No Poo, yet stinky.

So this summer, I jumped aboard the "no 'poo" band wagon and decided to stop washing my hair. I'd love to say that I was hell-bent on single-handedly saving the environment, or something noble like that, but I really did it because my hair was just kind of... there. It was falling out more than I thought it should when I shampooed, and the color looked like sink water after you've washed a few dishes in it.

This was me, just before I stopped 'poo-ing. I wouldn't say my hair is necessarily bad, it just sort of is.

 Before starting the process, I learned that shampoo was only invented in the 1930s (so what were we doing before then? We certainly weren't all sitting around with greasy heads), and that the sulfates and other chemicals in shampoo are terrible for your hair. Who woulda thunk it?

So, for an entire week, I didn't do anything to it. Didn't wash it, condition it, or even get it wet. Not overly cute, but I just threw it in a bun every day and no one was any the wiser. Unfortunately, (or maybe fortunately) I didn't take pictures of my hair at this time. It was a dark, dark time.

Then, I washed my hair with a mixture of two tablespoons of baking soda and enough water to turn it into a paste, and sprayed apple cider vinegar on the ends to condition it.

Woah. There were waves. There was color. There was life.

Please excuse the state of my face. Focus on the hair. THE HAIR.

I was so ecstatic, and I couldn't believe it worked. After a while, though, I started to catch on to the fact that apple cider vinegar was not cutting it as far as conditioning goes. The ends were a little frayed and brittle. So I decided to try some coconut oil, which I had heard worked wonders. Accidentally, I bought concentrated coconut oil. Disaster ensued. Read labels, people.

It took dish soap and four washes to get that mess out. After a few more trials and errors, here's what I eventually settled on: every three days, I wash my hair. I keep a teeny tupperware and a not-so-teeny plastic bottle of baking soda in my shower. I just poor roughly two tablespoons of baking soda into the tupperware and a teeny bit of water until it's a paste. I rub that paste all over my scalp and leave it in while I do something else: wash my body or face or whatever. I rinse it out, and then only condition the ends of it with regular Dove conditioner. My hair doesn't fall out so much, and it's insanely soft.

Time out for the INSANE props I got from the hair dresser the first time I got it cut after I had stopped shampooing. She said it was some of the healthiest hair she'd ever felt, very clean and vibrant. I happened to luck into a great hairdresser by way of a recommendation from a good friend, and I was lucky that she had a little bit of the hippie vibe, I still think there would be al ot of hairdressers who might balk at this idea. 

I have pin straight hair, but I've read this this works JUST as well for people with curly hair. That first week is just the pits, so time it wisely when you don't have to look your normal spectacular for a few days. Everyone's hair is different, so be prepared for a few weeks of trial and error. Another thing I do from time to time is rinse my hair in green tea: there's caffeine in tea that gives it some bounce and it brings out the red in my hair. Hit the interwebs for other instructions and suggestions, people!

Happy no poo-ing!

The next thing I've started trying is all natural deodorant and no antiperspirant. (Hence the "stinky" in the title). Apparently there are links between deodorant and breast cancer in women. Aluminum is the main ingredient in many antiperspirant, and apparently rubbing that on the lymph nodes in our armpits is really bad- go figure. I haven't figured this one out yet. I tried this brand first.

It didn't work. Like, not at all, not one tiny bit. I was stinkier when I was using this than when I wasn't using anything. I gave it a whole two weeks to let my body adjust to using something different, but to no avail. So, next, I moved on to a more known brand, Toms.

It works MUCH better. I still find myself needing to apply twice a day, but small price to pay for lowering my chances of breast cancer, if you ask me. Once this one runs out, I'll probably try another brand,so I'll keep you posted on the state of my B.O. You're welcome.