How do you get your hair to be not greasy between shampoos?

[Rockferry]

If you're just starting out? My hair looks really oily if I skip only one day of shampooing. What can I do to make it so I can stretch it longer in between?

[vanillabones]

You could try a dry shampoo, my favorite is the Klorane brand. It really works. However I find washing daily with a non sulphate shampoo and gently washing is less harmful than bothering to rub the dry shampoo into my roots because it takes a harder washing to wash it out in the end anyway.

Do you use SLS shampoo? You might try switching to non SLS :) It is more gentle and doesn't strip your hair of all the oils (that's what causes your scalp to produce more oil to 'catch up' and it looks greasier faster)
This is just what works for me, and my hair is really fine and thin and it is hard to stretch my washes regardless, maybe someone with your hair type will be of more help.

[Rockferry]

We don't really have a large selection of stores around here....are there any drugstore SLS-free shampoos?

[TooShort]

I just started using the baking soda / acv rinse in between the times I have to use a shampoo/deep condition to remove chlorine because I am a swim instructor. Seems to work really well for me. Unfortunately, shampoo is the only thing that seems to get the chemicals from the pool out. In fact, here is to hoping I get a new job in the New Year. I love what I do but I don’t make enough at it and it is killing my hair. Hehehe good excuse, right? Good Luck.

Grow, Hair, Grow

[Shona]

I use dry shampoo and I have gone from washing my hair every single day to washing it once a week :-) dry shampoo is a God send for me! It was only about 3 months ago I couldn't skip a day! and also not touching it so often, and braiding it when when I'm sleeping. for some reason my hair doesn't get half as greasy if i braid it at night.

[Amber_Maiden]

Sometimes you have to live with the grease to train your hair to produce less of it- at least this what I found. I found that adding extra product didn't help to train my hair at all.

[white.chocolate]

Do you comb/brush your hair often? That just stimulates more production of sebum and the oil travels down your hair. I don't comb my hair when it starts getting greasy and that helps quite a bit.

[Avital88]

Sometimes you have to live with the grease to train your hair to produce less of it- at least this what I found. I found that adding extra product didn't help to train my hair at all.

this exactly.. it just need some time to transist

[Rockferry]

I usually only brush it when I first get up in the morning. lol

[Rybe]

Sometimes you have to live with the grease to train your hair to produce less of it- at least this what I found. I found that adding extra product didn't help to train my hair at all.

This. Just have to wait the greasy out and eventually your hair will adjust to being washed less frequently. Though I would also keep an eye on what you're using when you do wash, things that are really stripping will only make matters worse. The gentler shampoo the better.

[Anje]

This is going to sound counter-intuitive: I prevent my hair from getting greasy between shampoos by not normally washing with shampoo.

My skin, including my scalp, tends to react to dryness and having the oil stripped away by producing more oil. When I washed my face with harsh cleansers, it would get oily during the day; when I started washing more gently and moisturizing it well, it wouldn't get so oily, even in high school. Similarly, when I wash my hair and scalp with shampoo, it gets oily fast. When I wash my hair using conditioner (which has enough emulsifiers to dissolve the oils on my hair and scalp, but is moisturizing while shampoo, like soap, is drying) it doesn't produce as much oil. Combine this with tolerating a slight amount of oil before washing again and only washing when my hair starts to look like it needs it, and I've managed to stretch my washes. In the winter, I wash every 3-4 days, and in the summer even less, all depending on how much oil my scalp is putting out. What I'm doing is called "Conditioner only" or CO washing around here, and there's loads of information on it if you look around.

Not everyone has a scalp that reacts to dryness, but many people do. Those who do usually find that with gentler washing and tolerating a slight amount of oil in between washes, they can stretch their washes to at least a few days apart.

[Madora]

I usually only brush it when I first get up in the morning. lol

Rockferry, to help lessen some of the greasies, you might want to try putting a white cotton sock over your brush bristles then brushing your hair. The sock will absorb some of the grease.

You also might want to consider washing your comb and brush every day. Clean tools means you're not putting more dirt back on your hair when you use them the next day.

Also, perhaps diluting your shampoo and conditioner might help.

It took me about 3 months to successfully stretch shampooing to once a month..but I brush 100 strokes with a bbb every day and use shampoo and conditioner only (no CO or CWC).

[spidermom]

I have my doubts about the scalp producing less oil if you wash it less often. The only thing that transitioned for me was that I got used to having somewhat oily hair.

Now I just wash it again when it gets oily, which works out to about every 3 days.

[coffinhert]

I switched to conditioner only. Worked like a charm.

I tried to use shampoo again after a few months and my scalp was soo greasy the next day.

[Miss Catrina]

We don't really have a large selection of stores around here....are there any drugstore SLS-free shampoos?

Burt's Bees, Yes To Carrots, Nature's Gate, etc are SLS-free. L'oreal also has a line without them (Eversleek, Everstrong, etc)

[BlondieHepburn]

I made a dry shampoo with corn starch, white kaolin clay, baking soda (which I'll leave out next time as the granules are too large), and some essential oils, rosemary and peppermint. Works perfectly for emergency days.

[Grillz]

I run my fingers through my hair with a little bit of baby powder. If you have lighter hair, this works out pretty well on those in-between days.

[Zesty]

The advice you've gotten about gentle washing methods is good -- after a summer of every-other-day CO, my scalp's grease production did calm down a bit. But I think some of it is just dealing with a little bit of greasiness in the meantime. You can "cheat" by wearing it up, washing just the front of your hair, wearing headbands or bandanas or hats, etc. Some people do hit a wall at the longest they can stretch, but I think something like every three days is doable for most people.

[jacqueline101]

Your hair will need time to adjust just let it go wear it up for a disguise against the oily.