"Ethnic" haircare

[Kaelee]

Anyone else like "ethnic" haircare products (no matter what your skin color or hair type)?

I was looking for a protein treatment yesterday (my hair rarely needs protein but I thought this time, it did) and I found some "Hair Mayonnaise"...after reading the ingredients and looking at a few other things I kept coming back to the hair mayo and picked up the last jar they had.

It really does look like...some sort of condiment, but it smells very strongly like a hair care product. I washed my hair, applied it and clipped it up (I didn't bother with the plastic or heat) while I soaked in the tub for about 45 minutes...rinsed it out with a little shampoo, and then conditioned with my 3MM (because I'd read you should condition after a protein treatment...although the hair mayo has enough different oils etc that I think it should be pretty conditioning.)

Afterwards my hair felt weird, almost like it had a lot of buildup on it, and I wasn't sure I got it all out (It smelled like the hair mayo despite the shampoo and condition afterwards!). But this morning it's so sleek, heavy, shiny, soft and WELL BEHAVED! I think there might be some buildup from the product but a clarifying shampoo should take care of that.

I'm completely in love with this stuff! It's not something I would use all the time, but every once in a while? Awesome! :D

(my hair is stick straight and baby fine, naturally, but I have a lot of it.)

[Anywhere]

I have ethnic products that my mom tried out and hated. My hair doesn't really like them, the ones I have have petroleum (well, petrolatum, but I figure it's the same thing. Correct me if I'm wrong) and TONS of mineral oil (its like the second ingredient, after water) and therefore make my hair feel super dry and well. It feels dry and greasy, if that makes sense. It's like build-up city in my hair. It looks like I dunked my head in oil and left it in, even after rinsing out and conditioning thoroughly. And I don't like the scent they use.

I use it as a lotion on my skin though and that works well for me. Glad your hair likes them.

[Laylah]

Yes! One of my favorite conditioners when my hair is particularly dry is Lekair Cholesterol (http://reviews.longhaircommunity.com/showproduct.php?product=498). It doesn't have great ingredients but it's cheap and it works fine.

[GRU]

My only complaint is that almost everything has petrolatum or mineral oil in it, which my hair doesn't react well to. (I particularly hate companies that try to "hide" the mineral oil by calling it "liquidum paraffinum" instead.)

But I have found some great stuff in the "ethnic hair care" section, including Hollywood Beauty Tea Tree Oil (http://www.amazon.com/Hollywood-Beauty-Tea-Tree-Oil/dp/B000A3V1XC) and some of the Doo-Gro Oils (http://www.doogro.com/Oils.html) (the "stimulating" one has mineral oil, but the "mega thick" and "anti-itch" ones don't).

[ktani]

Anyone else like "ethnic" haircare products (no matter what your skin color or hair type)?

I was looking for a protein treatment yesterday (my hair rarely needs protein but I thought this time, it did) and I found some "Hair Mayonnaise"...after reading the ingredients and looking at a few other things I kept coming back to the hair mayo and picked up the last jar they had.

It really does look like...some sort of condiment, but it smells very strongly like a hair care product. I washed my hair, applied it and clipped it up (I didn't bother with the plastic or heat) while I soaked in the tub for about 45 minutes...rinsed it out with a little shampoo, and then conditioned with my 3MM (because I'd read you should condition after a protein treatment...although the hair mayo has enough different oils etc that I think it should be pretty conditioning.)

Afterwards my hair felt weird, almost like it had a lot of buildup on it, and I wasn't sure I got it all out (It smelled like the hair mayo despite the shampoo and condition afterwards!). But this morning it's so sleek, heavy, shiny, soft and WELL BEHAVED! I think there might be some buildup from the product but a clarifying shampoo should take care of that.

I'm completely in love with this stuff! It's not something I would use all the time, but every once in a while? Awesome! :D

(my hair is stick straight and baby fine, naturally, but I have a lot of it.)

Great that you like this so much to use every so often!

Straight mineral oil/baby oil can work very well too and you can use it all of the time. Used in small amounts it does not build-up or weigh down fine hair. It can moisturize or help keep your hair moisturized and detangled, without the downsides of vegetable oils and butters, sticky, greasy hair. It also fights frizz and is antistatic.

It can be completely removed with sulfate or non sulfate shampoo or conditioner only.

http://forums.longhaircommunity.com/showthread.php?t=86298

ETA: There is more information on it in my blog, below.

[Kaelee]

My only complaint is that almost everything has petrolatum or mineral oil in it, which my hair doesn't react well to. (I particularly hate companies that try to "hide" the mineral oil by calling it "liquidum paraffinum" instead.)

But I have found some great stuff in the "ethnic hair care" section, including Hollywood Beauty Tea Tree Oil (http://www.amazon.com/Hollywood-Beauty-Tea-Tree-Oil/dp/B000A3V1XC) and some of the Doo-Gro Oils (http://www.doogro.com/Oils.html) (the "stimulating" one has mineral oil, but the "mega thick" and "anti-itch" ones don't).

This stuff actually doesn't contain mineral oil (but it has a ton of cones and parabens!). I'm an ingredient-reader through and through now though (I blame you LHC! :D)

[Orangerthanred]

There seems to be a lot of mineral oil in "ethnic" hair products. My hair hates any type of oil :p

And I hate how it's called ethnic. It doesn't even make sense. Aren't all hair products ethnic- they all come from some sort of culture/land. Like products with olive oil in them, or certain plants.

[Kaelee]

And I hate how it's called ethnic. It doesn't even make sense. Aren't all hair products ethnic- they all come from some sort of culture/land. Like products with olive oil in them, or certain plants.

I don't understand the "ethnic" term myself. I don't know what it means. I think it's used as a PC way of saying "Not-White-haircare". :rolleyes: (but that discussion totally belongs in the "race" thread )

[RitaPG]

A lot of my favorite natural products (castor oil, coconut oil, EOs, Shea butter) are very popular amongst curly thick haircare blogs and I even made several of my own oil mixes based on their own recipes.
I also have a particular shampoo and conditioner formulated for thick, curly hair, full of avocado oil and Shea, that I used often when my hair was very damaged (still use it occasionally) and it was wonderful :D
I think they tend to cause buildup faster, not only because they're super rich and nourishing, but because they are formulated to weight down hair a bit, since it helps keep the curls behaved.
Never used mineral oil but I've have read many happy reviews on it. I've actually seen little bottles of mineral oil for hair on beauty shops! I thought they were silicone based serum bottles - and they are used just like that.

[ktani]

There seems to be a lot of mineral oil in "ethnic" hair products.

It is in the products because it is known to work really well for hair. Unlike petrolatum and lanolin it is not greasy or sticky and it can be very easy to remove. It is natural too and vegan. It has been misunderstood and hyped to be evil. It is just the opposite in my experience and now that of many others here, works better as the research says, than silicone too and natural sebum, and best of all (other than some fantastic reported results), it is inexpensive.

[ratgirldjh]

My neighbour uses and loves Africa's Best Hair oil. The ingredients look great - but I couldn't take the fragrance. She has corkscrew curls though and her hair drinks it up and becomes shiny ringlets!!!

[Othala]

I love KinkyCurly Knot Today as a conditioner and de-tangler. This product has literally saved my hair from breakage and I have the exact opposite hair type to the one it was designed for.

It contains no mineral oil, paragons, sulphates or cones.

[GRU]

My neighbour uses and loves Africa's Best Hair oil. The ingredients look great - but I couldn't take the fragrance. She has corkscrew curls though and her hair drinks it up and becomes shiny ringlets!!!

I'm with you on the fragrance... if they just used a TINY bit it wouldn't be so bad -- it's kind of a "baby powder" scent -- but good golly Miss Molly, I swear that fragrance is the #1 ingredient! It is sooooooo strong! I can only use it as a pre-wash heavy oiling, because I can't stand for the scent to be lingering about me for any significant period of time.

And it's funny how everyone's hair has its own idiosyncrasies.... my hair *hates* mineral oil, but adores the various oils that most folks here use (sweet almond, grapeseed, coconut, etc.). Trial and error is the only way to know for sure what any particular head of hair is going to like.

[Kaelee]

I'm with you on the fragrance... if they just used a TINY bit it wouldn't be so bad -- it's kind of a "baby powder" scent -- but good golly Miss Molly, I swear that fragrance is the #1 ingredient! It is sooooooo strong! I can only use it as a pre-wash heavy oiling, because I can't stand for the scent to be lingering about me for any significant period of time.

I feel EXACTLY the same way about Dove shampoo. I cannot stand to use Dove- the smell is so strong, that my throat is burning a half hour after my hair DRIES after using it. I had to wash my hair AGAIN to get rid of the smell because I was reacting badly to it. I'll never buy another Dove hair product again (it's a shame because I remember it doing good things to my HAIR. I just couldn't take the smell.)

[Arya]

I miss "ethnic" haircare sections. There are very few black people in australia, which is too bad, because the products made for 4a/b hair are awesome. Gone are the days of 100% shea butter from the local shoppers' drug mart. V__V

[Tia2010]

Alot of them are to heavy for my hair but I have been using "As I am" coconut cowash and I really like it.

It leaves my hair very soft! :)

http://www.asiamnaturally.com/images/headline-ingredients.png
Key Ingredients: Tangerine, Coconut Oil, Castor Oil, Saw Palmetto and Phytosterols

Aqueous (Water, Aqua Purificada, Purified) Extracts: Cocos Nucifera (Coconut) and Citrus Reticulata (Tangerine)¹, Cetyl Alcohol², Cetrimonium Chloride, Cetearyl Alcohol², PEG-40 Castor Oil, Stearlkonium chloride, Cocos Nucifera (Coconut) Oil², Ricinus Communis (Castor) Seed Oil¹, Phytosterols¹, Serenoa Serrulata Fruit Extract¹, Quaternium-18, Potassium Sorbate, Fragrance/Parfum, Limonene, Methylisothiazolinone.
Source: 1-Natural, 2-Coconut

I'm going to try the cleansing pudding next.... I have tried the leave in conditioner and cocoshea spray but they are realllly heavy on my hair...I can only use the smallest amount (like a pea size or just one spray on my hand and used on my ends) or my hair will be flat!

[C_Bookworm]

I love carrot creme. It smells yummy, and as I recall the ingredients list isn't too bad either.

[sfgirl]

I use to use hair mayonaise and cholesteral on my hair about 4 or 5 years ago. It would leave my hair nice and shiny, but was a pain to get out. My mom loved them both though, but she doesn't usually deep condition. :/