Hey Daizies! Detangling has made my wash days so much easier as my hair continues to grow. Detangling is the process of unraveling the tangles from root to tip of each section of your hair. This process allows my hair to not got extremely tangled when the water touches my hair and shrinks up. Your hair is in its weakest state when its wet, and tangles ultimately lead to breakage. I want to maintain length and healthy ends, which is why I always detangle before any part of wash day.
The term prepoo alone involves lathering your hair with a conditioner so that less nutrients are stripped during the shampoo process. While you can always buy sulfate-free shampoo, the process of manipulating your hair and using water still can strip a little bit of nutrients from your hair.
I combine both methods by using pre-poo ingredients and the action of detangling at the same time. There are tons of detangling products you could buy but I’ve come up with a DIY detangler that’s worked great for the past year.
$1
The first ingredient is Vo5 conditioner. I can’t believe this dollar tree staple of childhood would find its way back into my hair care routine. Because you can find it at the dollar tree, you probably would overlook it but you don’t always need to break the bank to maintain your hair. This conditioner is great for detangling because it is thick, creamy, and has great slip. It’s nourishing formula is provides an ample amount of hydration that is needed while I’m manipulating my hair and therefore, the strands won’t be prone to snapping when I’m going through them with my fingers.
The ingredients:Ingredients: Water (Aqua), Cetyl Alcohol, Cetrimonium Chloride, Stearalkonium Chloride, Stearyl Alcohol, Steareth-21, Glyceryl Stearate, Prunus Persica (Peach) Fruit Extract, Soy Molk, Passiflora Incarnata Flower Extract, Tocopheryl Acetate, Biotin, Niacinamide, Polysorbate 20, Ascorbic Acid, Panthenol, Propylene Glycol, DMDM Hydantoin, Disodium EDTA, Fragrance (Parfum), Red 40 (Ci 16035), Red 4 (Ci 14700), Orange 4 (Ci 15510).
Nothing amazing stands out in the ingredients but there aren’t any red flags among the formula.
$3-$4
The next step that takes the Vo5 to the next level is Extra Virgin Olive Oil. EVOO is a penetrating oil and really gets through the shaft of the hair strand. This extra moisture is an excellent prepoo ingredient and the more moisturized my hair is, the easier it is to detangle as well. You can get olive oil in the oil and flour section of your grocery store for around $3-$4. It doesn’t really matter what brand you get since the ingredients should be the same.
I mix together the conditioner and oil with water and shake together in a spray bottle. You can also use a plastic bowl you don’t care about, but the application is easier for me if I use a spray bottle. I then section my hair in 4 parts and begin the process of detangling which takes me about an hour on a good day.
What is your favorite DIY detangler?
Totally forgot about V05 conditioner… great post!
I use olive oil, coconut oil and conditioner for prepooing. It keeps my hair moisturized for a longer time, minimize breakage and makes detangling easier. Thanks for sharing.