What the heck are cones?

[Mariah!!]

Okay I looked in the VIT's and not very well I might add, but I did.
I have been trying to catch on to this whole cone thing, but I can not for the life of me figure out "what the heck are cones?" :p

[Bene]

Article on cones here (http://forums.longhaircommunity.com/vbjournal.php?do=article&articleid=13).

[little_cherry]

That article is great.

Basically anything with '-cone' or 'xane' endings.. I avoid any cone with the '-xane' ending like the plague as they can actually pull moisture out of the hair which leads to the viscous "dry hair-condition-dry hair" cycle.

Cones will build up, so if your favorite conditioner contains cones, you'll need to clarify with a clarifying shampoo and do a deep moisture treatment such as an SMT (http://forums.longhaircommunity.com/showthread.php?t=128) with a conditioner without any cones or protien to moisturise your hair..then proceed as normal with your coney conditioner.

[Anje]

"'Cone" is short for "silicone" and refers to the silicon-based compounds that are put in a variety of products to add slip and smoothness to hair and to the hair product.

Some of them, like cyclomethicone and cyclopentasiloxane, are actually volatile. This means that rather than building up, they evaporate. These give products a nice amount of smoothness and spreadability. Some also find their evaporation to make hair feel dryer.

Other common cones include dimethicone, dimethiconol, and amodimethicone, to name a few. These are deposited on hair and stay put. They smooth hair nicely, making it easier to comb, possibly temporarily covering splits, and may impart a bit of strength. Those are the great parts. The thing that makes them unpleasant for some hair is that many of them (amodimethicone being a little different, and I'll get to that) build up in layers on the hair, and can prevent moisture and oils from getting to the hair. Some find that they make hair feel a bit plastic-y, and I've noticed this especially the next time I wet my hair. Sulfate detergents are generally needed to remove them, so people avoiding sulfates tend to want to avoid silicones as well.

As I said, amodimethicone (as well as other amine-functionalized silicones) is slightly different from the ones above, in that it only seems to only form a single layer on the hair, so users don't feel like they're getting buildup from it. It still has the potential to seal moisture in or out, like other silicones, and still requires sulfates to remove. But you don't get a buildup sensation from it.



ETA: Lots of folks notice Methylchloroisothiazolinone and Methylisothiazolinone in their conditioner... These aren't 'cones, they're preservatives, used to prevent microbes from growing in your hair stuff. Note the "-inone" ending instead of "-icone".

[Othala]

Nothing much to add to the excellent responses posted above. Just wanted to say that if cones work well on your hair then they are pretty much a miracle in a bottle.