by I’m on day two of a “no shampoo” experiment…
Upon browsing Mrs. Brigham’s wonderful site, I came across a link to an article on going “Shampoo Free”. Intrigued, I went and read the whole thing. Kind of raised my eyebrows a bit, but gradually I warmed to the idea. Especially since I’ve been reading warnings about toxic chemicals such as propylene glycol and sodium lauryl sulfate for a few months now, and it’s in everything–shampoo included.
So yesterday morning I gave this “no-poo” idea a whirl. You definitely should read the article for the whys and wherefores, but basically, you wash your hair in a solution of baking soda and warm water (1 TB baking soda to 1 cup warm water) and then rinse it a couple of times a week with apple cider vinegar in cool water (1-2 TB ACV to 1 cup water). And just so you know, I have to wash my hair every day. Have to, can’t stand the teensiest bit of oiliness.
Initial reaction…
I missed the suds. I missed the fresh smell. I’m an Infusium 23 gal, and still have a half full bottle on the ledge of our bathtub. I thought, there is no way my long hair isn’t going to be a tangled mess after this… And I made a mental note to be extremely careful if I put my daughters through this latest whim of mine. Baking soda in the mouth is nasty-blech, and apple cider vinegar…well, it tends to burn one’s eyes!
Good points…
I have long hair, and lose a lot of it each time I shampoo. This time I hardly lost any…and wonder of wonders, combing my wet hair couldn’t have been easier. It’s not a stretch to say that it combed through even better than when I do my normal shampoo/conditioner routine. I did comb it out carefully before washing, because with hair past my shoulder blades I need all the help I can get!
I was also worried about the smell…but there is no lingering vinegar scent…believe me, I asked my girls to sniff me several times!
And finally, my scalp has been dry and itchy lately…not to the point of flaking and dandruff, but annoyingly so. With the baking soda/vinegar method, the itching decreased significantly. Now I’m wondering if the condition was caused by the detergents and toxins in my shampoo!
Conclusion
I’ve done the baking soda/vinegar wash twice now. My hair is just as clean as it was with the store bought shampoo and conditioner. It even feels as though its had a deep conditioning treatment, very soft and moisturized. I’ll continue this for a while to see if the benefits continue or increase. Here’s hoping!
Now to figure out a good container in which to store the baking soda and apple cider vinegar! Any ideas?
I’d love hearing from you guys on this…have you done it or a similar alternative? Please share in comments!
I have heard for light colored hair to use just plain white vinegar. I always put vinegar in my rinse water in the laundry. I haven’t tried it on my hair though.
Interesting..I was wondering the same thing, what a good container would be.
Oh…I am assuming that this new shampoo would be less costly, would you agree?
This is the good stuff I miss when I don’t get online! A few months ago I read about a similar wash and considered trying it, but I was out of town and I forgot about it until now. I’m going to give this combo a try today though! Excited about it!
Like Colleen mentioned, I think it would be cheaper, which is always additional motivation to give something a try. I wash my hair daily and as you said, I too cannot stand if my hair feels even a tad oily!
Thanks for sharing this
Amy
I would recommend a sports bottle. You know how they are designed to squirt the liquid. If you use this on your girls let me know. It does make you think about using baby shampoo.
I’m excited about this. I’m going to try it tomorrow. I do know in the summer I soak my rough feet in warm water with a cup of vinegar in it. They become so soft. I also soak my shower head in it, I think it dissolves the hard minerals in the water, on my feet, and maybe coating our hair? This can turn into a science experiment for me. I have been switching our hand soap in the bathrooms to the hemp/cleanliness is next to Godliness type soaps (Dr. Bronner) and I have been making our own laundry soap for pennies… This is the next thing I guess. Laundry soap: http://www.thefamilyhomestead.com/laundrysoap.htm
By the way, I haven’t been commenting as much because our eldest daughter is finding herself smitten (mutually) for the first time, and Dan and I have been e-mail corresponding with the young man. This is new territory for us, and kinda fun/scary. He is a young man at our church whom my husband is impressed with. My daughter is nervous/happy/fearful/careful…She has guarded her heart so well she’s not sure how to proceed. Thank God she talks everything over with us. We are in uncharted seas. Have people got experience here? We have studied “courtship” and found some good practical ideas, but too stringent overall. But, no way are our kids going to “date”. Where is the middle ground?
Cena
What a cool idea, Mary – seems that you could also use essential oils…I should get some of Mom’s books on that.
Cena, I don’t really “know” you, but would like to comment on your comment, if I may! My children are 2 & almost 1, so I have no parenting advice on courtship/dating, but I very much respect what my husband’s parents and my parents did for us before we were married. I believe they found that middle ground. Our families were already good friends, and had heard about courtship, but also thought it was just too…strict, for lack of a better word. They also were not about to let us date anyone, nilly willy! Neither of us had ever had a previous boyfried or girlfriend. I don’t know how old your daughter is, but we were not allowed to go anywhere or do anything without at least one sibling along (usually we got to babysit all our siblings while our parents went on a double date! He is the oldest of 8, I’m the oldest of 5.) We also got together as families and had great evenings of fun. This was my junior & senior year of high school. During our 2 years of college – we both got associate’s degrees – we were allowed to go out on a “date” once in a while, but our parents were still very involved, and there was a time when our parents pulled the plug for a month or two, because they were concerned we were going too fast – they were right, although I would never have admitted it at the time. We made it through that though, and were better for it. We were married the March after we graduated. And now 5 years of marriage later, I’m SO THANKFUL my parents were as involved as they were, and as reasonable as they were. There was great comfort in that. We knew our parents wanted the best for us, and would listen to how we felt. I’m so thankful I wasn’t permitted to do whatever I wanted, and know that my marriage is stronger for it. Be strong! Guard your daughter! And encourage her to go very slowly. I’ll be praying for you!
Actually I’ll tell you what, years ago I found a herbal recipe for hair conditioner, here’s what you do:
drop some sprigs of Rosemary in a bowl of hot boiled water, let it sit for a few hours, strain it then use the cold liquid on your hair. It actually works and my hair was soft and scented. Worth a try 😀
Thank you, thank you Haley. That’s what I want to hear, real life stories. My husband read “I Kissed Dating Goodbye” to all the kids a few years ago for discussion purposes and that was great. I’ve read some things. But books are books.
We also had a father of a different young man come to my husband to ask if his son could court Jessica (then 16.) He was a family friend, and we’ve known them forever, but Jessica never had feelings for him in a special way, so we kept telling them we didn’t think so… until finally recently we said no, she is sure now. But they never dated at all.
Jessica is a few weeks shy of 19, and Joel is 21. Our families are not friends (yet), they live a few towns away and go to a different church. But we were able to help with his brothers large outdoor wedding last year, and my husband got to work with Joel (the best man) quite a bit, and really likes him. He told Jessica he admired her a couple of months ago and wanted to get to know her better. Then he has spoken to Dan & I several times. He is respectful, and quite willing to get to know our whole family. He gave us his My Space blog address and we were able to read a few years worth of blog entries, which was informative. He has also stated that we could ask him anything, however personal, and he would do his best to communicate. Good start. They went to Mexico on a mission trip this summer in a group, and some college group outings, in a group. They are on the staff together with our Jr High/High School group, and so are at staff meetings together. Jessica is doing power point for worship music, and Jr High girls counseling at winter camp in a few weeks. Joel will be there and his father will be in the sound booth doing sound with Jessica. Joel says his father is nervous because he has told him how awesome Jessica is.
They are also going on a group outing next week in a group to see the Nutcracker in San Fransisco. Everyone will be dressed up, semi formal. She is looking forward to this more now than ever…She is a little afraid. We have taught her to keep her heart and she has alot of self control. She has never even really let herself like someone before, and now is unsure how to do so, or if she wants to. She is attracted to him and needs to get to know him better, but is afraid of her emotions. She told us she never knew how fragile emotions could be, and how vulnerable it would feel to let some out! She is also concerned that she likes him because she enjoys the thought of him liking her, the attention.
My husband thinks it would be okay to let them spend a little time together to talk, so they are going for a drive to his brother & sister in law’s home Saturday (Jessica and the newlyweds are good friends.) They live 40 minutes away, and are going to make Christmas cookies and play scrabble. They want the car time to talk. I’m okay with this, as they are both trustworthy.
I like the idea about having siblings around. His or Jessica’s would probably work in this case.
It’s just uncharted ground for us…Thank you for your prayers.
Cena
Thanks for the additional tip, Andrea…I couldn’t believe all the info at the original website…Haley, they even mention which kinds of essential oils to use for certain conditions, such as tea tree oil for itchy scalps, etc. I needed to reread the article to get the full benefit!
Colleen, I’d say much much cheaper! I like Andrea’s idea of putting it in the squirt bottle, but the recommendation is to apply the baking soda with warm water…so that’s where I’m stumped. I think I’d have to keep the powder in a sealed jar or something. I did have a oil/vinegar type carafe that I never use, it’s smallish, so I filled it with the vinegar…
Amy, let us know how you like it! I’m on day 3 now, and this was my first day to not use the apple cider vinegar rinse. It still combed through great, as if I’d used conditioner! I can’t believe it. It’s got to be better for my scalp/hair. But not sudsing up is my biggest challenge…I soooo love the feeling that it’s “doing” something! And the smell…
Cena, I’m so glad Haley shared her courtship/dating experience. She and her husband are definitely a God-match, and I was blessed to be around when they were both growing up and discovering each other! Fun to watch…and to see them now with two little girls! As for me, I’m reading and learning too in similarly uncharted territories! My oldest just today got her “sex” ed on how mother’s get pregnant, my face is scarlet just typing it out! I hope we always can talk freely, much as you do with Jessica…what a blessing to have you so involved! Joel sounds wonderful! He couldn’t be more open, imo, especially considering how most guys his age are these days! Where did she ever find him??? 😉 I’m sorry I don’t have much advice, but you surely have my prayers for wisdom! And, btw, thanks for the link to the homemade laundry detergent! Do you find that it gets greasy stains, etc, out pretty well? I’ve got a recipe, posted it here on the blog once, I’m curious how it compares to yours…will check that link out!
Amy, thanks for the rosemary conditioner tip! I really like this so far, and to keep me hooked, I’m going to need the scent added…I’m just a little finicky that way!
Mary, My hair looks clean, but feels different. I’ll do it again tomorrow…I have the vinegar & water in a sports bottle, and I have an old tupperware cup in the bathroom that I put a couple of TBLS of soda in and brought it in the shower with me. I just have to remember to fill and bring it in each time I guess. Our well water is extremely hard, so this is interesting. I was surprised to find it comb out so well afterwards, it didn’t feel like it would…and my hair gets very tangly.
The laundry soap works fine, but when I have a greasy or grassy stain, I automatically rub it well with a bar of fels naptha (a laundry bar soap, found at hardware stores) before washing, so I don’t know if it works well without. I can go thru alot of laundry soap in our household, so it saves money, and I know whats in it, and it works fine.
So, Jessica’s “first date” is coming over a little early Saturday to speak with Dan & I. Dan needs to give him the “you need to be ‘me’ when you have my daughter out. Keep her safe, respected, and make sure she has a good time, just like I would if I had my daughter out.” We only have done this once before, when our 15 year old daughter went to the public high school Winter Formal with a young man from church. Dan asked him the funniest questions “what would you do if” questions about driving, what if a fight broke out at the dance, what if someone she doesn’t know asks her to dance, who do you call if you have car problems (Dan!). We went to bed that night chuckling about how fun it can be to interview the boys, but that was just a fun date. This one has potential to be different.
Thanks for sharing how the mixture worked on you…I know, there is definitely a difference in the feel. The first time, for me, it was really noticeable. It’s not so much now. That time, it was almost as if I had a leave in conditioner or something that made my hair feel heavier, but it still looked the same as it usually did after a normal shampoo. We have hard water also…and no water softener. I’m sold on this!
Your laundry soap recipe is the same as mine, except that mine calls for Zote soap…I did have a commenter on that post leave her recipe which is exactly like yours, with the Fels Naptha. I must admit, I’ve never made this laundry soap…like I said in the original post, I was hanging on to it “for a rainy day”…but it makes so much financial sense, I really need to put the items on my next shopping list.
Well, if Joel is man enough to handle the dad interview then he’s that much more of a keeper! I hope all goes wonderfully for everyone! Excited for Jessica!
Btw, I went back to my old laundry post and added your link to it…that site has great info on the price breakdown (less than a penny a load–can’t beat that!) as well as a link to a picture tutorial. Thanks again, Cena!
Here’s the link to my post:
http://homesteepedhope.com/2007/01/24/laundry-loot-tips-and-money-savers/
Yes, today my hair feels as if it has a “coating” on it, but it’s clean and not dull…
Oh, I’ve used zote, fels naptha, and ivory soap in the laundry recipe. Ivory was not the favorite, but they all cleaned the laundry! This laundry soap making process takes about 10 minutes altogether and most of that time is waiting for the water to get hot in the pan! Go for it.
Most of my friends think I’m a little overboard maybe, but I’ll do much to save money, and I believe all the little bits add up. I read The Tightwad Gazette to inspire me.
I tried the baking soda & vinegar yesterday. My hair was a bit oily before I started, so I had my doubts. Like you, Mary, I really had a problem with no suds. After washing and combing…I was amazed that there were no tangles, I asked my husband if I smelled funny. He promptly replied, “Like vingar.” So back to the shower I went. The second time around, he didn’t smell anything. After drying my hair, there wasn’t a lingering smell and my hair looked just like it normally does. I don’t know if it was coincidence or the mixture, but my hair had a little extra volume… not much, but a small different that I noted. There was no trace of oil and it looked as clean as if I’d have shampooed! I love this… so impressed!
Someone else mentioned this, but how safe would this be for my daughter (13 mos)? I guess the vinegar could potentially burn her eyes if it got in them. Any ideas on safer body soap?
I’m so eager to hear more about Jessica & her outing with Joel! As a mother to one baby girl, I know these days are ahead…eager to hear how other Christian mom’s are handling courtship as opposed to dating.
I’m interested to in how it does on babies. Tomorrow is bath night might try it without vinegar on oldest.
So fun to have you guys trying it with me! I have done it four mornings in a row now as of yesterday morning, and tonight w/no wash this morning, my hair is not showing much if any oil. Not like it normally does! I’m still planning on a bath later on though, old habits die hard! I am still losing about the same amount of hair (normal amounts for long hair probably) but have had NO scalp itching!!! I haven’t tried it on my girls yet…but when I do, I doubt I’ll use the vinegar rinse very often. According to that site, the vinegar rinse is something you only need to do once every few washes anyway.
I keep thinking how easy this would be for short-haired people, such as husbands and toddlers! It takes so little, and there really is no lingering smell. The bathroom always smells slightly vinegary, but my hair doesn’t. My daughters actually told me my hair almost smells like my normal shampoo still. Strange! But I definitely want to get some essential oils and try them. Though I suppose that might backfire and make my hair oily???
I guess the reason I haven’t tried it on my girls yet is that all but the 3 yo wash their own hair and with this being baking soda, etc, I’d have to supervise really closely to make sure it doesn’t get in their eyes. Also, I know they are going to really miss their suds and scents…they are as spoiled as their mama!
Cena, thanks so much for the encouragement/info on trying this laundry detergent! I hope to get the ingredients sometime after the holidays, or sooner if I don’t forget. I still have plenty of Gain to use up, but I already have Borax on hand, so will only need the other two ingredients. I plan on saving my empty detergent bottle to use for this new laundry mix!
Amy, the first two days my hair also felt like it had a bit more volume. So I don’t think it’s a coincidence. So glad you like it so far! I think I’m willing for the inconvenience, just knowing it’s better for my hair/scalp!
This made me start to think about all of the uses for vinegar a quick search on line lead me to the vinegar university and its lists of tips. it is powerful stuff. http://www.versatilevinegar.org/usesandtips.html
It is amazing, I’ve been thinking the same thing, Andrea, glad to have this link! I know I’ve used vinegar and baking soda for dishwasher detergent, to clean the refrigerator/freezer, vinegar in the rinse cycle, apple cider vinegar by teaspoon for immunity, and now in my hair! I’m curious to see how many more uses there are for it!
Thanks!
Hi…I kinda skimmed through the posts so sorry if I missed something and say it again.
Cena-I have been using Dr. Bronner’s soaps too in our hand dispensers in kitchen and bathroom (I have one dispenser in the house with anti-bacterial but the rest is all the Almond Dr. Bronner’s and it smells good enough to eat!!).
Also, I skimmed through your questions about the dating, etc. I grew up in a family that was very strict (with me anyways since I was the oldest). I have a few things I’d like to add and hopefully you can glean some useful information from them. My parents, as I said, were more strict with me than with any of my siblings. They never talked with me about stuff and if I did start to talk about stuff to do with boys then they would act like I was a devilish girl and out for trouble, etc. Which I wasn’t…I was the shyest girl and not even interested in boys till I was older. However, because of the lack of trust, talking, etc. when I reached 19, I was more interested in boys and when my parents and I didn’t see eye to eye (plus we never talked about it other than for my parents to talk negatively about me) then I moved out. I was in and out of their place over the next 3 years and, because I didn’t really know any better, I went through my “wild” phase. I’m not blaming them, but it was a joint effort I feel because I didn’t have anyone to talk with about that kind of stuff. My younger sister and my Mom had a way more open relationship so she did not have near as many problems as I did when it came to the dating/scene. She did all of what you mentioned above (babysitting younger siblings as a date, etc.) She married her high school sweetheart.
What I mean to say is that make sure that no matter what happens keep your openness with your daughter at all costs. I wish I hadn’t been rebuked everytime I talked about my interests, otherwise I may never have moved out and been how I was. I was so unhappy at that time in my life and I feel that if only me and my parents could have talked more and they been more understanding then a lot of pain could have been prevented.
I think there is a happy medium. If you keep an eye on your daughter (while not openly acting like you don’t trust her judgement) and let her know you only want what’s best for her then you will be able to come to an understanding with her. My parents are way more open with all my younger siblings now and I think it’s because they were so strict with me they saw how it had adverse effects. She will thank you for it when she is older! Just always let her know she can talk about anything with you.
On a completely different note, I can’t wait to try this baking soda/vinegar treatment! I am on the lookout right now for containers suitable for them though, because I don’t want to lose all of it down the drain. I have heard of some people using a spray bottle for the vinegar though…haven’t tried it myself though.
Mary-I too have the really itchy scalp lately, though no dandruff…I think it’s the drier climate right now so I hope this helps with that!!
And to anyone who has tried the laundry detergent-how does it work for you? I want to try it but me, DH and LO all have sensitive skin so I am a little hesitant because I don’t want us all getting reactions from it lol…so any advice would be great thanks!
How neat that you gave no-poo a try, Mary! I have been using this method for almost two years now and have really loved it. Before “going crunchy” I put my poor hair through terrible abuses with lots of haircoloring, styling products, heat styling, and the like. I came to my senses and gave up my abusive hair ways, but there was *nothing* that could make my poor hair look any better. Finally, I came across no-poo and thought “why not?” My hair looked much better in just a few weeks, so I have been sticking it with ever since. :o)
Both my husband and daughter also use this. Sean has been using no-poo as long as I have, and Peapod just began about two months ago, upon learning to hold her head *way* back when I wash her hair. Prior to that, I used an Aubrey Organics baby shampoo on here. It is scent free and does not have all of those crazy unpronounceable ingredients as many other shampoos seem to have.
One note- should you become pregnant again or go through any other hormonal change type event, you may need to adjust your no-poo routine a bit. During pregnancy, I found that I only needed to do the baking soda wash twice a week, but right after pregnancy, my hair went a little kooky, so I was using the wash 3-4 times a week for a few months.
Question about homemade laundry detergent- Has anybody used this on their cloth diapers? I keep running across recipes and would really love to give it a try, but hold back for this simple (and probably even silly ;))reason.
Geri, your comments to Cena are something I relate to also…my parents are 40 years older than I am, and I think it was because of their generation’s view of certain topics being taboo that they really didn’t discuss these things with me either. Thankfully I had older sisters I felt comfortable talking with, but as a result, I’ve really tried to talk over a number of things with my girls, things I had no idea of until I was in my teen years! Kids need to be able to approach these topics with their parents without feeling that they are in for a “sermon”…hopefully with the right training from childhood on premarital sex and the sacredness of marriage, most of these virtues will be instilled w/o the need for any “cramming it down their throats” during their teenage years. At least that’s what I’m hoping!
Glad to know what you use for handsoap, Geri…I assume you get it at the health food store too? I’m getting such a long list now that I really should ask for a Christmas gift certificate to one! 😉
Mrs. Brigham, we’re having such fun with this no poo topic! I was thrilled to find out about it on your site…and thanks for coming here and sharing how long you’ve done it with success! I can’t imagine being able to wash my hair only 3 times a week! Maybe someday…
Please share what you store your baking soda and vinegar in? We’re all stumped!
I wish I had info for you on how the homemade laundry detergent works for cloth diapers…but I think it would work fabulously. I always used Borax in my diaper pail, and never had any smells…it’s great stuff. Maybe someone else here will be able to answer your question with more experience!
LOL yes I get that at the health food store too…my list is getting long for the health food store too. I keep stumbling across all these ideas on here and then wanting to try all these new things out!
I agree about washing hair 3 times a week-I can’t imagine being able to do that!! I wish!! My hair is so oily that I have to wash it once a day and sometimes I wish I had time to do it twice! Then once I got pregnant and since I’ve been nursing my hair has been dry (but still it gets that greasy look, if that makes sense) so I’m hoping this will work for it! And I’ve never heard of Borax in the diaper pail but I will have to try it! Thanks for the tip!
Geri, thank you for your openness about your relationship with your parents. I had a similar situation with my parents, and a similar reaction. My husband had to teach me to communicate with him, which has spilled over to all my relationships. I can really talk now! Jessica & I have good communication. Actually, Joel asked me if Jessica told me that they had been together at an outing, and asked if she’d told me they sat together at a dinner…he was belatedly asking if it was appropriate. I was thrilled to know in my heart that she HAD told me these things, and even shared how she FELT about it. My husband is a great communicator as well. He once had the girls do a fashion show with some clothes we were given. We get lots of hand me downs, and we love it. Well this was a few years back, when the t-shirts were short, and the jeans were getting low, not a modest pairing at our house. I would have thrown the whole thing out, but he had them try stuff on and show him. He said, “well now, those jeans are cute! Turn around. Hmmm, would you mind if all the young men were looking at your butt?” Cheeks turned red…He explained a bit about boys, and said he wanted his girls to look pretty, and in style. But not to attract attention to themselves in a sexy way. He gave some compromises too (which I had to just be very quiet during) where he said they could wear the tightish jeans along with a longer fuller top. The shorter t-shirts could go with a skirt that actually comes up to the waist. The extra low jeans were always inappropriate and had to go. Now that the layered look is in and longer tops, it all works as long as things aren’t too tight. So, we don’t all wear jeans dresses but his compromise works here in our family. AND HE TALKS TO THEM ABOUT IT! Geri, you’re right about how important that is, and I hope we’re doing enough of it.
That’s great!! I’m glad to hear that you guys are so open with your children! My parents would just take away or ruin anything that I had that they didn’t like…which in turn made me want to sneak those clothes in. I am ecstatic to hear about the fashion show and your DH talking to his daughters about it!! I can’t imagine my Dad being remotely like that…if he didn’t like something of ours it was out. And those compromises are such a great idea. I will definitely be borrowing those ideas!
I think that is so sweet that not only your daughter talked with you about Joel, but that he talked to you too!! Sounds like you are building a wonderful foundation for a good relationship between all of you as a family.
I am the same way about communication. Me and DH are always working on it. Growing up, if I was upset I hid it usually, so now DH is constantly working on me trying to get me to be more open. I’m usually good at telling him everything, but sometimes when I’m upset about something that I know will upset him I’m hesitant to open up. I revert back to my younger self, even though I know that DH is entirely different and wants me to be open with him. Luckily we’re still young and hopefully have many years to work on these issues.
Ok, I did the “no poo” for three days now and today after washing, my hair seems a bit oily…not much but a tad. Wondering if I’m using too much vinegar or something like that? I used to shampoo daily, so maybe my hair just has to adjust?
Also, Saturday night I used the baking soda on my one year old’s hair. It has to be safer than regular baby shampoo. Her hair looked perfectly normal. I did avoid the vinegar (for now).
Amy M, ;), I really goofed this weekend!!! I was in a hurry to bathe before our holiday dinner and forgot to take my spoonful of baking soda to the bathroom (yes, I still hadn’t put it in a container!)…so I reverted and used my normal shampoo! Horrors began the next day! It was Sunday morning and I went back to the baking soda/vinegar and just from using the shampoo the night before, my hair was sooo flat and thick-feeling and nasty, I couldn’t believe it! I think it got spoiled to what “really clean” feels like, and my shampoo/conditioner cheat really messed me up! I am a believer now…anybody want my Infusium 23??? Ugh, my hair looked horrible all day Sunday!
I’m glad it worked for your daughter’s hair! As far as the vinegar rinse goes, I’ve used it more often than not, but the main no poo site says it’s not necessary with every washing. My hair feels just as good with it as it does without it. I just ‘feel’ like I’m doing more when I use both!
Oh, Mary I am laughing so hard! I hope I don’t offend you by sharing this, but I’m so glad you shared about your “shampoo cheat” because I’ve been keeping an eye on your hair, curious to see if it looks “good” or “bad” with this no-poo experiment. I have been so impressed – it never looked greasy until Sunday! I walked by you once in church, and thought “Ooh, the baking soda isn’t doing so good!” hee hee! That’s so interesting that you hair looked worse for going back to the shampoo!! I definitely need to try this – we do have a water softener, which makes it harder to feel like hair is all the way rinsed, and I’ve been very unhappy with my hair for a long time. Plus, my internet hasn’t worked for over a week, so I’m so glad to be caught up, and I’m writing down the recipe to try it tomorrow! Have a great day my friend!
No offense at all, Haley, that’s completely understandable! I hated that I didn’t have time to wash it out in between church and Awanas, but it wouldn’t have done any good! I’ve been using only the baking soda and vinegar since Sunday and my hair is still icky after shampooing Saturday! My dh is teasing me that it’s the baking soda/vinegar’s fault, but it was so soft and wonderful before the shampoo cheat! I keep hoping it will forgive me…so far it “ain’t” looking good! Sheesh.
I think it’s hilarious, and am very glad I shared WHY it looked so icky. Lol.
Good luck with the “no poo”! It does take some getting used to, not having suds! But it’s so easy…
Okay, I admit I only did this for three days, as my hair felt nasty, oily, dirty on the third day. Did any one go thru an icky transition period? On the fourth day I had a business Christmas party to go to and I couldn’t go with the icky hair, so I went back to shampoo. Should I try it again when I have a “homey” week after the holidays? We have hard (very) water, and I have oily hair. I’d love for this to work.
This is so interesting–I’m going to try it tomorrow!
Incidentally, I use Burt’s Bees for my babies as it’s 98% natural, but this will be WAY cheaper!
And, at our house, we WILL NOT be calling it a No-Poo experiment, because that would be something we’d need to remedy with some extra fiber. 😉
Cena, my first 4 days were wonderful, but then, as I mentioned, I did the shampoo “cheat” and for a week my hair was awful! Heavy, gritty-feeling…but I stuck it out and FINALLY, yesterday’s baking soda/vinegar process left my hair nice again. I have no idea if it was just a transitioning thing, or what. I kind of think it was like “outsmarting the feminine fat cell” only with hair! My hair caught on to me trying to go natural and wasn’t going to give in so easily the second time around! I still haven’t tried it on my girls…3 girls with long hair…call me a wimp! It does comb out awesome, but the application process…I will probably wait till we use up this new bottle of kid’s shampoo!
Jessica, lol, at your comment! That’d be a terrible side effect!
I’m jumping in here late, but this also interests me. Not to the point of trying it yet because my hair tends to be dry and longer than Mary’s (down to my waste now) and it’s curly. I only ever brush it out once a day and that’s right after I condition it with tons of cream rinse. My mom is a hairdresser and I haven’t asked her about the vinegar/ baking soda routine yet, but I’m wondering if this wash works better on certain types of hair. I’d love to hear from someone with long, curly, can’t brush through it kind of hair.
Wow, to your waist? Sounds beautiful. Doesn’t everyone (except those of you with curly hair!!) dream of having long dark curly hair? Hope someone can answer your question, Gina. My hair is definitely not curly, nor waist length! Now my daughter’s is waist length, and thick with some wave, but not curly. 🙂
I tried this for a week. My hair was oily all week but i started with oily hair. I don’t know what I did when I shampooed but my hair was not clean. I thought I should give it a try. I do however think you are on to something with the no shampoo however.The things that they put in it to extend the shelf life and make it stay a liquid can’t be good for you. Not to mention the harsh detergent. It seems to me the answer lies more in plain soap however. I have started to use plain Ivory soap on my girls instead of baby shampoo’s. The ingredients in that is the same as in adult shampoo.I have not noticed any soap scum and their hair is still nice and soft. The other day I did rinse it in vinegar to help make sure they were not getting any build up but it was very week, about 1/2 T to one cup of water. My problem with buying the “organic shampoo” is that it is very expensive and I’m not a chemist to know what all the ingredients are, just because it comes from a plant and not a lab does not necessarily make it better for you. At the store I saw 15- 20 bars of Ivory soap for $4, that would last a long time. I knew a kid growing up who was allergic to soap and that is what he used.
Good for you for trying it for a week, Andrea! I agree that the “moral of this story” is that commercial shampoos aren’t doing us any favors in the long run. I have more to this “no-shampoo” saga, and it sounds kind of similar to what you shared above! I’ll update in a post soon!
What about hairspray? Itsn’t it a harmful product to? I have gotten
into the habit of using it and now I am trying to get away from it.
I don’t use it as much as I did. So what can you use in place of it.
For your hairstyle?
Hi Shirley,
I have never thought about searching for homemade hairspray ideas. Probably because I only use hairspray, occasionally, on Sunday mornings. But I did a quick search, and came up with a lot of links! Here is just one of them for you, but in comments, there are tons of hairspray recipes! Fun! http://www.thriftyfun.com/tf305606.tip.html
I need to update with another shampoo recipe, one we like a LOT better. I will get it done one of these days. ;O) Also have one for homemade deodorant, that works!!
Mary