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Post in Best Hair Ever
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Anonymous Insider

When it comes to shampooing your hair, do you care if it's sulfate-free or not?

I've been in cosmetology school for a month (a redken salon) and a lot of my instructors seem to have mixed feelings on the subject. Personally I lean towards sulfate-free because I've noticed the change in my hair (good ones). I heard sulfates strips your hair of it's natural moisture, which depending on how often you wash your hair can be damaging. Some people say though it's just a gimmick to make you buy something you believe is better for your hair. Opinions?

 

Also what do you use at home for your shampoo and conditioner.

Re: When it comes to shampooing your hair, do you care if it's sulfate-free or not?

Ive been using LP since May and have not noticed a huge difference color wise. but i also wash my hair 3xs a week. I just prefer to mix in my non sulfate  for clarifying

Re: When it comes to shampooing your hair, do you care if it's sulfate-free or not?

I think this is very true.  You also need to factor in how often you are shampooing your hair and how often you are heat styling.  Sulfates can strip your color a lot faster.  I have noticed this big time when I used Redken or Pureology.  I used to swear by Pureology but L'oreal got their hands on that brand and totally changed the formula.  I don't think it's a gimmick at all.  I swear by Kevin Murphy products.  They are pricey but so worth it.  My hair has changed a lot for the better since using Kevin Murphy.  I feel like if you are going to pay good money to get your hair colored or styled professionally than you need to pay good money for products and aftercare.  I think if you are going to go for a drugstore shampoo you are better off saving your money and using your dish soap or laundry detergent because they are basically the same thing.  Sorry not sorry I can't stand drugstore haircare.  I am a complete brand snob when it comes to haircare.  When it works it works.

 

Since switching to Kevin Murphy my hair doesn't haven't to be colored as often.  It holds the highlites great and doesn't fade nearly as fast as when using products with alcohols and sulfates.  My split ends don't get nearly as bad or as noticable.  My hair stays shiny no matter what, even if I let it air dry.  I have no buildup and no oily feel to my hair.  This brand has brought the life back into my hair.  My aunt has been doing hair for 25 years and just opened her first salon and she only carries Kevin Murphy because they work that well.  She used to only use Redken, Pureology and Suga.  She says the only way she will stop selling Kevin Murphy is if they change their forumla or sells out to L'oreal.

 

Anonymous Insider

Re: When it comes to shampooing your hair, do you care if it's sulfate-free or not?

I really appreciate you taking a lot of time to tell me about your personal opinion/experience. It's amazing how much I've learned since I've been in school about how to take care of your hair. Also myths like brushing your hair/cutting the split ends makes your hair grow faster (does not, but certainly makes it a lot healthier).  I'm still on the search for my own haircare routine. I have fine hair and is thining to the point where it's noticeable so I am really researching my brands and products right now religiously.

Re: When it comes to shampooing your hair, do you care if it's sulfate-free or not?

Thanks lady!  It's all about finding what works for you and your hair.  I noticed too the more water I drink and the more I workout that it really does affect every part of your body including your hair.  I hope you find a routine that is right for you.

Re: When it comes to shampooing your hair, do you care if it's sulfate-free or not?

Sort of...

I generally follow the Curly Girl method, which means avoiding sulfates and non-water-soluble silicones. However, I believe that overall formulation is much more important than the presence or absence of a single particular ingredient (Unless there are actual allergies involved). I've tried sulfate-free shampoos that have left my hair dried and stripped. I also own a sulfate shampoo that leaves my hair so soft I can detangle my hair with this stuff in it. It's a pH balanced shampoo, which prevents the cuticle lift that higher pH shampoos can cause (the same reason baking soda can do major damage if overused). It also has panthenol and silk amino acids, which help to make hair softer. 

Anonymous Insider

Re: When it comes to shampooing your hair, do you care if it's sulfate-free or not?

I actually really care if it has sulfates because my scalp gets irritated if it does. I only use organic and sulfate free shampoos like pro naturals argan oil shampoo. The difference is very noticeable.

Anonymous Insider

Re: When it comes to shampooing your hair, do you care if it's sulfate-free or not?

My scalp gets irritated by sulfates a lot too. I tried Redken's diamond oil and I really like how it made my hair feel, but a day after the itching started. 😕 I really cant use any of the shampoos at school, totally sucks!

Re: When it comes to shampooing your hair, do you care if it's sulfate-free or not?

My hair is colored with Goldwell Elumen, so I use the special Elumen wash by Goldwell on the occasions that I do wash my hair.  The Elumen coloring system is different than traditional hair coloring in that it relies on the polarity of the molecules instead of stripping the hair through oxidation.  Anyway, it is not sulfate free, just specially designed to work with my specific coloring.  I should also add that I rarely actually *wash* my hair with shampoo--- I'll get it wet or use a cleansing conditioner, but mostly I only shampoo once a week or sometimes longer. 

Re: When it comes to shampooing your hair, do you care if it's sulfate-free or not?

If you think back to chemistry and sulfates, or soaponification, any sort of cleanser or surfactant lifts dirt along with the oils.  So if you're "sulfate" free you're not "sulfite" or "soaponified coconut" free.  They all dry the same. 

 

Thats not so say that your hair is less dry due to silicones or proteins in the shampoo.  

Although using something with laureth is better than lauryl… its more gentle on the protein that makes up the hair.  

 

 

Hope that helps! 

 

 

and for the record i use the deva curl no poo religiously 🙂

Re: When it comes to shampooing your hair, do you care if it's sulfate-free or not?

I have tried to use natural shampoo for a couple of years now, and I prefer them over normal shampoos. I have always had long, healthy thick hair, so I do not know what difference it has made.

Re: When it comes to shampooing your hair, do you care if it's sulfate-free or not?

Hi, ashleynne!  I use Free & Clear Shampoo and Conditioner.  It's "free and clear" of dyes, lanolin, fragrance, masking agents, proteins, parabens, and formaldehyde.  I wash my hair about 3x/wk and sometimes use the conditioner in between.  I've been really happy since discovering this shampoo and conditioner.  One (or more) of these ingredients was causing my scalp to itch furiously.  I know for certain fragrance was one.  I would love for there to be more fragrance-free products on the market!

 

 

 

Re: When it comes to shampooing your hair, do you care if it's sulfate-free or not?

I didn't like sulfate-free shampoos at first because whatever I was using didn't feel like it was cleaning my hair. At first, Living Proof was working for me, but then I'd end up with oily, blah hair. I went back to my Bumble & bumble Thickening, which always makes my hair feel clean.

I got my hair colored professionally plus bellage and it cost me an arm and a leg. I wanted to preserve the color, so I went back to sulfate-free. I am now using Bumble & bumble Color Minded. My color is as vibrant as when it was first done, plus my hair actually feels clean.

Re: When it comes to shampooing your hair, do you care if it's sulfate-free or not?

Good to know about the LP!

Re: When it comes to shampooing your hair, do you care if it's sulfate-free or not?

Sulfate free! As a curly girl, I rarely let shampoo touch my locks. When I do though, it's always all natural, botanical ingredient and no yucky sulfates which strip my hair and dry it out.

Re: When it comes to shampooing your hair, do you care if it's sulfate-free or not?

With coloring I've found that sulfate-free is better for my hair. I've also found that using a shampoo and conditioner with protein really helps my hair. I also do a coconut oil hair treatment at least once a week that I leave in overnight. 

 

I used to always be blonde and now that I'm more red/strawberry I have to baby my hair a bit more because it's more noticeable if it's not in good shape with the darker color. 

Re: When it comes to shampooing your hair, do you care if it's sulfate-free or not?

I'd be interested to hear if you answer this thread whether or not your shampoo really is sulfate free (i.e. no lather whatsoever). Also I don't know the ins and outs of the science behind this so you know, if you do, feel free to share :).

 

I have used both types. I tried devacurl's no poo. Can't stand it. I feel like I am losing more hair just by the difficulty of trying to run it through my hair to clean my scalp. Not a fan. Did not notice any additional softness or improvement.

 

Now I have finished a whole bottle of the Loreal Everpure Sulfate-free color care system shampoo (the kind that smell herbal). I loved this! I think in general it also helped that the formula was creamier and less gel-like than my typical shampoo and it was designed for smoothing. This does say sulfate-free but there are other versions of sulf- type dervatives on the ingredients list so it does still lather. I do not plan on repurchasing this though as I am trying to now avoid parabens in my products. I liked how this made my hair feel and look. I used it after demi-permanently dying my hair and was pleased with the results.

 

I am now trying out some higher end products like Living Proof and the Agave line shampoos. It doesn't appear that the living proof shampoos have any sulfate or sulf- type ingredients in them but they do lather. I also like the Agave. The agave oil is a miracle product for me so I wanted to try out the shampoo/conditioner. I haven't used any of these enough to comment and have not noticed any apparent differences now having used each once. Unfortunately I have only small samples of the living proof (thanks to the thread about emailing companies, though!).

 

In general, I continue to plan on only buying sulfate-free, paraben free shampoos that are geared towards "smoothing" and "frizz fighting."

Re: When it comes to shampooing your hair, do you care if it's sulfate-free or not?

I saw that you didn't care for Deva No-Poo. Have you looked into Curl Junkie at all?  Their products are a bit more natural than Deva. They have both a cleansing conditioner (similar to No-Poo, but I found it more moisturizing).  They also have a low lather sulfate-free shampoo (similar to Deva Low-Poo). Their website also has a really nice grid to help pick out the right products for your hair, and I've heard that their owner is very helpful if you email questions to her. 

Re: When it comes to shampooing your hair, do you care if it's sulfate-free or not?

I will check that out! I think I am just a low poo girl (heh heh). I Am still on the hunt!

Re: When it comes to shampooing your hair, do you care if it's sulfate-free or not?

I'm a (mostly) recovering hair product junkie. I can recommend tons of brands and suggestions, because I've tried a lot of them. Curl Junkie is nice- I don't usually get their cleansers and conditioners anymore because my hair does okay with Deva, which I can get on the ground. But I LOVE their Curl Queen Gel. Their shampoo (similar to Deva Low-Poo) will leave your hair feeling very different as compared to a sulfate shampoo. There is definitely no "squeaky" clean feeling, but my hair is fine in texture, and I've never had any issues with build up or weigh-down. It's just wwits initially adjusting to the feeling of clean but not totally stripped. 

Anonymous Insider

Re: When it comes to shampooing your hair, do you care if it's sulfate-free or not?

I'm still learning lol but you are spot on there is different types of sulfates. I think the one everyone tries to escape is the Sodium laureth sulfate.

 

I believe I missed the thread on emailing companies??? What's that about.

Re: When it comes to shampooing your hair, do you care if it's sulfate-free or not?

Search for the thread "what companies have you gotten samples from?" (it's that or very close to that) - I only emailed living proof since I don't need a lot of excess stuff laying around and I wanted to try some of their other products. But if youre diligent you can email a lot of companies and get free stuff! The thread is helpful because it gives an idea of what companies tend to send out free samples. It helps to tell them about your hair or your skin - tell them why you're interested. In your case being in school might be a good reason!

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