Clarifying shampoo for curly dyed hair

[longtompot]

I've been having issues with my hair for ages. As I've gone full on into menopause my part wavy, part curly, part straight hair has been getting frizzier and matting more, especially at the back.

Now I may have not helped by dying it recently, firstly with a blonde dye (Clairol colour strong 10.0) that went too gingery, so used an honey blonde and then an ash blonde (Both Naturtint) All are ammonia free but have hydrogen peroxide in.

I have researched it a bit and it seems I may have product build up, causing the frizzing and matting, which can also stop products from working, something I've noticed with my usual curl cream not working. I've read that a clarifying shampoo might help with it but I'm not sure which one will actually help. The main one that I've seen recommended is Ouai, but then there's Only Curls, Curlsmith, Cornish seaweed, Noughty, Umberto Giannini ... just so many!
And going forward, should I use a sulphate free shampoo to stop the build up?

After washing my hair as usual yesterday morning, (used Palmers coconut shampoo and the clairol hair dye conditioner, Elvive extraordinary oil, and then some Palmers leave in spray conditioner and a small amount of Umberto Giannini curl mousse.) it felt so sticky and frizzy that by the evening I washed it again with Palmers shampoo and the same conditioner and serum but this time left out any styling products. It feels a bit better, but it is very frizzy, I almost look like Crystal Tips!

I've attached a photo with what it looked like before the second washing last night. It doesn't really get across how awful it felt though.

Since reaching a certain age my hair texture looks like yours. I use a leave in spray conditioner by Aussie and oil it afterwards (Moroccan). Then I use a dyson airwrap to curl it with the medium barrel, and it looks 100 % better! My hair looks purposefully styled and healthier. I had to give up the ghds as they were drying it out and making it worse.

Knock the products with coconut on the head. I’m a curly and when I started out used Palmers coconut. My hair did just the same. It likes their olive range though.

To clarify I use OGX apple cider vinegar shampoo then do a conditioning mask after. Mine loves Ziaja goats milk , about £6 off Amazon.

if I were you, I’d clarify, condition, leave some conditioner in then air dry. Don’t use oils as that can cause frizz and make sure you wet it for 5 minutes. Hope it helps , curls can be a nightmare!

@FlibbertyGibbitt so no serums? OGX apple cider vinegar was one that came up on my search and one I was considering. I also read that rice milk rinse can help as the hair is lacking in proteins, I wonder if the goats milk mask is a similar thing? I did read a few reviews saying coconut products were a nono for several peoples hair. Annoyingly I have just bought more of it 🙄

@GAJLY I air dry my hair and haven't straightened it for over 15 years. I'd rather not use any styling tools, but if it's what I need to do to calm this beast, then so be it!

My hair is like yours wavy/straight/curly its very annoying lol its relatively straight mid hair wavy near the scalp and literally have ringlets underneath, i use the Aussie range, currently using their oh my gloss shampoo and conditioner and it helps with the frizz but it feels heavy if that makes sense, so im now using a mixture of shampoo with Elvive hydra hyaluronic and then condition with Aussie oh my gloss it feels less heavy and still tackles most of the frizz xx

Yes to a rice water rinse, add conditioner to it. Mine loves protein and I use different products at different times times of the year as sometimes humidity can make it like candy floss.
I literally wash with palmers conditioner , rinse , condition with a hair mask, rinse then am using flora and curl gel.

sometimes you need to try either a curl cream, or a gel to see what suits.

i don’t often diffuse either, just air dry.

I use gruum shampoo bar
https://www.gruum.com/product/har-shampoo-bar-brightening-50g/

then Aussie Colour conditioner and then once I rinse it I put Only Curls hydrating curls cream in
https://onlycurls.com/products/only-curls-hydrating-curl-creme?variant=37918281891995

And the hair looks great! The curls are really nicely defined and soft.

But even without the Only Curls step, I still find that my hair looks really healthy and shiny with above shampoo and conditioner.

I air dry it only and then use just low heat hair dryer for couple of minutes when it's nearly dry as I have really thick hair.

Not RTFT.
used Palmers coconut shampoo and the clairol hair dye conditioner, Elvive extraordinary oil, and then some Palmers leave in spray conditioner and a small amount of Umberto Giannini curl mousse.

That is a lot of product. The Clairol hair dye conditioner is a conditioner for using after you put the dye in not for regular use. That's why it's not sold separately.
I think it has silicates in it.

I'd use a cheap greasy hair shampoo to wash out the build up.

There are sooo many options it’s so confusing.

I find that hair masques are really important to my curly menopausal hair.

I only wash mine every 4 or 5 days with hair masques/long condition but get it wet every day to style.

I do not brush it, only wide tooth comb it.

I use Aveda bond builder, sometimes with a bit of Aveda strengthening repair before hand. Then encourage it to set with some Ouai wave spray. I have to spritz some water on it sometimes when it dries and then a little more Ouai to perfect that.

I found that serums were making it worse and really drying. Aveda is expensive but it does the trick and I pre buy on discounts so i don’t have to pay full price!

My hairdresser added an Aveda oil to it, last time I was in for my DD hair cut, so otherwise my hair was done my way. That was lovely, but can’t quite bring myself to pay for something else!!

I do find that sulphate free shampoo does suit my hair better too.

I have been very tempted by the Cornish Seaweed range, but I previously bought into the Only Curls and was so disappointed by that, so am tainted for options that aren’t personally recommended.

I’m curly and the best thing that works for me is to use any mid range shampoo and conditioner and swap it every few months. I wash with a good clarifying shampoo once a week.

I recommend Bumble&Bumble Sunday Shampoo, followed by a hair mask or really good, rich conditioner.know it says it’s not for dyed hair, but once every 4 weeks my curls absolutely need it (mine are not bleached, but dyed chestnut colour) and with such a low frequency it hasn’t lifted the dye at all. And my hair feels great after use.

Box dyes are typically very drying, I did it once when I wanted to save the money for getting it done, but never again - my hair was pretty much like you described yours.

I think too, that you’re using an awful lot of products, I found that less is more. I tried almost all the well known curl lines, and for my (fine, but lots of it) hair Jessicurl works nicely. It can be hard to get though.

So does the budget Noughty range (apart from the conditioner, that’s useless to me.) Flora and Curl I like, but the gel tends to flake, the leave in is great.
My routine is shampoo, conditioner, some sort of leave in, and then just gel (absolutely best hold and definition and defrizz ever is Giovanny L.A. Natural Styling Gel! (Not to be confused with the Umberto Giannini range)), but as we all know every head of hair is different.

Good luck!

(edited for clarification on the gel)

Thank you all for your suggestions & advice. I really do appreciate it.

I didn't think I used a lot of products, especially after watching some curl videos, but maybe I do. I don't use the conditioner that comes with the box dye every time, maybe once a week/10 days, but as it was feeling so awful I thought it needed moisture. It wasn't until reading into it a bit I saw it could be too much moisture.

My usual hair routine is shampoo, conditioner, comb through & leave a few mins whilst I shower, rinse, serum to soaking wet hair, squeeze out excess, wrap in a towel (now using a large T-shirt) scrunch through curl cream (Frizz ease used to work, now just feels sticky) & leave to dry. I do this about twice a week.

The leave in conditioner is a new thing because of awful hair.

I usually use box dye, though not these two, & haven't had this happen before. But then again, I haven't dyed it three times in a row over about a two week period.

I think I'll give Umberto Giannini clarifying shampoo & conditioner a try and go from there. I may have to have my hair cut to shoulder length again to see if that helps. A bit sad about that as I've been trying to grow it long again.

Box dyes wreck my hair. I use the semi-permanent ones.
I don't get on with the leave-in conditioners, they make my hair feel greasy.

Normal routine is regular cheap shampoo, moisturising conditioner, curl cream or gel.

This week I have read more into hair than I ever have in my 50+ years. I think my issue is over processed hair rather than too much moisture or build up of product. I think dying with such a blonde dye then using two more dyes, though browner, still had hydrogen peroxide in, has taken its toll.
This week I have made an apple cider vinegar rinse to clarify, gone through all my products and put away anything with silicone or sls, bought some travel size Umberto Giannini curl jelly shampoo & conditioner, tried Garnier banana lamellar water as the only serum like product I could get in my supermarket delivery.
This morning it is the nicest it's felt for a while, though when I put the conditioner in it sort of seized up and was awful to try and comb that through. Interestingly it felt like it usually does when it has conditioner in after shampooing. I have bought some John Frieda sls silicone free shampoo for curly hair and the matching conditioner and their rice water strengthening water product, and after spraying a bit of Aussie leave in conditioner spray I've hair dried it and it feels quite nice.
I have booked a hair cut, going back to shoulder length again which I'm a bit sad about as I really wanted to grow it long and it's about bra strap length now. No point having damaged long hair, so I'd rather get it in good health again and try again next year

Curly menopausal hair here - have you tried co-washing? It's just "washing" your hair with conditioner, then conditioning it after as usual. I do this every second or third wash and it leaves my hair very soft and frizz free. I also find the really cheap conditioners work best, like Alberto Balsam which is only about £1. I tried the no silicone route and it didn't work for me. I also use a keratin leave in heat protection spray, with a tiny bit of frizz ease serum through the ends, and Tresemme Cleanse and something clarifying shampoo every other wash (again with AB conditioner). If I use anything too rich my hair just gets heavy and greasy. I've tried really expensive products but none have worked better than this. And I use a hot brush/styler every day but my hair is the best condition in years. I never leave it to air dry as I hate it!

@Tiggerwoods I have just tried co washing this week and so far it seems ok, though my hair almost feels sticky? But the curl is much more defined. I did end up having loads chopped off so it is feeling much better than when I created this post.
Are there any conditioners you'd recommend for co washing. I've used John Frieda curl defining conditioner and Garnier big brown tub of hair conditioner /mask/leave in

Sorry, just reread your post and see you have recommended some already. I have some Herbal Essences chamomile conditioner so will try that next. I did read there are specific co washing conditioners and also in your usual conditioner there are a few products which cleanse as well