Some weeks ago I had posted why I got back to silicones in spite of silicones being a taboo ingredient in the curl community. Here I am going to break another rule 😛 I love sulphates. Yes I said it. Yup the most hated ingredient in the curl community is something I love. The Curly girl (CG) method advocates a no sulphate policy. But I need sulphates in my shampoo. Here’s why!
- Sulphate free shampoos leave my hair gunky, limp, greasy and flat. I have tried doing double washes too, but they just don’t seem to be doing a good job of cleaning. Especially because I work out every day, my hair gets greasy and sweaty very fast, my roots fall flat and I need sulphates to get them looking good again. Sulphate shampoos make my curls look bouncy, springy, fresh, lively and voluminous.
- Sulphate free anti-dandruff shampoos don’t do as good a job at controlling dandruff as sulphate shampoos. I have tried them for long hoping my scalp would adjust eventually, but no. I got back to sulphates to soothe my itchy scalp.
- Because I love my silicones and they are notorious for causing build up, I do need sulphates to remove them. Vicious circle 😛 But a happy vicious circle ha-ha.
I may go sulphate-free one day. Who knows! What with my continuous experiments with ingredients and products 😛
I have said this before in the silicone post, and I will repeat it again. The CG method is meant to make your hair look good. So if it’s not doing that, choose what does make your hair look good. CG is just an option, not a rule!
You can also check – 4 ways to make your shampoo less harsh – The best alternative to sulphate free shampoos
Here is a post with my full curly hair care routine – My curly hair routine
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Hi! I am Anjana and I fell in love with my curly hair after years of hating it. YOU can too!
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Anu
April 13, 2016 at 12:16 pm
Hi Anjana ,
You have done a great job by helping girls like me who have very curly hair know how to manage it and look beautiful in our curls than go and get it straightened.. Love your blog..
Anjana
April 18, 2016 at 2:00 pm
Hey Anu! Thanks a ton for your words 🙂 Readers like you keep me motivated to keep writing !
Nishta
April 13, 2016 at 8:14 pm
Hi, Anjana
That was a nice article. I am trying the cg method and was obsessed with it and its not even helping that much. Your post just opened my eyes. Thank you, am going back to my sulphates and silicones i love them. It was so helpful thank you 🙂
Anjana
April 18, 2016 at 2:00 pm
So good to hear that Nishta! Glad to be of help 🙂
Sheetal
April 14, 2016 at 5:21 pm
It is an informative post Anjana !! Can you do a post of different hairstyle? and how can we style bangs? Thanks in Advance
Anjana
April 18, 2016 at 2:01 pm
Haha I have already clicked the photos for a hairstyle post! Coincidence ? 😀 I will put the post up in a week or 2.
Sheetal
April 18, 2016 at 2:20 pm
Wow that’s great !! Thanks dear 🙂
Dr_Vasquez
August 26, 2016 at 4:07 pm
I could hug you for this post
Anjana
August 27, 2016 at 10:03 pm
Haha thank you 🙂
ritika uttmani
December 7, 2017 at 10:47 pm
hey anjana your post help me uderstand my hair better tysm😘 but i too love sulphate shampoos but i get confused and m tired of not getting a suitable sulphate shampoo for my hair can u please put a list of sulphate shampoos you use with reviews please!!
Anjana
December 8, 2017 at 10:30 am
https://www.curlsandbeautydiary.com/pantene-lively-clean-shampoo-review/
But always dilute shampoos with water before applying
Nishka Nachappa
January 23, 2018 at 7:57 pm
I totally agree on breaking this rule. I love me some suds…. And I love me some cones! 😇 Without sulfates my hair would look flat too and I just never feel like I’m conditioning without cones. Revlon flex protein conditioner for example is a silicone free formula. It just doesn’t feel nice when I work it into my hair. That lovely moisturizing slippery feeling when you work conditioner into your hair isn’t there at all. That’s why I love silicones and sulfates. Nothing wrong with modifying the CG method to suit one’s convenience.
Anjana
January 23, 2018 at 8:44 pm
Yessss absolutely 😍
Nandini
March 26, 2018 at 9:45 am
Hi Anjana!
It’s great to see an Indian curly hair website! It’s such a help!
I was wondering if u have tried he as I am coconut co wash. I didn’t LOVE the effect of sulphate free shampoos myself.. but this stuff is amazing. There is no build up! And I have fine flat hair btw! U just need to massage it for a good 4-5 mins by the clock!
Maybe this helps someone!
Nandini
Anjana
March 26, 2018 at 10:10 am
I haven’t tried it Nandini, but I sure will 🙂
Natasha
April 12, 2018 at 9:26 pm
Hey, if i use the head and shoulders silky and smooth shampoo for dandruff purpose bcz i am in a low budget. For this would i need to use a clarifying shampoo also to remove tge silicone buildup of the h&s shampoo? Plz kindly let me know!
Anjana
April 13, 2018 at 9:53 am
No, because the shampoo itself has sulphates
Natasha
June 26, 2018 at 1:20 pm
Hey, I just want to check with you that you recently updated your routine to stop using silicones so are you still using sulphates now?
Also, does this mean that we can use any shampoo to achieve curls in our hair without the frizz? Let me know becuase I’ve always loved using Dove and had to stop since I stopped using it cos it cos of CG.
Anjana
June 26, 2018 at 2:58 pm
I do use sulphates once in a while. If you are following a strict cg method, you may want to continue avoiding Dove shampoo.
Guna
October 11, 2018 at 8:14 am
Hello
I am using CG routine since a week I have washed my hair twice till now I count find any difference how much time it take to see the change
Anjana
October 15, 2018 at 1:57 pm
Depends on how well you have understood the routine and if you are doing it correctly and using the right quantity of products. Check this https://www.curlsandbeautydiary.com/16-mistakes-might-making-curly-hair-routine/
If you are doing everything fine, and you have no heat damage or straightened hair, you should see results with the 1st wash itself
Peedub
October 23, 2018 at 5:09 pm
Do you have multi-textured hair? If so, can you write a post on how you handle the textures?
Anjana
October 23, 2018 at 5:39 pm
Not much Peedub, but I do have a mix – I don’t treat them separately
Peedub
October 23, 2018 at 6:43 pm
Do you do anything differently to either section when detangling?
Anjana
October 23, 2018 at 8:11 pm
Nope
Natasha Agrawal
May 31, 2019 at 12:44 pm
Hey do you still use sulphates and silicones? I’m planning to start using them again… Finding affordable products which are glycerine and coconut free is crazy every time I plan to buy.
My scalp hates coconut and humidity hates glycerine
Anjana
June 3, 2019 at 3:16 pm
I use sulphates all the time. I don’t use silicones
SWAMI GANGADHARAN
July 6, 2019 at 6:55 pm
Hi Anjana,
I am a guy who stumbled upon this page. I don’t know how much guys typically worry about chemicals in shampoos and conditioners (probably not too much). I was just trying to go eco-friendly and find a basic method to avoid hair dryness. Thanks for breaking down all this complex information. Honestly, I was shocked about how much I did not know at about hair care. I wonder how girls and women find the time and energy to go through these routines. It is mind-boggling to me 🙂
Thanks again.
Regards,
Swami
Anjana
July 8, 2019 at 2:39 pm
Haha 🙂 I am glad to hear that Swami
SWAMI GANGADHARAN
July 6, 2019 at 7:00 pm
Hi Anjana,
I am a guy who stumbled upon this page. I don’t know how much guys typically worry about chemicals in shampoos and conditioners (probably not too much). I was just trying to go eco-friendly and find a basic method to avoid hair dryness. Thanks for breaking down all this complex information. Honestly, I was shocked about how much I did not know at about hair care. I wonder how girls and women find the time and energy to go through these routines. It is mind-boggling to me 🙂
Warm Regards,
Swami
Lizelle
August 6, 2019 at 9:40 pm
Hi Anjana,
I have super frizzy and thin hair. I use Tresemme Shampoo and Conditioner and I used to use it with Loreal Spiral Splendor and my hair would feel magical with no frizz. Now that Loreal has stopped manufacturing this product…my hair feels thinner and frizzier. What should I do?
Anjana
August 7, 2019 at 2:45 pm
Try out some other products Lizelle https://www.curlsandbeautydiary.com/beginner-friendly-simple-curly-hair-starter-kit/
Priyadarshini Padmakumar
November 18, 2019 at 12:06 am
Hi Anjana
I agree, i used sulphate free shampoo and it makes my scalp oily and heavy.
But i colour my grey hair. And sulphates strip the color from my hair is just 2 washes. So i started to use sulphate free shampoo.
Please advise. How to retain my color and also uae a sulphate shampoo.
And also, ate there any CG friendly shampoos is aroma magic or pantene?
Anjana
November 18, 2019 at 3:11 pm
You can check this https://www.curlsandbeautydiary.com/list-sulphate-free-shampoos-india/
AA
February 2, 2020 at 10:54 pm
Hii, my hair is extremely flat at the roots and starts to curl only in the mid section of my hair hair length. Please suggest method to get rid of this untamed behavior of my hair.
Anjana
February 3, 2020 at 3:13 pm
Check this AA – https://www.curlsandbeautydiary.com/10-ways-prevent-crown-lying-flat-curls-roots/
Neha
December 30, 2020 at 11:44 am
Hi, I have been using a sulphate and silicone free shampoo(Bella vita organic shampoo) for about 5 months now and I’m observing that it’s not cleaning up the dirt in my hair and my roots look heavy and lifeless. I recently have been using the tresemme beauty-full shampoo (which has sulphates in it) between my regular washes and I love the bounce and freshness it gives! And my scalp felt so clean whenever J did!! I was wondering if you still support using sulphate shampoos and if I can use sulphate shampoos for every wash?
Anjana
December 30, 2020 at 4:15 pm
Yes you totally can 🙂
Neha
December 30, 2020 at 11:47 am
I follow the sulphate washes with a deep conditioner and a protein conditioner too and my hair doesn’t feel dried out. Do you think by doing this every wash I can still take care of my curls?
Thank you in advance. Your blog is amazing!!
Amulya Ramesh
January 30, 2021 at 10:08 pm
What about the curl up products?? Does they provide well definition to the curls?? Actually I hv been using sulphate shampoos itself and now I’m planning to follow cg routine to prevent frizzy hair , plz help me out I’m confused what to use nw 😐
Anjana
February 2, 2021 at 2:23 pm
Check these posts Amulya –
https://www.curlsandbeautydiary.com/curl-up-hair-products-review-shampoo-conditioner-curl-defining-cream/
https://www.curlsandbeautydiary.com/beginner-friendly-simple-curly-hair-starter-kit/