What dilution for shampoo?

[PhillyGirl1978@]

Ok so I have been using cones to combat tangles and while my hair feels very protected I think it is also a little coated. It feels like there is some build up. I think next time I won't use the coney conditioner everyday, maybe every other day. The cones did seem to make it so my tangles were less even when I used my cheap Suave. But I do think I may need to shampoo every once and a while. I plan to shampoo, then moisturize then use my coney conditioner. So I got some Suave Wild Cherry Blossom shampoo ( I also have the conditioner) and I plan to put a little shampoo in a bottle, dilute it with water and then put some suave conditioner in there and shake it up. I was gonna use that at my own "lo-poo". What do you guys think of that? And also what dilution should I use? How much shampoo to water, and then how much conditioner? I wanna still get rid of the build up so I can get the moisture to penetrate but I am trying to avoid stripping or over drying my hair. Also when I used sulphate shampoos on a regular bases before it took all the oil from my scalp which made my scalp over produce oil and made my roots greasy barely a day after I shampooed, So I wanna avoid that too.

[Flaxen]

I've used anything from 50:50 shampoo and water all the way down to 2 tsp. of shampoo in 1 cup of water. It all works for me. :lol:

[PhillyGirl1978@]

I've used anything from 50:50 shampoo and water all the way down to 2 tsp. of shampoo in 1 cup of water. It all works for me. :lol:

Really?Ok...well today I used a little shampoo to more water and lors of conditioner. When I rinsed my hair didn't feel coated. So I oiled it some and then put some cone conditioner in. It's drying now...we'll see what it looks like.

[teela1978]

I dilute a lot. I have an old suave bottle that I fill about 1/3 with water, do a smallish squeeze of shampoo into it, swirl, and use all of the liquid on my scalp. Mainly because it gets underneath better than not-diluting. Also because I can make a bottle of shampoo last a year.

[PhillyGirl1978@]

I dilute a lot. I have an old suave bottle that I fill about 1/3 with water, do a smallish squeeze of shampoo into it, swirl, and use all of the liquid on my scalp. Mainly because it gets underneath better than not-diluting. Also because I can make a bottle of shampoo last a year.

Do you get suds when you wash? And does this dry your hair out?

[teela1978]

Do you get suds when you wash? And does this dry your hair out?

I don't really get much in the way of suds in my hair, although you get a lot if you shake the bottle (water first, then shampoo :))... but I can sorta feel the soapiness if that makes sense? On me it seems less drying than straight shampoo. Things work different for different people though.

[Delila]

I tend to make my dilute shampoo in a solution with a ratio of about 7:1, seven parts water, one part shampoo. It doesn't need to be that concentrated to be an effective cleanser, but since I only use a tiny bit with each wash, applied directly to my scalp, I don't need to use much, so a bottle of the diluted stuff lasts a long time.

I tend to keep mine in an old dishwashing soap bottle, with a flip top, it's easy to grip when wet. (I keep several, with different types of shampoo)

[SHELIAANN1969]

I have a sports bottle that is probobly 16 or 20 ounces, I just take my shampoo, squeeze a blob or 2 into the bottom, add water, shake, and it lasts me through 2 to 3 shampoo sessions.

I think it's a couple of ounces of poo to 20 oz of water.

Of course I never measure anything, so I am sure it will never be the same twice. :D

[PhillyGirl1978@]

Ok, cool. I had a little travel size plastic bottle and I just put in a little shampoo...about the same amount of water and then a bunch of conditioner. I shook it up a bunch and used about half of it to wash with (I have a ridiculous amount of hair) and the stuff was watery so just to get it down so I could feel it on my scalp and wash it over my lengths (that also had build up) I needed to use a lot. But I think the amount of shampoo I used in the solution was probably a little more than one would use to wash their hair regularly. I might try to make it weaker next time if I'm gonna use so much or put more conditioner in.

Anyway I used my Aussie Moist conditioner and my hair feels great. Very soft and clean. Maybe tomorrow I can get away with just conditioning with my cheapo stuff and still manage to get the tangles out.

[bunnikins]

What a good info! I will definately dilute my clarifying shampoo from now on!

[embee]

I also have been very happy with diluting my shampoo. I don't measure, but I saved a smallish dish-soap bottle and put in mostly water and some squirts of shampoo and let them mix well. This lasts me a long time, but my hair is very thin. I often will squirt a bit of this into a large cup of warm water and pour that over my head - and since it's so dilute I can easily do this twice if I think my hair doesn't feel clean yet - which may happen in the heat of summer if I've been working outdoors. I'm not looking for "squeaky", just the barest beginning of squeak. Since the shampoo is so dilute I no longer have needed conditioner.

This may change in winter when the heated in-house air is so much dryer. Then I'll use very dilute conditioner, but often that makes my hair even more limp and slick than usual.

[PhillyGirl1978@]

I'm not sure if I could do that. I also don't wanna do it too often. Way back when I used to shampoo, I striped all the oild out of my scalp and it would really over produce oil. I mean I would lather up twice per shower and my roots started to look greasy barely half a day afterwards. It was ridiculous. Even today after I had shampooed with diluted shampoo and conditioner on Saturday my roots started to look a little greasy today and that doesn't happen since I have been co-washing. So today I cowashed and my hair looks nice and clean. I think I can use the Aussie Moist but I gotta ration it and maybe use it once every other time I condition, something like that. Maybe shampoo (diluted) every 10 days or so and co-wash the rest of the time. I guess I just need to play around and find a perfect routine.

[embee]

Well, with my very diluted shampoo I hardly get any lather at all. But I can tell when the majority of the oil is off my hair and scalp, it feels different. If I were to *lather*, I'd be like you say - oily in day or so. And for sure I'd need conditioner.

I think it's true you need to play with it yourself, for *your* hair, your water, your air, your routine. I wash my hair every two weeks, but I am an old lady and no longer put out the oil I did when I was young. Also, I never wear my hair loose (not a pretty style for me) so I can deal with somewhat oily scalp better than when I was young and wanted long flowing hair.

You play for a bit, you see what you can get away with. :) Then along comes a season change and the house heat is on (or off) and the whole game plan shifts!

[pilateschick7]

I have been pretty happy with a 3:1 water to shampoo ratio. I use a color applicator bottle from Sally's beauty supply to shake it up and store. I typically make my concoction once a week.:)

[PhillyGirl1978@]

Ok, I just finished a bottle of dish soap so I may use that bottle like you guys do. My problem now or lately has been frizz...I don't usually get it and I heard about people getting frizz from switching to "no-cone" but I went to cones...so would that cause it too. They halp my tangles so much you have no idea. And my hair looks great like the day after I've used cones, then the frizz starts. Not terrible but more than I am used to. Could that be a sign that my curls are dry? Maybe I will need to cut-down to using the coney conditioner maybe 2x a week. I am also thinking of getting some of the Garnier Fructis stuff that is no-cone to see if that helps any. Thankfully all this stuff is cheap enough that I can try it out without feeling too bad. So tonight I'll do the baking soda/vinegar rinse thing and try to conditioner with my Suave, I ust don't know if it will get though the tangles. Ugh!!!

[embee]

Well good luck with baking soda. I tried it once and spent the next couple of weeks trying to get my hair soft and smooth again - it had turned instantly to straw-tangle-city.

I know some folks have great success with it, and I guess the only way to find out is give it a whirl! :)

ETA: Rinse your dish soap container *really* well, cold water, warm water, maybe vinegar too. Otherwise you'll get some of that in your hair and it might not be what you want! ;)

[PhillyGirl1978@]

Well good luck with baking soda. I tried it once and spent the next couple of weeks trying to get my hair soft and smooth again - it had turned instantly to straw-tangle-city.

I know some folks have great success with it, and I guess the only way to find out is give it a whirl! :)

ETA: Rinse your dish soap container *really* well, cold water, warm water, maybe vinegar too. Otherwise you'll get some of that in your hair and it might not be what you want! ;)

Yeah...I don't want any dishsoap in there, I'd rinse really well.

The baking soda dries me out too, I think it does most people. I rinse with venegar and water after which seems to make the cuticle of the hair lay down again, it doesn't feel so roughed up.

I'm gonna need to do some playing around this weekend...my hair feels great with cones but doesn't seem to look so hot. So I may need to find a good detangling conditioner without cones, like the Garnier Fructis one. And cut the cones to like 1x a week or something.