Tag Archives: noShampoo

It’s That Simple

Posted on by
2

After such a great response to my post on my noshampoo adventures, I am thrilled to know that some of you are interested in a “how to” so you can try it for yourselves.  For males, it is easier to go noshampoo, because with less hair, they truly can also just use no shampoo.  For females, however, with all of our lovely locks, it requires a little more effort and a few more steps.  But believe me, it’s totally worth it.

Baking Soda and Vinegar No Shampoo Method

Materials:

  • 500 mL Plastic cup
  • Baking soda
  • Apple cider vinegar

Instructions

  1. Using the plastic cup, add 2 tablespoons of baking soda and 3/4 cup of hot water.
  2. Mix with your hand, or by swirling the cup, until all the soda has dissolved.
  3. Pour this mixture onto your scalp along the part in your hair, massaging it in as you go.  I usually pour a bit, massage, pour a bit massage etc., working from the front to back of my part.
  4. Wait 1-2 minutes and then fully rinse your scalp.
  5. Once your soda mixture is gone and rinsed, pour two tablespoons of apple cider vinegar into the cup and dilute with one cup of water.
  6. Pour this mixture into the bottom parts of your hair (not your scalp). I usually do this by just lowering sections of my hair into the cup and submerging them in there for a few seconds. To get the rest of my hair, I tilt my head to on side and pour on, and then repeat on the other side.
  7. Give your hair a final rinse and voila: clean!

Notes:

  • I have thick, long, wavy hair, so these amounts have been adjusted to the amount of hair I have and the amount of soda/vinegar I need.  Play around with the amounts to find the right ratios for your hair.
  • I keep all of the materials in the bathroom, pour the soda in the cup on the counter and take that and the vinegar in the shower with me. I add the water in the shower as I stand there.
  • I wrap my hair in an old t-shirt to dry, not a towel.  When I went noshampoo, I did some reading and learned that this alternative may also help with frizzy hair.  Give it a try!
  • The instructions above are the method I have used for the last ten months which has brought me overwhelming success.  Because it has been working for me, I have not tried anything else, but I have heard of other options you can try as a noshampoo regime.  See below for some links on other alternatives and further information:
    1. No Shampoo News Article
    2. Another Bloggers Methods
    3. Curly Girl No Shampoo Methods

It really is that simple.  It takes a couple times to get used to in terms of mixing everything up, figuring out the ratios etc., but once you do, it all happens in a jiff.  Eventually you won’t even need to measure any more and you will get good enough to just eye ball it!  Let me know if you have any questions, comments or feedback on how it works for you. For now, go buy yourself some soda and vinegar and go for it. You just might be surprised at how well you like it!

 

 

 

No Shampoo Bandwagon

Posted on by
13

Another supporter, another reason to try it:

Perhaps the best part of all is telling people you haven’t used shampoo in your hair for almost a year.  You can practically see the thoughts streaming on overdrive through their mind: “Are you insane?  That’s disgusting! Get away from me.”  As a girl with extremely thick, wavy hair, who regularly required an ungodly amount of shampoo to get through the mane (as my friends call it), the looks you get are that much better.  The truth though, is that ever since getting rid of the shampoo, so is my hair.  Hitting nearly a year of shampoo free, I could never go back.  It’s just too great.

The decision to try it came innocently enough.  Last summer, I started following blogs quite religiously, especially those on health and wellness and clean living.  One continuous entry that popped up fairly often was the idea of going without shampoo: it was cheaper, better for the environment, and as everyone seemed to claim, better for your hair.  I had always struggled with shampoo and my hair.   I had never found one that could eliminate the frizziness that inevitably resulted, and I also always felt that shampoo left my hair flat and dry looking.  With nothing to lose, I dove in and adopted the baking soda and vinegar technique.  At first, I wasn’t necessarily committed, planning to give it a try a couple times, and then jump back on the shampoo bandwagon.  I did this, and then jumped right back off again.  You don’t realize the difference it makes or how amazing it is until you compare shampoo and non-shampoo hair, and then hear yourself saying, “how did I not do this sooner?”

Almost a year later and my hair is much easier to style, maintains its natural wave far more effectively, doesn’t seem as dried out and let’s just say that baking soda and vinegar is way cheaper than shampoo and conditioner.  As a student, this is a welcome bonus!  Now as I pack up to go traveling next month, I’m working on how to transport cider and soda, not shampoo and conditioner.  At the very least I don’t have to worry about people stealing my shampoo in the hostel showers!

Going through rough times

Posted on by
2

икона за подаръкХудожник

Ok… So, now you’ve dealt with all your fears. That’s good. You’ve convinced yourself that it’s ok to try this “weird” method. You’ve found your motivation. You saw that there are other people that have done it and they are happy about it. You’ve read enough information to make you try it. Now you’ve found the courage to try it.

Very good!

You did it for the first time… You discovered that it is not gross and you don’t stink J You continue doing it and you see that it works fine. You stumble a bit (the build up and stuff), but you find support here. You read that you’re not the only one and you receive advice and carry on.

Now you’re more than one month into it, maybe more. You’ve passed the hard part already and you are happy with the results. You are really confident and you start to enjoy your new and healthy hair. You find yourself that you are really into this stuff and you are enthusiastic about it.

Sadly that’s not all…

Yeah, you’re not finished… Now you find yourself in the position when you start telling about this method to your friends and family. And… all Hell breaks loose. You thought it would be fine, but you forgot that you were reluctant at the beginning too. Your friends and family, and those you’ve told about this, start laughing at you. They start to mock you and they look at you like you are the biggest weirdo on the planet! J Maybe you didn’t see it coming, or maybe you thought you could handle it. Don’t worry, you will! They start to give you a bunch of reasons why it’s better and healthier to use shampoo… Maybe you start to debate those ideas, but I advise you not to. Let them say what they think, listen to them, but carry on doing what you feel like. They will think that this method is unhealthy, gross and bad for you. But you know a secret. You know that they are wrong because you’ve tried it for a long time, and you convinced yourself.

Steadily they will chill and they will probably forget about it. Be relaxed and you may find out that some of them tried it, or that maybe some of them embraced the idea and are using it. If not, you will find out that some friends like you for who you are, and that they don’t judge you by what you wash your hair with :) )

Try not to let your friends change your mind about a thing you’ve tried and you know is ok for you.

And don’t forget the fact that you DON’T have to share this method, even if you like it and use it. You know best the people you hang with and if you think that they will give you a hard time, maybe it’s better to keep it to yourself. It’s no one’s business what you do in your own privacy.

All the best,

Bogdan

My experience with noShampoo

Posted on by
11

Hello everybody!

First, let me introduce myself :) I am Bogdan, an almost 22 years-old student from Romania. I’m studying Psychology and I am very interested about green and natural stuff, from food to living.

I found out about the noShampoo technique from Facebook, if I’m not mistaken. I think a friend of mine “liked” one article from the website and I was curious to read it. That was a very good move for me. After I read all the articles, I asked some questions to a post but the answer didn’t came up as fast as I wanted and I decided to try this “weird and crazy” method.

My first experience was in November 2011. At first I was a bit reluctant :) In my mind I imagined myself, after using noShampoo, as a homeless guy. I thought that my hair will be filthy and unattractive.  I guess most of you think about this at first, it’s ok :) So, after several weeks I saw that my hair was… interesting. It was like it changed, somehow. It was thicker, let’s say, but not from grease, it was thick after I washed it.  My hair was like never before. It had volume, and I could manage it, I could comb it as I wanted. Simply, I was amazed! I have straight hair, and the length is medium.

After trying this method for several weeks I had my downs… I must admit it. When my hair was too greasy (for me) I made the HUGE mistake to wash it with shampoo… Trust me, it was a mistake. My hair was very soft and I couldn’t make it stay one way or another… I had a hard time dealing with it :) To be honest, I had my slips just 2 or 3 times and I don’t really regret them, because I saw very clearly the difference between using shampoo and noShampoo.

Now I have been using only noShampoo for several months and I think my hair is starting to adjust its oils. I say that because my girlfriend asked me everyday if I washed my hair with shampoo (she knows I don’t use it anymore) because my hair looks really nice and clean.

So, to wrap things up, I advise you to give it a try. I’m not saying “Do this for the rest of your life!!”, but just try for yourself and see if this is bull**** or if it really works. That’s how I did it, and I experienced on my own the benefits. You might feel a bit awkward at first, but you won’t look dirty and your hair won’t smell bad! :)

Have a nice day and give it a try!

All the best,

Bogdan