Slight Emergency

[ElvenArchess]

Okay so it's not exactly a life-or-death emergency, but I do have a special occasion coming up this Sunday, and I would love for my hair to be soft and pretty without using a flat-iron and loads of product. However, with this new CO routine I've been trying out for the past few days, my hair is dull, dry, lifeless (read my blog, I beg of you. It won't take long) and just plain sad[der than usual... It's not even soft anymore, something I used to pride myself on: "Well, my hair is frizzy and poofy to no end, but at least it's soft as silk." But, even that is no more]. I even tried clarifying. Maybe I did it wrong, I don't know, I'm just upset. My hair is a disaster and I need to get it back on track before Sunday rolls around. I have a stretched budget, but this is what I have to maybe help with your suggestions. I'm not sure how, but maybe this will show you what I'm used to using:

VO5 Kiwi-Lime Clarifying Shampoo
VO5 Sun-Kissed Raspberry Balancing Conditioner
Organix Nourishing Coconut Milk Conditioner
Dove Daily Moisture Shampoo & Dove Intensive Repair Conditioner
Pantene Beautiful Lengths Shampoo and Conditioner (though I don't like what this did to my hair)
Garnier Fructisse Triple Nutrition Shampoo and Conditioner (what I used throughout my first year of college, kindof my stand-by)
Back to Basics Apple Ginseng Volumizing Shampoo and Conditioner (this was a gift from relatives, it acts weird with my hair, idk..)

The most I can spend is $10 on new products. Horribly stretched budget, this paycheck.. Your help and even the smallest advice is greatly appreciated. :heartbeat

[hanne jensen]

Fructis Triple Action leaves my hair flat and lifeless. OK, is your hair normally dry or oily?

Check out the article on mixing oil and shampoo. This has really saved my hair. Lots of folks in the U.S. have used Prell poo with this method. As I understand it, Prell isn't too pricey. Some folks use the coconut oil for kitchen use, others use oil for external use only. Buy what's cheapest. Remember to clarify first to get all the conditioner residue out of your hair.

[ElvenArchess]

Fructis Triple Action leaves my hair flat and lifeless. OK, is your hair normally dry or oily?
Not oily until the next day. As for dry, all I can associate that to is the poofy, frizzy, kindof like a plasma ball when you touch your fingertips to it, but if dry refers to the texture of my hair, no, it's usually soft as silk.

And I'm searching for the article right after I submit this post.

[motormuffin]

I only clarify with Neutrogena...it's the only one I found that actually gets stuff off my hair. http://www.walgreens.com/store/c/neutrogena-anti-residue-shampoo/ID=prod9061-product
If I want slickery hair I clarify with that then use Biolage condish...towel dry and then just a spot of silicone with a hair dryer. I don't do this all the time, just for special. I think you can do with what you have and pick your fav condish but you may want to try out that shampoo. You still have time to experiment some.

[tiny_teesha]

I wish i could help. The only thing i can think of is a hair mask. If your hair is dull and you tried clarifying, did you ever think of a diluted ACV rinse and oiling after? You can use regular EVOO.

the vinegar should help smooth down the hair follicle making it smoother than usual, and oil, well, it's just awesome. Coconut is rad. Perhaps you don't have enough protein in your hair? Then i would suggest coconut oil for preserving what protein you have left and using a product with wheat protein or soy in it, or put mayo on your head- but you'll smell like mayo. Too much protein will make your hair snappy, so be careful!

My favourite coney leave in is by Schwartzkopf, its the pink one for damaged hair that actually "Repairs"- which i highly disbelieve, BUT it does make my hair smooth.

And we know that hair is smoother on the second day than the first initial day of frizz, so timing your hair wash might help like that :)

Or use a flat iron briskly through hair and use heat protective spray.

[pepperminttea]

I'd try one more clarify and then an SMT (http://forums.longhaircommunity.com/showthread.php?t=128). That can fix a multitude of sins. ;) I'd wait to try oil shampoo until after the big event though, it gave me a major case of the scalp itchies after the first few washes.

[Firefox7275]

Revert to what you know works, if that is Triple Nutrition then use that. Maybe slightly dilute each for better coverage and/or leave them to soak in for a couple of minutes, so you get the full benefit. I wouldn't waste money on new products when you are a little stretched and don't have the time for trial and error.

[FluffSpider]

Have you considered a light cassia treatment? It's notorious for making hair shiny:p my hair used to be lifeless and dull before I hennaed the crap out of it. then it turned kind-of awesome:d

[AchtungCurly]

For me, the first few weeks of CO gave me hair that was just bleck. It gets better, though.

I agree with going back to what worked before for a special occasion.

[Lianna]

My first weeks with CO the hair was fine, then started getting dry feeling (crunchy)...I wasn't using cones at all, but had protein build-up from the conditioners. Before that my hair was always soft, though frizzy (that's why I tried CO). After going back to shampoo my hair was back to normal, if/when I want to CO again I won't use conditioners with protein again. So maybe that's your case here, worth clarifying a few more times and treat with plain conditioners (I don't know if you like cones) and seal it lightly with 2-4 drops of oil (maybe you have olive oil in the house?) while damp if you can (this would make it less poufy like you said).

[Intransigentia]

Here's what I've done when I need to press "reset" on my hair:

First try to get the hair really clean in case the problem is buildup. One, possibly two shampoos with the Kiwi LIme.

Then a deep conditioning treatment. As far as I'm concerned, Garnier Triple Nutrition conditioner is magic. Use it alone, mix in some oil (if you don't have coconut, a lot of people like olive), or use it as a mix for SMT, whatever you feel best about. Glop your hair up really thoroughly, put a plastic bag and some tinfoil and a toque over it (keeps in your body heat, so the warmth can help your hair absorb stuff), and go about your day for as long as you can stand before rinsing it out.

Then a mildly acidic rinse to smooth and shine it. Put a bit (maybe a tablespoon?) of lemon juice or vinegar in half a gallon or so of cool water and dump that over your head. You can either leave it, or rinse it if you feel like it smells.

I rarely use any leave-ins, but if you have one you like, I guess you'd put it in now. Maybe just enough oil to make your palms a bit shiny, like one or two drops.

Good luck with the hair blahs, and regardless of the hair outcome I hope your special occasion on Sunday goes well!

[Slinks]

My favourite coney leave in is by Schwartzkopf, its the pink one for damaged hair that actually "Repairs"- which i highly disbelieve, BUT it does make my hair smooth.
.

I was looking at this one yesterday .. I stood there umming and arhing, I bought the mask split end treatment tho .. your post has made me decide to go back today and get it :-)

To the original poster, I can't help as I'm in the middle of all these experimentations :-)

[AshNight1214]

Some hair doesn't like CO. I know mine didn't. Either that or you're going through shampoo withdrawals which I hear happens.

You might have to shampoo/exfoliate Saturday night or Sunday morning so your hair is nice for the day, then go back to CO when you can let your hair get used to it. :shrug:

[Slinks]

I was looking at this one yesterday .. I stood there umming and arhing, I bought the mask split end treatment tho .. your post has made me decide to go back today and get it :-)

To the original poster, I can't help as I'm in the middle of all these experimentations :-)



My favourite coney leave in is by Schwartzkopf, its the pink one for damaged hair that actually "Repairs"- which i highly disbelieve, BUT it does make my hair smooth.
.

Going off Topic again .. I bought this today it came in a set of two shampoos and one condish, would rather it the other way round but all three for $12 that's a bargin !! :-) thanks Tiny Teesha :-) I can't wait to try it ..

ETA: Tiny's message was supposed to be up top of mine .. I'm still learning how to do this :-)

[Elleyena]

I would suggest doing an SMT a couple of nights before the event. The reason I say nights is that you can leave it in while you sleep. It really softened and shined up my hair when I did it last Saturday, and the effects are holding through today :) If you want, you can check my blog to see what I did. I'm not sure if my method would work for you as we are offset in hairtype, but I hope it will.

I definitely wish you the best of luck! *hugs* we'll get you back to shiny and soft