The Curly Girl Method: Removing sulfates and silicones from your hair care regimen
I have been doing my hair care challenge for about two months now. I stopped using shampoos with sulfates in them months ago and even began washing my hair with Pantene's Co-wash formula since I heard that co-washing was better than shampooing. I learned that even with the co-wash, I would still need to condition my hair since the co-wash was more similar to a shampoo than a conditioner. Then I got the Shea Moisture shampoo, which was more natural and was sulfate free, and continued to use my Aussie Conditioner.
I tried to follow the LOC (Leave-in conditioner, Oil, Cream) method after washing and conditioning my hair. However, it was more of an OC method because I did not get a leave-in conditioner until last week. Previously, after I washed and conditioned my hair, I put oil in it and then my cream. Well, I really wanted to follow the method, so I went out and got a leave-in-conditioner by Cantu, and I thought my hair care regimen was great. My hair felt more slick, almost slippery, when I used the leave-in with the oil and the cream.
However, the other day I and another natural hair enthusiast were sharing the methods we use to care for our hair, and she told me about the curly girl method for washing hair. It was pretty much everything I had been doing except one thing; it removes all of the silicones from the conditioners.
Silicones are used in conditioners to help make your hair shiny and smooth feeling. However, they can build up. The sulfates in shampoos are to help remove the silicones from the conditioners we use, and as we know, sulfates can dry out our hair, which is why we need to use conditioner. It is like a catch 22. The sulfates in shampoo remove the silicones that build up in our hair from the conditioner we use to moisturize our hair after the sulfates in our shampoo dries it out.
After reading about the silicones, I looked through my own products to see if any contained silicones. This woman actually printed me a helpful list of all known sulfates, silicones, and alcohols that are not good for your hair. I took the list and examined my products and realized the leave-in conditioner I just bought, and my Aussie conditioner both contained silicones. The woman shared with me that after she removed silicones from her hair care regimen, her hair and her daughter's hair began to grow rapidly. Well, you know I only needed to hear it once.
I gave my leave-in-conditioner away, and since I was almost out of the Aussie anyway, I searched for a more natural conditioner which I found at Whole Foods.
I chose this conditioner because of its natural ingredients. Out of the other conditioners in this line, this one, and one other, do not contain wax. I did some research on it, and it received mixed reviews. The negative reviews stated that you had to use more of this conditioner than the conditioners containing silicones. The reason being is that people were looking for the same slick feeling they had with silicone conditioners. However, because this does not have any silicones in it, you will not have that overly slick feeling. The key here is to know what your hair feels like and how much conditioner you are putting in it to clean your hair. I used it today and enjoyed how it felt on my hair. I also used it on my sons and was pleased with it. Because I got rid of my leave-in-conditioner, after washing my hair, I used a little of this as a leave-in.
I really like all the products I am using for my hair care regimen right now. The main thing I like is that all of the products have natural ingredients. So I am going to do a product list below along with my wash day process.
1. Hot oil treatment- I take a mixture of olive oil and coconut oil and heat it up by heating up some water and setting my bottle of oil in it until it is hot. Then I distribute it throughout my hair and cover with a plastic cap for no less than 30 minutes.
2. I rinse out my hair with water and then do an Apple Cider Vinegar rinse (I read that this helps your hair to grow.)
3. Once a month, I will wash my hair with my Shea Moisture Shampoo.
4. I use my Everyday Coconut Conditioner to wash my hair and detangle it.
5. After rinsing my hair, and ringing it a little, I apply a little more of the Everyday Coconut Conditioner as a leave-in conditioner.
6. Today I took some Castor Oil that I got from Whole Foods and applied it to my scalp. Then I mixed some in my hand with the oils I used in my hot oil treatment and rubbed it throughout my hair.
7. I began to style my hair, applying my Coconut Hair Cream as I went along.
Not only do I want to have my hair in natural hairstyles, but I want the products I use to be as natural as they can be. I am really happy with what I have right now, but if I can get it to where it is even more natural and beneficial to my hair, I will go that route.
I tried to follow the LOC (Leave-in conditioner, Oil, Cream) method after washing and conditioning my hair. However, it was more of an OC method because I did not get a leave-in conditioner until last week. Previously, after I washed and conditioned my hair, I put oil in it and then my cream. Well, I really wanted to follow the method, so I went out and got a leave-in-conditioner by Cantu, and I thought my hair care regimen was great. My hair felt more slick, almost slippery, when I used the leave-in with the oil and the cream.
However, the other day I and another natural hair enthusiast were sharing the methods we use to care for our hair, and she told me about the curly girl method for washing hair. It was pretty much everything I had been doing except one thing; it removes all of the silicones from the conditioners.
Silicones are used in conditioners to help make your hair shiny and smooth feeling. However, they can build up. The sulfates in shampoos are to help remove the silicones from the conditioners we use, and as we know, sulfates can dry out our hair, which is why we need to use conditioner. It is like a catch 22. The sulfates in shampoo remove the silicones that build up in our hair from the conditioner we use to moisturize our hair after the sulfates in our shampoo dries it out.
After reading about the silicones, I looked through my own products to see if any contained silicones. This woman actually printed me a helpful list of all known sulfates, silicones, and alcohols that are not good for your hair. I took the list and examined my products and realized the leave-in conditioner I just bought, and my Aussie conditioner both contained silicones. The woman shared with me that after she removed silicones from her hair care regimen, her hair and her daughter's hair began to grow rapidly. Well, you know I only needed to hear it once.
I gave my leave-in-conditioner away, and since I was almost out of the Aussie anyway, I searched for a more natural conditioner which I found at Whole Foods.
I really like all the products I am using for my hair care regimen right now. The main thing I like is that all of the products have natural ingredients. So I am going to do a product list below along with my wash day process.
1. Hot oil treatment- I take a mixture of olive oil and coconut oil and heat it up by heating up some water and setting my bottle of oil in it until it is hot. Then I distribute it throughout my hair and cover with a plastic cap for no less than 30 minutes.
2. I rinse out my hair with water and then do an Apple Cider Vinegar rinse (I read that this helps your hair to grow.)
3. Once a month, I will wash my hair with my Shea Moisture Shampoo.
4. I use my Everyday Coconut Conditioner to wash my hair and detangle it.
5. After rinsing my hair, and ringing it a little, I apply a little more of the Everyday Coconut Conditioner as a leave-in conditioner.
6. Today I took some Castor Oil that I got from Whole Foods and applied it to my scalp. Then I mixed some in my hand with the oils I used in my hot oil treatment and rubbed it throughout my hair.
7. I began to style my hair, applying my Coconut Hair Cream as I went along.
Not only do I want to have my hair in natural hairstyles, but I want the products I use to be as natural as they can be. I am really happy with what I have right now, but if I can get it to where it is even more natural and beneficial to my hair, I will go that route.
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