Lovely Locks or Tantalising Tresses

I have done it!! I have kicked the shampoo habit!

Your first thought might be that I’ve given up washing my hair, but you’d be incorrect. I just said that I’ve given up shampoo. For all intents and purposes, shampoo is nought but detergent for hair. There may be a few exceptions, but I’ll get to that later.

So, how do I clean my hair? Why with conditioner of course! Now before you start scratching your head in confusion, let me explain. A good conditioner and a good shampoo (I’m not talking about overpriced salon ones here… They’re no better than supermarket brands really), will have very little difference between them. The only major thing being that one will be moisturising.  Shampoo in any form will not mousturise your hair. Conditioner, however, will clean your hair and scalp.

I know some people have tried this method, and found their hair ends up greasy and weighed down.  You see, though, the  important thing is to choose the right conditioner!

Using any conditioner from a supermarket will not work.  99.9% of them contain silicones, which is basically an artificial substance that will coat your hair giving it the appearance of shine, without actually moisturising it at all.  The best place to go conditioner shopping is health food stores or places like Priceline, that have a huge range of product.  What you’re looking for is a conditioner that is as natural as possible, with no silicones, parabens or petrochemical products.

What I am using is the Organic Instinct Conditioner from Natural Instincts.  It’s nice and thick, and works a treat!  Here is how I use it to clean and condition.

• Use about a walnut size dollop and put it on the roots of my hair/scalp, and give it a really good massage in.
• Give it a really good rinse, REALLY good.. make sure it’s ALL gone.  If it’s not all gone, this is when you’ll get oily roots.. so RINSE RINSE RINSE, and then rinse some more.
• Put some conditioner through the bottom half of your hair, making sure you’ aren’t getting anywhere near your scalp.
• Leave for 2-3 minutes, or while you complete the rest of your shower, then rinse from the ends.

My hair is soft, bouncy and NOT oily!

What happens when I want to set my hair?  I mostly soft set, which means no products, and I set my hair wet.  Doing a “CO” (conditioner only) wash does not affect my sets at all.  Even lasts 2 days with a dry reset overnight.

However, the one drawback is if I want to use product.  Hairspray, setting lotion or curl enhancers won’t wash out quite completely with conditioner only.  Thankfully the shampoo from the same range is a nice and effective “pre wash” cleanser to get rid of the product.  I only use a small amount to clean the product out, and then follow it up with the regular conditioner wash as above.

So if you decide to try this method out, please let me know how you get on!