Back to Co-washing: Baking soda, Apple cider vinegar and Tresemme Naturals Conditioners

Long time readers may remember that I went on a no-shampoo, curly hair fling 3 years ago (click here if you need to refresh your memory). It worked really well and my hair was sporting really pretty waves. I ended up giving it up once I got back to Malaysia as I couldn't find the right silicone-free products and it was too hard to maintain as I was on the go all the time.

I wasn't planning to jump back on the conditioner-cleansing bandwagon but my scalp has been all kinds of funny after coming to Australia. Maybe its the dry weather or the water, but my scalp started itching really badly and it was even worse after washing my hair. My roots suddenly turned oily and I started seeing dandruff flakes on my clothes as well. 

Never had dandruff before in my life. I freaked out.

I tried different shampoo brands. Washed my hair more frequently. Washed less frequently.

It got to the point where I had scabs all over my scalp and was scratching in my sleep. It was really just that bad. I will never join a "Shave your head for Cancer" drive because I have scars all over my head.

Desperate, I tried washing my hair with baking soda and apple cider vinegar.

Found It! Cheap 'Cone-free Conditioner

After searching high and low for a cheap 'cone-free conditioner in Malaysia, I finally found it in, of all places, a supermarket in Sabah. I ran in to stock up on some food and emerged triumphant with a bottle of conditioner in my hand.

Dad gave me a long look when I hopped into the car. "I thought you said no more toiletries?"

Uh, whoops.

My curly girl heart did a pitter-pat of happiness when I saw Suave and VO5 bottles on the shelf. Note that the Asian VO5 conditioner is full of silicones and not CG-friendly. When I saw the US packaging, my face lit up like a light bulb.

I should have checked Merdeka supermarket from the start. It's one of my favourite supermarkets as it happens to stock a wide variety of imported goods (only place in Malaysia where I can get English Lemon Curd and Betty Crocker Devil's Food cake mix). It only makes sense that they would have shampoo and conditioners from the US.

I bought the largest bottle of conditioner I could find in there: a family sized bottle of Suave (665ml) in aloe and waterlily for RM 12. The other conditioners came in 440ml sizes for RM 8.

So, if you are Sabahan (or a Bruneian who visits Sabah frequently) and want to give conditioner-only washing a go, hop over to Merdeka Supermarket on Jalan Penampang. It's across the road from Lido and quite hard to miss.

Wave Control: Garnier Fructis Wave Defining Mousse

One of the things safely stashed in my luggage bag for my return to Malaysia (flight is later today) is this: Ganier's Wave Defining Mousse.

My usual Sunsilk Curl Booster and FOTE Aloe Vera Gel simply weren't cutting it for me over summer. My hair either frizzed up and turned me into a poodle poof-ball, or turned limp and left me looking like a drowned cocker spaniel. So when I discovered this 'cone free mousse at the supermarket for AUD 5.50, I let out a happy squeak and threw it into my shopping basket.

As I mentioned before here, Sunsilk Curl Booster leaves my waves feeling a tad crunchy while FOTE Aloe Vera gel makes me a bit frizzy when the air is dry. Thankfully, Garnier's Wave Defining Mousse seems to be immune to humidity issues or hair moisture levels.

The mousse has to be used on a sopping wet head of hair for it to really work so have it handy the minute you step out of the shower. Just shake the can, spray the mousse onto your hand (I use about a tennis ball size amount for my hair) and scrunch it into your hair, working up to the top from the tips. Leave to air-dry naturally or use the diffuser attachment on your hair dryer if you have one.

The only drawbacks to this product are that one, you have to go around with dripping hair til it dries, and two, the waves don't last after a night's sleep. With Sunsilk and FOTE, you just need a sprinkle of water in the a.m. to refresh your waves.

Malaysia has such a severe lack of affordable, cone-free curl products, goodness knows what I am going to do when my can of Garnier runs out. I will probably KY jelly a go then.

For the Wavies/ Curlies: L'Oreal Elvive Re-nutrition Hair Mask

As faithful Loverly readers know, I went on a Curly Girl quest a few months ago in an attempt to make peace with my frightfully frizzy hair. While it has mostly been successful -- I now get straightish hair or waves 9 days out of 10 -- the search for great curly products hasn't been too great. I have found a great (cheap) conditioner for co-washing but have yet to find my ideal hair mask and conditioner which doesn't break my budget.

So, I was both delighted and dismayed when I found out that L'oreal hair masks are all CG-friendly -- not a hint of 'cones or 'xanes in the ingredient list. I was delighted because L'oreal fell nicely into my budget. And dismayed because L'oreal does animal testing.

(I really do try to avoid buying products from companies that animal test. My conscience pricks each time I get a new tube of sunscreen from Olay or Neutrogena. I love the stuff but why why why must they compromise my principles?)

Looking at my lifeless ends, I decided to go against my ethics and buy a pot of this. Vanity, how you do a girl in!

If you are looking for moisture, this mask is IT. I have used other L'Oreal hair masks from the Anti-Breakage and Smooth Intense range before and they do not provide the moisture I get from this particular version. Even without another curl product, I get lovely clumping once I get out of the shower. I have always heard that honey works for curls and this may have proved it.

I even used this after swimming the other day and was pleasantly surprised to find that my hair felt soft and moisturised enough to create loose waves. With the other two masks, my hair usually feels a little coarse to the touch. Chlorine is really kills my hair and it takes ages for it to go back to normal. No such problem with this mask!

As much as I like the Re-nutrition mask and what it does for my curls, I won't be repurchasing again. Not because of the animal testing thing, but because my skin breaks out into big red rashes each time I use it. Ouchie. I wonder if the strong royal jelly scent has anything to do with it.

I strongly recommend a patch test before giving this a go.

L'Oreal Re-nutrition Deep Nourishing Mask retails at AUD 11.50 for 200ml.

Monday's Beauty Bits

Kahani is on leave this week so I will be feeding you our Monday beauty bites, err, I mean bits.

Not a beauty bit but a reminder to stay cool. The Sydney heat wave started over the weekend, with temperatures hitting 40 C on Sunday. Goodness knows how the rest of this week will turn out but don't forget to carry water, facial spray and sunscreen with you to cool down. I have a stash of face masks cooling in my fridge as I write this.

I hate wastage so it always irritates me whenever I get a perfectly good product in terribly inefficient packaging. Half the time, I end up cutting the bottle in half (if I can) and decanting the remainder into an small tub. This isn't a new idea as most of our mothers do it but I was just wondering how many of you bother doing this as well.

Remember this Skunk Brush? I mentioned in my review that it bled quite a bit and it took a couple of washes to get the dye out. Guess what? The dye is STILL coming off and after an indefinite number of washes, I have given up on this brush. Into the bin it goes.

I try to keep my hair off my back as much as possible because of bacne. This poses a bit of a problem in the shower so after applying a hair mask or conditioner to my hair, I bundle it up into a shower cap, leave for a bit, rinse and put my hair back into the (rinsed) showercap. Not only has this reduced the number of pimples on my back, but allows my conditioner to penetrate the hair shaft more effectively.

While I am on the subject of hair, the curly girl routine is working great for me. It has been 4 months since I started and while I don't get great waves and curls everyday, my hair has been looking better since I gave up shampoo (well, I still do shampoo my hair but only once in a reeeeeeally long while). Not only do I have less split ends, but my hair seems to be growing faster -- which may be a minus point for some people.

Riding the Wave: Keeping Curls in Place

Quick pop quiz: What is the similarity between these 3 products?

A) Sunsilk Curl Booster
B) FOTE Aloe Vera Gel
C) KY Jelly

Hint: The answer is not "They all come in squeeze tubes".

They are all used to define curls!

Yes, I know. KY JELLY. I had a wtf face when I first saw it on a list of CG-friendly styling products. But remember how I kept yammering ON about using water-based and silicone-free products? KY jelly is water-based and silicone-free so it washes right out of your hair, making it perfect for the job. Though I have no idea who was the person who read the ingredients list and thought, "Hmm... this would be good for styling my hair." Probably a descendant of the person who thought of milking cows.

I still wrapping my head around the idea of using KY jelly so the only products I have used for defining my curls are the Sunsilk Balm and the FOTE Aloe Vera gel. Both work pretty well but the results aren't consistent. Boo.

The Sunsilk Balm has a mind of its own. Some days, it makes me look lovely and defined. Other days, it leaves my hair feeling crunchy and encourages my frizz to misbehave. And, I really have to be careful of how much I use. Too much and my curls feel crunchy.

FOTE Aloe Vera Gel is better as it leaves me with soft, touchable curls. BUT I can only use it with sopping wet hair and when the air isn't too dry. Aloe vera is a humecant so it works by drawing in moisture and keeping it in your hair. When the air is dry and it can't absorb any moisture, it takes it out of your hair and takes you looking poodle like. *sigh*

I am thinking of trying a combo of Sunsilk and FOTE next week but I not sure how to layer the products on top of each other. Maybe I should get KY jelly next week...

CG Week 4 Update
Confession here: I fell off the CG boat because of university work and used dry shampoo a couple of times. Let's just say that my hair has returned to poodle like status and its going to take me another month to whip it back into shape. Oh dear.

Conclusion? Once you go CG, you have to stick to a routine. My hair loves it though so the effort is worth it. I don't think I'll be looking back.

Now, what should I do with that can of dry shampoo?

Riding the Wave: Plopping and Week 2's Update

Seriously, that cute fluffy puppy with the Princess Leia 'do is related to my post today.

The best way to get pretty waves is to step out of the shower with sopping wet hair and let it air dry. Wet hair clumps together as it dries to form natural waves. Combing or brushing separates the hairs, gets rid of the curls and results in frizz. Quite simply:

Hair type x (Water + Hair) = Straight/Waves/Curls

Curls + Comb = Frizz

Sometimes, the water weighs down the hair so much, you end up with limp curls or badly shaped waves. Plus, no one wants to go around looking like a wet cocker spaniel (believe me, I have a pretty, curly pet spaniel whom I adore but she looks terrible wet) while their hair dries.

So here's the problem to solve. How do we make sure that our hair is wet enough to encourage clumping but not so wet that we drip everywhere and encourage limpness? (I am so tempted to geekify the above equations to suit the question but I won't. *slaps inner maths geek*)

This is where plopping comes into the picture.

Because my brains are on strike right now (I haven't slept for the past 30 hours), I am just going to copy and paste the instructions for plopping from the Naturally Curly website:

"As described by a member, after one washes and conditions the hair, you apply product to wet hair and get ready to ‘plop.’ Put a t-shirt or Aquis towel down on a chair - some use the toilet with seat down. Leaning over the towel/t-shirt with your head hanging down bent over from your waist, position the wet hair onto towel so the curls are all concentrated on top of the head. Then pull the towel taut against the top and sides of the head, grabbing the 2 sides and twisting them into long sausage rolls near each ear. Take these rolled up towel extensions and pull them to the nape of the neck and secure them by tying them together.

Says one reader, “Then I put go about my morning routine — makeup, coffee, etc. The towel helps to absorb excess water while letting the curls ’set’ into clumps. When you take the towel off, gently shake down the curls and diffuse ’s’ shaped, individual curly locks, with some volume at the roots.”

If you want extra control, another member suggests spritzing on on some spray gel or scrunch in a bit more gel after you take the towel off."

The page also has cartoon illustrations of plopping so you can check it out here.

Some people swear by it and others don't. Me? I am kind of on the fence with plopping. Maybe I am not doing it correctly but for me, plopping is one of those things which works on some days and doesn't on the others.

I have a problem doing the sausage rolling bit, which is why I thought the Princess Leia hair towel thing would come in handy. I'll report back once I give it a go.

Oh, I haven't the faintest idea what an Aquis towel is but I gather you are supposed to use either old cotton shirts, microfibre towels or paper towels (yup, as in the one we use in the kitchen) for scrunching excess water out of your curls. Normal terrycloth towels tend to soak up too much water and ruins the curl.

CG Week 2 and 3



Check it out. The pics on the left were taken on a "good" hair day in Week 2 while the ones on the right were taken during Week 3. I don't know if you girls can really see the difference but my waves in the second set of picture are less frizzy and a lot more defined compared to the previous week even though I wasn't using any gels or balms to help with the curls.

My hair seems to really like this new routine! Week 2 was a nightmare I would prefer not to remember but my waves started falling into place and staying there towards the end of Week 3.

*heaves a happy sigh*

Riding the Wave: Week 1 of The Curly Girl (CG) Routine

Excuse the slightly goofy look on my face. This was taken last year on a wavy day when I was fooling around with my webcam. I never thought that it would end up on So Loverly or I would have changed the look on my face. But as it is, this is roughly how my hair looked like on a good day before the frizzies started.

At the crux of the CG routine is the idea that you should stop using sulphates and silicones in your hair products. Sulphates are really harsh cleaning agents and as curly hair is a lot more porous than straight hair, they penetrate the hair shaft to have frat-style wild parties each time you wash your hair.

The result? Really dry hair with a tendency to frizz. And what do we do with frizz? Turn to hair serums and the like, of course! My John Frieda Anti-Frizz Serum is a god-send for bad hair days. But most of these styling products (along with our many conditioners and treatments) contain silicones, which coats the hair shaft leaving it soft, silky and manageable.

Cool, so silicones give me nice hair. What's so bad about that?

Here’s the stinger. Most silicones are not water-based so in order to wash them out; you need to use sulphate-based shampoos. If you don’t get rid of the silicone, it gradually weighs down your hair so it stops being bouncy and pretty.

Sulphates -> silicone -> sulphates -> silicone -> sulphates

You get the picture. It’s a vicious cycle which results in unhealthy hair.

So what now?

The solution to this is the CG/ no-poo routine which is also known as co-washing or conditioner-only cleansing (COC). Thankfully, Kahani has already written about this method here, saving me 15 minutes of head-scratching.

As some of you will be too lazy to click on the link, the co-washing means not using shampoo for your hair. Just use a light conditioner without any silicones (or anything ending with –xane, I forgot what that is) in place of your shampoo. Use it liberally over your head and hair. Massage your scalp thoroughly with your fingers and then rinse out. Use a more moisturising conditioner or a leave in conditioner (without any ‘cones or –xanes, please) to follow.

If no-pooing sounds icky to you or you find your scalp can’t handle it, you can opt for the modified CG routine/ low-poo method instead. Wet your hair, lightly coat your hair with conditioner from mid-shaft to the ends (this will protect it from the shampoo) before applying shampoo to your scalp and roots. Rinse out, work in some conditioner and then rinse out (just for a few seconds) again. Try to use a shampoo without sulphates, of course.

Btw, you are not supposed to brush or comb your hair as curly hair is prone to breakage and it separates the curls. You can only comb and detangle it when your hair is wet and preferably with some conditioner on it. Hairdryers are a no-no unless you are using a hair diffuser. Even so, its best to leave wet and air-dry.

For more reading on the CG routine, click this.

CG Week 1

Day 1: I decide to go CG and go out to buy the following (as recommended on the Aussie CG forum): Pears conditioner for co-washing, Clairol's Herbal Essences Hello Hydration conditioner (I will read the ingredient list 2 weeks later to find that it DOES contain dimethicone) and SunSilk Curl Booster Balm. Also pick up a bottle of Dr. Bronner's Magic Soap for low-poo washing. The only CG-friendly product I already have is the L'Oreal Elvive Nutri-Gloss Hi Shine mask.

So I wash my hair, plop (to be explained next week) and then scrunch in some of the Sunsilk Curl Booster. As my hair dries, I resist the urge to take a brush to my hair and apply some anti-frizz serum. I end up hiding everything right on top of my wardrobe so I don't reach for it.

To my dismay, my hair dries into poofy S-type waves. I crawl into bed worrying about second day hair.

The pictures are of Day 1. I thought it would be good to put up pictures every week for all of you to compare.

Day 2: I walk around campus looking and feeling like a disgruntled lion. Spritzing water and some SunSilk balm has helped a little but I still look poofy.

Day 3: So, sleeping on my hair has helped flatten things out a little. I absent-mindedly run a hand through my hair and immediately hit a snag. OW.

I am heading down to boyfriend's place for a week and debate fiercely in my head if I should continue with the CG routine or not. CG wins and I find myself doing my first co-wash in the boy's place after 3 hours of bus travel.

Co-wash come out better than expected so I scrunch in some balm and plop. Boy tries not to laugh at my weird head. I end up plopping for too long and end up with flat head. *swears*

Day 4: Lumber into the loo with the bleak realisation that sleeping with a wet head equals disaster. I try to remedy matters but stepping out into the cold hair to pick up my sister kills my hair. I spend the next 2 days with my hair in a bun.

Day 6: I do my second co-wash, using more conditioner and really taking my time. Hair feels better and more moisturised this time but still dries poofy. Maybe its the cold dry air. Hmm...

Sister gives my hair a dubious look and asks if I need a comb. She has a "Have you gone mad?" look on her face as I explain the CG routine to her. Then, she exhales a long "Okaaaaaaaaaaaay."

Day 7: Walk in the cold air to meet a friend for lunch. Damnit. Cold air IS murder. I have to find a way to keep moisture in my locks.

Next week: The method known as plopping and Week 2 of the curly diaries.

Beauty Experiment: Riding the Wave (An Intro)

I took one horrified look at myself in the mirror and let out a shriek.

My frizzy wiry curly hair – the bane of my teenage years – was back. After disappearing for 6 years and lulling me into a false security, my bad hair days are back to stay.

Meldee and my sister claim that my big mane is due to the strong Leo influence on my birthchart. An anthropologist friend happily tells me that wiry hair (and enjoying the sound of crickets apparently) is characteristic of my Austronesian ancestry. I am more inclined to put the blame on my Arab, Filipino and Mongolian forefathers.

“Straighten it,” my cousin advised me. She straightened her hair during high school and never looked back since.

I hesitated. As much as I desired a quick fix solution, cousin’s hair looked tired and damaged after years of straightening. I didn't have Afro-type kinks anyway. Then, something within me stirred.

“I will cultivate my curls!”

Googling "curly + hair" turned up the wonderful Naturally Curly website. A mine full of information but a pain to use until I got the hang of navigating their website. The articles range from caring for curls, support-group type affirmations on being a curly girl (CG) to CG products. Initially disappointed that most of the products featured seemed to be only available in the UK or the US, I was delighted to stumble upon an Aussie thread in their forums (yes, they have a Curly forum) focusing on CG-friendly products in Australia.

They also recommended picking up a copy of "Curly Girl" by Loraine Massey. I couldn't find a copy in my local Borders though (plus, I am pretty broke for the month) so I made do with the forum threads and blog posts linked on Naturally Curly. i am planning to get my paws on the book some day though.

The first thing I did was to look up what hair type I had. This was followed by a slap in the face discovery that I wasn't curly. I just had really wavy hair. 2B, to be exact. Just like Sandra Oh. Seeing how her character on Grey's Anatomy managed to snag the very delectable Dr. Owen Hunt, I am not complaining.

Mousying around the Naturally Curly forum led me to this pretty good post on hair basics about texture and porosity. Out of everything I have read, this gives the best idea of how to care for hair, curly or not. I think the writer is actually a hairstylist.

To summarise briefly, hair texture indicates what kind of products you should be using for your hair. Fine hair often seems dry even when over-moisturised because it lacks protein so you should avoid product with lots of emollients and humectants and go for proteins instead. Medium/ Normal hair can basically go for anything but those with coarse hair (like me) have to watch out for products with protein in it as their hair already has an overabundance of it. They should look for more moisturising products instead.

Hair porosity indicates how well your hair can absorb moisture and is determined by checking your hair cuticle (the article teaches you how to check your hair porosity so take a click). Hair with low porosity has a tendency to repel product as the hair cuticles are pretty compact. Again, hair with normal porosity does not pose much of a problem. Hair with high porosity absorbs products very quickly (YAY!) but has a problem holding on to it as the open hair cuticles simply can't retain the product. Boo.

No wonder my hair feels like bloody straw half the time.

I'll stop here for now before your brains boggle with too much info but basically, the key for pretty curls and no frizz is keeping a good balance between protein and moisture (and in my case, an extra 3 hours of research every week for hair products).

Coming up next week? Hair care for CGs and my daily diary on transitioning over to the CG routine.