So I told a friend, then she told a friend, and so on, and so on…

It is the end of week three and this will be my final word on “no shampoo.”

Ironically, about a week before I started my experiment, I bought a big bottle of nice shampoo and conditioner.  I am happy to say that it is no longer in my shower (and no worries, I gave it away, so it wasn’t put to waste!).

In other words…success!

My new routine

• I rinse my hair thoroughly with warm water;
• I spray the apple cider vinegar mixture on my hair and massage it into the scalp (I haven’t been using the baking soda at all – too drying for my hair);
• I put conditioner on the ends of my hair (it is still very dry);
• I use a little Aubrey® Organics’ B5 Design Gel;
• I put a little (VERY little) bit of coconut oil on the ends of my hair, which makes it smooth and shiny (the coconut oil rinses out very easily);
• I have still not experienced any oiliness over the three weeks (but I do now believe that it was because of the stressed, dried out condition of my hair);
• I have been letting my hair dry naturally (I have only used my hair dryer once all weekend!);
• No hairspray.

Results

My hair is shinier and softer than it has been in YEARS.  Interestingly, it has much more natural wave than I realized (I must have been beating it out of my hair!).  The humidity has little effect on it (just a little fuzziness on the dry ends).  I am not shedding very much hair at all (little to no shower drain cleaning).  I think I found a routine that works well for my hair type and its condition, and I feel comfortable adjusting my routine as necessary.

OK…so I am not “product-free” just yet.  The ends of my hair are still quite dry and my hair is so fine that using a little gel helps give it some oomph.  I found a great organic product line – Aubrey® Organics (http://www.aubrey-organics.com/).  They use all natural, organic ingredients and have several different products for many different hair types.  While I don’t use shampoo anymore myself, I noted that they do not use detergents in their shampoos.  (Note:  They carry skin and body care products, as well, which I haven’t yet tried.)

I have a friend who was inspired to try “no shampoo” herself.  She found that quitting shampoo cold turkey did not work for her.  My suggestion is to taper down more gradually.  Wash your hair every three days, then go four, etc.

I hope this has inspired others to try it, as well – if so, good luck!  If you find that you don’t like it, you can always just wash your hair.

Angela, She of the Happy Hair 🙂

Does she or doesn’t she?

Shampoo, that is.

Since I was a teenager, I have been at war with my hair.  For most of my life, I have had very fine, wimpy locks, with which I have never been happy.  You always want what you don’t have, eh?

I came into the world as a blonde, my hair started to darken as I entered my teens, and by the time I was in high school, I was lightening it to keep it blonde.  Since that time, I alternated between blonde, auburn and brunette shades.  My hair has been both very long and very short.  I have used hair dryers, curling irons and flat irons.

Over the last few years, I have noticed many changes in the texture of my hair; I now have gray strands here and there, and it has become very dry, wavy and frizzy.  I am sure that aging, the many years of processing, use of appliances, sweating while working out, as well as stress all play roles in its current condition.

I have been curious for a few years now about the “no shampoo” movement.  I started researching the use of shampoo – its benefits and drawbacks.  What I discovered is that there really is no great benefit to using shampoo.  In fact, it is not good for your hair.

The quick and dirty on shampoo

Shampoo has really only been prevalent since the 1970s. Before then, either regular soap was used (just a few times a month) or, just after the early 20th century, shampoo was used only a few times a year!

Shampoo is a detergent.  It contains ingredients like ammonium chloride, glycol, mineral oil, polysorbate, ammonium lauryl sulfate (ALS), sodium lauryl sulfate (SLS) – sometimes even formaldehyde!  SLS and its cousin ALS are used because they are inexpensive detergents.  There are many studies underway to determine the safety of these ingredients, but the jury is still out on the results.  Keeping up with the public’s desire to move away from sulfates, companies like L’Oreal have formulated shampoos and conditioners that are now “sulfate-free.”  It is clever marketing for this current trend, but these products still contain other detergents.

Using shampoo (especially if used daily) removes sebum (the oil produced by the scalp).  To compensate for this loss, the sebaceous glands produce oil at a higher rate.  This basically creates a shampoo addiction.  It takes some time after you stop using the shampoo for the oil to produce at a normal rate.

Dirty hair?

Keep in mind that “no shampoo” does not mean that you are not cleaning your hair.  Some people use a baking soda and/or vinegar solution and some simply use warm water to thoroughly rinse their hair.

If one doesn’t use much product (gel, pomades, hair sprays), then they may be able to get by with just thoroughly rinsing the hair with warm water.

Baking soda is the weakest of all alkali of sodium compounds and can be used to help remove product build-up.  Mix one tablespoon baking soda per one cup of water.  Put the mixture into a squeeze bottle that you can keep in the shower.  Once applied, massage into scalp and leave it in hair for one minute, then rinse.  It can be very drying, so unless the hair is really oily, this should not be used more than a few times a week.

Apple cider vinegar is a mild acidic made from fermenting apples.  You can find it at any grocery store.  On the hair, it helps to clarify, detangle, seal the cuticle and balance the hair’s pH level.  The solution is two tablespoons apple cider vinegar per one cup of water.  As with the baking soda mixture, put it into a squeeze bottle or spray bottle, apply to wet hair, massage into scalp and rinse with cool water.  This also does not need to be done more than a few times a week.

Check out Babyslime’s Journal at http://babyslime.livejournal.com/174054.html#bad for additional information and more “recipes” for shampoo-free hair.

Time to experiment – Week One

So I am going to give it a go!  I have already gone one week completely shampoo-free.  As I enter week two, I am definitely seeing changes.

After washing (either just rinsing with warm water or using baking soda), my hair is incredibly soft, fluffy and wavy.  However, I have noticed that by the end of the day, it feels a little heavy and my scalp looks a little oily.  But based on everything that I have read thus far, this is normal for the “transition period” (first 1-2 weeks).  I also noticed that using pomades or serums (to smooth frizzies) is not such a good thing; it builds up very quickly and does not rinse out well.  A nice alternative is coconut oil (just to smooth out the ends), but use very little or your hair will look greasy.

My hair does not look very pretty right now and I am feeling very tempted to just wash with shampoo!  However, I have resisted thus far and I hope that by making my experiment public (via my blog), I will stay motivated to carry on.

Until next week, please wish me luck.

Angela, Soon-to-be Former Product Junkie 🙂

References:

1. Babyslime’s Journal (http://babyslime.livejournal.com/174054.html#bad)
2. Wikipedia.org, “Shampoo”