No cones, no sulfates = awesome curls!

[Medusa]

I've been cone and sulfate free since the beginning of August, and I've been having the best hair days of my life. I'm still working out what my hair likes best in terms of cleansing. I've been trying the CO, don't know if it's the conditioner, my technique, or the whole process, but my hair doesn't seem to like it, while the mild, sulfate free shampoo I bought seems to be great for the roots (I can go two days after a wash with shampoo, CO only gets me one without major greasiness), but a bit drying on the ends.

That said, my curls have never looked better. When I was using cones and sulfates, every wash was a guessing game of whether they would be flat and limp, a wavy mess, or actually a wee bit springy. Since I quit using them, they're curly. Every day. My husband even noticed yesterday - he didn't believe me when I said I hadn't used an iron on my hair.

Just thought I'd post - I'm really doing a happy dance now. Now if my color would just grow out!

[julierockhead]

Aw cool! Isn't this place great? So glad you are having some good hair days.

Have you tried CO W CO? It protects your length and ends while you shampoo your roots. Might help with the dryness.

[Amarante]

I stopped using cones / sulfates about the same time you did. :) I would have to agree, my hair has never looked better! Do you use any oils on your ends to help keep them from getting too dry? I use coconut & almond, and EVOO sparingly (it is too heavy for my hair). That seems to help me with the dryness.

[Mairéad]

That's great! You could always do a mixture of things too. Like, maybe if you're not quite ready to shampoo or want to stretch your shampoo usage you can put it off by throwing a CO wash in there once in awhile.

[Medusa]

I stopped using cones / sulfates about the same time you did. :) I would have to agree, my hair has never looked better! Do you use any oils on your ends to help keep them from getting too dry? I use coconut & almond, and EVOO sparingly (it is too heavy for my hair). That seems to help me with the dryness.

I have sweet almond oil I've been using; I bought it to do OCM face washing but my skin doesn't like it. It seems to absorb into my hair pretty well. I haven't picked up any coconut yet and the couple of times I've tried olive oil, it seemed a bit heavy for me too. I keep forgetting to look at the coconut oil when I'm at the store.

I haven't tried CWC to whoever mentioned it, but I've been thinking about it. I'm hesitant to try too many things at once because I can't accurately pin down what's going on. I think I'm going to try a lighter conditioner to CO with and if that doesn't work, I'll try CWC. I'm planning on picking up a Suave conditioner tomorrow at the store.

[Amarante]

I have sweet almond oil I've been using; I bought it to do OCM face washing but my skin doesn't like it. It seems to absorb into my hair pretty well. I haven't picked up any coconut yet and the couple of times I've tried olive oil, it seemed a bit heavy for me too. I keep forgetting to look at the coconut oil when I'm at the store.

I haven't tried CWC to whoever mentioned it, but I've been thinking about it. I'm hesitant to try too many things at once because I can't accurately pin down what's going on. I think I'm going to try a lighter conditioner to CO with and if that doesn't work, I'll try CWC. I'm planning on picking up a Suave conditioner tomorrow at the store.

Yeah, I'd say it is better to wait at least a week or two between trying different things. And I love the suave conditioners! Tropical coconut is my favorite. :) Maybe it was the conditioner that you were using that was too heavy for CO or CWC? The suave and some VO5 versions are light enough for them to me.

[Medusa]

Yeah, I'd say it is better to wait at least a week or two between trying different things. And I love the suave conditioners! Tropical coconut is my favorite. :) Maybe it was the conditioner that you were using that was too heavy for CO or CWC? The suave and some VO5 versions are light enough for them to me.

I'm using the Tresemme no-cone conditioner and it does seems a bit heavy, which is why I'm thinking of picking up a bottle of Suave.

[Lostsoule77]

That is great! I wonder if that would work for me? I have too much regular shampoo to try it yet, but I'll get there eventually. :) I'm thinking that no cones or sulfates with co or cwc is really great for waves & curls. I'm glad that's been the case for you. Good luck with finding a conditioner and/or routine that is perfect for you. :)

[greentealeaf]

That's great! :) The same thing happened to me when I stopped using cones and sulfates. A little bit of coconut oil really helps with dryness. On freshly washed hair I use a teeny tiny bit just to smooth out frizz and then I'll usually do a deep treatment the night before I'm going to wash my hair.