Nightmare combination hair - greasy roots and dry, fluffy ends. Please help!

[MingoLikeMe]

Hi everyone,

Really hoping that the S&B gurus can help. I have collarbone-length hair which is naturally wavy. It gets greasy so quickly at the roots, literally a day after washing, sometimes less. It's actually worse underneath, so it looks gross if I try to wear it up - I thought you were supposed to be able to wear your hair up nearer to 'washing day', but I seem to be the other way around The rest of my hair sticks out in a fluffy triangle, like Hermione Granger (but definitely Book Hermione and not glossy Emma Watson )

I've tried soooo many products and tricks to try and tame it. Sulfate-free shampoos (OGX and Body Shop), curly girl, Tresemme clarifying shampoo, water softener on the shower, drying hair upside-down, not going to bed with damp hair, washing every day, washing twice a week...

One thing that's helped has been getting a proper brush, with a combination of synthetic and boar bristles, and getting the ends trimmed a bit where they were super dry and splitting. There are nice things about my hair - it's thick and I like the colour - but I'm definitely not getting the most out of it. I'd love it to be shiny and wavy and swishy, and to stay bloody clean just a bit longer

I'm thinking I might need to go for a higher-end/more intensive sort of product? Or maybe a medicated/pharmacy one for my nightmare scalp?

So far I've found the following suggestions:

• Neutrogena T-Gel once or twice a week, plus Dr Organic Charcoal purifying shampoo
• Hask Charcoal purifying shampoo
• Bumble and Bumble Invisible Oil or Sunday
• Philip Kingsley Moisture Balancing - I noticed that one of the main ingredients is SLS, so not sure whether this is worth it? People seem to rave about it though, so I'm willing to give it a go!
• Kerastase Specifique Bain Divalent - this one had more mixed reviews, but open to trying it

Can anyone help, or share what has worked for you? I'm totally at the end of my tether with my mop!

Op, what time of day do you actually wash your hair? If I wash mine at night, it looks pretty meh by the following afternoon. If I wash it in the morning, it looks fine all day. It’s the sleeping on it that makes a difference. My dh usually washes it in the evening as his job is a dirty one, and his looks pretty greasy by the following evening, but when he’s off work he showers in the morning and his hair looks so much nicer.

I use Umberto Gianni Glow Scrub once a week and it has made a massive difference to my oily roots, I get an extra day or two between washing now

When you wash your hair, shampoo on the roots, just rinse thoroughly letting the suds flow over the roots & when you condition do the lengths & ends, avoid the roots. This may sound daft but the less you can wash your hair, the less greasy your hair will become, it may be hell for the first 2 or 3 weeks but then it will improve. You can give it a blast of dry shampoo round your roots if it feels too greasy but eventually you won't need to. Use a light serum on the ends & always use heat protector before using straighteners. Don't wash your hair just before you go to bed, try to do it at least a couple of hours before so your hair can cool down & settle.

Hi OP, I had the very same issue and it turns out my hair washing was the problem! My hair dresser said 20p size of shampoo rubbed between hands, first wash was to wash away dirt, second wash was to clean hair. He also said when you think your hair is rinsed, rinse again for 2 minutes! He said people never spend enough time rinsing! He also suggested rinsing hair in sections, lifting the hair up so the water can get to the scalp, hope that helps and makes sense!

@Knotty10 hi knotty. So I have a few I love. Note this is for the U.K. as US formulations can differ even for the same brands.

Here goes.

Tresemme Keratin Smooth. Shampoo and conditioner. Can’t go wrong. Has to be keratin smooth tho. I don’t like all Tres products and indeed find their sulphate free shampoos awful.

Tigi Totally Beachin’. Shampoo and conditioner. This is a heavier conditioner. More silicone. So makes hair super silky and flat.

Dove Advanced Hair Series Oxygen Moisture for volume. This is a lighter weight silicone conditioner. So a bit like Totally Beachin’ but less silky and more volume.

More expensive - Living Proof perfect hair day. Now this IS a sulphate free that actually works for me. The best sulphate free out there IMO.

Oribe Goldlust. Expensive but gorgeous fragrance.

OGX makes my hair greasy at the roots and straw at the ends. Olaplex is over rated IMO. Not really stand out.

These clearly are all IMO but hope that helps. X

We have similar hair and I would suggest focusing on the basics first rather than throwing money at it. I don't find shampoo makes any particular difference really and I've tried so many (albeit some are nicer than others of course).

What does make a difference for me is proper thorough shampooing with a silicone scalp massage brush (a few pounds on amazon), focusing on the roots and mid lengths and no 'rubbing in' on the tips. As others have suggested, rinse rinse rinse. Condition the very ends only, or apply a serum (frizz ease etc) to the ends before blow drying.

If you're after a smooth finish and want to stick with rough drying. I'd blow dry upside down and hold the lengths so they aren't flying around, then when 80% dry use a paddle brush to smooth with the hairdryer.

Keep up with trimming and avoid short layers. If you're in a hard water area (like me) I find a once weekly wash with Area H20 shampoo works superbly, and the rest of the time I use faith in nature rose shampoo, which also keeps the grease away for me.

@dontgobaconmyheart good tips there. Have to say tho that shampoos are all completely different and there is definitely a different feel depending on the surfactant chassis used and then the science that is put in them. I do think tho that some of the cheaper ones are as good if not better than the more expensive ones.

@Blessex thank you so much- that’s so helpful and I’ve made myself a shopping list

I'm really sorry for not checking back sooner. Thank you all so much for your brilliant replies - what a great thread! So many helpful suggestions @Knotty10 I've made a shopping list too!

Loreal Clay is a good suggestion too, thank you! I remember using it a few years ago and I think I stopped because of the SLS thing - how misguided I was!

@BoofyBoo, thank you for the Kerastase recommendation! I keep reading mixed reviews of it, so I'll try and look out for some sample/travel sized versions to give it a little try.

@Soontobe60 I'm definitely guilty of washing it last thing at night I'll switch to mornings to see if that makes a difference!

@nat6999 and @galwaygirl thank you for your tips! And @Blessex thank you for your amazing product knowledge

@dontgobaconmyheart I do have one of those silicone brushes, I must make more of an effort to use it. I think it's a Lee Stafford one and the 'bristles' are quite hard, I wonder if a softer one would be better?

Sorry if I've missed anyone!

I'm about to browse through and compile a list too.
Thanks.

Try rinsing once per week with diluted apple cider vinegar, on dry hair before your usual shampoo - I use 100ml account diluted with 400ml of water. I use silicone-containing shampoo but doing this removes the build up and greasy roots that I get otherwise, and leaves my hair soft and shiny. It’s very cheap too.

acv not account - autocorrect!

My hair is exactly like yours op, I use loreal clay shampoo and dream lengths conditioner - I only shampoo my scalp and condition the length.

Dry with a t shirt or cotton hair towel. Use heat as little as possible. Use any leave in product on the ends