What is Clarifying Shampoo ?

Clarifying shampoo is a type of shampoo which cleanses the hair to help remove any build up at the scalp and help promote a healthy environment for your hair. Check out our guide to discover what clarifying shampoo does, why it's essential, and the best way to use it.

 Table of Contents:

• What is Clarifying Shampoo?
• What Does Clarifying Shampoo Do?
• Why Does Curly Hair Need Clarifying?
• The Best Clarifying Shampoo for Curly Hair
• How to Use Clarifying Shampoo
• How Often Should You Clarify Your Curls?
• When to Use Clarifying Shampoo
• Clarifying vs Regular Shampoo vs co-wash

What is Clarifying Shampoo?

Clarifying shampoo is a deep cleanser which can be used on every type of curly hair. Unlike regular shampoo, this curly hair product contains stronger cleansing agents designed to help remove excess buildup, including hard water residue that can leave your hair feeling heavy and limp. Clarifying shampoo washes away these impurities, leaving your curls refreshed and healthy.

What Does Clarifying Shampoo Do?

Clarifying is the process of removing unwanted scalp build-up and residues on your curly hair. You can think of it as hitting the reset button and restoring your hair to its most natural state. 

To get the best results, it’s important to understand what clarifying shampoo is and how it works. Here are some key benefits:

• Deep cleanses to help remove dirt, oil, and product buildup.
• Helps eliminate impurities & unwanted residues for a fresh, weightless feel.
• Helps remove hard water buildup, including minerals like calcium and copper.
• Detoxifies the scalp, promoting a healthier environment for hair.
• Enhances moisture absorption, allowing conditioners and treatments to work more effectively.

A clarifying shampoo resets your hair, leaving it refreshed, revived, and ready to absorb all the good stuff!

Why Does Curly Hair Need Clarifying? 

Curly hair needs clarifying to help ensure it absorbs all of your favorite products. If your hair stops absorbing the moisturizing products you apply, it may be because it needs clarifying. Once clarified, this allows your products to truly work their magic.

Curly hair needs clarifying in order to:

1. Remove built up products at the scalp - Clarifying your hair means your scalp can breathe! Many people use multiple products on their hair on a daily or weekly basis. Over time, these will start to build up
2. Allow moisture into your hair - Your curls may be lacking moisture if you haven’t clarified recently. This can lead to tresses becoming dry and brittle and ultimately lead to hair breakage and dull hair. What clarifying shampoo does is it helps to remove this build up. Therefore, allowing moisture and hydrating hair products to re-enter the hair, and let your curls thrive.
3. Help boost scalp health - Clarifying your curls regularly is totally safe and along with regular shampooing a necessary step to maintain your hair and scalp health. For those with curly hair, it may seem strange to want to remove oils. This is because we’re always being told how important penetrating hair oils are for our hair. However, if we don’t clarify, product and scalp sebum build-up can risk weighing down the hair. This can lead to hair becoming oily and limp.

The Best Clarifying Shampoo for Curly Hair 

An example of a clarifying shampoo that is formulated specifically for curly hair types is our Curl Reset Detox Shampoo. 

The new updated formula contains a perfect fusion of nature and science. Powered by;

Apple Cider Vinegar: Known for its traditional use as a scalp treatment.

Ginger Root: A natural botanical ingredient known for improving the look and feel of hair.

Peppermint Oil: An essential oil from peppermint plants used as an emollient in hair for its soothing benefits.

This formula works with gentle micellar surfactants to lift away buildup, while a naturally derived chelating agent binds to metal ions and effortlessly rinses them away. The result? A clean scalp, refreshed curls, and the removal of 8 minerals including copper and calcium that can weigh your hair down.

How to Use Clarifying Shampoo

For best results, you’ll want to use clarifying shampoo on wet hair every 4-5 washes. It should not be used in the same manner as a more regular shampoo or co-wash due to its detoxing nature.

To use clarifying shampoo on curly hair, follow these simple steps:

1. Wet your hair thoroughly, then dispense a generous blob of product, working it into your palms before applying directly to the scalp.
2. Massage gently but vigorously to break down dirt, product build-up, and hard water minerals.
3. Rinse thoroughly until water runs clear. Then repeat.
4. Follow with your favorite Curlsmith® Conditioner.

How Often Should You Clarify Your Curls?

We recommend using a clarifying shampoo every 4-5 washes. 

Using this product at this frequency helps to cleanse and reset your curls and helps leave your scalp  with less build up without over-cleansing your hair. The most common mistake people can make is treating a clarifying shampoo like regular shampoo. For the best results, it should be used alongside your regular shampoo.

If you need more help determining how often you should wash your hair, what your curl type is, and which products are best to treat it, take our curl quiz.

When to Use Clarifying Shampoo

Using clarifying shampoo means knowing when your hair may need a deeper cleanse. Whilst we recommend using a clarifying shampoo every 4-5 washes, there are some other signs to look out for to know when you may need to use clarifying shampoo on your curls, coils, or waves. By feeling and looking at the scalp, you can determine for yourself when it’s best for you to use this hair treatment. 

Use a clarifying shampoo on your hair when:

1. It’s greasy - Can you physically feel the buildup of products on your hair? Or if you feel like your hair needs a deep clean to transform it to strong curls once more, you may want to reach for the clarifying shampoo.
2. Your hair is dry - Dryness can be a sign of product build up. You will notice this if your hair feels very dry even after deep conditioning, so you may want to clarify.
3. Your hair is weighed down - If your hair feels weighed down, leaving you to reach for volumizing hair products. If your curls don’t have their usual bounce and curl pattern, it might be time to clarify.
4. Products don’t work the same - If your favorite products don’t give you your desired results anymore, you may need to clarify.
5. Your hair feels dirty even after washing - If your hair still feels dirty once you have washed it, you may need to use a clarifying shampoo to help remove build up.
6. Your curls are limp, lifeless and lack definition - A sign you need to wash your hair with a clarifying shampoo is if your curls are limp and lacking definition. This is because build up could be weighing your curls down and not letting them thrive.

Clarifying vs Regular Shampoo vs Co-wash

Comparing a regular shampoo, co-wash, and clarifying shampoo is the best way to see the real differences. After all, they treat our hair in very different ways, despite sharing similarities. When it comes to all our shampoos, here’s what you need to know:

• They are formulated specifically with waves, curls and coils in mind.
• They are made without sulphates and silicone.

Trust Your Curls to Curlsmith 

At Curlsmith, we use curl-friendly ingredients to create our curly, coily hair products and wavy hair products. We never use sulfates, silicones or parabens, and our ranges are all cruelty-free and vegan hair products.