What Is Conditioner?

How to use and for how long

There is a proper way to condition your hair for the best results. You should apply the conditioner in fluid motions to your hair after squeezing some of the water out of it. If your hair is extremely wet, it could reduce the effectiveness of the conditioner. 

Here are some quick tips to help you remember how to use conditioner:

• In the shower, shampoo your hair. All shampoo should be rinsed away thoroughly.
• Use enough conditioner to coat the lenghts of your strands.
• Apply it evenly to your hair’s ends, starting at ear or chin level and working down.
• To work in the conditioner, run your fingers or a wide-tooth comb through the ends of your hair.
• Allow it to sit on your hair for a few moments, as directed on the label. 
• Rinse the conditioner well.

The sweet spot for how long you should leave your conditioner on your hair is about two to five minutes. You can, of course, adjust this time if needed. However, if you are using a deep conditioner, you can leave it on anywhere between ten and twenty minutes.

A leave-in conditioner can significantly help restore your hair and bring it back to health. Leave-in conditioner is also a great way to detangle your hair before styling, and the moisture will carry on with the style.

How often?

A question we often ask ourselves is how frequently we should wash our hair. Or maybe the more realistic question is, “how long can I get away with not washing my hair?” 

This can be a complicated question to answer because it depends on a lot of different factors. Your age, hair type, and activity level can all affect how often you should wash your hair. 

If you are older, then your hair probably does not get oily as fast as a teenager’s hair would, which means you can probably go longer without washing it. If you have naturally dry hair, it would also be easier to skip a day or two between washes. If you are someone who works out a lot and sweats all day, you might have to wash your hair more frequently than other less active people do. 

Finding balance

It is important to find a balance for washing your hair so that your hair is not too greasy or too overstimulated. As for conditioner specifically, you should use it anytime you are also shampooing your hair. These two products go hand in hand and complement each other. Conditioner works to restore moisture to your hair, and not restoring any of that moisture back into your hair can be harmful in the long run. 

Conditioner softens and detangles hair after the shampooing cleans it. Conditioning your hair somewhat regularly will also make your hair easier to brush through and style. It can be very helpful to comb through your hair in the shower while you are conditioning it to make it even easier to detangle. 

If you are looking for a way to extend your style and wait on wash day, incorporating a dry shampoo into your hair care is a great choice. Our custom dry shampoo is a light powder dry shampoo that refreshes the roots and lengthens the life of your hairstyle, all while taking care of your scalp.

Different hair types

Picking the right conditioner is different from picking a shampoo. Your shampoo should be picked based on the condition of your scalp, whereas your conditioner should be to treat your actual hair. One of the most common hair scenarios is an oily scalp and dry ends. If this is the case for you, then a shampoo that addresses your oily scalp is best, and a hydrating conditioner is the right choice for your dry ends. 

The first thing to do when shopping for a conditioner is to feel the ends of your hair. Feel for dryness, damaged strands, static or limpness. 

• If your hair is dry, you should look for a conditioner to prevent any more damage to your hair. Look for types that have frizz control, protect from heat, and can repair split ends. Deep conditioner treatments can be very helpful for dry hair.

• If you are struggling with oily roots or you have very thin hair, try to avoid applying conditioners above your ear line, especially if they are for hydrating or smoothing. These will make your hair feel heavy and weighed down and will make roots oilier. When using a deep conditioner, apply first and then shampoo to keep hair from getting greasy.

Benefits of conditioner

There are a lot of benefits of using conditioners to think about. Firstly, conditioner coats the cuticle of your hair with a protective coating, which helps the hair to grow and avoid breakage. Conditioner can work on repairing hair that has been exposed to the outside world.

Conditioner also makes hair much easier to comb after you get out of the shower. It can help reduce frizz, increase shine, and make your locks feel silky soft to the touch.  

Since a conditioner can do so many things, it can be hard to find one that will do everything you want it to. This is one of the reasons why customized hair care is becoming so popular. Companies like Prose allow you to pick and choose which benefits you would like for your hair care routine. You can take a short survey about your environment, styling habits, and hair type, and we’ll figure out the perfect formula for you. 

Any downsides?

There aren’t many negatives to conditioning your hair— who wouldn’t want soft, smooth hair? Something you may want to think about is potential allergens. Make sure you look at the ingredients before using a product on your hair to avoid this. 

Another potential downside could be if you do not rinse out your conditioner all the way and you have acne-prone skin, you could break out since conditioner can clog your pores. It’s meant for your hair, not your skin. 

Another potential negative to conditioner would be if you used too much. Too much of anything can be a bad thing, and this applies to conditioner, too. Using more than a palm-sized amount can weigh your hair down and make it appear flat or greasy. 

What if you stopped using conditioner?

You’ve probably wondered if you could quit using conditioner altogether (or more likely, you thought about what would happen to your hair if you were stranded on a desert island). Well, several things would happen, none of them ideal. 

First, your hair would be nearly impossible to detangle after a certain point. Next, your hair would start to lack shine and appear duller. Your hair would become very brittle and be extremely susceptible to breakage. Hair conditioning is very important for your hair nourishment, so do yourself a favor and don’t quit using it. 

Conditioner at Prose

At Prose, we offer different conditioner options that can bring significant moisture and nourishment to your hair. 

Whether you are looking for a better conditioner for after cleansing or a leave-in conditioner, we’ve got you covered.

Our custom conditioner is a nourishing moisturizer that will help you achieve all of your hair objectives while restoring your strands without weighing them down. Our conditioner can also be color-safe and if you indicate that you have color-treated hair during the consultation, all of your formulas will be color-safe. For anti-brass selections, formulas will neutralize warm tones in bleached or highlighted hair. No matter your conditioner needs, we have a solution.

Our custom leave-in conditioner is a powerful moisturizer for your hair. It is a hydrating leave-in spray that smoothes and detangles flyaways, leaving strands silky, glossy, and manageable. 

For extra conditioning, use our custom leave-in conditioner with custom hair oil for an additional boost of moisture. Apply your leave-in conditioner to damp or dry hair, then seal in moisture with hair oil, making sure to avoid your roots if you tend to get oily roots. 

Your personalized conditioner formula could include ingredients such as:

• Maracuja Oil – Hair Health
• Silk Proteins – Cuticle Nutrition
• Soy Proteins – Volume
• Copaiba Oil – Nourishment
• Apple Cider Vinegar – Shine

All of our products are made with your hair’s natural health in mind. Every product we create is paraben-free, sulfate-free, phthalate-free, mineral oil-free, GMO-free, and cruelty-free. We can make your formula vegan, silicone-free, dye-free, or fragrance-free, depending on your requirements.

In summary

Hopefully, after reading more about conditioner and its benefits, you understand why it is so important. Remember, not all conditioners are made equal, and you might be using the wrong one for your hair type. Take a second, and think about your hair’s specific needs and do some research on what product would make you look your best.

At Prose, we customize conditioner for your specific hair type and hair condition. Conditioner that will moisturize your hair while keeping your hair lightweight. Sounds like a hair dream come true, right?