0 Natural Shampoos and Gummy/Residue Left in Hair

I was reading over on K is for Kinky posted a great article on shampooing. She spoke about the difference between clarifying and chelating shampoos and also why each of these types of shampoos are beneficial when it comes to removing buildup from natural hair.

I have never used a chelating shampoo as, I don't really have a need for one however, I am a fan of clarifying and do feel it should be done no matter if you use natural products or commercial products.

Here is a snippet from her article:

"why? almost all of the substantive ingredients found in conditioners that make them work or “condition” have a positive charge and bind to our negatively charged hair and in this binding offer that conditioning and moisturizing we seek out (so if you’ve ever wondered how conditioner stayed on your hair after washing it away, now you know). however this charge will cause build up over time; a build up of great ingredients but still build up nonetheless."


Read the rest over at K is for Kinky!

I tend to love when bloggers get into the science of how certain products work. Check her article out and let me know what you think!

Do use chelators? How often? Do you clarify? How often?


For Your Body & Hair Butters Visit:DIY Hair Care Products

0 Remember The Natural Hair Care Basics

With so much information on the internet and so many people telling you what to do with YOUR hair, it can be hard to stay on track. Even though, no two heads of natural hair are alike, we all can benefit from the same basic rules of natural hair care. You can always add to these basic rules, as with all things you should tweak them to your liking and hair needs. Here are some basic things to remember to help you stay on track to retain length and achieve healthy natural hair!




Shampoo

Okay so there are a lot of people who believe you don't have to shampoo your hair. I'm not of that school of people. None of the women, I follow with long natural hair (I'm talking waistlength and beyond) follow a no-shampoo regimen. I truly believe that it is essential that you shampoo your hair, especially as it gets longer. No what kind of shampoos you use are up to you. You can use shampoo bars, diluted shampoo or even a shampoo conditioner 2 in 1 combo. Just make sure, you are cleansing your hair at least once a month and if you ask me, even that is pushing it.

I just can't get over putting product on top of product, on top of product and never washing that product off your hair strands. Since water and oil don't mix, you need some type of soap to cling to the oil and allow it to be rinsed off by the water, this is basic science.

Rinse-Out Conditioner

I read one woman talking about not using rinse out conditioner anymore and how her hair felt great and she hadn't seen any ill results. Although, I think this can work if you use shampoo bars or add oils to your shampoo. It still shows that people may not know why rinse out conditioners exist. Rinse-out conditioners are made to restore your hairs natural balance balance. Shampoo usually has a negative charge ( Check out this post on The Natural Hair Haven on shampoo and surfactants) and conditioners have a positive charge and are made to deposit while shampoo is made to take off product, long story short. So, the 2 work together to rebuild your hair. One cleans and the other restores.

Leave-In Conditioner

Even though, water is the best moisturizer, you do need some kind of leave-in product to at the very least, protect your hair from the outside elements. There are a wide range of leave in conditioners to choose from, choose the best one for your regimen. If you co-wash or shampoo and condition often, you may only need a light leave-in conditioner. Sealing is optional depending on how often you moisturize your hair.

Detangling

No matter if you detangle, root to tip or tip to root, it's important to detangle. I know, some of you are wondering why I said root to tip, for some with a looser curl pattern root to tip works for them when detangling. Detangling not only gets rid of tangles but, it also helps get out the shed hair. If you aren't thorough in detangling and getting out the shed hair, you could end up with matted hair or dred locks. Remember, if your hair sheds a lot, the longer you go without detangling and getting those shed hairs out the bigger your risk is for matted, tagled, knotted hair. This is especially important, if you style or manipulate your hair often.

A note about wide tooth combs- I noticed with the wide tooth combs, I have to make sure I really detangle every section thoroughly because, with the teeth being so wide some parts of my hair weren't getting detangled. This is one reason why I went back to my Denman brush.

I hope this tips help, if you're in a hair rut or going through some struggles with breakage or shedding. Just remember that no matter what you read online, don't forget the basics. Clean moisturized hair, retains length, remember that! (Of course, do what works best for you! If no shampoo works for you then you do that, I'm trying to knock the regimen!)

For Your Body & Hair Butters Visit:DIY Hair Care Products 

0 Pre-pooing Before Shampooing; Is It In Vain?

Shampoo and conditioner aside, any product you place on your hair is going to coat the strand, somewhat, causing varying amounts of buildup. This is why we shampoo our hair, to rid our hair of buildup. For some shampoo can be too stripping, meaning, it can take away the hair's natural oils leaving the hair very dry even after conditioning.

To remedy the drying effects of shampoo many women do pre-poo treatments. The basis of a pre-poo treatment is to add some type of oil or conditioner to the hair so that after shampooing the hair, some of the oil is left behind. Natural Hair Haven just did an awesome post about this subject.

Essentially, I  look at it as adding more build up to already dirty hair (dirty as in product heavy) to make it so that the shampoo can't clean the hair thoroughly. For example, I wouldn't come home from the gym, put lotion on and then hop in the shower. To most people that would be gross, well essentially you are doing the same thing to your hair. Here's why:

You already have:

• Leave-Ins
• Oils or Butter for sealing 
• Stylers
• and Dirt on your hair. 

 No matter what you add on top of that, it probably isn't going to sink in very far. At least not far enough to make it to the hair shaft.
So, what exactly is the shampoo leaving behind when you pre-poo? Obviously it gets what closet to the surface first and leaves what's under that layer on the hair strand. Imagine doing this for weeks upon weeks? This may be why some natural experience build up, dull looking hair or even why some have to clarify due to products having no effect on the hair.

To me, the best answer to avoid or remedy having stripped hair after shampooing is to;

1. Dilute the shampoo: Try doing 1:1 ratio of shampoo to water. You may even need to change to a shampoo that doesn't contain any sulfates as these can be very stripping.
2. Deep Condition: Try doing your deep conditioning after you shampoo; you can even use your regular conditioner. Just saturate the hair with conditioner and put on your shower cap. Finish washing and then rinse. Most conditioners only need 15 mins. (more or less) to work. (Great time to soak in the bath a bit!)

If the above still leaves your hair stripped, it may be time to change shampoos. In my opinion, leaving behind dirt and buildup on the hair isn't the best idea. But, as with all things, if it works for you, do it! This is just my opinion on the subject.

Do you pre-poo? With what? How is it working for you?

For Your Body & Hair Butters Visit:DIY Hair Care Products

0 Bubble Bath as a Shampoo??

As you know I'm in a protective style (kinky twists). After about 2 weeks of having this protective style I needed to shampoo the hair in the front of my head !! When I go too long without washing my scalp it gets crazy itchy and flaky. The front of my head looked like I had some kind of illness. o_O Yes. I had to tell you all that to let you know how DESPERATE I was for some shampoo!

 I was out of my liquid black soap for shampooing and I kept procrastinating on making some more. I couldn't find my other shampoo, so I looked at my daughters bath bubbles. She only even has this because my husband couldn't find any other bubble bath for her in Wal-Mart. *note to self don't send husband looking for bubble bath*

Yes, this is what I used on my hair.

Anyway.....

To shampoo, I took out about 8-10 twists in the front and washed just that area with the bubble bath. It was weird seeing all the suds in my hair, been a long time since I have used sulfates. I was so scared that my hair was going to be hard as a brillo pad...

But, it wasn't! My scalp was so clean and my hair felt wonderful! I didn't use a rinse out conditioner, just the shampoo and my hair felt nice and soft. The build up was gone off of my twist too (you know the part where the knot is that collects lint, flakes, and whoknowswhat).

I promise I'm not crazy ya'll...I promise.

I have used it 2 more times on my whole head since and I get the same beautiful results. My scalp feels and looks so clean! Which leads me to wonder if the black soap is really getting all of the oils off of my scalp.

The black soap contains shea butter, and I think my scalp likes the bubble bath because it doesn't moisturize my scalp. It cleans it and lets it breathe.

Sooooooo.....

I think I will be using the *cough* bubble bath on my scalp and the black soap on my hair when I take these twists out.

I don't expect everyone to go out and buy Johnson's Bubble Bath for your hair but, if you're experiencing an itchy scalp it may help you like it did me. I am realizing that my scalp doesn't like any build up and likes to be 100% clean.



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0 Do You Have to Use Shampoo?

 If you've been researching natural hair care for any amount of time, you have seen some information on "no-poo" or the no shampoo method. Though it sounds intriguing, it's obvious that this method of hair care isn't for everyone (like me).

When I first went natural with my hair and my haircare products, I discovered the "no-poo" method. This method of hair care is where you forgo commercial shampoos. Some still do use products to clean their hair and some women actually do without shampoos and hair cleaning agents altogether.

For me, I need shampoo. Not necassarily, commercial shampoos but, I need to wash may hair and scalp with some type of cleaning agent. I did learn that I didn't need to shampoo everyday but, I can't go longer than a week.

If you would like to shampoo your hair less here are some tips that may help.

• Cowashing- If you find that your hair is oily or your scalp is dry and itchy, try co-washing. Co-washing is simply washing the hair with conditioner (usually something inexpensive like Suave or even WhiteRain). This allows you to hydrate your scalp and rinse some oils and dirt off of your hair. The amount of times you need to co-wash a week depends on your hair needs. Co-washing 3 to 4 times a week is a great start, just increase or decrease from there.
• Spritzing- Make a simple hair spritz. This spritz can be as simple as water and tea tree oil (rose oil is great too) or your can use a store bought spray leave-in conditioner. Just spritz your scalp throughout the week, when your scalp looks dry or gets itchy.  I try do this every other day. Make sure, whatever you use doesn't have heavy oils that could cause build up, you want it to be a light spray that your scalp can absorb. (this may also be a great alternative to greasing the scalp)
• Rinsing- You can also simply rinse your hair under the shower each time you bathe to hydrate your scalp and strands. Be sure to massage your scalp with the beds of your fingers to loosen any dirt for a gentle cleaning.

Although, I don't believe that water alone can thoroughly clean my hair and scalp, it will help remove some of the buildup and hydrate a dry scalp, which may help relieve itching. Most commercial shampoos are a bit too harsh for everyday use (again this depends on your hair) so if you're experiencing dry, dull hair co-washing may be the answer or maybe on of the other options above.


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0 Haircare: To shampoo or not? How often? And with what?

Source: http://lecoil.tumblr.com

Shampoo. This one word has caused so much controversy within the natural haircare community. Sulfates? Silicones? Soap? Suds? What does all of this have to do with shampooing and achieving a clean scalp and sleek hair?

First, we'll talk about sulfates. What are sulfates? More precisely, what is sodium laureth (or lauryl) sulfate? It is a detergent. This ingredient is found in shampoos, soaps, bubble bath and even washing detergent. It is used to cleanse and also for it's foaming capabilities (more bubbles or suds).

For many this ingredient is very irritating to the scalp and can cause dry scalp and dandruff.

How true that is depends on the person...

Is it ever okay to use a shampoo containing sulfates? Yes. Sulfates aren't all bad. The cause of irritation for many is due to the fact that sulfates tend to strip the hair and skin of it's natural oils. When this soap cleans, it cleans a bit too well (or harsh).

There are actually times when a sulfate shampoo may be needed and that is when you use products that contain silicones or 'cones. Example dimethicone. For more info on silicones look here: Beauty Brains Forum.
Some people report that they aren't able to rinse silicones out of their hair properly without sulfates, this is where SLS shampoos come in handy. Since they strip the hair, it is thought they also strip off the silicones.

This is also known as clarifying. Clarifying is simply, stripping the hair of any buildup and residue.

Is it necessary? For some yes and for others no. I personally don't strip my hair because I don't use products that cause buildup. All the products I use can be washed off of my hair with natural soaps like black soap and all natural shampoos. So this depends on what type of products you use on your hair.

And what products are those? Products that cause buildup.

What's buildup? When you use products that contain ingredients that aren't water soluble, they coat your hair. Depending on how thick they coat your hair, determines how much moisture they let penetrate the hair shaft. Silicones are thought to cause buildup (this information is debatable) and so is mineral oil, petroleum, and some fixed oils. This means that every product you put on top of these barrier ingredients, will just sit on your hair shaft and scalp. Ever touch your hair and feel a residue? This is build up... Hair ever look greasy and dirty? Buildup again.

Now, is there a rainbow at the end of all of this? Is there some type of balance? Why yes, yes there is. If you find yourself needing to use products that contain silicones or other ingredients that seal off moisture and may cause buildup, use a sulfate shampoo. To remedy the dryness, you can do a deep condition. This will give your hair a extra boost of moisture.

• Shampoo to strip the hair.
• Condition as usual to put some moisture back into the hair.

and if your hair still feels dry

• Deep condition (not a deep treatment with protein but, a deep condition for moisture).

How often you can use a sulfate shampoo without irritation is up to the individual, some can use one every week and some can't do more than once a month.

I hope this helps clear up some shampoo sulfate silicone questions you may have had.

Just do your research. Don't go by what others say figure it out for yourself! That's true learning!

Thanks for reading.


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