2014
Wow what a year 2014 was for me! I went no-poo (no shampoo) on the 24th of January 2014, a year ago. It was such an amazing discovery that humans don't actually need shampoo! Of course I should have guessed! What did people do before? Since I went no-poo my life turned around. I used to think I had a green lifestyle: recycling, eating "healthy" etc... But this year I've done so much research and changed so many of my habits that I realise just how little I used to do and how little I really knew. I've tried to take chemicals and processed things out of my life as much as I can. I started this blog when I went no-poo and all the changes I've made since then are recorded in my posts. Changes range from not using soap to making my own clothes and trying to avoid plastic. Among lots of other subtle changes and health boosts.
No-poo 1 YEAR!
Check out my no-poo first 6 weeks to see how it all started and what the initial changes entail (it can be a little drastic)
After a year, my routine has stabilised. I tried so many recipes and ways of doing things and I've come up with my own little routine and I've found what works best for me (although it might still change and continue progressing). Initially I wanted to go WO (water only) and was going through the steps to hopefully progress to WO but I still haven't achieved that. It's no longer such a priority as long as I'm not using chemicals and using as little as possible to be as natural as possible. I now wash my hair every 7 days with a natural, home-made 'shampoo' and 'conditioner', and use a home-made natural dry 'shampoo' once a week too. Here's a post about the natural, dry 'shampoo', I write about how to make it and how to use it.
My final recipes
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| what you need |
Shampoo: 5 teaspoons of bicarbonate of soda (baking soda) + half a cup of water (125ml) put this in a squeezy bottle and shake very well. leave the lid open because the baking soda is a little
explosive (it just means the air will not have enough room in the bottle and it will make the liquid spill over, but if you leave the lid open there will be no spills... you'll see what I mean if you try it for yourself). Make sure to label your bottles!
Conditioner: Juice from half a lemon + half a cup of water. Cut the lemon in half, and squeeze. then mix with 125 ml of water and place in a squeezy bottle. You can close this one, it's fine. (I sometimes infuse some chamomile into the water before mixing it with the lemon to highlight the blonds in my hair) Label your bottles!
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| add water and shake |
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| what you'll need: labeled bottle, lemon, knife and squeezer |
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| poor the lemon juice in |
Hair washing Routine
Day 1: (Friday morning) Bicarb shampoo + lemon conditioner
The way I do it: (always shake before squeezing) Squeeze some bicarb shampoo all over my roots and hairline and massage into the scalp then squeeze some more all over my head. Put the bottle down and really give my head a good scrub using my finger tips (no scratching) then if I have some liquid left I poor it on the rest of my hair. Then I leave it in for 5 minutes. Rinse under warm water.
Once it's fully rinsed out, I squeeze some lemon conditioner on the length of my hair and rub my hair, then I poor some on my roots and give a gentle rub. I leave it in for 5 minutes, then rinse out thoroughly. (during the 5 minute waits, I wash my body or turn the water off.) Towel and air dry, comb when dry.
Hair looks wonderful, clean, soft, smooth and shiny.
Day 2: I don't do anything but combing. Hair still looks great
Day 3: I don't do anything but combing. Hair still looks great
Day 4: I don't do anything but combing, maybe tie my hair or plait it if it looks a bit flat. My hair will start to look oily throughout the day and at bed time my hair is very oily. I give myself a deep and thorough head massage to detach the oil from my scalp and to help hair growth.
Day 5: (Tuesday morning) Dry shampoo
I put the dry "shampoo" in my hair and after combing it looks stunningly clean again! All the oil is absorb and gone. Hair looks great again.
Day 6: I don't do anything but combing. Hair still looks good.
Day 7:I don't do anything but combing. Hair still looks good from the dry 'shampoo'. If it has worn off and my hair is looking a bit flat then I'll make a bun or a pony tail. But it doesn't look oily.
Throughout the whole week, my hair always feels so soft and clean no matter what it looks like.
Day 8: This is the day I wash it and start the process again.
Conclusion:
So after a year of experimenting with this, I finally found my ideal recipes and routine. I also go through some only water washing periods that can last up to 2 weeks then I notice I need a bicarb wash and can go on again. But my hair doesn't feel as clean to the touch when I do this. I don't think it's bad but I just like my hair to be soft and silky.
Hope you enjoyed this post and found it helpful or interesting. Let me know about your journey! Or if you're thinking of going no-poo too!!! I have more posts recording the journey at 1 month, 3 months, 4 months, 5 to 6 months and 8 months.
Comment! I can't wait to read what you have to say! :)
Loads of peace and love
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