Frequent hair washers : Every day or every other

[mommy2one05]

To those who wash frequently....why do you , how often, and what's the routine??

I normally wash mine every other day.
I use s&c (with cones).
I try to wash in the morning so by afternoon it is dry.
Have tried stretching washes but I just can't....maybe it's a habit...??

[meliora]

I wash every other day, since I have oily skin and scalp. I also have some scalp problems, which are being taken care of with very diluted tea tree oil before washing. I tried stretching, but my scalp became very irritated, and my hair did not look in the least presentable. With washing every other day both my hair and scalp are doing well.
I have been using Alverde Birch and Sage shampoo or Lush Squeaky Green shampoo bar. Both have sodium coco sulfate and work well for me. I haven't used conditioner for a while (traveling, laziness, no time for longer showers), and my hair does well without it.

[lora410]

I shampoo one day, co the next 2 days, shampoo the next day etc. I do this to keep my scalp clean.

[bex487]

Because I have a set exercise schedule, I wash on Sunday/Tuesday/Thursday. I shampoo and condition. I shower at night (because that's the only good time, seeing as how I exercise when I get home from work). I try and let my hair air-dry for the most part, and blast it with a hairdryer for only 2 or 3 minutes.

[AJoifulNoise]

I wash my hair 6 days a week because I have a scalp that produces a lot of oil. I can't stand the way that looks. And, if I skip more than a day my scalp itches like crazy.

My routine:
Saturday: shampoo & condition
Sunday: No wash
Monday: CO
Tuesday: Gentle shampoo (no sulphatees) & condition
Wednesday: CO
Thursday: CO
Friday: CO

[heidihug]

I was trying to stretch washes, and actually can succeed doing so in our dry cold winters, with generous oils applications to the ends to prevent damage. But during warm weather I have found, to my disappointment, that I must wash every other day. My scalp just gets way too greasy, and the ends thirst for moisture if I don't.

I use diluted shampoo and then conditioner with cones (my hair doesn't like cone-free) in the shower; then a spray leave-in or two on the length, and essential oils on the bottom half. I touch up on the 2nd day with more oils to my ends if necessary. The only time I clarify is right before I touch up my roots, every two or three months.

[TwirlyTresses]

My hair gets wet pretty often, especially in the summer, but I only use shampoo on it about once a week. One other day a week or so I'll do a CO wash. The rest of the time (nearly every other day), I rinse it out to remove sweat and pollen and condition just the ends to detangle.

[peachy.pudding]

To those who wash frequently....why do you , how often, and what's the routine??

I normally wash mine every other day.
I use s&c (with cones).
I try to wash in the morning so by afternoon it is dry.
Have tried stretching washes but I just can't....maybe it's a habit...??

Hello,

I wash my hair every second day, just shampoo and condition, without cones or sulphate in the morning so its sparkling clean for the day. If i am not busy ill let it go 3 days however i love clean hair.

[teela1978]

Depends on the day. I shampoo every day (with diluted sulfate shampoo) if I've been exercising, and if I haven't I'll stretch it out to every other day, if I'm not doing anything in particular (i.e. lazy weekend at home) I sometimes stretch it to 3 days. It's somewhat rare though.

[Coffeebug]

I have to wash mine every other day too... it doesn't seem to have damaged it though, it's past mid-thigh length and I don't really have many split ends. I do try and let it go to the third day every once in a while though.

[harley mama]

I don't wash but, I do CO pretty often. If I swim or get sweaty, I CO.
And, that is almost daily in the hot months!

[Darkhorse1]

It really depends on my schedule--if I'm riding a lot, I have to wash more due to the sweat on my scalp. However, sometimes, I can get away with every other day to every 2 days. I have an oily scalp, but it really depends. Sometimes, it's not as oily/itchy as other days. I wash and condition with cones.

[Sceleste]

I was trying to stretch washes, and actually can succeed doing so in our dry cold winters, with generous oils applications to the ends to prevent damage. But during warm weather I have found, to my disappointment, that I must wash every other day. My scalp just gets way too greasy, and the ends thirst for moisture if I don't.

I have the same problem. In wintertime I can go longer without washing but during summer I have to wash more often or I'll look like a greaseball. Also my ends need more moisture in the summer too.

Lately I've tried to wash every other day with either diluted shampoo or CO. Some days my hair looks so bad that I've had to wash it, even if I have washed it the day before.

[Honey39]

I've been CO-ing every day for about a month and a half now. Works well for me so far. I've added a shampoo into the mix once a week on Saturdays, because I wanted to avoid potentially blocking pores or build up.

I am so so so happy to have found this site, because CO-ing has been a revelation to me! It's fast and easy, and removes oils in a way that shampoo never ever did. So I jump in the shower, condition (treating it like loads of shampoo!), rinse out, stick my hair in a fibre towel thing, half an hour later comb out gently, scrunch in Boots curl creme, and DON'T TOUCH again! My hair is pretty thick, but it's dry usually about mid-morning (takes maybe 3 hours to dry totally?)

I'm not sure what I'm going to do in the winter though - am worried that going out with wettish hair will not be good for me, but my hair is looking better now than I think it's ever done. And the new routine is SOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO fast and easy. I usually stick a bit of oil and water in my hair before bed - hair loves EVOO, and HATES jojoba oil, who woulda thought????

But yeah, I am a big fan of co-ing every day. I realised that as I'm nearly 40, I wanted to ENJOY my hair, and for me, that means wearing it down every day. I hated the routine I used to have of working out which days my hair would look good, and which days it would look 'meh', and trying to build a hair washing routine around dates and meetings etc!!! Am I the only one to have done that? I want my hair to be swishing around every day...!

[banglaminerva]

I wash every morning, s and c, Pantene. I've tried skipping a day, but my scalp starts itching like crazy. Tried CO for a stretch and I'll probably try again just for the sake of shaking things up. I do clarify about once every 2 month right before I touch up my roots.

Plus, I oil each night with Amla and sunflower. When I tried the CO, I stopped the oiling, but my hair really preferred the oiling.

[Riot Crrl]

I rinse and add conditioner daily. I only "wash" it in the sense that I put a bunch of conditioner right on the scalp and scrub it every 2-3 days.

The Curly Girl book says that our hair will let us know how often it needs to be watered. I assume mine is doing that by refusing to look like anything other than crap in the morning.

[kwaniesiam]

I s&c everyday because my hair is thin, fine, an oily. If I skip a day my scalp itches and shows through my hair.

[Jan in ID]

I wash each morning with CV shampoo bars and apply a light layer of jojoba oil while damp. At night I apply olive oil w/ rosemary eo added.

If I try to skip a day my hair looks limp and funky.

[Kirin]

Every day CO, shampoo twice a week, usually sunday and thursday (thereabouts) and clarify with a good clarifying shampoo just before I henna.

[Tangles]

I made a post expressing my frustration with my dirty hair. I have always washed every second day, but lately I've had to wash two days in a row sometimes. My hair is very greasy at this point. I feel my hair looks its best right now when I use shampoo only and then oil the ends.

An important revelation I've made is that the product I use is far more important than the actual time I go without washing! Once I find my ideal products, I think I'll be able to stretch to every third day. Longer than that without washing, though, makes me shed.

[Giggy2]

To those who wash frequently....why do you , how often, and what's the routine??

I normally wash mine every other day.
I use s&c (with cones).
I try to wash in the morning so by afternoon it is dry.
Have tried stretching washes but I just can't....maybe it's a habit...??

Hi!

I wash just about everyday. Sometimes I'll skip a day depending on my activity level. On days I workout I definitely have to wash. Since it's summer here, it seems I need to wash everyday or my hair looks lank and not well kept. Other times I pull it up into a figure 8 or french braid and try to stretch it. For the most part I wash daily.

I've been using Dove shampoos for about 2 years now and have found them to be the only shampoo that will allow me to go for up to 4 days without washing and itchies. Although I don't go that long normally, when I was on a missionary trip in Tijuana I made it 4 whole days. I also like Giovanni Leave-in (pea-sized amount) mmmmmmm I love it for my fine thin hair. A tiny bit of Rave hairspray to tame wispies. That's all the product I use. I love the low maintence of longer hair. :cheese:

I like to wash frequently and don't make it a priority to stretch my washings.

Take care!

Barb

[sahiba]

I exercise daily due to which my hair is quite sweaty, so I do CO everyday.

[robinm]

I wash and condition every other day and CO on the "off day". For shampoo I'm using Wella Color Preserve smoothing which I'm sure has some cones :).

[rhubarbarin]

I've started washing every other day, with SHAMPOO of all things! I hadn't used shampoo for the last 6 years or so!

My hair has just not been looking good this summer. I switched last fall from using coney products for everything, to using all-natural products and oils. For a while my hair looked great, since it was so dried out from being covered in cones for years. But lately my hair was always too greasy, since I was using conditioner as a leave-in. At the same time, in the humidity my ends get super dry, unless they are saturated with oil or condish, but when they're saturated they are extra-clumpy, and since I already have some seriously thin and broken ends going on.. gah. There's no way to win.

Anyway shampoo hasn't seemed to have a drying effect on my hair at all. It just makes it nice and clean and fluffy, then I put in conditioner for a leave in and get big soft curls and waves. It doesn't take long for my hair to become frizzy (it gets frizzy when it's greasy, not when it's dry) or weighed down, though, so I've been washing frequently. Since every day is a deep treatment for me I think I am safe using shampoo frequently, right?

[teela1978]

Since every day is a deep treatment for me I think I am safe using shampoo frequently, right?
Most of the country uses shampoo daily. I think you'll be fine :)

[starla_zero]

Pretty much every day, unless I have a day off lounging around the house. I try and wash it as little as I can, but it really needs doing every day or it looks and feels awful.

[liseling]

I CO every day unless I'm having a lazy day. I do it because my hair usually doesnt do 'second-day-curls' very gracefully.
My routine is to scrub my scalp with conditioner, rinse, then part my hair down the middle and put A LOT more conditioner on each side till it feels saturated with it. Then finger-comb it back, and rinse only my scalp in cold water. Get out of shower and put more conditioner in, plop for a while, let it dry, then use more conditioner to smooth down any stray hairs. You'd think with all that conditioner that my hair would be disgusting, but somehow it soaks it all up!