Sulfate free shampoo, where am I going wrong?!

[TheChild]

I have fairly thick, long hair that if left to it's own devices is wavy and quite frizzy. This is the second time now I have tried sulfate and paraben free shampoo as I know it's meant to be a lot better for your hair but no matter how many brands I try I always feel like my hair is never truly clean.

I usually wash it every other day, by day 2 my hair is greasy but I can't be dealing with washing everyday so use dry shampoo, but when using sulfate free shampoo when I then dry my hair it still looks and feels greasy and I have to use dry shampoo straight away for it to look nice.

I know sulfate free shampoos don't foam up like regular shampoos but I put my usual amount on and then have to go back for more because it just doesn't get all my hair.

Is this usual? Is it the brand I'm using? I'm currently using Palmers which does actually foam up quite nicely but still leaves my hair looking greasy.

Shall I just go back to normal shampoo?

Have you tried training your hair to wash it once a week?
I used to get really oily hair and quite bad build up if I used the same shampoo for too long
Now I wash it once every 10 days ( had to put it in one of those donut rings from the 3rd day onwards for a couple of months) and it’s much more manageable, clearer and just looks better generally
I think overwashing is a massive problem

Oh and, wash it twice when you do get around to giving it a scrub ( seems weird when I’ve said over washing is a problem ahahah)

@lilikiki

Have you tried training your hair to wash it once a week? I used to get really oily hair and quite bad build up if I used the same shampoo for too long Now I wash it once every 10 days ( had to put it in one of those donut rings from the 3rd day onwards for a couple of months) and it’s much more manageable, clearer and just looks better generally I think overwashing is a massive problem

Oh and, wash it twice when you do get around to giving it a scrub ( seems weird when I’ve said over washing is a problem ahahah)

I've thought about it but I'm not sure I could go a week with it, I imagine it would look terrible and I wouldn't want to go to work if it did look really bad! Was your hair quite greasy before you stopped washing it as much? I know stopping using heat would help the frizz massively but it genuinely looks awful if I leave it to dry naturally.

Just use the stuff that makes your hair feel and look nice

Hi child

I use moogoo shampoo, seems to work for me. I have very straight short hair and i use wax product every day

I also get a bit of eczema on my scalp and since using it ive not had any scalp problems

Hi, are you using conditioner that contains silicone? A sulphate free shampoo won't be able to clear the build up if you are - hence the build up / grease. I've used palmers for about 11 years and when I first started I wasn't excluding silicones and had the same issues. You'll need to do a cleanse with a sulphate shampoo to clear any build up

Yep!
But it also looked terrible tbe day after I washed it (pre-training) so even if I did go a day or 2 without washing I’d look like a hobo so had to keep using products, blow drys, dry shampoo or just wash it continuously because putting it up made it look lank

I basically just washed it (twice) on wash day, put it up in a pony tail the second day and a higher pony tail the third day
Form that onwards I used a donut ring and just kept that until the end of the week. The first couple of weeks i wanted to give up because I looked truly horrid but actually by the third week I started getting compliments on my hair? It was actually odd; initially I thought it’s because I’d be manky for so long people were happy to see me with clean hair but evidently not. But now my hair isn’t greasy until maybe the 5th day, and it looks so much better.

It’s been so worth it
My hair just sits better as well. Without drying or anything it’s just, nicer overall?

When I worked My hair got washed every two days as it needed it . Since I stopped work it gets done every 6 days and although it really needs it by then it looks good for several days. I also find alternating shampoos helps

I have the most ridiculous thick frizzy, curly, wire brush style hair.
I've just started using Umberto Giannini shampoo and conditioner.
That's sulphate free. I wash my hair twice, once it doesn't lather and is really annoying, rinse and re apply shampoo and it lathers nicely.

I haven't washed it for nearly 3 days and it still looks and smells clean (although it will be getting washed later)

Lather up the shampoo into a foam your hands before applying, or dilute it with some water and in either a foaming bottle or just another bottle and shake up to create bubbles.

I'd go back to your normal shampoo (as long as it isn't too harsh) and as @lilikiki suggests train your hair to be washed less. I know its painful but it does seem to make a huge difference to the frizz. My hair was incredibly greasy at the roots and frizzy at the ends and I decided to try this over lockdown and have now managed to get it down to washing it once a week- it really has transformed my hair. When you do wash skip the conditioner and just put a really moisturising mask through the ends of your hair. I use a colour tinted dry shampoo on the roots and a serum or leave in conditioner through the ends every day. When my hair was really frizzy I'd replace the leave in conditioner with a tiny dab of a pre-wash treatment, something like Olaplex or Philip Kinsley Elasticizer- it calmed the frizz really well and I figured my hair was getting a mini dose of a hair treatment everyday until I washed it. I also still wash my fringe every day, I've got quite a blunt fringe and it just looks greasy and rubbish if its not washed and dried flat every day but the rest of it I can get away with. Whilst I was 'training' my hair to be washed less I found it really helped to just wash a small section at the very front of hair when it got really unbearable, about a cm section above the ear to the crown. Also if you hair is long keep it tied up whilst your training it- it seems to get less greasy that way, and the grease is definitely less noticeable, which is really useful whilst your hair is adjusting. HTH!

Shea moisture do a sulphate free clarifying shampoo. Try that once a week. The Shea moisture range is really good IMO.

These products are amazing.

Yes, I know it is a pet website but they also make products for humans.

I can't recommend this shampoo (and matching conditioner) enough. My hair is clean, bouncy, soft and shiny. They are no synthetic ingredients as well and it smells divine.

herbalpetsupplies.co.uk/product/hhh-shampoo-copy/#reviews

curlygirlmethod.club/collections/curly-girl-starter-kits

You need to follow this method..

I like Maui shampoos, usually the blue one. My hair feels clean after it. I used the palmers one for a bit but I agree it doesn’t feel all that clean afterwards.

I wash my hair every night, and use a sulphate ‘squeaky clean’ type shampoo occasionally to get rid of any silicone build up as I use some styling products with silicone in.

My experience matches the OP's, the sulfate free stuff is just crap!! I've gone back to using kerastase and my hair looks loads better

Redken Curvaceous Curls is my favourite, I always go back to it. It’s the only one that doesn’t make me itch.