Thread: Hair conditioner made my beard tougher

Recently I didn't bother shaving for a couple of days which is not like me.I'd heard of folks having a better shave and looked forward to my BBS face.I had my shower and noticed the amount of steam thinking to myself, "this is gonna be great".I then made the mistake of slapping hair conditioner on me fizog to further soften the beard but I reckon it made it tougher instead! I left some residue of cond. on my face and just lathered up using shaving soap and some cream to make a superlather.After 6 passes and a sore face, I finally gave up.Under my chin and nose were particularly ruff.I even tried my Merkur slant with a new feather in it.
I was in the bathroom for ages and the wife was worried I'd done a sweeny todd on myself!

I would say your conditioner isn't very good. conditioner is supposed to soften your hair. I use the TresSemme kind and it makes my beard MUCH softer... I often put some in my sideburns (which are long) to keep from being too scratchy on the missus.

Originally Posted by charlie762

Recently I didn't bother shaving for a couple of days which is not like me.I'd heard of folks having a better shave and looked forward to my BBS face.I had my shower and noticed the amount of steam thinking to myself, "this is gonna be great".I then made the mistake of slapping hair conditioner on me fizog to further soften the beard but I reckon it made it tougher instead! I left some residue of cond. on my face and just lathered up using shaving soap and some cream to make a superlather.After 6 passes and a sore face, I finally gave up.Under my chin and nose were particularly ruff.I even tried my Merkur slant with a new feather in it.
I was in the bathroom for ages and the wife was worried I'd done a sweeny todd on myself!

This part might have been the problem, and that is just a guess...
Perhaps leaving it on the conditioner reacted with the lather creating a sticky condition .... I don't know, that is the best I can think of..

Hmm not sure what happened. The more experienced shavers might have a clue.

Odd that happened though, that's my prep ritual. I wash conditioner through my beard and stick my face under the shower head for a couple of minutes to make sure I soak up extra heat. Only thing I do different is rinse the conditioner out; I step out with only water on my face.

Hope it goes better next time!

There are at least two major types of "hair conditioners". One type is designed to give your hair more "body" or "fullness" and this type leaves your hair stiffer and thicker, by leaving behind a load of some "stuff" in your hair. You don't want this kind.

The other type is designed to leave your hair "silky" and soft. It does this by removing oils and the resulting scale that builds up on the surface of the hair. This is what you want to soften your beard.

I can't give you a list of ingredients that distinguish the two types, but I can tell you that the Walgreen's drug stores carry a brand called "Suave" that works quite well for me.

I think not washing out the conditioner was the problem right enough.My shave was back to normal this morning. The conditioner I used is Head and Shoulders.

This process has definitely improved my results.


Start the shower by washing hair and face.

Apply conditioner to hair and face.

Continue showering as normal.

Rinse conditioner just before leaving shower.


Seems that the hair cuts a bit easier after this.

I think you were correct in washing the conditioner out of your beard and also using a conditioner that was not intended to make your hair thicker and fuller. On days after I have skipped a shave, I use a conditioner and it certainly makes a difference. I also prep a little more intense which also makes a huge difference in the softness of the beard. Good luck.

Lewis

Originally Posted by jockeys

I would say your conditioner isn't very good. conditioner is supposed to soften your hair.

Well... some are made to make the hair tougher. Like Garnier Fructis "Long and strong"

So obviously that kind of conditioner will make the beard tougher, so is not appropriate for facial hair.

I hadn't considered different conditioners have different effects on the hair, but it's not surprising I guess. I use the Aveda conditioner with mint (which also cools the face like the proraso pre-shave). I always get a better shave when I use a conditioner. I also make sure I wash it all off before lathering up.

At least you won't be getting dandruff in your beard! :-)