Please tell me what CO does for you, what conditioner(s) you use, your hair type, and how often you CO.

My roots get oily often, and I read that CO helps decrease oiliness.

I'd like to know who it works for.

Thanks! :D

Please tell me what CO does for you, what conditioner(s) you use, your hair type, and how often you CO.

My roots get oily often, and I read that CO helps decrease oiliness.

I'd like to know who it works for.

Thanks! :D

I love C/O - have been doing it for well over a year now. Makes my hair fluffy, soft, and sooo moisturized. I use Schauma Energie Spuelung (Schauma is a cheap German drugstore line by Schwarzkopf - the "Energie" version is for fine, limp hair). See detailed routine on my HP.
My hair type is 1cFi, I C/O wash twice a week, shampoo only every one to two months.

Hi Amanda,

My hair is very fine and pretty straight. When I air dry (always nowdays) I sometimes have slight wave, when I blow dry (never nowdays) my hair is straight as a stick.

I've been exclusively CO washing for more than two years now, and my hair and scalp are doing great! Twice a week is my washing schedule, and that seems to work fine.

White Rain Energizing Citrus (78 cents for a 20 ounce bottle at Wal-Mart) is my favorite. Just for fun I try others too, but I always come back to the Energizing Citrus. Whatever you use needs to be a light conditioner, not a heavy duty one.

If you decide to try it, just remember to use a good handful, and WASH with it thoroughly, don't treat it as conditioner. IE, don't just let it sit on your hair, then rinse it out. Use your fingers to agitate well. After washing this way for a while, you will find that the conditioner actually lathers up pretty well.

Most of the ladies on the list seem to use more conditioner afterwards, as you would a regular rinse out conditioner. I don't quite see the point. My hair has just soaked in and then been washed with conditioner, so I see no reason to use any more. IF my hair is tangly, I spray on a little distilled water with jojoba (I keep a mister full of 8 ounces of water with about 4-6 drops of jojoba shaken in). That seems like enough to me.

It's really worth at least a try. I tried it as an experiment, but I liked it so much that I gave my husband all my shampoos, and have never used anything but conditioner since. I know that many of the ladies use shampoo once in a while, but I don't seem to need it. Give it a shot! You'll probably love it. :)

Deborah

I have to admit, I may not have given CO a fair trial, but the few times I've used it I have been disappointed. Once my hair was clearly not clean; another time it was too dry! I've been thinking of trying again with a different conditioner. Also as I've read journals, I realize it can take a while for hair and scalp to adjust to it.

Blessings,
Carla

1aFii
Medium Brown with Silver Streaks

I CO wash occasionally and always follow with an ACV. Mostly I shampoo every other day. I just use CO to "stretch" between shampoos.

I'm a fine straightie too. Like Carla, maybe I haven't given it enough of a chance to work for me, but I wasn't pleased the handful of times I've tried it. But I also didn't use the recommended and board-proven conditioners (can't find White Rain here anywhere).

My hair started out feeling fine, but several hours after it dried, my crown and behind my ears would feel like I hadn't washed in days.

I've recently switched to the CWC method and that works really well for me. My hair has been really healthy looking lately.

I have fine, thick, straight blonde hair and I tried CO using a light, non-cone conditioner but still hated it. It darkened my blonde hair significantly (I literally gasped at my pretty blonde after using real shampoo for the first time again) and I also had to wash every single day - with shampoo, I only wash every other or maybe only every third day... No, not for me.

I have very fine, thin hair and CO wash only makes me happy part of the time. It's never worked "well" enough for me to use it all the time, but I do like the gentleness factor. It always makes me feel like my hair looks even flatter & thinner than normal, though.

I have fine, straight hair and I :love: CO washing. You can check out my hair journal http://forums.longhaircommunity.com/viewtopic.php?t=4952 for particulars.

I tend to alternate a lot but I always come back to White Rain Extra Body Conditioner. Most CO washers here swear by it.

If you decide to give CO washing a spin, you will have to "train" your hair. It took me a few weeks. Rinsing is the key, though, along with using A LOT of conditioner.

My hair type is in my signature. Good luck!

i tried it for a couple of weeks using v05 clarifying conditioner (kiwi lime squeeze or something)

it was ok, but it made my hair feel coated and limp. i've also noticed that using some conditioners on my scalp makes it itch more than normal, even when doing a normal shampoo/condition routine.

Mind you I don't have very much hair, but so far I'm very impressed with CO washing. I've been doing it every day for a few days now. I use Whole Foods brand Chamomile conditioner ($2).

I normally have very itchy scalp and I've noticed a difference.

~Amanda :D

I've tried CO washing just once, using Pantene, and though I was pleased at how it 'stretched' the time between shampoos (to borrow scarlett's phrase!) I wasn't overly thrilled with it. My hair became very flat and limp, and quite dull, though it was very manageable... I guess you could say that I'm ambivalent about CO at the moment, but I might try it again if I get an experimental urge later on. :)

Jules xx

Jules, just a suggestion if you try again. I'm probably biased because my hair doesn't like cones, but try something like White Rain Extra Body (or something comparable that's available in Sydney) rather than Pantene. If I used Pantene for a CO, my hair would be flat as a pancake two minutes out of the shower...

I have tried off and on... but, in general, it makes my scalp itch and my shedding increase. I think that I really need a clean non-coated scalp.

So, C-W-C works best for me. I have used Giovanni Smooth As Silk (best results), but flat over time... and the White Rain Extra Body (itch!). I may try later with another conditioner. :D

Nope! I preffer the CWC. I can imagine I will try CO only washes sometime in the future, but now CWC works for me. My hair just looked like it hadent been washed, mayne it was the conditioner though :/

My hair and scalp haven't liked it when I've tried in the past. Either flat, limp, greasy hair; itchy, coated scalp or dry, tangly strands. Maybe I haven't found the right conditioner? I'm leaning towards that it's not for me.

/Fia

i tried it but my hair was so limp and by the end of the day was greasy :uhh: i like shampoo!!! :rockerdud

Tried it this weekend, Yuck my hair was so gross feeling and looking. I tried to wash it out with shampoo last night and it's still greasy! I don't think CO is for me.

Oh yeah I used Suave coconut

My hair loved CO, but my scalp hated it, so...

i've tried it a few times, and found that no matter which conditioner i used, my hair would get buildup (even with ACV) and feel lank. i also found my scalp was more greasy after a day and it itched badly when i cycled. i'm much better off with diluted mild shampoo!

1bF hair mostly, some days "1c", some "N's". Still experimenting to find the best brands of conditioner for CO, but I love it. Have gone from needing to wash every day but stretching it to two so I didn't strip hair constantly (shampoo, no condish) to every 3 to 4 days (sometimes longer, but so far it really needs it by day four) with CO. By day 4 the oil production is kind of ramped up, but no worse that it used to be on day 2 with shampoo, sometimes better. A twist or bun hides the greasies, and I've quickly come to appreciate the extra day of natural oil production (I BBB the night before CO to distribute sebum).

So far, VO5 Kiwi Lime Squeeze is my favorite, but I've only tried three. The other two, VO5 Extra Body and White Rain Extra Body, are I think a little bit too drying for my ends - as I said, still experimenting. Will want to rotate product anyway, so will be trying a couple more soon. Suave Naturals Milk & Honey is already waiting on my shelf :grin:

Wet hair copiously with warmish water, massage in one deep handful of condish at a time starting at top of head, working around hairline, making sure all the scalp is well-covered and finally working through length with fingers. I end up using 3-4 good handfuls.
Massage scalp again, adding a little water as feels is needed.
Cover with shower cap, do rest of showerly duties.
Remove shower cap and rinse-rinse-rinse-rinse-rinse, work it out with fingers, paying particular attention to hairline behind the ears and at neck, and back of scalp.
ACV rinse in cool water.

Cleanest my head and hair's ever been with this little irritation, I swear.

I CO occasionally, like today. Makes my hair feel great, but it does get flatter, sooner in the day than if I washed with shampoo. I use about 3-4 handfulls of conditioner, add a little more water, wash, rinse really really well and that's it. I see no point in adding more conditioner.

Hair type 1aFii. Been using Suave Clarifying conditioner, seems to be on a par with White Rain Extra Body. I never would have thought that conditioner could clean your hair, but it can.

I tried it, but didn't like it because even right after I COd it, it looked very oily and stringy. Maybe I am just a creature of habit... but it was "yuck"...

-VanillaTresses

Nope! I preffer the CWC. I can imagine I will try CO only washes sometime in the future, but now CWC works for me. My hair just looked like it hadent been washed, mayne it was the conditioner though :/


Me too!! I tried the CO but my hair hated it. So I CWC usually everyday. Or I wash and condition one day and condition only the next...depends on my time limit in the morning. But my hair is happy for it!
:flower:

I chose tried it and didn't like it because it left my hair greasy. I haven't found any conditioners that clean my hair well enough to use alone. Does anyone have any conditioner suggestions? My hair gets greasy fast and I CWC every day. The closest I can get to CO is rinsing w/ my ACV+rosemary and washing w/ an egg and honey.

I tried it, but my scalp itched so badly that I had to go and wash it as soon as I could. I'm not sure if it would differ if I stayed at it longer, but I know that I wouldn't want to have such an itchy scalp again!

Natchen13

I suppose I haven't given it a fair trial, but the few times I did it my hair seemed clean at first, but within a few hours it was greasy. I have an oily scalp anyway, but can wash every other day with a gentle shampoo. With CO it would have to be every day.

Also, my hair is already so soft, I don't need to make it any softer.

Oversurf said;
...I use about 3-4 handfulls of conditioner...

Correction - I use 1-2 handfulls of conditioner, not 3-4. Must have applied metric conversion :-)

I tried CO only for awhile but was such a greaseball I didn't keep up with it. I've heard the adjustment takes awhile but I didn't like being greasy the same day that I washed. Now I CO alternating with CWC washes. If my hair isnt really allthat oily I'll CO.If its gross and oil encrusted I CWC. You really have to scrub the conditioner into your hair. So I wonder if the extra manipulation in scrubbing theconditoner in is just as harmful as too strong or too much shampoo. CO has it's place with me but I woulndt do it exclusively. I
msure CO only works great for some. THere have been some great testimonials to it.

Hi there!
This is great to see not only what everyone thinks, but it is good to see what people with simmilar hair types do, and have had a success with!
I tried my first CO two days ago, and I used Suave Milk and Honey conditioner (no cones). This is a first for me, since I am definately a usual "cones" gal. I still am not sure how I felt about it. I have extremely oily hair. I am still at the point where I am in awe of anyone who can go 2 or (gasp) 3 days between washes. While reading other replies, it struck me that maybe I had used a tad too much conditioner, or left it on too long. I enjoyed the feel...it was very different, but I had gotten the greasies again by the next day. So, instead of waiting it out, I went back to my basic Shampoo and Condition routine. I think I might chance it again, but be quicker to rinse, and see how it goes. I also might do an ACV rinse before, so that some of the possible build up goes away. I guess that's part of the journey, and finding out what your hair really likes... and then I might just be one of the unlucky ones doomed to daily washes.. :) Thanks for letting me vent! :)

Love, Blessings, and all good! ::love:
~Jackie

I know what you mean. I have had a very oily scalp since I was a teenager (I'm 44 now). So sick of it!!! I'm afraid I inherited it from my Dad, who still has it at almost 80. No hope of it going away as I get older, I guess.

I refuse to wash my hair every day anymore, so I do it every other day. It is a little oily by the 2nd day, but washing every day is too hard on my scalp. It is better if I use a gentle shampoo. The times I have tried CO it was worse than ever.

Lisa

I tried it but didn't like it, my dandruff got worse and I couldn't go very long before my hair got too oily.

Something in the cheap white rain and Suave conditioners makes my scalp itch, and the heavy waxes in them makes my scalp feel really coated and clogged. I didn't try CO with other conditioners bc (1) better conditioners usually don't work well for CO (2) other conditioners would be too expensive. Shampoo works fine for me. I also hate using conditioner even after shampooing bc it feels so icky, and often use diluted spray leave-in instead of standard conditioner.

"tried it, didn't like it"

1a F ii here, tried Suave Aloe Vera, VO5 Tangerine Tickle and VO5 Kiwi Lime. The last "cleaned" the best of the three, the Tangerine was too 'heavy' for CO for my hair. I have a very oily scalp.

Didn't like it because my scalp itched more, I got flakes (never had them before--just when COing), and the length got overconditioned and limp. Did not get unbearably greasy, just very weighed down--even without extra conditioning on the length. The ends were nice/soft, but it was too much for the rest, especially my scalp.

Probably will not try again. If my hair just got greasy faster I might have, but the itchies/flakes/overconditioned is just too much.

I tried it with White Rain, and I found my hair just gets too oily if I don't use shampoo everyday. I also get an itchy scalp.

The length of my hair loves to be CO-ed. But my scalp breaks out from it. Also, my crown gets greasy by the next day. I think a few people said that it took about a month for their scalp oil production to adjust to the new rutine, but in view of my breakouts (wich lead to increased shedding), I couldn't wait that long. The only conditioner that hasn't given me these problems is Jason's Thin To Thick conditioner. But it's too expensive as a CO.
~Slava

I have tried it with dissapointment I must say. I found that my hair did not feel particularily clean, sure it was silky, but it just didnt feel right after couple of weeks, so I opted back to my regular process. I find that using CO works well when used as a 'every second wash', inbetween shampoo. That way you get the best of both worlds...

I am still experiementing with conditioners for CO but I really like it. For my birthday not that long ago, after I started experimenting with CO, i CWCed making sure I washed well because I knew I'd be at work all day and then was going to dinner with my family. By late afternoon my scalp was greasy. LATE AFTERNOON! It was then that I finally put two and two together and realized that when I wash my scalp steps up the oil production. As a child I never washed my hair more often than every other day, and the hair didn't suffer. Of course, by the time I was a teenager I started showering every day and with the shower I naturally started washing my hair daily as well. Since I've been in college I've gone back to washing between 3 and 6 days a week, but pulled back on the daily (sometimes twice daily) shower and WC. (Hadn't discovered CWC yet.) Long story short, I now CWC every third or fourth day and in between I either let the sebum build up or CO. I can't CO more than four days in a row without my hair getting too weighed down, at this point, but every four day run I'm less and less greasy on that fourth day. The bottom line is that I think I'm training my scalp to trust that I'm not going to go back to stripping it daily, even if i do CWC every once in a while. And the days I do wash now... my hair is WONDERFUL. The frequent conditioner soaks have improved the quality of my hair overall and I really like it. On cold dry days when my hair feels like its been abused by the weather, sometimes I even CO with a moisturizing conditioner - though often I save that for when I know I'll be using some 'poo within the next two days.

I tried COing in between CWC washes for a couple of weeks. It really worked okay ... I can't say I was itchy or my hair didn't behave, or anything like that. I finally realized, however, that I wasn't enjoying my hair on those days. I absolutely love the feeling and smell of my hair after CWC and on the CO days, it was just okay.
For me, it is just the pleasure I guess. I like using shampoo, even if I do modify it with conditioner.
I have been using Chagrin Valley shampoo bars this week and am really loving them too! :smile:

I absolutely love the feeling and smell of my hair after CWC and on the CO days, it was just okay.

AAAAH! Another smellie! :waving: I'm on day 5 of CO with White Rain Extra Body, CO'ing every day. So far it's OK, perhaps a little limp but very untangled... but I miss 'my' smell.

I tried it for a month but gave up on it because it started itching and got flaky. I prefer CWC, but no conditioner on scalp though, only the poo. I don't think I will try it again actually because I love CWC way too much :grin:

Nice sig pic, Alva!

Nice sig pic, Alva!

Thanks Esme! :flowers:

My hair is fine/medium and it tends to get over-conditioned easily, so CO washing hasn't worked that well for me. I remember when I was doing it, my ends felt tangly and coated (which I thought meant I need more conditioner). Now I find that a little shampoo every other day on my scalp and a little lathered on on my ends really helps, my hair absorbs my BWC leave in better and it feels softer/less tangly.

My hair was limp and lifeless with CO was. :( I was disappointed in my hair's reaction. I had really wanted this to work. I find good success with CWC instead :)

My hair is fine and straight. I tried the CO but I don't think I tried it for long enough to give a fair opinion. My hair felt greasy right away and looked more limp. I didn't notice my scalp itching though. I prefer to wash with both shampoo and conditioner about every 2-3 days. Depending on how my hair feels though I might just wash with water alone, or just a little bit of conditioner to help comb it out afterwords. I guess I am just addicted to the silky clean feel I get after using shampoo.

CO-ing made my hair just lay there. It was clean, but it didn't feel happy, and it would cling to my scalp. My ends also felt dry and crunchy.