Hi okay, Ive been going crazy over the last few weeks trying figure out if silicone are good or bad..but all my products seem to have them and just wondereing...what is a good shampoo that is gentle but will remove my silicone buildup??  i was about to chuck a small fortune in products when i was convinced silicone is bad, but maybe i might rethink that.  by the way, this whole thing started when i used neutrogena anti residue and all my hair broke off.  i came to the conclusion after posting on this forum that i had extreme silicone build up and the shampoo removed not only the build up but the hair as well.  ok, sorry for posting so many questions tonite, but im trying to figure out a good regimen for my hair, and a healing one too:) oh, and the products i am currently using are frederic fekkai protein rx conditioner, glossing cream, and protein rx mask, and phyto 9, and biolage ultra hydrating shampoo...and just bought redken all smooth butter treat, have not used that yet, but have used the other products for a few days now...spent a small fortune in sephora when i was frantic.

I spent a fortune on shampoo and conditioners that I thought would work for me.  Finally I bought  Suave clarifying shampoo that is the generic version of the Rusk clarifying shampoo and used the LOreal Vive Nutri Force conditioner.  My hair is very fine and it seems that a daily clarifying shampoo and a good  conditioner does the trick....

hey mysty:

From what I heard from evryone is that elasta qp mango butter is great for the ends and serve as a heat protectant. Before you iron you can also use biosilk or Matrix Sleek.Look. This is as much as I can think of now. If you do a search on heat protectants or browse past topics in other sections you should find a good amount of details.

heres a link on a past topic (hope it works)

http://talk.hairboutique.com/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=27441&KW=heat+protectant - http://talk.hairboutique.com/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=27441 &KW=heat+protectant

Do not use drugstore brand clarifying shampoos. They all have both types of carcinogens including Neutrogena. Sodium Lauryl sulfate and ammonium Lauryl sulfate. Not only are they cacinogens, but they also cause premature wrinkles. YES, wrinkles. so spend the extra $5 and stay young a little longer. A great clarifying shampoo is Paul Mitchell Shampoo Two. It is very light. Cleans really well without overdrying hair, and the scent is great. And at about $5 a bottle you can't go wrong. Trust me, if there is one type of shampoo you don't want to go with the cheap kind, is a clarifying one. As far as silicones go, do not get rid of your stuff. I have many products containing cones, and my hair does just fine. As long as you clarify at least once a month, or more if needed, you will be fine. The Redken Smooth Down line is great, specially the butter treat. It is my HG conditioner. Can not live without it.

Here is my hair regimen. It works great for me, and I have super curly, super frizzie dry hair. I shampoo with Redken smooth down shampoo (and PM shampoo two when I need to clarify). I use Smooth down butter treat as a conditioner. As a leave in treatment I use a dime size of Salerm 21 techniques  (the one in the squeeze tube) mixed with a little Sebastian potion 9. I come that through my hair, and then spray it with either Redken all soft addictive hair transformer or Redken Color extend total recharge (even though I don't color my hair, the stuff is great). I blow dry my hair with a ceramic turmaline hair dryer. Then I put in Redken heat glide and flat iron my hair. I do this twice a week, and my hair looks super straight and shiny, and stays that way even in the highest humidity. If you want it even straighter, separate the hair into sections and lightly mist each section right before you flat iron, with matrix iron smoothing spray. You do need to do alot of protein treatments to keep the hair healthy. Joico reconstructor, Redken deep fuel or Sebastian 2+1 are all exellent. Remember you need to deep condition after protein treatments. Otherwise your hair will feel like straw. I do a protein treatment at least once a month, but some people need to do it more.

I been following this regimen for a year, and my hair is healthy and beautifull. One thing though, regular trims are a must when flat ironing your hair. And you need a great flat iron. I use Sedu, and wouldn't change it for anything else.

As far as a heat protectant for ends, The Redken heat glide works great, or Salerm super activo (the heat glide is cheaper thought, and works just as well). They are both super concentrated and last for ever. I have been using the heat glide for about 7 months now, and I haven't used half the bottle yet. So the $14 is more than worth it. Your hair will be super shiny and soft, and protected from the heat.