The Benefits of Cleansing Cream
Has everybody added a shampoo alternative to their regimen yet? Have you even heard of such a thing?
You can think of cleansing cream like a conditioner that cleans your hair. It’s the new version of the 2-in-1 shampoo/conditioner that people used to use decades ago. The one difference you’ll have to get used to is the lack of suds. That’s right… no lather, but for good reason. Cleansing cream is one of those products that many of my new clients have never heard about, yet it is one of my favorite products for a majority of my clientele, and I’ll tell you why.
Generally speaking, one of the major struggles that color clients face is dryness. Dryness means that your hair can’t retain its moisture, and this is where cleansing cream really helps out. A major culprit responsible for dryness is actually over-shampooing. Cleaning the hair and scalp of excess oil, styling products, and dirt is essential for maintaining a healthy head of hair, but if you’re not using a high quality shampoo or you’re shampooing too often, color-treated hair can quickly become brittle feeling and parched. And if you have wavy or curly hair, long hair, or you get highlights, it’s even easier to get that way.
Cleansing Crème for Moisture & Control
by ORIBE
Our scalp produces its own natural oil called sebum, and one purpose of this stuff is to lock in the hair’s moisture and lubricate the scalp. Our porous hair can become dry when we’ve over-shampooed, and there is no chance for our scalp to lubricate our hair again with sebum before we’ve shampooed it all over again.
A traditional shampoo contains stronger detergents that are designed to attach to oil and remove it from your hair, and the effect is that it leaves your hair feeling like you need to condition immediately. The difference with a cleansing cream is that there are few or no detergents that disrupt the moisture barrier on your hair in the first place. They are, however, still formulated to cleanse the hair of EXCESS oil, product buildup and dirt. With many of my favorite cleansing creams, there isn’t the feeling of needing to condition afterwards at all.
Cleansing cream could be great for you if:
You feel you need to shampoo everyday
Many of my clients enjoy how their feels using a cleansing cream every time they shampoo. But if you think about it, alternating a traditional shampoo and your cleansing cream every other day means you’re suddenly shampooing half as much!You exercise a lot and your hair gets sweaty
I promise a cleansing cream will still make your hair feel clean, and it won’t smell either.
Your scalp is oily but your hair is dry
When your scalp is overly cleansed of all the sebum, it produces more oil to compensate (just like our face does). Of course this is what would make someone naturally want to shampoo more, but you can get out of this vicious cycle with a little perseverance. I usually say for most people to give a cleansing cream about a month to bring your scalp back to equilibrium.
You're a bleach & tone or a highlight client
Definitely using a product like this will help your hair stay moisturized. You can use strengthening or repairing masques periodically too!
You have wavy or curly hair
Wavy and curly textures become depleted of hydration even faster than straight hair because of their shape. Overly shampooing these hair types is a big no-no.
You color your hair red
If you didn’t know, red hair color molecules are actually smaller than other shades, so they are easily removed by water especially when harsh detergents are added to the mix. Less detergents means less fadage overall.
You color your hair fantasy colors
Same idea, these dye molecules sit on the very outside of the hair shaft, so they can easily be washed away by strong shampoos. Think about your vibrantly colored clothing. If you wash it in the heavy duty cycle with a crap detergent, it’s going to fade. Alternatively, hand washing with a low sudsing detergent is better.
Your scalp is NOT excessively oily, and your hair is NOT super fine
I’m no dermatologist, but if your skin type is just very oily in general, using a high quality traditional shampoo in moderation may be better for you. Also, if your hair is super fine, a gentle traditional shampoo and conditioner may be better suited for you so your hair doesn't get weighed down.
This cleansing cream shown above (I took that picture 😬) is one of my favorites. It cleanses, removes dirt, oil and buildup, but it contains no harsh detergents that lather. It leaves your hair feeling clean, soft, light, and moisturized, and of course it smells great. My favorite thing about it is that it doesn't disturb COLOR as much as a traditional shampoo either.
Now one last thing about how to use a product like this. Because there are no lathering agents, you have to apply it to your scalp and physically manipulate the product with your fingers to agitate and lift off excess oil. Pretend you’re shampooing like normal, but don’t expect any suds. Add more water and then gently squeegee it down your hair before rinsing. Rinse WELL, and this is very important. If you don’t rinse extra well, your hair will feel like you have product left in it or it won’t feel clean. And that’s it! If you’d like to try a new way to cleanse your hair, you can pick up a bottle at the salon from me, and I’d love to tell you more when you’re there.
Was this helpful? Feel free to comment below with any questions you have for me. This was my first longer (sorta) format writing, and it was really fun to do. I’ve always liked writing more than being in front of the camera doing some video explanation anyways. Hopefully you liked it and found some value. More to come!
