silicone free

Since I quit the shampoo and went silicone free a few months back, I've been enjoying well defined curls and hair that feels truly moisturised and healthy. The past few days have involved a lot of arrangements, running around, and not enough time for air drying - my hair takes 4 to 5 hours to fully dry, and I've just not been able to find it this week. So I broke out my hair dryer and prepared to do battle.

Ordinarily, blow drying my hair takes about 45 minutes, by which stage I've usually given up attempting to get it sleek, and settled for roughly straightish hair (with a LOT of body) and very achey arms. This time, though, I found that my hair was a lot less puffy after blow drying, and it only took me 20 minutes or so to get it into a vaguely sleek state. All this, with just a small amount of Naked silicone free serum. This is a definite improvement, and a very unexpected bonus.

When I gave up using silicone, I resigned myself to not using serum again, as most formulations are very silicone heavy. However, I discovered that Naked Bodycare make two serums, both silicone free - Frizz Fighter, and Extra Shiny. I picked up both, and today I'm reviewing the Frizz Fighter variety.

The most stand out feature of this product is the consistency. Silicone based serums are smooth, silky, and fluid. This one, however, is sort of like a soft, non-sticky gel. It comes out of the bottle in blobs, not in a little puddle of serum like I'm used to, but once it's been spread out it feels much like a silicone serum, albeit one with less slip.

I apply this to my wet hair, along the mid-lengths and ends. A small amount goes a long way - although I don't think it would be particularly easy to overdose on this, as it is quite light textured and absorbable - if you spread a bit on the back of your hand, it's absorbed into the skin quite quickly.

I don't think that this has a huge effect on frizz when applied to wet hair - while it certainly lubricates the hair and adds some moisture, the effect on frizz is fairly minimal. Applying a small amount to dry hair smoothes down any flyaways and imparts a bit more moisture, with pretty much the same effect as with the Extra Shiny serum.

For me, this isn't a HG product - it's nice, and if you're looking for a very light, non-oily serum, or looking for a bit more moisture post-wash, then it might be a good buy. Don't go expecting a major decrease in frizz though.

If you'd like to try this one for yourself, you can get it for £4.99 for 50ml from Boots or from Naked's website.

Last week, I mentioned that coconut scented things are a great love of mine, and indeed, this week I'm bringing you a review of yet another coconut scented conditioner. Sorry about that, I'm weak willed.

I'd heard good things about Inecto's Coconut Oil conditioner; many of these things centred around the fact that it's rather cheap (about £2 for 500ml), silicone free, and effective. And it is pretty effective - in a light, non-heavy kind of way. In the form of a fairly thin cream, this conditioner has a lot of slip to it, and is easy to distribute through the hair. However, I needed rather a lot of it to adequately coat my fairly thick hair, which negates the cheapness slightly, as I think I'll work my way through the bottle quite quickly.

The effects are pretty good; shiny, light hair which doesn't feel weighed down. For me, it doesn't offer enough moisturisation for my dry mid-lengths and ends. It makes a fabulous conditioner for a co-wash, if you've sworn off the shampoo, and if you have normal hair, I imagine it would be a good all-round conditioner.

Now, I have one slight gripe with this product, and that's the scent. Despite containing pure coconut oil, I find the coconut scent a little bit too sweet, and a bit artificial. It's not so nose-wrinklingly artificial smelling that I wouldn't repurchase, but this isn't the nicest coconut scented thing I own.

If you'd like to try it for yourself, you can find Inecto products at Superdrug, where it will cost you around £2 (not stocked online, unfortunately).

Please ignore the fact that my second photo is so badly focused. I'm not great with a camera, particularly after an evening at the pub!

The left photo shows my hair before I started a shampoo and silicone free regime. The right photo is after about 5 weeks of using nothing but silicone free conditioner and styling products on my hair.

Aside from the main lighting, colour and focus differences, I think that the main difference is that my hair is more curly than it was previously. Before, my curls were concentrated mostly around the back of my head, with the front parts containing a mix of loose curls and waves. After skipping the shampoo and silicone, even the front parts of my hair are curly, particularly in the mid-lengths.

Frizz wise, there doesn't look to be much of a difference. However, the right hand photo was taken after coming home from a night out in London - a very windy night at that. So the fact that the level of frizz there is comparable to the left hand photo, which was taken after a wash and airdry entirely indoors, is a good thing in my book.

I'm pleased enough with the differences in both the feel and look of my hair that I'm going to continue this regime indefinitely.

I love the smell of coconut in the morning. Or in the evening, which is generally when I wash my hair. Such is my love of coconut-scented things that I'm 87% more likely to purchase a hair product if it smells of coconut (that's a scientific fact). And this was the case for this Superdrug Naturals intensive conditioner, which I picked up at the weekend.

Firstly, this product is cheap. Priced at just £1.85 for 400ml, this is definitely a bit of a bargain. Don't think that you're getting an inferior quality product though, oh no. This is one of the nicest intensive conditioners I've tried in a while. Gently scented with a sweet but not excessively sweet, very mildly coconutty scent, this is a very thick and rich product. Think butter at room temperature thick.

A good scoop distributed through the ends of the hair, and left on for a few minutes, left my hair feeling very soft, shiny, and well moisturised. Despite being silicone free, this product has that extra bit of 'slip' that I've been missing, and really feels like it's making a difference to my hair.

The only downside is that because of it's thickness, it can take a little longer than usual to rinse out of the hair. But that's a fairly minor point, and something I'm more than willing to do for such a lovely - and budget friendly - product.

If you'd like to try it yourself, you can get it at Superdrug.com for £1.85.

Last month, I decided to make a radical change in my haircare routine and ditch shampoo and silicones, which in theory would give me softer, less dry hair, with better curl definition. It's now been four weeks since I washed my hair with shampoo - and I'm very impressed with the difference.

My hair is no longer particularly dry; it feels very soft at all times. My curls are much more defined than they ever have been, and even look more ringlet-y than they did before. And frizz? I only really get a little bit of frizz on the second day after washing now.

Two things thus far have convinced me that I'm on to a good thing: firstly, my recent sun-and-sea holiday. Spending most of the day in the sun, in the sea or the pool for a week usually leaves me with hair like straw. Washing my hair every evening with conditioner prevented the damage.

Secondly; I had my colour done very recently. My hairdresser said that she could feel the difference in my hair, that it was smoother and less dry. Since she's been my hairdresser for about 7 years, I'm taking that as a sign of a tangible result.

The only downside I've found is that my roots have a tendancy to get oily slightly quicker than before. Since I previously only washed my hair twice a week, I can cope with a slight increase of co-washing 3 -4 times a week.

As I've just had my colour done, I'm sporting a semi-straight blow dry, so no pictures this week, but I promise to take some next week. So far, so good!

Naked produce a range of "97% natural" products which are free from petrochemicals, harsh surfectants, and parabens. As a result, their range of conditioners are suitable for my silicone free, shampoo free hair routine, so I picked up a tube of their Rescue intensive conditioner from Boots.

This fresh-scented intensive conditioner contains shea nut butter and olive oil extracts, and is targeted at damaged, frizzy hair. While it is quite rich, the texture of the conditioner is actually quite light; it distributes through the hair evenly, and produces an odd light frothing effect as it mingles with the water in the hair.

The effects are somewhat different from what you usually get from a silicone-heavy intensive conditioner - that feeling of slip and extreme smoothness when you rinse the conditioner out is not there. That's not to say that the hair doesn't feel more moisturised and much smoother - it definitely does. It also doesn't weigh the hair down, leaving it soft and light.

If you're interested, you can try it for the very wallet-friendly price of £3.91 for 250ml at Boots.com.

As part of my new shampoo-free routine, I had heard a lot of very good things being said about Boots Essential Curl Creme, which is a silicone free styling product which apparently can be used on wet or dry hair. Last time I was in Boots, I took the opportunity to pick one of these up.

The curl cream is a fairly thick product with more of a gel texture than a cream one. It claims to "smooth away frizziness and hold your curls". And it really does deliver - a small dab distributed through wet hair gives light hold while the hair dries - resulting in significantly less frizz. I also felt that the cream was slightly moisturising - my curls were not only less frizzy, but also very smooth and shiny.

The one downside is that as with many curl products with build-in hold, you can end up with a slightly crunchy feeling 'do after air drying - but this is easily scrunched out, and well worth it for the definition the product provides.

Best thing about this product? The price. For just £1.29, you get a whopping 250ml of product, and given that you need so little, the tub should last for ages. I'm bowled over by this product - really wasn't expecting this kind of performance for this price.

Boots Essentials Curl Creme, £1.29 for 250ml at Boots.com.

Last week, I wrote about the Curly Girl method, which hypothesises that curly hair does better without shampoo, as the most common cleanser in shampoo, SLS, is too harsh for delicate curly hair. In order to cut out shampoo, one has to also cut out anything that'll build up on the hair - silicones and polyquatariums.

I started off my shampoo free routine with one last shampoo - without silicone - to rid my hair of any build up before I began. I used Aussie Miracle Moist, which is silicone free and actually rather nice. It's been donated to my husband, now though, as after conditioning with Original Source White Pear and Avocado conditioner, I was free of silicones and ready to start co-washing.

For my next wash, I applied a palmful of conditioner to my scalp, and massaged with my fingers as I used to do with shampoo. Obviously, I didn't get any lather, which was a very strange feeling. After rinsing thoroughly, I applied some more conditioner to the lengths of my hair, and then I was done. I was very surprised by how clean my hair felt and looked after a rubdown with just conditioner; easily as clean as with shampoo. My hair also immediately started feeling softer and less dry.

A week on, my curl definition has improved, and although I'm still somewhat frizzy, I think it's less so than it used to be. I have noticed that my fringe gets greasy much faster - I think I'm probably using too much conditioner on it, so I'm trying to tone down. My big fear, that I would end up looking lank-haired and greasy, seems to have been unfounded thus far. So far so good!

I'll report back soon, and hopefully will have some before and after photos to compare too.

I seem to be a on a bit of an Original Source kick at the moment! This is probably because their conditioners are silicone free, and I'm currently giving up silicone. This light, fresh conditioner totally blew me away with it's strong, minty scent and the amazing tingly sensation upon my scalp (which I'm not yet sure whether I actually like - VERY tingly). Seriously, if you wash your hair in the morning (and if you do, I envy you - 4 hours airdry time means I wash always in the evening) and need something that'll wake you up a little bit, go for this. It'll wake you up a LOT. Also, if you have a cold, I suspect this will get you breathing through your nose again pronto.

Performance wise, this is a lighter conditioner than the White Pear and Avocado conditioner I tried last week, which makes it ideal for conditioner washing (if you're giving up shampoo) or for imparting light conditioning to normal/greasy hair. Nothing special, but does precisely what it says it will.

The reason I tried this, incidentally, was down to my husband. Thank you, husband, for telling me my hair looked skanky just before we went out, when the Batiste was upstairs. Thank you, for otherwise I would be using a more heavy conditioner for co-washing, and would still look skanky now.

I'm not bitter, honest.

Anyway, if you'd like to try out this very minty, refreshing, tingly conditioner, you can get it for £1.99 for 250ml at Boots.com.

I've read several articles recently about the Curly Girl method, which supposedly helps to keep curly hair well moisturised and frizz free. Apparently, the SLS in most shampoos (which is generally a fairly drying ingredient) strips moisture from curly hair, which is in general more dry than other hair types. Primarily, the theory is that by giving up shampoo, and therefore SLS, curls become more moisturised, less frizzy, and more well defined.

Now, the thought of skipping the shampoo makes me shudder - I can't feel properly clean if my hair is greasy. According to followers of the CG method, cutting out conditioners and stylers that contain silicones cuts down on the build up on dirty hair - and hair that's dirty with natural oils only can be washed with conditioner (silicone free, of course).

So, I've taken the plunge - I started off a couple of days ago with a final shampoo (which didn't contain silicone), and today tried out my first "co-wash" (conditioner wash). I applied a silicone free conditioner to my roots and sort of massaged as I would normally do with shampoo. I'll admit, this felt very weird, given the lack of foam. After rinsing thoroughly I applied the same conditioner as I normall would, and rinsed again. After a careful application of (silicone free) stylers, my hair is clean, shiny, and soft.

In the coming weeks I'll continue to steer away from the shampoo and try out a variety of silicone free conditioners in a bid to control my frizzy curly hair - and reporting on it along the way.

I admit it, I'm a bit of a haircare snob. Kerastase, Redken, Alterna - all these used to be firm favourites in my household; in fact, it had been years since anything high street had touched my tresses, dahling.

In a bid to go silicone free (more on that later), I picked up a bottle of Original Source White Pear & Avocado conditioner for the wallet-friendly price of £1.99 for 250ml. I used it for the first time yesterday, and I'm finding myself very pleasantly surprised by the results - my hair is soft and shiny; just as soft and shiny as with one of my higher-end conditioners with silicone in them. Plus, the Original Source conditioner smells absolutely gorgeous - fruity, but not overly so, and slightly fresh with it. Yummy.

Original Source make a range of conditioners, all of which are silicone free, including a Mint and Tea Tree variety (sounds refreshing) and an Almond and Coconut variation, which is ultra-hydrating. The White Pear & Avocado supposedly protects hair against damage, and was plenty hydrating enough for my excessively coloured, dry hair.

I'd highly recommend these. I'll definitely be picking some more up in the future! Selected conditioners are available at Boots, and Superdrug stocks the whole range (although it doesn't seem to show up on their website).

James Brown.  Unless your first thought is of the iconic soul singer, you're probably thinking of him who does Kate Moss' hair.  The product line, which was "inspired by Kate", includes a variety of shampoos, conditioners and styling products in rather nice packaging.  I bought the Richly Moisturising Conditioner for Dry Hair after trying it out at my hairdressers house, when I'd forgotten to take my usual silicone free conditioner along with me.  I was surprised to find that it doesn't contain any silicones and so decided to invest in a full tube to try out.

The conditioner, despite being for dry hair, is actually of a rather thin consistency - much thinner than you'd expect.  Despite this, a palmful distributed through the ends of the hair is very moisturising and has a decent amount of slip to it - you need a lot less than you think you need.  It is in fact so rich that I don't allow it to go anywhere near my roots; it's definitely more suited to dry ends.

The scent is pleasant; light and fresh, and it doesn't linger on the hair after use at all.  The conditioner rinses cleanly from the hair, leaving it feeling moisturised, detangled, and with a little bit of that slip that I've missed from non-silicone products.  The hair also feels soft and looks shiny once dry.

The only gripe I have with this product is with the packaging.  While the tube design ensures that you'll get every last drop out, the way in which you get the tube to dispense product is not the easiest to manage with wet hands.  To get product out, you turn the bottom part of the tube, which opens a hole in the centre.  Twisting with wet slippy hands isn't the easiest thing to do, and when I have my hands full of conditioner, I tend to put the tube back down on the side of the bath without twisting shut.  This leads to some of the conditioner to leak out, which is a tiny bit wasteful.

That small point aside, I really like this conditioner - it feels luxurious, is surprisingly moisturising, and at £5.99 for 250ml, it's reasonably priced too.  Well worth a go.  If you'd like to give it a try, you can get it from Boots.com or in store.

Have you tried any James Brown products?

I'm a big fan of Naked's range of silicone free conditioners, but I'll admit that I've found the styling products I've found to be a little bit disappointing, possibly because serum is a product that just doesn't really feel right without silicone.  Anyway, I picked up a bottle of the Curl Tamer Styling Mousse a few months ago, and am finding that it's not a disappointment at all.

I used to love mousse - dispensing a golf-ball sized ball (why was it always a golf ball?) into my palm, raking it through my hair, and then ending up with perfectly defined but utterly crispy curls.  I never really minded the crispiness really, it was pretty easy to scrunch out.  Since going silicone free though, I've found it hard to locate a silicone free mousse with hold, and I had high hopes that this one would be the answers to my crispy crunchy prayers.

This mousse isn't really in the same category - in fact, I'd probably call it more of a foam than a mousse.  You certainly can't dispense a golf-ball shaped ball into your hand, as it comes forth from the bottle in a light froth.  Two pumps is enough to adequately coat my hair, which is fairly thick and a coupla inches below my shoulders.  I've been scrunching it into my hair from the ends upwards, and have found that it definitely does help to define and hold the curl in my hair as it dries, without leaving a trace of crispiness.

It also plays very well with other products, and being Naked and silicone free, is incredibly light - you can barely feel it in the hair once it's been applied.  There's also no build up, and I've had no ill affects from reapplying a tiny amount to my dry hair in order to tame a bit of wayward frizz, or from applying a bit more halfway through the air drying process.

While it does help to define and hold the curl, there are a few conditions.  It needs to be scrunched in, and once applied, it works best if you don't touch the hair at all.  A little bit of scrunching is OK, but when I touch my hair too much after application, I find that the effects are cancelled out.  

Overall, this product, while not totally lifechanging, has become a firm part of my hair styling regime.  I love the lack of buildup, the lightness, and the way that it leaves the hair feeling soft, not crunchy.  I will be repurchasing for sure.  If you'd like to try this one for yourself, you can get it from Boots.com or Boots stores, at the wallet friendly price of £3.99 for 15ml.

A few weeks ago, I was at my in-laws for the weekend, and we had a family function to go to.  Me being my clumsy self, I accidentally managed to get facial oil on my fringe the night before the do - not a problem, I thought, I'll just clip my fringe back.  And then my husband gave me one of those looks that told me that not even Batiste would be good enough to solve this greasy-hair problem.  Which is a bit rich coming from a man who didn't bother having his hair cut for 18 months after our wedding.

Anyway.  I had to wash my hair, and I had to get a silicone free conditioner to wash it with, post haste.  I popped out to Boots and immediately went to the Naked section - I love knowing that all the products are silicone free and suitable for co-washing, as I can just pick one up without having to scrutinise the ingredients list.  I happened to pick up Naked Volume Weightless Conditioner, which has now become my joint favourite for co-washing.

As described, this conditioner is very light while still providing plenty of moisture, making it ideal for co-washing my oily roots.  It has a clean, fresh scent which is in no way overpowering, and doesn't linger on the hair.  The texture is pretty light too; this is much more of a liquid conditioner than a thick paste, and it's easy to distribute evenly through the hair.

Once dry, my roots felt clean, and indeed did have a touch more volume than usual - more importantly, I didn't get that over conditioned, heavy feeling which indicates that I'll be needing another wash the next day.  In fact, I got a good three days wear out of my hair before my roots became oily enough to require washing.  All this lightness is fantastic for oily roots, but not so fantastic for dry ends.  I tried to use this throughout my fairly thick hair, but it just didn't have enough moisture and slip to adequately detangle my midlengths and ends. 

In summary, this conditioner is a fantastic co-wash option if you have oily roots, and if your hair is greasy or fine, it would make an ideal light all over conditioner too.  Combined with its low price of just £3.99 for 250ml, and it's wide availability at Boots stores, this is a definite staple for me.  Highly recommended.

If you'd like to try it for yourself, you can buy direct from Naked Bodycare, or at Boots, at £3.99 for 250ml.

It's been a while since I posted about going silicone and shampoo free; it's hard to believe that I've not used shampoo or washed my hair in a normal way for over three months. I've taken my silicone free conditioners to the hairdresser and explained to bemused stylists that I don't use shampoo, I've been through lots of conditioners and found some real gems, and for once my husband has been unable to steal my shampoo (ha!).

Here's a comparison of my hair at the start of the silicone-free regime; 5 weeks in; and now (3 months in).


My hair has never felt so soft and healthy without massive amounts of intensive conditioner. I no longer feel the need to leave conditioner on for 20 minutes every time I wash; I simply co-wash, detangle, rinse, and my hair is perfectly moisturised. The biggest improvement is in the lack of frizz and in curl definition - my hair is definitely curlier than it used to be, and forms smooth curves and ringlets. It's also much easier to blowdry smooth and doesn't frizz as much when I wear it straight.

So, after three lather free months, I would highly recommend trying this to anyone whose dry, frizzy hair is causing them pain. You can read my brief introduction for more info.

I recently spotted a few Weleda goodies in the organic haircare section of my local Waitrose. It was on offer, and it's silicone free, so I decided that it'd be rude not to check it out.

Formulated with organic lemon balm and essential oils, it has a fairly subtle smell - citrus-y, but not overpoweringly so. This conditioner is recommended for normal to oily hair, so it's not particularly thick or rich in texture - and despite being silicone free, it still has a decent amount of slip, so you won't need to use a lot of product to coat the hair. In fact, this product doesn't have any of the difference in texture that I've noticed with many other silicone free conditioners - I don't think you'd even notice the difference.

I've been using this as a conditioner wash (since I no longer use shampoo), and was hoping that it would be light enough that I wouldn't need to re-wash my hair every other day. And it is! It leaves my hair feeling soft and shiny, well-conditioned but not weighed down. I don't get greasy roots until 2 days after washing with this.

This isn't the cheapest silicone free product I've found thus far - it retails for £7.95 - but it's in no way as expensive as other brands with organic credentials (and still much cheaper than my previous Kerastase habit). Given that you don't really need a lot of product to get good results, I'll probably repurchase this one. And while I'm at it, check out a few more Weleda products...

If you'd like to try it for yourself, you can get it on Weleda's UK website at £7.95 for 250ml.