begin with" and walk away...

It's just hard for most people to believe (or admit) that cheap products CAN be better and leave you with really great hair. Or that gorgeous hair has a lot more to do with how you handle it than washing it 10x a week with "super expenso produc X''...

LovingLife
April 6th, 2009, 03:22 AM
Exactly! They never think, 'hmmm... maybe price isn't always quality' I mean come on!
They always blame it to your hair 'Well you've got them nice curls' or 'You've got natural soft shiny hair'
I find it degrading to the ammount of time I spend on my hair

princess
April 6th, 2009, 03:30 AM
I had a friend whose hair is incredibly shiny and people used to ask her what products she uses and all she has to say is sunsilk shampoo and no conditioner in those days. And yet she had the hair the envy of many.

Natalia
April 6th, 2009, 03:31 AM
I used to lie but it just stopped being worth the effort. I'll admot to not washing my hair for a few days but after that i lie to most people (shrinks away with embarassed face...). What i use on my hair as long as its not super strange (for the average person anyway) i just say it. But at the same time i try to destigmatise it. Like with oiling if someone compliments me and asks how i got my hair so X/Y/Z i'll say something like "oh my hair can get REALLY dry and olive oil seems to help me plus it makes it shiny, if i use it on my food i dont see anyhting wrong with my head?" Or something of the like. If its something very intesnsive for the average Joe i say i "thank you :) it takes alot of work but its worth it." and if they inquire further i kinda story tell it like "oh at first i did ____ but it didnt quite do it for me so i started doing ____, _____, _____, and it has really helped cut down on bad hair days :)". I dont try to pitch to people or lure them in anyway i just try to take the weird factor out of it and make it sound more user friendly.

LovingLife
April 6th, 2009, 03:32 AM
I had a friend whose hair is incredibly shiny and people used to ask her what products she uses and all she has to say is sunsilk shampoo and no conditioner in those days. And yet she had the hair the envy of many.

Maybe she was a secret LHCer?! Teehee :p:D

LovingLife
April 6th, 2009, 03:33 AM
I used to lie but it just stopped being worth the effort. I'll admot to not washing my hair for a few days but after that i lie to most people (shrinks away with embarassed face...). What i use on my hair as long as its not super strange (for the average person anyway) i just say it. But at the same time i try to destigmatise it. Like with oiling if someone compliments me and asks how i got my hair so X/Y/Z i'll say something like "oh my hair can get REALLY dry and olive oil seems to help me plus it makes it shiny, if i use it on my food i dont see anyhting wrong with my head?" Or something of the like. If its something very intesnsive for the average Joe i say i "thank you :) it takes alot of work but its worth it." and if they inquire further i kinda story tell it like "oh at first i did ____ but it didnt quite do it for me so i started doing ____, _____, _____, and it has really helped cut down on bad hair days :)". I dont try to pitch to people or lure them in anyway i just try to take the weird factor out of it and make it sound more user friendly.


What a good idea! I got to try that sometime

Bloodflower
April 6th, 2009, 03:37 AM
If I can keep people from touching my hair by saying the truth about my routine that's a good thing!

Apart from that I've always had positive reactions to my routine. No one has ever been grossed out by an ACV rinse or coconut oil. Au contraire, I've had several people ask me to bring them a sample of coconut oil for example.

LovingLife
April 6th, 2009, 03:47 AM
If I can keep people from touching my hair by saying the truth about my routine that's a good thing!

Apart from that I've always had positive reactions to my routine. No one has ever been grossed out by an ACV rinse or coconut oil. Au contraire, I've had several people ask me to bring them a sample of coconut oil for example.

Woohoo! :cheese: I actually don't mind people touching my hair a bit, it's when people who I don't know like that touch it however if someone tests it first and says 'can I touch it' I'm really flattered. :D

Natalia
April 6th, 2009, 04:00 AM
What a good idea! I got to try that sometime

I figure the more people who take care of their hair the better and more tolerant people will be :) when it comes to this kind of stuff. If they arent exposed to it they cant be open to or have the option to try.

Arctic
April 6th, 2009, 04:13 AM
The vinegar rinse is quite well known hair care practice, I wouldn't hesitate to tell that. Also hot oil treatments are well known, you could just say you give your hair hot oil treatments every now and then.

And the answer to your question is "no", I don't lie. But I do mostly use store brought items with home remedies thrown in for fun.

Phalaenopsis
April 6th, 2009, 04:14 AM
I also have that feeling, because I don't do anything fancy with my hair. I just stopped using harsh shampoos and handling my hair roughly.
And then I feel guilty, 'cause I can't help them if they keep flat ironing it or something. :o
The best tip I can give those people is rinsing your hair with cold water when you're done washing it.

Heavenly Locks
April 6th, 2009, 04:43 AM
I feel like handing them a hair care pamphlet with bullet points. :o ;)

LovingLife
April 6th, 2009, 04:52 AM
I feel like handing them a hair care pamphlet with bullet points. :o ;)

So do I believe me!! :cheese:

noelgirl
April 6th, 2009, 05:08 AM
I don't really feel the need to lie, probably the weirdest thing I do is CO washing and only washing with shampoo once a week, and people don't seem too weirded out about that. About the "you just have good hair" comments, though, my family always asks where I got all that hair (in a nice way, like how did I end up with hair that will grow when nobody else in my family does?). Funny thing is, my mom does have "all that hair" naturally, her texture and thickness are just like mine, she just keeps cutting it!

Chromis
April 6th, 2009, 05:23 AM
If they ask, I'll tell em but I don't volunteer my routine otherwise. I'm just not the proselytizing type.

Tap Dancer
April 6th, 2009, 05:31 AM
If someone asks, I don't lie. I've explained a couple of times about washing with conditioner.

Carolyn
April 6th, 2009, 05:34 AM
No I don't have to lie because I never get asked what I use. I mean never. The people I know in real life have zero interest in hair care. I never bring up the subject of hair either. You know...don't ask, don't tell ;)

marzipanthecat
April 6th, 2009, 05:48 AM
Oh yes! People come up and say nice things about my hair and often ask what I use - and I tell the truth, just a regular (not expensive) shampoo, and a conditioner (I'm currently using Elvive) but I don't even stick with the same brand all the time. And sometimes I comb through some olive oil, leave it a few hours, and then wash as normal, if I feel it need extra conditioning (usually in winter when it is cold and my hair is rather exposed to the elements!).

Older people (age about 50 or over) say "oh yes?" and are interested, but anyone aged about 40 or younger is just not believing me, especially when I say I don't perm or use curlers (I'm too lazy to do much!). I always found this age difference interesting.

I do sometimes feels I should make up some huge extravagant lie about what I do - such as only washing my hair between 7am and 7.30 am, only using rainwater collected on a Sunday, making my own shampoo from Narwhal poo, and so on...

WelshLocks
April 6th, 2009, 06:21 AM
My older sister asked me how my hair was so shiny yesterday(after my SMT the day before) and I told her what I put in it.BIG mistake.She was really mad that I put honey in my hair because"that's not good for your hair.just because it's natural doesn't mean it's good"


blegh.

paper
April 6th, 2009, 06:28 AM
I was telling people about the products I was using or was going to try. They all looked at me like I was weird lol. So, I just keep some things to myself now!

ChloeDharma
April 6th, 2009, 06:48 AM
I don't get asked by strangers outright usually, but if the topic comes up then i just tell the truth. To be honest i don't feel it's anything to be ashamed of or i wouldn't do it, and if they react badly i'm really not fussed.
My family all know roughly what i do, some more than others, but nobody comments negatively at all.....my sisters even ask for advice and one has been converted to oiling, honey, yogurt and even banana baby food treatments (which freaked her husband out when he saw it in the shopping as he thought it meant she was pregnant again). But really, in terms of being weird my hair care habits are nothing compared to what my family are used to with me.

Usually if i get stopped and asked anything it's about skin care as usually i have nice skin....again i have no qualms about being honest.

Morag
April 6th, 2009, 07:00 AM
Yup. Recently at work someone asked me what I did for my hair and I replied, "I don't use shampoo. I only use conditioner. There's too much detergent in shampoo for my hair." Later that week, at least three different people at different times brought up how their hairdressers had told them that not shampooing was really, really bad for hair and scalp, and that their hair would smell nasty if they didn't shampoo. (Word gets around, I see.) I didn't argue, but I did start wearing my hair down a couple of days a week, so they can see that it is clean, shiny, and smells fine. I'll bet they think they talked me into shampooing, lol!

BlackfootHair
April 6th, 2009, 07:05 AM
I don't lie about it. I used to get tons of compliments in the spa when my hair was super curly. They'd say, "Oh, your hair is cute, it must take you hours with a curling iron!" I'd say, "Actually, this is my natural curl...I just wash it and run some coconut oil in it before it's completely dry." lol :D

BlackfootHair
April 6th, 2009, 07:08 AM
I don't get asked by strangers outright usually, but if the topic comes up then i just tell the truth. To be honest i don't feel it's anything to be ashamed of or i wouldn't do it, and if they react badly i'm really not fussed.
My family all know roughly what i do, some more than others, but nobody comments negatively at all.....my sisters even ask for advice and one has been converted to oiling, honey, yogurt and even banana baby food treatments (which freaked her husband out when he saw it in the shopping as he thought it meant she was pregnant again). But really, in terms of being weird my hair care habits are nothing compared to what my family are used to with me.

Usually if i get stopped and asked anything it's about skin care as usually i have nice skin....again i have no qualms about being honest.


Haha, that's funny! I love banana baby food! It's my all time favorite! I sometimes on rare occasion buy a jar to eat...just because it tastes good. :o So what's the treatment? Do you just slap it on like conditioner and leave it a while?

Anlbe
April 6th, 2009, 07:18 AM
I don't tell the whole truth about my hair products but it's not the SMTs or refined coconut oil or jojoba oil that I fail to mention, it's the conventional products. To be honest I have a bit of a guilt thing about how much my conditioner and shampoo cost, but they truly do work the best for me. Someone once had a thread about estimating how much people spend on their hair each year, I was horrified by my total but don't have the moral fiber to go back to crunchy, brittle hair!

Amoretti
April 6th, 2009, 07:25 AM
I hardly ever get asked because it's always up so people think it's about BSL.

If they've ever seen it down (it's thigh length) they gasp and then ask. LOL. I don't lie but I omit the fact that I only wash once a week and do scalp washes.

If they insist that they need to flat iron to have nice hair I just shut up because there's no point in trying to convince them.

may1em
April 6th, 2009, 07:31 AM
...

I do sometimes feels I should make up some huge extravagant lie about what I do - such as only washing my hair between 7am and 7.30 am, only using rainwater collected on a Sunday, making my own shampoo from Narwhal poo, and so on...


:spitting:

Narwhal poo! Brilliant!

prosperina
April 6th, 2009, 07:39 AM
My older sister asked me how my hair was so shiny yesterday(after my SMT the day before) and I told her what I put in it.BIG mistake.She was really mad that I put honey in my hair because"that's not good for your hair.just because it's natural doesn't mean it's good"


blegh.

Yeah, my sister has done something similar. She loves to say how nice my hair looks, and even that she likes the color, but she'll have nothing to do with my hair care routine or henna! :lol: Well, okay... She doesn't get mad, but we live together and she sees my hair, and she sees what I do to it...seriously can imy hair care be so bad? Afterall you agree the final product looks good! Her hair looks really good too, but she goes to the salon and has it colored, but she really does have hair that you can do anything to, and it will still look good.

peachrose
April 6th, 2009, 07:41 AM
I tend to be carefully vague with co-workers and aqquaintences but am willing to share more tips with friends and family if asked. It's rather annoying to go into a lot of explanation about how to avoid damage and then see certain people continue to ruin their hair, and complain about how they could never have "nice hair" like me... Oh well, you can't win all the battles!

freznow
April 6th, 2009, 08:13 AM
Yeah, I omit details, but I don't lie. I'll say that I wash with eggs and catnip, or whatever I happen to be using, but I'll leave out that I often go two weeks without washing.

melrose1985
April 6th, 2009, 08:25 AM
I dont lie, but i dont say everything. I mean i havent had people compliment me really either or ask. But my mom even some times will find stuff weird that i use. But i explain it to her and she gets it.

Delila
April 6th, 2009, 08:56 AM
Back when I was experimenting with different routines, I'd usually just say that I'd been experimenting with natural haircare. In my experience, people didn't really want the specifics, they were just talking, and expected some sort of reply. If they had asked more questions, I'd have filled them in, but they never did.

JamieLeigh
April 6th, 2009, 09:00 AM
I don't, because I love to see the surprised looks when I mention that I don't use shampoo more than once or twice a month, and I use olive oil in it. The reaction is priceless, and I really DON'T mind if it makes them keep their dirty mitts off my hair! :eyebrows:

wintersun99
April 6th, 2009, 09:17 AM
Lately, nobody is asking (short hair syndrome) But, in the past if someone did ask, I would tell them. I don't usually volunteer though. My routine past/present has always been fairly minimal (except when I was going through experimentation phases) so it was never really an issue to explain it to others. However, hair care routines are not on my "general conversation" list, so it was rare and usually amongst friends. :D

ETA: now I get the "where do you get your hair cut" questions and I don't really know how to feel about that one. On one hand, it's nice to hear that others like the style (because it is a confidence booster as I really hate it) but on the other hand, I have no intentions of maintaining a short style. Ah well... :D

Centeredgirl1
April 6th, 2009, 12:35 PM
It's been over 3 months since I've joined the ranks of no-pooers. I've shouted it from the rootops, I'm so excited about it. Don't care what people think. I'll never conform to society's edict about what is required for clean hair.:lala:

Nyghtingale
April 6th, 2009, 12:40 PM
Sometimes I hesitate to tell the I use henna. It always turns into a looong discussion as I try to explain.

And I must in the minority, love to have my hair touched (not by strangers though). Coworkers I don't mind.

marajade
April 6th, 2009, 01:03 PM
I do sometimes feels I should make up some huge extravagant lie about what I do - such as only washing my hair between 7am and 7.30 am, only using rainwater collected on a Sunday, making my own shampoo from Narwhal poo, and so on...

:rollin: Yes, that's what you must do sometimes to get people to believe you is make some outlandish claim. . you are your own infomerical!

Arctic_Mama
April 6th, 2009, 01:12 PM
I wouldn't lie about my care, for moral reasons, but depending on the person asking I usually try to be honest and get them on a discussion about this site! Many people are amenable when they hear my haircare is cheap and works!

viking_quest
April 6th, 2009, 01:16 PM
I don't lie about what I use in my hair. I'm quite proud of saying that I use vinegar in my hair.

flapjack
April 6th, 2009, 01:33 PM
If anyone makes a comment, I just say thank you or roll my eyes at them and walk away... depending on the comment, haha. If anyone asks me specifically what I do to my hair, then I tell them. If they want more explanations, I will gladly give them. If they're grossed out by it, then that's their problem. I really don't care. If it works for me well enough that they're noticing it, then... the joke is on them, I guess? They don't have to like it or use it if they think it's gross, it's their loss.

Forever_Sophie
April 6th, 2009, 01:38 PM
It comes off as much simpler than it is when I'm answering. There's so much variety to what I do to my hair, lol, I can't imagine detailing it. I mention my S&C, and main leave in. Oh, and I straight out lie about washing it :o I'll say every other day when it's every 3 or 4.

Chromis
April 6th, 2009, 04:15 PM
Heh, I'm amused by how many people are concerned with duration between washes. It never occurred to me to ever tell anyone how often I wash when they ask what I use, only that I use shampoo bars and occasionally hendigo it! I evidentially answer things very literally :lol:

Natalia
April 6th, 2009, 06:21 PM
I feel like handing them a hair care pamphlet with bullet points. :o ;)

Lol :p i love this idea! Hmm i know people in the printing bussines....*ponders.....ponders...ponders....*

Peter
April 6th, 2009, 06:26 PM
Last time I told someone about my hair routine was several months ago when I was shampooing every 4 days. A girl asked me what I did to make my hair so shiny and soft, and I explained that (at the time) I used a small amount of shampoo about twice a week. She was clearly disgusted and began telling me that I needed to wash my hair daily for it to be clean, so I just left.

I wonder what she would think if she knew that I wash my hair once a week now, or that I haven't used shampoo in a few months. :D

BlndeInDisguise
April 6th, 2009, 06:36 PM
My older sister asked me how my hair was so shiny yesterday(after my SMT the day before) and I told her what I put in it.BIG mistake.She was really mad that I put honey in my hair because"that's not good for your hair.just because it's natural doesn't mean it's good"


blegh.

Right, like your hair would be brilliantly shiny from putting something on it that's not good for it. :o:p

Natalia
April 6th, 2009, 06:41 PM
Even though ive never henna'ed when i bring it up with people (epecially hairdressers or salon folk) it goes over very poorly :(. I considered it a while ago and to be honest im glad i didnt go henna red i tried a chemical dye with a little red in it and i hated it on me. But if i ever find a shade i think i can achieve henna it is :D i love it on other people. Anyone else get this with henna? It was a reaction like i said i was spearing dog poo on my hair! Henna is NOT evil.

Ash
April 6th, 2009, 10:21 PM
Hmm.... I guess I have people trained to accept my weirdness then :) I enjoy telling people about the strange things I put in my hair. They might not understand it but they know better than to say anything bad. If they are really confused I will tell them why it is good for the hair.

RancheroTheBee
April 6th, 2009, 11:59 PM
Erm, sometimes. I mean, my mother is always rapt with excitement when I tell her about some new hair recipe I've encountered, and my father is excited about things that would make his hair soft without a lot of effort (new filters, for example) but no-one else seems to care. I usually oversimplify my routine because I know that a lot of my friends are terrible with their hair, and think my efforts are tiresome or in vain. A friend of mine was revolted to discover I put olive oil in my hair, but she recently confessed to having shaved the ends of her hair. What is that called; razoring? It sounds awful.

Gumball
April 7th, 2009, 12:37 AM
I'm happily honest if anyone ever asks me what I do to my hair or if it ever just happens to come up in conversation. No harm being informed after all. If you can break someone's perception about something having to be only one kind of way and it's not necessarily in a bad way then why not? You can only go up!

vindo
April 7th, 2009, 01:32 AM
No, I am honest and usually get weird looks, stupid questions.

If I feel like people want to tease me about it, I turn it around on them, acting like they are dumb for still using Care with Sulfates and Cones..."where have YOU been...hello!!??" :p

CrystalStar
April 7th, 2009, 01:37 AM
I try avoid talking about my routine to avoid that awful awkward moment when I say I havn't used shampoo for almost 2 months :p

I CO and I hate having to explain about silicone in conditioners, and my brother is always bugging me about it as well :rolleyes:

Finoriel
April 7th, 2009, 01:55 AM
Itīs not that I get such personal questions on a daily basis :wink: but if a friend asks, I just tell them my routine. Iīm not overly bothered if they should look funny. I have an unusual routine and some years ago I also would have looked funny. But itīs ones own decision how to care for oneself and if they dare to ask, they need to live with the answer.
And there are īworseī things to put in ones hair than vinegar and olive oil :gabigrin: ...
If itīs a not well known person just randomly asking, I usually tell them to mind their own business or just switch to another smalltalk-topic.


*snip*
... because I know if I did say 'I wash my hair through with vingegar and sometimes braid my hair with olive oil, they wouldn't be so eager to touch it.
*snip*
But then I donīt want friends to ībe eager to touch my hairī anyways :eek: Iīm not walking around touching their heads either. In my culture that would be considered very rude. So if telling them my routine would make them stop reaching for my hair :wink: that would be a big plus-point in my book.

ailin
April 7th, 2009, 02:10 AM
I'm always honest when people ask me - not that that happens very often. The only stuff I put in my hair is henna, conditioner (for CO) and sometimes coconut oil and vinegar. Not too weird. People are usually quite intrigued, in a positive way!

... I have to confess, though, sometimes I rather enjoy telling people I haven't shampoo'd in months, just to see the look on their face. :D

Upside Down
April 7th, 2009, 06:09 AM
Haha, I actualy do not lie. Still, I dont have such an impressive hair, and people don't ask me what I am using, just are the curls natural and so on.
But sometimes we talk about cosmetics and hair masks and conditioners come along, I just ... avoid the truth (of egg wash, rosemary rinse, and oiling...). :)
However, I do dream of a day when my hair WILL be impressive, so I can rub my routine in everybodys face.

Like this it would just be like "but this would make your hair sooo much nicer..." :angry:

Peregrine
April 7th, 2009, 06:38 AM
I usually wear my hair up outside my house so people don't really ask me about my hair care routine. If they did I'd probably only mention coconut oiling and not using heat styling. I'd leave out any mention of shampoo and such as I've gone WO.

What I've always found interesting is that whenever I have gotten compliments, whether about my hair or looks, it's usually on a day when I thought my hair looked particularly oily/waxy. :shrug:

SHELIAANN1969
April 7th, 2009, 06:42 AM
No one ever asks what I use except my grandma, and she tried henna once and I always make her some of my concoctions and give her homemade soap.

No one else asks, so no, I don't lie, but I wouldn't lie if they did ask.

I don't care too much what anyone thinks about my grooming habits. :D

LovingLife
April 7th, 2009, 08:03 AM
Itīs not that I get such personal questions on a daily basis :wink: but if a friend asks, I just tell them my routine. Iīm not overly bothered if they should look funny. I have an unusual routine and some years ago I also would have looked funny. But itīs ones own decision how to care for oneself and if they dare to ask, they need to live with the answer.
And there are īworseī things to put in ones hair than vinegar and olive oil :gabigrin: ...
If itīs a not well known person just randomly asking, I usually tell them to mind their own business or just switch to another smalltalk-topic.

I'm so flattered you would say that! :cheese::p:D


But then I donīt want friends to ībe eager to touch my hairī anyways :eek: Iīm not walking around touching their heads either. In my culture that would be considered very rude. So if telling them my routine would make them stop reaching for my hair :wink: that would be a big plus-point in my book.[/quote]

LovingLife
April 7th, 2009, 08:04 AM
Exactly! Blow-dryers are much worse than (icky) vinegar and olive oil!

LovingLife
April 7th, 2009, 08:07 AM
Lol :p i love this idea! Hmm i know people in the printing bussines....*ponders.....ponders...ponders....*

You should totally do that! :D Us LHCers could walk around and whenever a mean comment got brought up, whip it out and be like 'Are you prepared to do as much as me?' that would be a showstopper!

:luke: The Longhaired knights strike again. :grouphug: