Hi firyspell. as you know, I`m no fan of frequent shampooing..it `lifts`the colour and is not really necessary. Also dries out the hair. When it IS necessary, about 2 teaspoonfuls of shampoo in a basin of lukewarm water is sufficient.....I allow the system to sit in it for about 2 mins., then simply dunk it in and out of the water a few times before rinsing it under running water...then I apply my conditioner liberally and brush it through with a rounded-tip nylon bristled brush[a normal comb can snag on the lace and tear it] and allow it to sit in the[now-empty] basin for anything up to half an hour. I only shampoo when/if the hair begins to look a little `tired`/lifeless [mostly] due to product build-up..even leave-in conditioners eventually can build-up to a point where you need to `freshen up` the hair with a light shampoo/conditioning.
In between shampooing etc., I simply mist with water and then use a leave-in conditioner... I think the ``It`s a 10`` provides good `volume`/ `body` to the hair and feels/looks as if there is Silicon in it..but it`s not listed in the ingredients.....I apply it when I can feel the hair beginning to feel coarse/dry....I was out working in the garden 2 days ago and was really sweating ...I simply came in, removed the system and rinsed it under running water to simply remove the sweat from the lace..the hair itself is not dirty as such... the acids in sweat will shorten the lifespan of any base material, so rinsing it out will prolong the life of your system...... once I blotted the hair dry, I simply sprayed on a few darts of `It`s a 10` and brushed it through, then styled the hair again....I find it `lasts`for a few days without further applications required....I simply feel the hair and if it feels like it`s beginning to `dry` I mist with water and apply a bit more product...I must say, it does hold it`s softness and tends to hold the hair into whatever style you`ve created...... I guess it`s a matter of seeing what works best for you, but I`d say just apply it when you feel the hair requires it....but you won`t need a daily application in my experience of it so far.... you can actually `feel`this product in the hair when you touch the hair but it doesn`t `log`the hair down provided you don`t get carried away when applying it. So far, very happy with it.. Paul.