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Tangles
July 15th, 2008, 08:47 AM
I have been washing with a sulfate free, cone free shampoo and cone free V05 condish and my hair has been feeling dirtier and greasier than ever. My mom touched/smelled my scalp and said it even smelled weird. I have no idea what is going on. I do have a breakout on my forehead too (fun fun).

Suggestions? I have been doing Shampoo Only on and off and it helps a little, but I really don't want to dry my hair out just as I'm beginning to reach "Can I Call This APL?"

lora410
July 15th, 2008, 09:06 AM
have you given a shampoo bar a shot yet? I use one of those or my fav poo is Avalon Biotin B-complex. It is cone and sulfate free and works great!

MissHair
July 15th, 2008, 09:06 AM
Im not a shampoo expert on what works on what and why, but cone-free shampoos make my hair greasy, frizzy and tangly and I shed like a dog , and yes, it does feel like its ''never clean enough'' with I use cone-free shampoos. I dont know the cause of this.. But all I know is that cone-free is not for my hair. Its good that you arent using cone-free if you wanna be kinder to your hair, but if your hair wasnt this greasy before you stopped using cones I would recomend start using it again, after I got back on cones my hair feels REALLY clean.

Bucatini
July 15th, 2008, 09:41 AM
Not all sulfate free shampoo's are alike. Even different formulations/flavors in the same brand are not alike.

Example: I love the Nature's Gate organic fruit blend S&C's, the ones in the red bottles. But the moisturizing one does not get my head clean. Shame, it smells gorgeous. If I had bought that one first, I never would have tried the others but they are GREAT for me. I haven't made it to their regular organic line (the green bottles) yet.

I've tried a few different Burt's Bees and haven't found one that cleans enough. I like ABBA nourishing shampoo but I can't use it every day because-- broken record-- it doesn't get my head clean.

Usually anything without sulfates that is labeled "shine-enhancing" or "volumizing" is a good starting place. Good luck!

ETA: When I say "the other ones" I mean specifically the Asian Pear Rejuvenating one and the Mandarin Shine-Enhancing one. Let me know if you're tried them.

Oskimosa
July 15th, 2008, 10:03 AM
I second lora410's suggestion about the shampoo bars. My hair has been dreamy soft and moisturized--and yet still squeaky clean-- with the CV bars. Never going back.

Maravel
July 15th, 2008, 10:03 AM
I don't have a lot of experience with sulfate-free shampoos, but it sounds like you might need to clarify?

Whenever I notice that my hair seems to be getting greasy more quickly, I always use a diluted clarifying shampoo to lather up my scalp (not the length, though). Then I rinse, later it up again, rinse again, and then I condition. This seems to help my hair out when it seems dirty.

I was using a V05 condish as well for COs for a while, but I noticed that they tended to make my scalp a lot greasier if I didn't completely rinse them out for a good amount of time. When I condition with V05, I rinse for about 2 minutes under warm water, making sure to massage my scalp and let the water really get into the roots. Then I rinse for an additional 1-2 minutes in cool water, doing the same massaging/rinsing process.

HTH!

peachy.pudding
July 15th, 2008, 10:56 AM
I shampoo every second day i have never found shampoo to dry my hair out, just use conditioner and a little oil afterwards. I use sulphates every 3 months to remove any build up.

VanillaTresses
July 15th, 2008, 11:01 AM
I would second the idea of using a clarifying shampoo (to me = a clear shampoo with no silicones, some type of lauryl/laureth sulfate). Doesn't have to be an expensive one at all, and it is good to have on hand. If you like bubble bath get one that smells good and use it for double duty! :)

teela1978
July 15th, 2008, 11:44 AM
I'm on the clarify band wagon as well. Sounds like you've got some buildup that your sulfate-free poo isn't getting out. You might need to do a sulfate poo weekly or monthly to keep using it. Suave clarifying is only a dollar or so and should do the trick.

Curlsgirl
July 15th, 2008, 12:21 PM
I would say rinsing much more thoroughly and using a vinegar rinse after first and then clarifying. I use a sulfate free shampoo but every once in a while I use a diluted sulfate shampoo to clarify. I agree also that all sulfate free shampoos are not alike. Just experiment, you'll find the answer :)

Coffeebug
July 15th, 2008, 12:35 PM
I've been having trouble deciding what to use on my hair too... I bought some Aussie Long Hair shampoo today to see what it's like... though I'm suspicious of how well they understand long haired people cos the shampoo bottle is bigger than the conditioner bottle :rolleyes:

VanillaTresses
July 15th, 2008, 12:40 PM
the shampoo bottle is bigger than the conditioner bottle :D

Nice observation there, Coffeebug! Yeah, I would say that if I ever saw a company put out small shampoo bottles and larger conditioner bottles that I might start to think that they know what they are doing... :cool:

danacc
July 19th, 2008, 12:33 AM
My scalp doesn't like conditioner, so I apply it to the length only. It may be that with the milder cleansers in your shampoo, you are overconditioning the hair near your scalp. The conditioner + natural scalp oil (sebum) may be too much for your scalp and scalp hair. Typically, the length needs conditioner because the sebum does not reach it as readily. If you've stopped stripping the sebum from your scalp, your scalp hair may no longer need an additional conditioner product.

If you don't have a problem with dry hair near your scalp, consider applying the conditioner to the length from the ears down only.

And I agree with the other posts that you may need to clarify, and you should first try a diluted SL(E)S or AL(E)S shampoo.

danacc
July 19th, 2008, 12:41 AM
Im not a shampoo expert on what works on what and why, but cone-free shampoos make my hair greasy, frizzy and tangly and I shed like a dog , and yes, it does feel like its ''never clean enough'' with I use cone-free shampoos. I dont know the cause of this.. But all I know is that cone-free is not for my hair. Its good that you arent using cone-free if you wanna be kinder to your hair, but if your hair wasnt this greasy before you stopped using cones I would recomend start using it again, after I got back on cones my hair feels REALLY clean.

My hair has the exact opposite reaction.

Cones = weighted down, "dirty" feeling. No cones = clean feeling. The only place our hair agrees is on the frizzies. Cones weigh the frizzies down; I just don't like the way the weighted-down frizzies feel (I use coconut oil or aloe or both to tame them). And it sounds like your experience of cone defrizziness is completely different.

It's wonderful the way our hair has individual personalities, likes, dislikes, isn't it? One of the most striking things I've learned on LHC is that YMMV nearly always applies when it comes to our hair!

Calista
July 19th, 2008, 12:44 AM
I have been a shampoo bar user for almost two years now, and I have never had better hair in my whole life. But if you decide to give shampoo bars a shot, please bear in mind that most people go through a transition phase that is similar to what you are experiencing now, so it might be a bit frustrating for you. In any case I second the suggestion to clarify. I use plain old baking soda for that purpose. 1-2 heaped tablespoons, dissolved in some warm water (and conditioner, if you like) to form a runny paste. I apply this to my hair, massage and rinse well. After that your hair will be stripped, so it is a good time to do a deep treatment. Since I do not do conventional deep treatments anymore I just wash with one of the more moisturizing shampoo bars afterwards.

Starr
July 19th, 2008, 01:11 AM
Have you clarified at all before starting your current washing routine, because going cone free won't do anything for you if you haven't removed the cones that were there in the first place. . .


And I also second the idea of not putting conditioner on your scalp- you may be causing more harm than good.

Iylivarae
July 19th, 2008, 03:53 AM
I second the clarify-idea and the not-putting-conditioner-on-the-scalp-idea.

n3m3sis42
July 19th, 2008, 05:53 AM
I have been a shampoo bar user for almost two years now, and I have never had better hair in my whole life. But if you decide to give shampoo bars a shot, please bear in mind that most people go through a transition phase that is similar to what you are experiencing now, so it might be a bit frustrating for you. In any case I second the suggestion to clarify. I use plain old baking soda for that purpose. 1-2 heaped tablespoons, dissolved in some warm water (and conditioner, if you like) to form a runny paste. I apply this to my hair, massage and rinse well. After that your hair will be stripped, so it is a good time to do a deep treatment. Since I do not do conventional deep treatments anymore I just wash with one of the more moisturizing shampoo bars afterwards.

I'm going to agree with Calista here. Tangles, what you are describing sounds a lot like the "transition phase" that a lot of people go through when they give up SLS and other detergents in their shampoos. It happened to me (and a whole bunch of people on the LiveJournal no_poo community), and it can be pretty frustrating while it lasts.

Basically, since detergent-based shampoos strip the scalp and hair of their natural oils, your scalp starts to overproduce sebum/oils to compensate. When you stop using detergent-based shampoos, it takes a little while for it to adjust and you will tend to get oily, sebumy hair for a while.

Clarifying will probably help (but not permanently fix) the problem. I recommend a baking soda/water rinse like the one Calista suggested. That's actually what I used to wash my hair when I was no-poo (which I did successfully for a year before switching to shampoo bars). I followed mine with an apple cider vinegar rinse to balance out the pH of my hair, but I agree that some sort of deep treatment to restore moisture afterwards might also be a good idea.

From my experience, the "transition phase" lasted a few weeks for most people and then got better. I hope it goes away quickly for you; I know it can be awful.

brok3nwings
July 19th, 2008, 06:15 AM
I think the vinegar rinse made a lot of difference to me, you could try that.
Once i tried VO5 and i thought it was too yucky for me, i couldnt take it out from my hair proprelly.. but that is just me