unscented conditioners & stylers?

**hlp93** · February 3rd, 2022, 11:51 AM

I've looked in some of the older threads, but some of the things are not available anymore.

I've just recently seen a dermatologist, and we figured out I have both contact dermatitis & rather severe allergies to
- most sulfates (not sure yet if I'm allergic to any plant based sulfate, just know my ears/scalp don't like SLS, even diluted)
- fragrances (mainly just the basic "Fragrance" "Parfum" etc you see on bottles.)
- essential oils
- dyes (yellow 5, blue 4, etc)

He recommended Free & Clear medicated shampoo which is rather amazing because I've never known my scalp & ears without huge flakes, guess I never thought sulfates could have been causing it. The Free & Clear is a little drying though not in a flaky red way, just in a slightly tight way, that I'm wondering if adding a little argan oil or something might help? I tried conditioning from root to tip, but with fine hair it didn't work well. but I'm okay with the shampoo for now. Mainly looking for conditioners.

I really like HeartJCreations goat milk conditioner tub, which I get unscented now, but its a little rich to use as a regular rinse out, and a little pricey. Would like to keep it as a deep conditioner though.

I really loved the consistency and vitamins of the V05 strawberry conditioner, but I had a bad reaction (big red blotchies probably to the fragrance - before I knew about my allergies!) and threw it away.

My fine hair also hates coconut, which weighs it down. and shea, I think.

I don't think I'd like to go without a rinse out, and I like to use a leave in too, as it helps my frizz.

Ideally I'd like a runny/thinner cone free, completely dye & fragrance free conditioner without coconut as a top ingredient (though I'm not sure if I have a silicone allergy, I find it weighs down my hair if its non-soluble) and some kind of leave in spray/cream. some of the options I've looked at are $28 for an 8 oz bottle and that's quite a lot.

I'm pretty sure my hair is 2a/2b, fine (but a lot of it), I'm not totally sure on my hairs porosity or protein needs, but it really likes goats milk? I use tepid/warm water to wash every other day/2 days, I squeeze the water out of my hair, its undyed "virgin hair" and I don't use heat tools, and I have a water softening system, if any of that matters.

**knobbly** · February 3rd, 2022, 01:02 PM

Jessicurl Aloeba is quite light, and comes in fragrance free.

**LoveSnap** · February 3rd, 2022, 08:01 PM

That's a tough shopping list for sure!

The fragrance free wavy line from LUS meets most of your needs. There is no coconut oil and the shea is out of the first 5 ingredients: Here

Curlsmith has a fragrance free Shine Recipe they've just added. It may be more than you are willing to pay but they have sample sizes for most of the products. You can test them out and see if they are worth investing in. Here

**Lady Stardust** · February 4th, 2022, 03:00 AM

Giovanni products might work. There are loads but the ones I’m familiar with are Smooth As Silk shampoo and conditioner, the 50:50 shampoo and conditioner, and Direct Leave In Conditioner.

They’re not listed as fragrance free, but I’m very sensitive to fragrance and they haven’t been a problem. The 50:50 shampoo is the only one with much of a detectable scent.

I think older versions of the Smooth As Silk shampoo contain amodimethicone so it’s worth checking the ingredients on the back of the bottle/listed on the website. Otherwise the products are silicone and sulphate free and don’t contain coconut or shea butter.

**lapushka** · February 4th, 2022, 04:43 AM

I just recently recommended the conditioner by Vanicream, it's not a bad one, when I read your list of things to avoid:
https://www.vanicream.com/product/fr...ar-conditioner

Their shampoo might not be bad either:
It's sulfate free, betaine free:
https://www.vanicream.com/product/fr...-clear-shampoo

It may not be a bad choice!

**MusicalSpoons** · February 6th, 2022, 12:22 PM

If you look for base products (conditioner base, shampoo base) they tend to be free of dyes, fragrance and usually EOs. Finding one sans coconut might be even more of a task though, and those types of shampoos sometimes have SLES but a fair few don't.

I don't know where you are in the world; my search results are all for UK products so may not be any use to you!

**Cyclamen** · February 6th, 2022, 07:33 PM

Oneka unscented shampoo is good for me. It's made in Canada.
Giovanni products are scented, but nowhere near as bad as drugstore stuff.
I second looking up herb/aroma/soapmaking supply stores, they often carry unscented shampoo base. Here we have Calia brand.

**hlp93** · February 9th, 2022, 11:24 AM

so I far I mostly *like* their shampoo, though because its a coconut based sulfate, it weighs my roots down if I do without washing too long. I have to wash every other day/every 2 days and anymore than that my roots feel weighed down. Other than that, I really like the shampoo. No flakes, no reaction, no redness, and when washing day comes, it feels great to only be washing out oil, not because I need to get rid of scabs & flakes. Its really wonderful to have normal hair. Though my dermatologist did recommend occasionally (every 4-5 weeks) to clarify with a fragrance free sls shampoo, to avoid build up.