Hey, all you hairlistas out there. So, guess what — I am [once again] changing my hair regimen. Thanks to all the articles I have been coming across. And since the death of my husband I have been focusing more on the health of mine and my daughter’s hair. And now living in a state with real seasons, we have to make sure we are doing what we can to make sure we are using products that work to strengthen our hair and protect against extreme weather.
I wear relaxers. After reading different articles about sulfate-free shampoos and conditioners that have no parabens, mineral oil, or other harsh chemicals. My hair had gone through a series of stressful events. And it is finally going in the right direction. And since moving to a new state I took into consideration what living in a different climate would be like and if it would impact my hair and if so, on what level.
Thinking that as much as I really like using Dove’s Intense Repair shampoo and conditioner, I started looking more at chemical free products and what roles the properties played in promoting healthy hair. Yes, it meant changing up my regimen again.
Since Carol’s Daughter aired on HSN last week, the Monoi Repairing Shampoo and Conditioner was featured and it is sulfate-free, containing no harsh chemicals, I thought this was worth spending the money on in the efforts of moving our hair in a healthier direction. This product is free of parabens, petroleum, has no mineral oil, is sulfate-free, and has no artificial colors. It works well on natural hair, colored hair, and relaxed hair.
So, what is sulfate? It is the chemical that is used to help in the sudsing of shampoos. It is also known to be the direct cause of damaging hair and causing frizzing of the hair. Sulfates are also used in cleaning ingredients. The more I read up on sulfates the more I realized that as much as I love Dove, the more I realized that if I wanted to up my game in the care of our hair I need to change up how we have been taking care of our hair. When my daughter came to me and said, “nothing that I have been using seems to be working on helping my hair grow.” That in itself was enough for me to research various products to see what works well.
I brought some oil with me that I was using prior to my hair weaves because it helped with keeping my hair from shedding. And because my daughter wears her hair natural — no heat whatsoever, no chemicals — I thought this would be ideal for her. The only thing is a little goes a long way because too much use of this oil can cause a major buildup and can weigh heavy.
This is a good oil, but much more needed to be done and I needed to find what could aid in long term care.
I did order the Monoi duo shampoo and conditioner in the super sized. It is designed to start working in the first use, and because this is the first time I’ve tried Carol’s Daughter I am interested in seeing how well it does.
In the meantime, while waiting for the Carol’s Daughter shampoo and conditioner to arrive I looked into other sulfate-free shampoos and conditioners. My daughter pointed out the Shea Moisture Black Jamaican Castor Oil Strengthen & Grow shampoo and conditioner we picked up from Wal-Mart. This was a good buy!!! 🙂
Photo from 28 Days Beauty.
Using the Shea Moisture Black Jamaican Castor Oil Strengthen & Grow shampoo and conditioner, right away I could tell the difference. My hair did not have that super hard feeling after I blow dried it that I would have when I used my Dove Intense Repair shampoo and conditioner. It was not full of heavy fragrance, my scalp was clean, and there was no shedding. That, to me, solidified the reason why I needed to get away from chemically induced products and go with shampoos and conditioners free of those very chemicals, especially with wearing a relaxer, color, and cellophanes.
When you are considering breaking your normal routine you have to think about the extent of how far you will go to achieve healthy hair especially if you are coming from having damaged hair. In my case it has been a number of situations such as an unwanted hair cut, damaged hair due to aggressive coloring, over processing, neglect relaxer upkeep, and an abundance of stress during the months of stress I experience when my husband was ill before his passing.
For my daughter it has been poor hair processing, unnecessary perming, split ends, and unnecessary cutting. We both have suffered damaged hair in the last few years and now that time has passed, the stress is behind us, we can now get back on the road to doing what we need to do to strengthen and grow our hair.
It has been a time of healing for me. But the journey continues in our efforts to break away from what our normal regimen has been.
So, the Carol’s Daughter shampoo and conditioner had arrived. My daughter used it right after it arrived and right away noticed how soft her hair was. It was not loaded with a lot of fragrance. When I got home later that evening I used it as well. I was impressed by how easy it was to detangle my hair, how clean my scalp felt, and how soft it felt even after I blow dried it. I liked it, too, because it was not over burdened with fragrance. I believe the design of this products mostly focuses on promoting the long-term health of your hair rather than how good it smells. And this is clearly something you have to think about. Do you want your hair to smell good or do you want it to look healthy? Think about it.
Now that I have ventured into a new regimen, to continue I need to consider using chemical free leave in conditioners and moisturizers and natural oils.
Changing a regimen there is a lot to think about and the money factor because from what I am seeing it can be pricey. The brief tid-bit articles I read pretty much say the same thing that you get a gentler cleanse. One blog I came across was from Klassy Kinks. I like her blog because she really talks about her experience using sulfate-free shampoos and conditioners.
I talk about relaxers a lot. Any time I come across some useful information I want to pass that information on to my readers. If you do your own relaxers at home, or if you color your hair at home, you will want to try incorporating sulfate-free products into your hair care system. Research your product options and see which combinations works best and will help protect against damage.
Savvy Hair Studio101 