Guide To Shampoo Buying
You can buy shampoo many places. If you are buying a professional brand outside of a salon it could be a counterfeit product. The places that make the fake shampoo often are good at making the packaging look like the real thing, but often real junk is inside the bottles. Another reason to buy shampoo in a salon is that professional shampoos are designed to get very specified results.
All shampoos clean of course. The first differences to consider are age and gender. Children often use a baby shampoo which is one of the strongest cleansers as there is often cradle cap on a baby's scalp that needs strength to cleanse. A good back-to-school shampoo-- just in case-- is a lice repellant shampoo. Men have thicker skin so their shampoos make sure to factor that in. Teens often have the most oil or breakouts around hairlines so medicated formulas are great. Women who use hair color should use a color-safe formula.
Curly hair is in need of moisture and brands will specify this. Textures from fine to normal to coarse need different formulas. Often "extra body" shampoos work for fine hair and hair styles that want fullness. Coarse hair needs a heavier formula often listed as a smoothing formula when a sleeker look is desired.
Itchy scalps can benefit from peppermint, tea tree, or medicated with zinc shampoos.
Scent can also be a factor in your choice of cleansers. Lavenders in certain formulas are relaxing, other scents such as lemon are up lifting.
If you are a blonde, a shampoo with toner can keep the color on the cool side or brighten it up. If you like to use a lot of hairspray, or work in an environment with oils or smells, there are some shampoos that get rid of build-up and chemicals.
Shampoos contain organic ingredients, which makes label reading a must to see what beneits they contain. If you like to shampoo daily they have formulas for that purpose. Sulfate-free shampoo has become popular. Some of those do not lather well, but there are exceptions.
One question we get often at the salon is, when do you change shampoo? The weather around here would be number one. Think of hot summer sweating-- that's toxins on your scalp so a shampoo that repells insects, and soothes the scalp is good, or if you shampoo very frequently a daily shampoo is good. Cooler weather often means fly away and dry hair so a shampoo with a dry hair or moisture formula is good. If a heat element such as blow dryer, or flat or curling iron is used, consider looking for keratin in the shampoo to help prevent breakage. Also, many lines of shampoo have thermal protection in them to keep hair strong. A professional can help with selection if this seems confusing. The other thing that keeps some lines "professional" is the fact that the manufacturers know that the classes on product knowledge are meant to help with a consumer's purchase.
Bonnie Fenci is the owner of Carabel Beauty Salon and Store which offers over 50 shampoos for sale.