QuoteReplyTopic: In search of great natural shampoo, conditioner, styling products? Posted: June 02 2003 at 3:58pm
Hi all! Anyone out there have a favorite natural shampoo, conditioner, and styling product for color-treated hair? I was shopping the other day at Whole Foods and Wild Oats stores, and asked which one of the many shampoos and conditioners would be good for color-treated hair, and it seemed that none of them were formulated for that purpose. If so, the natural hair products industry is really missing out on a big market, as there are plenty of us out there who do color our hair, in all age groups, but who don't necessarily want to use heavily chemical shampoos, conditioners, and styling products. Right now, I'm test-driving Avalon Organics Lavender Shampoo and the corresponding conditioner, and even with careful rinsing, my hair doesn't feel as clean as with good ole Pantene(the Color Revival series). What's a girl to do? TIA for any input!
Jennifer
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Hi Cara, please be careful because "natural" is a misnomer. Chemicals are what cleanse the hair. Certainly, there are gentle chemicals and harsh chemicals, but there is a limited number of things that will cleanse your hair. Herbs will not! Also, many allegedly "Natural" products contain heavy perfumes and unnecessary dyes. I'm not at all against companies with a conscience (especially those who do not test on animals), but a quick look on the ingredient list of any "natural" product will show you that it isn't the herbs cleaning your hair; it's the chemicals.
Some great ones IMO, are Pureology, Art Tec's Pure Hair, or MOP (Modern Organic's Products)...I love MOPs new Vitamin C products for color treated hair.
Hi Sophie! I'm on a pretty strict budget, so most salon-type of shampoos are out of my range so either drugstore or natural food store recs would be better. No high-end recs please.
Cara I hate to break this to you...but the Avalon lavender shampoo is NOT all natural, and neither is it very good for color-treated hair. According to drugstore.com's ingredient listing, tucked within all the lush-sounding yucca and sea kelp in the ingredient list is "olefin sulfate." This is NOT something anyone with colored hair should be using: it is a harsh surfactant detergent that can strip color and moisture with repeated use. What really gets me is the way Avalon drops the full chemical name for this substance, which is sodium C 14-16 olefin sulfate. That's the way you'll see it listed in almost every other "non-natural" commercial product, yet Avalon drops the most "chemical-sounding" part of the name to make it sound more organic. Legally, that's okay. Philosophically, I think it's a crock. This shampoo does include panthenol and protein, which are great conditioning agents; however, most people don't leave shampoo on long enough for these to cling to hair. Compound that with the surfactant cleanser and we've got a product that falls short.
If this is new to you I highly recommend Paula Begoun's hair care book and Dr. Winter's cosmetic dictionary. It really will change the way you shop for products. Once your awareness has been raised it cannot be lowered. Arm yourself with knowledge! (And many other inspirational phrases.) :-)
Look for beauty, and you will find no intelligence. Look for intelligence and you will find both.Proud member of the Cult of All Soft
Hi Lyris! Thanks for the info! Actually, just last week or so in the New York Sunday Times paper(I think it was the previous one to last Sunday's) there was a whole article about natural personal care products not being all they should be, and Avalon was one of the products mentioned that included "hydrosols", another fancy name for basically water with some herbs added to it! Also the article intimated that if it got out there that a lot of natural personal care products were a hoax, the industry would lose its public support. Not in the Times article, I've seen somewhere else that even Aubrey Organics products are not "all natural" either, that they don't disclose every ingredient in their products. The upshot; most likely I'll be sticking with my good ol' Pantene Color Revival shampoo and conditioner! I know lots of folks hate Pantene, but for me it works great, and the price is right!
Cara if Pantene works for you don't knock it! Some people think I'm a bit odd for wearing saddle shoes on virtually every day I don't have to go to work but it works for me :-)
Look for beauty, and you will find no intelligence. Look for intelligence and you will find both.Proud member of the Cult of All Soft
Jennifer
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Aura "Pure Organic Shampoo Enriched Cleansing for All Hair Types," which is ~$5.00 for 16 oz. at Sally's Beauty Supply, and
ColorVive by L'Oreal -- there's the Daily Care for Color-Treated Hair or one for dry hair which is ~$3.00 for 13 oz.
Both shampoos do not add or take away moisture and they don't build-up.
I wore hair extensions for several years and was told to be very careful with what products I used. Both shampoos above were better than any of the expensive salon shampoos that were recommended (and I did try theirs!). I now wear highlights in my hair and use the same shampoos.
Aura is fabulous. Simply fabulous and as a "price alternative" (read: shameless knockoff) of Aveda I think it's a darn good line. Love the almond cherry bark conditioner. I was curious how the shampoos are--thanks for the tip!
Look for beauty, and you will find no intelligence. Look for intelligence and you will find both.Proud member of the Cult of All Soft
Jennifer
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Oh, the almond cherry bark conditioner is wonderful! I used that on the end of my extensions, which obviously had NO oil coming from my head and thus needed intensive conditioning, and Aura's conditioner really kept my extensions looking great and in excellent condition!
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