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Hydroxyethylcellulose Gel
Hi,
I’m trying to make a HEC based gel that tames kinky/coily hair AND behaves with cationic conditioners. I have noticed a visible reaction (i.e. white chunks in the hair) between carbomer and anything cationic which makes sense (I have a BS in Chemistry, but not in cosmetic science). I made a test batch of HEC gel with just water and HEC at 2% by mixing at room temp and waiting 25 minutes for it to hydrate. I applied this to my hair, and when it dried, it flaked HORRIBLY. Am I doing something wrong? Is this normal? Nothing else was on my hair for it to react with. Please help! -
5 Replies
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There is a lot of previous information on this if you search the forum.
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Ok, thanks. I guess I didn’t look back far enough.
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Yeah, that’s a problem with HEC as a gel base. Carbomer just works best. Instead of using cationic conditioners, just use other conditioning ingredients like humectants.
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very interesting!
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You could use a plasticizer as Perry said, but it’s very unusual that HEC is used as the main ingredient in hair gels. It’s generally carbomers, pvp and other fixatives with some humectants, though TAFT types are a slightly different chemistry nonetheless very effective.
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