Going No-Poo

Well, sorta :)

I've been no shampoo before but used a commercial organic conditioner. It took a few weeks, but my hair was in beautiful condition when I did that, although I wore it natural (curly) so no heat treatments or anything then. Now, I'm back on the no-poo train. Not sure if I'll continue straightening my hair, we'll see how I go. Starting tomorrow, I'll be making a 'shampoo' and 'conditioner' - the shampoo is 1 tbsp baking soda to one cup hot water, squirted through the hair, massaged and rinsed, the conditioner is 1 tbsp apple cider vinegar to one cup hot water, massaged through and rinsed. I'll also do a weekly to fortnightly coconut oil treatment, as I found once my hair settled last time (I think about 3 weeks of gross greasiness) it was a lovely addition and made my hair strong and shiny. So I'll document my progress here. Anyone else already no-poo or want to join me?

I don't, tried once, but cradle cap is a ***** ;) But DD1 doesn't use shampoo....can't remember the last time I actually washed her hair, and it always gorgeous.
Good luck :)

I only wash mine and my girls hair once a week with an organic shampoo. I also do coconut oil every 2 weeks. The only part of my hair that I straighten is my fringe. My hair definately feels better since I started doing this. I never thought to make my own shampoo. Will wait for your feedback and decide then.

I'll be stalking with interest.. Do you put coconut oil on dry or wet hair?

I have naturally very very curly hair and I only wash once a week or once a fortnight - you cant tell as its curly. I am interested to see how you go.

Thanks guys! I'll keep you updated with posts and pictures.

Lime argh! I hope that doesn't happen to me. Didn't last time so fingers crossed. I don't wash DD's hair either and it's lovely.

I have super curly hair but from heat damage and colouring it's just frizz and feral. I had lovely defined curls last time, I might give up straightening for good if I get the same results.

i'm interested too. I only get around to washing my hair about once a week and its so gross and oily. so if doing it once a week like that would be better for it im in!. I also never curl or staighten or anything my hair. always towel dry my hair (sometimes not even that) and give it a brush through. (you can probably tell i dont really look after it =P).
please keep us updated and i might even give it a go!

I have done this before... mostly from sheer laziness and lack of time at first haha. Think I started a thread about it here somewhere once upon a time... might try and find it.

Will be watching with interest. It has been about two weeks here since I washed, I generally go about a week or two. The worst for me is around 3-5 days past washing but once I get through that it is great. Might be inspired to just keep up not washing...

I don't colour my hair and it is naturally dead straight so never had to worry about those things.

ETA: Found the post; here you go.

I have noticed it depends what shampoo i use too as to whether i feel i need to wash it sooner or not. i have one brand of shampoo that the next day my hair feels terrible, but another brand that i can go 4 or so days before it feels ferral.

when you arent washing it would you still rinse it? like get it wet, or would you keep it dry until you washed it?

I'll be interested to see how you go. I'd like to do something similar, but if I don't wash my hair every 2 days it goes horribly greasy.

Are you putting the baking soda and water In a spray bottle?

I wish I could. My hair is so oily I have to wash every day & the itch drives me nuts. I couldn't handle a few weeks of it.
Maybe I'll try it for DS & DD3's hair though. I don't wash theirs.

I barely shampoo. I use it as an emergency kinda thang (like if i have been swimming or sitting on a plane for too long and feel icky). I am always way to shy to tell people that I *might* shampoo once a month...and even then i would be lying :lol: it's such a rare occurence lol. The girls get a shampoo a bit more often as they both tend to get food in it...especially honey (of which i have found is very tenacious and doesnt want to budge).

what's weird is that if i do shampoo my poor scalp really suffers!

For those who dont shampoo, do you rinse or just leave it alone?

I'd rinse. I think you're supposed to. Every second day is what I do because otherwise my hair gets too messy (can't really brush when curly).

liking the sound of this. loving the theory. I'll give it go:)
tomorrow is day 3 no wash ( had it trimmed 3 days ago)

yeah i guess i do put my head under the hot shower sans cap once a week...i guess that it helps lol

I wash my hair every second day, otherwise my irritable scalp becomes unbearably itchy. But maybe it's the frequent washing with all those chemicals which has made it irritable?? Hmmm... interested to see how you go PZ. Not sure I could get through the itchy stage if I tried it!! Going to the holiday house next week, could try it while I'm there and not going to see anyone I know! :lol: Does the baking soda deal with the grease? And where do I buy coconut oil?? I have looked for it for my very dry hair but I can't find it!

Yeah, why not! I'll give a go!

Nickle, online, or if you have an Indian or Asian convenience store, they will have it :)

Well, I'm here on my official Day 1. I'm considering starting a blog for this, because I basically want to overhaul my entire bathroom and beauty products to home made, I was thinking of documenting the no-poo thing and also making a new product each week. I'll post here for now though :)

So I made up the shampoo and conditioner in two separate squirty bottles. Shampoo = 1 tbsp baking soda and 1 cup hot water, shaken up, conditioner = 1 tbsp apple cider vinegar and 1 cup hot water, shaken. The squirty bottle for the shampoo was broken, so I had to carefully pour that straight in. It's a weird sensation to get used to, massaging something in that isn't slippery and lathering, as that's what we're used to. I poured it in in parts into wet hair, to make sure I got everywhere. Massaged the scalp all the way to the tips. It felt a little chalky, and my hair separated really nicely into well defined strands of curls. Really noticed that it was in there rinsing it out, and it kind of stings when it gets in your eyes and tastes salty :lol: The conditioner was great to put in with the squirty bottle, because if you have thick hair like me, it's easiest to do it in sections or layers. I love the smell of ACV so that was a bonus. My hair definitely felt drier than if I had used a commercial shampoo and conditioner (all the silicone I guess!), rinsing the conditioner out, my hair felt quite dry and knotted from massaging, but combing it out was relatively easy.

Straight after, my hair fell into nice thick strands instead of thin frizzy ones which was good. I dried it by patting and gently scrunching, which I never normally do because I immediately blowdry and straighten my hair (argh, the damage). I also put a little bit of coconut oil into the ends of my hair, because they are the frizziest and driest bits. It's still drying now, I'll take a pic and try to put it here when I'm done. It definitely feels clean, but a different clean to what I'm used to, which is usually VERY fluffy, frizzy and boofy for the first day or two after washing my hair. it doesn't smell like vinegar either which is good if you don't like the smell. I know the first two + weeks will be the hardest in terms of transition for my hair. Like I said, it feels a little drier than if I had used commercial stuff, but that's because it's not coated in crap. Knowing my hair, it will go through a dry period for a day, then overcompensate with extra oil. I'll push through this gross phase! Plan is to wash my hair with the shampoo and conditioner once a week, and to wet under the shower every 1-2 days. I'll try to leave it 2 days, but with my curls it tends to get a bit messy if left longer than 1-2 days. I'll only use coconut oil for the tips, and once a f/n as an overnight treatment.

I reckon though that as you go, you will find that the coconut oil will be used less and less, that is what i found anyway. it's pretty cool seeing how your body becomes so self sufficient...a bit like childbirth really lol.

Totally. I'm liking forward to my hair finding it's happy place, that's for sure. Totally like birth..just leave it to do its own thing naturally :)

Okay, I'm attempting to attach pictures from my phone on TT. Let's see how this goes.

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Day 1 No-Poo. Curls okay, hair showing damage from heat treatments and due but feels and smells really clean.

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Side-on. Can see lots of frizz and evidence of heat damage and due (growing out ewww). Better than with commercial products which equal giant frizz ball.

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Shampoo and Conditioner.

Didn't have anything to make the shampoo and conditioner so just used water.
Hair feels fine. Pretty interested to see how it's going to go, though.

good lord lady! how did you manage to get your hair so straight! your hair is super curly!

I know. It's a huge effort straightening it daily. If it's a hair wash day, it takes about an hour of blow drying and straightening. On a non hair wet/wash day, 30 mins. My hair is very damaged from years of straightening, the top layer is so wiry and brittle.

How's it going PZ? I'm officially "day 2" and my hair feels a bit gross, oily at the roots. :(
DH is grabbing some stuff on the way home so I can make the shampoo and conditioner.

Hard to say. The first 2 weeks to a month are always a bit off. I'd say a bit greasy at the roots, very dry elsewhere. I wet it in the shower again today, my hair is too knotty and curly to leave. Might see if I can find a home made anti frizz solution. I've got day 2 photos but no real difference, just less boofy.

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Today's curls.

I've just been reading along.... It's very interesting and in all honesty I'd LOVE to do it along with you, if just a bit chicken right now! lol I have really quite long hair (about down to my belly button) so whenever I have to wash it which is usually once or twice a week the roots are greasy but the tips are pretty dry. The hairdressers always comment on how beautiful and healthy my hair is (i tell em its coz I don't do anything to it haha). So anyway maybe coming up to summer anyway where I can get away with wearing a hat for the 'gross days' I may convince myself to join you ladies!

FWIW PZ I think you have really beautiful hair and it didn't look at all frizzy to me just a lot of body :)

ohhh now we're talking, anti frizz stuff. my hair is so fine that oils just drown it.
I had to do homemade low lights today so used 'poo.
scared to go silicon free.
Chinese women have such smooth hair. maybe they hardly wash. I know after you have a baby your not allowed to wash your hair for a month. maybe that helps?

Wow pz you have gorgeous hair!

I love this idea. I hate washing my hair, and do it once a week. I think I have shampooed dds hair three times and it's always gorgeous.

I don't use soap in the shower either, or deodorant but I do need some moisturizer. Do you think coconut oil would be a good skin moisturizer?

I have used coconut and lanolin in my hair for years to encourage curls, since it is moisturizing.

I will be starting this next week, once I've organized the squirty bottles!!

Coconut oil is a gorgeous skin moisturiser! I used to use it everywhere. I'm going to be making a body and face moisturiser soon, just checking out recipes etc. Will be totally overhauling the bathroom, then onto the rest of the house. My goal is all natural, all home made products. Starting with the hair lol.

Tonight I'm contemplating a conditioning treatment. Can't decide between mayo or a honey, avocado, egg and coconut milk one. Probably will go with mayo because it's quicker. I've also found recipes for whipped hair butter that I'm going to refine a bit for myself and try out as my anti frizz product.

I'm going to try to go natural as well.
Going to start trying an Oil Face Cleanse (you can google it), and if it works, get rid of my expensive products that don't work.

My hair is thick, knotty, limp and usually in poor condition. It's a bit icky now due to having it cut on Tuesday and having loads of products used on it.

I am going to try washing with bicarb and condition with apple cider vinegar too after reading this, thank you for the inspiration.

I usually wash my hair every 4 days, although it can be greasy on the last day. Hoping this will work better for me and help my curls, which last about 5-6 hours after washing then hair goes limp.

Uhhhhh...mayo treatment? Total failure over here. My hair smells like raw eggs, and it's as dry as straw. Not sure what the issue was there, I think I just need to leave it be for a bit and let it do it's thing through this feral stage...it's like greasy straw :lol:

That mayo treatment was feral. Re washed today with my shampoo and conditioner mix, much better. Here's day 4...

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I didn't take a pic yesterday. Wish I did so you could all see how terrible it was. My hair is very clean and has loads of volume. A bit frizzy and dry on the outside layers as usual, but that's going to be the way for a while with all the heat damage.

I'm going ok. Used the shampoo conditioner and my hair went very.... fluffy.

But still feels clean and nice :)

Yep, fluffy is a good way to describe it. I reckon one wash a week will be plenty.