This is part six of a multi-part series on Green Beauty alternatives.
The rest of the series can be found [here]
Part 4: The Mane Question – No Poo Method Update
So I have been doing the ‘No Poo’ method since the end of August. My last update was last month, September 27th. Since last month I completely cut out baking soda from my regimen. I no longer suffer from greasy hair after a day or two of shampooing and conditioning.
I shower daily or every other day, as I like to be clean (I know, I know, I’m ruining the ‘dirty hippie’ stigma). I typically tie my hair in a bun and leave it dry about every other shower. When I do rinse my hair now, I water rinse it and that is it. This has been really quite awesome as a transition. About once a week I rinse my hair with vinegar.
My mixture is as follows:
- One Cup White Vinegar
- One Cup Water
- 5 Drops Lilac Essential Oil
The average person likely will not need so much liquid, but I have a lot of hair. I place the contents in a mason jar and give it a stir. Once in the shower, I soak my ends in the mixture and then dump the rest on my hair, starting with my scalp and working my way down. I let it hang out in my hair for a few minutes while I soap up using handmade soap from my friends at The Little Things (currently in my shower is their Mango Lassi soap, it’s lovely). I then lightly rinse the vinegar mixture out.
Suzi has been utilizing the No Poo Method for a bit longer than I have and recently advised the following:
Just thought I’d update on the no-poo thing, as this week was a little different for me. I’ve been water rinsing for about 2-3 months? Anyways, the last few days this week have been hair frustrating! Out of nowhere I had to struggle to get my hair to go up into my usual work-do’s. Since I leave for work at 4:15am and don’t usually get out of bed until 4:05am I really don’t have time for failed hair-do attempts. Especially since I’m customer-facing; despite the hour it’s expected that I look a little cute!
So my hair *looked* okay. Not greasy or anything. It just didn’t feel right like it had some kind of build up, I guess. Wed, Thurs & Fri were frustrating but I’m off today (Sat) and decided to try a vinegar rinse… WOW!!! ALL BETTER! It was quick and easy. I just got my hair wet and then poured maybe 1/2 a cup of kombucha vinegar over it. I worked that through my hair and scalp with my fingers and was feeling silky, smooth and clean immediately. I lightly rinsed it out and towel dried. Boy! It feels at it’s best again. I’ll probably vinegar rinse every few weeks from now on.
btw, that kombucha vinegar was from the same batch as the bottle I brought over for you girls. And to anyone not aware, kombucha vinegar is simply what you end up with when you put off bottling up your home-brew kombucha tea for too long. I’m sure Apple Cider Vinegar watered down would have the same effect.
Her advice is pretty on point for me. I am slowly stepping down how often I use vinegar to clean my hair. It is a pretty awesome feeling being ‘product free’ in my hair.
So, a conundrum I am running into is that I want to dye my hair. I normally dye my hair a variant of red quarterly. I am reaching that point where I get fed up with my roots and dye my hair again. I find myself cringing wondering how my hair will react now that I am not using a standard shampoo/condition method. I am considering dying my hair with henna in lieu of boxed dyes instead. Do any of you have any experience using the No Poo method and hair dye? If so, do you have any advice?
~Kera
Friend, I’m so glad this is working out for you!
btw, I dyed my hair a couple months after we moved home from Hawaii. My light brown (sun dyed) hair was about to clash horribly with my naturally dark roots. I had the same concern as you and also considered a henna treatment. I went with conventional dye simply because I discovered it on sale when I was starting to feel desperate about my root grow-out. Luckily, the color took well, and my scalp and hair easily went back to my rinse routine.
I didn’t use all of the conditioner that came with the hair dye. I only used it once immediately after coloring, and I avoided my scalp a bit, only working it into the body and roots. I didn’t feel the need for the weekly follow-up conditioner packets that were included and I was afraid of my hair becoming product dependent again.
Let us know how the henna goes if you try it! I’d like to try it next time. Just for a new, fun experience.
-suzi.
That’s good to know! Thank you Suzi!
I would be really careful doing henna over box dyed hair. It can be rather unpredictable and have some pretty unpleasant effects. I know a couple of people that have used both methods in the past that I can put you in contact with if you aren’t already and see what their advise is
Hmm, I will do some more research before I consider that route then.
Ooo Kera! If you are even considering henna, please take a look at this website!!
http://www.hennaforhair.com/
It’s a wealth of info, debunks a lot of common myths, great forums and personal mixture stories, 5 star supplier too!
Would so hate for you to undo the good you have done by usin a box color…
That’s a fantastic help Sarah! I think I may have scanned this site before. I’ve heard some horror stories about henna, so I’d definitely research the crud out of it first! But I agree. Box color. Meh. I used chemicals to get the blue streak I have in my hair now and it undid a lot. I had to start from scratch again. So I’ll likely be going back to a base color after all this. Possibly with henna when I am done researching it.