Salon shampoos, biotin shampoos, or any other haircare product, it’s important to understand how salon shampoos work to keep your hair clean and healthy.
Shampoos are primarily made up of cleansers called surfactants. These surfactants remove dirt, sebum, and build-up from the hair and scalp, and rinse off easily and completely. But how do surfactants do their magic?
Surfactant molecules are hydrophobic, or water-hating, on one end, and hydrophilic, or water-loving, on the other. This way, as each molecule is introduced to the hair shaft, the hydrophobic end adheres to pollutants, pulling them from the hair. Then, when the hair is rinsed, the hydrophilic end gravitates to the passing water, taking the pollutants with it and down the drain. Remember, thorough rinsing is critical to the successful outcome of the cleansing action.
Buying the right shampoo is easy. It
How a shampoo cleans your hair is what makes you fall in love with it or wish you’d never purchased it. Some shampoos are aggressive and not only sweep away dirt, but also your hair’s protective sebum-in fact, some are so aggressive that they can damage your hair’s cuticle layer. Others contain high doses of moisturizer- too much, perhaps, for your hair. To help you find a shampoo that works for your hair type, many manufacturers creates formulas for specific hair types.
Daily or normal shampoos are middle-of the road shampoos with a balance of cleaning and moisturizing properties. Moisturizing shampoos contains less detergent than other shampoos. They also boast a generous dose of conditioners to attract and retain moisture, making them ideal for dry, damaged, permed, or colour-treated hair.
Deep cleansing or oily hair shampoo contain a concentrated dose of detergents to remove impurities and oils. These often rough up the cuticle, for this reason, only the oiliest of the oily among you should use these-experiments first with normal hair shampoos. If they don’t leave your hair as clean as you’d like it, then try an oily hair formula. Speciality formulas include shampoos to add body to limp hair, make grey hair sparkle, or coddle coloured strands. Read the rest of this entry »
How a shampoo cleans your hair is what makes you fall in love with it or wish you’d never purchased it. Some shampoos are aggressive and not only sweep away dirt, but also your hair’s protective sebum-in fact, some are so aggressive that they can damage your hair’s cuticle layer. Others contain high doses of moisturizer- too much, perhaps, for your hair. To help you find a shampoo that works for your hair type, many manufacturers creates formulas for specific hair types.Daily or normal shampoos are middle-of the road shampoos with a balance of cleaning and moisturizing properties. Moisturizing shampoos contains less detergent than other shampoos. They also boast a generous dose of conditioners to attract and retain moisture, making them ideal for dry, damaged, permed, or colour-treated hair. Read the rest of this entry »
I have tried every salon shampoo around, as well as all of the chemist and supermarket brands, and as much as I hate to admit this, the salon. Formulas are generally better than the mass-market versions. After doing some research, I think I know why this is: to keep prices down, mass-market shampoos use cheap ingredients, which are usually harsh and lack the finesse of high-quality, ones. For example, I have yet to find a mass-market shampoo that doesn’t use harsh surfactants-usually sodium lauryl sulphate, but sometimes sodium layreth sulphate or ammonium laurel sulphate. One of these detergents is usually the first or second ingredient listed, meaning there is a high concentration of the ingredient. Salon products, on the other hand, are more likely to use gentle, more expensive detergents, such as sodium cocoyl isetheoinate, methyl cocoyl taurate, cocamidopropyl betaine, or cocamidopropylamine oxide. Many salon products also bury detergent in the middle of the ingredient list, meaning the shampoo isn’t as harsh and is less likely to strip hair of natural oils and cuticle bits.
Yet not everyone wants to spend too much on something that will be on their hair only a few seconds. To “healthy up” a mass-market shampoo, dilute it (try one part water to two parts shampoo) or use the recipe below to make it a bit less harsh, and a bit more conditioning.
If you’re on a limited budget, go ahead and buy a cheaper shampoo and reserve the rest of your hairdo cash for a top-of-the-range conditioner-a product that can make a huge difference to how your tresses behave.
Semi-home- made shampoo
• 2 teaspoon almond, sesame, avocado, or macadamia nut oil
• 1 tablespoon coconut milk or cow’s milk
• ¼ cup shampoo of choice (you can also use an equal amount of liquid castile soap
Combine ingredients in a bowl and whisk for 2 or 3 minutes, or add the ingredients to a blender and mix on low for 25 seconds. To use, wet hair and massage appropriate amount of the mixture into your roots. Rinse well. If desired, follow with your favorite conditioner. This makes enough for two shampoos. The remaining portion can be covered and refrigerated for up to 2 days.
