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<h1>Vaseline In The Hair</h1>
<div>by Karen Marie Shelton</div> 
<H1>Introduction </H1>
Today I had yet another Ask Karen "hair disaster" email. A mom wrote to tell me that her 15 year old daughter had used Vaseline to create faux dreads on her gorgeous waist length hair.&nbsp; 
The good news was that the faux dreads turned out great.&nbsp; Unfortunately, the bad news was that the Vaseline could not be removed from the hair.&nbsp; Nothing worked.&nbsp; After many unsuccessful shampoo attempts the mom decided that the only option was the scissors.&nbsp; Luckily she decided to email me before she took this last irreversible step.
Is there a way to remove Vaseline from the hair without scissors?&nbsp; Yes, absolutely.&nbsp; The treatment that I describe below works about 90% of the time after the first treatment.&nbsp; It will work 99% of the time after two treatments.
Steps For Removing Vaseline From The Hair 
STEP 1: Take a paper towel and blot as much of the Vaseline from the hair as possible onto the paper towel. Do not rub as this can damage the hair. Blot and pat carefully. 
STEP 2: Apply a little cornstarch or cornmeal powder (do not use baby powder as it can be harmful to the lungs) to the sections of the hair that contains the Vaseline. Blot or pat the cornstarch onto the hair. Again, do not rub.&nbsp; Make sure that the entire area of Vaseline is covered with a light amount of the cornstarch or cornmeal powder.
STEP 3: Once the hair has been completely covered step into a warm, not hot, shower. Apply a good clarifying shampoo to the palms of your hand and then apply to the hair.&nbsp;
STEP 4: Shampoo twice to make sure that all the cornstarch and the Vaseline are removed from your hair.
STEP 5: Rinse with warm water until clear.
STEP 6: Apply a good rinse out conditioner to your hair.&nbsp; This is important since the two applications of clarifying shampoo will tend to dry out most hair.
STEP 7: Rinse well and do a cool or cold water final rinse.
STEP 8: Towel blot hair. apply detangler, pick out tangles and then let the hair air dry.
If all the Vaseline is not removed during the first treatment, do another treatment in 24 hours. That should successfully eliminate all of the Vaseline residue. 
Why do you have to use cornstarch or cornmeal powder? The cornstarch binds with the Vaseline and allows it to be carried out of the hair by the shampoo. Without a binding agent (like cornstarch or cornflower) the Vaseline just remains attached to the hair cuticle.
Although some visitors have reported success with white flour and other similar binding agents, the best results seem to be guaranteed with the cornstarch or cornmeal powder

Text Version

Vaseline In The Hair
by Karen Marie Shelton

Introduction 
Today I had yet another Ask Karen "hair disaster" email. A mom wrote to tell me that her 15 year old daughter had used Vaseline to create faux dreads on her gorgeous waist length hair.&nbsp; 
The good news was that the faux dreads turned out great.&nbsp; Unfortunately, the bad news was that the Vaseline could not be removed from the hair.&nbsp; Nothing worked.&nbsp; After many unsuccessful shampoo attempts the mom decided that the only option was the scissors.&nbsp; Luckily she decided to email me before she took this last irreversible step.
Is there a way to remove Vaseline from the hair without scissors?&nbsp; Yes, absolutely.&nbsp; The treatment that I describe below works about 90% of the time after the first treatment.&nbsp; It will work 99% of the time after two treatments.
Steps For Removing Vaseline From The Hair 
STEP 1: Take a paper towel and blot as much of the Vaseline from the hair as possible onto the paper towel. Do not rub as this can damage the hair. Blot and pat carefully. 
STEP 2: Apply a little cornstarch or cornmeal powder (do not use baby powder as it can be harmful to the lungs) to the sections of the hair that contains the Vaseline. Blot or pat the cornstarch onto the hair. Again, do not rub.&nbsp; Make sure that the entire area of Vaseline is covered with a light amount of the cornstarch or cornmeal powder.
STEP 3: Once the hair has been completely covered step into a warm, not hot, shower. Apply a good clarifying shampoo to the palms of your hand and then apply to the hair.&nbsp;
STEP 4: Shampoo twice to make sure that all the cornstarch and the Vaseline are removed from your hair.
STEP 5: Rinse with warm water until clear.
STEP 6: Apply a good rinse out conditioner to your hair.&nbsp; This is important since the two applications of clarifying shampoo will tend to dry out most hair.
STEP 7: Rinse well and do a cool or cold water final rinse.
STEP 8: Towel blot hair. apply detangler, pick out tangles and then let the hair air dry.
If all the Vaseline is not removed during the first treatment, do another treatment in 24 hours. That should successfully eliminate all of the Vaseline residue. 
Why do you have to use cornstarch or cornmeal powder? The cornstarch binds with the Vaseline and allows it to be carried out of the hair by the shampoo. Without a binding agent (like cornstarch or cornflower) the Vaseline just remains attached to the hair cuticle.
Although some visitors have reported success with white flour and other similar binding agents, the best results seem to be guaranteed with the cornstarch or cornmeal powder

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